Tuesday 6 August 2013

Victoria Regina Rean Ardito




Shah Fazli
Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Welcome, and thanks everyone for joining, can you please tell us what do you mean by romance, if you mean a man and a woman falling in love, please can you interoduce these two characters in your book, and maybe tell us where they first meet, and if it is any other kind of romance, then please explain, we love to hear about it? — with Victoria Regina Rean Ardito.






Victoria Regina Rean Ardito First, call me Gina.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Duet in September, my latest romance, is a bit unique because I have two romances running concurrently: twin sisters.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Nia and Paige Wainwright have grown up in the small town of Snug Harbor on the East End of Long Island. Paige, after years of living in Albany, returned just before her father's death.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Now, she wants to shake up her twin's life. So she proposes a challenge: For thirty days, each of them will do one thing differently each day. They'll take different routes or modes of transportation to work, go to new places for lunch, go out on Friday night rather than staying home.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito While participating in this challenge, Nia has a run-in with the owner of a local vineyard while Paige is butting heads with the local police chief.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Sparks fly for both sisters.....






Shah Fazli Thanks Gina, what do you mean by 'fall in love with your own laugh!' on the cover of this book?



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Most of my books have a strong element of humor. At one time, an acquaintance remarked that she loved my laugh because I laughed with all of me. I held nothing back. I thought "Fall in love with your laugh" a perfect tagline for my books.



Shah Fazli Thanks, can you please tell us a little more about this book, what made you write it, when you started writing it, etc?



Ellen Gragg Gina, how similar are the twins' personalities?



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Last year, for some reason, I kept picking up romances dealing with twins. Whether they were identical or fraternal, the storylines all revolved around twin sisters who were polar opposites and barely knew each other. I know lots of twins. They run rampant in my family, never skipping a generation. And in my experience, twins usually have some differences, but not to the extremes in these books. So I decided to write a "twin" story that was closer to my view of the truth. At the same time, my daughter came home with the thirty day challenge idea and I combined the two to come up with Duet in September.



Georgina Hannan Hey Gina, i just wanted to say it was great to interview you for my blog. Your books are definitely on my growing to-be-read list. How long have you been a writing?



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Nia is artsy while Paige is more number-oriented. They're fraternal twins. But deep down, they're sisters who share a lot of past pain, dreams for the future, and the same set of values.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Hi Georgina and thanks for stopping by! (I missed yours because I was traveling last week). I've been writing since 1997 and published my first book ten years later.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito And thanks, Ellen! So good to see you here.
17 May at 23:16 · Like


Georgina Hannan I'm an identical mirror image twin



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito So...what's your take? Are you and your sister exactly alike in personality? Polar opposites? Or in between?



Shah Fazli Thanks, how challenging it was to finish this book, from what you are saying here, it sounds like it was not easy to write this book, which part of the book took a lot of time to finish?



Georgina Hannan In between. We are very similar & look almost the same (when we have same colour hair). But sometimes we are very different. I agree though we aren't as polar opposite as in the fiction books



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito The end. I'm a pantser so I never know what's going to happen. Halfway through the book, I wrote this "bombshell." It's emotional and really like...wow! But I had no idea how to bring it around full circle. It took me weeks to work out the answer. And the weird thing? It was in the story all along. (That happens to me a lot.)



Sandra Carey Cody Gina, I haven't read Duet in September yet, but it's high on "must-read" list. I thoroughly enjoyed your other books, especially Eternally Yours. I loved the way you developed your unusual premise and managed to included humor in such an unlikely setting. Also love hearing about how your stories reveal themselves to you.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Thanks, Sandra! Eternally Yours is my personal favorite. (Just don't tell my other books.) I'm currently working on a sequel.



Shah Fazli Can you tell us a little more about the twins in your book, what else happen to them, what is the humour there please?



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito How about I post an excerpt to give you a better idea of what I mean?



