Author inspirations: 'Count of Monte Cristo,' Lincoln on 'The 100,' Johnny Cash's 'Hurt'
Today's featured authors: Kyra Davis, author of Dangerous Alliance; Codi Gary, author of Return of the Bad Girl; and Debra Kayn, author of Living A Beautiful War. They're sharing some of the inspirations for their new releases.
Kyra Davis, author of Dangerous Alliance
The two books and one super couple that most inspired Dangerous Alliance are:
• The Count of Monte Cristo, due to the elements of revenge and swashbuckling romance.
• Wuthering Heights. Bell's nemesis, Travis, is really just a modern-day Heathcliff ... he even has a Catherine.
• And last but not least, Todd and Blair from One Life to Live. I grew up with Todd and Blair, and I loved the idea of these two troublemakers joining forces and wreaking havoc on their enemies while engaging in their own passionate and tumultuous romance. In many ways my soap days have influenced all of my romance books.
About Dangerous Alliance (Pure Sin book two):
The beautiful, angry Bell has revenge in her heart and Lander Gable in her sights. She's seduced her way into his arms with the intent to destroy his wealthy family. But now that she's there, lust and passion have begun squeezing out that desire for vengeance. It's a dangerous game Bell is playing, and sex, mystery, and lies are the most intriguing game pieces of all.
Codi Gary, author of Return of the Bad Girl
Three things that inspired Return of the Bad Girl:
• Lincoln from The 100 (played by Ricky Whittle). The first time I saw him all dirty and tatted up, I was like, "Holy crap on a cracker, that man is sexy!" Add a dark and twisty back story with those melt-you-into-a-puddle eyes and Gabe Moriarty was born.
• Caroline's past was inspired by my many regrets from my past. Although they weren't the same as Caroline's, I remember thinking that if I could go back and change them, I would, but would I be the same person? Caroline's past made her stronger and she wanted to be better than the girl she was ... even if she couldn't fix all of her mistakes, she could still learn from them while still staying true to who she is.
• Googlie and Possum do exist, but were not brothers in real life. For fictional purposes, I gave them both Googlie's back story. He was found in a box by a dumpster in the pouring rain when he was only a few hours old. He was the only one in his litter to survive and at six weeks, he started dropping weight for no known reason. Thanks to some excellent veterinary care, he is now 10 years old and loves to head-butt you for pets.
About Return of the Bad Girl:
Bad girls don't forgive.
Bad girls don't forget.
Bad girls don't fall in love.
Caroline Willis may be known for causing trouble, but she is NOT about to become homeless. So when she learns that her perfect apartment has been double-booked—to a dangerously hot bad boy—Caroline's bad girl reputation comes out in full force. He may be sexy as sin, but she's not afraid of him…or his panty-melting smile.
Rock Canyon's only got room for one bad attitude—and Gabe Moriarty was here first. Still, starting over means playing it smart, so while sharing his new apartment is less than ideal, it's worth getting his dream business off the ground. Not to mention that it means shacking up with a sexy wild child. Caroline may be giving the cold shoulder, but Gabe always was good at starting fires...
Caroline vows to keep things professional with Gabe, but as close quarters begin to ignite the sizzling chemistry between them, she's left wondering: Bad boy plus bad girl equals nothing but trouble…right?
Find out more at www.codigarysbooks.com.
Debra Kayn, author of Living A Beautiful War
Three things that inspired Living A Beautiful War:
• Real-life 99% of Motorcycle Clubs. My biggest inspiration in writing Living A Beautiful War was telling the story of the other 99% of motorcycle clubs that are out there riding the lifestyle. It was personal for me to show them as a family, as brothers, as a part of their community, while keeping them away from the fictional stereotypes found on television, in books and on the news.
• The song Hurt by Johnny Cash. Everyone knows the story of Johnny and his last released song, but if you can close your eyes, listen to the words, it's the most inspiring song to capture the essence of Ink in Living A Beautiful War. Pain, addiction, love … it's a hard life that needs to be told, not excused.
• Location.Living A Beautiful War is set in my hometown, as are the rest of the books in the Bantorus MC series. In fact, I have photographed the town, the clubhouse and other factual parts of the book on my website to give to my readers as a bonus. I can step out my door and picture what to include in my books and what problems are going to happen to the characters. Inspiration literally comes knocking on my front door.
About Living A Beautiful War:
Wild women, good times, and easy rides allow Ink to hide the emotional ties he has with Lilly, the daughter of the president of Bantorus Motorcycle Club. With two warnings to stay away from Lilly on his record, his addiction swings wildly out of control and he can no longer bury the past. Either he's going to lose his club or Lilly will break up her family, and that will destroy them both.
Lilly's forbidden love for Ink has survived her childhood straight to adulthood. The more she fights for both of them, the closer she comes to finding out what is keeping Ink from claiming her. This time, she wonders if it wouldn't be best to point her boots toward Pitnam and live the rest of her life knowing she'll never have the one man she loves.
With Silver Girls under Lilly's management, the Moroad MC taking favors from Bantorus, and the militia's orders skyrocketing, Ink's time is running out. He's living a beautiful war full of addictions, rules, and heartbreak, and the only one who can save him is Lilly.
Find out more at www.debrakayn.com.