Anniversary Shenanigans: Author Visit and Giveaway: Renae Kaye

Today we have the lovely and talented Renae Kaye visiting with us.  Let's see if she reveals any of her dirty little secrets, shall we?

Hi Renae!

Hi guys! Thanks for hosting me here today, and hey! Congrats on the anniversary. *happy dance*

One thing you need to know about me, is that I’m hyper and crazy. It’s like you need to cut the caffeine off for me or something. I guess that shows in my writing, because you really need to read my books with a sense of humour. My aim in writing is to make the reader smile and hopefully laugh out loud several times.

(And I know I’ve succeeded in that – I’ve had several people tell me they’ve received strange looks when reading my book on public transport. Apparently the snorts and giggles attract attention.) *gasp* LOL!

So lovely Jenni Lea has sent me along a bunch of silly questions to answer. *rubs hands together* Great! Let’s get started.

What are your favorite M/M themes? 
Oooh! I really love the opposites attract type stuff.

You want to draw me into a book? You make the jock fall for the geek. Line up the serious older guy in the sights of the younger not-so-serious one. The prince and the pauper. The twink and the bear. Rawr…

What books do you consider Desert Island Keepers?
Oh my holy schmoly! What a hard question! But consulting my kindle and my paperback library, some of the most re-read books I have are (in no particular order):

Wes & Toren by JM Colail
Tigers and Devils by Sean Kennedy
Social Skills by Sara Alva
Too Stupid To Live by Anne Tenino
Ethan Who Loved Carter by Ryan Loveless
Muscling Through by JL Merrow
When One Door Opens by JD Ruskin

What's your go-to tasty beverage?
Coffee. I drink coffee. Lots of it.

If I’m at home, it’s just instant stuff. If I’m out it’s a cappuccino. (Ummm – froth!)

Do you have any secret talents? Inquiring minds want to know.
Secret? You mean apart from me writing m/m romance?

Hmmm – how about the fact that I can knit? I have 100’s of knitting books and patterns, and lots of wool stashed under beds waiting to be used. I’ve taught myself to knit without looking at my hands, so I can watch TV or hold a conversation while knitting. If I go anywhere that I expect to be waiting for ages (ie waiting for the doctor or a long car trip), I’ll take my knitting bag and get some more done on my project.

In my novel The Shearing Gun, Hank’s uncle spins his own wool and knits. My mother does this, which is where I got the knitting bug from. We used to have special sheep on our farm that my mother was breeding up for hand spinning. I still remember the names of the sheep, even though they are in their sheepie heaven. I can pull on a jumper that Mum made me and think: this wool was Stripey’s/Ella’s/Lilly’s.

My father (before his death) also used to spin his own thread, but he preferred to use the wool for felting or French knitting.

Several of my sisters also knit.

I remember when my father was terminally ill in hospital, we would just come and sit by his bedside for hours, so that one of us was always with him. We would visit around our work and kids’ schedules. One day, my mother, sister and I all happened to be in the room at the same time. Dad was sleeping, so the three of us sat in silence, the clicking of our needles the only sound. The doctor entered and was shocked to see three women sitting in silence, each knitting their project.

(I’m still not sure if he was shocked because three women could sit in silence, or that three women were doing an activity that is not commonly seen these days. I suspect the former… LOL).

If you had to choose to be one magical beast, what would it be and why? (you don't have to say unicorn...but we won't say neigh either) 
Do you know what? I love the calmness of the ocean and the beauty beneath the water. I’m not really sure what animal it is, but I’d love to be a large non-predatory sea creature who glides through the water like I’m flying.

I don’t want to be a mermaid, because they have the need to be in a social setting. I want to be like Loch Nessie – solitary, calm, alone in my own space.

This may sound anti-social, but I come from a ginormous family. I have two small children. I cherish silence and time alone.


Do you have author envy? Whose words do you read and think, "GAH, I wish I wrote that!"? 
Hahaha – of course! Mostly I look at authors in awe of how they’ve built themselves up. I think that is when I get starry-eyed. I watch them in action, or read their latest offering, and I applaud their success in doing something we all love.

But the authors I sit and stare at with longing?

JL Merrow is a favourite of mine for coming up with something that sits half in the box, and half out of the box. I love contemporary novels with a bit of humour, and JL gives me this. Her stories are simple love stories, but with something you don’t always find – a character who is not your “average” character. This is my favourite type of character, and the one I write mostly about.

Cardeno C. is an author who I love to fall into stories by. Emotional and satisfying are the words that come to mind when I think of Cardeno’s stories. I’ve yet to work out whether it is the poetry of the words on the page, or the beautiful scenarios Cardeno paints. I try to read the book with an analytical mind, but end up being swept up into the story and forget I’m trying to learn a craft.

Any new projects you're currently working on? 
I’m currently working on an unnamed WIP that is a spin-off from The Blinding Light. Someone asked me about Davo, Jake’s friend, and my mind took off racing. The story I have so far starts about three weeks after The Blinding Light finished, so you get to see Patrick and Jake’s first weeks as a family.

I’ve also started, but not progressed much (I’m about ¼ of the way in) on a spin-off from Loving Jay. I hope to have them both finished or near to finished by the end of the year.

Now **shameless promo plug coming up**, my newest release is OUT TOMORROW. Yes, I’m super excited (get off the caffeine, Renae) and bouncing off the walls.

It’s called Safe in His Arms and is really a beautiful story of two men, so hurt and running from their pasts, meeting and realising that all they ever need is in the arms of the other.

Blurb: In the late-night quiet of the caravan park shower room, Lon Taylor washes away the filth of the Western Australian mines. He’s not looking for anyone, but when Casey offers, Lon doesn’t turn him down. 

Welcoming the young man in his big, hairy arms, Lon provides a safety to Casey that he has never known, and Casey wants to stay forever. Still reeling from the breakup of his family years ago, Lon’s not sure he’s ready for the responsibility of the comfort and security Casey craves. 

But perhaps Lon can risk opening his heart again and hoping for a brighter future. Casey has some pretty big skeletons in his past to deal with. And Lon wonders what Casey will do when he finds out how badly Lon failed at protecting the ones he loved eight years ago. 

I really enjoyed writing this one, and I hope the readers enjoy it too. Lon and Casey are two men who nearly broke, but have come back with greater strength. I just want to wrap them up in cotton wool and keep them safe, but instead I put their story down on paper for everyone to enjoy.

To the BMB Team: Thank you for having me on your site. It was great fun to be here and I hope the readers enjoy my newest offering.

How to contact Renae:
Email: renaekaye@iinet.net.au 
Website: www.renaekaye.weebly.com
FB: www.facebook.com/renae.kaye.9
Twitter: @renaekkaye
 

As a prize for having to sit through all these answers, I’m offering one lucky reader an eBook of their choice from my backlist:

Loving Jay (check it out on Amazon) 

The Blinding Light  (check it out on Amazon)

The Shearing Gun (check it out on Amazon) 

Good luck!

To enter to win, please leave a comment on this blog post and let us know (1) your name and a means of contacting you (e.g., email, Twitter handle, link to Goodreads account, etc.) and (2) what's your Desert Island Keeper.

The giveaway is open until 10:00PM (Pacific time) on December 4th. Shortly thereafter, we will contact a winner whom we will select using a highly scientific "names in a hat" method (or, you know, an internet randomizer). Please respond to the winning notification within 48 hours or we will choose another winner.