Bound to Remember
Book One of
the Spellbound Series
Vampires and Witches
and Myths, oh my!Lola James chats about her new release and why she loves to write paranormal.
Click on the image to visit the Meet & Greet with Lola on VBT Cafe.
Louise:
Lola, welcome to my blog! I’m so excited you could join me for a chat. When did
you first decide to submit your work to be published? Tell us what or who
encouraged you to take this big step.
Lola:
I am self-published through my own publishing company
and my encouragement came from my Kindle! The day I bought it I was welcomed
into the world of Indie publishing and I’ve never looked back.
Louise:
Please tell us a little about your new release Bound to Remember, without giving too much of a spoiler away.
Lola:
It’s a story that follows a young doctor named Toni as
she begins to remember who she really is after meeting a tall, dark, and
handsome vampire named Ben. Ben is unknowingly one of the links to her
remembering her past.
Toni is a young doctor with a past she can't remember and a deadly reason for forgetting it. Ben is a nurse who has his own tragic past and transfers hospitals after an act of heroism forces his secluded life public. Ben can’t believe his eyes when he meets Toni, she has an uncanny resemblance to an old friend of his, and Toni can’t help but find Ben irresistible.
Enter Kevin, Toni’s sexy but arrogant Ex. Kevin’s jealousy of Ben blinds him from his main objective, Toni. A dangerous secret is revealed and a magic spell seems to be a quick remedy, but the witch that helps has a little more than magic up her sleeve…
Louise:
Do you plan all your characters out before you start a story or do they develop
as you write?
Lola:
In this book the main character Toni came to me first.
She popped in my head and I knew her whole story. The other characters kind of
developed around her. But in other works I have
planned out the characters.
Louise:
How much research do you do for your books? Have you found any cool tidbits in
your research?
Lola:
This story has some Greek myths to it so I had to research
those, but I did find some cool characters that pop up in the second book,
Unbound! I also had field trips to hospitals to scope out the scene and I
watched some doctor shows to pick up the lingo.
Louise:
What is your writing process? Do you outline, write by the seat of your pants
(Pantser) or a combination of both?
Lola: Combo! Bound to Remember is a pantser, though Lol. I am not even sure how it will end at this
point; I just let it flow as I write. In another series that I wrote (Fate’s
Design) I outlined everything from beginning to end so it really depends on the
story.
Louise:
Do you write full time? What did you do before you became a writer or still do?
Lola:
Sadly no, I wish! I play hooky sometimes, and pretend
like I am. My “day job” is a HR Manager, but I long to be a full-time writer!
Louise:
Do you have a ritual when it comes to writing? Example….get coffee, blanket,
paper, pen, laptop and a comfy place.
Lola: Music I need
music and gummy bears! I could survive a whole day at my desk writing with
gummy bears.
Louise:
Describe a typical writing day for you.
Lola:
Well, I wake up at 4 a.m. to write and I write until I
absolutely have to go to work, so I get about 4 hours in. Then I try and sneak
in another hour along with my social media marketing at work.
Louise:
Please give us a sneak peek at your future books. What’s on the horizon?
Lola:
I have a lot on the horizon for me… I have a new book
Fate’s Design in a new series, (The Fate Series) that is coming out the end of
this month on or around March 30. I have the second book in the Spellbound Series,
Unbound, coming out in late spring (end of April beginning of May); and I plan
for another two or three more books before the end of the year in both those
series.
Louise:
What is your favorite genre to read and who is your favorite author?
Lola:
Romance, Paranormal Romance and Mystery, I know that’s
a mixed bag. I love Charlaine Harris as well as a lot of Indie writes, too many
to name!
Louise:
Is there anything else you would like to tell the readers we have not touched
on?
Lola:
Yes, the characters from my books have blogs and they
post on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The blogs are Spellbound Series (Bound to
Remember and Unbound) http://spellboundseries.blogspot.com/
and The Fate Series (Fate’s Design) http://thefateseries.blogspot.com/. They leak info and generally talk about themselves it’s quite comical you get
to see them individually. I love to hear from the readers of my books good,
bad, or otherwise, because at the end of the day anything they say will help
make me a better writer! And I want to thank you Louise for having me today!
