TBR welcomes Rachel Brimble

TBR: Welcome to TBR, Rachel. Will you share a little bit about yourself?
Rachel: I have been writing seriously for about six years now and have six full-length novels and one novella published. I am married with two daughters and a third child by the name of Max, my black Lab, Max. We live in South West England, very close to the famous Georgian/Regency city of Bath.

When I’m not writing I like to read, knit, walk the English countryside and socialize with friends and family.

My vices are white wine, jelly donuts and TV crime and period dramas :)

TBR: Tell us about Paying The Piper and where our visitors can buy it.
Rachel: Paying The Piper started out as a romantic suspense but as I started writing the suspense lessened and the romance grew. Although this is a darker, grittier story than I have written before I consider it a mainstream contemporary romance set against a backdrop of UK pubs and clubs.

Jimmy Betts is my favorite hero so far :)

Buy Link:

http://www.lyricalpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=3_25&products_id=424

TBR: Please tantalize us with a story blurb or excerpt.
Rachel:

Blurb: 

Nightclub manager, Grace Butler is on a mission to buy the pub where her mother’s ashes are scattered – except the vendor wants to sell to anyone but her. And the vendor happens to be her father…with a secret Grace will do anything to uncover.

 Social worker and all-round good guy, Jimmy Betts needs cash to buy a house for three special kids before their care home closes. In a desperate bid for cash, he agrees to a one-time ‘job’ for bad-man Karl Butler. But in a sudden turn of events, Jimmy finds himself employed by Karl’s beautiful, funny and incredibly sexy daughter, Grace.

Their lives are so different except for one unifying thread – they are both trying to escape the binds of their tyrannical fathers. But is the key to their liberty each other?

TBR: Are you a plotter or pantser?
Rachel: A combination of the two – I always start a story with either a premise or a voice in my head (hero or heroine) usually shouting out their problem and asking me to help them fix it. I then write a two-three page synopsis and character sketches which usually throws up a few starting conflicts.

After that, I start writing the ‘dirty draft’ where nearly everything then changes, lol!

TBR: Do you have a favorite quote you’d like to share?
Rachel: “Set it up the way you want it to be.” Iyanla Vanzant

TBR: What's next for you?
Rachel: I have just sent the final edits to my editor at The Wild Rose Press for my next venture into the Victorian romance genre. It is a novella set in Bristol, England. Here’s the blurb:

To keep herself from the depths of poverty, Milly Shepherd needs to be appointed manager of the Red Lion Tavern.  The elderly owner is in failing health and has promised her the job permanently if no one more suitable applies.  Milly will fight with her entire being to make the job her own.

Joseph Jacobs needs to supplement his income to pay off his father’s creditors and save him from debtor’s prison.  Though the job as manager of the local tavern looks promising, Milly is favored by both the owner and customers.  Instead, Joseph swallows his pride and agrees to tend bar.

As they work together, their attraction grows, their goals cross, and both Millie and Joseph find they must face their fears …the question is whether they face them alone or together?

Hope to have a release date soon! I’ll keep you posted :)

TBR: Any other published works?
Rachel: I am published in Victorian romance, contemporary romance, romantic suspense and comedy.

I love writing across the sub-genres, it gives me freedom and keeps my writing fresh. I don’t choose my next venture though, my characters tell me where and when their stories are set. Here’s my backlist:

Searching For Sophie – romantic suspense from The Wild Rose Press

Reluctant Witness – romantic suspense from The Wild Rose Press

The Sharp Points of a Triangle – romantic comedy from Eternal Press

The Arrival of Lily Curtis – Victorian romance from The Wild Rose Press

Transatlantic Loving – contemporary novella from The Wild Rose Press

Getting It Right This Time – contemporary romance from Lyrical Press

Paying The Piper – contemporary romance from Lyrical Press

TBR: What’s the most challenging aspect of writing? Most rewarding?
Rachel: The most challenging aspect for me is the plotting and most of all, avoiding the ‘sagging middle’. I struggle with this each and every project. I am plagued with self-doubt and long to go back to the start or worse, delete the entire thing! You have to push through it. A blank page can’t be edited. That’s all you need to remember to succeed in this business!

TBR: Who are some of your favorite authors and books? What are you reading now?
Rachel: Favourite authors are Nora Roberts and Jodi Picoult – my favorites books of theirs are Montana Sky and The Chesapeake Series from Nora and My Sister’s Keeper and Plain Truth by Jodi. All time favorite is Gone With The Wind and new favorite is The Help – there’s a theme there! ;)

I am currently reading Please Don’t Stop the Music by UK writer, Jane Lovering & Outlaw in Petticoats by Wild Rose Press author, Paty Jager.

TBR: Where can readers find you on the web?
Rachel:

http://www.rachelbrimble.com/

http://rachelbrimble.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rachel-Brimble/181873201887441

Twitter: @rachelbrimble

TBR: Thanks so much for visiting TBR, Rachel. All the best to you!