Today my guest is MJ Kane author of A Heart Not Easily Broken. I met MJ through a group of wonderful new author friends with 5 Prince Publishing.
First, tell us a
little about yourself.
I am a stay-at-home mom with an overactive imagination that
has found a way to put it to use! I’ve gone from being an avid reader, to a
writer. Writing has helped me find myself…becoming a published author has
solidified it! I’ve been married to my high school sweet heart for
eighteen-years and have four beautiful children, and two dogs. Well, ten if you
count the fact my female has just delivered her first litter of puppies, eight
beautiful black and white balls of fur. Can’t wait to sell them!
As writers, we often
become emotionally attached to our characters. Who is your favorite hero you’ve
ever written?
Oh man, that’s a hard question! Since I am writing a series,
and only one book has been published so far, it’s hard to tell. I have very
soft spots for all of my men (all six of them!) and have outlines started for
the following five books in the Butterfly
Memoirs Series. So far, readers have only been introduced to Brian Young,
the sexy blond haired, blue-eyed bass player in A Heart Not Easily Broken. Since he is the first male character I’ve
ever written, I know he will forever hold a soft spot in my heart.
Have you ever fallen
in love with or had a crush on one of your heroes? Tell us about him.
Honestly, yes!
I guess it helps that all of them, despite what race they are, have a
small facet of my husband in them, as well as research and imagination as to
what type of man my heroine needs. As much as I love Brian, Zachariah Givens,
has developed a soft spot. He’s
not your typical hero. He’s an introvert, loves his mother, and is a computer
wiz. Yet he’s extremely passionate about the one he gives his heart to, and
since he’s been hurt, he doesn’t give it freely. He’s exactly the kind of man
the heroine needs. You can look for him in the next book in the Butterfly Memoir Series, Jaded, coming March 2013.
How do you develop
your heroes? Do you imagine their personality or their physical appearance
first? Do they grow as personalities as you write or do you do a character
sketch before you type the first word?
I put a lot of time in developing each of my
characters. Once I have
established the storyline, I decide exactly what I want my ‘man’ to look
like. My books are romance, yet
focus on the development of not only the heroine, but the hero as well. Once
‘she’ has been developed, I look for personality traits that will turn her on
and off, because let’s face it, no one wants the ‘perfect’ man. Sometimes
rubbing her ‘the wrong way’ can be a good thing! Nobody wants a push over! My
men may be willing to give his woman the world, but he will never allow her to
put him down. He knows how to handle her even when it pisses her off. I often
watch movies and study actor’s movements, voice, attitudes, etc. I get very
deep into developing them. At times, it feels as if I’m having an ‘affair’! LOL
I like to give my
heroes a personality quirk, just so they aren’t too perfect. Have you ever written a quirk for one of your heroes
and what was it?
Not, necessarily a quirk, but they do have flaws, don’t we
all? Too perfect makes them unrealistic.
Their flaws come from trust issues, past experiences that led to them
being unsure about themselves or the heroine, and having to overcome their
‘macho’ facade for the one they fall in love with.
How do you name your
hero?
I research popular names from year they were born. Then, I
imagine what it would be like to…ahem…call out that particular name when
properly prompted. If it rolls off the tongue, that’s the one!
Who is your favorite
hero in books, movies, or television?
Hmm…right now, from books, Izzy from the Troubleshooters series by Suzanne Brockman, the Black
Dagger Brotherhood Vampire, Rhage,
from J.R. Wards series, and Ranger,
from the Stephanie Plumb novels by Janet Evanovich. Movies, Aragorn, from Lord of the Rings (Viggo Mortenson), and TV, Alec
Hardison (Aldes Hodge) from Leverage.
Who is your hero in
real life?
My father, Warren Kelly, who was the first African-American
Fire Chief in the state of Georgia back in the early 80’s. He died in 1985 when
I was ten.
Tell us about your
most recent release and where we can find it. Who is the hero and what do you
like about him the most?
My debut novel, A
Heart Not Easily Broken, book
one of the Butterfly Memoirs,
can be found on Amazon and Barnes & Noble for Kindle
and Nook as well as paperback. It is also available on iTunes.
The story is an Interracial Romance between Ebony Campbell,
who is black, and Brian Young, the white, blond haired, blue-eyed bass player
who refuses to take no for an answer. What I love most about him (and fans of
the book seem to agree!) is his persistence. He doesn’t let the fact she’s
uncomfortable with their racial differences deter him. He keeps after her, whittling
down that barrier until he gets what he wants: her heart. He’s also very
supportive of her career and never pushes her to give up her dreams to accommodate
him or his needs. He’s there for her when she needs him, even when she tries to
push him away. And when he screws up, he’s man enough to admit it and beg for
her forgiveness.
I can't wait to start reading my copy of A Heart Not Easily Broken.
Here's an excerpt from the book...
Her
attention appeared to be on something in her purse as she walked my way, so she
hadn’t seen me yet.
She
was not dressed as she was Saturday night. Her hair wasn’t flowing over her
shoulders, tempting my fingers to get lost in its waves. Her legs were not
bare, nor did she wear a skin tight, short dress, showing off shapely calf
muscles, as she had the other evening. Instead, she wore a baggy shirt over
pants with some kind of printed design, something like standard medical wear.
She wore her hair in a ponytail, and her feet were in tennis shoes. She
struggled to balance an armful of books of various sizes and a book bag over
her shoulder.
Ebony
was still sexy as hell.
“I’m
glad you haven’t got started yet. My roommate called me at the last minute and
told me you were coming. I don’t have any cash on me. Do you take checks or−?”
Her voice faltered when she saw me. “Brian? What are you doing here?”
I
caught a hint of fire in her eyes and something else. Maybe guilt for not
meeting me in VIP?
“I’m
here to cut your grass.” I screwed the top back on the gas can, fighting the
urge to laugh at the irony of the situation.
Play it cool. I was not about to
let her know how disappointed I’d been sitting alone. What happened a few
nights ago had nothing to do with the money she was about to put in my pocket.
“I
thought you were a musician.”
I
pulled goggles and gloves out of the driver’s side door pocket. “I am, but it
doesn’t pay the bills just yet. This is my day job.”
Ebony’s
eyes traveled to the truck and my cousins before settling back on me.
“This
is my business,” I added, watching her thin eyebrows arch.
Since
I hadn’t questioned her about the VIP incident, she seemed to relax. The sound
of a lawnmower cranking up broke the awkward silence.
“Well,
I’ll get out of your way.” She backed away from the truck and headed for her
house.
It
dawned on me I did not answer her question regarding the form of payment. At
least it would give me something to talk about when we were done.
Saturday
night, Ebony disappeared like Cinderella, without leaving a hint of a glass
slipper. Now, barely two days later, I found where she lived. What were the
chances? This was fate.
I
took the opportunity to appreciate every inch of her hidden under baggy
clothes. The image of her in the black form-fitting dress revealing every curvy
inch of her body had haunted my dreams.
Outside
the club, in natural light, Ebony did not disappoint. Her almond shaped eyes
were a rich shade of brown, dark and mysterious. She wore no makeup on her
caramel skin, and her lips were naked, with no hint of gloss.
I
chuckled when she finally got her front door unlocked. It appeared she’d run
into some trouble with her key. Flustered perhaps?
I hoped so. With a little luck, I just
might have a chance to get her to talk to me about more than grass.
You can purchase
A Heart Not Easily Broken at the following links:
You find MJ on the internet at the following links:
Lucky's Charm by Jenn Nixon
