Tuesday 19 March 2013

Romantic Suspense Author Eliza Daly

Ever since I first met Eliza, I've been dying to get her on my blog. She's a very busy lady, always jet-setting off to some place or another and so I'm very pleased to finally have her here. Thanks, Eliza, for putting yourself through my questions! First though, have a read through the blurb for her romantic suspense, Identity Crisis. (Love that title!)

When Olivia Doyle’s father dies under suspicious circumstances, rather than inheriting a family fortune, she inherits a new identity. She learns they were placed in the Federal Witness Security Program when she was five years old. Her father was involved in an art forgery ring and testified against the mob. Brought up not to trust anyone, Olivia has a difficult time relying on U.S. Marshal Ethan Ryder to protect her, and to keep her secret. She fears her father may have continued his life of crime through her art gallery. She has little choice but to depend on Ethan when she realizes someone is now after her. Olivia’s search for the truth leads her and Ethan across country to a family and past she doesn’t remember.
At the age of ten, Ethan witnessed a brutal murder. He vowed when he grew up, he’d protect people in danger. Protecting Olivia is difficult when she won’t trust him. He soon realizes his desire to protect her goes beyond doing his job, but if his judgment becomes clouded by emotions, her safety could be jeopardized. 

Can Ethan and Olivia learn to trust each other when they uncover secrets that will change their lives forever?
Identity Crisis is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, All Romance, eBooks.com, and Kobo.


Thank you so much to Cait for having me here today and helping me celebrate the release of Identity Crisis! I will be giving away an e-copy of Identity Crisis to one commenter. To enter to win, please leave a question for me--writing related or personal. Please include your e-mail address with your comment. The winner will be announced March 22.  

Woo-hoo, great thank you, Eliza!




Which of the five senses do you find hardest to write about, and why?
The sense of smell. I have no clue why this is the hardest for me to write about, but it is the one thing I always have to add when I’m doing the final edits of my manuscripts. I never have enough. I agree totally with you, Eliza…how do you describe smell?! Tough.

Do you have any writing quirks and if so, what are they?
I write very quirky characters in my romantic comedies. Does that count? I will only edit my manuscripts with a purple or pink pen. I have three cat beds in my room, one for each of my cats. They tend to sleep in my office all day while I write. I often turn to one of them, usually Frankie because he’s more the creative type, and bounce ideas off of them, or ask them for opinions. What can I say, writing is a lonely job. Now, I’d just love to hear what Frankie had to say LOL, I’ll bet he has a great romance in that cat head of his J.

If you were told that you couldn’t write anymore otherwise the world would blow up, what would you do?
If I couldn’t write, I would go back to school for my masters in art history. I would love to own an art gallery. My obsession with art inspired the storyline for my recent release, Identity Crisis. I’d come and visit your art gallery, anyday, Eliza.

If you knew that no-one would ever read your writing, would you or would you not still write and why? Be honest!
Yes, I’d still write. I wrote 11 books over 12 years and didn’t know if anyone would ever read them, so that wouldn’t be anything new. J Good stuffins!

If you were told you could either read or write, but not do both, which would you choose, and why?
Write. Honestly, between work and writing, I have little time for reading. I used to read 2 books a week, but lately I’m lucky if I read that in a month. I really miss it, but there is no way I could stop writing. I’m with you on that. I miss reading, going to bed to see what happened.

Which weather inspires you most to write?
Sunshine! I live in Milwaukee where we can get several feet of snow and 40 below wind chill factor in January. Brrr. I can deal with the frigid temps as long as I have sunshine. However, Milwaukee in January is like Gotham City—dark and gloomy. When I read through a manuscript in the spring and the writing is flat, the dialogue has no zip, I think, Hmm. I must have written this in January or February. Ireland wouldn’t do you any favours then :).

What's your favourite photo on display?
My favourite photo is one of me with two monkeys at a floating market in Thailand. I’d just stepped off a boat and a woman tossed these two monkeys at me and they started climbing all over me. I laughed until I started panicking about contracting some rare tropical disease. Faaaaabulous photo, Eliza, thanks so much :).

