Guest Blogger: D’Ann Lindun ~ Western Romance Author

September 12, 2012

Today I have fellow Siren author D’Ann Lindun!  She’s a very successful author with Crimson Romance and has just had her first book published with Siren.  Congratulations on your latest release, D’Ann. I’ve got so many questions to ask you.

Q. Where did you get the idea for, Vaquero?
A. Will you laugh if I tell you I don’t remember?
Q. Tell us a bit about the hero and heroine in, Vaquero.
A. Cordero Ybarra just wants to make something of himself and live in peace when he becomes the target of racial prejudice. Aspen O’Hare has been abandoned by men all her life, starting with her father.
Q. What are you working on right now and what can we expect from you next? 
A. A story with no name about a young woman sheriff and the undercover FBI agent. Coming out next is Desert Heat, due on October 22.

Q. Where do you get the inspirations for your books? 
A. Everywhere! I can make a story out of anything and any one!
Q. Do you prefer stand-alone books or series (As a reader or a writer) ? 
A. I have always written stand-alone. The new story will be a series of three, maybe four.
Q. If you could change places with one character from your book, who would it be and why? 
A. Hmmmm…that’s tough. I think maybe Jacy Gray, a character from an old ms. She was a rancher and so strong and tough.
Q. Do you listen to music while you are writing, and if so what music is it? 
A. Depends. I’m hard of hearing in my right ear, and sometimes it just irritates me.
Q. How do we find out about you and your books? 
A. On my blog http://dlindunauthor.blogspot.com/
Q. How may readers contact you? 
A. Through the blog, or on Facebook

Q. Are there any words of encouragement for unpublished writers?
A. Yes! Don’t quit, don’t give up! It took me almost 20 years and way over 200 rejections to become published!

Thanks D’Ann that’s very sound advice to all aspiring writers. I too received many rejections, and had my first book published fifteen years after I first began writing.


Now let’s have an excerpt from your latest release, Vaquero.

STORY EXCERPT

She abruptly pulled out of his embrace and fastened her dress back together. “I need to get back. Daddy will be looking for me.”
Swallowing his disappointment, Cord said, “I’ll walk you back, chica.” 
Her eyes were hard, or maybe it was just the moonlight playing tricks on him. “Chica? Don’t call me that. And you can’t tell anyone what happened between us. This was a mistake. I’ll see you around.” Before he could react, she vanished out the door.
“I’ll see you around.”Had she really just said that? He found his shirt on the floor and, after jerking it on, left the bunkhouse, slamming the door behind him. She teased him, got him hard as hell, then vanished? What the fuck had just happened here? 
Just a few feet into the dark, someone stepped in front of him. In no mood to talk, Cord started to push by when the other man grabbed his arm. “You too good to talk to me, Mex?” 
Buford LaDelle. Cord sighed. What was the guy’s problem with him? “No, just tired.”
“Worn out from work, or something else?”
Cord jerked his arm away from the bigger man’s grip. “Not that I feel like sharing my business with you, but yeah, I’m beat from roping all day.”
Another man moved out of the shadows. Buford grinned at him. “I think he’s worn out from that little joyride he just gave Shayla. How ’bout you, Spike? Think that’s it?”
“Yeah, I think that’s it,” Spike agreed. 
Buford got so close Cord could smell the alcohol on the other man’s breath. “That it, Mex?”
“Get lost.” Cord moved to step around Buford, and the bigger man slugged him. Hard. In the stomach. Not expecting it, he doubled over, fighting to catch his breath. Before he could suck in enough air, one of the men slipped a lariat over his head, pulling it tight against his neck. The other one grabbed his wrists and bound them with a slick leather strap, a rein maybe. 
What the hell? It was one thing to have a fistfight over a girl—all guys did it—but he’d never been attacked in the dark and roped like a wild steer before. Cord struggled, and the rope around his neck tightened until he feared passing out. Stars danced in front of his eyes, and his ears felt like they had cotton stuffed in them. He tried to speak, and his voice came out in a hoarse growl. “Let me go.”
Buford chuckled. “Not until you learn your lesson, son. I don’t know how things are done back where you come from, but around here, illegals don’t fuck our women.”
“I didn’t—” The rope dug into his neck, cutting off his words. He was as American as they were, the crazy bastards. 
Like a prisoner being dragged to the gallows, Cord was hauled toward the corrals. Every time he tried to speak, one of them jerked the rope around his neck, making it impossible for him to call for help. At the branding pens, Buford yanked Cord up tight against one of the corral posts, securing him like a trussed hog. His nose pressed against the rough cedar pole. He turned his face so his cheek rubbed it instead. Spike pulled Cord’s hands around the pole and tied them, rendering him helpless.
“What now?” Spike asked.
Buford held up something that flashed in the dim moonlight. A knife. “I say we geld him. Cut off his nuts and feed them to him.”
The buddy chuckled. “Good plan. That’ll teach him not to go between the legs of decent white women.”
Cord struggled against the rope binding him until it cut into his neck. Warmth trickled down his neck, and he knew it had to be blood. They were only trying to scare him. No one in his right mind would do something so crazy. 
Buford crowded up behind Cord, pinning him even tighter to the fence, and reached around and unbuckled his jeans. They slid down over his hips and thighs. He stood tied, half naked, his jeans and shorts pooling around the tops of his boots, as they discussed what to do next.
“We’re gonna need another couple of ropes to hold his legs apart,” the buddy said helpfully. “I’ll go get ’em. But you’re gonna have to do the cuttin’ ’cause I ain’t touchin’ no other man’s dick or balls.”
Buford considered that, turning the knife in his hands. “Yeah, you got a point about that. I ain’t no queer. But we gotta do something to teach this boy a lesson.”
Cord twisted his hands, desperate to get free, but the tie they’d used tightened with every move. He couldn’t catch a deep breath. Sweat beaded on his forehead and ran down his back. The joke had gone far enough. “Turn me loose and I won’t kick your ass,” he demanded in a harsh whisper. 
“Oh my God.” A woman’s voice. Shayla. Out of the corner of his eye, Cord saw her take in the scene. Horror filled her voice. “What are you doing? This isn’t Deliverance. Let him go right now.”
A rough laugh rumbled out of Buford. “Not a chance. Your daddy told us to take care of the problem, and we have it handled.”
“I never agreed to this,” she said stubbornly. “Pull up his pants and turn him loose.”
“We’re just scaring him a little.” Buford’s tone changed to vicious, and he stepped toward her with his fist closed.
“Now get on out of here.”
She turned and fled. 
Vaquero available from Bookstrand HERE
Wow, that is one intense excerpt, D’Ann, Cord has made some serious enemies there. Now I’m desperate to know what happens next. Thank you D’Ann for being my guest today. 

