But when they don’t, and for secondary characters, I’ll often scan through online lists of popular baby names. Quite often the names of the main characters just pop into my head and feel right. How do you choose your characters’ names? The key to keeping the standard “I love you” scene fresh is making sure it’s unique to your characters, which is another reason Yours to Keep is a book that sticks with me as readers seem to find that ending particularly memorable.

Trying to find that balance point requires a lot of tweaking and rewriting. There’s a very fine line between clichéd/corny and the kind of emotional ending that leaves readers with that happy sigh. It’s not my usual reading cup of tea, but I’ve heard it’s outstanding and I’m saving it as a treat for myself.įor me, definitely the last lines. One book that I’ve been saving for when I have enough extra time to really lose myself in the story, though, is The Good Girl by Mary Kubica. My TBR pile has been out of control for so long, I can’t even answer that question. It was also an absolute joy to write and the heroine remains one of my favorites. Not only did it land me on the New York Times list, but taking a trope that can be hard to put a fresh spin on (fake engagement), and having it be the favorite of so many readers is personally gratifying. Probably Yours to Keep, the third book in the Kowalski series. Which of the many books you’ve written has stayed with you the most and why? But not having to cook is always celebration enough for me.

I’m not one for dressing up and going out on the town, especially since dressing up in my town might cause people to ask me whose funeral I’d been to. How did you celebrate selling your first manuscript? I have vague memories of a cover starring a dark-haired man in a khaki shirt and a blonde woman with Farrah Fawcett hair sharing a passionate embrace in long grass. I’m fairly sure they were Harlequin Presents, though, since the heroes were ridiculously wealthy and they often had international settings. What book first got you hooked on Harlequin? Her current book, Heat Exchange, is out now! What she loves most about writing for Harlequin is the support and enthusiasm the Carina Press team has brought to every one of her titles. Her Carina Press debut was Exclusively Yours and since then, she has written sixteen books. Shannon Stacey first sold to Harlequin in 2010.

Exclusively Yours by Shannon Stacey