Beneath the Surface Blog Hop, Interview, and Giveaway

 

I'm so excited to be part of the blog tour for Beneath the Surface! This is such a great kick-off to the Dive Team Investigations series. Find out a little more about the pick up, enter to win your own copy through the Rafflecopter link, then scroll down for an interview with Lynn H. Blackburn.


Title: Beneath the Surface Series: Dive Team Investigations, Book 1

Author: Lynn H. Blackburn

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: March 6, 2018

Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense

Links:

 
 After a harrowing experience with an obsessed patient, oncology nurse practitioner Leigh Weston needed a change. She thought she'd left her troubles behind when she moved home to Carrington, North Carolina, and took a job in the emergency department of the local hospital. But when someone tampers with her brakes, she fears the past has chased her into the present. She reaches out to her high school friend turned homicide investigator, Ryan Parker, for help.

Ryan finds satisfaction in his career, but his favorite way to use his skills is as a volunteer underwater investigator with the Carrington County Sheriff's Office dive team. When the body of a wealthy businessman is discovered in Lake Porter, the investigation uncovers a possible serial killer--one with a terrifying connection to Leigh Weston and deadly implications for them all.

Dive into the depths of fear with an exciting new voice in romantic suspense. Award-winning author Lynn H. Blackburn grabs readers by the throat and doesn't let go until the final heart-pounding page.

PURCHASE HERE: Amazon -  ChristianBook - BookDepository - iTunes
ADD TO GOODREADS: Goodreads

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lynn H. Blackburn is the author of Hidden Legacy (Love Inspired, June 2017) and Covert Justice, winner of the 2016 Selah Award for Mystery and Suspense and the 2016 Carol Award for Short Novel. Blackburn believes in the power of stories, especially those that remind us that true love exists, a gift from the Truest Love. She’s passionate about CrossFit, coffee, and chocolate (don’t make her choose) and experimenting with recipes that feed both body and soul. She lives in Simpsonville, South Carolina, with her true love, Brian, and their three children.


 

(3) Winners will win: 

• (1) Print copy of Beneath the Surface by Lynn H. Blackburn
• Surprised Bookish Treat

(US/Canada Mailing Addresses Only) Full terms & conditions noted on Rafflecopter form.

Click here to enter: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/7425d38e147/?

  

 

JustRead Publicity Tour Landing Page

Just Commonly

April 23

Create Explore Read - Author Interview

A Baker's Perspective - A Day with Special Agent ___

April 24 

Savings in Seconds - Quote Hightlight

Grace in Our Moments - Guest Post from Author 

April 25

Christen Krumm - Guest Post from Author

Among the Reads - Beneath the Surface & the Power of Prayer

April 26

Blooming with Books - Character Profile

Fiction Aficionado - Did you know this about diving investigators?

April 27

Remembrancy - Photo Tour of Carrington

Stories by Gina - Quote Highlight

April 30

The Christian Fiction Girl - Quote Hightlight

Daysong Reflections - Underwater Investigations & Evidence

May 1 

Worthy 2 Read - Quote Hightlight

Kat's Corner Books - Beneath the Surface with International Adoption

May 2

All of a Kind Mom - A Character Like Me

Robin's Nest - Quote Hightlight

Edits & Reviews by Leslie - Food Beneath the Surface 

May 3

By the Book - Quote Hightlight

Cafinated Reads - Quote Highlight

May 4

Book by Book - Playlist

Pacific Northwest Bookworm - Cookies Beneath the Surface

I loved being part of the blog tour for Beneath the Surface! Thanks to Lynn Blackburn for answering a few questions about her newest book...

I’m thrilled to be able to answer questions about the writing of Beneath the Surface and my writing experiences!

What was your inspiration for both the setting of your book and the diving aspect of it?

Lynn: I was born in western North Carolina and lived there in elementary school and high school. But after I was married and living in South Carolina, my parents lived in central North Carolina for almost two decades, so it’s a place I have never lived but have visited often.

There are some beautiful lakes in that area and wonderful people. I thought it would be fun to create a fictional city that is much like the city I live in (Greenville, SC) and add a lake and a tourism industry and then see what happened.

An added bonus to choosing central North Carolina is that it’s not far from the location of the real dive team that inspired the series. The Guilford County Sheriff’s Office Dive Team gave a demonstration as part of the Writers Police Academy in 2014. By the time we walked out of the building I knew I wanted to write this series.

What is it like going from writing Love Inspired Suspense to writing a series? What do you like about each? What is difficult about each?

Lynn: The transition from LIS to a series has been relatively smooth. As a reader, I prefer series to stand-alones so I was thrilled to be able to try my hand at writing one. 

The biggest challenge in the beginning was—the beginning! Because LIS books are so much shorter (55K words verses 90K words) you have to begin with a bang and never stop! In the Dive Team Investigations series, I had to keep reminding myself that I needed to take the time to ground my readers in the story world and in the main characters inner worlds before I started messing with them too much. I’m naturally long-winded so I adjusted quickly!

I think LIS is fantastic and I’m thrilled to write for them. I’m hoping to sell a third book to them soon. It’s a wonderful way for a writer to break into the romance/romantic suspense world. You learn to write tight – you have to tell a compelling story and create realistic and engaging characters that readers will want to spend time with – and there’s no room for any extra words. And that’s a skill every writer should have! You also learn how to handle edits and how to write on a deadline. Also critical skills for writers. An added bonus is that LIS readers are awesome. I’ve received some of the kindest letters from readers of my LIS books!

The hardest part about writing the trade-length series for Revell is also the part I love the most—it’s longer! It takes longer to write and longer to edit, but I also have more room to develop the main characters and the secondary characters. There’s room for a more complex plotline and more romance.

As a reader, I love a complicated plot that keeps me guessing and a romance that leaves me swooning, and that’s what I’m trying to create for my readers.

I know Lynette Eason is your mentor. How has she helped you as an author? And who else has influenced you as a writer?

Lynn: Yes, Lynette Eason is my mentor and friend. In fact, as I type these words she’s sitting beside me in a Starbucks that’s in between our houses. We live about five miles apart and meet at local coffee shops quite often. We brainstorm and write. I can only imagine what some of our fellow patrons think about our conversations. “Well, if you kill him this way . . . ” is guaranteed to raise a few eyebrows!

We met in 2012 and she’s helped me with everything from brainstorming ideas to untangling convoluted plot threads to talking me off ledges when I’m convinced I’m a hack and no one will ever want to read my books. She’s encouraged me to enter contests and introduced me to my agent and editor. There’s really not much she hasn’t helped me with! I’m eternally grateful for the way God put her in my life!

As for my influences—I’m an avid reader and I read broadly growing up. I read just about anything except erotica or horror. Classics, thrillers, romances, literary works, historicals, YA, epic family sagas, I love all of it. I don’t think it’s possible to overstate how much a steady diet of beautifully crafted sentences and stories impacted my writing.

Within my own genre I’d have to say the biggest early influence was Dee Henderson who, interestingly enough, mentored Lynette. The O’Malley series remains one of my favorites of all time.

Thank you for having me today!

Grace and peace,

Lynn

Disclosure: I received a free copy of Beneath the Surface as part of the blog tour. All opinions expressed are mine.