Kieran Kramer

A ROMANTIC FORECAST . . .

CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MARRIAGE
in book stores APRIL 26th St. Martin’s Press
ISBN: 978-0-312-37403-7

HER HEART’S BEEN UNDER THE WEATHER Every woman dreams of saying “I do.” Jilly Jones did—and years of a deeply imperfect marriage followed. Now living in London and working in a charming bookshop, the free-spirited Jilly is perfectly content with her newfound independence…until she meets a dashing naval officer who sparks her longing for a real happily ever after.

IS NEW LOVE IN THE FORECAST? Captain Stephen Arrow is just home after years of service, and he’s in no hurry to give up his hard-won freedom. The meddlesome bluestocking Jilly Jones is exactly the kind of woman he doesn’t need….But there’s something about her that keeps drawing Stephen back to the bookshop. With her sparkling wit and understated beauty, she seems like a surprisingly real match for Stephen. But will a scandalous chapter in Jilly’s past stand in the way of their heated attraction? For this bachelor, nothing is impossible….

USA Today best-selling romance author Kieran Kramer writes lighthearted Regency historical romances for St. Martin's Press. Her newest release, CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MARRIAGE, the third book in her Impossible Bachelors series, hits the shelves April 26th. A former CIA employee, journalist, and English teacher, Kieran's also a game show veteran, karaoke enthusiast, and general adventurer. Find her on Facebook, Twitter, and at http://www.kierankramerbooks.com/.

DUKES TO THE LEFT OF ME, PRINCES TO THE RIGHT

St. Martin's Press ISBN: 9780312374020

ANGI SPEAKING: I haven't done this with an interview before, so this is obviously a first. The GET LOST CREW decided not to review books because, well, most review sites LOVE all their books...what other kinds of books would we really want to dwell on? But I have to tell you that DUKES TO THE LEFT OF ME, PRINCES TO THE RIGHT hit something in me that's stuck, so I'm going to share, but only about how much I enjoyed it.

I've been a fan of all things romantically historical since I picked up my first four hundred page historical as a teen. I LOVE THIS BOOK !! And I can't wait to have more time to read the rest of this series. Kieran has a unique, humorous style that shines through in her witty dialogue and character introspection. I love the twists and yes, the bit of intrigue built into this plot. Seriously, I just LOVE this book. It's going on my keeper shelf AND staying there. I won't be loaning it to anyone. It's all mine. *happy grin* If you enjoy Regencies, find a copy and take some time for yourself. If you've never read a Regencie...this series is a great place to start. It's a pleasure getting to know Kieran and I hope we're friends for a long time (both with happy looong careers).

READ KRAMER AT NIGHT, READERS' DELIGHT

ANGI: How often to you get lost in a story?

KIERAN: All the time. I have to be reading fiction every single day. I might have three books going at once. I’ll have one in the kitchen, one in my bedroom, and one in the den. It’s my form of therapy!! I read so much I don’t bother keeping up with my GoodReads page. I forget, and it takes too long. I should, though. But I’m not the type of reader to want to record everything. I read it, throw it over my shoulder, and go on to the next book. I save very few books. I give them away, mainly. I have shelves of them, but I’m trying to whittle them down.

ANGI: What’s the first book you remember reading?

KIERAN: Easy. Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, and then I also had a Complete Mother Goose. I think the story of Winkin’, Blinkin’, and Nod was in there. I loved that poem! But as important to me as the words were the beautiful pictures. I still remember poring over them avidly, especially the picture of Winkin’, Blinkin’, and Nod sailing over a starry sea in a teacup or something! If you mean, full-length novel—B is for Betsy. I was obsessed with that book, even though it was written for kids a generation or two before mine. I still remember how Betsy’s mom fixed a cake that a hunk had been taken out of…I can’t remember HOW, though. A dog? Betsy? Someone ate the cake! Anyway, the mom cut a piece of sponge, fit it into the gaping hole, and covered it with frosting. The cake looked as good as new. She was SO brilliant, and I remember feeling very relieved that the problem had been solved. Very young reading memories are important to cherish.

ANGI: What’s your favorite “love” word?

KIERAN: ADORE. I adore the ADORE word. I adore many things. So does my little sister. Some people think that means we toss the word about too easily and that it loses its meaning. I disagree—I think it means we have a great capacity to appreciate a lot of people and things.

ANGI: What’s your favorite fairy tale?

KIERAN: I had a huge book of Grimm’s Fairy Tales which I read probably thirty or more times, and I think I liked the lesser known ones best. I loved the hook implied in the title “Little One Eye, Little Two Eyes, and Little Three Eyes.” I also loved “The Princess on the Glass Hill.” I enjoyed the one about all the princesses who snuck out at night to go dancing. And I reluctantly loved “The Little Matchgirl.” It was so sad. Any story in which a girl was treated badly by a wicked person who got his or her comeuppance gave me a lot of satisfaction. Of the Disney-ish fairy tales, the ones we all know, Cinderella is my favorite.

ANGI: What’s your favorite cartoon character?

