If You Love Janet Evanovich's Books, You'll Love Mine (I hope) by Alison Henderson

I want to say up front, I'm a HUGE fan of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum books--her explosion-prone every-girl heroine, hunky heroes, wacky array of supporting characters, and endlessly inventive villains. But most of all, I love her humor. I almost fell out of my chair when I read Grandma Mazur's account of shooting the roast chicken in its gumpy at the dinner table. 

I would never try to claim I am as brilliantly funny as Janet, but her unique brand of humorous romantic suspense has been a major influence on my Phoenix, Ltd. female bodyguard series. I don't do scary well. I'll never write hide-under-the-covers-with-a-flashlight, serial-killer suspense. I want readers to worry how my characters are going to thwart the unknown antagonist, but I want them to laugh while they're doing it. 

Taking a page from Janet, one of my favorite ways to add humor is with colorful supporting characters. Because my books are stand-alone stories instead of a series featuring the same central character, there's no opportunity for a single, fabulous sidekick like Lula. Instead, my bodyguard heroines are beset by a meddling Chinese grandma, a malfunctioning cooking robot, and a light-fingered Capuchin monkey with a bad attitude. These secondary characters are perfect for lightening the mood whenever the situation gets too tense.

I also love snappy dialogue--classic, old movie-style bantering. I have a dry sense of humor and a smart mouth, and so do most of my heroines. Even the men are no slouches in the wit department. I like dialogue so much, large swaths of my first drafts read more like screenplays than novels. Sometimes, my characters are so chatty I can barely type fast enough to keep up with them. I have to go back later and add all the physical and emotional elements to round out the story.

Here are a couple of my favorite lines:

"It's not too late," Carter said in a stage whisper. "You can still change your mind and travel as my masseuse."

She sent him a quelling glance. "You do know I'm carrying a gun, right?" from UNWRITTEN RULES





As he carried her up the grand staircase, visions of Tara flashed through her mind. Although he didn't take the stairs two at a time like Rhett Butler, all she needed was a lush, red velvet dressing gown to transform into Scarlett O'Hara. Oh, and a night beyond her wildest dreams. 


That was so not happening. from BOILING POINT

When it comes to writing humor, I bow at the feet of Mistress Evanovich, but if you love her books as much as I do, I invite you to check out UNWRITTEN RULES and BOILING POINT. And the third book in the series is due out early this summer.

Cheers!

Alison
www.alisonhenderson.com  

Old Book, New Look by Alison Henderson

Boiling Point isn't an old book--it's been out less than eight months. In book terms it's still a baby, but I decided it needed a face lift. 

Why? Even though I designed the cover myself, I'd never been fully satisfied with it, and sales haven't been what I'd hoped. Its sales are consistently about 60% of the figures for the first book in the Phoenix, Ltd. female bodyguard series, Unwritten Rules. There could be a number of reasons for this: readers want to start a series at the beginning, readers tried the first book and didn't like it enough to read the second, or whatever. But I had to ask myself, what if part of the problem is the cover?

I've received lots of positive feedback on the cover for Unwritten Rules since its release. Everyone seems to love the legs and the flirty tone. It's a good reflection of the style and tone of the story and has even attracted male readers!

So what was wrong with the original cover for Boiling Point? It wasn't close enough stylistically to Unwritten Rules. I looked at every image of a stone mansion I could find, hoping to find one that would make a good background and reminded me of the setting. Nothing worked. I settled for the condensation image because it suggested steam, which tied in to the title. I also looked at every single image of every variation of "woman with a gun" I could think of. I ended up with the recumbent figure because it was one of the few in which the gun was far enough away from the face to crop the head. In a series, it is important to have design continuity: same fonts, same color scheme, same figure style. I would have preferred a standing figure but couldn't find another that worked.

