Lost and Found by Maggie Clare
Please welcome Maggie Clare author of Lost and Found
Maggie Clare will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
Lost and Found
byMaggie Clare
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GENRE: Romantic Suspense
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INTERVIEW:
- How did you come up with ideas for your books?
While Lost and Foundis the third book in the Tactical Solutions International series, I actually wrote parts of it first. I’d just finished the final draft of the second book in my science fiction series, and I wanted to take a break from that story for a little while.
As often happens, key scenes from a new story will take shape in my mind, choreographed out like action sequences on television. There is one scene in Lost and Foundwhere Lissa is trying to escape from the stalker. She sprays him with a bottle of bathroom cleaner and runs through the house, only to find all the doors padlocked. Even though there wasn’t much of a story to go with it yet, this scene was pulse-pounding and terrifying enough that I really wanted to keep it!
After just a few weeks of working on my new idea, I had to return to writing my science fiction series, and Lost and Foundsat in my files for about a year. When I eventually began developing the TSI series, I dusted off that partial manuscript, gave Cam a new and better backstory, and turned it into book 3.
- What would you want your readers to know about you that might not be in your bio?
I once did a ‘five things about me’ type interview, focusing on fun, interesting personal facts, so I’ll share the answers with you here!
- When a book is too suspenseful, I get stressed out and read the ending first. I always go back and read it through, but this takes the edge off so I can relax and enjoy the story without worrying about the end. I know it’s cheating!
- I climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro for my 40th It was very, very hard. Not Everest hard, but still a huge physical and mental challenge.
- Tattoos are awesome and I have a few. I love really artistic ink.
- I’m a medical school dropout. Med school with small children was, for me, an impossible task. I always thought I’d return when the kids were older, but it never seemed to be the right time. It wasn’t until I started writing that I was able to let that particular aspiration go.
- I taught middle school Latin for over a decade. I know, I’m a dinosaur!
Do you belong to a critique group? If so how does this help or hinder your writing?
I don’t have an official critique group, but I have a solid team of beta readers who really point me in the right direction early on. They know my writing style, like this genre, and are either avid readers or writers themselves. They don’t take the place of my editor, but they save me a lot of time.
- What is the best and worst writing advice you ever received?
The best writing advice I ever received, and that I pass along regularly, is to finish something! A first draft can be edited, but an unfinished manuscript will never become a book. Even if that particular manuscript is never published, there is value in seeing a project through to completion, in working out plot tangles, in ending well.
I’m skeptical of any advice that uses absolutes like – you should always do this, or you should never do that. Best practices and so called ‘rules of writing’ are worth understanding, but there are always exceptions.
- Do you outline your books or just start writing?
I am a loose outliner, meaning I have the major plot points, theme, and characters sketched out ahead of time, but I leave plenty of room for interesting twists along the way.
- Have you started your next project? If so, can you share a little bit about your book?
You may know that Maggie Clare is my pen-name, and I also publish speculative fiction under my given name, Tabitha Lord. Maggie is taking a short break from the romantic suspense series so Tabitha can finish writing an urban fantasy! It’s a rather dark story about a lady assassin who kills people in their dreams. She’s a Jessica Jones meets Dexter vigilante type character, and she only goes after men who’ve gotten away with terrible crimes. In the opening scene, she’s on a job but realizes the person she’s been hired to kill is actually an undercover FBI agent. His criminal history is a cover. She finds him in the waking world, and they attempt to discover who wants him dead. A little different from the romantic suspense, but with a similar action-adventure pace!
- What’s next for this particular series?
I have outlined four more books in the Tactical Solutions International series. If all goes as planned, Teagan, Fiona’s drummer, will have his story next, followed by A.J., Cam’s business partner, then Devon Marco, the mysterious TSI operative, and finally, Charlie, Jake’s best friend.
Readers have asked for Alex’s story, and I actually have planned a spin-off series where he will be featured in the first book. Of course, it’s always possible that a new character will capture my imagination. I had no plans to write Mike’s story, but I had to once I finished Sing for Me. So, you really never know!
- Can you tell us a little about the black moment in your book?
