Welcome, Cherie: Author, Mother, Wife, Teacher, and Breast Cancer Survivor

Readers, please help me welcome Cherie Marks to the blog.  Cherie's on a blog tour and kindly offered to stop by and talk to us.  Cherie, tell us a little bit about yourself.

                Perpetually busy, always loyal, hardly asleep, I’m a wife, mother, daughter, and sister who loves to bring a smile to other’s faces.

2.LOL.  Most authors can relate to the busy part.  What did you hope to accomplish with your books?

                I hope to give someone an entertaining break from reality for a little while. Personally, I love a story that makes me feel good about the world we live in, and I think romance delivers that with every happily ever after. My ultimate goal is the satisfied sigh at the end of the read, though I may never personally hear it, I hope to accomplish that.

3. Well said!  What is the greatest test you ever faced as a writer?

                This interview.  Just kidding, but the promotion of the book has been a test that I thought I studied for, but just found out, I had the cliff notes version of the wrong book. Truth is, I’m not complaining because I’ve wanted to be in this position for a long time. Happy to be here, even if it is a little tougher than I’d imagined.

4.It is tougher.  I always thought when you wrote a book it sold itself.  Wish it did.  What’s the best advice you ever got about the publishing industry?

                Be persistent!  Never take rejection personally or as the end of your journey. Learn from it then move forward.

5.If you could meet two authors, which ones would you pick and why?

                Only two??

Jane Austen is a definite.  I would love to tell her how much her wit, humor, characters, and plots inspired me and lingered long after I closed her books.

                Michael Crichton is another absolute.  As an English major in college, I spent many an evening studying literature and sneaking thrillers like Andromeda Strain, Jurassic Park, and Timeline.  This conversation would be strictly a huge thank-you for such great, edge-of-your-seat reads that kept me up nights when I really should have been studying or sleeping.

6.Lovely!  I like to read a variety of genres myself.Could you share your links with us?

http://www.cheriemarks.com

http://www.cheriemarks.blogspot.com
Facebook--http://on.fb.me/qRl1lD

Twitter—http://twitter.com/cheriemarks

http://youtu.be/lXrDrRC1daM

Book Trailer--http://youtu.be/lXrDrRC1daM
Into the Fire available at http://tinyurl.com/3mfn3zj from TheWild Rose Press, October 5, 2011

7.We’d love to read an excerpt. 

Blurb:

Months after he stole her affections—then her executive chef position—Shyann and Luke meet again under sizzling circumstances, competing head-to-head on a televised cooking show called Kitchen Twist.

 Each arrives with a motive: Luke intends to win back Shyann’s heart, even as she wants closure on the not-so-tasty heartbreak he once served up.Luke knows culinary masterpieces require a delicate touch, but that knowledge is tossed out with the leftovers as he works to show Shyann he’s not such a bad guy.

 Now he pushes his skills to the limit to win the competition and satisfy a bet. Can two top chefs resist each other as they move out of the pan and into the fire?

 Excerpt:

 Silence reigned for half a minute before he reached out a hand and touched hers like a breezy whisper.  Her head went a little fuzzy at the warm contact. He shouldn’t still be able to affect her so strongly.

 “I regret it went down the way it did, but why did you show me the exit before giving me a chance to explain, not to mention—dress? Enlighten me, sugar cheeks?”

 With a jerk, she pulled her hand free. He was really asking for it. Sugar cheeks? Seriously? Now she knew he was only messing with her. She could give as well as she got.

 “Tell you what. You win tonight, and I’ll give you your chance. You lose, we go our separate ways, and you walk out all by yourself, big boy.”

 A crooked grin formed on his face as he reached a hand toward her hair. He fingered an escaping curl before she pulled away, leaving his hand hanging in midair.“You can call me big boy all you want, but I’ll do you one better. How about if I win, I take you to dinner, and you let me explain the whole situation?”

 She felt her eyebrow rise and knew he’d read it as interest, but she didn’t care at the moment. “I honestly don’t want to hear any explanation from you now or ever, but if I win? Which I will, of course.”

 “Then I’ll leave it up to you. If you want me to walk away, I will.” He took a step closer, placed his hand on her shoulder, and leaned down, his mouth right next to her ear. “But if you want me to call you darling, sweetheart, and sugar cheeks all night long, I’ll do that too.”

Cherie, I love the interaction between them!  Readers, don't forget to follow Cherie's blog tour.  She's giving away two $10 gift certificates to The Wild Rose Press and one $10 gift certificate to Amazon.com.  She'll randomly draw names from commenters during the tour.  The more times you comment, the more chances you have to win.  Tour dates can be found at   http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2011/09/virtual-book-tour-into-fire-by-cherie.html

Author Bio.

 

It all started with an old fashioned typewriter.  When my family brought it home, all those stories and characters rolling around in my head could finally get out.  The press and click of the keys satisfied in their own right, but when I pulled out a finished page, I knew this was for me.  Since then, I’ve graduated to a laptop, but the stories still find a way out.

I’m a breast cancer survivor, a teacher, a wife, a mother, and from the very beginning—a storyteller.  Always a hint humorous and honest to a fault, I love to make people laugh and smile.  My goal in life is to achieve tact and stop procrastinating.  The battle wages on.