Interview with Author Melissa Bourbon Ramirez and Giveaway

Today I would like to welcome to RFTC author Melissa Bourbon Ramirez. Melissa is celebrating the recent release of her book Deceiving the Witch Next Door and has stopped by to answer a few questions. Before I get to the questions, let's get to know a bit about Melissa.

Melissa Bourbon, who sometimes answers to her Latina-by-marriage name Misa Ramirez, gave up teaching middle and high school kids in Northern California to write full-time amidst horses and Longhorns in North Texas. She fantasizes about spending summers writing in quaint, cozy locales, has a love/hate relationship with yoga and chocolate, is devoted to her family, and can’t believe she’s lucky enough to be living the life of her dreams.

She is the marketing director at Entangled Publishing, is the author of the Lola Cruz Mystery series with St. Martin’s Minotaur and Entangled Publishing, A Magical Dressmaking Mystery series with NAL, and is the co-author of The Tricked-out Toolbox and two romantic suspense titles.

Places to find Melissa: 

| Site | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | 

First off, can you tell us a bit about you?
Sure! And thank you for having me today. I’m a mom of five (four boys, and one girl), a writer, a marketing director for Entangled Publishing, I spend way too much driving kids around in the car, but I love everything that I do!

Did you always want to be a writer?
Actually, no. I started out teaching middle and high school language arts. Then I started having kids, and I kept having kids, and I needed something to keep me sane during maternity leave, so I started writing. I’ve always loved to read, I felt I had stories to tell, and the rest, as they say, is history.

What kind of writer are you? Panster or Plotter?
Definitely a little of both. I have a general plot, know where a story is going, but so much happens organically as I write, so I follow the panster method, too.

Where do your ideas come from?
A mix of real life and my imagination. Storie, for example, and the Storiebook Café from Deceiving a Witch Next Door, was inspired by the real Storie and Storiebook Café in Glen Rose, Texas. I saw the shop, met Storie, and knew right away that I wanted to craft a tale about the place. In Bare-Naked Lola, one of my Lola Cruz mysteries, I actually visited a nudist resort. Seeing what that was like inspired so much of the story!

A la Twitter style, can you describe your book (or series) in 140 characters or less.
The misfit witch and the smart, sexy guy next door who don’t see eye to eye, but sparks fly!

What are some of your favorite kinds of stories to read?
I’m a big character person, so I love stories that really develop characters and interesting worlds. A favorite book of mine is Jennifer Donnelly’s Revolution for these reasons.

Do you have a favorite book and if so what is it?
Ha! Just mentioned one above. I love Gone with the Wind. It’ll always be a favorite. I still remember the summer in high school when I first read it. It’s on of those moments that will always be with me.

What are the scenes that are the hardest for you to write?
Probably the sex scenes. They’re fun, but also very challenging!

If you could have dinner with any three authors, who would you choose and why?
Margaret Mitchell, Orson Scott Card, and Michael Crichton. I think each would be fascinating and I know I’d learn so much from them.

Last question, are you working on anything right now?
I’m working on the next book in my Magical Dressmaking cozy mystery series, A Custom Fit Crime. Book 3, Deadly Patterns, comes out in October. After that is my next romantic suspense, the next Deadly Legends book following Sacrifice of Passion. Busy, busy!

Thank you for hosting me today!

Storie Bell has a little secret—she’s a witch. But magic hasn’t exactly kept her life from being a complete mess—her love life is non-existent and the town thinks she’s a total nutter. Plus there’s her neighbor Reid Malone who runs hot one minute and cold the next.

Reid Malone can’t wait to escape Bloomington, Texas. Unfortunately, he’s stuck where he is unless he helps his father hide a very illegal secret. The only key to Reid’s freedom lies with the eccentric Storie…and he’ll do whatever it takes to get the information he needs from her.

But Reid’s holding something back. Something big. And if he’s not careful, he’ll find out exactly what happens when you try to deceive a witch…

Purchase: | Amazon | Barnes & Noble |

1 lucky commenter will win a eBook copy of Deceiving the Witch Next Door

To Enter:

• Please leave a meaningful comment or question for Melissa.
• Please fill out the Rafflecopter form.

Good Luck =)

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