Terrific Thursday with BethAnne Buehler

Welcome! Please introduce yourself and tell us about your latest release.

I'm an elementary school teacher turned stay at home with one son who just entered fourth grade. I've been married 17 years and honestly consider my family to be my greatest accomplishment. I'm an avid tennis player, reader, movie buff and music lover. I drive too fast. And, I have two Silky Terriers that are spoiled rotten.

I'm excited to say that Broken Together is being released by Wild Horse Press on September 14th. Broken Together is the first in a three part series of novels featuring a small town called Rebel Canyon where readers invest in the lives of three close friends. Bryn Baxter is hugely successful professionally but when it comes to relationships, let me just be candid--she's a mess. When her otherwise orderly life falls apart, Bryn gets help from a hired gun, Beck Reynolds. Bryn wants the fairy tale but she doesn't want to have to think about how to make it all work. So Beck takes control...

Have you incorporated actual events from your own life into your books?

The million dollar question everyone wants to know is if any of my books are about me. I have Bryn's standoffish quality and loyalty to the people I love, and I share her hair color. I have Casey's longing to be accepted and her heart for wanting the fairy tale. But honestly, Rachel is the one that's starting to get to me. When I first created her, she was someone all together different and to say she's changed as the series has grown would be a huge understatement. Wait until you meet her in book three, then we'll have to talk. Sadly, I don't share the "lifestyle" any of my heroines have!

How much research do you do? Do you research first and then write, or do you write first, then research as needed?

I research characters and the details of my books extensively. That's to say that if I state the name of a gun, let's say, I know enough about that weapon to know how far it shoots, the noise or lack thereof it makes when fired, it's cost... The same goes for cars and legal terms... I love to research. I'm not so big on outlining although as I'm wrapping my first series, I've needed an outline just to make sure I give proper closure to that various storylines I've introduced. And, I try to write everyday and usually set a goal of about 3,000 words. My muse and I are both Type A personalities so we're very goal oriented. However, I'm raising a little human so I don't always get there.

Is there any message you want readers to take from reading your work?

I know it sounds corny but I love "love". I love the underdog, the person who deals with their own brokenness and finds the courage to make their life happen against the odds, whatever those might be. I hope my readers walk away from my stories feeling like anything is possible and that love can really save the day. That's why I write romance. I really want the happily-ever-after for people.

Are you a plotter or a pantser? And have you ever had a story take on a life of its own?

Oh man, pantser. And my characters own me! Just the other day I finished a scene and walked downstairs to announce that so-and-so and so-and-so (sorry--don't want to spoil anything!) were getting married. I think my exact quote was "well, I didn't know we were having a wedding but clearly we are." My husband fell out laughing.

How long did it take for you to be published?

Broken Together took thirteen months to write, rewrite and edit. I'm blessed to say it took only one month to find a home with Wild Horse Press. Thanks J!

If you could go back and tell yourself anything when you first began your writing career, what would you say?

I'd say the same thing I'm still reminding myself of daily--it's so much easier to write well the first time than re-write (learned this little tip the hard way). Network with other serious writers. It seemed to me that once I started writing and networking, everyone was writing and getting published. I'm competitive by nature so sometimes I have to remind myself that there's room for everyone and this career isn't a race.

Who are your favorite authors? Who would you say influenced you the most?

Lora Leigh and Maya Banks are two of my erotic romance idols. Anything they write I own. I just finished a great read by newcomer Lila Munro (contemporary romance). I enjoy Robyn Carr's books as well (Contemporary Romance). I also read quite a bit of autobiography. On my nightstand right now is Open by Andre Agassi (we both love to hit that fluorescent yellow felt ball). Elin Hildebrand is my favorite women's fiction author and T. A. Chase gets the nod for M/M.

What would your readers be surprised to learn about you?

I lived in Germany for four years after I finished college. I can't cook a lick and would prefer to eat out three times a day and drive through for snacks. And, I was on the way to becoming an FBI agent until I fell in love--the rest, as they say, is history...

For Fun:

Favorite drink?

Unsweet iced tea--no lemon!

Do you have any special Labor Day traditions?

We never travel over Labor day--it's Lazy day at our house!

McDonald’s or Burger King?

McDonald's. Burger King has fake, fountain iced tea. Come to think of it, I don't even know how they can call it tea.

Thank you for being here today! Please tell us where we can find your books.

I can be reached online at my website or by emailing me at bethann@bethannbuehler.com. I can also be found blogging with her romance writing sisters at www.wickedmuses.webs.com and on facebook at BethAnn Buehler.

