Greetings and a huge THANK YOU to my dear friend Barbara Edwards for hosting me!! Yay! I’m so excited to be here to celebrate the release of my latest contemporary romance, She’s Got Dibs! Whoo Hoo!
I know you’ve all probably heard comments like this before, but this story holds a special place in my heart. Yeah, yeah, you’re saying, every author gets all gushy whenever one of their stories get published. *yawn* Been there, done that. But I do have a specific reason for my fixation. From concept to publication, She’s Got Dibs took five loooong years to complete. Yep. Think about that for a second. That’s longer than high school, people. Longer than college…longer than it took me to birth two kids. No surprise having this story finally appear on the web, not to mention being able to hold a copy in my hands, has me left me giddier than my ten year old daughter at an arts and crafts fair.
I’m not going to bore you with the gory details of this story’s path to publication. Suffice to say when I first sent it to a publisher, thankfully the manuscript landed in the hands of an editor who saw the potential in my prose despite the run-on sentences, my obsessive use of “as” phrasing and my pervading tendency to over-explain everything. I mention these five years because, for me, to now see She’s Got Dibs garner some attention has been…epic. And quite honestly a huge relief. Thank goodness I can say all those years in rewrites and production were worth it—something no author knows for certain until those first reviews come in.
But something else has also happened. Something I didn’t really expect.
It’s my hero, Dibs. As an author of romance, it’s pretty standard I always try to craft a hero that is swoon-worthy. I mean, this comes with the territory, right? We write (or try to write) men whom women love to fall in love with. But this attention Dibs has been getting has really sorta left me scratching my head. Don’t get me wrong. It’s wonderful to receive reviews that say “Dibs is my favorite hero of all time!” or “I call dibs on Dibs!”, but there’s one piece of this puzzle I haven’t admitted yet.
The entire story—from start to finish—is written in the heroine’s POV. (O.O) I’m not kidding. At no time during the story is the reader in Dibs’s head.
If you’re anything like me, right about now you’re asking yourself, “Wait…how’s that work?” How could so many reviewers comment on how great Dibs is…admit they’ve fallen in love with him…without ever getting a single thought from his character?
Truth is, I’m not entirely sure. What I do know is that from the onset of She’s Got Dibs, I knew it would be paramount to make sure the reader clearly “saw” Dibs through Tessa’s eyes—because she, alone, tells the story. During every scene, I had to be certain whatever Dibs was thinking or feeling was shown to the reader…so they would be left no doubts about what was going on internally with him. Apparently, whatever I did worked. I just ever anticipated it would work that well. I mean, geesh, the guy has his own little fan club. Sorta makes me jealous. 🙂
Regardless, this hub-bub surrounding my hero has been a wonderful bonus in seeing this story come to life. One I would love to share with one commenter by offering to give away a copy of She’s Got Dibs!
If you’d like to see what everyone is talking about, just leave me a comment and Dibs is yours!
Thank you, Barbara for hosting me!
Blurb:
True love does not exist…or so event planner Tessa Adams learns the day she gets jilted—twenty-four hours prior to walking down the aisle. One-night stands are much easier, and with sexy philanthropists like David Brenner, how can she resist? Now if she could just get rid of him. Had she known the biggest event of her career would be working for David’s father, she would have cut and run. Instead, she’s unwittingly become a part of his parents’ plan to destroy his life-long dreams. Will sacrificing her love protect him or be the ultimate betrayal?
Wealthy and gorgeous, David Brenner seemingly holds the world in the palm of his hand—his generous heart and infectious smile are just two in an endless stream of attractive qualities. But the one thing he wants, he can’t have—a repeat of the passionate night he spent in the arms of a skittish Tessa Adams. His family’s far-reaching power threatens to crush their dreams. To prove his love, he would risk everything…but will the return of her ex-fiancé be their final undoing?
Excerpt:
“Dibs.” He extended his hand.
Frowning, she accepted his greeting. “Dibs on what”
“No.” He chuckled. “That’s my name. Or well, actually, my nickname. Either way, it’s what everyone calls me.”
“O-o-okay…” The guy definitely had the smolder covered…and those incredible ice-blue eyes. Yikes!
“And you are?”
“Oh, Tessa Adams.” She laughed.
“And everyone calls you…?”
Her frown returned. “Tessa.”
“Oh.” He scanned her face. “No nickname, huh?”
“Not that I recall at the moment.”
He pressed his full lips together as if restraining a smile, eyes twinkling with merriment, and handed her the notepad. “Here’s your confirmation number. The room’s at the Waldorf Towers over on Park.”
