Christine Presents ~ Brynnde by M Pepper Langlinais

Please welcome M Pepper Langlinais author of Brynnde.

M Pepper Langlinais will be awarding a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

Brynnde

by M Pepper Langlinais

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GENRE:   Regency romance

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INTERVIEW:

• What or who inspired you to start writing?

Stephen Spielberg. Which is crazy because he’s not a writer. But I watched his movies as I kid, and his way of telling stories made me want to tell stories, too. And I didn’t have the tools to make movies of my own, so I used what I had: notebooks and pens.

• How did you come up with ideas for your books?

What expertise did you bring to your writing?

I almost always start with a character (or characters) and a moment and build a story around that. I’m not sure where the characters come from though! As for expertise, I really only brought a wealth of experience to Brynnde. I used to read all the old Zebra and Signet Regency romances, and they were always clean and sweet and I loved them. When those publishers quit putting out those books, I missed them. And after having written a couple of heavier books just prior, I found I wanted to write something lighter and more fun. I really was just planning to write Brynnde for fun, but then I realized I might have something publishable on my hands.

• What would you want your readers to know about you that might not be in your bio?

If it’s not in my bio, I probably don’t want them to know!

Seriously, though, I’m not sure. I have a FAQs page on my site and I answer just about anything people ask (within reason).

• As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans?

Keep writing! I’m currently juggling three projects and hoping to see one of my books and/or screenplays go into production.

• If you could be one of the characters from any of your books, who would it be and why?

Any of my own books? Yikes. I’m pretty hard on my characters, but I think I wouldn’t mind being Julia from Brynnde. She’s direct and a bit sassy. I find her a lot of fun.

• If you were the casting director for the film version of your novel, who would play your leading roles?

You know, I do often think of actors while writing my books, but in the case of Brynnde, I didn’t. So I’m not sure.

• Do you belong to a critique group? If so how does this help or hinder your writing?

Yes, I do. I think it’s so important to get feedback. Sometimes what makes perfect sense to me when I put it on the page isn’t clear to the readers who can’t see what I do in my head. So it helps me find places where I need to be clearer in my writing. Then again, it took me a while not to let my critique group instill self-doubt in me. Sometimes you have to go with your gut no matter what someone else says. It’s a fine line. Having a critique group also slows me down, but that’s not always a bad thing. Too many writers rush to publish before the manuscript is really ready. I’ve done it myself. It’s hard not to be impatient, but so much better to take your time with the work.

• When did you first decide to submit your work? Please tell us what or who encouraged you to take this big step?

I got my start writing fan fiction back before you could just post it online. (Yes, I’m that old.) There were fanzines, and you had to submit to them if you wanted to have your fic published so that others could read it. Well, some of my friends had read my fanfic—they were the only ones I’d shown it to—but then I picked up some zines at conventions and decided to try. And I had such a great and encouraging response from the people running the fanzines. I even got invited to conventions as a guest fan author, which just blew my mind. That was when I started to think I might have some talent in writing and maybe could branch out into my own stuff.

• What is the best and worst advice you ever received? (regarding writing or publishing)

Best advice came from Charlene Harris (of Sookie Stackhouse fame): “Don’t read your reviews. That is a poisonous pit.” I do appreciate when fans write reviews, but I’ve found I get hung up on them if I read them. A good review only makes me feel good for a little while and a bad one stays with me forever, sometimes even making it so that I can’t write for a while. For my own sanity and the sake of my work, I don’t read the reviews. I just focus on the next thing because what is done is done.

Worst advice was that I needed to hire a PR person if I wanted to be successful in getting my book noticed by readers. Actually, that may be true, but I can’t afford it. You might as well tell me I need to buy an Aston Martin. Would love to have one, mate, but it’s not in the cards at the moment. By the time I can afford a PR person, I’ll be selling enough books I won’t need a PR person.

10. Do you outline your books or just start writing?

I just start writing. But I keep a notebook next to my computer where I flowchart things as I go. Like, if I stop to ask myself a question about where a scene or plot development is going, I’ll sketch out all possible answers until I find one I like.

