I am so excited to have Tracie Banister back at CLC today. As soon as she said she had a new book in the works, I was so excited. I love Tracie's writing style and her books are so much fun. If you haven't read them yet, it's never too late to start! Tracie and I have a lot of TV show and movie interests in common, especially Younger (#TeamCharles for both of us), Schitt's Creek, Being Erica, and The Princess Bride. She has also been so supportive of CLC, ever since we featured her debut novel.
Her latest novel, Straight from the Hart, published today and is only $1.99 for Kindle. Because I am such a fan of Tracie's writing, I would like to buy one lucky reader an e-book of their choice from Tracie's current offerings!
An avid reader and writer, Tracie Banister has been scribbling stories since she was a child, most of them featuring feisty heroines with complicated love lives like her favorite fictional protagonist Scarlett O'Hara. Her work was first seen on the stage of her elementary school, where her fourth grade class performed an original holiday play she penned. (Like all good divas-in-the-making, she also starred in and tried to direct the production.)
Tracie’s dreams of authorial success were put on the backburner when she reached adulthood and discovered that she needed a "real" job in order to pay her bills. Her career as personal assistant to a local entrepreneur lasted for 12 years. When it ended, she decided to follow her bliss and dedicate herself to writing full-time. She is the proud winner of the Independent Press Award (Romantic Comedy) and a Bronze Medal in the Readers’ Favorite Awards (Chick Lit).
Straight from the Hart is Tracie’s seventh novel and a full circle moment for her as the story took her back to Hollywood, which was the setting of her very first book, Blame It on the Fame. (Bio courtesy of Tracie's website.)
Visit Tracie online:
Romance isn’t dead. At least not as long as Vanessa Hart has anything to say about it.
Having founded her own romance concierge business, Vanessa helps the couples of Los Angeles keep the spark alive by planning unique and unforgettable experiences guaranteed to make them fall even deeper in love. But playing Cupid doesn’t leave this boss lady any time to lock down her own happily ever after, or so she claims.
Vanessa is secretly nursing a broken heart from her last serious relationship, which ended badly, like donate everything he left at her apartment to Goodwill and refuse to ever speak his name again badly. When Vanessa’s ex, celebrity publicist Alex Farr, reappears in her life with an intriguing business proposition, she’d like to tell him where to stuff it, but . . .
Straight from the Hart is under attack by an unscrupulous former employee and getting the endorsement of Alex’s A-list client would prove Vanessa’s the best romance concierge in town. All she has to do is save the marriage of “It Couple” Jax and Jaz, which is teetering on the edge of a fault line thanks to his drunken indiscretion with a co-star, and get the twosome back on the red carpet in time for Jax’s film premiere.
If only Vanessa didn’t have to work side-by-side with the man she once adored and now wants to throttle. Jax and Jaz might be soulmates who deserve a second chance, but there’s no going back for her and Alex. They are done. Over. Finished. Kaput. Vanessa just has to keep telling herself that until she believes it. (Courtesy of Amazon.)
What is a favorite compliment you have received on your writing?
I am always really honored when people tell me that they reread my books. There is no higher compliment to me because a story has to really strike a chord with someone for them to want to revisit it multiple times!
I am always really honored when people tell me that they reread my books. There is no higher compliment to me because a story has to really strike a chord with someone for them to want to revisit it multiple times!
How is Vanessa similar to or different from you?
Vanessa is similar to me in that she’s very goal-oriented and a natural leader. We’re both Fire signs (I’m an Aries; she’s a Leo) so that makes us bossy! LOL Also she’s creative and gets to employ that skill on the job as I do with my writing.
The biggest difference between Vanessa and me is she’s a diehard romantic who goes into any situation or relationship bright-eyed, hopeful, and expecting the best, while I’m more of a realist and have a wait-and-see-how-this-pans-out-before-I-get-excited attitude.
If Straight from the Hart were made into a movie, who would you cast in the lead roles?
I had someone in my mind as Alex Farr while writing this book, so he’s easy to cast. Canadian actor Chad Connell would be perfect as he’s blond, has an athletic physique, looks great in a suit, and is very charming. Your followers may know him from the Netflix film Good Sam or a cute RomCom he did with the Mowry twins called Double Wedding.
As for Vanessa, that’s tough because I always envision my heroines as their own unique selves. I think Morgan Kohan (another Canadian!) would be my choice to bring Vanessa to life because she has the coppery hair and fair skin, plus she’s tall and slender and has that poise with an underlying hint of vulnerability that the character does. Morgan’s always easy to relate to and root for on-screen, which would be important for anyone playing Vanessa.
What TV series are you currently binge watching?
I am working on Country Comfort, the Netflix sitcom starring Katharine McPhee and Eddie Cibrian right now. It’s cute—sort of a gender-swapped, countrified Who’s the Boss. I’ll need a new binge-watch soon, so I’m open to suggestions if anyone has them. I was thinking about checking out Arrested Development since I never saw that.
What is something you've learned about yourself during the pandemic?
I’m really good at doing jigsaw puzzles and they are a fantastic stress reliever! I hadn’t done a puzzle since I was a child and it’s been wonderful to rediscover this hobby. I really like that doing puzzles is not only very entertaining, it works a different part of my brain than writing does. I post my finished puzzles on social media and have a blast discussing them with other puzzle lovers.
Since you write about characters with unique jobs, what is a unique job you would be interested in trying out?
I would love to be a beauty product namer. You know, the person who comes up with all of the fun color names for lipsticks, nail polishes, etc. Naturally, that would require me to try out all the products as well, which would be a great perk because I love cosmetics!
Thanks to Tracie for chatting with us today!
How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here.
Giveaway ends April 18th at midnight EST.
5 comments:
I fell in love with my hubby when I saw him for the first time. I met him, talked to him, and went home thinking this is the guy for me.
We met at a Cattle Festival, love at first site, and married a year later.
i fell in love with my husband after working together for a couple of years and starting out as friends first
we met in college, but we didn't date till after graduation, then we fell in love.
d
at school
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