Susan V. Vaughn
What television sitcom is most like your family? Why? Rosanne is the sitcom most like my family. My husband and I were raised middle class, Midwest, loud, and sarcastic. Our upbringing definitely rubbed off on our kids. I always warn people before they come over to bring their a sense of humor and a pair of earplugs!
What’s your favorite thing to do to relax? Relaxation to me involves a glass of wine, a horrible reality t.v show, and my cat Wilma purring on my lap.
If you could go back in time to when you were seven years old, what wisdom or advice would you pass on to yourself? The advice I would give myself is simple, be yourself and harm none.
Now about you as an author…
What is your favorite aspect or writing? Believe it or not I absolutely love the editing process. I always learn from the feedback I get from my editors, and I enjoy the process of transforming a rough manuscript into a polished finished product.
Do you have any “must haves” with you while you’re writing? I am lucky enough to be able to write in chaos considering there is no such thing as quiet in my household. However, I can’t write without coffee. Just the smell of it puts me in the right creative head space.
What have you learned the most from being in the writing business? I have learned the key to success is to keep writing. I know not everything I write will work. In fact, I have thrown out entire manuscripts because they weren’t working. But because I am always creating, I don’t lose sleep over the manuscripts that didn’t make it. I move forward and learn from my mistakes.
Tell us about your latest release:
Blurb for Sweet Escape:
Ted Harper knew moving to Milford to open his dream bar wouldn’t be easy. But he could have never imagined he would be so easily distracted from his goal. Violet Marino is beautiful, smart, captivating, and unfortunately, his next-door neighbor. Now Ted has a dilemma on his hands he didn’t anticipate as his life becomes entangled with a woman he can’t seem to forget.
Violet Marino has spent decades caring for her family and working at her father’s restaurant as a waitress. Hardly the life she dreamed of living when she was a little girl. But after her mother died, she was never a little girl again. Thrust into the parenting role for her two younger siblings, Violet sacrificed everything for their well-being.
When a handsome business owner offers her more than just a sweet escape, Violet is tempted to take him up on the offer. Even if that means jumping into the unknown.
Excerpt
He saw another opportunity to tease her and decided he had to take it. She kept leaving herself open. “Oh, I get it. You’re one of those narrow-minded types.”
“I am not!” she said with outrage.
He shook his head sadly. “Sounds like you are.”
“No, I just…” She paused, seeming lost. “Well, look at you. You’re like this perfect, broken nose Ken doll.”
And there was the bad review based on his “cover”. “So you’re saying I’m plastic and handsome?”
She exhaled noisily, obviously flustered, and he enjoyed every minute of it. “I just mean, you’re, like…well, you are handsome, I guess. Probably to most women. But that’s not the point.”
She seemed frazzled, like she was trying to talk herself out of admitting any attraction. But he had seen the heat in her eyes when they locked gazes, and he wasn’t about to let her off the hook. “So what’s the point?”
“The point is you don’t look or act like someone who spends his off time reading books.”
“That’s the funny thing about me.” Seeing his opening, he stood up and walked over to her chair. “I have a lot of layers to my personality.” He grabbed her hands.
She arched her head back, staring up at him, probably trying to figure out why he was now standing so close and touching her. “What are you doing?”
He pulled her to her feet. If he waited any longer to kiss her, he would probably lose his mind.
“Showing you another layer,” he said, and then, before she could react, he pressed his lips against hers and felt the world come alive.
How did you choose the location for your story?
I am so excited about Sweet Escape because it is the first book in my Michigan romance series, Smitten. Sweet Escape is set in Milford, which is the small town I grew up in. I love everything about my home town and I hope my readers will love it too.
What’s your favorite thing to do to relax? Relaxation to me involves a glass of wine, a horrible reality t.v show, and my cat Wilma purring on my lap.
If you could go back in time to when you were seven years old, what wisdom or advice would you pass on to yourself? The advice I would give myself is simple, be yourself and harm none.
Now about you as an author…
What is your favorite aspect or writing? Believe it or not I absolutely love the editing process. I always learn from the feedback I get from my editors, and I enjoy the process of transforming a rough manuscript into a polished finished product.
Do you have any “must haves” with you while you’re writing? I am lucky enough to be able to write in chaos considering there is no such thing as quiet in my household. However, I can’t write without coffee. Just the smell of it puts me in the right creative head space.
What have you learned the most from being in the writing business? I have learned the key to success is to keep writing. I know not everything I write will work. In fact, I have thrown out entire manuscripts because they weren’t working. But because I am always creating, I don’t lose sleep over the manuscripts that didn’t make it. I move forward and learn from my mistakes.
Tell us about your latest release:
Blurb for Sweet Escape:
Ted Harper knew moving to Milford to open his dream bar wouldn’t be easy. But he could have never imagined he would be so easily distracted from his goal. Violet Marino is beautiful, smart, captivating, and unfortunately, his next-door neighbor. Now Ted has a dilemma on his hands he didn’t anticipate as his life becomes entangled with a woman he can’t seem to forget.
Violet Marino has spent decades caring for her family and working at her father’s restaurant as a waitress. Hardly the life she dreamed of living when she was a little girl. But after her mother died, she was never a little girl again. Thrust into the parenting role for her two younger siblings, Violet sacrificed everything for their well-being.
When a handsome business owner offers her more than just a sweet escape, Violet is tempted to take him up on the offer. Even if that means jumping into the unknown.
Excerpt
He saw another opportunity to tease her and decided he had to take it. She kept leaving herself open. “Oh, I get it. You’re one of those narrow-minded types.”
“I am not!” she said with outrage.
He shook his head sadly. “Sounds like you are.”
“No, I just…” She paused, seeming lost. “Well, look at you. You’re like this perfect, broken nose Ken doll.”
And there was the bad review based on his “cover”. “So you’re saying I’m plastic and handsome?”
She exhaled noisily, obviously flustered, and he enjoyed every minute of it. “I just mean, you’re, like…well, you are handsome, I guess. Probably to most women. But that’s not the point.”
She seemed frazzled, like she was trying to talk herself out of admitting any attraction. But he had seen the heat in her eyes when they locked gazes, and he wasn’t about to let her off the hook. “So what’s the point?”
“The point is you don’t look or act like someone who spends his off time reading books.”
“That’s the funny thing about me.” Seeing his opening, he stood up and walked over to her chair. “I have a lot of layers to my personality.” He grabbed her hands.
She arched her head back, staring up at him, probably trying to figure out why he was now standing so close and touching her. “What are you doing?”
He pulled her to her feet. If he waited any longer to kiss her, he would probably lose his mind.
“Showing you another layer,” he said, and then, before she could react, he pressed his lips against hers and felt the world come alive.
How did you choose the location for your story?
I am so excited about Sweet Escape because it is the first book in my Michigan romance series, Smitten. Sweet Escape is set in Milford, which is the small town I grew up in. I love everything about my home town and I hope my readers will love it too.
