BooksChatter: ℚ First Impressions: The MacQuire Women [3]

Today we have the pleasure of meeting up with author Peggy Jaeger to talk about First Impressions (23 September 2015, The Wild Rose Press, Inc, 398pages) a Contemporary Romance book three of The MacQuire Women.

Author Q&A | Synopsis | Teaser | The Series | About the Author | Giveaway & Tour Stops

A very warm welcome to Peggy Jaeger, thank you for joining us on BooksChatter.

What was the inspiration for First Impressions?

"First Impressions, book 3 in my MacQuire Women series, fell out of book two, There’s No Place Like Home.
In book two we meet twins Moira and Padric (Pat) Cleary. Moira’s story was told in TNPLH and I loved writing Pat so much, I needed to tell his story and give him his own happily-ever-after, so First Impressions was born."

How much of yourself is reflected in this book, and how?

"Actually, a great deal. My heroine, Clarissa Rogers, is a family practice physician and I have been in the health care industry for over 30 years as a Registered Nurse. I used a great deal of my knowledge about health care when showing Clarissa’s day-to-day activities in regards to her practice. There is one incident in the book (without giving too much away) that happened to me. It was such a heart-wrenching scene to write, I still cry to this day when I read it. But it is a major plot line necessary for the characters to come together, so I knew I had to use it."

The first thing that draws me to a book is its cover. Can you tell us about your cover for First Impressions - why you chose that concept and who the artist is.

"My cover artist is the talented Rae Monet. The book takes place in autumn in the Northeast - Connecticut to be precise - so I knew I wanted to have an overall fall theme on the cover. In the northeast, apple picking is very popular during this time of year and there is a scene in the book where Pat and Clarissa go apple picking, she for the very first time, so the cover shows the two of them just about to kiss in an orchard ripe with juicy apples waiting to be harvested. On the cover there is also the silhouette of an adorable kitten who plays a very major role in getting Clarissa and Pat together as a couple. Overall, it is my favourite cover to date of all my books."

Why should we read First Impressions and what sets it apart from the rest? What makes your book unique?

"If you like books about strong women and the men who can’t live without them, then this book – and all my books – will appeal to you. I like writing about big families and all the personalities and dramas that go with being in one. You don’t often read too many books with misunderstood heroes who still manage to be a little alpha and a lotta sexy at the same time. I like my heroes to be real men with emotions, wants, and the desire to be better. They realize at one point during the story that the heroine is “it” for them and they will move heaven and h*ll to make sure she feels the same."

Can you tell us something quirky about First Impressions, its story and characters?

"Pat’s real name is Padric Oliver Cleary. Even though Padric is spelled this way, it’s still pronounced as if it were spelled PATRICK. When I was in the writing stage, I originally gave him the normal nickname of Paddy. But a few beta readers told me they though it sounded, a) like a girl’s name, and b) like a frog seat, so I changed the nickname to the more male sounding Pat, but left the Gaelic spelling of his full name because I love it so much."

Who would you recommend First Impressions to and what should readers be aware of (any warnings or disclaimers)?

"I would recommend to it any Romance reader who, a) likes contemporary settings, b) likes stories about families, and, c) enjoys a strong yet emotionally soft heroine and an equally strong, caring hero. But: I need the reader to know this isn’t a sweet romance. It’s very sensual and there is a lot of monogamous, committed sex going on once the hero and heroine get together. They are consenting adults, and in this contemporary setting they do have protected, responsible, mind-blowing sex. So if you like your romances to stop at the closed bedroom door – this isn’t for you. If you like the go thru that door, it is."

If you could / wished to turn First Impressions and the The MacQuire Women series into a movie, who would be your dream team?

"Fabulous question because whenever I start new characters, I find pictures of celebrities whom I think fit their physical molds. I cut out the headshots and place them on index cards, highlighting all the physical attributes (hair color, length, color of eyes, etc,) and then use them as reference tools while writing.

For Clarissa, I chose Julia Roberts during her Pretty Woman era. Auburn/reddish hair, cinnamon colored eyes.

For Pat, Matt Bomer from White Collar and the Magic Mike movies. Gorgeous, gorgeous man.

Moira Cleary I envision as looking like Katy Perry physically (skin and eye color) but Moira’s hair dances to her waist, while her husband Quentin looks just like Jason Lewis from Sex and the City. Another gorgeous, gorgeous man.

The movie would be filmed on location in New England during autumn – no prettier place in the world at that time of year! Steven Soderbergh would direct. Dream team if ever I saw one. "

What do you like to write and read about? Do you stick to a particular genre or do you like to explore different ones?

"I write all sorts of things – novels, blogs, short stories. For my novels, I stick to what I love best – contemporary romance. My published short stories are all murder mysteries and tales of suspense, and I’ve won a few literary awards for some of them. I blog about writing, publishing and - believe it or not – Menopause, so I have varied writing interests.

What I read is just as varied. I adore autobiographies and biographies of strong women in history and in our culture. I devour regency romances. I can’t write them and wouldn’t want to because the research is too much for me – but I lovelovelove to read them. I am a devotee of suspense – romantic and otherwise. I read Jeffery Deaver, Patricia Cornwell, Lisa Gardner, Tess Gerritsen, Michael Palmer, Carol O’Connell – all non-romance authors. They are the crème de la crème of their genres.

For romance I gravitate to Nora Roberts/J.D. Robb, Lisa Kleypas, Jill Shalvis, Tami Hoag and Catherine Bybee. These women are “it” for me. They each have very different writing styles, but each and every one is a master (mistress??lol) of their romance craft. I devour their books in one reading whenever something new is released."

What is your writing process?

"It used to be catch-as-catch can, but since I retired in April of this year, I am now afforded the luxury of writing full time. 5 days a week I write 8-10 hours daily. On the weekends, 3-5 hours/day doing blog work.

I usually find my characters first, then build a story around them, because I have to know who the people I am writing about in a story are before I can ever envision a plot.

Once I’ve got the characters fleshed out – personalities, backgrounds, motivations, I build my plotline.

I am usually working on 2-3, sometimes 4 projects at a time. I move back and forth between them for a few days, (Writing-OCD, much?) fleshing scenes out and getting dialogue down. I do three drafts of each book before I ever send it to my editor – and then it’s usually 2 more edits after that before it gets published."

What is in store next?

"I just sent book 4 in the MacQuire Women series to my editor and am writing book 5 now while plotting book 6. I also have another series titled the Will Cook For Love about 7 sisters that I am trying to find an agent to represent. Cue the shameless beg/plug!

Book 4 in MacQuire is titled THE VOICES OF ANGELS and it is prequel to my very first book SKATER’S WALTZ. VOICES tells the story of Cole and Tiffany’s parents, Mike Woodard and Carly Lennox. You get to see Cole and Tiffany as kids, and even before you ever know they will wind up together one day, you get a big sense of their love in this book. But Carly and Mike are the hero and heroine and I loved watching how their relationship began and progressed. Book 5 will give us Carly’s sister (and Moira and Pat’s mom) Serena’s story with Shamus Cleary. I love this entire family as if they were my own. Well…I guess they are! "

And as a final quirky thing, to get to know you a little bit better... do you have a pet or something that is special to you that you could share with us?

"I don’t have any pets just now. Ancient cat and dog died and I’m still in the grieving process. But one “thing” I do have that I treasure beyond all be-yond is a photograph of me and Nora Roberts taken at the 2014 RWA conference in San Antonio, Tx. It is framed and sits on my desk while I write. Nora is my all time favourite author and whenever I need a burst of inspiration I look at that photograph and get all giddy."