Author Angela Hayes: Author Interview- Nicci Carrera- Third Strikes the Charm

Happy Wednesday readers.

Join with me as I help TWRP author Nicci Carrera celebrate her release day!

Congrats, Nicci!

Welcome Nicci, tell me three words that describe yourself starting with A, B, and C.

Active

Boring (kidding—I hope!)

Creative

What are your three favorite things?

Family and friends

Sunlight coming through the windows

Birdsong

Are you self- published or with a publishing company (if so, which one?)?

I am published with The Wild Rose Press.

What for you is the best part of writing? What is the worst?

The best part of writing is getting into the characters’ heads, experiencing their lives, exploring the human condition via people who become real to me. The worst part is the amount of time being a writer takes. There are no short cuts, at least that I have found!

Is there a process you stick to, or do you just write as it hits you?

I’m half and half. I need to have a plan but within the scene, I the characters get their own say. Also, the plan often changes. I have to do some writing before I know if the characters are right and to get to know them, then modify the plot as needed.

How much is your character like you?

Cara is not like me at all. She’s a lot better at school, for one thing! I did pretty well, but could never get an MBA from such a great school. I’m luckier, though. Cara Cruz didn’t have the gift of growing up with a father. It’s hard for me even to imagine it, because I had a great dad, and didn’t lose him until I was an adult and happily married. It makes me really sad even to think about, which I did a lot of when writing about her and her sisters. We are alike in that we both love or have loved and helped care for a disabled mother or mother figure and have experienced the joy and learning in the experience.

Third Strike’s the Charm:

Super student Cara Cruz made it all the way through her prestigious MBA program only to choke on the last final. Ordered by her advisor to take the summer off and clear her head, she’s home in Lobster Cove for some fun before retaking the exam. If she fails a second time, she will lose her dream job offer in Chicago. Meanwhile her best friend happens to be her ex-boyfriend’s mom, which means close contact with the man who broke her heart. Twice. This time she’ll protect her heart no matter the cost.

Ex-major-league baseball pitcher Jason Ward blew his money, his elbow, and his love life. Now at home taking care of his mom and working on a new life plan, he wants Cara back, but he already struck out, didn’t he? Maybe not, and now his mission is to win her back without telling her the truth about why he really came home.

Winning at love will be the only play that counts.

Excerpt:

“You said he called you a slut?”

“Ignorant slut.”

His blood boiled. “What? He’s a dead man!”

“Calm down. I reacted like you, but later I discovered he was quoting Saturday Night Live.”

He growled. “I don’t give a damn. He can’t call my girl a slut.”

“Jason, don’t go all cave-man.” Cara told him the details, finishing with, “I saw red, I heard red, everything went red.”

“That pretty much describes me right now.”

“Wait. Did you say my girl?”

“Well—You know what I mean.”

“Well—No I don’t.”