Meet Author, Peggy Jaeger

Today I have Peggy Jaeger, author of 3 Wishes (A Candy Hearts Romance) here to let you in behind the scenes.

I loved this fun Valentine’s Day story and know you will as well.

Let’s meet Peggy-the-Writer:

1. What drives you to write?

 An inner voice constantly telling me I have something to say that someone wants to hear.

2. What genre(s) of Romance do your write, and why?

I write Contemporary romance exclusively because my menopausal brain can only remember the here and now!!

3. What genre(s) of Romance do you read, and why?

Regency. Reading about a time when people not only had manners, but used them, is heartwarming to me. Plus, there’s something so inherently sexy about a man with a title.

4. What’s your writing schedule? Do you write everyday?

Everyday. Everyday. 6-10 hrs from Monday-Friday and I try to squeeze in 3-6 on Saturday and Sunday. That’s not all at once, mind you. Life intervenes so I need to do other things during the day, but those are the totals I shoot for everyday.

5. Give us a glimpse of the surroundings where you write. Separate room? In the kitchen? At the dining room table?

I write in my finished attic loft, my desk overlooking the wooded property I own from a large window. I watch the seasons change and the birds come and go from that desk. Being so close to natural beauty is like manna for me.

6. Are you the kind of writer who needs total quiet to compose, or are you able to filter out the typical sounds of the day and use your tunnelvision?

Total and complete quiet. There’s a door to the attic that, when closed, everyone knows to steer clear from unless the apocalypse is descending upon us or arterial blood is spilling.

7. Do you listen to music while you write, and if so, what kind? If not, why not?

No music. If I did I’d listen to it, sing along, and then search for more. No work would ever get done.

8. How did you come up with the plotline/idea for your current WIP?

When the Wild Rose Press out a call for the Candy Hearts series, Chloe San Valentino and her family  popped fully formed into my head within  seconds. It took me only 2 weeks to write 3 WISHES and nothing was changed in the editing process, storyline-wise.

9. Which comes first for you – character or plot? And why?

Character always comes first  because once I see the person I want to write about I am able to construct a story for them. I have a little difficulty just pulling a storyline out of my a--, uh, imagination, without first getting a good mental picture of my hero/heroine.

10. What 3 words describes you, the writer?

 Quick, determined, focused.

How about Peggy-the-person?

1. Tell us one unusual thing about yourself – not related to writing!

My left eye is significantly smaller than my right due to numerous ocular surgeries.

2. Who was your first love and what age were you?

Roddy McDowell and I was 11

3. If you could relive one day, which one would it be? Think GROUNDHOG DAY, the movie for this one – you’ll have to live it over and over and….

The day my daughter won the N H state spelling bee and we knew we were heading to nationals in Washington, D..C

4. Do you like a guy in boxers, briefs, or commando?

 Boxers, everytime.

5. If you had to give up one necessary-can’t-live-without-it beauty item, what would it be?

Lip stick.

6. What three words describes you, the person?

Tortured, anxious, shy

7. If you could sing a song with Jimmy Fallon, what would it be?

All About the Bass by Megan Trainor.

8. If you could hang out with any literary character from any book penned at any time line, who would it by, why, and what would you do together?

Lizzy Bennett from Pride and Prejudice.  I’d want to know if she really married Darcy for love, or if she married him because she loved Pemberely.

Now, kudos to Peggy for this bonus round - her version of The Actor’s Studio  questions:

1. Favorite sound: the spring rain against the skylights in my attic when I am writing.
2. Least favorite sound : Poverty
3. Best song every written : Secret Agent Man by Jonny Rivers.
4. Worst song ever written : Don’t Worry, Be happy ( it’s soooooooooo annoying!)
5. Favorite actor and actress: Kevin Spacey/ Dianne Lane
6. Who would you want to be for 1 day and why? ( It can be anyone living or dead) Nora Roberts. I’d like to feel what it’s like to be such a loved  and respected author!
7. What turns you on? :Wit
8. What turns you off?: Condescension
9. Give me the worst 5 words ever heard on a first date : “Is that your real hair?”
10. What’s your version of a perfect day? Any day I can spend with my daughter and husband, without pagers going off or obligations that need to be fulfilled.

I assure you 3 Wishes is a fun and sweet a read as Peggy. Be sure to check it out!

Blurb:

Valentine’s Day is chocolatier Chloe San Valentino’s favorite day of the year. Not only is it the busiest day in her candy shop, Caramelle de Chloe, but it’s also her birthday. Chloe’s got a birthday wish list for the perfect man she pulls out every year: he’d fall in love with her in a heartbeat, he’d be someone who cares about people, and he’d have one blue eye and one green eye, just like her. So far, Chloe’s fantasy man hasn’t materialized, despite the matchmaking efforts of her big, close-knit Italian family. But this year for her big 3-0 birthday, she just might get her three wishes.

Excerpt:

            At about five minutes of ten I was almost ready to turn the Closed sign on the door when it opened. I heard Janie’s breath hitch and turned from where I was sweeping up. Staying open late is always a risk, with the thought thieves will invade at the end of the day.

            If the guy standing at the door glancing around the shop was a thief, then Dio mio, I wanted to be robbed.

            About six foot, his hair was the color of a deer’s pelt, with autumnal golds and browns shot together in a glorious patchwork that grazed the collar of his jacket and curled a little at the ends. He wore a faded brown bomber jacket over a shirt I couldn’t see, but he had shoulders almost as wide as my doorway. A pair of well-worn jeans covered his mile long legs, and the fabric on the stress points at his knees was practically white.

            “We’re about to close,” I heard myself say. “Can I help you?”

            It was at that moment he looked over at me.

            His face could have been sculpted by Da Vinci or Michelangelo. A broad, smooth, forehead housed naturally arched eyebrows I knew some of my gay guy friends would have paid a fortune to have on their own faces. His cheeks were carved from marble, high, smooth and deep. And his mouth, mother-of-God, his mouth. Full, thick beautiful lips sat perfectly over a chin with a dent you could shove a button into and have it stay put.

            “Sorry,” he said, those fabulous lips pulling up a little shyly at the corners. “I got stuck at work and couldn’t get here until now. I’ll be quick. Promise.”

            So here’s the thing: the guy was gorgeous. But even if he’d looked like a frog with raw antipasto smothering his face, I would have dropped to my knees when he opened his mouth. Warm honey, a shot of raw whiskey, and a little hot puff of smoke wafted from his mouth like a fine and rare brandy being decanted.

Buy Links:  Amazon   Wild Rose Press

Author Bio:

Peggy Jaeger is a contemporary romance author who writes about strong women, the families who support them, and the men who can't live without them. 

Her current titles, available now, include SKATER'S WALTZ and THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME, and FIRST IMPRESSIONS books 1 through 3 in her 6-book The MacQuire Women Series, published by The Wild Rose Press.

Peggy holds a master's degree in Nursing Administration and first found publication with several articles she authored on Alzheimer's Disease during her time running an Alzheimer's in-patient care unit during the 1990s. 

A lifelong and avid romance reader and writer, she is a member of RWA and her local New Hampshire RWA Chapter.

You can find Peggy here:

Website/Blog: http://peggyjaeger.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/peggy_jaeger

Amazon Author page:http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00T8E5LN0

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Peggy-Jaeger-Author/825914814095072?ref=bookmarks

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/peggyjaeger/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13478796.Peggy_Jaeger

Instagram: https://instagram.com/mmj122687/