Interview with Tam Derudder Jackson, WILD FOR ME

Thanks for the opportunity to talk about writing and my books.

 

Wild For Me is Book Three in the Balefire Series. This is Dakota Perri, the lead guitarist’s story. Dakota is a wild man. He’s all about the music and the party that comes with being a member of a mega band. Women are part of that party, but one woman caught his attention after a concert two years before the story begins, and she keeps making an appearance in his memory since their one-night stand.

 

Annabelle Stewart attended a Balefire concert with her best friend Clio in Play For Me, Book One in this series. She had two missions: 1) do Jack Whitehorse a favor in exchange for tickets to the show and 2) meet and hook up with Dakota Perri. She accomplishes both goals and thinks that’s the end of it. Then she reconnects with Dakota at Jack and Clio’s wedding, and things become complicated—for both of them.

 

Both Dakota and Annabelle were fun characters in previous books, so it seemed only right to put them together and give them their own book. As for who are my favorite characters, truthfully, my favorite characters are always the ones I’m writing in the moment.

 

I decided to go the self-publishing route because I wanted control over my career: deadlines, publishing dates, and my team of editors and designers. I work with both an interior designer and a cover designer. I give my interior designer ideas of what I’m looking for with fonts and “pretties” in the text, and my cover designer and I bounce ideas off each other until we reach an outcome we both like. About six years ago, I found my professional editor through the Editorial Freelancers Association, and she’s worked on every book I’ve written so far, including a couple that haven’t been published yet.

 

What I’ve learned in my self-publishing journey is that there are a lot of moving parts to the publishing business, and a self-published author needs to wear several hats: author, business CEO, publicist, and marketer. For me, the most difficult part is marketing, which is something that I continue to challenge myself to learn more about. But the self-publishing community is truly generous and helpful to each other. I’ve learned so much about how to be a better writer as well as tips and tricks on the other parts of publishing from other self-published authors.

 

My advice for a new author just starting out with self-publishing: read as much as you can about your craft first and then about the business side of publishing. If you can, attend some writing conferences and network with other authors. Look around on social media for writing groups and follow and talk to other authors. Most of all, when you’ve finished writing your book, hire an editor. I can’t stress that enough. If you can’t afford to hire an editor, save up. If you plan to have a writing career rather than only publishing a book, you owe it to your readers to give them the best reading experience you can. That’s going to require professional editing of your work. Readers can tell when you don’t do this. (I’m a recovering high school English teacher with a ton of editing experience—and I don’t edit my own books. Just sayin.) A professional editor has a skill set that’s different from and supersedes someone who only has a degree in English. An editor will help you put your most polished words out there. The best thing you can do for your books is to have them professionally edited.

 

More than anything, I LOVE to write. But I’m also a voracious reader with an insane TBR pile. I love to travel, attend rock concerts, and spend my winters skiing.

 

Fun facts about me: my go-to drink when I’m writing is Choffy—chocolate that looks and brews like coffee—so delicious. I’m a total dog person. (Cats are cute, but I’m allergic to them.) I consider chocolate a foundational food group. I text almost exclusively. I’m a complete night owl, though I write in the mornings. My favorite rock band is Shinedown followed closely by Theory of a Deadman and Daughtry. I’ve seen each of them live three times (so far ;) ).

 

What’s coming up for me? Simultaneously with launching and promoting Wild For Me, I’m finishing revisions suggested by my editor for Hot For Me, the next book in the Balefire Series, which is coming out in January 2022. My beta readers want me to redeem Garrett, Balefire’s manager, so during NaNo, I’m writing the first draft of Stay For Me, Garrett’s book and the fifth one in the Balefire Series.

 

Thanks again for inviting me to play on your blog today. =)

 

Wild For Me
Tam DeRudder Jackson
(Balefire Series, #3)
Publication date: November 18th 2021
Genres: Adult, New Adult, Romance

Dakota

Annabelle Stewart, all tight leather skirt and hot lace panties, thundered into my life for one night after a rock show and calmly drove away the next day. She should have been like any other one-night stand I’ve had over the last ten years touring with Balefire. But she wasn’t. At odd moments, I catch myself thinking about her, wondering if I made as big an impression on her as she did on me.

Then I walk into the rehearsal for our drummer’s wedding, and who’s standing with the bride? The hottie who keeps me awake with thoughts of our one night together. Beautiful, smart, and sassy as hell, Annabelle sets me on fire with her kisses and leaves me hanging. But I’ve got plans for her.

Annabelle

I never expected to see him again. Two years after hooking up with Dakota Perri after a Balefire concert, I’d convinced myself that night was a fantasy. But the way he looks at me during Jack and Clio’s wedding, like he remembers every second of our one-night stand, lights me up. Too bad I blew it.

Then I score a management internship with the band, an opportunity guaranteed to land me a scholarship with a top graduate program—if I don’t earn a reputation for sleeping my way to success. Which is a problem. I see Dakota every day. Every time we’re together, the sparks fly faster and hotter. If I want to achieve my goals, I have to resist him. But how can I resist a man as panty-meltingly hot as Dakota Perri when he says he’s wild for me?

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Author Bio:

Tam DeRudder Jackson is the author of the paranormal romance Talisman Series and the contemporary romance Balefire Series. Her favorite “room” in her house is her back patio where she dreams up stories of romance and risk. When she’s not writing her latest paranormal or contemporary romance, you can usually find her driving around with the top down in her convertible or carving turns on the slopes of the local ski hill. The mom of two grown sons, Tam likes to travel, attend rock concerts, watch football and soccer, and visit old car shows with her husband. She lives in the mountains of northwest Wyoming where she spends most of her free time trying to read all the books. Her TBR piles are threatening to take over her office, and she’s fine with that.

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