KIERAN: It’s a tie between the Tasmanian devil and the little Martian on Bugs Bunny. It amazes me that kids nowadays aren’t familiar with Bugs Bunny. It’s too bad! Although I’m the first to admit there are an awful lot of clever cartoons out these days.

ANGI: What turns you off like nothing else?

KIERAN: People who cut people out of a group on purpose or who don’t try to include those who are obviously in need of a friend or some companionship at a gathering. I choose to believe that very few people are intentionally mean. I make the assumption that almost everyone I’ve met who’s left someone out does it not out of cruelty but out of insecurity about their own status or simply because they’re thoughtless—not inherently mean. Thoughtlessness is not something to just shrug off, though. We all need to work on being thoughtful. It’s our duty in life, I think.

ANGI: Is there a playlist you’d recommend for reading your latest release?

KIERAN: I like upbeat Glee covers, Baroque music, Rod Stewart or Bette Midler singing 40’s songs, and anything passionate and energetic, like certain types of opera, when I write. Nothing that’s too reflective and down, even when I’m writing sad scenes. Because then I get obsessed with the sad part of the story and make it too long. Even at their weakest, your hero and heroine MUST show strength of character—which means facing their sadness, yes, but grabbing on to their core strength to find a way to fix things, too.

ANGI: Where do you read and how often?

KIERAN: Oops. I answered this one earlier. I read all the time, and everywhere. Now that I have a smartphone and Kindle, it makes moving around even easier.

ANGI: What sound or noise do you love?

KIERAN: The Ewok noise my cat Benny makes when he wanders into the room and just wants someone to notice him. It’s a chirping in his throat, very delicate and sweet. Cats are big talkers.

ANGI: Fairy Tale or Action Adventure?

KIERAN: Fairy tale.

ANGI: What was the first story you remember writing?

KIERAN: The Adventures of Tom Nooley, about a talking baseball. And I didn’t even LIKE baseball. But somehow Tom’s story grabbed me. He was missing his owner, a little boy, and was determined to find him.

ANGI: What’s your favorite movie of all time?

KIERAN: Oh, this is a tough one! Top of the list are Jerry MacGuire and Love Actually. But I also adore Gone With the Wind. Vivien Leigh seemed like the real Scarlett, as if she’d stepped right off the pages of the book. It was almost uncanny how perfect she was.

ANGI: Who’s your favorite villain?

KIERAN: Dwight on “The Office.”

ANGI: Be honest, when reading...do you put yourself in the heroine’s role?

KIERAN: Not always. When I read Gone With the Wind, for example, or A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (another favorite) or To Kill a Mockingbird (yet another favorite), I don’t feel as if I’m Scarlett, Francie, or Scout. But I’m with them, watching and feeling everything they go through. It’s almost like I’m their best friend spying on them for their own good—and I can tell them later and they won’t be mad because we’re BFF’s.

ANGI: Is writing or story-telling easier for you?

KIERAN: I’m a terrible out-loud storyteller! LOL! I’m better when I write. I tend to come across as a ditz at times. Other times, I sound really smart. I just never know when the Ditz or the Smart Girl is going to come out.

ANGI: What’s something you’d like to tell your fans?

KIERAN: Hmmm, that I am a real homebody. I love my family and love hanging around the house with them. I’m not a big socialite. I like getting dressed up for conferences, but at home, I’m content to be by myself (and with my cats and dog) all day long until someone comes home. I hate taking any more than five minutes to put on makeup and do my hair. Often I sneak out of the house in my PJ’s and slippers to drive my son to school (I’ll wear a jacket to disguise the PJ’s). My son doesn’t mind…he wishes he could wear PJ’s in the car, too. Also, I lose everything all the time, and my inbox is my bathroom counter, behind the earring and necklace tree—I stash all my papers there when I get overwhelmed with email. I say, “If I can take care of one paper at a time (each one represents an action I need to take on an email), I’ll be okay.” Organization is not my strong suit, but I manage still to do tons of stuff all at once, like most women.

Oops—I just realized you said TELL. Not CONFESS TO. So I’d like to tell my fans that I appreciate every single one of you!!! I feel blessed to have such sweet, supportive readers!!!

ANGI’S GOTTA ASK: So, Kieran, I heard from a certain birdie that you had a long haul to publication… Having experienced that myself, I’m wondering if you still have a hard time believing you’re actually on book shelves? I really can’t believe it when a stranger wants my autograph. What do you do on release days now?

KIERAN’S GOTTA ANSWER: On release days, I count all my blessings and reflect on how lucky I am to be where I am today. I’m very quiet with success. I feel shy to tell people about it or to dwell on my own achievements. I’d much rather talk about YOU! *grin*

I started messing around with the idea of getting published in romance 15 years ago. I’d been reading Signet Regencies for years, so when I made my decision, I quickly wrote a 60,000-word sweet Regency and sent it to Signet (well before they ended that line). The book had a dog with a POV, tons of head-hopping, and numerous other transgressions that a beginning writer doesn’t recognize. So when I got the rejection, I assumed that meant I was NOT a good writer. So years and years went by—I was a busy, happy Mom—but in the back of my head, I was always thinking, “You should try to write another book.”