My cover re-do was actually inspired by our own Jannine Gallant. She found the perfect image for the mansion background. It looks exactly like the one in the story, and I swear it wasn't available a year ago when I started looking. Sadly, the seated figure looked just plain silly with it--like the woman was sitting on the driveway. It did encourage me, however, to take another look at "women with guns." 

Lo and behold, the stock image sites had added tons of new images, and I found the perfect one! The new figure of a woman in a short skirt and high heels with a gun behind her back is an excellent companion to the one on Unwritten Rules, and her cheeky pose mirrors the humorous tone of the book. 

One of the best things about being an indie author is the ability to make changes whenever I want to try something new. I'm thrilled with the new cover, and I hope readers have the same response. If I don't see any improvement in sales, I can always tinker with the blurb next!

Alison
www.alisonhenderson.com 

My Amazon Ad Experiment, Part Deux by Alison Henderson

If you read my post last month, you'll recall I shared the results of an experiment in which I ran a Facebook ad and an Amazon sponsored product ad during the last week of February and compared the results. As far as I could tell, all my sales came from the FB ad. Although it cost me very little, my Amazon numbers were dismal: 2,772 impressions, 10 clicks, and 0 sales. I decided I must be doing something wrong, so I decided to try again during the last week of March.

The important difference was adding more keywords. The first time, I used every category and combination of words I thought anyone might use to find books like Unwritten Rules and Boiling Point, my female bodyguard books. I also threw in the names of a couple of very well-known writers whose books are somewhat similar. I only ended up with about twenty keywords, even though every article I'd read said to aim for two hundred, and Amazon allows up to one thousand! I simply couldn't think of any more.

In the interim, I'd read another article with sound advice on how to find appropriate keywords. The author recommended checking your own books' pages, as well as those of similar books, and diving deep into the "Customers who bought this product also bought" listings. When I did this, I found a significant number of authors I'd never heard of who write some combination of romance, mystery, and suspense that includes humor. l added their names to my keyword list. I then dug even deeper, checking the "Customers who bought" lists for those authors, looking for more authors and books that might attract similar readers. You can do this almost indefinitely, but I stopped after I had doubled the number of my keywords.

Here are the results for the first week, so you can compare the numbers with my original experiment:

Boiling Point:
109,975 impressions;  54 clicks @ $.16 = $8.49 cost; 4 sales @ $2.74 profit = $10.96 
Plus 2,371 KENP pages read @ $.005 per page = $11.86
Net Profit = $14.33

Unwritten Rules:
125,161 impressions;  57 clicks @ $.17 = $9.69 cost; 5 sales @ $2.74 profit = $13.60
Plus 1 sale of Small Town Christmas Tales, which I have to attribute to increased visibility @ $2.06 profit
Plus 4,254 KENP pages read = $21.27
Net Profit = $40.80

Total Profit for the week: $52.66

I was pretty darned thrilled with that, so I decided to keep the ads going. However, the impressions and clicks slowed considerably and sales dropped from 4 a day to 0 on March 31st, as if I'd discontinued the ads. I waited a full week with very little activity, except for a large number of KENP pages read (presumably by KU subscribers who had picked the books up the previous week.) 

On April 7th, I decided to try adding a few more keywords. The impressions, clicks, and sales picked up again. 

Here are the totals for the first three weeks:
Boiling Point:
129,558 impressions; 72 clicks @ $.16 = $11.26 cost; 6 sales @ $2.74 profit = $16.44
Plus 5,309 KENP pages read = $26.55
Net Profit = $31.73

Unwritten Rules:
129,683 impressions; 86 clicks @ $.19 = $16.34 cost; 10 sales @ $2.74 profit = $27.40
Plus 1 sale of Small Town Christmas Tales @ $2.06 profit
Plus 7,803 KENP pages read = $39.02
Net Profit = $52.30

From all this, I have drawn the following conclusions:
1. Keywords make all the difference.
2. Amazon metrics show me which keywords are producing the most clicks and the most sales so I can adjust accordingly. 
3. I will probably have to make constant additions and adjustments to keep sales coming.
4. Amazon ads are much more effective for an unknown author like me if the books are part of the Kindle Unlimited program. Readers are more likely to take a chance if they don't feel like they're paying for the book--even if they are.
5. Unwritten Rules sells better than Boiling Point. This may be because it's the first book in the series, or it may be due to a more attractive cover or blurb. I'll have to give this some thought. One of the benefits of being an indie is being able to tinker with any aspect of the book whenever I decide to.

