Finally we have John F. Kennedy and the Bay of Pigs.  In a letter to Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, one day after the CIA-backed invasion of Cuba had started, he said, “I have previously stated, and I repeat now, that the United States intends no military intervention in Cuba.” Hmm…erasing that lie would’ve changed his presidency. Maybe he should’ve kept a secret keeper on tap like he did his loversJ

Am I picking on our presidents?  A little, but wouldn’t it be interested if they had a way to make their secrets and lies disappear like Winter does in The Secret Keeper, book 1.

As for rule number three, it states that the next time you have a secret, you will not be able to tell it to anyone, no matter how hard you try. This is the rule that turns Winter’s life upside down changing it and her forever and most certainly would’ve caused problems not just for our presidents but also for the entire US!

As for me, I’m glad our presidents didn’t have a secret keeper and when you read The Secret Keeper, book 1, you’ll totally understand whyJ

Curious to learn more?

Read an excerpt from The Secret Keeper here: Over and over in my head I repeated, “She can make my secret go away.” I’m not sure if I was trying to convince myself, or trying to keep myself from going nuts, but the phrase calmed me as I drove. I found Lejo Street and began the steep climb to the top. The houses in this neighborhood were small. Most were weathered if not completely forgotten. Pines grew too close together. Piles of rusted tools and long-forgotten bathroom fixtures littered the landscape, hidden only by overgrown grasses and neglected Quakies. No wonder everyone thought it was creepy.

My heart rate quickened with the ascent, and my palms left sticky sweat on my steering wheel. I wiped them on my jeans only to have the moisture build up again immediately. Soon there was nothing but dense forest; a blur of green, broken only by the ashen skies above. The rain came down in unyielding sheets and I turned up the windshield wipers. Back and forth they went like a giant metronome, keeping in step with my nervous heartbeat.

I strained to see out the windows until all at once there was nothing in front me but a large rusted metal gate and a cracked wood sign, painted long ago, that declared, “No trespassing.” Beyond the gate, through the trees and the rain, I saw the pale blue house that the girl in the park had described.

One more time I said out loud, “She can make my secret disappear.” I’d almost convinced myself now. I had to be convinced, what with the dilapidated house in the middle of nowhere and the stormy weather. Everything screamed “Don’t go in!” but I was driven to try something, anything, not to lose my best friend and boyfriend.

I climbed from the car and ran until I reached the porch, slipping and having to catch myself as I tried to take the stairs too fast. Light spilled out through a crack in the curtains, letting me know someone was there. I lifted my hand to knock on the old splintered door and froze. I didn’t know the secret keeper’s name. How would I address her? Before I could decide what to do, the heavily scratched door handle turned and the door opened a crack. My mouth fell open. The eyes that peered through the opening were surprisingly young.

My throat felt tight as I swallowed and it sounded loud to me. I could turn and run. Everything in my gut told me to go, but I stood like a marble statue frozen by my anguish.

“Who are you looking for?” she asked. Her melodic voice made me think of dozens of wind chimes all tinkling at once. Still, I felt uneasy.

I made myself spit out the words. “The Secret Keeper.” An excruciatingly long minute passed and I thought she might tell me that I had the wrong house or that I should get off her property. Finally, in a voice no louder than a whisper she said, “Come in. I’m The Secret Keeper.”

 

Purchase copy of The Secret Keeper here:

Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Angela-Carling/e/B006P15NOG/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

Barnes and Noble http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/angela-carling

Thank you to the following blogs for participating in the final day of the Mamarazzi blog tour!

http://victoriazumbrumsreviews.blogspot.com

www.lilylovesindie.co.uk

The Phantom Paragrapher

P.S. There are other blogs that will be posting about the book in the days and weeks to follow. They were unable to post during the tour due to room limitations, but I'm happy to have them any time at all. If you're a blogger and you missed out, please don't hesitate to contact me any time!

So, Mamarazzi is out. What's next?! Do you remember my last release, "Accept this Dandelion?" That book is turning into a series. I can't even believe it myself! Here's the blurb from the upcoming "Dandelions on the Road"...

