Interview with romance author Amy Craig

Romance author Amy Craig joins me today to chat about her new contemporary holiday novel, The Starlight Motel.

During her virtual book tour, Amy will be giving away a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn participant. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!

Bio:
Amy Craig lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with her family and a small menagerie of pets. She writes contemporary romances featuring intelligent heroines. She can’t always vouch for the men. In her spare time, she plays tennis and expands her husband’s honey-do list. Before pursuing writing, she worked as an engineer, project manager, and incompetent waitress.

Welcome, Amy. Please tell us about your current release.
Muralist Kada took charge of her family’s Palm Springs motel to give her mother time to grieve. As a grant deadline approaches, Kada must convince her mother to manage the motel so she can return to her art.

Late in December, Kada encounters a horseman approaching the property. Dane, the reserved son of a local farming family, is a loyal workaholic with limited spare time or experience outside the valley. When lightning startles his horse, he lingers at the motel and stirs up Kada’s emotions about leaving the desert oasis.

Wary of mixing business with pleasure, she struggles with her attraction. As New Year’s Eve approaches, will the cowboy convince her to chart a new course?

What inspired you to write this book?
When my husband and I relocated from California to Louisiana with our black lab/shepherd mix, we drove through Palm Springs, and the agricultural influences amazed me. I always thought of Palm Springs as a 1950s Hollywood resort, for its character goes deeper than Sinatra and desert sands. Don’t get me wrong, those aspects are part of its identity, too, but I wanted to explore the farms and single-story motels dotting the windswept highways.

Excerpt from The Starlight Motel:
Her skin warmed from the heat of his palms. “I can’t afford to sit around the laundry room and gossip with the guests.”

“Trust me, Kada, I’m not here to gossip.”

“You’re ready to pitch in on odd jobs? You’re such a good neighbor.” She swallowed past the dryness in her throat. She had a three-date rule, but if she never started the first date, did the rule apply? “Thanks for helping with Lucky.”

“Any time.” He tipped up her chin. “Are you sure that’s where you want to stop? You brought me your number and rode out into the desert with me, but now you’re skittish?”


Her throat felt parched, but she wanted to lean forward and test his intent. Instead, she kicked her feet against the machine’s vibrating drum. “I’m not skittish, but I’m not into quick romps on a washing machine.”

He raised his eyebrows. “I wasn’t suggesting a quick romp.”

She wanted to test the innuendo behind his offer, but the sequence felt out of order. Before she considered kissing the handsome farmer, she needed dinner, candlelight, and time to breathe.

Her body offered a different opinion. Clearing her throat, she hopped off the washing machine, ducked under his arm, and ran her tongue along her teeth. In the tiny room, his skin smelled like fresh lime, warm spices, and a hint of honey, but his shirt held the leathery undertones of a hard day’s work. He looked handsome, and she wanted to taste his kiss, but she needed a different setup. “Or long romps.”

What exciting project are you working on next?
The third book in a mafia series, The Broken Bodyguard, comes out September 3, 2024. It’s the third novel in a Romantic Suspense/Mafia Romance/Corporate Romance series called the Sun Valley Mafia Series. Working with two publishers, The Wild Rose Press and Totally Bound, means release dates occasionally overlap! In The Broken Bodyguard, which can be read as a standalone novel, a corporate bodyguard finds himself protecting a stubborn cowgirl and untangling windswept land politics in Patagonia, Argentina.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I started writing after the birth of my first child. I also wrote during high school and appreciate everything my English teacher did to encourage me. I dedicated one of my first books, A Winter Rose, to her. She bought a few copies and had me sign them, which made my day!

Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your workday like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I write and mom full-time, but multitasking and nap schedules make the combination possible. After too much late-evening writing, my husband called off my midnight sprints for the sake of our marriage. When he asks me what I do during the day, I tell him the random things I researched for accuracy. Most of it doesn’t make the books, but the information helps with world-building. When I’m writing romantic suspense, it probably also leaves a grisly trail!

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
As much as I love paranormal victims and historical heroines, I identity as a contemporary, strong-willed woman (raising contemporary, strong-willed children… which is why I need a strong drink…), so that’s what I write.

Most of my characters are nerdy, sassy, or opinionated. Even if I wrote about a baker, she would have be as likely to beat someone over the head with a rolling pin as she would be to gush about royal icing recipes and kittens. Me, too.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Didn’t every eighties baby want to be a marine biologist? I had no clue what I wanted to be, but I won the middle school science fair AND I was the newspaper editor. I guess I’ve always had one foot in the creative world and one in the science world.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
My DM’s are open. Drop me a line and let me know what you think about my work! As always, leave a review and share your favorites with your book bestie! Happy reading!

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