The burning question of the day: Who designed our cover? In the fifth post of this series, you’re going to meet not only a fellow author of the Second Chance for Love anthology, but also its cover designer! And, in honor of Mother’s Day, our publisher, Melange Books, LLC, will have the eBook available for free on Amazon from May 7-9!
I present to you the enchanting and brilliant Caroline Andrus!
Caroline Andrus was born and raised in the St. Paul suburbs where she now lives with her husband, two daughters, and Henry McCoy—her cat, who is actually a wild cougar trapped in a housecat’s body. She divides her time between writing, Facebook, designing, and managing her household. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, rocking out to the radio, and gardening (but only in the hot summer months.) She is passionate about both reading and writing teen fiction, and is pretty sure she will forever be eighteen at heart.
Website: http://www.CarolineAndrus.com
Blog: http://www.CarolineAndrus.com/blog
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/CarolineAndrusDesigns
Twitter: @FaerieTears
Mr. Right or Mr. Right Now by Caroline Andrus
Celebrity photographer Rebecca thought her life was perfect, until she walked in on her husband and the nanny—in bed. A drunk phone call later, she’s managed to snag the most sought after male nanny in Los Angeles. Months later, at her best friends urging, she dives back into the dating pool, but will she end up with Mr. Right Now, or will she realize Mr. Right is already at home with her kids?
STANDARDISHUE INTERVIEW
Katie: Would you share a special moment from a story you’ve written?
Caroline: This is one of my favorite parts from my story in Second Chance For Love.
“Oh shoot!” She stared at the floor. “I dropped the darn back to my earring.”
She dropped to her hands and knees on the floor, searching for the tiny metal piece. Simon quickly joined her, his hands working across the plush cream colored carpet beneath them.
“Aha!” he cried triumphantly, his hand in a tight fist shot into the air.
“Thank you.” Her voice was a breath as she reached her hand out, palm open. Simon set the earring back gently on her palm, then with his other hand, closed her fingers around it.
“You’re welcome,” he said, his amber eyes staring deep into her blue ones.
There was a knock at the door and Rebecca started at the sound. She smiled apologetically and let him help her to her feet. As she turned her back on him to answer the door, Simon said something that caused her to turn back.
“Ollie is right. You really do look beautiful.”
She blushed and smiled at the floor. “Thank you.”
Katie: Do you believe in love at first sight?
Caroline: I don’t believe in LOVE at first sight, but I do believe in LUST or ATTRACTION at first sight, which can turn into LOVE. I believe to truly love someone, you have to know them, therefor, love at first sight doesn’t fit. When it comes to reading material, 99.9% of the time I hate “instalove” – where the couple falls in love instantly – but I’m willing to suspend believe when there’s a well thought out supernatural explanation. I’m a sucker for soulmates.
Katie: If you could go to the past or future, where would you stay and why?
Caroline: Can’t I do both???
I love the idea of visiting the past. I love the beauty, elegance, and simplicity of life before smart phones, automobiles and television. I fantasize about living in a little house in the middle of nowhere, living off the land, just my family and me, and a bunch of books. But…. I need indoor plumbing. And the Internet.
On the other hand, I’d love to visit the future and see what major changes have occurred. I mean, think about what life was like only a hundred years ago. I can’t even imagine the technological feats we’ll have accomplished in another hundred years. If I got to the future and robots had taken over all manual labor, giving humans more leisure time, yeah, I’d probably stay.
Katie: If you were to get a permanent tattoo done, what would it be and where?
Caroline: I’m terrified of needles.
When I was seventeen I was convinced having my belly button pierced was an awesome idea. My mom agreed to take me and pay for it to be done as my birthday gift that year. I blacked out during the piercing process. Within a year later it was infected and then closed.
If I ever got over my fear… In the past few years I’ve imagined myself with the Deahtly Hallows symbol from Harry Potter right tattooed near my collar bone area, sort of below my shoulder. I found an awesome photo of a girl who had that done on Pinterest. If I didn’t have the Deathly Hallows done, it would be something else relatively small. I love the look of tattoos when done well and with meaning, but I’m not sure they’re for me, mostly due to my needle fear.
Katie: What Internet site do you surf to the most?
Caroline: Hi, my name is Caroline, and I’m an addict. A Facebook addict.
In order to get anything done, I have to make sure to stay OFF Facebook. I also spend a good amount of time on Goodreads and also in Gmail. But really, Facebook is my downfall.
Katie: What do you miss most about childhood?
Caroline: Simplicity. No responsibilities. The “good old days” are what I miss most.
I had an AMAZING childhood. My mom was an in home daycare provider, so I was never without kids to play with. Even when the daycare kids weren’t there, I’m the 3rd of 4 kids. My childhood was loud, and playful, and just fun. Summer vacations were spent driving the four or so hours to Hackensack, MN in the back of my dad’s truck. No seat belts, just us kids sprawled in the back with blankets and a topper on the back of the truck. You could never get away with that these days! We’d stay at a resort on Birch Lake, my dad’s siblings and their families, plus my grandma and her twin sister, all stayed in cabins at the resort. It was a week or two of lazy days at the beach, on the boat, or in the cabins playing cards. Now that we’re all grown, these family reunions don’t happen anymore.
Sorry, I was lost down memory lane, what as the question again? 😉
Katie: At the beach would you rather play in the sand, or play in the water?
Caroline: Sand.
I’m not a fan of water, unless it’s in a pool. I attribute this to a near drowning incident when I was about three that I don’t remember. Apparently, I got out of my dads boat, gave my sister the life jacket I’d been wearing so she could have her turn on a boat ride, and I must have fallen off the dock. My mom, who was in the boat, says they were already across the lake and she was frantically waving her arms and yelling at the family on shore, but nobody realized at first I was under water. She says finally my teenage cousin Sarah realized what had happened and jumped in after me. I didn’t hear that story until I was probably in my early teens, but my fear of water predated that, so I’m going with PTSD.
Lake water. * shudders* (And don’t get me started on my irrational fear of sharks in the ocean! I’m in a landlocked state.)
Katie: Do you prefer card games or board games?
Caroline: Both! If I had to choose, I’d pick board games. I love modern tabletop games like Pandemic, Ticket to Ride, Legacy: The Testament of Duke de Crecy and so on. I can’t afford to spend money on board games very often, so I’m fortunate to have friends who are constantly acquiring new games to introduce us to. The most recent one we played was Tokaido, a game of traveling across Japan and earning points for all of the “experiences” you have on your journey. I can’t wait until my kids are old enough to play the kinds of board games I love!
Who says love doesn’t come around again? Second Chance for Love: Seven stories of single parents finding love, free Mother’s Day weekend (May 7-9) on Amazon!!
standard ishue--Katie 
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