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Author Update: Sarah H. Baker

Author and retired engineer Sarah H. Baker (writing as S. H. Baker, Sarah Storme, and Lydia Parks) has released 20 novels, numerous novellas and short stories, and three audio books. Her publishers include Kensington, Harlequin, Five Star, and Siren Audio. S. H. Baker’s Return to Marshall’s Bayou, a full-cast audio version of the first book in her Dassas Cormier Mystery series, was recommended for an Edgar Award. In 2018, Sarah released four books from her Sarah Storme backlist including the romance novel The Long Way Home. You’ll find Sarah on Facebook and her website at SarahHanberryBaker.com, as well as her Amazon author pages for S. H. Baker and Sarah Storme. Read more about Sarah in her 2015 interview for SouthWest Writers.


Who are the main characters in Return to Marshall’s Bayou, and how did you develop them?
The main character is Dassas Cormier, a young man whose father was Acadian and whose mother was European. Dassas returns to southwest Louisiana after a disastrous end to his law-enforcement career, only to find out the local chief of police has been murdered. The other main characters are Alcide (Dassas’ brother), Becky (Alcide’s wife), and Frank, the oldest of their children. Dassas formed organically and truly told me his story. His is the strongest voice I’ve ever heard when writing. And the family relationships grew out of his character. As an older sibling myself, I often identified with Alcide, but Dassas will always be close to my heart.

What would you like readers to know about the story?
The story is a mystery, but it’s also about coming home to the comfort and support of a family. Dassas has suffered a terrible emotional trauma that he likely wouldn’t have survived without the love of his brother and sister-in-law. Return to Marshall’s Bayou is the audio book based on the first in the Dassas Cormier mystery series, Murder in Marshall’s Bayou. When Siren Audio bought the audio rights to the first book, they changed the title because they wanted to focus on the homecoming. I’m thrilled with the result.

You’ve written four books in the Dassas Cormier Mystery series (with a fifth in the works). What sparked the original idea for the first novel?
My grandmother was born in 1901 in Johnsons Bayou, Louisiana. The area was as remote as an island; people traveled in and out on the mail boat. When my grandmother died, she left behind a dresser drawer of letters she and her family had exchanged. The letters were the equivalent of our phone calls and held all kinds of insights into daily life in the 20s in that area. I couldn’t help but use them as background. I pulled names from my grandfather’s Acadian family of twelve children—Dassas Broussard was the oldest. I never met the man, but I liked his name. I used Alcide for the same reason and put the two of them together. Ironically, I found out after writing the book that Dassas and Alcide had been close in real life and even worked together. And I also found out one of the sisters had married a Cormier. Life imitating art?

Return to Marshall’s Bayou takes place in 1920s Louisiana. What is it about this time and place that makes the perfect setting for the book?
The 1920s was one of the most exciting decades in US history. Women were getting the vote, automobiles were replacing the horse and buggy, and Prohibition sent people to speakeasies for fun. Southwest Louisiana was so remote, it still had some of the Victorian values, but the rest of the world was intruding. It was also the home of the Cajun cowboys and European Protestant settlers, which sometimes sparked societal friction. What could be more interesting?

You’ve done two full-cast audio books now. How did that experience affect your writing going forward?
Working on the full-cast audio books was the highlight of my writing career. I didn’t expect to hear the actors’ voices in place of the characters’ in my head, but I do. I pay more attention to the rhythm and sounds of my writing than I did before. I’ve also realized how important it is to get those sounds right. An added bonus to the whole experience is I ended up with some really great friends from the publishing house and the actors who participated.

The Long Way Home is one of four books you released from your Sarah Storme backlist in 2018. At its heart, what is this story about?
The Long Way Home is about finding a second chance for love, and understanding that home isn’t a house but a place where you truly belong.

Tell us a little about your main characters and why readers will connect with them.
Sam is a veterinarian in a remote area of Colorado. He’s dealing with a teenage daughter who spends the summers with him and always shows up carrying her mother’s anger. Although Sam has been burned by his ex, he still expects the best from those he meets, and that endears him to me and (I hope) to readers. I think readers will appreciate his kindness and tenderness, wrapped in strength of character.

Allie is a woman running from an emotionally abusive marriage. When Allie’s car breaks down in the Colorado mountains, she realizes her husband has so isolated her that she has no one to turn to. Sam gives her a place to stay until she can get back on her feet. Allie’s one true desire—having grown up an orphan—is to have a home. Although her wealthy husband provided her with a nice house, it was anything but a home. As she tries to repay Sam’s kindness by helping him connect with his daughter, Allie discovers that Sam’s place is the real home she seeks. Even if readers haven’t suffered the trials Allie has, I believe they’ll understand her desires and will cheer for her.

