The amazing Diva LeeAnn Sontheimer Murphy has cruised by here today for an interview. Let's give her a great big Diva welcome!
Vanessa: Would you please start by telling us a
little bit about yourself?
LeeAnn: I’m a feisty natural redhead, stubborn
and loyal. I wake up every morning and
greet the day as full of possibilities.
I don’t let life kick me around too bad – if it tries, I kick back. I’m more sinner than saint and I write
romance from sweet to heat. I’m married,
three kids, one dog and live in what passes as suburbs in a small town. But I don’t always fit the small town mold
and you can take the girl out of her blue collar urban neighborhood but you
can’t take the influences out of the girl.
Vanessa: What was your most challenging book to
bring to life?
LeeAnn: At the time,
every WIP is the most challenging.
Overall, though, I’d have to say it was Heart of the Ozarks (coming August 3 from Rebel Ink Press) because
it’s the first one I wrote from a male third person POV.
LeeAnn: It’s hard to choose – kind of like
asking me which of my kids I like most and then deciding their best asset! I
think the scene in Guy’s Angel when
Guy and Angel come home would be right up there as one of my favorites.
Vanessa: If you could trade places for a day
with one of your characters, who would it be and why?
LeeAnn: I’d trade with Angel in Guy’s Angel because I like to fly almost as much as she
does and I love the 1920’s.
Vanessa: Which of your characters is most/least
like you, and in what way(s)?
LeeAnn: All of my characters, male and female,
minor and major, have a little of me in them or I couldn’t bring them to
life. I’d have to say Henry Mink in my
upcoming (September 17) Rebel Ink Press title, Dust Bowl Dreams. Why? He
cares about his family, he looks after all of them and he’ll go to any length
to do so.
Vanessa: Can you tell us about your current
work in progress, perhaps you could share a favorite fact or piece of
fascinating information it?
LeeAnn: My current WIP – so far untitled – is
about a Iraqi veteran, Devlin. He’s
tough, had a hard life and bad war experiences but he falls for a college
student who’s about as sheltered as they come.
She’s going to tame him a little and he’s going to teach her how to live
a little bit more.
Some of the scenes so far are so
poignant they make me cry – a first.
Vanessa: What is one thing about you that your
readers would find surprising or never guess about you?
LeeAnnL I grew up in an old river town, St.
Joseph, MO, where the past almost stands still and in a blue collar
neighborhood where girls weren't to do anything different. I’m sure when I was born, the expectation was
I would grow up, marry a guy from the same background, get a house in the neighborhood,
send my kids to the same schools, and go from girl to grandmother in a few
decades. I broke the mold on that one,
apparently.
Vanessa: How do you spend your down time
between edits, deadlines, writing and creating new and fascinating books? Do
have a favorite pastime or hobby to fill you spare time with?
LeeAnn: Once upon a time I actually had down
time between edits, deadlines, and writing new novels but not any longer. In the last year when I went from having a
couple of books out to 17 and counting, my time crunched into a tiny
space. I’m hoping for a little down time
this summer between the Guy’s Angel
release in June and Rebel Ink’s upcoming Father’s Day anthology, The Dad Plan (including my story Three of Hearts with characters from my
first Rebel release, Love Never Fails)
and my next release, another contemporary, Heart
of the Ozarks, August 3. When I
have the chance, I love to trace family history, visit historical places and do
a little ghost hunting on the side.
Vanessa: I’m a bit of an author stalker and I
love going to signings and conventions. Do you have any upcoming appearances?
LeeAnn: I did two in the spring, both in Missouri. I’ll be in Springfield, MO again at an author
fair in October and there are plans for a mega party to celebrate the release
of Guy’s Angel sometime this summer
in my hometown of St. Joseph, MO.
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