Welcome Jennifer Jakes

Good morning from First Timers Presents! Today we are pleased to welcome Jennifer Jakes who brings Twice in a Lifetime, an erotic Time Travel/Pirate Historical to us.

What is Twice in a Lifetime about? It’s a Time Travel Historical set in 1768 aboard a pirate ship. It’s different because the hero and heroine are on the verge of divorce in 2011, but in 1768, the hero doesn’t remember the heroine at all.

What did you think the first time you saw the hero and heroine in your head? I’m a sucker for tall, dark and handsome. Because of that I usually start with my hero’s image, but this time, Isabella came to mind first. She looked totally different than any other heroine I’ve ever written. Since I write historical, my heroines have beautiful, long hair. Izzy is from 2011 and goes back in time, so she has a cute short – bleached blonde – hairstyle!

What was your second thought? How much fun I was going to have with this modern heroine going up against a historical (pirate) hero – who just happens to be the very image her husband.

Did you think it was love at first sight? Oh, Izzy definitely fell for Ian on sight.

What do you like most about them? I like her spunkiness and I like his yumminess.

How would you describe Izzy? She’s stubborn, sometimes to the point of making bad decisions.

How would she describe you? Izzy could say the same about me, but I’m getting better about that with age 

What made you choose Writing as a profession? It chose me. I had way too many ideas and plots and characters talking to me to be a normal person.

What is your biggest fear? That I’ll write crap.

How do you relax? Either [listening to] music or [watching] TV. I love this time of year because of all the romantic holiday movies on the Hallmark Channel. Yes, I’m a hopeless romantic.

Who is your favorite fictional character and why? The answer is always the one(s) I’m writing right now. Because they are so “alive” in my mind and I get to create their story.

What is the best piece of advice you ever received? Never give up. So see, that stubborn thing has come in handy.

Jennifer, what movies or books have had an impact on your writing? Westerns such as “The Outlaw Josey Wales” or “Pale Rider”, then epic sagas like “Dances With Wolves” or “Open Range”. This Fall I’ve been watching the new AMC Western, “Hell on Wheels”. Oh, and of course, “Pirates of the Caribbean”. Can’t forget Cap’t Jack Sparrow.

Before we go farther, let's read a blurb for Twice in a Lifetime:

Be careful what you wish for. . .

No-nonsense stunt woman Isabella Douglas will do anything to stop an unwanted divorce and reclaim the happy life she had, even allow her old friend to concoct a magical spell to turn back time. But when the spell goes awry, Izzy finds herself trapped aboard a 1768 Caribbean pirate ship with a captain who’s a dead ringer for her sexy as sin husband, Ian. Convinced he’s playing a cruel joke, she’s furious – until she realizes he doesn’t know her or believe they’re married.

Captain Ian Douglas does not have time to deal with an insane woman who claims to be his wife; he has to save his kidnapped sister. But as Izzy haunts his dreams and fills him with erotic memories he can’t explain, he’s forced to admit he feels more than lust.

Trapped in a vicious cycle of past mirroring present, Izzy knows they only have days to find Ian’s sister and prevent disaster from striking a second time. If she doesn’t, their marriage will be destroyed again – along with the man she loves.

And to follow that, let's see an excerpt:

Her fingers threaded in his thick hair as she traced his mouth with the tip of her tongue. “Kiss me.”

He hesitated, then groaned and covered her lips in a breath stealing kiss. Hot, wet, silky. Her nipples hardened, ached for his touch, the tug of his fingers, the pull of his mouth. “Touch me.” She pressed a kiss to his throat, then licked his collarbone. “I need your hands on me.”

He grunted and slid his hands down her back. Rough palms gripped her cheeks, grinding her against his erection. His gaze burned through her as he moved his thigh between her legs.

“Yes. Please.” She tilted her hips, rubbing, needing release more than air. “Oh, God, yes.” Desire roared through her, the ache building. Building. The orgasm so damned. . .close.

A sharp knock sounded at the door. “Captain? The men are ready to go ashore.”

Ian pulled back and swallowed hard, his expression hungry, his heart thumping against her breast.

“Captain?”

“Yes. Yes, I’ll be right there.” His heavy lidded gaze skimmed her body. Possessive. Aroused. Regretful as he set her aside.

Her mind crawled to process what was happening while her body was doused with disappointment. “You’re still going?”

He raked through his hair, then nodded. “We need provisions before sailing for Jamaica. I’ll only be a few hours.” He stepped to the door, but turned and pinned her with a hard stare. “But when I return . . .”

“Yes?” Her heart thumped in anticipation of some explicit description of what he would do to her. Oh, but his tongue was naughty in all the right ways.

“. . . I expect an explanation.”

Izzy drooped against the door, her thoughts racing even though her legs collapsed. This was going to be the shortest second chance in history.

We'll talk about that gorgeous cover in a sec, but first tell us why you elected to go the self published route. I’m sure my publisher for Rafe's Redemption, the Wild Rose Press, would have looked at it, but I wanted to try my hand at self-publishing and thought a novella would be a great place to start. My decision had several layers to it: First, as fast as the publishing world is changing, I think having your eggs in one basket might not be smart. Second, it’s tempting to keep more money for yourself. That’s not to say I just slapped something on the screen and pubbed it. I had my critique partners help edit; I paid someone to format it for me because I’m totally un-techy.

And of course I paid Hot Damn Designs to do the cover because if you don’t have quality work – and I mean from the outside in – then you’re going to get horrible reviews and you’ll have no one to blame but yourself. Once you have the final version formatted and ready, you can upload it and expect it to go “live” within 12 to 48 hrs.

Thanks so much, Jennifer, for honoring us with a visit. Much good luck to you in your dream of writing that best seller. Kat

To learn more about Jennifer Jakes and the stories she creates go to: http://www.jenniferjakes.com

To purchase TWICE IN A LIFETIME, go to Amazon http://tinyurl.com/7gvanj6

Or SmashWords http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/108621

Also available at ARe and BookStrand.