Lucinda Race - An Author Interview at the HBS Author's Spotlight

Today our blog puts the Spotlight on Award winning author Lucinda Race. She writes about family, love and happily ever afters.

Author: Lucinda Race

Author Genre: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary

Website: Lucinda Race
Author's Blog: Lucinda Race's Newsletter
Lucinda Race Romance Author
Twitter: @LucindaRace
E-Mail: lucinda@lucindarace.com
Check Out Goodreads
Facebook: Check Out Facebook

Amazon Author Profile

Author Description:
Award winning author Lucinda Race writes about family, love and happily ever afters.

A life long fan of romance books she is surrounded by books she wants to read. It all started as a young girl when she spent countless hours reading novels and dreaming of, one day, becoming a writer.

As life twists and turns, she found herself writing nonfiction but longed to turn to her true passion, romantic fiction. After developing the story line for The Loudon Series, it was time to start living her dream. With fingers flying over computer keys, she does her best to bleed on the page.

Lucinda lives, with her husband Rick, and their two little dogs, Jasper and Griffin, in the rolling hills of western Massachusetts. When she's not writing romance novels Lucinda still reads everything she can get her hands on.


SPOTLIGHT Questions and Answers with the Author

Congratulations on your book: The Matchmaker and The Marine. What do you have on the drawing board next?

I'm working on a 5 books series, Crystal Lake Winery, Blush, Breathe, Crush, Vintage and Bouquet. It is set in the Finger Lakes Wine Region and the first book Blush is scheduled to be release in January 2021.

You do some book signings, interviews, speaking and personal appearances? When and where is the next place where your readers can see you? Where can they keep up with your personal contacts online?

I'm on social media, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and I can always be reached through my website at www.lucindarace.com
Due to Covid-19 I won't be attending any book events for the remainder of the year but in June 2021 I will be at Reader Author Get Together in Cincinnati June 3-6. All events are listed on my website as well.

You have great covers. They carry a theme and your brand with them. 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?

Like most things in my life I'm very hands on for covers. I typically work with my cover designer sending her ideas and color schemes and she seems to just know how to pull them together to fit what is already in my head.

You have several book trailers. They look very professional. Do you know how much impact they have had on your book’s success? Tell us about the process that you used to create your trailers?

Do you use the trailer in your character development? Are the pictures and background the way you see your characters and scenes?

I like to work with amazing people and the book trailers are no exception. I must confess I did try to do them on my own but I think I'm a better writer than videography/ creative person. I send a very detailed email and anything that is specific to the books, like with the MacLellan Sisters Trilogy. The plaid on book 3 was designed by Joyce Young who is based in Scotland and she graciously gave me permission to use the dress and plaid on my book cover so the plaid was woven into the background to all three videos. I think it gives them a very personal touch. And Joyce Young is an AMAZING wedding dress designer.

Character development: I do the videos after the book is complete so it is how I see my characters with minor changes.

I like the idea of bundling a series of novels. You have put together a set of your novels called The Loudon Series. What was the impact on your other sales? What was your main objective in bundling your novels?

I love to read series and be swept away into a location and characters. I hope that readers feel the same way when they read my series, the characters become someone who you think you know, new friends who become old friends.

You belong to the writer support group, Romance Gems. We have had several of the authors in the group interviewed in the Author’s Spotlight. What a great group of outstanding people. What is the main thing that you get out of this association? Romance Gems Website


I have learned just by listening to the veterans of the group. They are all willing to share ideas of what has worked and hasn't. I am fortunate to have been discovered by the Romance Gems and invited into the group.

Besides the Romance Gems, what other writer support groups do you belong to? Do they help with the writing, marketing, and the publishing process?

I have a group of writers and critique partners who I can bounce ideas off from. We meet in person as a group a couple of times every year but mainly we do facetime and lots of texts. Its a great support system as writing is a lonely but rewards occupation. And to be honest I get so caught up in my characters I need someone to point out the areas that need improvement because readers can't read my mind.

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?

I have given away books for free with different services and I didn't see my pull though to the other books. So I'm not sure if Free books is the best course of action for me. I know other authors who have amazing success with it. However I do love to give away books to my newsletter readers and every month I pull a name from my email list and announce it in my monthly newsletter. That is a lot of fun.

What is your primary genre? What has been your best marketing approach to this group?

Contemporary romance with magical elements is my comfort zone. I have written 2 series, a trilogy and one stand-alone too. When I started I had no idea how to market my books but now I'm using blog tours and have found some amazing people out there who do this extremely well.

Do you maintain a reader list? What are the methods you use to find your readers and create the list and the relationship? Do you use social media, forums, newsletters and/or support groups to build your list?

I am building my newsletter list. Readers can sign up from my website and I have run a couple of bookfunnel promotions to get newsletter sign ups too. I'm on Facebook, Twitter, IG, Bookbub, Book + Main, Pinterest and Goodreads so if anyone is wondering what I'm up to they an check it out. I also have a reader group on Facebook, Lucinda's Heart Racers reader group which I launched recently.



