This virtual book tour is presented by Bewitching Book Tours.
Click HERE for the tour schedule.
Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the tour.
It is my pleasure to feature Lisa Mondello and her book
All I Want For Christmas Is You.
Lisa Mondello (a.k.a. LA Mondello) has held many jobs in her life but being a published authors is the last job she'll ever have. She's not retiring! She blames the creation of the personal computer for her leap into writing novels. Otherwise, she'd still be penning stories with paper and pen. Her first book, All I Want for Christmas is You, was the winner of the Golden Quill contest for Best First Book and to date has had over 400,000 downloads worldwide.
She is currently the author of 14 novels under the name Lisa Mondello and LA Mondello. You can find more information about Lisa Mondello at http://www.lisamondello.blogspot.com
www.LisaMondello.blogspot.com
@LisaMondello
http://www.facebook.com/lisa.mondello.1
Lisa has stopped by for an interview:
When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
As soon as I knew what to do with pen and paper the stories just started coming. They never stopped.
How many jobs did you have before you became a writer?
I can’t count. I’ve done everything from be a car hop, work in a library, manage a rock band, sell Pampered Chef and work at a school in special education.
How long does it take you to write a book?
It depends on the research needed for the book and what’s going on in my life at the time. Of course, if I’m on a deadline, all bets are off and I have the amazing ability to kick into gear. Of course, my housework suffers greatly.
Do you have a routine that you use to get into the right frame of mind to write?
I create a soundtrack for all my books. I use that sound track to get into the mood. When the kids were younger and I’d cart them around, that soundtrack was playing on the stereo in the car. My kids hated it. But it made it easier for me to be interrupted during writing and get back into it when I sat back down at the computer. My head is a jukebox for the times I can’t have a stereo on.
Where do you get your ideas or inspiration for your characters?
Everywhere. I know it’s cliché, but it’s the truth. I’ve been in a restaurant when an idea hit me. I’ve been playing with the kids. At Fourth of July fireworks. You name it. Ideas just come. When they stop coming I’ll worry.
How do you decide what you want to write about?
That is so hard. Read the last question and answer. I’m full of ideas. So wrestling with them and deciding what to give my focus to is hard. I do it, but I often work on multiple projects at the same time.
What is the first book you remember reading by yourself?
Justin Morgan Has a Horse. It amazes me we never forget our first book read for sheer pleasure.
What are you reading right now?
Soul of the Dragon by Natalie Damschroder
What do you like to do when you are not writing?
I’m always writing. So anything else of enjoyment gets fit in between.
What is your favorite comfort food?
Coffee. Can I count coffee? I always have a cup of coffee nearby.
What do you think makes a good story
Characters and plot that make me forget I’m a writer. Writers are the hardest critiques. If I’m reading and I paying attention to style or the way an author did something, I’m reading like a writer. I want to enjoy a book by reading like a reader. I want to get so involve that I stay up way into the night and can’t stop reading.
What book, if any, do you read over and over again?
I really don’t read books over again. I love books, but there are so many to read that I usually only read them once. Movies I can see over and over again though. I love movies. And if I love a movie, my family usually hides the DVD on me because they don’t want to see it again.
Fun random questions:
• dogs or cats? Both.
• Coffee or tea? Please…coffee.
• Dark or milk chocolate? Milk chocolate
• Rocks or flowers? flowers
• Night or day? Both
• Favorite color? Red
• Crayons or markers? both
• Pens or pencils? Pens. I like the feel of a good pen in my hand.
As soon as I knew what to do with pen and paper the stories just started coming. They never stopped.
How many jobs did you have before you became a writer?
I can’t count. I’ve done everything from be a car hop, work in a library, manage a rock band, sell Pampered Chef and work at a school in special education.
How long does it take you to write a book?
It depends on the research needed for the book and what’s going on in my life at the time. Of course, if I’m on a deadline, all bets are off and I have the amazing ability to kick into gear. Of course, my housework suffers greatly.
Do you have a routine that you use to get into the right frame of mind to write?
I create a soundtrack for all my books. I use that sound track to get into the mood. When the kids were younger and I’d cart them around, that soundtrack was playing on the stereo in the car. My kids hated it.
Where do you get your ideas or inspiration for your characters?
Everywhere. I know it’s cliché, but it’s the truth. I’ve been in a restaurant when an idea hit me. I’ve been playing with the kids. At Fourth of July fireworks. You name it. Ideas just come. When they stop coming I’ll worry.
How do you decide what you want to write about?
That is so hard. Read the last question and answer. I’m full of ideas. So wrestling with them and deciding what to give my focus to is hard. I do it, but I often work on multiple projects at the same time.
What is the first book you remember reading by yourself?
Justin Morgan Has a Horse. It amazes me we never forget our first book read for sheer pleasure.
What are you reading right now?
Soul of the Dragon by Natalie Damschroder
What do you like to do when you are not writing?
I’m always writing. So anything else of enjoyment gets fit in between.
