Author Interview – Karen Hulene Bartell

Welcome, Karen Hulene Bartell to the Clog Blog.  So Karen, what is the sweetest thing someone has done for you?

After opening my presents on my eighth Christmas, my father asked me if I were satisfied with the toys
Santa Clause had brought. Absolutely content, I nodded. “Yes.” Was there anything I’d wanted that he
didn’t bring me? I shook my head. “No.”

Then he rolled out my new bicycle.

How would you spend ten thousand bucks?

With a ten-thousand-dollar windfall, most people would buy luxuries or travel. I would donate it to the
local animal shelter. Why? Animals were my “siblings” when I was a kid. Now, they’re my four-legged
“children.” Though I can’t adopt all the strays or feral critters, I can support the local shelter.

Where do you get your best ideas?

That’s easy–traveling gives me the best ideas. Airports, cruises, road trips–you name the mode of
travel–trekking inspires ideas like nothing else. Sights, sounds, scents, regional cuisine, local lore, and
history all conspire to inspire.

What comes first, the plot or characters?

The plot must come first. I need the basic story–the what–before I begin thinking about the who ��
Once I have the narrative, themes evolve, then the characters materialize, and the dialogue flows.

What does your main character do that makes him/her special.

We meet Maeve Jackson, the main character of Kissing Kin, as she musters out of the Army after a five-year stint. Starting over after a broken engagement–with no job and no prospects–she wonders, “What
next? Where next?

Then when she spins out on black ice and totals her car, does she despair? Nope. By “listening with her
heart,” Maeve creates her own opportunities, somehow capitalizing on impossible situations. She’s the
friend/sister I would want during financial setbacks, spectral visits, or relationship troubles.

So what makes Maeve special–besides her indomitable spirit? She “listens with her heart.”

 

BLURB:
Maeve Jackson is starting over after a broken engagement—and mustering out of the Army. No
job and no prospects, she spins out on black ice and totals her car.
When struggling vintner Luke Kaylor stops to help, they discover they’re distantly related. On a
shoestring budget to convert his vineyard into a winery, he makes her a deal: prune grapevines
in exchange for room and board.
But forgotten diaries and a haunted cabin kickstart a five-generational mystery with ancestors
that have bones to pick. As carnal urges propel them into each other’s arms, they wonder: Is
their attraction physical…or metaphysical?

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

Excerpt:

Our shoulders rubbed each time we moved. The downy hairs on the back of my neck tickling
from the electricity passing between us, I shivered as the currents barreled down my spine.

“Cold?” Eyes wide, he caught my gaze.

I opened my mouth to speak but, forgetting what I meant to say, lost myself in his inviting brown
eyes and could only nod.

He reached his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close, sharing his body warmth.
With the faint scents of leather and saddle soap wafting from his jacket, his nearness was
intoxicating, and I was tempted to lean into a kiss. Yet huddled together on the bone-chilling ledge, I gazed instead at the rugged wilderness surrounding us, content to savor the sweet ache
of longing. If more is meant to be, it’ll happen.

Then thoughts of Cody froze me like a blue norther. Why did he come to mind?

****

So close, Luke felt the rise and fall of her chest each time she breathed. Her hair tickled his ear,
raising goosebumps–and possibilities. If she turns toward me or gives any sign…But her sigh
signaled something else. He side-glanced to read her mood, but she stared at the scenery,
apparently oblivious of his rising libido.

“Want…” His voice cracked. Clearing his throat, he tried again. “Want some water?”

“Sure.” She turned her head quickly, her hair brushing his cheek with a citrus scent.

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

AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Author of the Trans-Pecos and Sacred Emblem series, Karen is a best-selling author, keynote
speaker, wife, and all-around pilgrim of life, who writes multicultural, offbeat love stories. Born to
rolling-stone parents who moved often, Bartell found her earliest playmates as fictional friends in
books. Paperbacks became her portable pals. Ghost stories kept her up at night—reading
feverishly. The paranormal was her passion. Novels offered an imaginative escape. An only
child, she began writing her first novel at the age of nine, learning the joy of creating her own
happy endings. Professor Emeritus of the University of Texas at Austin, Karen resides in the
Texas Piney Woods with her husband Peter and her “mews”—three rescued cats and a rescued
*Cat*ahoula Leopard dog.

Connect with Karen:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KarenHuleneBartell
MeWe: https://mewe.com/i/karenbartell
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HuleneKaren
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/karenhulenebartell/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/611950.Karen_Hulene_Bartell
Website: http://www.KarenHuleneBartell.com/
Email: info@KarenHuleneBartell.com
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/karenhulenebartell
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karenhulenebartell/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/karen-hulene-bartell
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenhulenebartell/
Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/Kissing-Trans-Pecos-Karen-Hulene-Bartell-
ebook/dp/B0CRJ6P13V/ref=sr_1_1

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

GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE
A randomly drawn winner will receive a $25 Amazon/BN gift card.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/28e4345f4830