This week reader I have a visitor. It’s exciting for two reasons. One that this is my first time I’m the hostess for a blog tour. Two is that Iris has a new book out.
I threw a few questions her way and now I’ll share the answers with you.
Here she is. Iris Blobel
Tell us a bit about New Beginnings.
New Beginnings is about two sisters from Sydney inheriting a house in Hobart. Thing is, though, they have no idea who Clara Bellinger, the previous owner of the house, was. Trying to settle into their new home and new town, Sophie, the older sister, is still concerned it’s been all a mistake. To add a bit of romance to it, there’s Mark, the lawyer, and Zach, the neighbour from across the road.
Where did the journey of New Beginnings begin?
In the beautiful city Hobart, Tasmania! I took some “family-time-out” last year and went across the Bass Strait. When I walked through the streets of Hobart, I wondered how it would be to live in this city, how it would be to be the “newbie” and bit by bit I had the story of two sisters moving there from Sydney.
Do you listen to music to help the muse?
I love music! I get a lot of wonderful ideas while listening to music. That’s when I use most of the yellow post-it stickers … little ideas quickly jotted down. I love Westlife and Darius Rucker, but then again, there are so many other artists I like that inspire me. Presenting a radio program once a week gives me the opportunity to listen to a lot of various music.
While I write, though, I need absolute silence around me. That’s why I usually write at night.
What did you listen to – or do to get you in the zone while writing New Beginnings?
Westlife …
“So I say a little prayer
And hope my dreams will take me there
Where the skies are blue, to see you once again… my love.
All the seas from coast to coast
To find the place I Love The Most
Where the fields are green, to see you once again…”
If you didn’t write, what would you like to do creatively?
I am soooo glad I’ve found writing, because I don’t like any sports, no knitting, stitching or cooking … so … hmm … writing it is J
What’s your favourite book or series?
My favourite book without a doubt is “If you could see me now” by Cecelia Ahern. I love the idea of the Peter Pan-alike story of teaching a woman to live, love AND believe.
Favourite book series is “Lucky Harbor” by Jill Shalvis and the Reacher series by Lee Child. Love them both!
Who is your favourite author?
Jill Shalvis and Lee Child
Thanks Iris for sharing a little about New Beginnings and your writing life
I’m going to follow the links below to purchase a copy of New Beginnings myself.
Links:
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/New-Beginings-ebook/dp/B00ENU02BU/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1377251351&sr=1-1
Astraea Press: http://astraeapress.com/#!/~/product/category=662245&id=27261175
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/349320
Bookstrand: http://www.bookstrand.com/new-beginnings-6
Bio:
Iris Blobel was born and raised in Germany and only immigrated to Australia in the late 1990s. Having had the travel bug most of her life, Iris spent quite some time living in Scotland, London as well as Canada where she actually had met her future husband. Her love for putting her stories onto paper has only recently emerged, but now her laptop is a constant companion. Iris resides west of Melbourne with her husband and her beautiful two daughters as well as her two dogs. Next to her job at a private school she also presents a German Program at the local Community Radio.
Excerpt:
Sophie stared at the house. With tears stinging behind her
eyelids, she slowly turned around and helped Mia out of the car.
The little girl looked fragile in the unfamiliar environment, even
though she wasn’t anywhere near fragile. Very clever for her age,
Mia had seen and gone through a lot, but handled most situations
with trust and belief. Sophie wasn’t sure whether that was a good
thing or not. Her younger sister undoubtedly had her mother’s
looks, with the long, straight blond hair, her bright grey-green eyes,
and pale skin. But deep down inside, there was a survivor instinct
as well. Something, she wondered, her mother might have lacked.
“Is this our new home, Sophie?” her sister asked quietly.
Hesitantly she nodded. “Yes, sweetie, I hope so.”
Mark took the suitcase from the boot of his car and walked
towards the house, opened the gate, and placed the girls’
belongings next to the fence. He turned, and Sophie made no effort
in hiding the struggle with emotions.
“That’s it. This is Forty-Six Chestnut Avenue,” he told them.
It was all too much for her, and she sat down onto her
suitcase and took everything in. She stared at the old brick-built
English cottage house. A small path ahead of her led to two worn
out steps and up to the arched entrance. Tucking a strand of hair
behind her ear, her gaze moved over to the windows. Multi-pane
windows with shutters and flower boxes in front. Beautiful.
Though the flowers seemed long dead. The garden was true to the
cottage style, but looked wild and unattended. It was in need of a
lot of work. She looked up and saw a chimney and instantly
thought about cold winter evenings in front of the open fire. She’d
heard that Hobart was very cold during winter.
And then she just cried. Emotions that had bottled up over
the years surfaced, and she wasn’t able to hold back any longer.
The cautious thought that life could improve from now on was too
overwhelming. Tears fell down her cheeks, but she wasn’t
embarrassed.
“Don’t cry, Sophie,” Mia said tenderly to her. “It’ll be all
okay.”
Mark came closer and kneeled in front of her. Carefully he
wiped away a tear from her cheek. “How about we go inside?” he
asked quietly with a gentle smile that made her yearn for a man’s
touch, missing from her life for so long. She gazed at him and
wondered how it would be to have someone else in her life. A man,
who shared a gentle touch or kiss, a kind word, or a well needed
hug. Sophie had had less than a handful of young men dating her,
because looking after her little eight-year-old sister, Mia, on her
own made it difficult to have a social life. But no way would she
complain. She and Mia loved each other as much as they needed
each other. Even more so since their mother had passed away. And
they both hoped this would be their chance.
Well there we have it reader, a new author for us all to check out, though New Beginnings is Iris’s fourth book, so here are the links to her other books.
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/52502
http://www.amazon.com/Journey-To-Her-Dreams-ebook/dp/B0065KN74U/ref=pd_sim_kstore_7
http://www.amazon.com/Innocent-Tears-ebook/dp/B009CK7HSC/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1347964191&sr=8-4&keywords=iris+blobel
