A Place of Healing - Jean Adams

Please welcome my special guest today, Jean Adams, whose Champagne Rose novel, A Place of Healing, has recently been released by The Wild Rose Press!

Jean is the founder of the Romance Writers of New Zealand. Please tell us a little about yourself, Jean!

RWNZ was founded in September 1990. Ten or so people met in the back bedroom of my house and shared what little we knew about romance writing. It was enough to judge the level of interest which was high. We decided on a meeting date and RWNZ was born. The first conference followed four years later, in June 1994. I'd never organised anything like a conference before so the whole experience was a learning curve for me. Some very special people attended, including Daphne Clare, Robyn Donald, Susan Napier, Rosalie Henagan and the wonderful Gloria Bevan. We were even honoured by a letter of good wishes from Essie Summers. Since those early days, RWNZ has gone from strength to strength and I'm sure it always will.

Can you tell us a little about your book, A Place of Healing?

Holly Spicer is a cop with a tortured soul, being responsible for the murder of her police partner. Now she wants revenge and plans to go away for month to a secluded beach in the Bay of Islands to get her head together and make her plans for vengeance. She'll go through with it -- even if it kills her.

But she doesn't bargain on sexy Adam Benedict, psychologist turned movie mega star, using all his old skills trying to keep her alive.

How did the idea for the plot come about?

LOL. It actually evolved over a period of years, in between writing other things. It was written and re-written several times until finally I'd had enough of it and submitted it to The Wild Rose Press who loved it.

I love sale stories (ok I am just nosy!!) so can you tell us about your road to publication - and your call story?

My road to publication has been a bit bumpy and Healing wasn't my first call story. In fact I didn't get "calls" at all. I got emails. Not as noisy (as in screaming down the phone) but equally as exciting.

We are all about the love here, so please share your fave books, movies, TV shows or current fantasy squeeze (it's all in the line of research!)

My favourite romance of all time is Flowers From the Storm by Laura Kinsale. And anything by our own Helen Kirkman. I have all her books, and in fact discovered the other day that I have two copies of one book. The movies I like aren't romances at all, but they have romantic themes in the adventure sense. Lawrence of Arabia, The Man of La Mancha, that kind of thing. TV? Let's not go there. There's nothing worth watching at all, except maybe for some of the programmes on UKTV.

What are you working on now?

I'm tossing up whether to send two further books that The Wild Rose Press has requested. I am also developing a trilogy set in ancient Egypt which I would like to get published one day but I have other priorities now. I run a very lucrative home-based business which is much more important. Never thought I'd ever say that, but there you go. And I get to travel to exotic places for fun. What more could there be.

How can readers keep up with your writing and books?

Just watch my sig line. Eventually it will change but I suspect not in the near future.