And just for pure, adolescent fun, which superpower would you choose?
To be a shape-shifter, so I could become a cat and have a heart-to-heart talk with my cats Quigley, Frankie, and Sammy. I’d let them know that a trip to the vet is for their own good, not a method of torture, and that if they would let me sleep in an hour later in the morning I’d give them lots of treats. A-ha! First time for shape-shifter on here and I like your reasoning. But do you think talking to them would help…my girls don’t seem to understand – lie ins that is, not a trip to the vet lol.


Author Bio
 Eliza Daly’s first attempt at creative writing was in fourth grade. She and her friends were huge Charlie’s Angels fans and she would sit in her bedroom at night writing scripts for them to act out at recess the following day. She was Kelly Garrett. Fast forward to the present, she’s still writing stories about beautiful women who always get their men. The journey from fourth grade script writer to published author wasn’t an easy one, but it was always an adventure and the final destination was well worth it.

When Eliza isn’t traveling for her job as an event planner, or tracing her ancestry roots through Ireland, she’s at home in Milwaukee working on her next novel, bouncing ideas off her husband Mark, and her cats Quigley, Frankie, and Sammy.

You can find Eliza on the web at Website, Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads.

30 comments:

  1. What a fun interview! Eliza, if your characters are as quirky as you are, they must be a great read. I laughed imagining you bouncing ideas off your most helpful cat! I'm obsessed with the National Gallery in London, so my question is an art one - do you have a favourite painting? Good luck with Identity Crisis - it sounds great!

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    1. I'm obsessed with art museums Serena but I've never been to the National Gallery in London. That and the Tate are on my bucket list. What is your favorite painting at the National Gallery?

      Selecting a favorite painting is really difficult. I love Monet's Woman with a Parasol because I can feel her environment in the painting and Renoir's Bal du Moulin de la Galette because of all the activity, you feel like you are at a party in Paris in the late 1800s.

      Thanks so much for the question and for stopping by!

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    2. We should have a museum visit party -- come on over!!

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    3. You might regret saying that Cait. Lol. I am going to London & Paris next year. :-)

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    4. Fantastic -- can't wait to meet you in person!

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    5. I'm hoping to go anyway. I was in London a few years ago but haven't been to Paris in forever.

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  2. Enjoyed the interview ladies...and Eliza your book sounds wonderful. I love the idea behind it :)

    I love that your cats are your faithful writing companions. My question for you is....how did you come up with their names? They are so fun.

    Here's to hoping I win the copy of your book...lol...and here's my email addy: christine.warner@yahoo.com

    HAPPY WRITING!

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    1. Great question Christine. Quigley was named 14 years ago. Tom Selleck is one of my favorite actors and I loved the show Magnum but he was so timid the name Magnum didn't fit him. Tom Selleck was in Quigley Down Under so we named him Quigley which fit his demeanor perfectly. We got Frankie two years ago. He's a tuxedo cat and Frank Sinatra is one of my favorite singers so we named him Frankie. I'm a huge Rat Pack fan and wanted my own "Cat Pack" so when we got the little guy at Christmas we named him Sammy. Next cat will be Dino. :-) Thanks so much for popping by reading my interview!

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    2. Eliza - I had a horse named Quigley. We bought him in Ireland from a man named...wait for it...Austin Quigley (yes, I was a spoiled child). He just looked like a Quigley (the horse, not the man). Great blog, ladies, and the book sounds fabulous, too!

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    3. Too funny about Quigley Ally, this totally made me smile. I didn't realize it was Irish back when I named my cat, but I've run across it recently connected with Ireland, just like you said. I watched the TV series Ballykissangel because it was filmed in Avoca where one of my ancestors came from and there is a Quigley in the show. Thanks for sharing! :-)

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  3. Hi, Eliza! I love the set-up for your book, thanks for sharing a bit about it.