The main female character in Lost and Found, Dr. Lissa Morgan, is being harassed by a stalker. When the threat becomes real and she’s taken, there are some pretty violent scenes.
Inaddition to the stalker plot line, the main male character, Cam, has suffered a terrible trauma that he’s kept secret for years. When I add something like this to my stories, I try to do it with great care. While I aim to give all my couples a happily-ever-after, I also want to show that trauma has far-reaching consequences. Love helps heal, certainly, but it doesn’t erase everything. This is true for both Lissa and Cam in Lost and Found.
- Can you tell us a little bit about what it was like to write a series?
I love reading a series that features related characters, or minor characters who take on the starring role in subsequent books. This is what I opted to do for the Tactical Solutions International series.
I actually wrote the first three books in the series before publishing the first. I did this so I could create a strategic marketing plan, but also so that I could go back and fine-tune timelines and the relationships between characters in the various books, and make sure the finer details were consistent. I also had fun checking in with the stars of a previous book in the newer one, and giving readers a little glimpse of where they are now.
- What are some things you like to do to relax when you aren’t writing or working?
Although we have exercise equipment in our home, I much prefer yoga and Barre classes, and I generally try to get to a few per week. I love the beach, although that’s been more difficult this Covid summer. My hiking group took a small hiatus as well, but I’ve still managed to get out safely a few times. I’m an avid reader, and my book club is something I look forward to every month.
BLURB:
Dr. Lissa Morgan has had a crush on her best friend’s older brother since they were kids, but handsome, brooding Cam Taylor has never given her a second glance. When Cam unexpectedly shows up on Lissa’s doorstep bleeding and bruised, his personal life in shambles, things between them take a steamy turn.
After an incredible weekend with the sweet, sexy doctor, Cam realizes what he’s been missing. But he’s run from intimacy his whole life, sure he doesn’t deserve a woman like Lissa. He’s doing her a favor by walking away – or so he tells himself.
Frustrated and hurt by Cam’s distance, Lissa must nonetheless rely on his private security firm when an annoying admirer becomes a threat. The more time Cam spends with Lissa, the faster his defenses crumble. When the disturbed stalker finally makes his move, Cam will do whatever it takes to save the woman who’s slowly healing his wounded soul.
Lost and Found is the third book in the Tactical Solutions International series but can be read as a stand-alone.
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EXCERPT:
Cam woke with a splitting headache and no idea where he was. For a few seconds, before his foggy brain cleared, he simply stared at the white ceiling overhead. He ran a hand over the soft blanket covering him, and turned his head carefully to the side. A glass of orange juice, a bottle of pills, and a note sat on a coffee table. His cell phone, keys, and wallet were in a neat pile next to the glass.
Snapshots of memory flashed back into his head, coming in reverse order, like a videotape rewinding. Liss suturing his head. Her friend bringing supplies. Cam sitting outside her door, getting drunk while he waited for her to come home.
He reached for the note, licking his dry lips and squinting past the pounding in his head.
Things you may do: 1. Drink this juice and take some Tylenol. 2. Take off your bloody clothes and leave them in the basket. 3. Shower – the sutures won’t dissolve. 4. Move into my room for more sleep. Things you may not do: 1. Leave – doctor’s orders.
He grinned, hearing Lissa’s voice in his head as he read her instructions. His smile faded when he remembered what had driven him to her doorstep in the first place. He couldn’t think about that right now. He considered sneaking out before Liss returned from wherever she’d gone off to, but he discarded the idea pretty quickly. He needed the pills, the shower, and more sleep.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Maggie Clare is the pen name of award-winning speculative fiction author Tabitha Lord.
When channeling Maggie, she writes all the naughty things! Her Tactical Solutions International romantic suspense series features hot hunky heroes, smart sexy gals, and nail-biting narratives.
Count on Maggie to pair great story-telling with an erotic edge.
Twitter: @msmaggie_clare
Instagram: msmaggiec
Facebook: @msmaggieclare
Website:www.msmaggieclare.com
Amazon buy link:
https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Found-Tactical-Solutions-International-ebook/dp/B08957M62Y/
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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE:
Maggie Clare will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
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