Twelve men…one woman…plenty of dandelions. Eva Merida has her life in order. She loves her job at the Furry Friends Rescue League and has a loving, supportive family. But she’s still missing that one special person to stand by her side. When she comes in third place on the local TV version of “The Bachelor,” entitled Accept this Dandelion, she nearly loses all hope for romance. Fortunately, the TV station decides to do a second season of the dating show…and they name Eva as the Bachelorette! With a plethora of dating mishaps recorded for TV, Eva finds herself falling for several men at once…including the show’s host. Will she find love at last or simply embarrass herself in front of the entire city?

And after that? I have a short Christmas story coming out as part of a compilation with other authors. It's called "Backwards Christmas." Then there's my children's book with Wee Creek Press called "Baby Sheep Gets a Haircut." It's releasing June 2016. So there's plenty! Probably always will be. I don't like to be bored! Stay tuned for details!!!

Not that I'm moving on from Mamarazzi...once I've written a book it's somewhat like a child, it's not something that ever truly leaves me. However, with this tour almost over, I want to share a quote from my next release... "Dandelions on the Road." Watch the blog, my facebook page and website for details on release dates for that one! And you'll find a list of blogs participating on the tour below as well!

Thank you to the following blog for participating in today's portion of the blog tour!

http://dawnsdreams.blogspot.com

What kind of research did you do for this book?

Took pictures of celebrities. Ha! Not really. I live in the Midwest. The news anchors are about as close as we get to fame around here. I can’t say that I’m one to research all that much. My fiction is very much just that…fiction! Made up from the deep creases in my mind. Scary as that is. J

Please tell us about one of the main characters in this story and what you like about him or her.

I really liked the male lead, Eliot Lane. He’s a huge star, just coming into his own in the acting world. And yet he’s still humble and knows what’s important in the world. He can have anything he wants at the snap of a finger, but he doesn’t take advantage of that.

Thank you to this blog for participating in the tour today!

www.pratr.wordpress.com

Please tell us about your new romantic comedy, Mamarazzi.

Mamarazzi asks the question, is the grass REALLY greener on the other side? In the novel, a female paparazzo is thrown onto a TV show and quickly sees what life is like on the other side of the camera. Since no one knows what she did before appearing on the show, her secrets are plentiful.

 
 

Where did you get your inspiration for this story?

This is an idea I’ve had since before college. When I was in a screenwriting class, I had to write a small portion of a screenplay and I based it on this idea, which had been in the back of my mind for a long time. At that time, I called it Paparazzi and formed a male lead character. Once I began writing romantic comedy, the idea started bugging me again. I thought, what if I changed it to a female? Called it Mamarazzi? I realized how much better that idea was and ran with it!

Thank you to the following blogs for participating in the tour today!

https://reneeblare.wordpress.com/

www.cleanromancereviews.com

Here's an interview blurb from the blog tour and then after that, the blogs participating in the tour today.

If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you’d be?

Being a writer is my dream job. I had NO idea doing this was even a slight possibility or I would have given it a shot a LOOOONG time ago. But if I couldn’t write, I’d love to be an audio book reader. You know, the voice that reads the book to you? Actually, once my daughters are in school and I have more time to work, I’d like to go into that as well. Or I’d like to be in radio theater. There are a few radio shows (especially those for kids) that still exist. They’re like TV shows, only it’s just audio and not visual. I would love to use my radio skills and either voice characters or produce. I loved the creative aspects of producing when I was in the biz.

 

What’s your writing spot look like?

Oh, it’s all glamour and spice. Okay, so it’s a tiny desk in the middle of the kitchen. There are piles of random scrap paper on one side of the desk, which is weird because I write really small and can use one scrap of paper for like a year, no joke. Behind the computer screen is the Netflix dvd for the week and any outgoing mail there might be. Above the desk are cubbies jammed with important papers we never get out, stamps, and other odds and ends. Banking stuff, bills, various whatnot. There’s just enough room on the desk for the keyboard and sometimes I stuff a drink nearby.