Lola: All over but here’s my vitals:
My Blog
Spellbound Series Blog
Fate Series Blog
Louise: Lola, thank you again for visiting my blog!
Readers, Lola is giving away a copy of Bound to Remember to one lucky commenter. Let Lola know you stop by, ask her questions and please leave your email address in your comment so we can easily contact the winner!
Excerpt:
Part of Chapter One:
Another meeting, I thought as I sat down in the conference room of the ER. I stared into my Starbucks coffee cup with my hour-old coffee in it and frowned at the idea of drinking it cold. I missed the good ol' days before medical school, when it was just Annie, my roommate and best friend, and me. On a Friday nights like this, we would pop some popcorn and watch romantic comedies until we fell asleep. We were social pariahs, Annie, and I, because of my pre-med major and because she thought, she was a witch. I never doubted her but I never believed her either. Now all I do is work! I looked around at the room crowded with interns, residents, nurses; and I sensed something was about to happen I just didn’t know what. I looked for a friendly face.
The first
one I saw was the last one that I wanted to see, Kevin Cooper. Kevin and I
attended medical
school together. I was always in the top three of the class and Kevin was
always fourth. We had been
rivals until the second semester when we became lovers. I imagined a storybook ending; the
two medical students fall in love and live happily ever after. The problem with
the story was
only one of us fell in love. Me. The idiot. Of course, Kevin looked up as I
stared at him. The
smug smile on his face brought back all those memories from seven years ago. I ducked my
head and abandoned my search for familiar faces, opting instead to check my
ginger colored hair
for split ends. Since I didn’t regularly check for split ends, I noticed
hundreds, more than enough
to keep me busy until the end of the meeting. Focused on my split ends and
pulling them apart,
I barely noticed when my new best friend, Dawn, sat down next to me. Dawn was already an
attendant in the Emergency Department and three years my senior. She took in
what I
was doing to
my hair with a bewildered look on her face. I guess when you have perfect blond hair you
don’t get split ends.
“Toni, what
are you? You know what, never mind,” Dawn said as she shook her head. If it’s
true that
“opposites attract” it would explain Dawn and me. Dawn, unlike Annie and me,
had
been a
social butterfly in college. I think it had something to do with her being from
the South, but I wouldn’t
dare say that to her, it always annoyed her.
I looked
over at her disapproving visage and asked, "Any idea what this is all
about?"
Dawn
shrugged, “The last time we had a meeting like this, the chief was introducing
you and
Kevin to the
Emergency Department. So maybe we’re getting another newbie." she smiled.
Dawn had the
kind of smile that made you feel warm and relaxed.
"Maybe,"
I said glumly as my thoughts drifted back to Kevin. I absentmindedly took a sip
of
my cold
coffee. It was not only cold, but also now disgustingly old. The hum of voices
lowered
and I looked
up to see Dr. Stevens walk to the front of the conference room.
"Hello
E.D. Night Team, I know that it is Friday night, which is our busiest night,
but I
wanted to
introduce the newest member of our team," Dr. Stevens said, smiling at the
group
crammed
inside the conference room. I couldn’t help but smile back. He was the ideal
man:
smart, cute
and had the dreamiest smile I’d ever seen.
Too bad Dawn
had dibs on him. Even though she had not quite proposed marriage to him,
she was
always talking about it. So, that meant he was hers.
"He
should be ashamed of himself with his flirtatious smile," Dawn whispered
as she leaned
close to
me.
"I
know," I replied, not taking my eyes off Dr. Stevens.
"Please
give a warm welcome to the new head night surgical nurse, Benjamin
Slaton." The
chief placed
his hand on the new nurse’s shoulder as he stood up. I considered retracting my
last thought. This
Benjamin had the dreamiest smile, combined with intoxicating eyes, perfect
hair, and smooth
pale skin. I fell for him in that moment, all thoughts of what’s-his-name
vanished. "Close
your mouth, you’re drooling," Dawn whispered with a giggle.