11. Do you have any hobbies and does the knowledge you’ve gained from these carry over into your characters or the plot of your books?

I have hobbies my mother would disapprove of. Namely, I enjoy astrology and tarot. So far that has not appeared in my books.

12. Do you have an all time favorite book?

Oh, that’s a tough one. Possibly The Changeling by Zilpha Keatley Snyder. My best friend and I used to make up games like the main characters in that book do, so that book really spoke to me as a child.

13. Have you started your next project? If so, can you share a little bit about your book?

I’ve started THREE projects! I’m working on Book 2 of my Changers series, I’m writing another Regency romance, and I’m also writing a contemporary YA version of Hamlet.

14. Who is your favorite actor and actress?

I always have to reframe this question as: Who do I go see in movies regardless of what the movie itself might be? Tom Hiddleston, maybe. I also really enjoy Chris Pratt and Ewan McGregor. As for actresses, I’m not sure. I think there are more of them I dislike than like, which is probably pretty catty of me. I have always liked Audrey Hepburn, though, and I generally like Amy Adams.

15. Can you tell us a little about the black moment in your book?

Oh, Brynnde is a fairly light book. The nadir is her being sick and realizing she’s in love with the hero while at the same time beginning to believe he might love someone else.

16. What is your favorite reality show?

I don’t watch reality TV. As someone with a screenwriting degree, I rail against “unscripted” television.

17. Can you tell us a little bit about what it was like to write a series.

Well, I wrote a series of Sherlock Holmes stories and then the Peter Stoller novellas that were combined into one novel… I find series difficult to be honest. After a first story or book, there’s increased pressure as you write more. Not necessarily from the readers or publisher, just increased internal pressure to live up to or do better than what came before.

BLURB:

Brynnde Archambault seems able to find matches for everyone but herself. With the help of the handsome and witty Viscount Burbridge, she manages to get his sisters, her brother, and a family friend paired off. But if she doesn’t find a match for herself soon, she may be stuck with dull Mr. Dallweather. Can she find a suitor–or has the right match been staring her in the face all along?

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EXCERPT:

She was the first lady to arrive at the lawn but discovered the men had already started. Her brother and Graeme Sommerford were laughingly arguing over a shot one of them had made, and Brynnde reflected they had grown friendly quickly.

As if reading her thoughts, a voice at Brynnde’s ear said, “They seem to be fast friends.”

Brynnde turned to find Garrick Sommerford—Lord Burbridge, she reminded herself, though the name did not suit him, was far too stuffy—at her shoulder. She frowned, not liking having been snuck up on, nor having her thoughts so openly spoken by someone else. “It would seem so,” she agreed.

Garrick raised his eyebrows. “You disapprove?”

“Not at all,” said Brynnde. “As a rule, my brother shows good

judgement in his choice of friends. If he were laughing with you, I might wonder, but as it stands…” She gave a tiny shrug.

Garrick placed a hand over his heart. “You wound me, Miss Archambault. Are you still angry about yesterday evening? What if I were to swear I almost never suffer such verbal clumsiness? That it must be your stunning beauty that has caused me to trip over my own tongue?”

Brynnde looked hard at him, the angelic halo of his sunlit hair, the twinkle in his slate-colored eyes. He was laughing at her! Again! “Insufferable,” she muttered and stepped away to find a free target. She had a sudden and acute need to shoot something.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

M Pepper Langlinais is an award-winning screenwriter, produced playwright, and published author.

M holds a Master of Arts in Writing, Literature and Publishing and a Bachelor of Science in Radio-Television-Film. She has a love of Shakespeare, having both performed and taught his work, and has also interned on Hollywood film sets. M worked for Houghton Mifflin and Pearson before deciding to devote her full time to her own writing (and occasionally parenting). She lives in Livermore, California with her family, cats, and hamster. Find out more about her and her books at http://PepperWords.com.

Website: http://PepperWords.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/sh8kspeare

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/mpepperlanglinais

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/M-Pepper-Langlinais/e/B008FBOSPE/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/MPepperLanglinais

IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm5997882/

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE

M Pepper Langlinais will be awarding a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/28e4345f2213