The following blogs are participating in the tour today. A huge THANK YOU to them!!


http://amazeballsbookaddicts.blogspot.com/

http://pebbleinthestillwaters.blogspot.com

throughthebookingglassblog.com

cmoye.net/blog

www.carrieannlahain.com

www.sydneylogan.com

Radiantlit.com

https://prismaticprospects.wordpress.com/

www.ruthrobertsromance.com

http://ladyblue1.com

http://www.rustysreading.com

http://sassygirlbooks.com

karmaforlifechick.com

www.theediblebookshelf.blogspot.com

http://www.firstpagetothelast.com

http://cheekypeereadsandreviews.blogspot.co.uk/

http://bookgroupies2.blogspot.com/

http://obsessedbybooksblog.blogspot.co.uk

Here is a piece of an interview from the blog tour. Below that you will find the blogs on the tour for today!         

  How do your pick your titles?

That part is usually very easy for me. I generally have an idea for the title before I begin writing the book. Once I have a basic book idea, the title seems obvious. The Mamarazzi idea actually goes back to my college days or possibly even beyond. I was supposed to write a snipet of an original screenplay for a class and I called it Paparazzi. It was about a male paparazzo who stumbles onto a TV set, ends up on the show, and then the paparazzi are taking HIS picture. It was a small portion of a script, but it was an idea I’d always had in the back of my head. Once I went into more romantic comedy type writing, I decided to flush that idea out, make the main character a woman, and call it MAmarazzi instead. The title came naturally. For my last romantic comedy release, “Accept this Dandelion,” the title was also easy. Have you ever seen the TV show The Bachelor? In that show, they have rose ceremonies and the man will say, “so and so, will you accept this rose?” It means that he wants the woman to continue to date him and if she accepts the rose, it signifies that she agrees to move on. The book was going to be a similar dating show, only on a local level and in a comedic fashion. So “Accept this Dandelion” seemed like a natural title! My first novel, “Someone Always Loved You,” was much more of a struggle. I had NO idea what to call it. My mom helped my come up with a fitting title and I love it now. But it took a while to get there! I much prefer having the title in mind when I start.

 

Which part of your book did you struggle with the most?

I was super eager to write Mamarazzi. I don’t usually start a book until I have a basic premise and the very first line or scene formed in my mind. The line for Mamarazzi came to me and I was itching to write it. But the holidays were upon me and it wasn’t good timing to just sit down and flush it out. To stall, I held the character naming contests and let the ideas stew. That was in November. I spend December preparing clients and flushing out blocks of time so I could write it in January. So waiting to write it was the first and biggest struggle. Second, I wrote a scene in the book that definitely looked like it meant one particular thing. I didn’t know what it actually meant, but I didn't want it to be what was assumed. I had to sit on that a while and I remember when we were taking our Christmas tree down late in January (finally, I know!) the resolution just came to me. It’s a big tree and my husband was at the top of the stairs trying to take it apart and I’m at the bottom going, oh my gosh, I have it! I know what to do! HE’s like what what?! Then he realized I meant the book, not the big heavy tree…  For the most part, when I’m writing I just write. I don't think too much about it. I let the characters have free reign!

Thank you to the following blogs for participating in the tour today!

http://lindaweaverclarke.blogspot.com/

www.rachelskatvold.com

http://wilovebooks.blogspot.com

http://www.kkherheadache.wordpress.com

I'm excited that the release party is just a few days away. If you have a computer, you can join the party HERE. Come and go as you can! I'll be there all day and have a couple of specific hours that I'm hosting myself. Hope to "see" you there!

You can order the book through the below icon. Please leave a review when you finish it!

Here's another interview piece from the blog tour. Enjoy! Below that, you'll find the list of today's blogs on the tour! Visit as you can! They all love to have new viewers and comments!

 
          What advice do you have for the new writer?

Write because you love to write and for no other reason. Never force it. You can always tell when something isn’t coming out right. And if writing is what you want to do, never give up. It is extremely hard to find an agent, the right publisher, or an audience. But if you stop looking, you’ll NEVER find him/it/them, right? Believe in what you do. Not everyone will love every word you lay out there, but if you love it, others will too. You just have to find them! It may feel like a needle in a haystack at times, but I guarantee you’ll never run across the needle if you stop looking. Write write write and love it and you’ve already won!

 

How long have you been writing and why did you start?