Why did you choose Colorado as the setting for the book?
I lived in a small town in western Colorado for a few years, and I appreciate the beauty of the state and the remoteness of the area. I based Sam’s office on the office of our local veterinarian, who even had a cat he’d found frozen to the sidewalk, like Popsicle in the book. The vet wasn’t exactly Sam (more like Doc from Gunsmoke), but he was a nice guy.

What unique challenges did this work pose for you?
I’d moved from Colorado before I started work on this project, so I had to spend time thinking back on the setting and reviewing photos. Other than that, the story flowed. When I was young, I wanted to be a veterinarian, so it was fairly easy to get into the role.

What was your favorite part of putting this project together?
My very favorite part of this project was Sam, the main character. He was so full of emotion and conflict, and yet so kind, it was easy to fall for him. After having more than a dozen romance novels published, he’s still my favorite hero.

Looking back to the beginning of your writing/publishing career, what do you know now that you wish you’d known then?
Everything I know now I wish I’d known then! I had no idea what I was doing when I started my first book. Still, I think I learn best by doing, so maybe I started at the right place for me. Because I had no illusions around my level of knowledge, I was open to learning from every editor with whom I had the opportunity to work.

What do many writers misunderstand about telling a story?
I think many writers who are just starting out do the same things I did at first: they don’t start in the middle of the action, and they feel the need to tell the reader all the backstory. I had the opportunity to work as an acquiring editor at a small press for a short time, and I learned just how quickly you have to grab the editor’s attention. If you can’t grab an editor’s attention, you won’t be able to grab a reader’s. Jumping into a story mid-stride isn’t natural. It takes practice, but it’s very important to do.

Are you working on any new writing projects?
I’m currently working on speculative fiction set in the future. Having recently retired, I’m anxious to share what I learned about how we’re changing our ecosystem. I think the best way to do that is to paint a realistic picture of the future through fiction. This is very different for me, so we’ll see how it goes.


KLWagoner150_2KL Wagoner (writing as Cate Macabe) is the author of This New Mountain: a memoir of AJ Jackson, private investigator, repossessor, and grandmother. Kathy has a new speculative fiction blog at klwagoner.com and writes about memoir at ThisNewMountain.com.




2018 Releases for Authors Robert D. Kidera, Sarah Storme, and D. E. Williams

Robert Kidera, Sarah Storme (aka Sarah Baker), and D. E. Williams are three of the most active members of SouthWest Writers (SWW) who continue to provide stories their fans adore. Each of these authors represents a different genre, but all have new releases (or re-releases) for 2018 and all have one or more interviews posted on the SWW website.


Robert Kidera is the author of the award-winning Gabe McKenna Mystery series with four books released through Suspense Publishing since 2015. His newest novel is Midnight Blues. You’ll find Bob on his website RobertKideraBooks.com and on Facebook and Twitter. Read more about him and his series in his 2015 and 2017 interviews.

Midnight Blues
What kind of person would harm a child? Neophyte P.I. Gabe McKenna and his buddy The Onion find out the hard way, when their plan to ransom a kidnapped boy goes terribly wrong. Finding themselves in a battle against international human traffickers, they rely on the help of unlikely friends in a race against time to rescue dozens of enslaved young victims. In a final, deadly showdown at a New Mexico ghost town, Gabe faces his ultimate challenge. How high a price is he willing to pay? Can he risk death and his own conscience to save the innocent without turning into his enemy?

Available on Amazon.


Sarah Baker writes mystery as S.H. Baker, romance as Sarah Storme, and erotica as Lydia Parks, and currently has 20 novels, numerous novellas and short stories, and three audiobooks available. Her publishers include Kensington, Harlequin, Five Star, Siren Audio and others. In 2018 she released four books from her backlist. You’ll find Sarah on Facebook and Twitter. Discover more about her writing in her 2015 interview.

The Long Way Home was originally published by Five Star and reviewed by Library Journal. Hardbacks are in libraries worldwide, but this is the first time in e-book.

Sam Calvert is the only veterinarian within a hundred miles of Rocky Butte, Colorado. He doesn’t have time to get involved with anyone, but when a stranger appears at the local bar, he can’t let her walk out into the night alone. Allie Tate has hit rock bottom. The only thing she really wants is a home, but life won’t cooperate. When she discovered her husband cheating, she ran. Her car, however, died in the mountains, so she’s on foot without money or a friend…

Available on Amazon.

