Website: Cate Beauman
Author's Blog: Cate Beauman
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Author Description:
I currently live in Tennessee with my husband, two boys, and our St. Bernard, Bear. I recently resigned from my day job to concentrate on this thing I refer to as ‘My Dream Come True’ career!
I’m a pretty lucky girl; one day I woke up and my entire life changed. I saw the light, so to speak, and decided I was going to be a writer. Now, two years later, I’m working on the fourth novel in my best selling romantic suspense series, The Bodyguards of L.A. County.
SPOTLIGHT Questions and Answers with the Author
First things first. Congratulations on ‘Forever Alexa’ being released this month. Rumor has it that you have another book on the horizon called Waiting For Wren. Can you tell us the timeline for its release and give us a little tease?
Thank you! Yes, Forever Alexa, the fourth novel in the Bodyguards of L.A. County series is due for release on May 15. I’m really excited! I’m looking forward to sharing Jackson and Alexa’s story with my readers.
I’m currently well into the first draft of Waiting for Wren, book five in the Bodyguards Series. Wren Cooke and Tucker Campbell will share the spotlight in this romantic-thriller. Wren is a workaholic interior designer to the rich and famous. Tucker Campbell is a former Homicide Detective turned bodyguard. Wren’s life begins to unravel when she starts receiving strange, anonymous texts that quickly turn into dangerous threats.
With Ethan and many of the other bodyguards out of town, Wren has no choice but to seek smooth-talking Tucker’s help. Wren’s jaded theories on love and dating are quickly put to the test when she can’t help but be affected by Tucker’s slow grins and long stares as they struggle to unravel a mystery before someone’s sick games turn deadly.
How important have your social media relationships been? Do you see a carry over to your writing success?
Social media relationships are VITAL in this industry. If you aren’t connecting with your readers you aren’t selling books. Readers thirst for good stories, but they also want that human connection with the person who introduced you to the characters we all enjoy so much. I know that I love to get a sneak-peek into the lives of my favorite authors.
Media connections definitely play a role in a writer’s success—they do in mine! Readers are busy people. They’re working; raising children, grocery shopping, doing laundry… the list goes on and on. So it means a lot to me that a reader would consider taking a small fraction of their free time to spend with me.
Do you do book signings, interviews, speaking and personal appearances? If so, when and where is the next place where your readers can see you? Where can they keep up with your personal contacts online?
I actually spoke at the Friends of Tennessee Libraries Association just today about the pleasures and pains of being a self-publishing author. It was a very enjoyable experience to spend time with those who make the Tennessee libraries as successful as they are. I meet so many wonderful people wherever I go, but I especially love it when I can be involved with local organizations.
At this time my business manager is setting up my next speaking engagement and book signings for the coming months. The when and where is still to be determined but will be announced on my Facebook page, Goodreads author profile, Amazon author profile, and at my website www.catebeauman.com
You have great covers. How does your book cover creation process work? Do you hand over the basic theme or do you have more of a hands-on approach? Do you get your readers involved in its development?
Thank you! I love my covers. I think they are an excellent representation of the stories I’m trying to tell. I’m very lucky to have found Glendon Haddix from Streetlight Graphics to help me with my cover art.
Glendon and I have worked together four times now on cover creations. I give him an idea of what the story is about, the feeling I’m trying to portray, and any key objects from the story that could be included on the cover. From there we go back and forth until we are both satisfied.
Once I think the cover is set, I share our ideas with a select group of friends and look for first reactions and then their feedback. They’re very honest, which I appreciate. If they see something that isn’t quite right, Glendon and I get it fixed.
What kinds of writer support groups do you belong too? Do they help with the writing, marketing and the publishing process?
I used to belong to a critiquing group but no longer have time to participate with such a busy schedule.
What has been your experience in giving your books away free? Have you been involved in any other type of giveaways and how did that work out? What was your main goal in doing this? Did you run into any obstacles?
One of the reasons I love Goodreads so much is that it gives readers a chance to try out an author for free. There are so many great books to choose from in the contests, and I’m honored that people have taken a chance on mine. All three books have been very successful in giveaways and I look forward to offering copies of Forever Alexa starting shortly after May 15.
I also frequently give away e-book copies when hosted on blogs. Blog tours are more personal and tend to have a smaller audience than Goodreads. I love participating in blog contests because I get to interact with the followers who enter the book contests.
Regardless of how or where the book giveaway takes place, I always look forward to sending off the book and hope that the winners will enjoy the story.
How do you manage your plots, characters and timelines to keep your stories going? Do you use any software to keep track of your books?