So. there you have it. Whew!
Alison
www.alisonhenderson.com

The Best Book Signing Ever! by Alison Henderson

Like most authors, I've done a few book signings over the years. When my first book--a Western historical romance--was released in 2010, I gave a talk and signed books at the historic home I'd used as a model for the heroine's house, I did a Valentine's Day signing in a gift shop in the small Missouri River town where the story was set, and I spoke to my college roommate's book club and signed books. All events were fun and I sold quite a few books, but I never did a signing in an actual bookstore until last month.

I'm sure you're all familiar with SMALL TOWN CHRISTMAS TALES, my collection of holiday short stories released in the fall of 2015. In early November of that year, I screwed up my courage and took a copy into a cute local bookstore, as well as the perennial Christmas shop on the main street of our little town. I chatted with the owners, left my contact information, and went home to wait, certain they would want to carry my book in their stores. Days and weeks passed without a word. 

Christmas came and went, so I shrugged my shoulders and moved on. Imagine my surprise when I received an email out of the blue, a YEAR later, from the owner of the bookshop saying they'd like to carry my book for the holidays and schedule a signing for the weekend before Christmas! I rushed right in to The Pilgrim's Way with a few copies of SMALL TOWN CHRISTMAS TALES for their shelves and set things up for the signing. Imagine my further surprise ten days later when I received another email asking for more books because they'd already sold several. This was getting exciting!

I fired off a press release to three local newspapers, bought peppermint and milk chocolate truffles to hand out to patrons, and tried to keep the butterflies at bay. The morning of the signing, I loaded my bag with candy and ten more copies of the Christmas book, as well as three copies each of my two female bodyguard books. Wonder of wonders, the owner had lent the copy of UNWRITTEN RULES I'd left with her to a customer who is an avid reader. The woman loved the book and told her they should stock it in the store!

I was nervous at first, but as soon as things got rolling, that melted away. We live in a tourist town, so Saturday afternoons usually bring quite a bit of walk-in traffic. Talking to strangers does not come naturally to me, but I found offering candy to everyone who entered the store a perfect way to break the ice and start a conversation. A couple of local writer friends stopped by to offer moral support, and this adorable couple came all the way from Salinas to buy my book after reading about the signing in the paper!

The signing only lasted two hours, but in that time I sold eight copies of SMALL TOWN CHRISTMAS TALES, two copies of UNWRITTEN RULES, and one copy of BOILING POINT. I consider that a rousing success. The owner seemed pleased and asked me to bring more copies of the bodyguard books because she plans to keep them in stock. 

I never expected to see my books on the shelf in a real bookstore, but now I'm thrilled to be able to tell anyone I meet that they can find my books at The Pilgrim's Way in downtown Carmel-by-the-Sea. What a rush!

Alison 
www.alisonhenderson.com 

Have You Seen My Zen? by Alison Henderson

It's been a rough few months for me. My summer was consumed by the huge Soberanes Fire that burned near our house for over two months, filling the air with smoke and our roads with fire crews. We were overwhelmingly grateful to the firefighters, but their presence was a constant reminder of the threat hanging over our heads. On top of that, I was working diligently to put the finishing touches on Boiling Point and get it published. And then there was the election.

The only thing I had any control over--my book--came together well and ahead of schedule. The rest--not so much. A couple of soaking rains in October finally doused the remnants of the fire. The burned hillsides are scarred and now subject to landslides, but not in our valley. When I look out my windows, all I see are the usual lush, green mountains, but I now appreciate how precious and fragile they really are.