Strength of a Promise was also published by Five Star. This is its first time in paperback or e-book.

Diana Duncan left New York to find a safe place to raise her daughter. She hopes Hillton, Texas will be that haven, but the house she inherited needs more work than she realized. Thad Crowley has returned to Hillton to care for his aging mother. Repairing a roof for Diana Duncan is the first decent job he’s had in a year. Diana thinks Thad is good-looking and hard-working, but the town hates him and no one will tell her why. Can she trust him around her daughter? Thad can’t tell Diana about his past. A twenty-year-old promise is still a promise. And if he breaks his promise, he won’t be worthy of Diana’s love.

Available on Amazon.

Just Kiss Me and Bayou Rhapsody are books one and two in the Hearts of Marshall’s Bayou historical romance series, originally published by Echelon Press. Book four, Angel in My Arms, is only available in audio, and book three, Moonlight on the Marsh, has not yet been released.

Just Kiss Me: In 1918 Marshall’s Bayou, Louisiana is being ravaged by a drought, but no matter how bad things get, Alberta Strickler will never leave her home and family. And she’ll never let a man rule her life the way her domineering father has. Isaac Broussard, an easy-going Frenchman, is eager to find a place to settle down. He isn’t impressed with Marshall’s Bayou until he meets the woman who steals his heart. Problem is, she’s determined to send him away. As Isaac works to win over Alberta, it isn’t just her stubbornness that gets in the way. Her father is certain Isaac is no good. Can Isaac win Alberta’s heart? And even if he can, will they be able to overcome the social prejudices of those around them in order to be together?

 

Bayou Rhapsody: Daniel Griffin is the new minister in Marshall’s Bayou, Louisiana. This post is not a prestigious one, but it offers the opportunity to examine his faith and maybe prove himself worthy of returning to Atlanta. Unfortunately, his faith seems to be on the verge of abandoning him altogether. Mae Strickler doesn’t intend to stay in Marshall’s Bayou for long. It’s 1920 and there’s a whole world waiting for her. The appearance of the handsome stranger on the boat home promises to make her visit more fun until she discovers he’s the new Methodist minister. Mae finds Daniel more than a little attractive. And Daniel is drawn to her strength, independence, and wild beauty. Mae soon realizes her reputation could ruin his career if they give in to the attraction…

Just Kiss Me and Bayou Rhapsody are available on Amazon. See Sarah Storme’s Amazon author page for more of her books.

A note from Sarah: The Cold Hand, the last of the Dassas Cormier Mystery Series (by S. H. Baker) will be released in 2019 or 2020. I have also outlined a new series, The Tru Mystery Series, set in the near future in Albuquerque. The first book, Dying of Thirst, may be published in 2019. My current passion is for writing short stories; I’ve submitted several to magazines and contests, and I’m working on my critique group’s self-published anthology.


D. E. Williams began writing at the age of 10 but didn’t pursue it as a career until later in life. Between working full-time as a software trainer and honing her writing craft on her off-hours, she managed to publish an award-winning speculative fiction novel, Child of Chaos, in 2015. Chaos Unleashed (2018) is the second book in The Chesan Legacy series. You’ll find Dollie on her website at DollieWilliams.com and on Facebook. Read more about her writing in her 2017 SWW interview.

Chaos Unleashed:
Tridia Odana faces a death sentence if her hidden memories reveal she committed the crimes she’s denied. Her forgotten past is not the only danger. The Chaos Vision foretold that she could destroy the galaxy through a brutal holocaust. Brenden Aren stands ready to execute her to save the galaxy from a nightmarish future. Only reaching an exiled prince to recreate the vision could prove Tridia’s innocence, but she’s forbidden to approach him. And a Hierarchy officer always obeys orders — doesn’t she? As Tridia and Brenden rush toward their inevitable confrontation, an ancient enemy prowls at the edge of the galaxy, preparing to launch an invasion to enslave Tridia’s people and conquer the known worlds. Encountering these foes plunges Tridia and her allies to the brink of a war that will bring the Chaos Vision to life. Her sacrifice could save them all—or guarantee a horrific outcome. Does she dare take the chance?

Available on Amazon.

Coming Up: An author update interview in January focusing on Chaos Unleashed.


KLWagoner150_2KL Wagoner (writing as Cate Macabe) is the author of This New Mountain: a memoir of AJ Jackson, private investigator, repossessor, and grandmother. Kathy has a new speculative fiction blog at klwagoner.com and writes about memoir at ThisNewMountain.com.




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