Two Ends of the Pen: Interview with Taylor Marsh, BELTWAY BETRAYERS

Can you give us a brief overview of your latest book? Is it part of a series?

Beltway Betrayers is Book 2 in The Beltway Series.

Alex Gantry, the heroine, has moved from Hollywood to the Washington, D.C., Beltway. Her best friend, Berkley Banks, offered her a partnership at her firm, which gave Alex the excuse she needed to change her life and shake things up.

She left her ex-boyfriend, Brian Marks behind. He's not taking being dumped very well, because Alex didn't give him a chance to protest before she left.

T.J. Gales is Alex's new beau. He's a greenpreneur, helping corporations turn their workplaces green. This is only half of his story, because he also operates a private military company, as readers will see as the story unfolds in Beltway Betrayers.

T.J. is recently divorced from Lisa Dalaney, a woman who comes from a powerful, if nefarious, New York family. Her father, Davin, never did like T.J., and he is out for vengeance, now that his daughter's marriage is over. Lisa blames Alex for her divorce, so she's got her own plans.

The cast of characters includes private military men and women who carry firearms, and hunt villains, with the women sleuths being equal to the men in all things.

It's a sensual, roller coaster thrill ride.

Have you ever had a minor character evolve into a major one? Did that change the direction of the novel at all?

Yes, absolutely.

I introduced two characters, by name only, in Book 1. In Beltway Betrayers, Book 2, these two characters command attention and respect, as well as a large part of the plot.

It was a thrilling surprise that taught me a lot about letting characters breathe and be who they want.

If you used a graphic designer/publisher’s designer, how involved were you during the creative process for your cover?

I was very involved in the process, working with a graphic designer. I used the same person/company on both of my covers.

Mirna Gilman from Books Go Social did both of my covers and will do Book 3. In the social media era, you need someone who understands how the jpg of the book needs to pop.

I put together some specific graphics that I liked, as well as informed her on the plot. Book 2 is significantly different from Book 1, and explaining these details mattered. Los Angeles takes focus as the action crescendos, so featuring the city was important.

Mirna made sure there was consistency between the two covers, so that people understand it's a series.

What is your writing process? Do you listen to music or do you like silence?

I don't write a word until I've meditated.

Music is terrific before I write, as well as afterward.

I write in silence.

Do you outline your story or just go where your muse takes you?

Ruminating and thinking about the scope of the book starts first, before I begin the story. I set a very wide perimeter.

With two non-fiction novels on the shelf, I trust the process more. But some things don't change.

I work chapter by chapter and, invariably, something surprises me along the way that takes me into unknown territory.

Did you hire an editor to review your manuscript before publishing?

Absolutely. I've used the same talented, tenacious, and detail oriented editor for both of my romantic novels. She will also edit Book 3.

Besides Amazon, are there any other sites where your books are for sale?

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Beltway-Betrayers-Racy-Psychological-Thriller-ebook/dp/B06XBLPFXK/

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/beltway-betrayers-taylor-marsh/1126397423

Inktera: http://www.inktera.com/store/title/2e1c212b-e909-4dfd-8068-5c384e1b39da

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/beltway-betrayers

Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/book/348189778/Beltway-Betrayers-The-Beltway-Series-2

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1236456046

What kinds of marketing [twitter, facebook, blog, forums] are you involved with for promoting your book(s)?

Twitter, Facebook Author Page, my own blog, Facebook Author Forums, Books Go Social on Facebook, as well as their Featured Author service… Instagram, Tumblr… Amazon author page, BookBub…

My website is my business card. The main page is everything romance, relationships, sex, dating, and women.

Since I began in non-fiction & have been doing it so long, I've got readers going back over 10 years, and they congregate on my blog page, which is separate. Rebranding was really tough when I turned to romantic thrillers, because keeping as many of my long-time readers as possible was important.

Email list builders of all types is critical. AWeber for emails to my loyal subscribers, which I send out judiciously and only when there's something good to offer them.

The amount of time & effort required to market my work is exceeded only by the hours I need to write.

I'm never *not* marketing my work.

Being an author is a full-time gig.

What advice would you give a new author just entering into the self-publishing arena?

Think of it as starting a new business. It will take capital investment, whether it's the fee to keep your blog going, a $20/month membership on Instafreebie, or $200+ month for advertising. Your time is capital investment, too, because you can't quit your day job until you've attracted readers.

Remember: Writing a book is one thing; getting people to read it is another.

THE BASICS:

Build a website.

Build a blog around a topic that will be in your book(s).

Keep blogging about the topic that's in your books (every week, at least).

Build a social media platform where your blog posts will be featured.

Partner with other authors. (Facebook will help with this. I highly recommend Books Go Social on FB. I'm a client for a reason.https://www.blogger.com/null)

What’s next for you?

The Beltway Series, Book 3 is taking shape in my mind.

I'm thinking about bringing back one of the characters in Book 1, who is a client of Alex Gantry, the heroine, who is an elite life coach.

The working title of Book 3, emphasis on working title, is Beltway Hits Sin City. It’s set in Las Vegas, the place where I once spent a lot of time partying, and where I later met my husband.

Beltway Betrayers
Taylor Marsh
Publication date: May 12th 2017
Genres: Adult, Psychological Thriller

There’s a secret.
A woman is heard whimpering in a parking garage.
A dark side to the powerfully rich is exposed.
And Alex Gantry is at the center of it all.
After several frightening events that shook Alex’s world, things have settled down.
So it seems…
Elite life coach, Alex Gantry, is enjoying her new life in the Washington, D.C. Beltway.
T.J. Gale, who’s part greenpreneur, part leader of a quick-strike unit of former military and intelligence professionals, has set her heart aflame.
Alex and T.J. are in love.
Enter Jett Spence, a man who once was part of T.J.’s world but who is now an unknown, because no one can tell whose side he’s on.
Two thousand miles away in Hollywood, Alex’s old haunts, the powerful producer Brian Marks is falling apart because he’s lost her. The woman he never thought would leave him is now in the bed of a younger man.
In New York City, T.J.’s ex-wife, Lisa, is looking to get even with the woman she thinks destroyed her marriage. Her vengeful father Davin Dalaney is eager to help because T.J. is no longer willing to ignore his criminal profits.
Brian is intent on getting Alex back.
Lisa wants to make her pay.
And T.J. is attempting to keep her safe.
Alex believes she can take care of herself, but being with T.J. has taught her it’s not always that simple.
From the Washington, D.C. Beltway to Los Angeles, California, the stakes couldn’t be higher.

Goodreads / Amazon

Author Bio:
Taylor Marsh writes smart, arousing romance while deciphering world events. She lives in the Beltway area of Washington D.C.

“Beltway Betrayers,” Book 2 of The Beltway Series, will be out in May 2017 and Book 3 of this series will be out in the fall.
She is a former Broadway performer and beauty queen who was the Relationship Consultant for LA WEEKLY, then the nation’s top alternative newsweekly. Taylor is the author of two traditionally published non-fiction books, “The Hillary Effect,” and her memoir, “The Sexual Education of a Beauty Queen.”

Taylor was profiled in The Washington Post and The New Republic for her coverage of Hillary Clinton during the 2008 Democratic primary season. She became a contributor to The Huffington Post in 2006, and has written for Washington, D.C.’s The Hill, as well as for U.S. News & World Report and for Zócalo Public Square in Los Angeles, among others. As a seasoned entertainer, communicator and speaker, Taylor has also been interviewed by The Los Angeles Times, Al Jazeera Media Network, The New York Times, BBC, CNN, MSNBC, and C-SPAN’s Washington Journal, among other outlets.