Blog Tour: SNOWFALL by Jennifer Patricia O'Keeffe

 

SNOWFALL

Jennifer Patricia O'Keeffe

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GENRE:  RomCom

 

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BLURB:

 

Melody is a simple woman with simple needs that include good clean books, safe and intelligible television, and a job that she loves. As far as she’s concerned, she has everything she needs, including a beloved gig as the assistant librarian of her local public library. When a Winter Reads program turns chaotic and Melody is caught in the crossfires of a massive child-induced food fight, her dream job becomes a nightmare – a nightmare that continues into a snow-covered, accident-prone next day. After waking up to a sudden massive snowfall covering her town, she becomes the unwilling victim of a snowball fight between two identical twin brothers. Melody must then decide if she has met her very own Mister Right, or if her perfect life can handle an imperfect interruption. Lighthearted laughs and endearing moments fill this modern romantic comedy by humorist Jennifer Patricia O’Keeffe

 

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Excerpt Three:

 

“Well… their hunt for me paid off I guess.” Melody smiled and sipped her drink. “I got my necklace back, I got a wonderful new boyfriend, and… well… I don’t think I’ve shared this news with you yet.”

 

“You’re getting married?” Cocoa asked, throwing out a wild guess.

 

“Nope.”

 

“You’re pregnant!”

 

“Oh, god no!” Melody exclaimed.

 

“Well then, what is it?” Cocoa put her hands on her hips and Melody could see she was growing impatient.

 

“I… think… I’m in love.”

 

“No!” Cocoa shouted. Her voice was pretty loud and she looked around with a quirky smile as several customers looked her way. Then, she looked at Melody again, not caring who had heard her shout. “Not you, little Miss I’m Happy with My Quiet Little Life?”

 

“Quiet little life…” Melody rolled her eyes. “You make me sound so boring. But… my life’s not so quiet anymore, and honestly, I’m loving it more than I ever thought I could.”

 

Cocoa began to sing softly. “You’re in love! Love, love, love, love, love!”

 

“Oh, hush,” she said and blushed.

 

“I expect to be Maid of Honor at the wedding,” Cocoa continued. “I’m picturing very tacky beige bridesmaid dresses, a small church service, and lots of hokey pictures of us doing wacky poses in our outfits!”

 

“Aren’t you rushing things a little?”

 

“Well… someone has to. If I know you, the two of you haven’t even had –…”

 

“Don’t even say it!” Melody cut her off. “Good things come to those who wait.”

 

“He’s going to be gray-haired old man by the time you give up the –…”

 

“No!” Melody exclaimed and then laughed nervously. “Goodness, Cocoa!”

 

Cocoa laughed heavily. “Okay, fine. But tell me then what all you two have planned for your one-month anniversary tonight.”

 

“All I know is he’s taking me out to a restaurant but won’t tell me what it is,” she explained. “And he has something for me, but he won’t tell me what that is either.”

 

“I bet it’s a ring,” Cocoa noted. “It’s gonna be a ring. He’s going to pop the question. I know it!”

 

“After just a month? No way,” Melody discouraged. “Maybe a promise ring?”

 

“A promise ring? Are you both twelve?” Cocoa huffed and grabbed a rag to wipe down the counter. “That’s kid stuff.” She then paused and smiled a little mischievous grin. “By the way…”

 

“Yes?”

 

“What did you get him for your one-month anniversary?”

 

Melody’s smile disappeared and her eyes became concerned. “Is – is that a thing?”

 

“Yes, girl!” Cocoa exclaimed and put her rag down. “This isn’t the nineteen fifties, you know. Present giving is an equal thing now. He gives you a gift. You give him a gift. It’s called gifting.”

 

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 The Ins and Outs of Character Development

 

Hey there, gal pals (and guy pals too)! For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Jennifer and I’m the author of the romantic comedy stories ‘My Name is Not Cupid,’ ‘Sent of a Man’ and my latest novel ‘Snowfall,’ amongst others.

There is so much to be enjoyed in the writing process, and there is also much to be dreaded through it. My favorite aspect of writing is both enjoyable and – at times – dreaded. That aspect is character development.

