Welcome to An Indie Adventure, Viviana MacKade. Tell us, what inspired you to write your Crescent Creek Collection.
I didn’t really plan to have a Series, to be honest. It started as Scott’s and DJ’s story; through him, I met Rhett, fell for him a little bit. And he introduced me to Aidan, who started nagging in a very annoying Aidan’s way. So, I had to write his story too (for which he gave me endless grief…). And I ended up with a series.
Nothing inspired the series, but the characters pushed me to stay with them a little longer and tell their stories.
How do you construct your characters?
I don’t. When they come to me, they are who they are. I get to know them, deeply, as I go on writing their stories. I don’t construct as much as I stay with them a lot before starting the actual writing (I do silly on-line personality tests with them, interview them, and so on). And even after all this, when I get at the end of the book I have to start from chapter one and make sure I got them right, because at the beginning I didn’t know them so well.
Tell us something about yourself we might not expect!
How many pet peeves I have.
Some examples,
- I dislike phone calls because they always barge into whatever I’m doing and I can’t ignore them. I just can’t.
- Unmade beds–what are we, animals that sleep in a dog basket? The bed needs to be redone daily, and very well. In fact, I’m the only one who can make an acceptable bed for me to sleep in.
- AC set any lower than 75. It makes my nose drip and my eyes water. If I wanted to be cold, I’d go and live in the artic.
- Crowds.
- Salads. I hate when all those different vegetables, all so tasty that deserve their own space, mix together.
I really could go on and on, but I think I’ll stop here because I already come off as grumpy. Which I totally am.
Have you been a lifelong reader of romance? What are some the first books you remember reading?
I started reading romance in high school. It wasn’t my first love, as far as reading is concerned. I loved historical thrillers, or epic adventures a la Bernard Cornwell, Griff Hosker, James L. Nelson, or Edward Rutherfurd. Then I met Nora Roberts, and that was it.
What is most difficult for you to write? Characters, conflict or emotions? Why?
Emotions, because they are not mine. They are the Character’s. I have to understand how he/she feels, and then borrow from some of my memory to understand him/her better, they write it. It’s twice as painful because I empathize with him/her, and then there’s the pain from my experience, a pain I have to resurrect to use it.
If you were a TV, film or book character, apart from one you've created, who would you be? And why?
Answer: I’d be Meg Galloway, from Nora Roberts’ Northern Lights. Seriously, she could have been based on me. Her need for freedom and open space, her independence, her (not so great) manners, her bluntness that edges in rudeness. It was so uncanny it made it for a uncomfortable reading at times, because I was forced to see myself through another person’s eye.
Give us a brief summary of Crescent Creek Collection:
From the cold Canadian border, the US1 runs along the east coast with patience. Southbound, always south, until it reaches the Sunshine State.
Not the fastest way, sure, but if you have time to drive it all the way down, you might find yourself lost in one of the coastal towns that dot the US1 like little jewels.
Maybe that town’s name is Crescent Creek.
These are the stories of its people.
Not the fastest way, sure, but if you have time to drive it all the way down, you might find yourself lost in one of the coastal towns that dot the US1 like little jewels.
Maybe that town’s name is Crescent Creek.
These are the stories of its people.
PRESALE DEAL – 3 stories, 0.99 cents until release day February 14th.
All Those Miles I Walked ~ Crescent Creek 1
At eighteen, DJ made a choice–her heart or her dreams. Neither was wrong, yet either would break her heart. She chose the world. Over a decade later, she returns to Crescent Creek and to the one regret she's ever had–Scott.
Scott’s always been steady as a rocky reef. He’d loved once and when she’d left, his strong heart had crumbled like a sandcastle. Now DJ is back, and Scott wants nothing to do with her. If only Eva, his and DJ’s old friend, didn’t need their help. Because of her, he’s stuck with DJ and he’d be damned, she still gets under his skin.
DJ is a free spirit who needs the road under her feet. Scott is a family man who wants to groom his roots. With danger on their doorstep and a baby to keep safe, how much are they willing to compromise for love?
Painted Love ~ Crescent Creek 2
Thou shalt not steal.
Oh, but Florence had, and would do so one last time. Ten pieces her grandfather painted for her because he loved her. Ten pieces her mother lost, along with anything else, for loving the wrong man. She couldn’t get back everything he’d wasted away, but she’d be damned if she’d give up those paintings.
Easy and genuine, Rhett loves his life–his family, his market, his town. Until he meets a British woman with grey eyes and a cute little smile. The woman he’s been waiting for. The thing is, to love her is easy, but can he trust her?
When Rhett pushes to uncover her agenda, Flo knows she will lose something–the man she loves or what she’d been fighting for years. Which road will she choose?
His Midnight Sun ~ Crescent Creek 3
Until he meets Summer Williams.
Beautiful and smart, Dr. Williams promises haven for a man who believes he deserves none. All he has to do is let her in and risk his heart and soul.
Summer’s managed to keep her inner light alive, even through tragedy. She’s created a new life for herself and her daughter in Crescent Creek with loving, caring and fun friends–well, except brooding, breathtaking Aidan. She’s used to keeping away from his type, though. All she has to do is ignore the pull of a man who’s turning up to be much more than snarls and storms. Will her compassion and medical instincts let her?
Summer’s managed to keep her inner light alive, even through tragedy. She’s created a new life for herself and her daughter in Crescent Creek with loving, caring and fun friends–well, except brooding, breathtaking Aidan. She’s used to keeping away from his type, though. All she has to do is ignore the pull of a man who’s turning up to be much more than snarls and storms. Will her compassion and medical instincts let her?
Love can heal a broken soul and shake up a timid heart. Or it can unleash devastation and revenge.
Will Aidan and Summer survive the hurricane?
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Bio:
Beach bum and country music addicted, Viviana lives in a small Floridian town with her husband and her son, her die-hard fans and personal cheer squad. She spends her days between typing on her beloved keyboard, playing in the pool with her boy, and eating whatever her husband puts on her plate (the guy is that good, and she really loves eating). Besides beaching, she enjoys long walks, horse-riding, hiking, and pretty much whatever she can do outside with her family.
Find Viviana:
Welcome, Viviana,
ReplyDeleteI love hosting new-to-me-authors! BTW, I visit Florida every year for a two week writing retreat with two other writers. It’s heaven!
Hugs, L.A.