In the Author Spotlight & Contest

Rebecca J. Vickery

CONTEST: Rebecca will give away a copy of Seeking Shelter to three different commenter’s in a random drawing. The ebooks will be downloadable in any format from Smashwords with a special code that Rebecca will provide to each winner. She will draw the names on Tuesday afternoon of the 30th and notify them so be sure to leave your email addy.

AL: Hi Rebecca Thanks for being in the “Author Spotlight” this week.

Rebecca: Hi Ann, I’m delighted to be here.

AL: So, tell us what’s happening with you.

Rebecca: I am kept on the run by my three-year old granddaughter who lives with us. Taylor is a bundle of energy. My mom also lives with us and we’ve just found out she has the beginning of Parkinson’s Disease. Please send some prayers and healing thoughts her way. I have a very patient husband who does endless errands and helps out as best he can. We all stay pretty busy and are looking forward to our next trip to the campground at Myrtle Beach. The ocean is so relaxing and rejuvenating.

AL: Would you like to tell us about a new or upcoming release?

Rebecca: Seeking Shelter is my newest release. It is a sweet romance, based on a woman’s love of a horse and her need to find a safe place. A rancher takes in the horse and then the girl. It was inspired by my grandson when he kept asking could I not write a story about a horse.

AL: What other works are you deep into?

Rebecca: Funny you should ask that. I’ve just entered into a brand new project that is growing already. With the help of my friend, wonderful cover artist, Laura Shinn, and a whole group of talented authors, I am going to publish some romance anthologies. Our first one, A Summer Collection, is set to release in June and will contain five romance stories by five different authors. They will be coming out from Victory Tales Press. We will be publishing through Smashwords, Amazon and B & N in ebook and we hope to also go to print.

AL: Who inspired you to follow your dream of becoming a writer?

Rebecca: That would be my sister, Wanda. She loved the stories I always made up to keep us occupied and she began finding my scraps of plots and scenes everywhere. She encouraged me to put them all together on the computer. She didn’t live to see me published, but I’m sure she knows.

AL: What do you feel is the most important thing that a first-time author should know?

Rebecca: You can’t please everyone, so stay true to your own heart when writing and don’t give up when you hit a bump in the road.

AL: What do you hope for your writing career in the next few years? Any goals that you have yet to obtain that you have set for yourself?

Rebecca: I try not to set too many lofty goals. I prefer to set small ones and then feel good when I attain them. Like all authors, I wish for a bestseller, but my real goal is just to have my writing pay its own expenses. I hope someday my idol and favorite author, Kay Hooper, will send me an email saying she read one of my books and loved it. That would be the pinnacle of my writing.

AL: So, now for the important questions. Sometimes people envision an author’s life as being really glamorous, so tell us what’s the most unglamorous thing you’ve done in the past week?

Rebecca: LOL –You really do not want to know. Taylor was sick and failed to reach the bathroom in time. The wall, the floor, her clothes, and Dixie (our poodle) were all recipients of what happened. The clean-up—Very unglamorous. YUCK!!!

AL: If you could have any car in the world; would it be a slow rider, or one that the wind has to hurry just to keep up with you?

Rebecca: Blow away those cobwebs, baby!!! Give me a hot, muscle car anytime and crank up some beach music. I would love to have a 1969 Oldsmobile Cutlass Cruiser Supreme, two door coupe with a 350 cu. in. engine and a four barrel Holley Carburetor, two-toned, blue on steel blue. Or a teal blue Ferrari Testarossa. (Think Magnum PI car only in teal.)

AL: If you had to go live on an island for six months, which three things would you HAVE to take with you?

Rebecca: EWWW, tough decision. Husband, chocolate, laptop or Dr. Pepper??? Dr Pepper or laptop??? OK, laptop.

AL: Can you describe yourself in 3 sentences or less?

Rebecca: I am a Christian wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, and author. I strive to do better everyday, but often fail. I love life and am enjoying the journey.

AL: What is this romance writer's idea of the "perfect romantic evening"?

Rebecca: That one is easy. My perfect romantic evening would be spent snuggled up to my hubby by a campfire on the beach. We would be watching the waves roll in under a full moon while sharing a large bottle of Dr. Pepper and a Hershey bar. Heavenly!!! (I’m a woman of simple pleasures.)

AL: Please share a favorite quote(s) with us.

