BookLover Sue: Author Interview, Excerpt & Giveaway - Triangulating Bliss by Janelle Jalbert

Triangulating Bliss

by Janelle Jalbert

GENRE: Contemporary Paranormal Women’s Fiction

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BLURB:

A struggling veteran reads about the mysterious death of a local athlete and wants to learn more. He meets the owner of the business linked to the crime and discovers others have “disappeared”.

All stories include a man with dark hair, blue eyes, and a strong jaw.

Then, it’s his turn.

The mysterious forces at Bliss change everything. What brought them all to Bliss is not as it appears and their lives are powerfully interconnected across space and time.

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EXCERPT:

Greg’s hand shook. It wasn’t enough for the woman behind the counter to notice though. It wasn’t from his morning caffeine rush. He’d skipped his morning pick-me-up in favor of completing the mission in short order. It was too many months overdue.

The pen slipped from his hand, more from the sheen of perspiration than the shaking. Get it together man! He shouted within the confines of his mind. You’re a soldier…were a soldier. Man up! You want to do this. The decision’s been made. Sign it. He grabbed the pen once again, and let it flow automatically across the paper.

The woman took the form, and her nails began clicking away on the keyboard. Her eyes darted between the form and the computer screen. Seconds, maybe minutes, passed. Greg wasn’t sure. There were no clocks to tick off the time, just the woman’s ping-ponging eyes. Greg felt the weight shifting, finally, and continued to wait. Complete relief, however, remained elusive. I took the plunge…took action…that’s what matters. He reassured himself. It’ll just take some time.

“Here you go,” the woman gave a tight, polite smile. “It’s official. If you need transcripts, it will take 7-10 days for your records to be updated.”

“Thanks,” Greg took the paperwork and turned towards the door. It was deceptively simple. Law school was officially part of the past, yet the weight of expectations remained.

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Talking with author Janelle Jalbert!

What is your writing environment?

I tend to keep my writing environment flexible though I have a dedicated office with an ocean theme, pictures of loved ones and my travels, and all that kind of stuff. I write in the office when I need to hyper focus and pound things out, but sometimes it can seem claustrophobic. When that happens, I’ll write from the couch in the living room or go out to a local coffee house to get some extra air and stimulation.

Who is your perfect hero/heroine and why?

My perfect hero is balanced. I’m not a fan of uber-Alphas or whiny wimps either. Physically speaking, I don’t have a preferred appearance. It’s more about a blend of intelligence, wit, and joie de vivre. I like both heroes and heroines to be real people with histories and challenges that have been overcome and still have a sense that life is to be lived fully. Those ideas were something that guided how Greg, Jen, and Lois in particular evolved in TRIANGULATING BLISS. In fact, I had to work hard for Greg to tell me a huge part of his past as the novel went into final preparations. He still felt a little “wussy” to me until he revealed his motivation for entering the Army. Now, I see that he was more complex than I first realized, even through more than two dozen rounds of editing.

What authors have caught your interest lately and why?

Lately, I have seeking out more indie authors rather than bigger names to get some freshness in my reading experiences. I have been enjoying stories in line with the direction of my own writing. Julianne MacLean’s COLOR OF HEAVEN series as well as Vickie McKeehan’s PELICAN POINTE SERIES are more recent favorites. Given the challenges I had in pitching TRIANGULATING BLISS, I want to support fellow writers who blur the lines of genres while added touches of the supernatural.

What type of book have you always wanted to write?

I don’t have a set type of book that I enjoy reading or writing. I think TRIANGULATING BLISS reflects that eclectic approach as well. I enjoy intrigue and mystery as well as paranormal/supernatural/magical elements. My guilty pleasure is a good HEA story as well. Then, there’s my terminal travel bug inclination that often include a variety of settings. All of that is encompassed in TRIANGULATING BLISS, so I have to say this is the type of book I have always wanted to write. I’m focused on creating stories that celebrate the “magic in everyday living” in all the wonderful forms that it takes.

Top 3 things on your bucket list?

This is an interesting question since I have had a bucket list from a young age and chose to work through as many items as possible at any opportunity I had rather than waiting until some future point. I suppose that I’ll stick to the yet to be attempted items…

The first thing (as in possibly the most challenging to arrange) is that I want to fly with the Navy’s Blue Angels. My dad was a huge aviation fan and took me to tons of air shows when I was younger. The Blue angels were always my favorite part.

Second, I’d love to adopt a child (or two). There are some things that are in the way of doing that at this time, so hopefully that will be possible in the near future.

