With me today for the Salute to Veterans event are 4 of the talented authors who are included in the box set
UNIFORM DESIRES
Cat Johnson, Delilah Devlin, JM Madden, and Sharon Hamilton.
They were each asked the question....
Why do you write Military Romance?
Cat Johnson
I initially began writing military romance because I enjoyed reading it. My motivation changed once I began to correspond regularly with active duty military. Now I write military romance because these heroes inspire me. I want to tell the stories of the boots on the ground--the tankers and infantrymen and wingers, even if it is a fictionalized spin on reality.
Delilah Devlin
First, I’d like to thank Kallypso for hosting this event! It means a lot to me, personally, that people take the time to salute our veterans. After all, I am one.
I won’t say when I served—a girl likes to maintain certain secrets (her age, the number of lovers she’s had, her jeans size...)—but I did serve fourteen years in the Regular Army and another seven in the National Guard. Which, I suppose, makes it strange that I have written so few military-related stories. I was a communications officer and was assigned to posts in Germany and the Middle East. I’m a veteran based on the months I spent in the Middle East during the Gulf War. If ever you want to hear some very funny tales, buy me a drink or a cup of coffee and I’ll tell you all about them, but I prefer not to write about them. Strange, I know.
The story I wrote for the boxed set of military-themed stories,
Uniform Desires, has an ex-marine hero who’s still serving his country, but from inside the DEA. And he’s still very much a hero while he does his best to keep the heroine and himself alive while they run from some very pissed-off and well-armed criminals.
While I don’t write many military-themed stories, I do draw on my memories of the men I served with to make my heroes as real as I can. They aren’t perfect men and don’t always make the right moves or decisions, but they will lay everything on the line for what they believe and for the people they love.
JM Madden
Well, I had the idea of writing vets for a long time, and a lot of it was sparked by newspaper articles and blog posts about soldiers being left behind by their significant others. That truly broke my heart. These men (and women) were going out and waging war, then coming home to empty houses. Some of those soldiers had been ‘combat modified’, and their families just couldn’t cope with the way of life they were suddenly thrust into. So, many of them walked out, leaving their injured spouses behind. It just seemed so wrong.
Several years before that, a relative cheated on her husband while he was on a year-long deployment to Iraq, and my sense of outrage just boiled over.
It took me years to start the series, though, because I didn’t feel like I would do the men justice, and I needed to. I couldn’t go out with a half-assed story, so I dug my heels in and made it the very best series it could be.
So far, I think I’ve accomplished that. I get so many letters and emails from people who have been touched by my Marines, and that is truly the greatest pay-off an author can receive; recognition from the readers that they’ve been affected by our words. It’s what I strive for in every book I put out.
My men are not ‘fixed’ by the end of the book. They will still be in a wheelchair and they’ll still walk with limps, talk with stutters, struggle with day-to-day tasks, but they will have found a partner in the struggle.
Every life challenge is better faced with a significant other, right? And love? Always love…
Sharon Hamilton
I started writing Navy SEAL Romances when I first sat down with a bunch of
young recruits who had just made it through Hell Week. They were hunched over,
walking like crab-like creatures, arms and legs spread out due to the chafing
from wearing clothes, including boots and socks without changing for 6 days
straight. And, although they hadn't had more than 45 minutes of rest during
those 6 days, they were hungry as Hell.
I looked at those boys, some of whom actually had broken limbs and bloody
wounds, a couple of black eyes and bald spots on the tops of their heads from
carrying those rubber boats, and what I saw there was courage and determination
unlike I had ever seen before. You don't get to be a SEAL by being a sissy or
doing it the easy way. And that's why their motto is "The Only Easy Day Was
Yesterday."
Six
New York Times, USA Today and National Bestselling Authors combine their love of
hot military romance, weaving tales of super alpha heroes and the women who love
them. They love hard. They love intensely, like everything else in life they do.
This is intended as a toe-curling, knee-wobbling read not for the faint of heart
as we learn about heroes who put their lives on the line every
day.Infatuation
by
USA Today bestselling author Melissa Schroeder
To prove her love and save her
man, she has to go above and beyond the call of duty
SEAL's Honor
by award-winning author Elle James
Two Navy SEALs jeopardize their lives
and hearts in a battle-torn land when they vie for the love of one sexy Night
Stalker helicopter pilot
SEAL the Deal by national bestselling
author Sharon Hamilton
A SEAL's nightmare of a promise given at his sister's
deathbed gives him the woman of his dreams
Dangerous Liaison by
national bestselling author Delilah Devlin
A pampered travel agent escapes
through the jungle with an undercover DEA agent when a drug lord mistakes her
for a rival's daughter
Her Forever Hero by bestselling author JM
Madden
When the boss's pregnant, unwed daughter needs rescuing, disabled
Marine Grafton Parks proves he's still a hero
Cinderella Liberty
by NY Times & USA Today bestselling author Cat Johnson
A weekend
liberty leads to unexpected passion between a Marine and his best friend's
sister, but he must survive seven months in Afghanistan to get back to her
Cat Johnson
Cat Johnson is a NY Times & USA Today bestselling author writing
contemporary romance in genres including military and cowboy. A self-proclaimed
promo 'ho, she is known for her creative marketing and research practices.
Consequently, Cat has sponsored bull riding rodeo cowboys, owns an entire
collection of cowboy boots and camouflage shoes for book signings and a fair
number of her consultants wear combat or cowboy boots for a living. She writes
both full length and shorter works and is currently contracted with Kensington
and Samhain.
Contact Links:
Delilah Devlin
Delilah
Devlin is an award-winning author of erotic romance with a rapidly expanding
reputation for writing edgy stories with complex characters. Ms. Devlin has
published over a hundred twenty stories with Atria/Strebor, Avon, Berkley, Black
Lace, Cleis Press, Ellora’s Cave, Kensington, Kindle, Montlake Romance, Running
Press, and Samhain Publishing. Read more about Delilah at www.delilahdevlin.com.
JM Madden
Terminally addicted to romances, thanks to finding her aunt's stash of 'Harlequin Presents' years ago during a sleepover, J.M. Madden loves any and all good love stories. Most particularly her own. She has two beautiful children and a husband who always keeps her on her toes.
J.M. was a Deputy Sheriff in Ohio for nine years, until hubby moved the clan to Kentucky. When not chasing the family around, she's at the computer, reading and writing, trying to perfect her craft. She occasionally takes breaks to feed her animal horde, and is trying to control her office-supply addiction, but both tasks are uphill battles. Happily, she is writing full-time now. She always has several projects in the works and loves to hear from readers.
Contact JM-
Twitter- @authorjmmadden
Sharon Hamilton
Sharon’s award-winning almost-erotic Navy SEAL stories of the SEAL Brotherhood, have consistently made best sellers lists and review sites. Her characters follow a spicy road to redemption through passion and true love.
Her Golden Vampires of Tuscany are not like any vamps you’ve read before, since they don’t have to go to ground and can walk around in the full light of the sun.
Her Guardian Angels struggle with the human charges they are sent to save, often escaping their vanilla world of Heaven for the brief human one. You won’t find any of these beings in any Sunday school class.
She lives in Sonoma County, California with her husband, and two Dobermans. A lifelong organic gardener, when she’s not writing, she’s getting vera vera dirty in the mud, or wandering Farmer’s Markets looking for new Heirloom varieties of vegetables and flowers..
Contact Links:
Contest Information:
For this giveaway we have 4 separate winners. Just fill out the rafflecopter AND comment below and tell us if you know of someone who is or has been in the military and what branch of the military there served in. First names only please for confidentiality reasons.
