Cheryl Yeko is in the House Today With Her New Debut, Protecting Rose

Today, I have fellow SMP Author Cheryl Yeko in the house!! She's here to chat a little about herself, being an author, and her new debut, Protecting Rose, which was released yesterday. I say the book trailer a couple of days ago, and I must say it's awesome!!

Welcome Cheryl and congrats on your new release. Can you tell us a little about yourself?  Sure.  I’m happily married with 2 children and 3 grandchildren.  I love to read, write and play piano. 

What is the most romantic thing your significant other or anyone has done for you?  After 25 years together, he still opens my car doors for me.  I love that!

Do you ever write in your PJ’s?  Always.  The more comfortable I am, the better I write.

What are your pet peeves? I still have to wrestle with my husband over the 2 degrees difference on the thermostat.  Ugg.

Cats or dogs?  Cats.  Dogs are too much work. 

White wine or red?  I like White wine.  German Rieslings being my favorite.

Coffee or tea?  Coffee.  I love coffee.  My children went together and bought me a coffee/espresso machine a few years ago, and now every weekend, my husband makes us a latte in the mornings.  I love that!

Vanilla or chocolate ice cream?  Vanilla.  Although my husband tells me that it's not actually a flavor.

What are 4 things you never leave home without?  My purse, my phone, my car keys and my Kindle.

Laptop or desktop for writing? Well, actually, I use both at the same time.  I purchased one of those desktop holders for your lap.  I write in bed with one of those funny pillow/arm things behind me and my laptop holder on my lap.  It's even has a drawer for my flash drive, and a spot for my mouse.

Where and when do you prefer to do your writing?  I would love to be able to write all day long, but I work during the day.  So, I do my writing in the evenings and on weekends.  Many nights I wake up around one and write until four or five before catching another hour or so of sleep.

If you were deserted on an island, who are 3 famous people you would want with you? Bruce Willis because he would just be a blast and keep thing interesting.  Brad Pitt because he's just so nice to look at and Sandra Bullock, because I would need a girlfriend to talk to.

An actor you have a crush on?  My most favorite actor ever was Patrick Swayze.  I'm still mourning his passing. 

What is a movie or TV show that you watched recently and really enjoyed?  Honestly, since I started writing I've pretty much given up on TV and movies.  I can't remember the last movie I watched.

What made you decide to be an author?  My husband, Patrick, bought me a kindle a few years ago and I rediscovered my love of reading.  Within a few years I had over 500 books in my library.  Mostly Romance Suspense and Paranormal.  I decided I wanted to write one and spent the next year writing Protecting Rose.

How did you choose the genre you write in?  I have always love action/romance movies.  Bruce Willis being one of my favorites.  I visualized Bruce when I wrote the story.

Are you a punster or a plotter and why?  Totally a panster. 

Is there a particular author who may have influenced you?  Karen Rose is one of my favorites.  She writes the best bad guys.  I also love Alexander Ivy and her Guardians of Eternity series.

What is your all-time favorite book?  That is a tough question.  I don't have a favorite book, but I have favorite series.  J.R. Wards Black Dagger Brotherhood comes to mind.  Next to Romantic Suspense…I love Paranormal.  Protecting Rose is the first in a series of three.  When I'm done with those stories, I plan to write a paranormal story.  That is going to be fun.

What is your favorite sentence or quote in your new release? 

That's a funny story.  I was writing an explosion scene and I had written "the warehouse doors were blown open with a loud explosion…or something like that, can't quite remember the exact sentence.  One of my crit. partners said "aren't all explosions loud?" lol…she was so right.

So, I'm trying to think of a way to boost the scene when I was driving with my husband in his car one day and he picked up a voice mail from one of his buddies over the speaker phone.  His friend was telling him about the airshow he was at and he said, and I quote, "the planes flew over low enough to shake by balls!"

I loved it.  When I was finished laughing I wrote the following sentence:

"Multiple explosions rocked the air with enough force to shake his balls when the warehouse doors were blown open."

How much trouble did your characters give you while writing your new release? Which one?  Not much really.  The story just came pouring out.  The edits gave me more trouble.  I wrote the story and then learned the craft.  I learned that I had a lot of newbie mistakes in it, such as writing in a passive voice, head hopping…overused words and phrases, and such.  I had to go back and fix all of that.  It was time consuming, but didn't really change the story much, just made it a smoother read.

Where do you get your ideas from?  My muse. 

How did you choose your title?  I brainstormed with my daughter, Michelle.  My first idea was Guarding Rose, but my daughter and I kicked it around and came up with Protecting Rose. 

How do you cure writer’s block?  I step away from the story for a while and read a book.

Do you have any advice for an aspiring writer?  If I can do it, you can do it.  Don't ever give up!

What sacred advice have you been giving by another writer?  The best advice I ever received was to join a critique group.  I have learned much from my crit. partners.  They are a wonderful, supportive group of women. 

Where can your readers stalk you?

http://www.cherylyeko.com/

My book trailer is here:  http://www.cherylyeko.com/p/books_24.html

Tell us about your new release:

Release Date: December 14, 2011

Rescuing damsels in distress is all in a day's work for Detective, Nate Stone.  After saving a beautiful woman from a burning car and assassin’s bullet, he vows to protect her.  But the determined assassin always seems to be one step ahead of the game.  Suspecting a leak within his Department, Nate takes her and runs.  He soon discovers that the hardest part of the mission is resisting his desire for the woman who trusts him with her life.

She awakes in a hospital with no memory, only to discover that someone tried to kill her.  Her only chance to survive an assassin’s game of cat and mouse is the man who saved her and who has promised to protect her.  She may not know her past, but she knows her heart, and it longs for her protective warrior who ignites a passion in her she can't deny.

 Sounds like a great suspenseful read. Thank you Cheryl for coming over and visiting us.

If you want your copy of Protecting Rose, hop on over to Soul Mate Publishing here.


AVAILABLE NOW @ Soul Mate Publishing: The Swan Cove Murders Release Date December 28th: Secrets of Jenkins Bridge