The election is another matter. Perhaps I am overly sensitive, but I know I'm not alone. The ugliness and horror of the process scarred my psyche, and I'm not sure how long it will take to heal. I have always considered it the duty of every citizen to remain well-informed, but I'm throwing that away. I plan to avoid as much "news" as possible for as long as it takes me to recover. I'm worn down by outrage, mine and others'. I'm convinced that by feeding our outrage, we harm mainly ourselves. The objects of our outrage never know and wouldn't care if they did.

A few weeks ago, I posted on Facebook that the first line of my next book had popped into my head when I was wide awake at 3:00 a.m. (not an unusual occurrence for me.) One of my neighbors recommended a book she's found useful in dealing with insomnia--Dan Harris's 10% Happier. I wasn't familiar with him, but he's a weekend anchor on Good Morning America and a reporter on Dateline. 

I HIGHLY recommend this very readable book. It's the story of how he found balance and happiness in his life through meditation and looking at life through a different lens. I don't have his personality, stresses, or interest in regular meditation, but one particular conclusion he reached really resonated with me, especially in regard to my writing.

When Harris was struggling with the question of zen vs. ambition, his mentor advised him the best way to maintain his sense of inner balance was to do his very best at any task but not to become attached to the results because he had no control over them. Interestingly, he used writing a book as an example. You write the best book you can then put it out into the universe. You do what you can to draw it to people's attention, but ultimately you have no control over whether or not it becomes a best-seller.

I did more to launch Boiling Point than I had done for any previous book, but the results were the same--minimal sales. I have analyzed my experiences and determined that while people really enjoy my books, no one I don't know personally or am related to is willing to pay money to buy them. Strangers will happily read them and post glowing reviews when they are free, but they will not take the minimal risk to buy from an unknown author. And I don't have the will or budget to try to overcome that. That's where detachment from the results comes in. If I can keep from comparing my results to other authors (another point in the book) and develop detachment from the results, I may be able to keep writing, knowing I'm doing my best to create a product that brings happiness to readers, even if not as many as I'd like.

Alison
www.alisonhenderson.com

That First Big Kiss by Alison Henderson

We all know the first kiss is a critical point in any romance novel. So much hangs on it. It's usually the couple's first intimate contact, and the nature of the kiss depicts where the couple is in their relationship at that point. Does the hero steal a kiss from the reluctant heroine? Does he force it on her? Does she ambush him? Or do they come together in a mutual expression of passion? It all depends on the characters and the situation in which they find themselves at that moment.

My new bodyguard romance, BOILING POINT, begins with mutual suspicion and multiple mistaken identities. This hero and heroine are not going to fall blissfully into each other's arms while each suspects the other of being a potentially dangerous criminal. On top of that, my heroine bears the psychological scars of a previous attempted sexual assault. They spar--verbally and physically--for several chapters before their first attempt at a kiss, and they're foiled before they really begin. They continue to learn more about each other and have another near miss before they're ready to try again in earnest.

With that in mind, here's the first successful kiss from BOILING POINT:

Before Zoë’s hand touched the knob, Nick slipped between her and the door. She had to pull up short to keep from running face-first into his broad chest. Taking a half step back, she lifted her chin, and sent him a questioning look.

“There’s something more I want to say.”

His voice rumbled in his chest, it’s deep tone sending goosebumps up her arms. Her heart fluttered in her chest. Was he going to try to kiss her again?

“I’m sorry for the way I acted.”

Not what she’d expected. Zoë released her breath and relaxed a fraction. “It’s my fault. I woke you up.”

“Not then… earlier… in the kitchen. When you so graciously pointed out my shortcomings.”

She glanced down at the ratty old green shag carpeting. “About that…I probably could have been more…um…diplomatic.”