As I’m known for writing clean, fade-to-black, lacking-foul-language romantic comedies, building my characters is very tactful and I always do so with caution. First and foremost, no matter what happens at the start of a story, my protagonist must be a good person at heart. I don’t believe in a flawless character; that idea is unrealistic, as everyone is flawed. Figuring out a character’s flaws is the hard part.

In my latest book ‘Snowfall,’ Melody fits my character requirements perfectly. She’s happy with her life and her job, she’s content staying home and reading books, and she doesn’t need a man to make her happy. She’s also well spoken, polite (for the most part), and uses her vocabulary instead of just spitting out slurs and insults. She’s not perfect by any means. She’s clumsy, forgetful, and doesn’t really pay attention to her surroundings as much as she should.

For her best friend and confidant, I needed a somewhat ‘different’ personality. While foul language still isn’t present, it’s alluded to with Cocoa, who’s occasional slurs are kept in check and cut off by Melody, who beats her to the punch with an ‘uh uh’ or a ‘don’t even say it.’

I enjoy writing characters who don’t have to cuss to get a point across or who don’t have to share their ‘moments of intimacy’ with the world, when a ‘fade-to-black’ gets the point across and leaves so much more to the imagination.

It’s not always easy though, depending on the story. In my action thriller ‘Hot Chocolate on a Cold Winter’s Night,’ I followed my protagonist Hot Chocolate, who is a famous exotic dancer at a strip club. She witnesses a violent murder and runs, only to discover her daughter has been kidnapped in order to lure her in. I had to break my standard rule of clean language for that story, but only with minor curses. But it was what the story called for, and I was happy to give it that umph that it needed.

Hot Chocolate was a tough cookie. She stopped at nothing to save her daughter, and it showed the ‘mommy tiger’ within her and how someone will go to any lengths necessary to keep safe the people they love. She had to be strong, but I believe in realism, so she had to have moments of weakness as well.

Melody in ‘Snowfall’ is still relatable in this way. She thinks she has it all together, but in a world of romance and love, she is out of her element. She tries to distance herself from the man she’s obviously attracted to, and it’s difficult to make a relationship work when one half of it is trying to pull away from it or prevent it from happening.

Character development is both the easiest and hardest part of writing, at least in my opinion, but it is the single most important aspect of any work of fiction. If you don’t have a likable or believable protagonist, you can’t make your readers care about them. Many writers will tell you that we write for ourselves, and in a way we do, but when it comes to sharing our books with the world, we’re also writing for you. We need you to believe in our characters and to invest yourself in them throughout the book. If we can do that, then we have done our best.

I hope you enjoy my character Melody, along with the cast of side-characters that keep the laughter and romance flowing in my new romantic comedy ‘Snowfall.’ Please also visit my blog, which is filled with my movie and book reviews, my quirky remembrances of life’s many oops moments, and more! https://singlegirlsguidetohappiness.blogspot.com/

Much love and many laughs,

Jenn

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

 

Jennifer Patricia O’Keeffe is a humorist fiction author whose works include the stories My Name is Not Cupid, The Scent of a Man, and the beautifully reviewed thriller about a mother who would stop at nothing to save her child, Hot Chocolate on a Cold Winter’s Night, among others. Known for her quirky romantic comedies that feature realistic women of various ages and races and the trials and tribulations of adulting and dating, Jennifer’s writings allow real women to see themselves in her characters. Jennifer is also a proud LGBTQ+ ally and often features gay characters in her stories, including the tale All I Want is to be Happy, which features a wonderful gay protagonist. Jennifer, herself, is a single straight woman, still looking for love, and living with her cats in an apartment in Nashville, Tennessee.

 

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/authorjpokeeffe

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/authorjpokeeffe

Blog: https://singlegirlsguidetohappiness.blogspot.com/

 

NOTE: this book will be on sale for $0.99 for the duration of the tour.

 

Amazon Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F1F2NWF8

Barnes and Noble Link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/snowfall-jennifer-patricia-okeeffe/1147137020

Smashwords Link: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1728222

Kobo Link: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/Search?Query=9798990303539

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GIVEAWAY 

Jennifer Patricia O'Keeffe will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner.