Sandy lives in a quiet suburb of Indianapolis with her husband of thirty years and is a high school social studies teacher. She and her husband own a small stable of harness racehorses and enjoy spending time at the two Indiana racetracks.
The Alliance of the Amazons urban fantasy series from Carina Press has premiered with book 1, The Reluctant Amazon, book 2, The Impetuous Amazon, and book 3, The Brazen Amazon. The series concludes with book 4, The Volatile Amazon, in September.
Look for a new contemporary romance series from Grand Central Forever Yours in 2013/2014!
Twitter ID: @sandyjamesbooks
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Zach Hanson is a tech wizard, capable of creating and improving gadgets... including remote nuclear warhead launchers. But he's always known that he's destined for something more, something greater, something...supernatural.
Powerful Air Amazon Gina Himmel is one of four sisters called to protect the world from those who would do it harm. Demigods in league with an Ancient have been taking over the bodies of leaders in the military and technological sectors, and Gina is sent to San Francisco to watch over Zach.
Under Gina's protection, Zach is introduced to a world of ancient deities, rogue gods and the bold, brazen Amazons who keep humanity safe. Amidst the whirlwind of battle, Zach and Gina discover a love that could give them the power to save the world...or destroy it.
Q) What inspired you
to write this story?
The Alliance of the Amazon series was the first where I set
out to write a genre other than straight romance. I chose urban fantasy because
of a trend I saw in my stories.
All my other books are contemporary romance, yet I noticed
supernatural elements beginning to slip into the storylines. In Free Falling, Laurie Miller is an
empath. Seemed like fun since she was a psychologist. In All the Right Reasons, Jozsa Kovachs has
a familiar intuition that helps guide her through the rocky relationship with
Lucas Mitchell, a man “damaged” by his time serving our country in Iraq. I go
full-blown supernatural with Faith of the
Heart by making Sarah Reid a faith healer.
So I sat down with my favorite muse—my son Kevin—and we
designed the world of the Amazons. Once I started writing urban fantasy, it
became my “crack.” I love being in
charge and making the world everything I can possibly imagine it to be. I suppose
from now on I’ll be alternating between urban fantasy and contemporary romance,
and I hope my fans follow me in both genres. So far, my readers seem receptive
to my books. (Thanks, everyone!! Love you!!)
Q) How long did it
take you to write?
Because I’m a teacher, finding time to write is often
difficult. On a typical school day, I come home, walk Dr. Carter—my
Schnauzer—and then answer emails and catch up on Twitter and Facebook. After
supper, I write until I can’t keep my eyes open any longer. The Brazen Amazon was a fairly typical
book for me. Took me about three months during a school year to write it. Thank
the Lord for summer breaks! That’s when I fly through stories!
Q) What is your
favorite thing about writing?
I love creating new characters, giving them their traits,
their likes and dislikes, and their foibles. It’s fun to be able to give
literary birth to a new human being, and I try to make those characters as
“real” as I can.
Q) What is your least
favorite thing about writing?
Sometimes I find that I have a really good idea in my head,
but when I sit down with the laptop, the words become agonizing to write. So I guess
the hardest thing—which makes it my least favorite as well—is putting new words
down. Once I start tweaking and editing, I’m fine!
Q) If you could be
any famous person for one day, who would you be and why?
I would love to be Bill Gates, not because of who he is but
because of the resources at his fingertips. I would spend my twenty-four hours as
Bill Gates directing as much of the Microsoft fortune to great causes as I possibly
could.
Q) What is the oldest
thing in your fridge and how old is it?
A bottle of pink champagne from my wedding, which dates it
at 1983. Yikes. It’s probably vinegar by now! I just can’t bring myself to
throw it away. Far too much sentimental value. Hard to believe Jeff and I hit
our thirtieth anniversary this year—and one of us hasn’t killed the other yet.
Q) What can readers
expect from you in the future?
The final installment of the Alliance of the Amazons will be
Sarita’s story—The Volatile Amazon.
It will be released by Carina Press in September.
In February, my first Grand Central Forever Yours
contemporary romance releases. It’s the first in the Ladies Who Lunch series,
and the working title is The Bottom Line.
The series revolves around four women learning about themselves and growing to
expand beyond their small-town lives. I have some yummy heroes for my ladies!
The second book will be out in September of 2014, and the working title is Signed, Sealed, Delivered. That’s the
book I’m working on at the moment, and I’m very close to “The End.”
My agents have two potential series out on submission right
now—two urban fantasy proposals. Hopefully, I’ll have good news about them
soon!
Thanks so much for letting me stop by on my Brazen Amazon
blog tour!!