Shah Fazli Sure, please.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Okay. This scene takes place at an auto body shop. On Day One of the challenge, Nia took a different route to work and was involved in a hit and run. The owner of the other car is her vineyard owner, Aidan Coffield.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito I stepped inside his office, and the smell of paint thinners nearly knocked me to my knees. The room, with one lone window that opened onto the repair dock, received no natural light or ventilation. Here was a true man cave, the ultimate altar to all things automotive. Gray walls, gray steel desk, two gray metal folding chairs—separated by a pair of stacked milk crates piled high with magazines devoted to cars, trucks, and engines—clearly defined this masculine space. Adding to the bleakness, smears of grease and layers of gray dust coated every surface. Thick black cables tangled around engine pieces, reminding me of Hollywood’s image of a post-apocalyptic world. Here I was, Mad Maxine in the Temple of the Last Chrysler. Cheap plastic frames displayed stained certificates of courses completed in transmission and air conditioning repair, as well as the exorbitant hourly rate for labor in the garage. My personal favorite eye catcher was a white metal sign on the far wall that proclaimed in a bold, red, comic-style font: “I couldn’t fix your brakes so I made your horn louder.”
Averting my gaze from the cluster of big-busted, bikini-clad pinups on the corkboard, I skirted around the desk to the ripped leather chair poised in front of an ancient computer monitor. I found a sheet of blank paper on a shelf above the battered printer and used it like a potholder—a barrier between my hand and the filthy phone receiver. I held the chunky, black earpiece an inch or two away from my skin and punched in the numbers with my fingernail. At least I carried anti-bacterial hand gel in my purse. Did I have enough to bathe in if I spent too long in this room? Probably not, but after this I’d go home and take a long, hot shower to wash away the day’s bad karma.
On the other end of the receiver, the phone rang twice, then, “Hello?” That sultry voice weakened my knees with its sweet syrup undertones.
“Mr. Coffield?” I sounded weird to my own ears. Like I’d sucked on helium. Breathy, high-pitched, and rushed. No doubt, the chemicals in the air took their toll on my throat. I wondered how Brice managed to work in this office for an extended period of time without becoming light-headed. I gulped and plowed on. “This is Nia Wainwright.”
“Miss Wainwright? Wow. I didn’t expect to hear from you so soon.” His self-assurance, so apparent in his smug tone, raised my hackles. “Does this mean you’ve reconsidered going to dinner with me?”
Really? Had the man never heard the word no before today? I tightened my jaw, nearly grinding my teeth to dust. Before I spoke again, I took several deep breaths, relaxed my muscles from the neck down to my toes, and counted to ten. Who knew my yoga classes would come in handy in my daily life? “No,” I said, cool and elegant as a Siamese cat. “I’m afraid your car was involved in an accident with mine this morning.”
Yes. Perfect poise. Let him try to get the best of me now. I drew out the silence, allowing him time to digest what I’d just revealed.
“Oh.” That simple syllable told me I’d kicked the puppy love out of him. Mission accomplished. “There went all the goodwill between us, huh?”
“It’s not about goodwill, Mr. Coffield.” Not that we had any goodwill between us anyway. “It’s a matter of someone using your car to drive recklessly, and then leaving the scene of an accident without concern for injuries or damage to other parties.”
“He didn’t hurt you, did he? If that scrawny brat left so much as a scratch on you, I’ll make him sorry he ever took his first breath.”
The passion in his voice took me aback. His reaction was so far flung from what I’d expected.
“No,” I replied with hesitation. “The jolt wasn’t pleasant, mind you, but I’m more concerned about the damage to my car.”
“As long as you’re unharmed, Miss Wainwright. I couldn’t bear to think that I was even indirectly responsible for anything grievous happening to you.”
I stared at the door that led outside, waiting for someone to jump inside and yell, “Gotcha!” and a bunch of guys to laugh at the surprised look on my face.
Aidan Coffield was putting me on. He had to be.
“Chief Dillon gave me your contact info. He said you wanted to speak to me.” Doubts raced rampant through my brain, and my courage abandoned me. “If this is a bad time, I can call back later.”
In contrast to my tentativeness, he became more self-assured. “No. That won’t be necessary. Give me a minute, though, to get my thoughts in order.”
“Sure. I guess.” I winced at my own cowardice. Good God, if I kept up the shy maiden routine, I was doomed. I’d not only give in about reporting the accident, I’d probably wind up paying for the damage out of my own pocket.
From the corkboard, a nearly naked nymph bending under the open hood of a 1960’s-era black Ford Mustang smirked at me. Oh, honey, her smile seemed to say. You’re gonna hafta do a whole lot better than that if you want to keep control of this conversation.
Yeah, sure. Easy for her with her toned, tanned legs in sky high heels, her short shorts, and her Playboy centerfold looks. Unfortunately, some of us had to rely on our wits instead of beauty. And mine had suddenly fled the country, leaving no forwarding address.