What is your favorite comfort food?
Coffee. Can I count coffee? I always have a cup of coffee nearby.
What do you think makes a good story
Characters and plot that make me forget I’m a writer. Writers are the hardest critiques. If I’m reading and I paying attention to style or the way an author did something, I’m reading like a writer. I want to enjoy a book by reading like a reader. I want to get so involve that I stay up way into the night and can’t stop reading.
What book, if any, do you read over and over again?
I really don’t read books over again. I love books, but there are so many to read that I usually only read them once. Movies I can see over and over again though. I love movies. And if I love a movie, my family usually hides the DVD on me because they don’t want to see it again.
Fun random questions:
• dogs or cats? Both.
• Coffee or tea? Please…coffee.
• Dark or milk chocolate? Milk chocolate
• Rocks or flowers? flowers
• Night or day? Both
• Favorite color? Red
• Crayons or markers? both
• Pens or pencils? Pens. I like the feel of a good pen in my hand.
All I Want for Christmas is You
Fate with a Helping Hand Book One by Lisa Mondello
Book Description:
Sometimes fate needs a little hand...
Santa Claus is going to have a rough season... Lauren Alexander is raising her daughter alone. Abandoned by her family for her decision to keep her daughter Kristen, she has done a pretty good job for the last six years. Or she thought she had. That's why she is crushed when little Kristen gives up her wish for a toy or goodie and instead asks Santa for a present for her mother. She wants Santa to bring a Daddy. Delivering Daddies isn't Santa's bag.
But this Santa has a plan...
Kyle Preston knows what it is like to be abandoned too. Luckily he found the support of loving adoptive parents and has turned himself into one of the most successful Real Estate developers in town.
Building a house is easy. Building someone's trust is a whole other story. But with a little helping hand, a little Christmas magic can make all the difference in the world.
An Excerpt:
"You don't have to be afraid. This will explain it all. I promise you." He smiled warmly and Lauren wanted to trust him if only to believe in simple kindness.
With shaking hands, she took the piece of paper, warm from being in the pocket close to Kyle's body. She held it up straight so that she could see Kyle while reading the words on the paper.
"Dear Santa..." she read out loud, then read the next part silently. "Oh, no," she groaned.
"I know. That's just how I felt."
Lauren shot him a skeptical glance. "How did you get this?"
"Kristen gave it tome. "
"That's impossible. Mrs. Hopkins just helped her with it this afternoon and-"
"And she gave it to me in the Mall," Kyle finished for her.
She looked at him quizzically, still trying to comprehend the course of events leading up to his seizure of her daughter's precious note.
"It's not that hard to figure out, Lauren," Kyle said warmly.
His dark eyes gleamed with the light from the lamppost. He wore no hat to protect his head from the falling snow. Now his hair was filled with powdered flakes, matting it down.
His grin was bright and wide as he informed her, "I'm Santa Claus."
Fate with a Helping Hand Series includes:
Book 1 ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU
Book 2 THE MARRIAGE CONTRACT
Book 3 THE KNIGHT AND MAGGIE'S BABY
With shaking hands, she took the piece of paper, warm from being in the pocket close to Kyle's body. She held it up straight so that she could see Kyle while reading the words on the paper.
"Dear Santa..." she read out loud, then read the next part silently. "Oh, no," she groaned.
"I know. That's just how I felt."
Lauren shot him a skeptical glance. "How did you get this?"
"Kristen gave it to
"That's impossible. Mrs. Hopkins just helped her with it this afternoon and-"
"And she gave it to me in the Mall," Kyle finished for her.
She looked at him quizzically, still trying to comprehend the course of events leading up to his seizure of her daughter's precious note.
"It's not that hard to figure out, Lauren," Kyle said warmly.
His dark eyes gleamed with the light from the lamppost. He wore no hat to protect his head from the falling snow. Now his hair was filled with powdered flakes, matting it down.
His grin was bright and wide as he informed her, "I'm Santa Claus."
Fate with a Helping Hand Series includes:
Book 1 ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU
Book 2 THE MARRIAGE CONTRACT
Book 3 THE KNIGHT AND MAGGIE'S BABY
My Thoughts:
I have never read a Lisa Mondello story that I didn't love. She creates strong characters who are easy to invest in. The world she puts those characters in is always well thought out and the plot is clever.
I opened this book planning to love it - but...I got a little worried at the start where a little girl is wanting a daddy for Christmas. Lisa Mondello created the perfect Christmas scenario.
As a single mom, my heart bled for both the mother and the child with the opening scenes of the book. I was all in from there and read the book through in one sitting.
The characters are fantastic. There isn't a character in this book that I didn't connect with. The storyline is remarkable and wonderfully done. The level of emotion is the story is incredible. The themes running strong throughout the book are family, love and belief. Every person should have the kind of family that Kyle is offering to share with Lauren and Kristen. Fantastic read filled with love, laughter, dedication, forgiveness, and hope.
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