"Shut
up," I said, not taking my eyes off Benjamin who similarly seemed to have
his eyes
riveted on
me. Benjamin stared through the crowd of people and directly at me. I felt
breathless as Dr.
Stevens continued to talk.
"Dr.
Toni Hollander," Dr. Stevens began. I did not move, still mesmerized by
the sexy man
standing in
front of the room. Dawn jabbed me in the side with her elbow as Dr. Stevens
said my name again.
That broke the spell and I snapped out of the delicious daydream I was having
about Benjamin.
"Ye-yes,"
I stammered. I pushed my seat back and stood up. My cheeks blushed and beads of sweat
appeared on my hairline in embarrassment when the thought crossed my mind that
someone else
might have witnessed my intense attraction to Benjamin or saw me staring at
him. “Dr.
Hollander, I would like you to show Nurse Slaton around the hospital," he
said with a smile. I
wanted to jump up and down with excitement, but I didn’t. I smiled back and
nodded before
quickly sitting back down.
"Lucky girl,"
Dawn said, grinning from ear to ear.
Or unlucky,
I thought.
"That's
it everyone. Have a great night," Dr. Stevens said. Everyone began
filtering out of the conference
room. Dawn and I stood up together. She brushed the hair out of my face. I
figured it was all over
the place since I had been fussing with it. I finger-combed my hair, hoping I
didn’t look like a
complete idiot, which is what I felt like.
"So
what do you think?" I asked, looking into Dawn’s bright blue eyes.
"You
look great! And I hope he’s single for your sake, T. Here he comes," she
said as she
walked away,
grinning. Benjamin was about five feet away but smiled as if he had heard her
comment. I
just brushed it off. He stopped a foot in front of me.
"Hello,
I'm Dr. Toni Hollander but you can call me Toni,” I said, extending my hand. He
stared at me
as if he were looking right though me and ignored my extended hand. A rush of
emotions
washed over me, sapping my confidence, considering my horrible taste in
men.
"Oh!
Sorry. Where are my manners? I am Benjamin, but you may call me Ben," he
said with
a toothy
grin, taking my hand into his. His hand was a degree colder than normal even in
a
hospital
with the air conditioning set at the same temperature as the North Pole. I
looked at his hand.
BIO:
My name is Lola James and I'm the author of Bound to
Remember, a Paranormal Romance (Book 1 of the Spellbound Series).I live in
southern California and I’m married with three beautiful children. I currently
have a day job as a HR Manager and I hope to leave one day to pursue my dream
as a full-time writer. Somehow, I find time to write in between working
full-time, being a full-time mom and wife. When I’m not moonlighting as an
author, I’m a studying for my Masters degree, which I hope to complete in 2013.
I have always loved reading and writing! As a reader, I know
that readers and writers share the common love of a great story. I personally
love anything dealing with Vampires, Witches, and Greek Mythology. I started
writing a Paranormal Romance story that included all three when voilà, I wrote
a book! I write mostly Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy stories with
suspense and a little humor but I am not limiting myself to just that. My
stories emanate from my imagination and the fact that I am a hopeless romantic.
I have been reading romance novels since my teens and fell in love with
vampires when I read Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles.
After some extensive
research into the publishing process, I became discouraged and I put my laptop
down and my dreams on hold. It wasn’t until I bought my first e-reader that I
discovered a new way to publish. I dusted off my laptop and I self-published my
first book!
I am currently
working on two series, the first is the Bound to Remember, Book one of the
Spellbound Series, and it’s a paranormal romance with vampires, witches and a
mythological twist. The second is Fate’s Design Book one of the Fate Series, a
paranormal romance about dreams and what happens when and if they come true. 
Thank you for hosting Lola today :)
ReplyDeleteYes thank you Louise for having me!
ReplyDeleteHi Lola and Bk, you're most welcomed!
ReplyDelete