I’m an obsessive list maker and old-fashioned kind of girl when it comes to plots, character sketches, and timelines. I write them all out by hand so that I can manipulate them and shuffle the order until I think I have it right. This also gives me the opportunity to see the overlap of each story to help me keep the timelines consistent as well as maintain the characters as they move from story to story. As I said, it’s old-fashioned but it complements the fact that I’m a very visual person.
Being a self-publisher, how much of the process do you do yourself? Do you outsource much of the process? How much time do you devote to marketing?
I’m very lucky to have found a great team of professionals who contribute to my success. For the most part I am able to simply focus on writing – after all, telling stories is what I love to do. I have a professional editor, a cover artist, formatter, and business manager to help me keep everything organized and on time. Self-publishing is very hard work. There are many aspects of the process I couldn’t do on my own.
Marketing is a huge part of the book business. Writing a good story is only a small part of getting your words into a reader’s hands. With countless book choices out there for readers, I’m blessed that so many have taken a chance on me. Every opportunity I have to interact with readers on blogs, Facebook, Goodreads, and via e-mail is cherished. I can be contacted at cate@catebeauman.com but the most interactive manner to reach me is through my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/catebeauman.
Author's Book List
Forever Alexa
Coming May 15, 2013
First grade teacher and single mother Alexa Harris is no stranger to struggle, but for once, things are looking up. The school year is over and the lazy days of summer are here. Mini-vacations and relaxing twilight barbeques are on the horizon until Alexa’s free-spirited younger sister vanishes.
Ransom calls and death threats force Alexa and her young daughter to flee their quiet home in Maryland. With nowhere else to turn, Alexa seeks the help of Jackson Matthews, Ethan Cooke Security’s Risk Assessment Specialist and the man who broke her heart.
With few leads to follow and Abby’s case going cold, Alexa must confess a shocking secret if she and Jackson have any hope of saving her sister from a hell neither could have imagined.
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Hailey's Truth
- Book Three In The Bodyguards Of L.A. County SeriesHailey Roberts has never had it easy. Despite the scars of a tragic childhood, she's made a life for herself. As a part-time student and loving nanny, she yearns for a family of her own and reluctant Austin Casey, Ethan Cooke Security's best close protection agent. Hailey's past comes back to haunt her when her long lost brother tracks her down, bringing his dangerous secrets with him. At an emotional crossroads, Hailey accepts a humanitarian opportunity that throws her together with Austin, taking her hundreds of miles from her troubles, or so she thinks. What starts out as a dream come true quickly becomes a nightmare as violence erupts on the island of Cozumel. Young women are disappearing, community members are dying, and the carnage links back to her brother. As Austin struggles to keep Hailey's past from destroying her future, he's forced to make a decision that could turn her against him, or worse cost them both their lives.
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Order the Book From: Amazon
- Barnes and Noble
Falling For Sarah
- Book Two In The Bodyguards Of L.A. County Series 2Widow Sarah Johnson struggled to pick up the pieces after her life was ripped apart. After two years of grieving, she?s found contentment in her thriving business as photographer to Hollywood?s A-list and in raising her angel-faced daughter, Kylee... until bodyguard and long-time friend Ethan Cooke changes everything with a searing moonlight kiss. Sarah?s world turns upside down as she struggles with her unexpected attraction to Ethan and the guilt of betraying her husband?s memory. But when blue roses and disturbing notes start appearing on her doorstep, she has no choice but to lean on Ethan as he fights to save her from a stalker that won?t stop until he has what he prizes most.
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Order the Book From: Amazon
- Barnes and Noble
Morgan's Hunter
- Book One In The Bodyguards of L.A. County SeriesMorgan Taylor, D.C. socialite and wildlife biologist, leads a charmed life until everything changes with a phone call. Her research team has been found dead—slaughtered—in backcountry Montana. As the case grows cold, Morgan is determined to unravel the mystery behind her friends’ gruesome deaths. Despite the dangers of a murderer still free, nothing will stand in her way, not even the bodyguard her father hires, L.A.’s top close protection agent, Hunter Phillips. Sparks fly from the start when no-nonsense Hunter clashes with Morgan’s strong-willed independence. Their endless search for answers proves hopeless—until Hunter discovers the truth. On the run and at the mercy of a madman, Morgan and Hunter must outsmart a killer to save their own lives.
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Order the Book From: Amazon
- Barnes and Noble
Author Recommended by: Rachelle Ayala
Author Rachelle Ayala is an author, blogger and a member of the World Literary Café.
Check out Rachelle's Author's Spotlight.
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