My books can be purchased at All Romance Books, Coffee Time Romance, www.omnilit.com and Amazon

Broken Together (September 14th, 2010, Wild Horse Press)

It's not about surviving...

When renowned photojournalist Bryn Baxter’s world is nearly destroyed by a mortar attack as she films a documentary in the middle of the Afghan war, her father brings his only child home and smothers her with around the clock protection in the form of a handsome private security escort.

But Beck Reynolds would rather eat dirt than protect another “lost soul”, especially the daughter of his former Commander. Not only does the assignment put a kink in his evening playtime, but despite his every effort, the woman he’s charged to protect hasn’t said a word to him for nearly a month.

It's about how you rebuild...

As Bryn tries to reclaim her life, she throws herself into the dark world of Dominance and submission. A world where, unbeknownst to Bryn, Beck is already an accomplished Master. While Bryn attempts to explore her own sexuality, Beck is forced to save her from one dreadful situation after another, his desire to own Bryn, body, mind and soul growing stronger each day. Little does he know, however, that he’s stirring a hunger in Bryn that she’s denied herself for far too long.

With a soft touch and a wicked approach, Beck is determined to teach Bryn the pleasures of his secret world. But can he save her from herself?

Prologue

Beck stood against the darkness that flanked the corners of the room and watched as she spun around the floor. Soft curls flowed over her arms as she lifted her hair in a sexy gesture, her body swaying against the deep base line in the music that infiltrated the room. He couldn’t help but notice that her school girl skirt was cut way too short, the curves of each tanned cheek barely peeking from beneath the soft plaid. Her tank top was lethal, falling so high against her skin that he could see a hint of each of her perfectly shaped breasts underneath. She completed the ensemble with thigh high stockings.

It was impossible to resist staring at her as she floated in the space, the strobe lights catching various parts of her as she lost herself, completely absorbed in the music. He’d never seen her here before.

She had walked to the danced floor alone, suddenly taken by the old Depeche Mode standard that dripped with a primal beat that screamed of pure sex. The incredible blonde she’d been with earlier sat, sipping a drink, talking to one of the Masters. It appeared that the woman Beck continued to gaze toward wanted just that, sex, as evidenced by the small leather collar she wore tightly around the nape of her slender neck. It contained a small padlock, dangling opened. The universal sign of an unattached submissive. Damn!

Beck Reynolds could not get caught up in another woman tonight. Although Dredge was one of his favorite clubs, he had not come here for pleasure. He was working. Beck had been hired to chaperone the bachelorette party of one of the Utah’s most prominent congressmen’s daughters. She and her friends were safe enough and every Master in the club had been put on notice before they women arrived—no private rooms for anyone in the bride-to-be’s party tonight. The rules were simple. The ladies were to remain in the main club room upstairs. There would be no forced dominance and no sex. Anything that happened within the parameters of the boundaries Beck had set in place would be up to the ladies individually. Beck felt it was more than fair. The woman had eagerly agreed and as most of them twirled on the floor, they all appeared to be having a good time.

Beck continued to stare at the kitten as she moved from the dance floor, gathered herself and slipped into the arms of one of the more popular club Masters, Vega Garcia. He wore a slender length of chain around his neck which he quickly fastened to her collar. Beck watched the young woman sway behind him as he led her from the crowd toward the private rooms that lie down the darkened hallway.

Beck knew the pleasures and the pain that could be found beyond the dance floor. He had been a Master for several years. Although he didn’t live in Salt Lake year round, he was in town enough to reap many of the benefits of full membership into the exclusive leather and bondage fringe club. He had served overseas with Marena Suarez, the Head Mistress of Dredge. A beast in the dungeon, the dark skinned, golden eyed Dominatrix was an absolute ball buster. A former warrior on the battlefield, she was also a trusted colleague.

“Mistress.” Beck offered with a slight tip of his head as Marena stepped shoulder to shoulder with him.

“I see your instinct for trouble is alive and well.” The crimson leather clad minx said with a purr, her Spanish accent deep and sultry.

“Only watching, Madame. You know I can’t hunt tonight.” Beck stated, feeling the familiar ache in his chest, the one that kept reminding him he didn’t want to hunt anymore at all. He longed to find a permanent playmate. Although it was nearly unheard of within the lifestyle, Beck wanted a woman he could love for the rest of his life.

“It’s just as well you stay away from that one.” Marena said as she leaned and kissed Beck’s cheek.

“You know her father.” She called as she strode away, leaving the man dazed, searching the recesses of his brain for answers.

As the chained girl slipped from his sight, Beck refocused his attention on the bride-to-be and her friends. The woman who would haunt his dreams had been claimed by another tonight.