    I'd love to be able to shape-shift...maybe into a beautiful jaguar...maybe just into a small jeans size. lol ;)

    kristi_writes_romance@yahoo.com

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    1. Lol, shape-shifting would certainly be a beneficial ability wouldn't it? Thanks so much for popping by today Kristina!

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    2. Oh I want that ability, Kristi :))) Lil black dress too mebbe!

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  4. Thanks so much for having me here today Cait and for sharing the monkey pic! Good times in Thailand. If I told you what Frankie contributed to our brainstorming sessions he'd want his name on the cover of Identity Crisis. :-) Yeah, Ireland's weather probably wouldn't inspire creativity in the winter either, but they don't get as much snow as Wisconsin so it might be a move in the right direction!

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    1. and also, I think Irelands air itself is inspirational -- I love that first breath, standing on the steps of the plane. So nice.

      Thanks heaps for coming to Cait's Place yourself! (I loved Thailand, I have to say!)

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    2. Ireland is very inspirational. I feel such a connection to the country and a longing for it when I'm not there. I really do think I should rent a writing cottage for a few months and crank out this women's fiction book set in Ireland I've been dabbling in. :-)

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  5. Eliza-
    I love the pic with you and the monkeys! Have you ever thought of adding monkeys into one of your books? You could include this from the art history perspective. Just thinking of Georges Seurat's A Sunday on La Grande Jatte. Any ideas?
    I also loved Identity Crisis!!

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    1. That monkey in La Grande Jatte has always intrigued me. The French word for monkey is slang for prostitute, so was this woman a prostitute with her client, who was a real monkey? Lol. Who knows, but always interesting to try to interpret art. Thanks so much for reading Identity Crisis and I'm glad you enjoyed it!

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  6. Fantastic interview and loved the pic! Your book title is awesome! Can't wait to read it!

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    1. Not sure what that monkey was picking out of my hair in the picture. Hmm... Thanks so much for stopping by Jennifer!

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  7. ooohhh, a marshal! Love marshals! Do you watch Justified? It's my fave show!!!

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    1. I don't watch Justified but my hubby does and I keep thinking I should because I love Kevin Bacon. I need to start watching more TV. Thanks D'Ann!

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  8. The title is fab, and I LOVE the premise!! As for your interview, I was grinning like mad. I have two cats, and honestly, most of the time I can tell what they are thinking just from their expressions and mannerisms, and hoo boy, am I thankful they can't talk!!

    So, as I have one cat who is loving and affectionate, and one that is a crazy ball of fur, my question is: do your three cats have distinctive personalities, and if so, what are they?

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    1. Great question! My three cats totally have distinctive personalities.

      Quigley, the oldest, doesn't care to interact with Frankie and Sammy, he very much prefers humans. Every time we sit on the couch he hops up and wants his belly rubbed. And he is up in bed with us every night by 9pm. He runs under the bed every time the doorbell rings.

      Frankie is obsessed with sinks. He sits in the kitchen sink and lies on the bathroom counter until we turn the sink on for him to drink from. Frankie and Sammy snuggle in a small pet bed together and play non-stop. When the doorbell rings Frankie sits in the hallway and cranes his neck to see who is there.

      When the doorbell rings Sammy goes to the door to see who is there. The other two hide when I pull out the vacuum cleaner, but Sammy follows me around the house and watches me vacuum. Sammy hops up in bed every morning at 3:30am and nuzzles me under the chin until I get up to feed him. He is very vocal and will walk around the house talking whereas Frankie is mute, can barely utter a sound.

      What would we do without our furry babies?

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  9. Nice interview, Eliza. It was nice getting to know you better. :)
    -R.T. Wolfe

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    1. Thanks so much for stopping by RT and reading the interview!

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    2. Lovely to see you at Cait's Place, R.T., thanks :)

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  10. And the lucky winner of Identity Crisis is ...drumroll please...D'Ann! Congratulations, D'Ann :). Eliza will be contacting you via email. Enjoy.

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  11. Hi Cait, Hi Eliza, good to 'see' you both here. Congratulations on the new release Eliza.

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