An Interview with Samantha Cole, Author of Her Savior

USA Today bestselling author and award-winning writer Samantha Cole is a retired policewoman and former paramedic. Using her life experiences and training, she strives to find the perfect mix of suspense and romance for her readers to enjoy.

Awards:

Wannabe in Wyoming (co-authored by J.B. Havens) won the bronze medal in the 2021 Readers’ Favorite Awards in the General Romance category.

Scattered Moments in Time won the gold medal in the 2020 Readers’ Favorite Awards in the Fiction Anthology category.

The Road to Solace won the silver medal in the 2017 Readers’ Favorite Awards in the Contemporary Romance category.

Samantha has over thirty-five books published throughout several different series as well as a few standalone novels. A full list can be found on her website: www.samanthacoleauthor.com.

What inspired you to start writing this book?

This is the third of four books in a series. Each of the three Malone brothers gets their story as well as their matchmaking uncle. Book one was the first book I ever wrote, and it was out of boredom.

Tell us the story of your book’s current title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?

Originally, this book was supposed to be titled The Ultimate Price, following Take the Money and Run and The Devil’s Spare Change. However, I decided to recover and retitle the first two books so they fit the romance genre more than the suspense genre. So now the titles are, in order, Her Secret, Her Sleuth, and Her Savior, which I’m working on now.

If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?

“Caught Up in You” – 38 Special

“American Girl” – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

“Another One Bites the Dust” – Queen

“Margaritaville” – Jimmy Buffett

“Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not” – Thompson Square

“As She’s Walking Away” – Zac Brown Band

“Don’t Take the Girl” – Tim McGraw

What books are you reading (for research or comfort) as you continue the writing process?

I’ve always loved romance suspense books, which I mainly read and write. However, I’m currently on an M/M contemporary romance binge and will switch back and forth as my favorite authors in both genres have new releases.

What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?

I’m a retired paramedic and police officer. After getting into an on-duty accident, I needed four knee surgeries, so I had a lot of downtime. I’ve always had stories playing out in my head, like unwritten movies or TV scenes, so I started writing one down out of boredom while recovering from one of the surgeries. That ended up being the first book in the Malone Brothers series. After writing the second book, I realized my craft was awful. I was doing every author “don’t,” (head-hopping, hundreds of dialogue tags, two characters talking in the same paragraph, information dumps, etc.), so I gave up. It took another four years before I decided to try again and learn everything I could about writing fiction. The rest, as they say, is history. The third Malone brother, Brian, has been fighting his HEA for a few years now, but his book is halfway done, and I’m determined to finish it soon.

Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?

I’ve always had characters in my head and never realized that not everyone does until I became an author. I’ve always liked thrillers, mysteries, and romance suspense books, so writing in the latter genre felt natural. The authors who inspired me to start writing include but aren’t limited to Cherise Sinclair, Lexi Blake, Shayla Black, Suzanne Brockmann, Nicole Edwards, Kennedy Layne, Angel Payne, Avery Gale, Laylah Roberts, Jerri Alexander, Susan Stoker, Lynn Raye Harris, Julie Ann Walker, J.A. Jance, Iris Johansen, Heather Graham, and so many more!

Where is your favorite place to write?

I turned a spare bedroom in my apartment into my office, complete with filled bookcases, a desk, a comfortable gaming chair, and a wireless keyboard. The window overlooks the Hudson River, so I have a great view.

Do you have any writing rituals?

When I first started writing on my laptop, I was stuck on the couch following one of my surgeries and had the TV on in the background because my mother was visiting to help me during my recovery. Since then, I almost always have the TV on while writing. I look for shows and movies I’ve seen hundreds of times so I don’t have to follow the storyline and get distracted. I keep the volume low but loud enough to be background noise.

What is one thing you hope readers take away from reading your book? How do you envision your perfect reader?

I hope readers go through a broad range of emotions when reading my books and don’t want to put them down until the very last page. I want them to laugh, cry, curse, gasp, and moan (in ecstasy, lol) as they fall in love with the characters.

Are you a writer, too? Submit your manuscript to Atmosphere Press.