Tags
Adventures of the Heart, Captain Jack Sparrow, Historical romance, parasols, passionate little lies, pistols, Sexy, Smart, Tara Kingston
Captain Jack Welcomes Author Tara Kingston!
Tara Kingston writes smart, sexy adventures of the heart. A Southern Navy brat transplanted to a quaint Pennsylvania town, she lives her own love story with her real-life hero in a cozy Victorian. The mother of two sons, Tara’s a former librarian whose love of books is evident in her popping-at-the-seams bookcases and collection of unusual bookmarks. It goes without saying that Tara’s husband is thankful for the invention of digital books, thereby eliminating the need for yet another bookcase.
When she’s not writing, reading, or burning dinner, Tara enjoys cycling, hiking, and cheering on her favorite football team.
“Welcome aboard Rogues, Rebels & Rakes, luv!”
1) Tara, give us your heading, luv. You were born with a compass that points to?
South…Southeastern Virginia, to be specific, in a fine Navy town.
2) I’ve got pieces of eight in me pocket. Significant treasure, to be sure. If ye could have eight pieces with ye at all times, what would they be?
My treasures aren’t coins…they’re books. I have books my grandmother and mother gave me when I was a child that I treasure, books I regard as classics…Nancy Drew and The Wizard of Oz, and of course, some wonderful romance novels that ignited my love of the genre. One of my all-time favorites is For the Roses by Julie Garwood. Teresa Medeiros’s delicious Thief of Hearts is another keeper. And it’s a pirate story…a to-die-for bodyguard and a swoonworthy buccaneer in the same story…what could be better? Oh, Captain Jack…wish you could fit in my pocket…or at least, my Kindle 😉
3) When did the wind (muse) take hold of your sails, luv?
I’ve always loved to write. My mom gave me an ancient manual typewriter when I was a child and I hammered out stories with gusto. I didn’t start seriously writing for publication until 2007 when I found a local RWA chapter and found that nurturing and encouragement I’d needed to persevere.
4) Were there times the Kraken (critiques) tried to pull ye down to Davy Jones Locker? (I’ve had the blackspot and been stuck at World’s End.) If so, how’d ye escape?
I try to get something constructive out of critiques and don’t let them get me down for long…dark chocolate and wine do wonders toward easing the pain 😉
5) Sea battles are epic entertainment, but they’re a lot of work. During a broadside, what do ye do to mend your sails? (Replenish the well.) Hint: I drink rum!
I am an avid reader, not only of romance, but of steampunk and non-fiction. I love history and biographies. I’m also a movie buff…not the serious, Academy Award-clip type of movie, but rom-coms and action-adventure movies. My all-time favorite movie is The Wizard of Oz, but Romancing the Stone, Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark hold a special place in my cinema-loving heart.
6) Ye be a well-traveled lass, Tara. Once the course for that coveted horizon had been charted (via your writing journey), how long did it take ye to make port (publication)?
I signed my first contract early in 2009, so about two years.
7) Pirates have a code, a brethren code, which are more like guidelines anyway. What code do ye live by? (Writing process?)
I’m a planner by nature, and I love to plan out the plots for my books. Often, I find I don’t stick to the plot I’ve mapped out, taking a fun detour or two…or ten…once the characters start making noise in the back of the boat, but I love that feeling of having a compass for the story when I start out.
8) Your all time favorite pirate is: wink… wink… Captain Jack Sparrow…who else?
Shiver me timbers! Great answer! And that was without any rum!
Tara, every tar what sets foot on a ship has a story and I suspect ye be no different. What story do ye be yearning to tell?
Jack, I’ve recently launched the second book in my Secrets & Spies series, Pistols, Parasols & Passionate Little Lies. Though set during the time of the War between the States, these aren’t your mother’s Civil War romances. I think you’re going to like this book…passion, spies, and danger…just up your alley, Captain! Sadly, though, there isn’t a pirate in sight in this one.
Here’s a little about the latest release:
Pistols, Parasols & Passionate Little Lies
Passion flares when an alluring but no-nonsense petticoat spy recruits a daring Union agent for a desperate mission.
Like any good secret agent, Amanda Emerson knows how to get what she wants—in this case, a man with guts and a gun—a man heroic enough to break a notorious double agent out of a Confederate prison. But first, she’ll have to save her hero’s own neck.
Caught with Rebel plans and set for a hanging, Union spy Steve Dunham’s luck has run out—until a cunning beauty shows up at the jail and engineers his escape. Of course, she’s there for a reason besides preventing him from dangling at the end of a noose—he’s the key to her daring scheme.
Steve may be trading one execution for another, but the tempting—and off limits—operative draws him into the perilous mission. Falling for Amanda is a complication he can’t afford, but Steve’s never been one to play it safe. The spoils of victory will be Amanda’s surrender. And the terms of surrender promise to be sultry and sweet.
At this time, Pistols, Parasols & Passionate Little Lies is available exclusively for Kindle and in print. Readers can check out an excerpt on at: http://tinyurl.com/k7dvgvu
For more of Tara’s adventures, you can find here at her Smart, Sexy, Adventures of the Heart website, Facebook, and Twitter pages.
(Hand flail) I love messages in a Bottle! Especially when they’re immersed in rum!
Jack, I have a question for you and the readers of this blog: Who are your favorite fictional heroes, either in books or films? A few of mine are Indiana Jones, Captain Doom in Thief of Hearts, Jack Colton in Romancing the Stone, and, of course, you, Captain Jack Sparrow. I’ll offer a choice of my Secrets & Spies books to one lucky commenter. Just share your favorites for a chance to win either Secrets, Spies & Sweet Little Lies or Pistols, Parasols & Passionate Little Lies. (Note to self: consider shorter titles…my typing fingers are getting tired!)
“I don’t need to mention who my favorite hero is, eh? You’re looking at ’em, luv.”