Welcome back, Leeann Betts. Leave a comment to win a copy of LITTLE GREY CELLS

LITTLE GREY CELLS ~ A missing woman, a suitcase buried in a ceiling, and a rare manuscript. Who hid them? And why? And who wants them now? 

ME: Welcome back, Leeann, Tell us about something interesting that happened while writing LITTLE GREY CELLS, book 2 of the Mysterious Ink Bookstore Mysteries

LB: While I was writing this book, I realized I needed to nail down more details about my two main characters. Honestly, when writing the segue novella, “The Game is Afoot”, I didn’t see there was a potential for any kind of attraction between my heroine and my police hero. I had the opportunity to really explore that in this book. I also needed to add more businesses in the downtown core of Edgewater, but I didn’t want anything that was actually there, so I made certain the bakery wasn’t where I say it is, and that the address of the bookstore isn’t a real address. I usually invent my settings, which, while it sounds more difficult, has proven to actually be a lot easier! 

ME: Here's a little bit about Leeann: Leeann Betts writes contemporary romantic suspense, while her real-life persona, Donna Schlachter, pens historical romantic suspense. Together she and Donna have published more than 30 novellas and full-length novels. They ghostwrite, judge writing contests, edit, facilitate a critique group, and are members of American Christian Fiction Writers, Writers on the Rock, Christian Authors Network, Pikes Peak Writers, and Sisters in Crime. Leeann travels extensively to research her stories, and is proud to be represented by Terrie Wolf of AKA Literary LLC

Click on the LINK to buy Little Grey Cells:

Please leave Leeann a comment for a chance to win a copy of Little Grey Cells, book 2 of the Mysterious Ink Bookstore Mysteries. Print or electronic ~ reader's choice! You must leave an email address in order to win! Drawing in one week! 

Thanks for dropping by Suspense Sisters, readers! ~ Mary Ellis

Author Reveals Her Research Secrets ~ Win a free copy of Missing Deposits

Happy Friday, readers, Mary Ellis here. Today Suspense Sisters welcomes author, Leann Betts, who talks about her research for her newest mystery, Missing Deposits. Stay tuned for a chance to win a free copy of her book. 

The Research Behind the Story Missing Deposits by Leann Betts.

Readers—and writers, too, for that matter—often ask me why I set my stories where I do. Carly needed a road trip after her last harrowing adventure, so I chose the state I live in. Famous for its mineral deposits, I learned about Colorado mineral rights. One interesting tidbit is that ownership of oil and mineral rights doesn’t automatically transfer with the title to the land. Sometimes, unless specified, and under certain conditions, those rights stay with the previous owner. Or the government.

Then I looked for a rare, endangered animal to sweeten the pot. Something not normally found where I would put them. The details about the black-footed ferrets are mostly true. Not about the truck accident that dropped several of the critters on the western slope, but at the timing of this story, 2005, they were on the “extinct in the wild” list. Recently they were reintroduced into Colorado to control the prairie dog population.

As I do with just about every book in this series, I made up a fictional town based on a part of the state I’d recently visited and which I thought readers might like to learn more about. The Grand Mesa/Mesa Verde National Park area on the western slopes of Colorado is a world unto itself. The scenery is spectacular, the weather is iffy, but the people are warmhearted and compassionate.

I also needed a politically conservative setting, because while not exclusively so, politically conservative folks also tend to be church-goers, and I wanted both Carly and Mike to be slam-dunked into a situation where they had to re-examine their spiritual beliefs. I researched cattle brands, and chose a name for a brand I could draw. A Lazy L, in brand terms, is one that lies horizontally.

About the story Missing Deposits: Carly looks forward to a vacation when Mike is hired to assist a rancher in western Colorado catalogue his mineral rights following the discovery of several large deposits. However, Carly soon learns that the real wealth—and the real danger—aren’t below ground. Someone is out to keep a secret bigger and more profitable than gold and copper. And they’re willing to kill for it. 

About the author: Leeann Betts writes contemporary romantic suspense, while her real-life persona, Donna Schlachter, pens historical romantic suspense. Missing Deposits is the 11th title in her cozy mystery series, and together she and Donna have published more than 30 novellas and full-length novels. They ghostwrite, judge writing contests, edit, facilitate a critique group, and are members of American Christian Fiction Writers, Writers on the Rock, and Sisters in Crime. Leeann travels extensively to research her stories, and is proud to be represented by Terrie Wolf of AKA Literary LLC.

