Beverly and Tamara: Welcome to SSLY. Thanks so much for joining us today Liberty. So first why don’t you tell us a little about yourself.

First of all I have to compliment you both on your names! When I was in High School I had a great friend I worked with. She was also my movie buddy. Beverly was a great deal of fun, so whenever I see the name I get a warm feeling of friendship.
Tamara is the heroine of my next novel, The Misplaced Bride. She is sassy and strong.
When I saw your names on the interview I felt like this was kismet!
Now a little about myself. I have wanted to be a writer all my life. I have five children and five grandchildren. I am a late bloomer. I began college at the same time daughter number two started in her college, daughter number three began high school, and daughter number four started kindergarten.
I studied history with the intent of authoring historical novels, only to realize that I am a research junkie. Let me at the research materials and I will never stop. So I decided that contemporary was the place for me.

Tamara: Definitely meant to be then! What do you HAVE to have when you are writing?

I’d like to say peace and quiet, but that is a pipe dream. I like having my laptop, but a lot of scenes end up being jotted down in my ever present Moleskin notebook (like the one Hemingway always used) or my pretty teenie-bopper journal.
The only real requirement I have is that I have to have something to support my back, my legs have to be up and comfortable, and I have a sweet little Brookstone lap desk. I purchased the lap desk when I was in New York City with a friend and there wasn’t enough desk space for both of us. Now the pellets in the base are all flattened out and I have to supplement the height with a pillow, but I’m weird and it works.
It sounds like I do all my writing in bed, and that is where I am the most comfortable, but occasionally I like to work at the library, Barnes & Noble café, or Paneras.

Beverly: When did you start to write?

I think I began as a rewriter. I always rewrote my bedtime stories. I was never happy with the endings, so I had to fix them. On my ninth birthday my grandmother gave me a sweet, little, powder blue, portable, Smith Carona typewriter. I had informed her that the toy typewriter I had to share with my siblings was good enough for them, but not for a serious writer like me. I needed to have the proper tools of my trade, like Lois Lane.

Tamara: What do you think are the qualities that make up a “hero”?

An ability to change his views, beliefs, way of like, whatever to accommodate the heroine.
Fidelity, honestly, the willingness to sacrifice, the willingness to get his hands dirty, the willingness to help. He doesn’t have to start out with these qualities, but he has to pick them up somewhere along the way.

Beverly: Can you describe your favorite character? And which of your books is he/she in? How do you come up with your characters?

So far Cassidy Flynn is my favorite character. She had a hard life, but she built a new life with friends and a good support system. She has a good heart and is not afraid to help others. She also swings a mean bat.

Tamara: *grins* What are the hardest scenes for you to write? Suspense? Sex? Dialogue? And why?

Dialogue is difficult for me. I’m a Chatty Cathy and I am always afraid that I keep a dialogue going for too long or that I fill it with extraneous details. Also, that whole “keep them moving” thing, I always have to remind myself that they are not having a discussion over tea.

Beverly: What writer, if any, influenced how you write?

Every writer I have ever read!

Tamara: Who would you choose as your “book boyfriend”? From what book? Author?

I am a very fickle woman. I have so many book boyfriends. There is Mr. Darcy from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, but there is also Mark Darcy from Bridget Jones’s Diary, Lord Damerel from Georgette Heyer’s Venetia, Brant Mallam from Hannah Howell’s If He’s Tempted, Kyrian and Zarek from Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunters, and Adam from Patricia Briggs Mercy Thompson series. The list could go on, but I am already breathless just thinking about these book heroes.

Beverly: LOL! A different one for every night of the week! Not a bad plan! What is the kinkiest thing you’ve ever done? Or would like to? What? We are all about the love!

I can give you references, but unfortunately my children are literate and it is still within the statute of limitations in some states, so I must decline to answer this on the grounds it might cause my children extreme embarrassment.

Tamara: What are your favorite types of heroines? Do you like the damsel in distress who needs saving or the kick-ass variety? Why?

I have nothing against damsels that need to be saved. We’ve all been there and there is no shame in needing help. I just don’t like the whiny damsels that wring their hands or do stupid things, especially after they’ve been told to stay put by the experts.
But if I have my druthers (isn’t that an excellent word, druthers?) give me the kick-ass variety. She doesn’t have to do it all, but she doesn’t just sit on her tuffet waiting for Prince Charming to show up and kiss her all better.

Beverly: What was your worst date ever?

The one where I had to throw the car into reverse and jump out and run.

Tamara: Tell us more! No? You sure? If you were stranded on a desert island, what three things would you want to have with you? (you have food, water, shelter, all the necessities, so nothing mundane).

Men. Books. I think I just covered all my needs.

Beverly: What is your “guilty pleasure”?

Reading.

Tamara: What dream or goal have you yet to realize?

Going to Australia.

Beverly: Me too. Road trip? Er, water trip! What was your most embarrassing moment?

When I was in the fourth grade I had to wear my dance costume from the year before to perform a dance for my classmates. I had had a growth spurt and I had to constantly pull the costume up over my nipples. (I was too young and skinny to have breasts, just nipples.) The nip slips at such a tender age explains a lot about my character now.

Tamara: LOL! If you were a color what would you be and why?

Orange. It’s the color of sunsets, the tango, and the brightest color in the crayon box. (Hailstones and Halibut Bones by Mary O’Neill

Beverly: Who has influenced how you perceive love? Why?

My grandmother. She took care of those she loved, and she taught me to do the same thing.

Tamara and Beverly: Okay. We are SSLY so we have to ask. Who loves you?

My children.

Now for some quick fun questions:

Boxers or briefs?
Boxers.
Coffee or Tea?
Tea
Tall, dark and handsome or Blond and buff?
One of each, please.
Hairy chest or smooth?
One of each, please.
Chocolate or Vanilla?
Ummmm. Ummmm. Ummmm.
Kinky or Sweet?
Sweetly kinky.
Fast or slow?
I like a change of pace. Both.
Public or private?
Ummmm. Ummmm. Ummm.
Top or bottom?
I am never relegated to only one position.

Beverly and Tamara: Thank you so much Liberty. Maybe your children shouldn’t read this but we thoroughly enjoyed having you!

The Counterfeit Bride

Texas rancher and bar owner Cassidy Flynn is shocked to learn the bride’s name in an upcoming high society wedding – Cassiopeia Dolmides. Cassidy is a woman of secrets; the deepest is the identity she was born with and thought she had escaped long ago. If this bride is impersonating Cassidy, what trouble will that cause Cassidy and her infant son?

Greek tycoon Theron Christofides needs to gain possession of Dolmides Cruise Lines and the little Greek island where it left a shipwrecked eyesore. A lot of people are at risk without his intervention. Old man Dolmides will sell on one condition: Theron must marry Dolmides’ illegitimate daughter. Seeing no other way to rescue the island’s people, Theron agrees to sacrifice himself and his future.

As Theron stands at the altar with his bride-to-be, a fiery-haired woman in snakeskin boots and a cowboy hat interrupts their vows by calling his bride a fraud. In order for the wedding to continue, Theron must convince Cassidy Flynn to drop her lawsuit. Can he withstand Cassidy’s allure while he gains her cooperation? Or will they both be consumed by the fire of desire?

Amazon: http://amzn.to/XFh6VX
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/16X28uT
Kobo: http://bit.ly/180YBj8
itunes: http://bit.ly/11yEQJA
Also available in paperback through Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
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