He slipped a forefinger under her chin and tipped it up until she met his gaze. “No, you were right. I’ve never taken criticism well—just ask my former lieutenant. I overreacted.”

“Let’s agree we both could have handled the conversation more professionally and leave it at that.” She offered her hand. “Deal?”

His hand enveloped hers with heat and strength, squeezing lightly. “Deal.”

When she tried to release her grasp, he tightened his hold and gave a little tug, drawing her forward. “I’m wide awake now.”

“I can see that.”

He pulled her steadily forward until his face loomed above hers and only inches separated their lips. “You could stay a while and keep me company.”

“I could, but then you’d get no dinner.”

His voice dropped even lower as his head came down and one arm slid behind her back. “Maybe I’m hungry for something besides food.”

As his lips drew closer, Zoë’s chest tightened, but she fought back, refusing to let the old panic overtake her. Instead, she focused on the solid reality of the man in front of her.

This is Nick. You’re safe.

His warm breath fanned her lips, and his strong arm supported her like a branch of her favorite climbing tree back home. She felt nothing but a kindling excitement deep inside. He wasn’t holding her too tightly—she knew she could escape if she needed to—but he’d aroused her curiosity, among other things. At the moment all she wanted was to taste him.

Nick’s kiss was tentative at first, but as soon as she moved her mouth, his arms tightened around her. As he increased the pressure, Zoë steeled herself against the sense of suffocation, but it never came.

Instead, a warm tingle spread from her lower abdomen to her breasts and down her arms to her fingertips.

He moved one hand up and speared his fingers through her hair, cradling her head and holding it steady while he teased her lips open. She half-expected his other hand to go wandering in search of more titillating destinations, but it remained firmly welded to her back.

After a few minutes that seemed like an eternity, he slowed and ended with one last, lingering kiss before releasing her lips.

She rested her head against his chest and listened to the rhythmic thuds of his heart while she regained her breath. She ran her tongue over her lips, missing the feel of him already. Kissing Nick had been a revelation on many levels. He was unlike any man she’d ever known—certainly unlike any she’d kissed. He hadn’t tried to overwhelm or push her. He’d taken his time, leashed his passion. Maybe that was the reason the old fears had lost their teeth.

With a gentle push she slipped out of his arms. There was something oddly endearing about the confused frustration on his face. She smiled and touched his hard jaw. “That was delightful, but I’ve got to cook dinner. You know the old saying—man cannot live on love alone.”

Nick grabbed her wrist and gave her fingers a light nip. “I don’t think that’s how the quote goes. Besides, who said anything about love?”

Nobody. “You can’t live on sex alone, either.”

      “I’d be willing to give it a try.”

BOILING POINT is available from Amazon in paperback and kindle formats at http://amzn.to/2cw9hPX

Alison
www.alisonhenderson.com 

Happy Double Birthday to Me by Alison Henderson

Tomorrow is my birthday, as well as the book birthday for BOILING POINT, book two in my Phoenix, Ltd. female bodyguard series. Although I don't usually do anything special to mark either occasion, this time I plan to cut loose. Six years ago this month, my first book was published, and tomorrow I'll be celebrating the release of my sixth book. (Much more fun than marking the occasion--once again--of being older than dirt.) 

Since I self-publish and control my own schedule, I chose this release date on purpose. OG usually takes me out to dinner for my birthday, and I've never done anything more than sit around anxiously on my book release dates. I'm not sure why that is. For some reason, I seem to be afraid to celebrate, even though each book marks the successful conclusion of a HUGE amount of work. Maybe it's a cultural hangover of being raised not to blow my own horn. (My mother's motto was, "There's always room for improvement.") Maybe I'm secretly afraid I'll jinx things if I make any noise. Whatever the reason, this time I've decided to do things differently.

