Wednesday, April 24, 2013

WELCOME AUTHOR GERI FOSTER!


Readers, please welcome my BFF and great author Geri Foster today to A Writer’s Life. Besides being a terrific writer and loyal friend, Geri is a bundle of energy that puts the Energizer Bunny to shame. She’s stopped preparations for her trip to the Romantic Times Convention long enough to share with us today.

Caroline: Geri, I love hearing tales about your life, especially with your dad’s mom. Tell readers something about your growing up.

Geri: I grew up in a very small, close-knit town called Picher, Oklahoma. I was the baby with two older brothers until my mother surprised us all by having my sister when I was thirteen. We moved to Kansas for about five years, finally landing in Buffalo, New York when I met and married my navy husband. Together we had two kids, both grown now and out on their own. I pray every day it stays that way. LOL!

Caroline: You left out your grandmother and the story of her using a broom to chase the bull.   Who are your favorite authors and favorite genres?

Geri: Growing up I was rarely without a book. My family liked that because when it came to presents, they knew just what to buy. Learning to read was almost magical to me. It opened a different and kinder world than I lived in growing up.

I have always loved romance. There is nothing happier than ever-after.

Caroline: True, which is why we write as well as read romance. What’s your favorite way to relax and recharge?

Geri: I’m pretty hyper, so I tend to crash and burn, put out the fire, and start all over again. I’m a chronic multi-tasker, and I love being in over my head…until, like I said, I crash and burn.
I find a nice glass of wine at the end of the day pretty much clears my head and puts me to sleep so I can wake up and start all over again.

Caroline: Do you have a favorite quote that sums up how you feel about life?

Geri: God blessed me with the best friends in the world, and I thank him every day for that. So my quote is: There is no problem that FRIENDS cannot confront, combat, plot against, ignore, make fun of, drown in chocolate sauce, or run over with a car!
Also: Life is Good!

Caroline: How long have you been writing?

Geri: I’ve been working at my craft for about fifteen years. I’ve been writing seriously for about five.

Caroline: Where do you prefer to write? Do you need quiet, music, solitude? PC or laptop?

Geri: I’m one of those crazy people that can’t listen to anything when they write. If there is music, I want to sing or dance, if the TV is on, no matter what channel, I’ll stop and watch it. So, for me it’s being all alone with my laptop.

Caroline: I’m asking even though I know the answer: Are you a plotter or a panzer?

Geri: I Plot! I say that proudly because I write Action-Romantic Suspense. Without a plot it can get really scary. I need to know what’s going to happen and where I’m going. Also, it points out when and where I need to ratchet up the tension.

Caroline: Do you use real events or persons in your stories or as an inspiration for stories?

Geri: No. For some unknown reason the inciting incident comes to me first in a story. It just pops up. Then I plot from there.

Caroline: Do you set daily writing goals?

Geri: I shoot for ten pages a day, but consider five pages a good day.

Caroline: What do you hope your writing brings to readers?

Geri: Pure entertainment. I’m not a teacher, or a history buff or someone with a message. I do a lot of research because I have to keep my facts straight and know what I’m talking about, but I don’t try to educate anyone. I want my reader to feel my characters’ emotions, good and bad, and I want them to fear the goal won’t be reached, and I want them satisfied at the end. If I have that, then I’ve done a good job.

Caroline: What long-term plans do you have for your career?

Geri: To write more books. I even have three comedies I plan to put out there. J

Caroline: Would you like to tell us what you’re working on now?

Geri: Right now I’m finishing up OUT OF THE NIGHT which is the third book in the Falcon Series. OUT OF THE DARK and OUT OF THE SHADOWS were just released.

Caroline: What advice would you give to unpublished authors?

Geri: Write until you reach the end. Don’t start another book and don’t put it off, just finish the damn book.

Caroline: Tell us a fun fact readers wouldn’t know about you.

Geri: I constantly talk to myself. I rarely read instructions. I’m into Feng-Shui

Caroline: What’s something about you that would surprise or shock readers?

Geri: I’d love to skydive…just once.

Caroline: Is your book a series?
Geri: My books are a series called Falcon Securities. It’s about ex-military and ex- intelligence officers who become agents for Frank Hamilton who owns Falcon. They work exclusively for the President of the United States and the DOD

Caroline: Can you give readers a blurb about your book?

Geri: Here’s a blurb from OUT OF THE DARK:

After a Russian mission goes south, Falcon Securities agent John ‘Mac’ McKinsey is stranded with assassins on his trail. His boss arranges for him to hitch a ride with the corporate attorney Emily Richards, who is in Russia as a mediator for another company.

Emily Richards wants only to return home then on to a peaceful vacation with her best friend. When armed men invade her hotel room minutes after Mac arrives, Emily is forced to depend on Mac to stay alive. Anger that Mac has entangled her in a life or death struggle quickly turns to fear when the men pursuing them call her by name.