Writing was the one thing I had that was completely my own, separate from being a mother, a wife, a daughter, a friend, etc. It was only for me. So I held the dream close to my heart. We moved a lot, and I remember at one house, I set up my own writer’s corner. I was so proud of it! And it was there at that house that I joined RWA. I used to read those RWR magazines cover to cover…and dream.

As my kids grew up, I would start manuscripts. I’d send out a rare query. I remember one I got back was actually a revision letter, and I had no idea! So I never wrote back. I thought they were telling me it wasn’t good enough.

Let’s just say I needed some guidance. RWA gave me that. I joined my local chapter—we moved again, this time to SC—and I began to attend the National conference. It wasn’t until that happened that my dream started taking solid shape. I wrote a couple of chick lit manuscripts that got rejected…I was too late for that wave, and I still needed to work on craft. And then I wrote a women’s fiction manuscript (because I loved to read some women’s fiction authors). But that got rejected, too (by one editor—again, I would NOT send things out!). I think I was biting off more than I could chew at that time. Plus, I was discovering my voice the more I wrote: I realized that I’m drawn to tales with fun, quirky characters.

My main problem was that I was a dawdler. I could take several years to write a manuscript. I didn’t feel a sense of urgency. I didn’t want it enough!!! Because if I had, I would have worked much, much harder. But I’m not mad at myself for how I developed as a writer. Some of us are slow learners. I also happen to think there’s a season for everything. I’m very in-tune with my inner self, and my inner self was telling me that I was doing what I was supposed to be doing at the time, which was being immersed in family life.

But as soon as my inner voice shouted, “My God! What are you doing? You need to be writing those stories that have been inside you for so long, and you need to work hard—harder than you ever have—and SELL them!”

When that happened, I listened.

I would advise anyone reading this to examine how much you want to be a published writer at this very moment. If you’re conflicted because you’re having lots of fun doing something else, or because you feel obligated in another direction, give yourself a break.

However, if you feel writing and selling a book is your burning desire at this time in your life—maybe it has always been a dream you’ve cherished, the way I did--then by all means, put it at the top of your list and stop apologizing about it!! Plow full steam ahead!!!

But remember, we’re all more than our accomplishments—none of the things you do will EVER make you more worthy or special. The actions you take, the choices you make, can celebrate your specialness, yeah, but you’re already cool inherently without them. You don’t have to prove anything to anyone.

Why am I telling you this? So that when you write, you’ll be relaxed and write from a place of confidence and joy—the stories you tell will be way better than the ones you write when you’re angsting to succeed because you have to prove to your mother or that mean girl in your old 8th grade homeroom or to yourself--that you’re talented and worthy of respect and attention.

Write because you’re bursting to celebrate life in all its crazy, poignant glory--and YOU have a key angle on that truth, an angle that comes from the truest part of yourself. No other reason is as good.

GOT A QUESTION YOU’D LIKE TO ASK YOUR FANS? Yes. I’d like to know what your favorite part of a romance novel is: A) the beginning, where the hero and heroine meet; B) the kinda-in-between scenes, where the plot develops steam & the hero and heroine begin to know each other better; C) the sex scenes; D) the stressful climax—when it seems all is lost; E) the ending; or F) the epilogue?

And if you don’t feel like answering that, please just stop by and tell me if you have any plans this summer. That doesn’t always mean traveling. It could be you have plans to hang out in your hammock all summer! Or watch lots of movies. I’d love to hear!

Thanks for sharing time with me! I had a ton of fun answering these questions!

WILL YOU HAVE A DRAWING FROM THOSE LEAVING COMMENTS? Yes. I’ll send out one signed copy of DUKES TO THE LEFT OF ME, PRINCES TO THE RIGHT. And to another reader, a signed copy of WHEN HARRY MET MOLLY. Note: Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North America addresses only. If an electronic Advanced Reading Copy (ARC) is available, the author may utilize that option for International participants. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants.

CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MARRIAGE comes out April 26th. IF YOU GIVE A GIRL A VISCOUNT, the last book in The Impossible Bachelors series, will be out in November. Right now on my Facebook page, I’m trying to reach 2,000 followers by CLOUDY’S Release Day. So is the fabulous author Sarah MacLean, whose book ELEVEN SCANDALS TO START TO WIN A DUKE’S HEART is coming out the same day. If you “like” us both, you’ll be eligible to win a Kindle!

Here’s my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/KieranKramer. And here’s Sarah’s: http://www.facebook.com/macleanspace. I’d also love to see you at my website: http://www.kierankramerbooks.com/ or on Twitter! My Twitter handle is @kierankramer.

Hugs to all my readers! Your support means the world to me! *grin*

DON’T FORGET to LIKE us on Facebook or FOLLOW us on Twitter to keep track of who's next to "Get Lost". Come back tomorrow when Cat hosts Carolyn Crane and later this week we’ll visit with Ann Lethbridge, Linda Thomas-Sundstrom and Melissa Mayhue. Til next week when I’ll be back with one of my favorite people and author, CHERRY ADAIR. ~~ Angi