Website: www.LeeannBetts.com Receive a free ebook just for signing up for our quarterly newsletter.
Blog: www.AllBettsAreOff.wordpress.com
Facebook: http://bit.ly/1pQSOqV
Twitter: http://bit.ly/1qmqvB6
Books: Amazon http://amzn.to/2dHfgCE and Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2z5ecP8

Leave Leeann comment, and I will draw randomly for a print copy (US only) or ebook version (winner’s choice) of Missing Deposits. You must leave your email address in order to win. 

An Interview With Leeann Betts ~ Win a copy of Petty Cash!

Today Suspense Sisters welcomes cozy author, Leeann Betts, who has a new release, Petty Cash. If you leave a comment after the interview, you'll be entered in the drawing for a free copy. 

If you had to describe yourself in one sentence, what would you say?  I am cute and perky and all the things my real-life persona, Donna Schlachter, isn’t. (At least, that’s what she always says J)

What do you do when you’re not writing? Any interesting hobbies? I wear several hats, including wife, mom, grandmother, accountant, and proofreader. I also love to help writers move their story to the next level, so I judge in writing contests, facilitate a critique group, and offer editing/critique/publishing services.

What was your favorite book as a teen or child? Anything with animals, particularly horses. Think Misty of Chincoteague, Black Beauty, Call of the Wild.

Tell us three things about yourself that might surprise your readers. I am a Canadian by birth, an American by choice, and I once danced with a gold medal figure skater.

What genre did you start out writing? Have you changed course? Why or why not? I started out writing children’s stories, because I stupidly thought that would be easier. Not. Then I started writing devotions and greeting cards for the same reason. Not. Short stories. Not. Once I asked myself if I had at least one book in me and set out to prove or disprove that, I found my favorite writing place.

What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment? I was once told nobody wanted to read about accountants because accountants are boring. The best compliment was one of my recent books, Hidden Assets, reminded the reader of Agatha Christie on her best day.

Any other genres you’d like to try? If yes, what and why? I’ve written contemporary suspense, cozy mystery, and historic suspense. I’d love to try my hand at an historical mystery series a la Murdoch Mysteries.

If you could go back in time and do something differently at the start of your career, what would it be? If I could go back in time, I’d start writing sooner and listen less to the critics.

What is the most important piece of advice you’d like to give to unpublished authors? Keep writing. Keep submitting to contests and critique groups. Listen to what folks are saying. Don’t take it all to heart, but look for a pattern.

Tell us about Petty Cash

Carly Turnquist, forensic accountant, is headed off for another mystery. Or two. Or three. She and hubby Mike head to Cape Cod as emotional support for their daughter Denise and her dentist husband Don who finds himself in the middle of a potential practice dissolution. But when their host fails to make an appearance, and a tropical storm blows through the area, things are topsy-turvy. Then when their host's body washes ashore, Don is suspected. After all, they'd had several arguments witnessed by a number of people, not to mention a sizable partnership life insurance policy--with Don as sole beneficiary in the event Mo pre-deceases him. Add into the mix a local ghostly legend that keeps appearing in a haunted lighthouse, a local fisherman with a costly secret, and a blossoming friendship between her grandkids and a local named Sammy, and Carly has her hands full. 

Tell us about yourself:

Leeann Betts writes contemporary suspense, while her real-life persona, Donna Schlachter, pens historical suspense. She has released six titles in her cozy mystery series, By the Numbers, and Petty Cash released in December. In addition, Leeann has written a devotional for accountants, bookkeepers, and financial folk, Counting the Days, and with her real-life persona, Donna Schlachter, has published a book on writing, Nuggets of Writing Gold, a compilation of essays, articles, and exercises on the craft.

Website: www.LeeannBetts.com Receive a free ebook just for signing up for our quarterly newsletter.

Blog: www.AllBettsAreOff.wordpress.com Facebook: http://bit.ly/1pQSOqV

Twitter: http://bit.ly/1qmqvB6   Books: Amazon http://amzn.to/2dHfgCE 

Leave Leeann a comment for a chance to win a signed print copy of Petty Cash. You must leave your email address in order to win the drawing.

Thanks, readers, for dropping by Suspense Sisters.   ~  Mary Ellis