For the first time, I've decided to spend a little money. Instead of begging my friends for free space on their blogs, I've hired a company called Loving the Book to coordinate a release day Book Blitz with a group of higher profile book bloggers than I could reach on my own. I'm putting UNWRITTEN RULES, the first book in the series, on sale for $.99 for the first three days and paid a couple of sites to promote it in hopes it will spur some sales for BOILING POINT. I've even paid Facebook to boost a few posts about the new book and have been pleased by the number of likes from complete strangers. It's quite possible none of these things will make the slightest difference in sales, but I've only spent a little over $100, and least I tried. Whatever the outcome, tomorrow night I plan to celebrate with OG over Yin Yang Salmon at my favorite restaurant.

BOILING POINT really is a fun book. Here's the blurb:

Zoe Hargrove’s first solo assignment as a bodyguard is off to a rocky start. On the way to her client’s lakeside estate, a pair of kamikaze bikers nearly runs her off the road. Upon arrival, she learns she’s expected to work undercover as a personal chef—a potential disaster since she can barely burn water—while secretly protecting the client’s pregnant wife from a potential assailant. To top things off, her culinary assistant will be the client’s latest invention—a robotic sous chef named GRAMPA.

And if that isn’t enough, the couple’s dangerously handsome chauffeur, who looks more like a prize fighter than a car jockey, glowers at her as if she’s about to steal the silver. Zoe soon suspects he’s hiding secrets of his own, but can she uncover them in time to stop the escaped criminal who threatens them all?

And here's a short excerpt to whet your appetite:

As soon as she transferred her weight, pain shot through her ankle and up her shin. She gasped and grabbed the bannister. Two seconds later, she was back in Nick’s arms.

“Put me down,” she hissed in protest. “It took me by surprise, is all.”

“Shut up,” was his only response.

She told herself she didn’t want to make a scene and risk waking the Prescotts, so she might as well settle back and enjoy the ride. It almost worked.

As he carried her up the grand staircase, visions of Tara flashed through her mind. Although he didn’t take the stairs two at a time like Rhett Butler, all she needed was a lush, red velvet dressing gown to transform into Scarlett O’Hara. Oh, and the anticipation of a night beyond her wildest dreams.

      That was so not happening.

BOILING POINT is available for Kindle and in paperback at: http://amzn.to/2cw9hPX

Wish me luck!

Alison

www.alisonhenderson.com

How Thick is Your Skin? by Alison Henderson

My new release BOILING POINT is finished and ready to go. Whew! Of all the books I've written, this one required the most lashes to whip it into shape. When I finish a book, I always think it's wonderful--and I'm always wrong. I never seem to learn. Fortunately, I have a number of others to help point out the errors of my ways in no uncertain terms.

Previously, I'd been lulled into a false sense of competence by my editors with my former publisher. They were lovely people. They were gentle and supportive but recommended only minor changes. They didn't make me a better writer. I was always vaguely disappointed when I received a manuscript back without any substantive suggestions to improve the story or characters.

Well, let me tell you, that didn't happen this time. I received pages of very pointed comments, both from my editor and beta readers (my sisters). Fortunately, they addressed the very points that had been gnawing at me all along. For some reason, it's always easier for me to correct major errors when someone else sees them, too. I don't know--maybe I need to learn to trust my own judgement better.

My editor is brutal, but in the best possible way. Jannine, you know it's true. The first time we worked together, I was crushed when I received her notes and read through the manuscript. It wasn't easy to accept that after three published books, I was still such a beginner. This time wasn't much better, even though I knew what to expect. However, I try to learn at least one lesson from each book, and Jannine, you'll be proud to hear I found and corrected a few additional instances of "telling" on my own as I worked through the edits.

One of my sisters began her email, "Don't take this personally." That made me laugh out loud. How else would I take it? You can't separate the creator from her creation. For better or worse, I'd spent months laboring over that manuscript. Fortunately, she had some excellent suggestions for strengthening the secondary characters, and I was happy to use them.