Author's Book List


Old and New: The Enchanted Wedding Dress - The MacLellan Sisters Trilogy Book 1
Three sisters and one enchanted wedding dress.

Jamie vows to never get married.

When a package and a letter from her great-grandmother arrives from Scotland containing an heirloom wedding dress, fate may have other plans. The dress is supposedly enchanted and if her great-grandmother's descendent tries the dress on, her future will be revealed in the mirror.

Curiosity piqued, she tries on the dress.What would it hurt to wear it, after all, this will be her only opportunity? In the reflection, she sees a shadow of a man. Is he her future or just a trick of the light? After telling her sisters what she's done, they devise a plan to see if the handsome lawyer she's been dating could be 'the one'.

Then she meets Caleb. The sexy twin brother, who, with a simple look, sets her heart racing. The only catch: he lives a vagabond life.

Will Jamie turn her back on a once in a lifetime love or is she ready to embrace a different future?


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




The Matchmaker and The Marine - A Second Chance Small-Town Romance
She vowed never to date again. He swore he’d hide his handicap forever. Can undeniable chemistry overcome both their fears?

Widowed matchmaker Melinda Phillips wants everyone to experience the kind of love she lost. Though she’s committed to a lonely life, her skill at pairing perfect couples has her business thriving and her work in demand. But when she trips at a client’s wedding into the arms of a handsome Marine, she can’t help but feel that the falling has only just begun.

Adam Bell’s amputated leg is a crippling reminder of his war-torn past. So after his girlfriend rejected his new body and kicked him to the curb, he pledged to protect his heart as fiercely as he defended his country. But after a chivalrous rescue during a friend’s nuptials, he wonders if he’s given up on love too soon.

Hired to find Adam the woman of his dreams, Melinda is surprised to discover the ideal candidate is herself. But as their relationship blossoms, the tortured former serviceman believes his hidden disfigurement will cost him everything again.

Can two broken souls let go of their traumatic pasts to give happiness a second chance?


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




Blue: The Enchanted Wedding Dress - The MacLellan Sisters Trilogy Book 3
Gran left instructions for Grace to take the wedding dress back to Scotland. Has the magic, that helped her sisters find love, faded?

Grace has watched her sisters walk down the aisle after trying on the enchanted, heirloom wedding dress. After taking the wedding dress and flying to the family farm in Scotland she runs into Logan, the handsome Scot with the unforgettable green eyes.

After settling in Grace discovers there are more layers to the story of her Gran's plan to help her granddaughters find their happily ever after, even from beyond the grave.

While wandering the Scottish highlands she bumps into Logan where she reminds herself nothing can come from a harmless flirtation. Or will the handsome Scot convince her to abandon her responsibilities and stay with him.


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




Borrowed: The Enchanted Wedding Dress - The MacLellan Sisters Trilogy Book 2
Happily single, Kenzie tries on the family wedding dress and is shaken to the core...

Kenzie was happy to follow her sister' lead. She was never getting married. But after older sister Jamie tries on the enchanted wedding dress that once belonged to their great-grandmother, she falls in love and marries the man of her dreams. So much for the three MacLellan Sisters remaining happily single. One down and two sisters to go.

Kenzie is preparing for an annual camping trip with Robbie Burns, her best friend since childhood. she discovers the freshly cleaned wedding dress hanging in her condo. She realizes Jamie has passed it along to her based on the family lore. Reluctant, she tries on the dress, after all a dress can't really change her future, can it? Looking in the mirror she is stunned to see Robbie. Shaken to her core she wonders if she feels more than friendship for her best friend.

During the hike Kenzie is injured. Robbie never leaves her side. As she begins to heal, confused about her emerging feelings she pushes him away. Robbie is just her borrowed guy, isn't he?


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




The Loudon Series Complete Collection - Small Town Romance Stories
STRONG WOMEN AND THE STRONG MEN WHO LOVE THEM.

When widow Cari McKenna starts baking professionally to ease her grief, she has no idea that she and her family will end up running a full-fledged coffee shop. At What's Perkin', the coffee is strong, the cookies and cakes delicious...and love is always in the air.

Join the McKenna family as each finds a soulmate of their own.


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




Magic in the Rain - The Loudon Series Book 7
Dani's plan of hiding in plain sight may not have been the best idea.

In the two years that Dani Michaels has lived in Loudon, she's never told her friends at What's Perkin' she moved there to escape an abusive boyfriend. However, when she receives a note that says cryptically "looking forward to seeing you again," she realizes that it's finally time share her secret and ask for help.

Ellie McKenna immediately enlists her Loudon policeman fiancé and his handsome partner, Paul Greene, for help protecting Dani. As Dani continues to be threatened, they discover some disturbing facts about her stalker.

