Writer Wednesday: Rosa Sophia and a Giveaway

Hi! Thanks so much for coming today. Tell us a little bit about yourself.

Hi, Carrie! Thank you for having me. A little about me—I love traveling, and I currently live in south Florida. I’m almost finished with college. I love working on cars, so I went to school for Automotive, and I plan on opening my own garage someday. I’m also an amateur historian, and I work in a library. Generally, I find almost everything fascinating, so I’m easily distracted. No matter what I get into, I always end up writing about it.

Tell us a bit about your book.

Check Out Time is a Mystery novel with a bit of Romance thrown in. I started writing it when I was working the graveyard shift in a grocery store. I drew a lot of the ideas from my personal experience, but the characters are fictional.

Is this part of a series?

Yes! The next book is called At the Turn of a Wrench. As of this writing, I am about fifty pages in.

What was your favorite part?

I love every scene involving Detective Alexis Nevid. She’s my favorite character. She’s totally badass. Here’s an example:

“Yes, you kicked him in the groin.”

“He won’t piss right for a week, Frankie.”  When Alexis grinned, she looked like a corpse from Night of the Living Dead.  She clapped a hand on Frank’s shoulder.  “I got him pretty hard.  I think he’ll have to wait for his balls to descend again.  That is, if they ever did in the first place.”

Do you ever have any conversations in your head with your characters? If so, can you give us a 

hint of what you might talk about?

Oh, yes! This is something I used to do very frequently. These days, because I have less time to write, it’s usually just my characters prodding me and saying, “Hey! When are you going to get back to it?” Years ago, it used to be a form of escape for me. I didn’t grow up with very many friends, and I was very lonely. During hard times, I would sit down, curl up, and imagine the room filling up with all the characters I had created. I could see them all standing around me. They talked to me, comforted me, and helped me through. This is something I still do when I’ve very depressed.

Rate your story in terms of steaminess (Make up your own fun scale here)

The Romance aspect of the novel is what I would call “sweet.” In the sequel, I will delve more into Naomi and Richard’s relationship. I had to take it slow in Check Out Time because Naomi is still very psychologically fragile. She’s afraid to get into a relationship, so the most they do is kiss and hold each other.  

What are you reading right now?

Self-help books—ha! And a very interesting novel called The Red House by Mark Haddon.

I know this is like asking who is your favorite child, who is your favorite romance author (s)?

Well, that’s easy—Sheri Fredricks. She is a wonderful new author.

What is your favorite romance book or series?

I think I will have to say Remedy Maker by Sheri Fredricks. It’s definitely my favorite Romance novel.

Boxers or Briefs?

Boxers!

Chocolate or Vanilla?

Both.

Do you have a special piece of clothing you wear when you write?

I prefer something comfy. The birthday suit is best! Yes, I have been known to write naked.

What is next for you?

I’m not sure. But whatever it is, I’ll do my best!

What were your first impressions of each other?

Naomi: “I first saw Richard at the Coral Reef Tavern. He was looking at me from the other side of the bar. He made me really nervous, but I was sure he was looking at someone else . . . Especially since some dude mistook me for a man that night. Jeez. Just because my hair is short and I wear jeans and boots. Oh, whatever.”

Richard: “Naomi captivated me that night. She knows it. All the other girls in that bar were so fake, but she was . . . She was just so real. She wasn’t putting on a front, she was just being herself. I knew I wanted to talk to her, but getting to her wasn’t easy—she’s really shy.”

What are your favorite parts about each other?

Naomi: “Richard makes me feel safe. I don’t know where things are going right now, but I feel like I can 

count on him no matter what. I haven’t gotten far enough to find out what my favorite ‘part’ of him is, if you know what I mean.” (Naomi blushes.)

Richard: (Richard grins.) “I like all of Naomi’s parts.”

Blurb for Check Out Time:

Naomi Vogler blames herself for her mother's tragic death, continually reliving the accident in her nightmares.  When she reconnects with her estranged father, he invites her to live with him in a little town called Witchfire.  A simple job stocking shelves overnight at a local grocery store seems a perfect distraction.  But when the manager of the store is found dead in the boiler room, Naomi's boring job becomes something much more complicated.  No matter how she looks at it, one thing is certain: retail is murder.

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Links:

Amazon (In print and on Kindle): http://www.amazon.com/Check-Out-Time-Rosa-Sophia/dp/1613920156/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1340847058&sr=1-2&keywords=check+out+time

Barnes & Noble( In print and on Nook): http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/check-out-time-rosa-sophia/1111516249?ean=9781613920152

Author website: http://www.rosasophia.com/

Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/authorrosasophia

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Bio: 

Rosa Sophia is an editor at Ruby Lioness Press, Oaklight Publishing, and Pagan Writers Press. She is the author of two novels: Taking 1960 and Check Out Time. Rosa currently resides in south Florida. Please visit her at: www.rosasophia.com

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Check Out Time Excerpt

By Rosa Sophia

As she turned, she pulled the blankets up to her chin.  Her jaw dropped. She caught sight of a pair of brilliant blue eyes.  She took in the soft features and the neatly trimmed goatee.  Her nervous stare traveled to the blond bangs, and then back to the eyes again.  She tried not to notice the bare chest and the wisps of light blond hair against naked skin, but it was difficult.

“Good morning,” Richard said.  “I’ve been awake for the past hour or so, but you looked like you were having a dream or something, so I didn’t want to wake you.”

Richard drew closer to her.  She could feel the heat of his body against her.  He began to kiss her.  She didn’t know what to say.  He touched her and—

Naomi jumped, again.  She opened her eyes.  This time, she was lying on the couch in her living room.  Richard was asleep next to her.  Naomi’s head had been resting on his chest.  She looked down and saw him looking at her.  This time, his eyes looked more real, deeper—although just as brilliantly blue.

“Richard,” she breathed.

Rosa Sophia is giving away a copy of Check Out Time to someone who comments! Be sure to leave your email address to enter