Together Mac and Emily engage in a tumultuous ride to escape with their lives and capture a crazed bomber and a vindictive drug lord. More difficult is tearing down their own emotional walls. Can they succeed and admit love is the most precious thing in life?



Caroline: How about an excerpt?

Geri: Here’s and excerpt of OUT OF THE DARK:

Emily Richards opened her hotel room, stepped inside, and secured the lock. From behind, a calloused hand clamped over her mouth, threatening to shut off vital oxygen. Her shocked scream crumbled into a muffled murmur.

Fear exploded in her brain.

The man’s arm wrapped around her chest and pulled her against a hard, muscular body.
Emily’s purse and briefcase dropped to the floor as she desperately tried to fight off her attacker. Her elbows jabbed his ribs, rewarding her with a grunt. She twisted frantically to break free.

“Be still,” a male voice hissed against her ear. The terse command shot her horror into a higher realm of terror. “Relax, it’s me, Mac. I’m not here to hurt you.”

Caroline: I know your books are available in both print and as ebooks. Where can readers find your books?

Geri: OUT OF THE DARK – http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CB8GY9K
OUT OF THE SHADOWS – http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CB4QY8U


Caroline: How can readers learn more about you?

Twitter: @gerifoster

Caroline: Is there anything else you’d like readers to know about you?

Geri: I love hearing from my readers!

Author Geri Foster
As long as she can remember, Geri Foster has been a lover of reading and the written words. In the seventh grade she wore out two library cards and had read every book in her age area of the library. After raising a family and saying good-bye to the corporate world, she tried her hand at writing.
To her surprise, she won a couple of contests, hooked up with a really great critique group and her writing career was well on its way. She spent several years studying her craft and developing her voice.
Action, intrigue, danger and sultry romance drew her like a magnet. That’s why she has no choice but to write action-romance suspense. While she reads every genre under the sun, she’s always been drawn to guns, bombs and fighting men. Secrecy and suspense move her to write edgy stories about daring and honorable heroes who manage against all odds to end up with their one true love.


Thanks for sharing with us today, Geri. 

Readers, thanks for stopping by!


17 comments:

Caroline Clemmons said...

Geri, welcome to the blog. Wishing you all the success you so richly deserve with your career!

Geri said...

Thanks for having me, Caroline.

Unknown said...

Congratulations Geri! Gals, this was too cute! I just got a visual on that broom!

Wishing both success with your recent launches!

Best,

DeLaine

Maria Connor said...

Geri,

I,too, am a chronic multitasker, so much so that it often interferes with getting my writing done. How to you stay "on task" and focus? I appreciate your tips and suggestions.

Thanks!

/Maria Connor w/a EmKay Connor
(Fellow Yellow Rose!)

Unknown said...

Congratulations Geri! Gals, this was too cute! I just got a visual on that broom!

Wishing both success with your recent launches!

Best,

DeLaine

Geri said...

Thank you D, and thanks for buyign my books. That's very sweet of you. Next time on Caroline's blog I'll tell the story about my grandmother, a broom and a bull in her kitchen. :)

Geri said...

Maria,
I sometimes don't know how I get so much done. Other times I wonder why I'm so slow. But, when I'm writing, I'm in that world and have no idea what's happening in the real world. I just surround myself with the story and let nothing else in at that time.
On other tasks, I make lists, after lists, after lists. I have post-it notes everywhere.

Carra Copelin said...

Geri, Great interview! Love your stories with heroes and heroines that push the envelope to get the job done. Action and romance for the total package!

Caroline, I love your revamped site. It's beautiful!

Wishing much success to my very good friends and critique partners!!

Lyn Horner said...

Geri, love the interview, love your book covers and will love your stories, I'm positive. You're such a go-getter, your career is bound to take off.

Much success! Lyn

Geri said...

Thanks for stopping by Gloria! It's great to hear from you. I would say I certainly push the envelope but I love the action!

Geri said...

Lyn, thank you so much for stopping by during a very busy time for you. I'm glad you like the interview. I hope the books do well, but the reason I write is because there are all these stories in my head!

Ashley Kath-Bilsky said...

Great interview, Caroline and Geri. The Falcon series is amazing, and I am so happy for Geri with its debut. Looking forward to reading ALL the books in this series. Have a blast at RT, Geri -- and with your first book signing. :)

Ruby said...

Geri:
You'll sell a lotof books because of the covers. Really great.
I make lists also, but I have a habit of losing them.
Good luck on your books.

Geri said...

Thanks Ashley. If I don't get busy there won't be a series LOL! I've been spread pretty thin lately.

Thanks for the good luck wishes!

And the same to you for Whisper in The Wind!

Geri said...

Thank you Ruby for stopping by and I hope you're right about selling more books! I wish that for all of us!

Vicki Batman, sassy writer said...

Hi, Geri and Caroline! Geri, I just love your philosophy! Congratulations on your book and have a fun time at RT!

Geri said...

Thank you so much for stopping by with the good wishes, Vicki. This has been a great time.