Got Pride?

Jill Sanders, author of FINDING PRIDE and DISCOVERING PRIDE, recently took time out of her extremely busy schedule to chat with us.  If you haven’t checked out her PRIDE series yet, what are you waiting for???

FINDING PRIDE
Megan Kimble was traveling a long way to find the next chapter in her
life, one that would not include her brother Matt. Losing him now was
tragic, even more so since she had finally freed herself from the
abuse and the shame of a bad marriage. She'd spent years hiding things
from Matt, so he wouldn't know about her horrible life. Keeping her
secret world of bruises, cuts, and broken bones, much like the one she
now sported with a large white cast.

Dealing with her loss was hard, but, now she was thinking of taking
over Matt's new business venture. This could be the fresh start she
needed, a new town, a new place to forget the pain and maybe she could
learn to trust again.

Todd Jordan was a successful businessman, who had once lost it all,
and now he'd just lost his best friend and business partner. But, then
she came into town broken and scared, and for the first time in a long
time he was looking forward to his future. Breaking down Megan's
barriers would take patience and strength, and he would need that
strength to keep what he loves safe.

 

DISCOVERING PRIDE:
Lacey Jordan was a woman who knew what she wanted… and she wanted
nothing to do with the new doctor in town. He had the perfect smile,
perfectly tan muscles and a way with people. Her people. This was her
town, her family, her life, and he’d come in and shaken everything up,
including her heart.

Aaron was running away from a hard breakup where more then just his
heart had been broken. At this point all he wanted to do was take over
his grandfather’s medical practice, and work on his new house, turning
it into the first place he could call home. He liked the town of
Pride, in fact he’d spent the only good parts of his childhood here.
What he hadn’t expected was to bump into a fairy goddess. Bumping hard
enough to get a concussion and have his heart mended at the same time.

Then, the town gets a visit that will change their lives forever, if
they can survive

And without further delay, my interview with the lovely Jill Sanders....

Violet:  What is your inspiration? What helps you get through writer's block?

Jill: Well, when I hit a wall, I don't stress about it. I take a few weeks off and enjoy reading other books. My inspirations are my kids and husband. I love telling them stories.

Violet: Do you listen to music when you write? Have a completely silent space?

Jill: Sometimes I listen to music. If I do, it's usually something from the 80's since I like to rock out. I don't really have a space to write right now. We are in the process of remodeling our house, much like Aaron was in my second book, Discovering Pride. So, any clean surface will do.

Violet: Who inspires you? What authors do you look up to? Why?

Jill: I think I've been inspired by anything I've ever read. My favorite to read has been Nora Roberts over the last couple years.

Violet: When did you first start writing? What genre do you prefer?

Jill: I started wanting to write young adult or romance books when I was a teenager. I actually wrote a “novel” with my twin sister and best friend. Then, in High School I had a few teachers that encouraged me to write descriptive stories. I started writing as an adult shortly after my mother passed away. I prefer romance right now, but I do have other ideas about fantasy or mystery. Who knows...

Violet: If you had to choose another genre to write, what would it be? Why?

Jill: Fantasy or mystery. I think my mom would have loved if I could end up like Agatha Christie.

Violet:  What is your favorite book (or who is your favorite author) and why?

Jill:  Gone with the Wind has been a favorite since I read it at fifteen. Rebecca was in second place.

Violet:  Do you have another job and if so what is it?

Jill:  I don't currently have a job. I'm a network engineer by trade and have worked for companies such as IBM, Gateway, EMC, and City and County of Denver to name a few.

Violet:  Tell about your first book and how long it took you to write the first draft?

Jill:   I started writing Finding Pride almost ten years ago. The first draft sat on my computer forever. I submitted it to get published, but hated having to print the whole thing out and mail it to everyone. Hello, we are in the electronic ages here... So, my twin sister told me to put it up online myself. 

Finding Pride is a heart warming story about Megan Kimble. After her divorce from a very abusive man, she moves to Pride, Oregon when her brother, Matt, dies. Deciding to try her hand at a new life in this small, tight-knit community, she takes over her brother's new business, a bed and breakfast, with the help of his best friend Todd Jordan. Todd, seeing Matt's sister arrive broken and bruised, feels it's not only his calling to see that she is taken care off, but the fact that he can't keep his mind off of her, makes him realize he's fallen in love.

Violet:  List all of your titles with a one sentence synopsis of each.

Jill:  Finding Pride tells the story of Todd and his determination to show Megan Kimble not all men are jerks.

Discovering Pride tells how Lacey shows Aaron Stevens, who is recovering from a crazy relationship, how to trust again.

Returning Pride is Iian's story of finally taking the big step and grabbing what he wants... Allison Adams.

Lasting Pride tells the story of close friend Ric Derby and his exciting adventure with Detective Roberta Stanton.  

Violet:  Who is your favorite character? Why?

Jill:  Well, my favorite female character is Lacey Jordan, because she was so much fun to write about. I know a few women that fit this character and I enjoy them all.

My favorite male character is Iian Jordan. He's a little harder to write about since he is deaf, but he is sexy as hell and I can't keep him out of my mind.

Violet: Who is your least favorite character? Why?

Jill:  I love all my characters. Even the bad ones.

Violet:  Which character was most difficult to write?

Jill:  I'm currently writing Iian and Allison's story in Returning Pride. This is particularly hard to write since Iian is deaf.

Violet:  What scenes are most difficult to write?

Jill:  The exciting scenes. I tend to want to type too fast and can't make my fingers work as fast as my brain. Which causes a lot of typos.

Violet: Do you see yourself in any of your characters?

Jill:  All of them.  There is a little bit of me in every single one. Even the bad ones. 

Violet: Indie pub or trad pub?

Jill:  Indie for now. I love the tight community of Indie authors I've been welcomed into. 

Violet:  What is your favorite scene? Why?

Jill: I love the scenes where the whole town of Pride come out to support someone. I grew up in a small town, and had a family like this. Everyone should get to enjoy the love that I show in these scenes.

Violet: Give a one sentence summary.

Jill: It was more a tradition then anything, that the town people seemed to come out in spades when one of their own was hurt.

Violet:   If you could meet anyone, living or dead, who would it be and why?

Jill: Hm. This is a hard question. I guess I would use this up on a chance to see my mother again. To tell her how much I love and appreciate her.

Violet:  If you could take the place of one of your characters, which one would you choose and why?

Jill: Probably Lacey, I like thinking I'm in control.

Violet:  If you could vacation anywhere in the world, where would you go and what would you do?

Jill: Bora Bora. Lay around and do nothing.

Violet: What is your favorite TV show/movie from your childhood?  What is it now?

Jill: Hogans Hero’s / Indiana Jones, Doctor Who / Indiana Jones

Thank you Jill!  For more on Jill and her series, stop by http://www.prideseries.com and http://www.prideseries.com/blog.html.

Vi