Shah Fazli Thank you so much, can you please tell us a little more about the romance, are the opposite male characters your main characters as well or not?



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Nia's love interest, Aidan, is the son of the town's wealthiest summer resident. Since the twins' mother ran off with a wealthy out of towner decades before, Nia fears that being seen with him will stir up gossip she's fought to live down since she was a child and make her a pariah in her community. Meanwhile, Paige verbally battles with her junior high nemesis, captain of the football team (she was the class nerd), now police chief, Sam Dillon. When Nia starts acting secretively around her, Paige suspects she's got a love interest she's embarrassed about and draws the conclusion that love interest is Sam. Now she forces herself to spend time in his company and actually be *nice* to him to ease Nia's discomfort. The more time she spends with him, the more she comes to like him.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito While both men are featured in the book, only my twins get the POV stage--both in first person.



Shah Fazli Can you tell us how many books you have written and published, and what's will be your next project, what are you working on now?



Sheila Claydon Gina I just love the humour in your books. Has that been a deliberate style from the start of your career or is it just your personality coming through?



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito I've written 20 so far (published 15--I think.) The next book in the Calendar Girl series is done and waiting for revisions. Reunion in October will feature two other residents of Snug Harbor at a crossroads in their lives. Now, I'm working on the sequel to my love after death romance, Eternally Yours. In Your Dreams will feature secondary character, Sean, in a starring role. He'll be transferred from bounty hunting to Probation--a department where the dead watch over those who've attempted suicide on Earth but thanks to some intervention, have survived. It's the Probation Officer's job to prevent them from attempting suicide again and possibly succeeding.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Hi, Sheila! You know, the truth is, I never considered myself funny. I had written two of my three historicals when a critique partner challenged me to write a contemporary since the historical market was dead at the time. I came up with a concept, which eventually became The Bonds of Matri-money, my first published work. When I pitched the idea to my cp, she said, "That sounds like a great comedy." It had never occurred to me that I could write "funny." Nowadays, I can't turn it off.



Shah Fazli Thanks, which one your books have made you really happy, and you are proud of, and tell us why?



Sheila Claydon Please don't ever try. It's your unique signature and you have such a great turn of phrase at times. I'm going to read Duet in September as soon as I've finished the book I'm reading now. I'm really looking forward to it.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Eternally Yours. It's the legendary book of my heart. I poured all of myself: my beliefs, my passions, and my unique vision into that book. It's so vastly different than anything else out there.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Thanks, Sheila!



Shah Fazli Are you a full time writer, maybe tell us a little about yourself please?



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito I'm a full-time everything. I have a full-time job outside the home, but I write in the morning, during breaks and lunch, after work, before bed, etc. I also have a freelance editing business and average at least one client a week. I'm married but my husband works long hours which leaves me a lot of down time. My kids still live home but they're 16 and 22--old enough to know not to bother me unless the fire or bleeding cannot be contained.



Shah Fazli Your advice to others please?



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Read, absorb, learn, write. Rinse, repeat.



Shah Fazli Thank you so much, others can ask questions if they want, I leave the interview now, it was such a joy. Hopefully see you next time.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito Thank you, Shah! This was a genuine pleasure!



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito I truly appreciate the invitation and your time.



Ellen Gragg Thanks for the invitation, Gina -- this was great!



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito And thank you to all of you kind enough to stop by to make this a success for me.



Sheila Claydon It's bedtime in the UK so I'm going too. An interesting chat. Goodnight all.



Victoria Regina Rean Ardito TTFN, ladies and gents!



Sandra Carey Cody This was fun.

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