Oh, just since birth. Haha. Okay, I’m not THAT talented! But practically! When I was a kid, I used to cut pictures out of the newspaper (much to my dad’s chagrin when he hadn’t read it yet) paste the pictures onto blank paper, and then write a story about the picture. I’d then sell my “magazines” to my parents for a nickel. I should have known then what I was meant to do. I didn’t try my hand at novel writing until about a year after I graduated college. I was working in radio full time, but I was so compelled by a scene that formed and stuck in my mind that I couldn’t NOT write it. Once I had that scene out, I felt I owed it to the characters to see what happened. So I wrote “Someone Always Loved You.” I searched for an agent and publisher for months without any luck and became highly discouraged. I didn’t write anything other than radio scripts for a full decade. And I’m sad by all the time I lost. Eventually, I put that book out on my own for fun and it’s been a bestseller in its category on a number of occasions. I got back into writing two years after my oldest daughter was born. I was still in radio, though on a VERY part time basis. I wanted to leave radio and do something from home and writing seemed the natural fit. I started gathering writing jobs and clients and creating a freelance writing business at home. This fueled my love of writing and I segued back into novel writing again.

Thank you to these blogs for participating in the tour today!

http://seawhatshesreading.blogspot.com

We're all just ordinary people, right? In many ways, we're extraordinary as well, but when it comes down to it, we all put our pants on one leg at a time! Mamarazzi released yesterday. I can't believe it! It feels like I've been waiting for it for years. Maybe because I've had the idea for years... :)

Anyway, I hope you will order Mamarazzi and take a few hours out of your life to read and enjoy it. I'd love for you to leave a review for it on amazon as well. I read them all and appreciate them, good or bad. Your honest opinion means a lot to me! I'll post a piece of an interview below as well as the blogs participating in today's tour! Order the book using the below link!

Tell us about your book.

Mamarazzi is a light-hearted romance that deals with one of life’s big questions…is the grass really greener on the other side? In the novel, the female lead is a paparazzo and she’s really good at what she does. She stumbles into a small part on a TV show and ends up on the OTHER side of the camera lens. Add to this that no one knows what she used to do for a living and she’s got a boatload of secrets to cover as well.

 

How do you pick your character names?

I have to admit, I loathe choosing character names. I’m just really bad at it! For a while, I chose names I liked. Then I started grabbing random names from people I went to school with and knew growing up. Once I reached Mamarazzi, I was out! I wanted the names to really fit the characters so I had a name game through my facebook and website. I outlined what the characters would be like and let friends, followers, and fans name them FOR me. I compiled a list of names for each character, narrowed it down to two or three per character, and then had everyone vote. And THAT’S how the names in Mamarazzi were settled! I especially like Vesper, the main character’s seedy cousin, who is really named Veronica Roy, but changed it to Vesper for Hollywood purposes.

Thank you to the following blogs on the tour today!

www.jerupublications.blogspot.com

http://christianchicksthoughts.blogspot.com

nerdgirl.com

Has some place you have traveled inspired something in your writing?

Places I’ve visited have often showed up in my writing. I’ve heard it’s easiest (and sometimes best) to write what you know. I took that to heart and have since used experiences I’ve had or things I’ve seen to help me through a novel. For example, in “Wrong Place, Right Time,” part of the book is based in Las Vegas, a city I’ve visited on a few occasions. Another portion of the book hits San Francisco, another city I toured and enjoyed. I’ve been to some of the locations in “Mamarazzi,” and other California adventures inspired what I wrote in it as well. I may not get out all that much, but I take advantage of the time away that I DO get!

When is your next book due out and can you tell us about it?

“Accept this Dandelion” came out in February 2015, but at the end of that book, I didn’t feel like it was complete. The characters would not leave me along and I felt compelled to write a second and even a third book continuing the story with a fourth a possibility in the future. “Dandelions on the Road” will be my next release, the second book in the dandelion series. This book can be read as a stand alone, but is a continuation of a few of the side characters from “Accept this Dandelion.” I hope to release the book in November 2015. You can watch my website, authorbrookewilliams.com for details. After that, the third book in the series, “After the Final Dandelion.” No release date/plans on that one yet. I still have to edit etc.