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Saturday, March 21, 2015

MEET TEAM LOVE ON THE RUN!



Team Love on the Run is made up of four unique and interesting women! The Suspense Sisters are excited to introduce you to Becky, Lisa, Angela, and Heather!



Becky Avella

Becky Avella grew up in Washington State with her nose in a book and her imagination in the clouds. These days she spends her time dreaming up heart-pounding fiction full of romance and faith. Becky married a real life hero and follows him around begging him to give her material she can use in her stories. Together with their children, they make their home in the beautiful Northwest. Her first novel, Targeted (Love Inspired Suspense), will release April 2015.

Becky is also the author of the non-fiction book, And Then You Were Gone. After four miscarriages and two failed adoption attempts, she is no stranger to loss. Today she celebrates a healed heart and a joyful life. It is her passion to point others to that same healing.

You can connect with Becky on Twitter: @BeckyAvella

Lisa Phillips

A British ex-pat who grew up an hour outside of London, Lisa attended Calvary Chapel Bible College where she met her husband. He’s from California, but nobody’s perfect. It wasn’t until her Bible College graduation that she figured out she was a writer (someone told her).​

Since then she’s taken the Apprentice and Journeyman writing courses with the Christian Writers Guild, and discovered a penchant for high-stakes stories of mayhem and disaster where you can find made-for-each-other love that always ends in happily ever after.

Lisa can be found in Idaho wearing either flip-flops or cowgirl boots, depending on the season. She leads worship with her husband at their local church. Together they have two children–a sparkly Little Princess and a Mini Daddy–and there’s only one bunny rabbit now (sad face).
 

Lisa's Amazon Page

Angela Ruth Strong


Angela always loved writing, which influenced her study of journalism at University of Oregon. She released her debut novel Love Finds You in Sun Valley, Idaho in 2010 and is the middle of her Fun4Hire series for ages 8-12. When FBI agents started showing up in her novels and her characters insisted on jumping out of planes, she figured she better write romantic suspense. She founded IDAhope Writers to inspire other writers to pursue their dreams and is thrilled to be on Team Love on the Run. You can reach her at her website.

Heather Woodhaven

Heather Woodhaven earned her pilot’s license, flew a hot air balloon over the safari lands of Kenya, assisted an engineer with a medical laser in a Haitian mission, parasailed over Caribbean seas, lived through an accidental detour onto a black diamond ski trail in the Aspens and snorkeled among sting rays before becoming a mother of three and wife of one. She’s filled many jobs such as travel agent, business executive, children’s minister, aerobic instructor and preschool teacher. Heather channels her love for adventure into writing characters who find themselves in extraordinary circumstances. Heather's website

INTERVIEW
 
How did Team Love on the Run get started? 

Lisa: We were talking about marketing and want to give back to readers. We decided to team up and make it fun.
Heather: The main description of romantic suspense is “love on the run.”
Becky: We want it to have the same pulse as romantic suspense. Fun, quick, and enjoyable for readers.
Angela: And I was just lucky they invited me to join them.

What was the first romantic suspense book you wrote?
Lisa: Double Agent for Love Inspired Suspense.
Heather: Calculated Risk for LIS.
Becky: Targeted comes out in April with LIS.
Angela: Presumed Dead made it to the final round of the Killer Voices competition for LIS.

 
Why did you choose to write romantic suspense?  
Lisa: Because I don’t like boring.
Heather and Becky: Because Lisa made us. ;-)
Becky: She told me stop writing first person YA. She’s a bossy girl, but we love her.
Heather: I loved Mary Higgins Clark’s earlier stuff and wanted to be her when I grow up.
Angela: Me, too. I started with romance novels, but FBI agents kept showing up and my characters started jumping out of airplanes, so I figured romantic suspense would be a better fit.
Becky: I’m married to a cop, so I love the idea of writing romantic law enforcement heroes. 
 
What do you enjoy most about writing romantic suspense?
 