The book that finally makes its way into the hands of readers next month is much stronger than the one I thought I'd "finished" a few weeks ago. I'm proud of it and eternally grateful to those who helped make it the best it could be.

Alison
www.alisonhenderson.com

Cover Reveal: Boiling Point by Alison Henderson

I'm thrilled to reveal the cover for the second book in my Phoenix, Ltd. female bodyguard series. For a number of reasons, this book has been several years in the making, but it's almost here. <Queue the trumpets> Boiling Point will release October 6th, (which is also my birthday!)

Here's the blurb: 

Zoe Hargrove’s first solo assignment as a bodyguard is off to a rocky start. On the way to her client’s lakeside estate, a pair of kamikaze bikers nearly runs her off the road. Upon arrival, she learns she’s expected to work undercover as a personal chef—a potential disaster since she can barely burn water—while secretly protecting the client’s pregnant wife from a potential assailant. To top things off, her culinary assistant will be the client’s latest invention—a robotic sous chef named GRAMPA.

And if that isn’t enough, the couple’s dangerously handsome chauffeur, who looks more like a prize fighter than a car jockey, constantly glowers at her as if she’s about to steal the silver. Zoe soon suspects he’s hiding secrets of his own, but can she uncover them in time to stop the escaped criminal who threatens them all?

While this isn't a classic "romance novel" cover, I love it. It's colorful, eye-catching, and captures the cheeky fun of the story. I also wanted to use variations of the same elements as the cover of Unwritten Rules--the font, the color scheme, the legs, and the gun--to help visually connect the two books as part of a series. 

I have a lot of work to do in the next month to get ready for the launch, but I'm excited to bring this story to my readers. Wish me luck!

Alison

www.alisonhenderson.com 

When Things Fall into the Wrong Hands by Alison Henderson

Last week I was staring at our topics for the month, waiting for inspiration to strike, and this one began to worm its way into my brain. Fall into the Wrong Hands. I write romantic suspense, so I ought to be able to do something with that, right?

In fact, following my Christmas short story collection, my next project will involve industrial espionage—something falling into the wrong hands. I’ve written most of the first chapter and have a pretty good idea where the story is going, but I would love a little help brainstorming, so put on your plotting caps!

This book, tentatively entitled BOILING POINT, will be the second in the Phoenix, Ltd. female bodyguard series, so I want it to be similar in tone—light, snappy, and suspenseful, with a strong dose of humor.

Here’s the premise:

An eccentric inventor has hired Zoe Hargrove to pose as a personal chef while protecting his pregnant wife without her knowledge. Only one problem – Zoe doesn’t know how to cook. As a cover, the client tells his wife Zoe’s there to help him test his latest invention, a cooking robot known as GRAMPA (Great Robotic Automatic Meal Preparation Assistant.

While a representative of a Japanese Electronics Conglomerate, Mr. Watanabe, has been trying unsuccessfully to buy GRAMPA, several incidents have occurred, including attempted break-ins and an episode of road rage. Fearing for her husband’s life, the inventor’s wife has hired a secret bodyguard of her own to protect her husband—Dominick “Nick” Rosetti, a former police detective. Nick is posing as the family chauffeur.

I anticipate lots of mayhem and mistaken identities as Zoe and Nick try to figure out who’s who and protect both their clients from the real villain.

Question #1: Do you think the premise is fun or over-the-top hokey, with all the secrets the characters are hiding from each other?

Question #2: How do you feel about the idea of GRAMPA? The Japanese are crazy about robots that do domestic chores, so that’s too not unrealistic, but do you think American readers will enjoy it? There’s one planned scene where the inventor orders GRAMPA to scare off the man trying to steal his plans with a small kitchen blowtorch. Fun or dumb?

Question #3: Do these characters and the set-up suggest any fun scenes to you?

Any suggestions are welcome. Let your imaginations run wild!

Thanks!

Alison

www.alisonhenderson.com

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