Friday, May 17, 2013

Spilling the Beans with Becca Dale


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Hi Becca! So glad to have you at Spilling the Beans, where we can learn a little bit about you, and your book. Grab a cappuccino and let’s chat. Unless you have another favorite drink (alcoholic or otherwise)?

Oh a cinnamon caramel cappuccino would be perfect. Thank you and thanks for having me here today. Love your site.



Why thank you! *curtsies* Fur or feathers, petwise?

Fur – hard to snuggle up with a bird although my husband and I rescued a golden eagle once – that was way cool. Definitely no snuggling involved though no matter how many times my son (then a toddler) would proclaim, “I pet that bird, Mom.



Wow, that would be cool! But I wouldn't want to get bitten by one, lol. Any pet peeves? One thing that really burns your biscuits?

People who don’t say thank you – who just act as if you are there to serve them. I cannot imagine why it is difficult to be polite.



People are too preoccupied for politeness, I agree. What’s your guilty pleasure?

Sleeping late. I grew up on a farm and my mom used to wake us by saying, “Get up. We’re late. It’s a quarter to five.” To this day sleeping in feels decadent.



Lol! I bet! Favorite quote?

There are so many. I guess Henry David Thoreau, “If one advances confidently in the direction of one's dreams, and endeavors to live the life which one has imagined, one will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.” I like the idea of going confidently in the direction of dreams to achieve beyond the imagined.



Love that. What’s your ideal day like?

Ideal or Usual? Ideal would be spent on a gorgeous beach preferably Cozumel on somewhere, with nothing to do but laze about with the hubs and eat fabulous fresh seafood. Usual is nothing like that.



Ahhh, sounds good to me! If you could live out any fantasy, what would you do?

Spend a month or two touring every place on my bucket list especially Ireland, Hawaii, and Australia.



Beethoven, Beatles, Foo Fighters or Keith Urban (what type(s) of music makes you rock out)?

80’s Rock, Keith Urban, Kid Rock or any song that tells a story. I am way more about the lyrics than the music itself. I have friends who don’t get that, but it is always about the story for me.



You sound like me. :) Does music influence your writing? Do you have a music playlist for your book?

I don’t listen to music. It is too distracting for me when I write. I usually have the boob tube running for background noise but don’t watch it much. The exception to that was when I wrote “Can’t Stop Me” which was based on a song by the LA band Run Devil Run. I listened to that one over and over and over as I wrote because I wanted to have the feel just right. http://www.decadentpublishing.com/product_info.php?products_id=284&osCsid=gceda806e61h8oo6mbvb5k1q96



Which of your characters would you most/least want to hang out with, and why?

I would hang with any of my heroes – I often prefer the company of men as there is usually less drama – but I’d come back to Luca and Kern from “Can’t Stop Me” if I were to choose a couple because they faced some really tough stuff with laughter and heart; I would want to be that brave. Least, would be Darcy’s mother (stepmother actually) from “Sweet Temptation.” The woman was a bee-ach. http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/wildcatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=86&products_id=767



While creating your books, what was one of the most surprising things you learned?

Even with my first book, I was surprised at how little control I have over my characters. They seem to come to life with minds and opinions of their own. I can show them the path time and again, but if they think I am wrong, they will tell me so and go a different direction. I had a heroine once who slept with the hero too soon and couldn’t get past it – she hated him and disliked herself for it so she refused to move on. I had to start over with someone less of a prude. I know that sounds more than a little batty to people who don’t write, but other writers will understand. Right? Is that crickets I hear? Someone please tell me I’m not insane.



Where can readers find out more about you?







Please share a book blurb and/or excerpt.




Blurb:

Terrified of her submissive nature, Kate Hastings refuses to give a man control of her life. Somehow, faking a wild and confident personality scares her less than facing reality—the heated longing for her sexy best friend and her deep-seated need for domination. Trouble is, none of the passive men she's dated do it for her.

Victim to a family curse, Connor Wallace can love only one woman his entire life—Kate. Yet, she insists on keeping him firmly in the friend zone. Determined to prove he’s more than friend material, he sets out to fulfill her greatest fantasies, even if it means tying her up to get her attention.

When passion and protective instincts collide, something has to give, but will the impact lead to broken hearts or sweet satisfaction?



Excerpt:

“Why don’t you ask her to dance instead of standing here gawking at her?”

Connor looked up at his cousin Gavin. “I’m not her type.”

“How do you know?”

The three-year ache returned with vengeance. “She’s told me. Repeatedly.”

“Maybe but Savannah thinks her friend’s in love with you.”

Kate looked up and smiled at him before turning to flirt with a strange guy beside her. What had she said she wanted—tall, outgoing, and sexually adventurous? He read the last as submissive since she didn’t date men she couldn’t manipulate. Still, all characteristics she failed to see in him. Maybe it was time to show her the flaws in her ideal man.

“I’ll talk to you later, Gavin.”

“Where ya going?”

“To fulfill Kate’s fantasies.”



Because I have a new one coming from The Wild Rose Press, I’ll share a bit about it. But sadly no link yet. Here is a link to the two previous ones in the series. Sweet Temptation http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/wildcatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=86&products_id=767 





Thanks for spilling the beans today, Becca!

Thanks for allowing me to spill, Cate! It was fun to be here with you and your readers.