15 Comments

  • Jan Bowles September 12, 2012 at 8:37 am

    Welcome, D'Ann.

    I really enjoyed reading your excerpt, and have put Vaquero on my list of must reads.

    Jan x

  • Jennifer Lowery (Kamptner) September 12, 2012 at 2:24 pm

    Great interview, ladies! I LOVE this book! The hero is to die for. D'Ann's books are amazing, but this one is at the top of my list. I just love it!! Congrats on the relase, D~!!

  • D'Ann September 12, 2012 at 2:25 pm

    Thanks for having me today!

  • christine warner September 12, 2012 at 2:26 pm

    Wonderful interview! D'Ann, you are so talented. I'm glad you never gave up and continued to pursue publication!

    Congrats on all your success!!!

  • R. Ann Siracusa September 12, 2012 at 2:28 pm

    I loved your interview (How do you keep your responses so pithy?)and the excerpt.

  • Kristina Knight September 12, 2012 at 2:51 pm

    great interview, good luck with your books, D'Ann!

  • Brenda September 12, 2012 at 3:27 pm

    Wonderful interview. Congratulations!

  • Shawn September 12, 2012 at 4:05 pm

    Loved the interview. This exceprt is amazing!

  • Sharon Cullen September 12, 2012 at 4:24 pm

    Lovely interview, D'Ann!

  • Melissa Limoges September 12, 2012 at 4:39 pm

    Nice interview, ladies! And that was an intense excerpt. Can't wait to read this one! You know I love your books, D'Ann!

  • Sheri Fredricks September 12, 2012 at 5:07 pm

    jumps up and down Having read this book, I can honestly say there are other scenes just as vivid and suspenseful. Awesome read.

  • Liza O'Connor September 12, 2012 at 6:31 pm

    Can't wait to read this.
    Break a pencil, D'Ann.
    This is Liza's tag, no one else can use it. LOL.

  • Liz Flaherty September 12, 2012 at 7:18 pm

    Hi, ladies. Cool interview. I really like Liza's tag, too. 🙂

  • Sara Walter Ellwood / Cera duBois September 13, 2012 at 2:05 am

    Wonderful interview… I love this book, D'Ann. Congratulations on all of your success. You are an inspiration…

  • Lace Daltyn September 14, 2012 at 4:45 pm

    I'm late chiming in, but this story sounds pretty powerful. Best of luck with it, D'Ann.