Paul is attracted to Dani from the beginning, but with her ex in the mix, he knows he'll have to tread carefully. There are certainly sparks flying between them, but Dani has been burned by love in the past.

As danger threatens, can Paul persuade her to overcome her fears regarding him?


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




Love in the Looking Glass - The Loudon Series Book 6
Ellie wants to make a splash in Loudon when she opens The Looking Glass, but she hasn't bargained for being hit by a crime wave.

When an intruder breaks into her gallery, Ellie is knocked on the head and locked in a closet, and the most valuable painting, on loan, is slashed from corner to corner. The person who rescues Ellie is a man about whom she knows almost nothing.

Padraig Stone just introduced himself that afternoon, wanting to sign with the gallery. He's undoubtedly talented, but also evasive.

While the police investigate, Pad is looking into the matter also, even though he hasn't been cleared of suspicion himself. For Ellie, who has been determined to protect her heart from pain ever since her father's death when she was little, it's a difficult dilemma.

The handsome photographer is undoubtedly attractive, but dare she trust him when he's clearly hiding something?


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




Ready to Soar - The Loudon Series Book 5
Kate will fight for love, won't she?

When Don made the choice to follow Kate to her hometown, Loudon, he walked away from the family business, Crystal Lake Winery, and his passion for winemaking.

Now, several years later, as Don and Kate struggle to conceive a baby, his father's failing health brings them back to Crystal Lake. Even as Don revels in his chance to manage the winery, Kate feels the life they made together is slipping away-especially when she discovers that Don may have fathered a child he doesn't even know about.

Will picking up the threads of his old life in Crystal Lake be more than their marriage can endure? Kate is worried their relationship is in jeopardy, but that's when the ghost of Kate's father makes an appearance.

If Kate is scared to leave, can a nudge send her soaring into a new life?


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




The Last First Kiss - The Loudon Series Book 4
When life handed Kate lemons, she baked.

When culinary school graduate Kate McKenna's dream job with a fancy Boston restaurant slips through her fingers, and the man she loves breaks her heart, she returns to her family and her childhood home in Loudon. Her life may not be going to plan, but expanding the menu at her mother's coffee shop-What's Perkin'-offers surprising scope for her talents.

If only her love life weren't in tatters, she'd be enjoying the fun. Kate's twin brother, however, is determined to make sure Kate is home to stay, and he's doing a little behind-the-scenes manipulating.

Could it be Kate has found true love, and the first kiss she shared with Don is the one that will last forever?


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




The Journey Home - The Loudon Series Book 3
Where do you go to heal your heart? You make the journey home...

Abby Stevens's life fell apart when her sister and her sister's husband died in a car crash. Since her parents recently died as well, all she has left is her toddler nephew Devin, whom her sister left in her custody.

In search of a fresh start, she makes the decision to move back from Boston to her childhood home in Loudon. What she doesn't expect is to reconnect with her old friends-the McKenna family.

Ever since Shane McKenna's father died when he was a boy, he's buttoned his feelings down. His mother's unhappiness when her husband died has made him scared to jump into a relationship, so he has always kept his flirtations casual. When he meets Abby once again, though, he is rocked by the protective intensity of his feelings for both her and little Devin.

Can he overcome his fears, and find a new freedom in loving Abby?


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




Lost and Found: A Small Town Love Story - The Loudon Series Book 2
Love knows no boundaries...

In the years after Cari McKenna lost her husband, she threw her energy into raising her family and starting a thriving coffee shop. Now, her grown children have moved out and her daughters are pushing her to brave the perils of internet dating.

Even Cari is forced to admit that her life might be a little too placid. Until, that is, a tree falls across her roof...

Ray Davis always stops by What's Perkin' for his morning muffin, but the handsome master carpenter is starting to wonder if he'll ever find the chance to persuade Cari to see him as more than merely a neighbor.

Consulting with her about rebuilding her damaged house gives him an excuse to spend more time with her, but she still only seems interested in him as a buddy.

Then Ray's past suddenly comes looking for him, and he realizes that his dreams-or even his life-could be lost.


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store




Between Here and Heaven - The Loudon Series Book 1
Ten years of heaven on earth dissolved in an instant for Cari McKenna when her husband Ben died.

Cari knows she needs to be an inspiration for her young children, but she can't seem to shake her grief. The only moments she feels whole are when she's baking the cookies and quick breads her children love. With Thanksgiving fast approaching, Cari is dreading the thought of weathering the holidays…until Ben's spirit visits with a special message just for her.

If she can pour her energy into a holiday baking business, maybe she won't spend that time grieving for him. Cari finds it hard to imagine undertaking such a challenge, but she puts up flyers and business pours in.

Is there a chance to make her own life as sweet as her cookies?


Order the Book From:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
KOBO Store


Post Created by: James Moushon
Mystery Author, Industry blogger and Author Advocate
James is the author of the following blogs:
HBS Author’s Spotlight
Indie Author's Corner
Mystery Reader’s Circle