Third, I want to drive a race car, on a real race track, at real speed. Luckily, I have plans to do that one this month at the race track near my home.

How did you get the idea for this particular novel?

Honestly, I hadn’t thought about my writing in a couple of years. More specifically, I hadn’t thought about fiction writing since college (many, many, moons ago) when the idea came to me. My life-long friend and I were leaving a restaurant after commiserating about how our lives had seemed to go off course from what we dreamed. As I walked through the door and turned to hold it for my friend, the idea of walking through a door and entering into your perfect life hit me. Of course, the characters threw some curveballs into the mix as they told me their tales, but the story became something fabulous and beyond anything that I could have originally imagined.

What is your favorite scene in your new release?

Oh, that’s a hard one. I have several moments that resonate and tug at my heart. I know the hardest was the final scene with Lois. That scene actually stalled the initial drafting for a week as I was also facing the final days with my dad who was diagnosed with terminal cancer while I was drafting TRIANGULATING BLISS. There are two that make me smile. The first is when Jen and Greg have their beach date. I had no idea when I began writing the scene that it would develop the way it did. A similar situation happened with the epilogue. The way it brought everything full circle always leaves me smiling. I wish I could say that it was planned that way all along, but I know it was truly a gift from the writing muse, from above, or from whatever benevolent force that was at play.

What are you working on now and when can we expect it to be available?

The next installment in THE MYSTIQUE OF LIVING SERIES is TRIANGULATING SELF, which is Phil’s story and perspective on the Bliss Triangle. It is due to be released in the Spring/Summer of 2016 along with a slight departure from the Mystique Series with WING DOG: SOUL PUP. If you enjoyed Marley & Me, The Art of Racing in the Rain, and/or A Dog’s Purpose, you’ll definitely want to read WING DOG: SOUL PUP as a “Magical Mutt Memoir”.

What do you like to do when you are not writing?

The last couple of years have been challenging after the loss of both my dad and my sister and a busy writing/publishing schedule, so I haven’t had a lot of “free fun time” lately. Given the opportunity and the means, I would like to give into my wanderlust and do more traveling again. In reality, I currently spend my non-writing time training for a half-marathon for my next birthday, decompressing with my furry boys (pups), and undermining some of my training by performing kitchen/grill therapy (usually with wine in hand).

What is one interesting fact about you that readers don’t know?

Though I got the first “a-ha” moment about wanting to be a writer when I was 10 years old, many of the teachers and adults in my life all the way through high school thought I was going to go into science or math. I couldn’t spell well or keep up with reading in elementary school because of a mild form of dyslexia, but in junior high I went all the way to state competition with a science fair project related to seismology. I’ve always had a passion for rocks, so they thought that was the direction I’d take. In high school, I was two years ahead in math too, so they referred to me as a math prodigy (hardly). I had to teach myself how to deal with my dyslexia because my teachers didn’t understand what was going on. After all, I was an honors student, so they didn’t think about a learning challenge being thrown into the mix. Once I figured all of that out, writing took over as my ambition, despite some detours along the way.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Janelle Jalbert has ghostwritten 15 nonfiction books on topics ranging from productivity, money management, marketing, cooking, and relationships. She also worked as a copywriter for some of the biggest online names and worked as a motorsports reporter covering NASCAR. Jalbert enjoys bringing stories to life that celebrate the magic in everyday living. To learn more about her current and upcoming releases and promotions visit www.janellejalbert.com. Jalbert currently lives in Southern California, though she regularly returns to her second home in North Carolina when her pack of pups grants her a vacation.

The “Bliss Challenge” is an effort to take the spirit of the novel’s beloved character, Lois, and help make wishes come true. Ten percent of the proceeds from Triangulating Bliss and 100% of the proceeds from the novel’s companion guide, The Backdoor to Bliss, will be given to a Make-A-Wish program voted on by readers. Selections are based on reader votes for their favorite characters: Los Angeles for Greg, Henri, and Mikel; Chicago for Lois; Charlotte for Jen; and New York for Richard. The goal is to grant at least one wish for a child in the winning city based on funds raised from the novel and guide. Voting and challenge updates can be found at www.TriangulatingBliss.com/BlissChallenge

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/justjjwriting

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/janellejalbert.author

Author Website: http://www.janellejalbert.com

Goodreads Author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/Janelle_Jalbert

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Janelle-Jalbert/e/B00Q5MD7AW

BN Author Page: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/janelle-jalbert

Author’s Extras!: http://synchron8publishing.com/triangulating-bliss-launch