Becky: I like writing fast-paced fiction that create emotional adrenaline. I also like having heroines that are braver than I am.
Angela: I like the feeling that I’m racing the clock along with my characters and my readers.
Heather: I love the research involved.
Lisa: It’s what I enjoy for entertainment, so that’s what I want to offer other people. But the faith aspect feeds the reader spiritually as well as entertains them. 
 
What passion drove you as you wrote your Love on the Run novellas?
 

Angela: I love hidden identities, so I connected the theme to the scripture about how the world judges the outward appearance while God judges the heart.
Lisa: My love for the Sanctuary series. Lots of quirky characters and people with big secrets that I don’t even know yet.
Heather: For me it’s exciting to see a news headline and imagine how that might impact me. My characters are all normal people as opposed to Lisa’s secretive characters who are anything but normal.
Becky: I’m determined not to miss out next time. I had to miss this book set since I was working on another novel.

From where did you get your story ideas for these novellas?
Angela: Building off the passion above, I created a bad guy who looks good and a good guy who looks bad, and then stuck a woman in the middle who doesn’t know which one to trust.
Heather: I initially got the idea from all the art exhibits at the library, and I wondered if the artist ever sits in the lobby waiting to see who would check out their work.
Lisa: In Sanctuary Buried, WITSEC Town Book 2, Mimi got kicked out of Sanctuary, and I really wanted her to get her comeuppance. Then I needed a romance, so I added what happened to Cyan after she left Sanctuary. I wanted a story outside the town. And the one Mason brother didn’t have his own story yet. It was more tying three secondary characters into one book. 


What is your work schedule like when you're writing a book?
Lisa: We get together to write at coffee shops.
Heather: We do 15-minute writing sprints to see who can get the most words written.
Angela: I join them for motivation and encouragement, but I actually write better alone. It’s really hard for me to get into the story, and then it’s really hard for me to get out, so I try to schedule two-three days a week where I’m doing nothing else but writing for 6-8 hours.
 
What projects are you working on now?
Becky: I am writing a romantic suspense featuring cowboys, drug-runners, and wildfire.
Lisa: WITSEC Town Series Book 3: Sanctuary Breached, which is Beth’s and Sam’s story.
Heather: A math teacher must find evidence to appease the mafia before her great aunt is murdered.
Angela: Fun4Hire Series Book 4: The Pillow Fight Professional, a humorous novel for ages 8-12
 
What's your dream project?
Angela: I want to be on the set when one of my books is made into a movie. Then the characters will be on T-shirts and lunch boxes. And hopefully the inspiration for a ride at Disneyland.
Heather: I want to write a romantic comedy screen play.
Lisa: Co-authoring a book with Camy Tang—a futuristic romantic suspense about genetic engineering.
Becky: *whispering so Lisa doesn’t hear her* YA written in first person.
Lisa: I heard that.
Angela: I can’t believe nobody else wants a Disneyland ride.
 
How have you changed or grown as a writer?
Becky: I’m finally finishing stories. I used to be the queen of beginnings without an end.
Lisa: I think I’ve figured out the kind of writer than I am, so now I can enjoy it a lot. But I will hit the point where I need to challenge myself more.
Heather: For me, it’s more about dropping my pride and learning discipline and what the reader wants.
Angela: I take criticism really well now. I see it as an opportunity to make my work better. In the beginning I took it all so personally.
 
What do you do when you’re not writing?
Lisa: Think about writing.
Becky: I listen to podcast on writing ALL THE TIME.
Angela: I teach fitness classes. And then I eat a lot. So you can’t tell I teach fitness classes.
Lisa: I lead worship.
Becky: I used to teach Bible study. I miss it, but it would take away from writing.
Heather: I do crazy, silly things with my family and blog about it.
Becky: I’m also a mom taxi.
 
