Author Jean Grant jumps into audio book world

Jean M. Grant isn’t a slow starter. She released “A Hundred Kisses” this year along with an audio book, and has three books set for release in 2019. I’m curious about the audio book process so she chats a bit today about her own journey below. And because her series is set in Scotland, Jean also offers a quiz about all things Scottish.

I’ll turn the blog over to Jean now…

A bit about the audio book process…

I am an avid fan of listening to audio books. When I worked out of the home, they were my pleasant company on the commute. When we take long road trips, the lyrical voices sweep us away and help the hours pass (btw, the Harry Potter series on audio – divine! Same goes with Outlander.). So, when I heard that my book’s publisher, The Wild Rose Press, added this opportunity, I jumped at it!

After a few months and no bites from narrators, I took the next step: I researched several voice actors available with ACX, emailed them, and hoped for the best. If I learned anything in the past year of my first book’s release, it’s that the author must take initiative in marketing and promotion (and I am still learning and have a massive list of “to-do’s” to attack this fall for two more upcoming books). I was elated that Rosalind Ashford agreed to narrate the book. It was like Christmas each week for me when I received the audio book chapters to listen to and review. She was pleasant to work with and I hope you enjoy her work with A Hundred Kisses as much as I do! Happy reading, err, listening!

p.s. Rosalind stopped by on my blog to tell me more about her background and the recording process.

My Top 5 reasons why I love audio books:

The commute to work/road trips/travel
I can multitask during exercise, cleaning…
The lyrical and magical voices of the narrators
My eyes get tired writing and editing all day
To get lost in another world and daydream

p.s. and no, I’ve never crashed my car or gotten distracted while listening. In fact, I used to get to work, park, and not want to leave my car mid-scene

Blurb from “A Hundred Kisses”:

A broken past, a broken heart…and a broken curse.

1296

Two wedding nights. Two dead husbands.

Deirdre MacCoinneach wishes to understand her unusual ability to sense others’ lifeblood energies…and vows to discover if her gift killed the men she married. Her father’s search for a new and unsuspecting suitor for Deirdre becomes complicated when rumors of witchcraft abound.

Under the façade of a trader, Alasdair Montgomerie travels to Uist with pivotal information for a Claimant seeking the Scottish throne. A ruthless baron hunts him and a dark past haunts him, leaving little room for alliances with a Highland laird or his tempting daughter.

Awestruck when she realizes that her unlikely travel companion is the man from her visions, a man whose thickly veiled emotions are buried beneath his burning lifeblood, Deirdre wonders if he, too, will die in her bed if she follows her father’s orders. Amidst magic, superstition, and ghosts of the past, Alasdair and Deirdre find themselves falling together in a web of secrets and the curse of a hundred kisses…

Scottish Trivia!

Which of these is not a name of a Scottish isle?
1. Arran
2. Uist
3. Muck
4. Clare

A Hundred Kisses takes place at this famous castle.
1. Kilchurn
2. Eilean Donan
3. Edinburgh
4. Culzean

It’s the year 1296. Who’s the king of England?
1. Henry V
2. Edward I
3. Richard II
4. Edward III
5. Somebody with a number after their name. Pass the Whisky!

All of the following are in Haggis except:
1. Sheep liver
2. Sheep heart
3. Onions
4. Oatmeal
5. It’s all encased in sheep stomach
6. All of these are parts of haggis

True or False – Men wore kilts in 13^th century Scotland

MacCoinneach is the precursor name of what Scottish clan name?
1. MacRae
2. MacKenzie
3. MacKintosh
4. MacGregor
5. Uhh, something that starts with Mac?

Bannocks are:
1. Decorations hanging on walls in castles
2. Oat cakes
3. A type of medieval drum
4. Special pants that men wore in 13^th century Scotland
5. Sheep balls

In A Hundred Kisses, Deirdre’s ability to sense lifebloods stems from which of the four elements?
1. Water
2. Wind
3. Earth

Bio:

Jean’s background is in science and she draws from her interests in history, nature, and her family for inspiration. She writes historical and contemporary romances and women’s fiction. She also writes articles for family-oriented travel magazines. A Hundred Kisses is her first published novel. On the front for publication in early 2019: the prequel (A Hundred Breaths), a contemporary women’s fiction (Will Rise From Ashes), and a contemporary romance novella (Soul of the Storm), part of a new series by The Wild Rose Press. She’s also writing the third book in the “hundred” trilogy.

Answers: 1 – c, 2 – b, 3 – b, 4 – f, 5 – false, 6 – b, 7 – b, 8 – d