Breaking news! Amazon launches Kindle Love Stories podcast
I’m in love. LOVE, I tell you. Amazon Publishing today launches a weekly romance-novel-focused podcast. Kindle Love Stories includes author interviews, book recs, commentary from book reviewers and excerpts of new books. Listeners get to participate, too, through a Goodreads group, where they can discuss their favorite books and authors.
The first podcast features an interview with Tracy Brogan and an excerpt of her debut, Crazy Little Thing, which also happens to be a 2013 RITA finalist for Best First Book. (HEA chats with Tracy later in this post!)
While the podcast is sponsored by Amazon’s romance imprint, Montlake Romance, the books discussed will span a variety of publishers and imprints, including indie-pubbed books (yay!).
The awesome Laura Roppé, an award-winning singer, songwriter, author, audio book narrator and YouTube sensation, hosts the Kindle Love Stories podcast, and HEA got the opportunity to talk with Laura (who’s the author of Rocking the Pink: Finding Myself on the Other Side of Cancer).
But, first, here’s a short clip of the first podcast, for you and only you, my dear HEA readers. (The actual podcast is significantly longer. You can check the whole thing out at www.kindlelovestories.com.)
Now, let’s chat with KLS host Laura Roppé …
Joyce: Welcome to HEA, Laura! How did you get involved in the Kindle Love Stories podcast?
Laura: Thank you! It was total serendipity! I am an author myself, and when I went into the studio to narrate the audio book of my own book, I just happened to meet the producer of Kindle Love Stories, and it just clicked! The podcast is all about great books, love and happy endings — and that’s what I’m about, too, in my writing, songwriting and in my life! It just goes to show, you never know where your next adventure is going to come from.
Joyce: What is it about romance novels that you love so much?
Laura: I love how romance offers an escape, a little vacation from day-to-day responsibilities and cares. It’s fun to “fall in love” vicariously, over and over again, through the eyes of the characters. I also really enjoy knowing there will be a happy ending, and seeing how the author manages to get us there.
Joyce: What three to five romance authors would make you tongue-tied if they were on the podcast?
Laura: Nora Roberts would be a biggie! But, hopefully, I won’t get too tongue-tied very often, or else the podcast is in trouble! It’s a thrill to talk to authors! I’m always very curious about what makes them tick, how they get their ideas for stories and characters, and to hear about their writing process. In different ways, I think I’ll probably be in awe of every single author we talk to on the show, because I’m amazed and inspired at how good writers are able to capture the emotions of the heart so well.
Joyce: I hear you on Nora Roberts! I had a phone interview with her when HEA first launched, and I was so nervous that I never pushed the “record” button on my iPhone. And I didn’t take notes. Doh. Yeah, I’m a professional journalist!
What can romance readers expect from future podcasts?
Laura: We’ll talk about what’s hot in the romance community, hear some great stories and author interviews, and also discover some hidden gems and scoops. We’re also looking forward to how the show might evolve over time, once we’ve gotten some feedback from listeners. That’s the great thing about doing a weekly podcast — there are so many opportunities for listener interaction each week. We hope to build a community, a place where people are actively involved in what’s on the show, a dynamic place for readers to get their weekly fix.
Joyce: Read any good books lately?
Laura: Actually, I read all sorts of books, both fiction and non-fiction. I really enjoyed The Sisterhood, the brand new book by Helen Bryan. It’s an epic saga-romance-thriller with lots of twists and turns. I loved Crazy Little Thing by Tracy Brogan, which was really cute. (And I was thrilled to interview Tracy on our first podcast.) I just read This Girl by Colleen Hoover, the third book in the Slammed series (and now I’m crushing on Will Cooper). I thoroughly enjoyed a beautiful book called The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh. Heartbreaking. I love anything by Anita Shreve. And, the YA book The Fault in Our Stars by John Green made me sob uncontrollably, in all the best ways. I’ll never forget that book. I’m currently reading Ex on the Beach by Kim Law, and it’s great.
Joyce: Is there anything you’d like to add?
Laura: Just that I’m beyond excited to be a part of Kindle Love Stories and to get to connect with others who are passionate about books, love, romance, and happy endings!
Joyce: Thanks, Laura!
To find out more about Laura, visit www.lauraroppe.com.
Now we get to hear from Tracy Brogan, the first author to be featured on Kindle Love Stories:
Joyce: Welcome to HEA, Tracy! So cool that you’re the first author participating in the Kindle Love Stories podcast. How did that happen?
Tracy: Hi to you, Joyce. I’m thrilled to be on USA TODAY’s HEA, and I hope everyone takes a few minutes to enjoy the podcast. Laura Roppé, the host, does a wonderful job. As to how it came about, well, that was a matter of luck and availability! The program’s coordinator had just finished reading Crazy Little Thing and enjoyed it. She called me and we did the interview the very next day.
Joyce: In your interview with Laura on the podcast you talk about one of your goals as a romance writer is that readers leave your books happier than when they started. What was the first romance you read that did that for you?
Tracy: Several of my friends have heard this story, but it’s worth retelling! The very first romance I ever read was Island Flame by Karen Robards. Quite frankly, I was too young to be reading it, but I bought it at a gas station during a road trip to Disney World with my mom and sisters. The story was all about a pirate and a maiden, full of swashbuckling and seduction. It was luscious and I was hooked. I could hardly wait to get on Pirates of the Caribbean after that! The best part is that I still have that book. It’s tattered and held together with surgical tape, and last summer I met Karen Robards at the RWA conference and she autographed it for me. I may be buried with it.
Joyce: Ha! Great story.
Congratulations on your RITA final for first book! Do you know yet what you’ll be wearing to the RITAs ceremony?
Tracy: I’m fortunate to have been a Golden Heart finalist for the last two years, first for Crazy Little Thing, and then again for my historical romance, Highland Surrender, so I’ve glammed it up before. But between us, I’m tempted to wear a cute, comfortable dress I just bought at Kohl’s for $36! I’m thinking if I wear a cheap dress I’m more apt to win. Murphy’s Law, right? My dress last year cost a mint and I went home empty- handed! Then again, I also just ordered a snazzy, red dress, too. So I’ll have some options. I refuse to wear Spanx, though!
Joyce: LOL. RWA should declare the RITAs Spanx-free.
Read any good books lately?
Tracy: I just got home from the Romantic Times convention so my TBR pile is teetering. I’ve been doing more writing than reading lately because of some deadlines, but I am loving Almost a Scandal by Elizabeth Essex. I adored What Happens in Scotland by Jennifer McQuiston, too. And I’m working my way through the list of RITA nominees. There is a lot of talent in that group! So many great books! And I’ll always read anything by Kristan Higgins, Jennifer Crusie, Cecelia Grant or Joanna Bourne.
Joyce: What can readers expect to see from you next?
Tracy: My next book, Hold on My Heart, releases on June 25, and it’s the story of Liberty Belle Hamilton, a corporate event planner who loses her job, her fair-weather boyfriend and her apartment all at the same time and has to move in with her parents. Her history-loving father is determined to turn an abandoned one-room schoolhouse into an ice cream parlor and she gets drafted to help, along with a sexy, enigmatic restoration specialist, Tom Murphy, who is trying to rebuild his own life and his relationship with his teenage daughter. Next up after that is another visit to Bell Harbor. Turns out lots of people want to find out what happens to Des, Sadie, Dody and the gang! This book won’t be a sequel, but readers will recognize some familiar faces.
Joyce: Is there anything you’d like to add?
Tracy: I’d like to add that I’m incredibly grateful for the support I’ve gotten from my publisher, my writer friends and all the readers who’ve taken time to send me a note to tell me they appreciate my work. Crazy Little Thing is a fun story. I intended for it to be a laugh-out-loud, silly experience for people. What I’m finding, though, is that readers are really taking to heart Dody’s innate wisdom about living life to the fullest, and always on your own terms. I’m so happy they’re taking that message away with them.
Thanks for having me here, today, Joyce! Readers can find out more about my next books at TracyBrogan.com.
Joyce: Thanks, Tracy!
To find out more about Kindle Love Stories, visit www.kindlelovestories.com.
HEA curator Joyce Lamb has 25 years of journalism experience and eight published romantic suspense novels, three of which have been RITA finalists. You can reach her at jlamb@usatoday.com and follow her on Twitter (@JoyceLamb). You can also follow HEA on Twitter (@HEAusatoday).
