Romance Promo Central is happy to welcome Bette Lee Crosby to the blog!  She’s here to answer a few questions and share some information about her writing and her latest book, Cupid’s Christmas.  If this sounds like a book that you would be interested in reading, please use the buy links at the bottom of this post to pick up a copy or two!

RBP – Can you describe your book in a single sentence?

Bette Lee – Cupid’s Christmas is a lighthearted love story that weaves its way through the complexity of family relationships, reality and romantic fantasies.

RBP – Where would you live if you could live anyplace in the world?

Bette Lee – I would stay right where I am – Florida. I love the sun, beaches, palm trees, warm weather and afternoon thunderstorms. Living in Florida is like being on vacation 365 days a year. If I had to choose a second place, I’d pick Hawaii, which isn’t terribly unlike Florida. That said, I would love to rent an apartment and spend an entire summer in Paris, it is a city with a magic beyond compare.

RBP – Did you always want to be a writer?

Bette Lee – No, even though I have always loved to read, I studied art with the intention of becoming a graphic designer. I began designing for a soft goods packaging firm and on several occasions was asked to create sell-copy for the package. In doing so I discovered a true love for painting pictures with words. Even now, I visualize my characters and stories before I even start to write. I think having the ability to do this makes me a much better writer.

RBP – Do you read reviews written about your book?

Bette Lee – Oh my gosh, yes. I don’t know how an author could not read the reviews. A great review can lift you to cloud nine, while a bad review will leave you feeling as though you should crawl under a rock. I’ve been quite fortunate in that my reviews so far have been mostly wonderful, but the reality is that even wonderful books will get an occasional bad review. Why? Simply put, the book wasn’t right for that particular reader. It doesn’t mean the book has suddenly turned bad and that’s something an author needs to remember. Even though we read every single review, we need to always keep the big picture in mind and look at the overall rating.

RPC – What do you love about writing?

Bette Lee – Allowing my imagination to roam around in a playground of possibilities—discovering the concept and characters for a new novel is a thrill beyond compare, it’s up there with finding the pot of gold at the end of a rainbow.

RBP – What’s the hardest part of writing?

Bette Lee – Editing—by far and away. Editing is work, tedious and demanding. Editing demands that you be ruthless and practical with those wonderful lines of dialogue and it’s a cruel taskmaster.

RBP – Who is your favorite character in your new release?

Bette Lee – Cupid. I love his sense of humor, his humanity, and his never-ending quest for circumventing the problems caused by his nemesis, Life Management. And, I love that he is a little bit tricky in finding solutions to the problems that confront him.

RPC – How do you come up with the premise for your books?

Bette Lee – Usually it’s some little event that sparks a single thought and leads to a whole series of ‘what-if’  thoughts. In Spare Change, it was a trip to see friends on the Eastern Shore of Virginia where you can drive for miles and not see a person or place other than scrub brush – I started thinking a murder could happen out here and nobody would even know it, and that gave birth to the story. With Cupid’s Christmas it was the second marriage of a friend that triggered a series of what-ifs.

RBP – Do you have an all-time favorite book?

Bette Lee – I have a zillion of them, but if I had to name one I’d most likely say “Gone With the Wind.” For me it is the ultimate back and forth of romance—mixed up, crazy, manipulative, forgiving, always on the edge of a happy-ever-after but never quite getting there. It shows both the best and the worst of people, which is the truth of how life is.

RPC – Where can your fans find you?

Bette Lee – I hang-out on Goodreads more than any of the other social media sites, but I’m also on Facebook, Twitter and my blog. Goodreads just has such a diversity of books and readers, it’s like Disney World for Authors.

RPC – If you could visit any place in the world, or a place created in a book, where would it be?

Bette Lee – Without a doubt, it would be “The Night Circus” in Erin Morgenstern’s wonderful novel. That wonderful love story conjured up images that will forever linger in my imagination.

RPC – What is in the works for you next?

 

Bette Lee – I have a novel titled “What Matters Most” that is scheduled to be released in early 2013, and I am currently working on an as yet untitled novel that centers around many of the characters featured in “Spare Change.”

In a fun Christmas Romance, Cupid is charged with making certain an older couple gets the love they’ve been waiting for and a young woman who’s far too attracted to handsome men with sexy eyes finds her perfect match. And, he has to make it happen by Christmas.
If you’re a Debbie Macomber fan, you’re gonna love Cupid’s Christmas!

 

 

 

 

 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cupid’s Christmas Can be purchased from:

  Amazon