It’s release day! Such a fun book! Read my review here. 🙂
Thanks so much for agreeing to be with us today!
Sure! Happy to be here!
What 5 things should readers know about you?
1) I’m addicted to love stories
2) I drink a lot of Diet Mountain Dew
3) Some might say I have a shoe problem, but I’d say I have a lot of super pretty shoes and I’m resistant to resisting buying more.
4) I get bored of my hair and put different colors in it as the mood hits me
5) I get distracted while cooking and often burn food beyond recognition, but I’m trying to get better at cooking and baking. Really it means not trying to read or tweet while cooking, so it’s a losing battle. Lol
I get around the burning food problem (mostly) with audiobooks. At least I don’t have to look away from the stove as much… 😉
Tell us all about your main characters—who are they? What makes them tick? Most importantly, what one thing would they need to have with them if stranded on a desert isle? 😉
Sadie’s wanted to be a country singer ever since she was a little girl and she left behind the guy she loved to pursue that dream. Royce’s passion is in training roping horses & since his dad died, he’s taken over the alternative youth camp his father & mother built together. There, they rehabilitate troubled teens through ranch work. When he needs another employee and Sadie needs a job, they agree to an uneasy truce. Of course once the sparks fly, it’s harder to deny their past or know what they’re going to do about their future.
As for what they’d need if they were stranded, Sadie would probably say she’d need music or a way to make music, like a guitar (and Royce, of course. A resourceful guy is good to have when stranded.) Royce would say his horse and Sadie, preferably in a pair of her tight jeans with the rhinestones on the pocket, and he’d figure out the rest.
A resourceful guy is ALWAYS good to have in a crisis. I’m with Sadie there!
Where did the inspiration for this book come from?
I got the glimmer of the idea several years ago, about a girl who’d left her high school sweetheart behind to pursue her dream and then had to come back & deal with the fact that she hadn’t made it yet and that there was still an undeniable tug to that guy. I thought about how the guy would feel, and how he’d swear he wouldn’t make the same mistake of falling for her again, but have a hard time not still looking at her and seeing the girl he loved. I also grew up on a ranch, so when it came to small towns, horses, rodeos, and cowboy stuff, I’ve had lots of experience.
Excellent!
How long have you been writing, and what (or who) inspired you to start?
I’ve been writing for eleven years. I started shortly after having a baby, when I was struggling to figure out who I was besides a mom and decided instead of weaving all these stories in my head, I was going to write one down and see what happened. It made me feel complete again, and I was pretty much addicted to writing after that.
Seriously, I am so in awe of all the authors who started writing just after having babies. It was all I could do to put on matching socks in the morning when my kids were that small!
What do you like best about being a writer? What is the most challenging part?
I love the possibility a new story holds and when I’m writing and something surprises me. It’s an adventure every day. The most challenging comes after reading a book so many times that it’s hard to still have perspective on if you’re making it better or if you’ve already said something or you just feel like you have because you’ve read it a dozen times. That and dealing with harsh reviews, although I’ve gotten better each book with that. There’s still a vulnerability about putting out something so close to your heart, though, no matter how many books or how much you stay away from reviews. Sometimes the people close to you are your harshest critics, too.
It’s not just with books—sometimes the people close to you are your harshest critics about everything. Thank you for keeping on going, though!
What are you working on right now? What can readers look for from you in the next year?
Right now I’m working on a story that takes place in Ireland. It’s got a hint of magical realism and I’m having a blast with it. As for this year, I do have an NA coming out some time in the near future, and book 2 of this series will also be coming out—I’m looking forward to diving deeper into those characters.
Yay! Can’t wait 🙂
What authors and/or books have inspired you?
Elizabeth George Speare, who wrote the Witch of Blackbird Pond. Nat was my first book boyfriend and I’ve read it several times. I even became a bit obsessed with witch trials after reading it. L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables was the first series that got me really into reading. I love Tahereh Mafi—her books are like reading art. Cynthia Hand writes one of my all-time favorite series (The Unearthly Series). My fabulous Australian friend got me obsessed with Ilona Andrews’s Magic Bites series—it’s total book crack—and I love Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and the themes it explores. I’ve also got close author friends who constantly inspire me.
OMG—Nat was my first book boyfriend too! I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve re-read that book. I actually read through the binding of my first two copies (now I listen on audio—it’s better for my new-book-buying budget). Gilbert Blythe was my second BBF—one of our cats is named after him.
Have you checked out the Pemberley Digital/PBS collaboration of Frankenstein, MD? It’s a modern retelling…I’m a little behind in watching the videos, but am liking it.
What are you currently reading? What are your thoughts about it so far?
I just finished book 5 in the Magic Bites series (Magic Slays) and it was fabulous. Books 3 & 4 were definitely favorites, but it’s seriously all win. Even when I’m on deadline & really shouldn’t be reading, I sneak pages in late at night until it’s suddenly two a.m.
LOL, I hear you!
If you had to “sell” this book in a single Tweet, what would you say?
Hmmm, how about…
One sexy cowboy. One feisty country singer. One helluva ride.
Perfect! Thanks so much, Cindi!
About the author:
Cindi Madsen is a USA Today Bestselling author of contemporary romance and young adult novels. She sits at her computer every chance she gets, plotting revising, and falling in love with her characters. Sometimes it makes her a crazy person. Without it, she’d be even crazier. She has way too many shoes, but can always find a reason to buy a new pretty pair, especially if they’re sparkly, colorful, or super tall. She loves music, dancing, and wishes summer lasted all year long. She lives in Colorado (where summer is most definitely NOT all year long) with her husband and three children.
Sometimes love is right where you left it.
Sadie Hart has a plan: return to her small town of Hope Springs so she can regain her confidence—and bank account—before giving one more shot to her country music dream. The dream that means more to her than anything. The dream she chose over her high school sweetheart, the brooding and sinfully handsome Royce Dixon.
Royce has moved on from his memories of the beautiful Sadie. Now he’s focused solely on running Second Chance Ranch, where he rehabilitates troubled teens through ranch work. But when he needs a new employee and Sadie’s the only one to volunteer, he has no choice but to offer his old flame a job.
Whether riding a horse with the wind in her hair or mucking out the stalls, Sadie can still get Royce’s heart beating like no one else. But Nashville is her dream, and Royce can’t settle for second best.