Cerian Hebert

Good morning all! I’m very pleased to have fellow Soul Mate Publishing author, Gerri Brousseau here today!  She’s got the cover and excerpt from her latest release, According to Legend. And what an awesome cover it is!!  Welcome Gerri! Tell us a little bit about yourself!

GERRI: Thank you so much for inviting me here today. I’m thrilled to spend some time with you and your readers.

I was born and raised in Connecticut. Lived here in New England most of my life until one day when I decided to up and move to California. It was really nice there, but it was never home to me so after living there for seven years, I moved back.  I live here with the pugs, Mimi and Milo and our cats, Harry and Louise. There’s really not too much to tell. I work full time and write every moment I can spare. I’m a relatively new grandmother and a former skydiver. Yes, I said skydiver.

CERIAN: I love New England. As much as I dislike the cold weather, I don’t think I could ever settle somewhere else either.  Skydiving???? That’s crazy! But good for you! And congratulations on your grandbaby!  When did you first start writing?

GERRI: I think I was about 8 years old when I started writing. I remember my friends would be off playing or riding bikes, but I spent my summers sitting in the shade of the old maple in our yard with a spiral notebook and pencil in hand writing my heart out.  I never gave any thought to becoming published until around 2009.

CERIAN: That’s awesome. I remember writing just for the love of writing. And what a perfect spot to write! What does your writing space look like these days?

GERRI: It’s a mess. I have piles of books and research stacked neatly everywhere. I write historical romance, so you see research is a huge part of it. I move around a lot when I write, however, and sometimes I’m in the recliner with the laptop and the pugs or sitting out on the deck.  Every once in a while we will go sit out on the front step to write, but it depends on the time of year and the weather. I have even been known to do editing at the beach.

CERIAN: Mine’s a mess too, but yours sounds like an organized mess.  Editing at the beach sounds as wonderful as writing under a tree! Where do you get your inspiration for your stories?

GERRI: Inspiration strikes and God knows how. It could be a commercial, music, or even a dream. According to Legend was a dream, and A Pirate’s Ransom (I’m not ashamed to say) was inspired by Johnny Depp (sigh) as Captain Jack Sparrow.  When I get an idea for a story, I ask myself “what if” a lot. My characters “talk” to me and I allow them to tell me their story. Ok, so I hear voices … but in my case, it’s a good thing.

CERIAN:  Very true, hearing voices is an excellent thing! Whether it be from our muse or characters. And Johnny Depp, in any character, is a huge inspiration! If your book was going to be made into a movie, who would play your characters?

GERRI:  I don’t know because they are Native Americans. I do know that I would love to have Eric Christian Olsen, who plays Marty Deeks on NCIS:Los Angeles, play David Conner. I actually had him in mind when I wrote that character.

CERIAN: There needs to be more Native American actors out there, but there’s Adam Beach, Rodney Grant (not to mention some of the guys from the Twilight movies).  What is your favorite genre to write?

GERRI: I find myself drawn to historical romance. I enjoy doing the research. I like to pick different times in history and try to tell a story about every day people who lived during that period.

CERIAN:  I admire that. I don’t know if I’d have the patience to do a lot of research, but I love historicals.  How many genres do you write?

GERRI: I have written Historical, time-travel (which is sort of historical, but also falls into the urban fantasy category), and my third book, set to release over the summer, is an Intrigue Romance set in 1811 (still historical). I’m open to trying any genre, but it seems I’m always drawn back to historical romance.

CERIAN: Well, it’s obviously working well for you! And historicals are hugely popular, so you’re in the right place! What is your typical writing day like?

GERRI:  Coffee … lots of coffee, the lap-top and the pugs. Often times when I’m writing, I forget to eat.

CERIAN: I’d love to get to that “place” in my writing, but with 4 kids mulling around it’s not easy.  What do you like to do besides write?

GERRI: I like to spend time with family and friends, and I love to cook, but what I adore most is spending time with my 8-month old Grand-daughter. She’s the love of my life and the joy of my soul.

CERIAN: I bet!  Nothing like a baby! I look forward to that some day.  Okay, time for quick answer time!

GERRI:

Pick one word to describe yourself: Persistent.
Favorite animal: I like all animals, but I guess if I had to pick just one it would have to be the dog because they are faithful and show unconditional love.
Favorite comfort food: Mashed potatoes.
Spring, summer, autumn or winter? Autumn
Favorite book: How can I ever pick just one?
Favorite movie: Again, I can’t pick just one, although the one that inspired me to try my hand at writing a novel was Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire.
If you weren’t a writer, what would you want to do? I think I would like to interview famous people.
Best vacation ever: Paris, France

CERIAN: Awesome!! Now time to talk about your time-travel romance, According to Legend!

Blurb:

According to Legend, when the spirit of the Tribal Princess is born again and she holds the enchanted stone in her hand, the lovers will be reunited . . . even through time.

Pam Hastings, an advertising agent, lives a boring life until she comes into possession of an enchanted dream catcher, which through her dreams, draws her back in time and into the arms of the handsome Warrior Chief, Moheeladeck.

Pam discovers the stones entwined within the dream catcher hold special powers and are also the key to a secret cave, rumored to contain untold riches. When Pam is followed and her house broken into she realizes she needs protection. That is when she meets the handsome and charming dog breeder, David Conner, who gives her Half-Breed. But Half-Breed is no ordinary dog, and has secrets of his own.

With the village burning and the tribe under attack, Moheeladeck is torn between his duty to protect his tribe in his time and his desire to protect the woman he loves in hers. David is torn between his love for the same woman and the destiny he was born to fulfill . . . her destruction. Pam finds herself caught in a love triangle between these two men; a love triangle that spans into both realms of time. With rivals in both the past and present pursuing her to control the power of the stones and the treasures in the cave, who is really behind it all? Who can she trust? With two warriors who profess their love for her, who will capture her heart? We find out only in her dreams.

Excerpt

“Do you happen to remember the names of the tribal Chief and his Princess?” I asked.

Mrs. Warren reluctantly handed the dream catcher back to me. Her expression softened and became melancholy as she smiled, a sweet smile as if she were a million miles away remembering another time. “Ah,” she said. “One of my fondest childhood memories.” Her unfocused gaze stared somewhere over my left shoulder. “Chief Running Wolf, which in the Aloscotay dialect is, Moheeladeck,” she said as she closed my fingers around the artifact in my hand.

The instant my fingers closed around the catcher, its magic enticed me toward it—toward him.

Takshawee . . . come to me. The deep timber of his voice, a whisper in my mind. My head spun and fog swirled as I felt drawn. I tightened my grip on the catcher. It’s luring me to him. My breathing quickened as its magic beckoned me. I attempted to deny its pull. Try to focus on what Mrs. Warren is saying. The old woman’s voice sounded so far away.

“His love was called Princess Loving Doe, which in Aloscotay is  . . .” She stared into my amber eyes as her voice trailed off to a hoarse whisper. “Takshawee.”

Takshawee . . . I am waiting for you. My Warrior’s whisper swirled through my mind, tugging at my very soul.

Unable to resist his call, I collapsed.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

CERIAN: And how do we find you and According to Legend?

GERRI: If your readers would like to find out more about me and my writing they can visit me at my website which is http://www.gerribrousseau.com

According to Legend is available at Amazon and right now it’s only $2.99. If you’re interested in this time-travel romance, here’s the link http://www.amazon.com/According-to-Legend-ebook/dp/B00BP7HL1S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1364569110&sr=8-1&keywords=According+to+Legend

Thanks for coming by today, Gerri! I wish you the best of luck with According to Legend! And I hope we can meet up again for your next release!