Tell us about Stella and Dane: A Honky Tonk Romance

Stella is a small-town girl ready to BLOW that popsicle stand when an interesting new man rides in on a Harley. As part of her plan to do all the things she’s never done before leaving town, she jumps on the opportunity to live wild before she goes. But Dane has a temper, and some of the locals start getting to him, leading to a bar fight where the trajectory of their lives is completely altered.

What genre is it?
Romance all the way!

What kind of readers will it appeal to?
If you want a spunky girl and a flawed guy who get themselves in real trouble (big trouble, the jail kind of trouble), this story will resonate a little more than some of the more traditional romances.

This definitely isn’t one of those traditional romances. Were you not tempted to write about a simpler, more commonplace love?
I TRY! I sit down and plan to write something that fits the romance niche, then my characters go all postal and crazy and do things no romance novel characters should do (well, they do SOME of the things…)

There must be other stories out there like this.  Anything come to mind?
Small town stories like Sweet Home Alabama or Steel Magnolias.

Tell us about your other book, Baby Dust. How is it related to this book?
Baby Dust was the book I was always meant to write, about women who’ve lost their babies and have to fight to find their way back into life, love, and their relationships with their husbands/boyfriends afterward. Stella was a key character, the mother-hen figure for the others, and everyone wanted to know her backstory and why she and Dane could never adopt a baby.

Are you from a small town yourself? Tell us more about you.
Oh, yeah. Archer City, Texas. Population 2000. The problem with my town is that it also birthed Larry McMurtry , the Pulitzer-prize winning novelist. Since I couldn’t compete with THAT, I decided I was free to write beach books.

Have you got a blog where readers can keep up with your work? How can we follow you on Facebook and/or Twitter?
I blog at www.deannaroy.com.
Because my books are so personal, I always suggest people friend me as a person rather than a writer, so my Facebook is plain ol’ me www.facebook.com/deannaroy
And Twitter—I am guilty of drunk tweeting, so be warned. @deannaroy.

Where can we buy Stella and Dane?
Everywhere: Amazon ( US, UK), Nook, iTunes, Kobo.

What’s next?
A funny thing happened at the end of Stella & Dane—the next couple stepped up to tell their story. Stella’s niece Kayleigh gets jilted on the birthing table, and so the next book will be her story, and whether there is anything her fiancé Jude can do to make up for his desertion.

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Enjoyed this interview? Then check out our conversation with Bella Andre.