Two suites at the Waldorf? In this mess? What was he, a wizard? “Wow, great. Thanks so much for the help.”
“Glad to be of service.” He retrieved his briefcase and started down the corridor, abruptly stopped, and peered at her over the perfect slant of his shoulder. “And don’t worry, Tessa, I’ll think of a good nickname for you.”
She offered him a blank stare. “Hey, knock yourself out.”
Mischief danced along his lips before a grin broke free and he continued down the hallway.
“What a whack job,” she muttered.
Author links, webpages, fan pages, and book trailers.
She’s Got Dibs, won 1st Place in the Contemporary Category, Heartland Romance Authors, Show Me the Spark! Contest, 2010.
She’s Got Dibs received a “highly recommended read” from USA Today’s Happy Ever After reviews! See the entire review here: http://www.usatoday.com/story/happyeverafter/2013/07/19/recommended-aj-nuest-juliana-stone-lia-davis/2567297/
Website: http://ajnuest.com
Blog: http://ajbooks.blogspot.com
Email: ajnuest@yahoo.com
FaceBook Page: https://www.facebook.com/amyjo.nuest
Author FB Page: https://www.facebook.com/amyjo.nuest#!/pages/Tattered-Pages/259835887466
Twitter: @AJNuest
She’s Got Dibs Pinterest Page: http://pinterest.com/ajnuest/shes-got-dibs/
Amazon Buy Link: http://www.amazon.com/Shes-Got-Dibs-ebook/dp/B00CGLZGP0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1374592148&sr=8-1&keywords=She%27s+Got+Dibs
Visit http://www.barbara.edwards.net for my stuff. LOL
Barbara Edwards Comments 
What a great story, AJ and I love the blurb and excerpt! Can’t wait to read it! (Love the title, too.)
LikeLike
Oh, thank you, Nia!! That’s so nice! I love it too. During those five years, the title changed a lot. LOL Finally got a keeper, I think. Thank you so much for stopping by!! XO
LikeLike
AJ, what an engaging excerpt. I saw the blurb and it really drew me in. I see that it took a while to write. How long? Did you have to do a lot of research? What was the grain of inspiration behind the story?
Smiles
Steph
botrina_buchanan@yahoo.com
LikeLike
This one took me five long years just because I wrote it before I knew anything about writing. LOL During the time it was in production, I wrote three more stories, became and editor and learned my craft. Translation: major rewrites. LOL My porr editor. During the final stages she actually said, “I’m afraid to send this back to you for fear you’ll rewrite the story again.” 🙂 The main reason I wrote it is because I wanted something very light and fun after my first book, Jezebel’s Wish, which is a highly emotionally fraught story. She’s Got Dibs was my attempt at crafting a rom-com…to sorta see if I could make folks laugh after I’d made them cry. Steph, thank you so much for stopping by today! You’re the awesomest!!
LikeLike
Well, I’m glad it worked it out. I think once you “cut your teeth” on the first one and really learn your craft, you can write anything.
Smiles
Steph
LikeLike
Hi AJ,
I have to say Wow! I can’t imagine writing a book without the hero’s point of view. I wrote a mystery in the first person and had such a hard time keeping out of the heads of the other important secondary character. I garnered a great deal of respect for people who write from only one viewpoint. Congrats on all the great reviews and accolades you and Dibs are receiving. After five long years bringing this book to fruition, I’m sure you’re thrilled that readers love the book and Dibs as much as you do.
LikeLike
Thank you so much for stopping by, Katherine! You know…truth is, at the time I wrote Dibs, I was really paranoid about head-hopping. Being a new writer, I knew that was a no-no, so I concentrated on writing the story from one POV hoping that would dissuade me from pinging around inside all the other characters. It was a hard sell to the publisher, but my editor loved it, so she really championed the story even though it wasn’t a normal romance written from the two POVs. Worked out okay, I guess! Thank you!! XOXO
LikeLike
Cute excerpt, AJ. and fun writing style. I’m curious to read the book.
LikeLike
Thank you, Mona! And thanks for stopping by today!! Barbara is awesome for hosting me!!
LikeLike
Congrats! What a wonderful story! I love cheering for the underdog! This looks like a story where the underdog won the prom queen!
LikeLike
LOL Melissa. That is very true in the case of this story. I’ve really been thrilled by the response it’s gotten so far. Thank you so much for stopping by and leaving a comment today!!
LikeLike