Guest Author: Jaime Rush

Today, Literary Escapism is excited to welcome Jaime Rush to the floor. Jaime is the author of the fabulous Offspring series and the third novel, Touching Darkness, was just recently published.

Nicholas Braden has an uncanny psychic talent for finding things—which is why he’s been recruited for a covert government program designed to hunt down terrorists. While his work for a shady controller named Darkwell is leading him down some very questionable alleyways, it’s also bringing him closer to Olivia, Darkwell’s stunning young assistant. A “good girl” with a wild, secret side, Olivia tempts Nicholas in ways he never believed possible—and in his business, a loss of control could prove fatal.

But there is something not right about the operation. And as Nicholas and Olivia’s passion reaches a white-hot intensity, chilling reversals of good and evil, of right and wrong, suddenly threaten their very survival.

Make sure you stick around to the end as we’re giving away a signed copy (and bookplate) of Touching Darkness to one lucky winner.
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Roller Derby saved my book!

It’s funny what can influence or inspire a story or character. Sometimes it’s an overheard conversation. Or a movie trailer. Or an Anthony Bourdain show. Yes, that wonderfully irreverent travel show host who loves the “nasty bits.” He’s my lunchtime vice, and I have about 30 shows DVR’d. (http://www.travelchannel.com/TV_Shows/Anthony_Bourdain?fbid=OQiTGagT-Uk)

When I finished book 3 of my Offspring series, Touching Darkness, I loved the forbidden aspect to their attraction, the juicy conflicts. But there was something missing. I had always seen my heroine, Olivia, as passive in the beginning of the story, domineered by her powerful father. I like watching a heroine overcome those kinds of internal conflicts because it’s such a wonderful growth arc. I liked her, but I didn’t really connect to her. It was driving me crazy because I couldn’t figure out why, even after finishing the book and doing three rounds of edits. I was hoping my brilliant editor would give me a clue from her distance.

Then, days after mailing it off, I watched Anthony Bourdain in L.A. He was hanging out with the L.A. Derby Dolls. I’d heard of roller derby, but only in a vague sense. (This was before Whip It was a whisper on the scene. Great movie, as an aside!) I loved the diversity of the women, their courage and strength, their spunk. That’s when it hit me. Olivia needed spunk! She needed something that was hers alone, that she kept secret from everyone, especially her father. I knew in an instant that Olivia was a roller derby chick. From that one tidbit bloomed a whole personality: playing passive, but feisty on the inside. Playful, sexier dialogs between her and the hero sprouted in my mind, and, of course, my hero, Nicholas, responded to that new personality, too. While she has more than one secret, this one was a lot of fun to incorporate, especially when Nicholas finds out.

I contacted the Blue Ridge Roller Girls (Asheville, NC) and got to hang out with them at one of their bouts. Talk about cool! They shared tidbits about equipment and how they come up with their nicknames (a very fun process for me to do). It was fun for me and made the book more fun, too.

Always be open to inspiration. You never know where it will come from.

So share your secrets! Do you have a secret activity? If not, what wild activity would you do if you weren’t worried about getting hurt/caught?

And for something fun! I’ve been running my Kick Butt First Line contest for every book I release: Shocking, suspenseful…make us want more! Cash prizes! Contest runs from May 1 through June 1, 2010. It’s open to readers and writers. The entries are entertaining to read, even if you don’t enter. For details on that and my books, go to www.jaimerush.com.

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Thank you Jaime for sharing with us the inspriation you found with Roller Derby.

Contest Time! Jaime has graciously offered to give away a signed copy (and bookplate) of Touching Darkness to one lucky winner. To get your name in the drawing, all you have to do is answer Jaime’s question: Do you have a secret activity? If not, what wild activity would you do if you weren’t worried about getting hurt/caught?

As always, there’s more ways of getting your name in the hat (remember, these aren’t mandatory to enter, just extra entries):

  • +1 for each place you post about today’s contest on your blog, social network, or anywhere you can. Digg it, stumble it, twit it, share it with the world. Wherever you share it, make sure you add a link to it along with your answer.
  • +1 to any review you comment on, however, comments must be meaningful. Just give me the title of the review and I’ll be able to figure it out from there.
  • +1 Are a follower of Literary Escapism on Facebook and/or Twitter
  • +10 Purchase any of Jaime’s Offspring novels – A Perfect Darkness or Out of the Darkness – or any print novel through LE’s Amazon store sometime during this contest and send a copy of the receipt VIA email for your purchase to: myjaxon AT gmail DOT com. Each purchase is worth ten entries, but it has to be through the LE Amazon Link.

The contest will stay open until May 11th, at which time I’ll determine the winner with help from the Research Randomizer and the List Randomizer.

I have not been contacting winners, so you will need to check back to see if you’ve won.

About Jackie 3282 Articles
I am a 30-something SAHM with two adorable boys and a supportive husband who is very tolerant of my reading addiction. I love to read and easily go through about a dozen books a month – well I did before I had kids. Now, not so much. After my first son was born, I began to take my hobby of reviewing a little more serious and started Literary Escapism to help with my sanity. I love to discuss the fabulous novels I’ve read and meeting all the wonderful people in the book blogging community has been amazing.

18 Comments

  1. I don’t have a secret activity but if I didn’t have to work about getting hurt I’d like to try rock climbing.

  2. I don’t have a secret activity but if I had the time I would take up boxing or MMA.

  3. I really am looking forward to reading this series as it is new to me. Thanks for stopping by today!!! I don’t have a secret activity, but I would love to get out and play ice hockey (my son plays). I know I’d end up with broken bones, more than likely. LOL!

  4. I don’t have a secret activity, but I wish I had the guts to do something like bungee jump (I chickened out before) or skydive. My husband has been pestering me for years to do it. On a different note, I would quit my job and become a travel journalist. But that would be too risky, even for my husband.

    Thanks for the giveaway! I have not yet read this author and the books look interesting.

  5. If I didn’t have to worry about getting hurt I would do lots of things lie skydiving, rock climbing, and things like that.

    +1 follow on twitter @throuthehaze

  6. Hi! I would LOVE to win a copy of this book! Especially since I couldn’t find it at Walmart when I went to buy it! Is this copy going to be signed? That would be even more incredible! As for a secret activity, I don’t have one because I am disabled but if I could do anything I think I would probably go rock climbing. That was an excellent question! It really took a LOT of thought and even then, I don’t know for sure if that’s the complete answer because there are so many things I would probably like to try at least once before settling on a single activity.

  7. okay, I don’t know if this counts, but my secret activity is eating in the shower . Yes, I know, but there is something relaxing about eating a bowl of cereal in a hot shower. Usually I eat chocolate, but the most unusual thing I ate was spaghetti. (I feel better now that I have let this out )

    I am a facebook fan and I posted about this contest on FB (my secret activity might not be secret anymore. Will have to come up with a new one;)

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