Rebecca: “We cannot hold a torch to light another's path without brightening our own.” Ben Sweetland

AL: Thanks so much for sharing with joining us this week, Rebecca.

Rebecca: Thank you so much for having me over. I love all the interesting things you share with your followers. And this was fun, but you did ask some tough questions.

AL: If you’d like to find out more about Rebecca please visit:

www.romancewithatwist.com
http://www.rebeccajvickery.blogspot.com
http://rebeccajvickery.webs.com

FEATURED TITLE: SEEKING SHELTER

Blurb:

Brigham Montgomery buys a rogue stallion and a world of trouble. Being the boss of a working ranch isn't easy either. Loss and fear sends Kat to South Dakota searching for the one friend she has left in the world - a special horse - a horse someone wants dead.

A stable fire, gunshots, and two greedy men bring Brig and Kat together in a way neither would ever imagine.

Excerpt:

Moaning with pain, the girl put her hands to her ears to try to shut out the strange screeching and thumping noises that wouldn’t stop. As she rolled over and tried to get up, she realized the sound was the frantic screaming of terrified horses kicking at their stalls in panic. Oh God, please no, she thought over and over as she pushed to her knees. Then she smelled it.

The acrid, ashy, smoke burned her nose—she could taste it on her tongue. The heat almost seared her throat as she inhaled. In spite of the pain in her head, she knew one of her worst fears was coming true. She was in a stable fire—a horse lover’s most horrific nightmare.

Flickering red and yellow lights danced before her eyes throwing strangely shaped shadows throughout the center aisle. They added to her growing terror. Shrill neighs and pounding hooves echoed in the long building signaling animals going out of their minds with fear. Crawling to the nearest stall partition, she pulled herself up and staggered back to the corner stall holding the black stallion. She saw vague movement through the swirling haze and firelight toward the front of the stable. Shouts indicated the arrival of others as they began working to rescue the horses from the burning building.

The smoke grew thicker with every moment. Flames roared through the wooden structure like a runaway locomotive. The back side of the stallion’s stall was already an inferno. He lunged repeatedly at the solid Dutch door on the inside aisle in an effort to escape. Rearing, he smashed his front hooves against the wood.

Reaching out, she shakily unfastened the latch and began talking as calmly as possible to the terrified horse. He screamed his fear and jerked back when a portion of the ceiling caved in near her, directly in front of his stall. Embers flew into the air all around them. Straw ignited as the flaming cinders landed. Then the stallion reared and lunged, nearly stomping her feet.

Moving fast, she stepped in close to the stud’s side. Grabbing a handful of mane she swung herself onto the broad, black back. That seemed to be the safest place to avoid the huge hooves. It was also the only chance she might have of bringing the panicking animal under any sort of control.

Amid the noise and confusion she used her knees, heels, hands, and voice to urge the trembling stallion forward into the stall doorway. The horrible smells of singed hair, burning wood, and smoldering straw filled the stifling hot air. As flames crackled and popped among the fallen timbers on the stable floor, loud creaks and groans warned that other parts of the roof were giving way. They were trapped with no way out.

The horse reared and whinnied shrilly, almost unseating her when a burning ember landed on his rump. She quickly reached back flicking it off while trying to keep her seat on the bare back of the dancing animal. The fire spread rapidly across the floor of the stall and the smoke got darker and thicker. The blistering heat caused creosote to bubble from the stable supports.

It can’t end like this, not after all we’ve been through.

* * * * *

Brig jerked awake to screaming and banging from the direction of the stable. The odd light flickering in his window alerted him to the reason for the disturbance.

Fire! The stable’s on fire.

Diving into a pair of jeans, he ran down the back stairs, hastily shoved his feet into his boots on the mud porch, and rushed out. Several of the men ran toward the burning building from the bunkhouse and were grabbing up water buckets and dousing burlap sacks.

“Forget the building! Save the horses!” Brig shouted to be heard over the confusion and threw open the wide double doors of the stable. The walls were already burning in several places and the sudden rush of air only fed the flames. Fire licked upward, leaping for the roof. There was only a matter of minutes to save the horses trapped inside.

REMEMBER: Rebecca will give away a copy of Seeking Shelter to three different commenter’s in a random drawing. The ebooks will be downloadable in any format from Smashwords with a special code that Rebecca will provide to each winner. She will draw the names on Tuesday afternoon of the 30th and notify them so be sure to leave your email addy.