Authorpreneur Dashboard – Jill Blake
Taking a Chance
Romance
When Samantha Winters’ career as a big-city doctor leads to major burnout, she applies for a temporary position at a small clinic in central Pennsylvania. She’s as out of place in the town of Oakridge as a pair of high heels in a cow pasture, but that won’t stop her from going after what she wants. And what she wants most—after rediscovering her passion for medicine—is a family of her own: a loving husband and kids. Alex Kane is the local boy who made good. He’s spent years building his computer start-up into the biggest employer in Oakridge. Between that, and raising his sister’s orphaned kids, he’s ready for a break. What he really wants is to cut loose and have some fun. Too bad the new doc in town isn’t interested....Or is she?
Book Bubbles from Taking a Chance
City girl
I’m a city girl at heart: I grew up and went to school in Philadelphia, lived in New York and Los Angeles. I love the pace of the city, the easy access to cultural amenities, the convenience of having a 24-hour supermarket and pharmacy just down the street. The first time I visited a small town was at age 16, when I spent the summer attending a writing program at the Pennsylvania Governor’s School for the Arts. It was a huge culture shock. The college campus was just outside of town, and at night you could actually see the stars and hear crickets. The town itself had a pizzeria, laundromat, used bookstore, mom and pop grocery store, gas station/convenience store/garage (yep, all in one), and an inn for parents visiting their kids at school. In this scene, city girl Samantha visits the (fictional) town of Oakridge in central Pennsylvania. She’s the archetypal outsider, with all the prejudices one might expect from a sophisticated urbanite. Her gradual shift in attitude over the course of the book mirrors my own experiences that summer many years ago.
Pursued by the Playboy
Romance
A bachelor who's finally looking to settle down meets a career-driven woman who doesn't believe in love...
Kate Warner isn't interested in romance. After years of bearing silent witness to the disaster zone of her parents' marriage, the last thing Kate wants is a husband and kids. Besides, she's on the fast track to academic success at an Ivy League university.
Enter Dr. Marc DiStefano, star of the university hospital's department of gynecology. Tired of the Barbie-doll wanna-be's of his past, he's looking to settle down. And he's set his sights on Kate.
…That's when the problems begin.
Book Bubbles from Pursued by the Playboy
Breaking up is hard to do…
Who among us has never faced the prospect of a romantic break-up? In this scene, Kate believes that her relationship with Marc is over. {spoiler alert: it’s not....But you knew that already, right? That’s the beauty of romance novels: the happily-ever-after is guaranteed. The fun part is finding out how the hero and heroine get there.}
So, tell me about your mother…
Mothers get blamed for a lot of things. Sometimes unfairly, but not in this case: Kate’s mother really did make her childhood pretty miserable. Now, as an adult, Kate experiences an awkward role-reversal when her mother shows up, unannounced, on her doorstep…
Opposites attract (in real life too)
Readers often ask: how much of your writing is autobiographical?
In this scene, Kate and Marc are on their second date. They are in many ways complete opposites. He is smooth and self-confident; she is a bit socially awkward and unsure of herself. He enjoys cooking; she doesn’t know a garlic press from a nutcracker. He is ready to settle down; she isn’t interested in anything long-term.
When my husband and I started dating, that was us. (Though in our case, he’s the academic and I’m the physician.) We’ve been happily married now for many years, and have three lovely children.
If it worked for us, why not for Kate and Marc?