If money was no issue, what would you be doing right now?
Lisa: Writing on a beach.
Becky: Writing my way across Europe in coffee shops and cafes.
Angela: I’d be between my condo in Maui where I’d write in the winter and my cabin on the lake in McCall, Idaho where I’d write in the summer.
Heather: I’d be trying out a water jet pack in the Caribbean.
 
What is your go-to food, snack, or special treat?
Lisa: Heather’s energy bites and Becky’s caramel popcorn.
Heather: And Lisa’s quiche.
Angela: Pretzels dipped in Nutella. The dipping gives me time to plot between chapters.
Becky: I’m a cereal addict. And I drink coffee like water.
Lisa: Yes. Heather’s Keurig.
 
What book(s) are you currently reading?
Becky: I’ve got eclectic taste. Right now I’m reading an epic fantasy novel, The Wise Man’s Fear by Patrick Rothfuss.
Lisa: I’m reading Roarke Denver’s autobiography about being a Navy SEAL.
Heather: I just started Lizzy and Jane.
Angela: I’m reading Targeted by Becky Avella.
Becky: *squeals in the background*
 
As a child, what fictional character did you most admire?
Angela: Nancy Drew
Heather: Trixie Beldon
Lisa: The Outsiders was the only book I’d read by the time I was a teenager. My mom could not get me to read a book.
Becky: I read so much that every Friday my mom would bring home books from her school classroom, so my friend and I could have reading parties. Scout Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird was my favorite.
 
What is God teaching you right now?
Lisa: Ho…yeah.
Heather: Joy. And that my thought life influences my capability to experience his joy.
Becky: I’m studying the book of Galatians and relearning how my relationship with him is not based on my performance but simply on his amazing grace.
Heather: You can add that Philippians 4:8 is my verse for the year.
Angela: That God is the author of my life, and he must push me out of my comfort zone for me to grow—much like I do to my characters. Though it’s more fun when I do it to my characters.
Lisa: I am being majorly stretched in both leading worship and writing. I’m learning how to just abide and have that be constant. And how so much of it is him doing the work and not me. 

What advice would you give your younger self?
Lisa: Read a book.
Angela: Ha. That’s awesome.
Lisa: Learn about grammar.
Heather: Don’t get discouraged and take a seven year break from writing fiction.
Becky: Authors aren’t born with a great writing gene. Period. (You don’t have to write period. I know you’ll put a period there. I’m just used to “voice to text.”) Writing craft can be learned. Start learning it now so I don’t have to wait so long to become a published author.
Angela: It’s not EVER going to happen the way I expect it to. And that’s a good thing.
 


Leave a comment, along with your contact information, for your chance to win an ebook copy of LOVE ON THE RUN!

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7 comments:

  1. What a great introduction! I am really looking forward to reading books by you wonderful ladies :) bettimace at gmail dot com

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  2. A great interview! Want to read these books!

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  3. Really enjoyed this interview and looking forward to reading these books!
    cindy99@mac.com

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  4. Great interview , would love to win you lovely ladies books . Sounds good , thanks
    lizd225(at)gmail(dot)com

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  5. These romantic suspense books sound so engaging! In the interviews, I especially enjoyed the books you are currently reading and most admired fictional characters.
    If there is "Love on the Run" then there is my "read in between" life! In the middle of recent "challenging" days the Lord blessed me yesterday to be able to talk with Lynette Eason, DiAnn Mills, and others, and today to finish reading "Deadly Echoes" by Nancy Mehl! It would be another special gift to be able to receive these books. That will be the wish of many of us! Thank you!
    Janice
    pjrcmoore@windstream.net

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  6. This was an incredibly fun interview to read. These all sound like amazing women and their books sound great. Thanks for the opportunity to win this ebook.
    debbiewilder (at) comcast (dot) net

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  7. Thank you so much for having us. (And for putting up with our silliness) It's an honor to be here. :)

    I noticed that we forgot to mention that we also blog at www.teamloveontherun.com and would love to connect with you all there, too.

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