by Andrea Grigg
Hi everyone. Today it is my pleasure to introduce you to Varina Denman, author of Jaded
Welcome, Varina, and here come the questions!
Where were you born and raised? Where do
you live now?
I was born in Post, a small town in West Texas, but I don’t
remember living there. The Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex is where I spent my
young years, and I lived in a small town during high school. Now, my husband
and I live in a suburb of Fort Worth, so I’m Texas bred through and through.
I'm kinda partial to Texas. I spent some time in Tyler way back in 1980. It's probably changed a bit since then ;)
Tell us a little about your
family.
We’ve been married for twenty-eight years and have five children
(three daughters and two sons). The oldest two are married, and the third is in
the Marine reserves. The baby girls are still at home, and we have loads of fun
together. They’re in high school now, and since I home school them, we see a
LOT of each other.
Wow! Five kids! And having been a teacher myself, I admire anyone who home-schools. It amazes me how you find time to write! Which brings me to my next question ...
How do you find time to write?
I strategically carve out time in my schedule and guard it like a mother bear protecting her cubs: ferociously.
I'm not surprised!
How did you and
your husband meet?
We met on a blind date (sort of). Actually, I had seen him
from a distance, and he had seen me from the back, but we agreed to go out. Our
sisters set us up, but when they first wanted to introduce us, I was a junior
in high school, and he was a junior in college … so they had to wait until I
grew up!
That's funny. I get teased about that too except I'm the cradle snatcher :)
Five interesting facts
about yourself -
I eat very little sugar because it makes me intolerably
cranky. (My family could tell you stories). I attended three colleges over five
years studying four majors and earning zero degrees. I once performed in the
halftime show at a Dallas Cowboy football game. I played with baby dolls until
junior high school, and even then, I only put them away because I was embarrassed.
I didn’t start writing until I was forty-two-years-old. (I was real busy before
that.)
Now those are interesting facts! Can't imagine what was stopping you from writing ...
Name three fabulous books
you’ve read this year:
I haven’t had much time to read this year (and I’m
feeling QUITE deprived because of it), but here are my faves so far: The Girl
on the Train, by Paula Hawkins; The Storyteller, by Jodi Picoult; and … (don’t
laugh!) … The Good Girl’s Guide to Great Sex, by Sheila Wray Gregoire.
Not laughing. They're now ALL on my TBR pile.
Three favourite authors:
Eww, that’s a hard one, but I’ll go with Jane Austen, Sophie Kinsella, and
Nicholas Sparks.
Great choices. (I have all the Nicholas Sparks books)
What would be your dream
vacation?
Water, sunshine, and a lounge chair. And my husband. And a glass of
caffeine-free diet Dr. Pepper. And a good book.
Well, just come on over to the Gold Coast with your husband. You might have to bring your own Dr Pepper but we have everything else!
Choose any three people
(past or present) you would like to have dinner with. What
Robin Williams, Tim Conway, and Bob Newhart. I would let them talk about
whatever they wanted, and I would laugh until I got that painful stitch in my
side.
Could I please join you? Lol. Literally.
What are you working on at
the moment?
Right now, I’m finishing up final edits on Jilted, the final book in the mended hearts series. Here’s the back
cover blurb:
Lynda Turner has struggled
with depression for years, ever since her husband abandoned her and their young
daughter. Now, the town’s ex-convict begins to show her interest, but Lynda
hesitates to consider him a viable option, knowing the townspeople will have a heyday
with their gossip. When long-hidden mysteries begin to unravel, Lynda must
fight, not only for her emotional stability, but also for the promise of
happiness she has sought all along.
I can't wait to read Jilted. I was hoping I'd get to find out about Lynda's story. All the best for the edits and thank you so much for joining us.
Andrea, thank you for inviting me to the ACW blog. I've enjoyed being here!
Andrea is an author and avid reader
of contemporary romance. She has written two novels: A Simple Mistake and Too
Pretty.
Andrea would love to hear from you via her website or Facebook page:
http://www.andreagrigg.com/
https://www.facebook.com/author.andreagrigg
