Clarissa Cartham & 'A Jar of Dreams' @ccartharn @GoddessFish #ContemporaryRomance

Today we have author Clarissa Cartham visiting. Welcome!

What would you like to tell readers about yourself?

* Clarissa Cartharn is the author of romance novels such as Captive, Red Collar and the romance thriller/ suspense Jar series.
* Once an English teacher, she embarked on a law profession before finally realizing it was writing she really wanted to pursue. After almost eight romance novels, each with eclectic themes ranging from a Cinderella re-telling to the barren war torn lands of Afghanistan, Clarissa is currently on a journey with her next novel titled The Yearning.

Today Clarissa Cartham will be talking about how she became a writer and what inspired her in regard to the story she's promoting.
* I’ve always believed that a good reader makes a great writer. While I am still on a journey to explore my skills as a writer, I know for certain that what set me on this path in the first place was my love for reading.
* I have always loved to read. It didn’t matter what it was- a magazine, a book or a journal, nor did the genre ever concern me. If it was a subject that drew my attention, I was going to read it.
* In my younger days, I had always dreamed of being a writer. My mother though saw it as a wild whimsical fantasy. She preferred I get a nine to five job; one that would assure me of some permanent wage. And of course, as time moved on, the practicalities of life set in and I became somewhat ‘normal’.
* My urge to start writing again didn’t hit me until fate turned me full circle where I would see myself as a mother to my own children. Knowing my love for stories, my kids would bait me into writing a book. They didn’t care what genre it was since they were far too excited with their own fantasies of having a writer for a mom. To date, they still carry the tag proudly preferring me to be a writer than a lawyer.
* My first hurdle was my eclectic reading interests which confused me as to what I should write. After dabbling with a little young adults fantasy adventure called Dynasty O’Shea- The Throne of Gammalon, I decided to get more serious and started my writing career as a romance author. Hence was created Winter’s End, a small town romance about a woman, Emma Winston who finds love in the most unlikely of places and her weird old neighbor who plays matchmaker between Emma and her rebellious grandson, Chris Cameron.
* I’ve never looked back since, exploring and writing on more challenging subjects as I hone into my skills as a writer. My wide reading tastes have also transformed from being a traverse to an asset, finding inspirations in strange incidents.
* For instance, I remember I once read an article about a homeless woman in Japan who sought to hide in a man’s apartment for shelter and food. She made herself a home in his closet, unbeknownst to him of course. It took the owner of the apartment a year to discover her and promptly alerted the police who removed her from his residence.
* The story intrigued me and I suppose I bookmarked it in a corner in my mind. While I wrote other books, I continued to play with the idea until I found one that particularly satisfied me. An assassin on the run from his former employers seeks refuge in the house of a blind woman. And bam! That was how A Jar of Dreams begun.
* While my premise was inspired by the homeless Japanese woman, my intrigue over how a romance would fare between an assassin and a blind woman was what really drove me to write A Jar of Dreams. My curiosity took hold of me to such a degree that I needed to write a second book A Jar of Hearts to truly satisfy myself with Anne Mullen and Eric Tanner’s love story.
* Today, I am completing my next romance titled The Yearning which is about two people who have lost their spouses in death and are brought together by unusual circumstances. It thrills me that I am still as excited about a new book just as I had been when I wrote my first one. In my journey as a writer, I have a lot to learn and explore. But so long as the fire for the love of books and writing burns within me, I know I will have lived the life I had wanted to live just as that young child in me had dreamed I would. A look into...

~ Blurb ~ * When Eric Tanner, an assassin, is targeted to be murdered by his former employer, he seeks refuge in the house of a blind woman, Anne Mullen.
* Eric knows how to live in silence. He’s done it all his life. So when he discovers Anne is blind and living on her own, he thinks this would be his perfect hideout.
* But then he makes the mistake of his life. He forms an attachment to her. And for a man in his profession, such attachments are a weakness. Now, he must do everything he can to protect Anne from the world he’s come from. ~ Excerpt ~ * The bus drifted back slowly on its route, leaving an odor of its exhaust fumes behind it.
* “Well, I would say I’d see you again, but I can’t.” Anne smiled.
* “Excuse me,” he stammered.
* “I was teasing,” she explained. “You know, I’m blind if you hadn’t noticed.”
* “Right… yeah,” he said awkwardly.
* She played with the head of her cane, supposedly feeling just as awkward.
* “Well, goodbye then,” she said and turned around to walk away.
* He floundered back and forth. Who was he kidding? He wasn’t ready to just let her walk away. It surprised him that even after fifteen years, she continued to make his heart pound like she did the first time he had seen her. He had thought he was well over her. After all, he had indulged in several relationships after her, no longer the shy teen afraid to ask a girl out for a date. He became widely known as a Don Juan, and he savored the popularity and gifts the women showered upon him. That was until someone handed him a gun and challenged him to shoot an empty can placed fifty paces away. It was then that he found a new obsession and every other passion paled before it. At least, he had thought it had. He stared after Anne helplessly.
* “Wait,” he called out to her. Buy A Jar of Dreams here... Amazon Find Clarissa Cartham here... Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Website Thank you for joining us here today, Clarissa Cartham! It was a pleasure getting to know you and your story.

ANNOUNCEMENT! Clarissa Cartham will be awarding $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour! So be sure to leave a comment AND use the Rafflecopter below. Also, visit the other tour stops for a greater chance of winning!

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