Happy Monday! Today I’m interviewing author Annette Mardis on my blog. As a girl, Annette dreamed of being an astronaut, but she stank at science and math and became motion sick riding the bus home from school. So she went with her second choice—newspaper journalist—and stuck with it for more than three decades. After years of ignoring well-meaning people who said, “You should write a book,” she finally did. And then she wrote a few more. When she’s not working, Annette usually has her nose in someone else’s novel or her gaze glued to sports on TV. She has three totally spoiled pets, enjoys being the designated sightseer on her husband’s Harley, and volunteers at Clearwater Marine Aquarium, home of diva dolphins Winter and Hope from the Dolphin Tale films. Read on to find out more about this author…

1 How do you write? Is everything plotted, planned to perfection? Do you ever change tack as you go along or always stick to a pre-made plan? I’m a seat-of-the-pants writer. Sometimes I’m not even sure where I’m going until I get there. I also lie in bed at night and work out the plot and even individual scenes. I’m also pretty good at self-editing, so I do revisions as I go along.
2 Do you have a writing ritual? Meditation, certain cup for your tea, writing trousers? No. I’m a former newspaper reporter and editor, and working in a newsroom is a lot like trying to concentrate in the middle of a train station. So I learned to just sit down and get to it, no matter what else is going on. Not feeling well? Too bad. Deadlines won’t wait. It’s either produce or do something else for a living. I think that discipline serves me well now. I do need to sit where I can put my feet up, so I usually take my laptop to the living room couch or the massage chair in my sunroom. My dogs often are barking and my bird is screeching, so conditions are never ideal. But I don’t need to lock myself in a quiet room to write.
3 Aside from writing, what makes you tick? I love my husband, my family, and my pets. I’m a big sports fan, especially NASCAR, baseball, and football. I enjoy being the “designated sightseer” on the back of my husband’s Harley. I also volunteer at Clearwater Marine Aquarium and love talking about marine life, especially dolphins, and conservation with guests.
4 If you were stranded on a desert island with shelter, food and water, what 5 items would you want with you? A phone, lantern, extra batteries, knife, and, oh yeah, a boat.

5 On said island, what 5 books would you take and why? A survival guide for obvious reasons; a Bible for inspiration and comfort; a dictionary to study to pass the time; a journal to record my thoughts; and a romance novel because I enjoy them.

6 Off the island now, which famous person would you like to have dinner with? Former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords (and her husband, Mark Kelly) because of their service to our country and because they’ve worked so hard to overcome the crazed actions of a would-be assassin. She’s a model of courage and persistence.
7 Your current writing projects? I’m working on Shore to Please, book 3 in my Gulf Shore contemporary romance series. I’ve also written a middle grades children’s book that I need to do more work on before I start another round of submissions to agents and publishers.

The Shore Thing, Book 1 in the Gulf Shore series — Danielle Dani”Davidson vows to just say no to workplace romances after her first post-college job is soured by a messy breakup with a manipulative coworker at a fish hatchery. That’s just one reason she doesn’t trust any man with her heart, let alone one who swims with sharks for a living. So why can’t she get cameraman Evan Sanders out of her mind?

Evan is twice shy, too, after an alluring but self-absorbed colleague at Gulf Shore Aquarium takes a bite out of his heart. Thought he’s dead set against dating anyone else he works with, he’s intrigued by Dani’s shyness and tempted by her intelligence and low-key sexiness.

Sharks, a stingray and an orphaned baby dolphin help bring them together, but will Dani’s inhibitions and Evan’s career aspirations ultimately tear them apart?

Shore Feels Right, Book 2 in the Gulf Shore series — Once a pariah among her coworkers, marine biologist Monica Sims has spent months reinventing herself as she seeks redemption. A history of failed relationships leaves her leery of romantic involvement until she meets Cosby Williams, the new co-owner of Nauti-Toys watercraft rentals.
As things heat up between them, Gulf Shore Aquarium responds to the stranding of a group of pilot whales. When a billionaire bachelor lends his private plane to the rescue effort, Monica catches his eye — and an obsession is born.
How will she cope with the unwanted attention? And will her past sins come back to doom her newfound happiness with Cosby?

Getting Her Money’s Worth — Life often has been unkind, and sometimes cruel, to Allie Charles, and she’s determined not to be shortchanged and to live in the moment whenever possible.

She and close pal Shelby Martin want many of the same things: romance, fun, good friends and satisfying work. After meeting on a softball field on a frigid fall evening, they enjoy many adventures together: watching the piranha feeding at the National Aquarium; overturning their canoe in the deepest, blackest part of a river; getting stuck thigh high in mud on a golf course water hazard; winning tacky prizes at skee ball machines in Ocean City, Md.

Only one woman will see her heart’s desires fulfilled, while the other faces the biggest challenge of her life. This touching, poignant and funny story will make you laugh, cry and go for the gusto in your own life.

Thank you Annette Mardis for sharing your books and those things that are important in your life apart from writing.

Contact Annette

Website: http://www.annettemardis.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorAnnetteMardis
Twitter: @AnnetteMardis48
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Annette-Mardis/e/B00E5UHPMM/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/dashboard
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/annettemardis/
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/Shelbypie
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=221177296&trk=nav_responsive_tab_profile_pic
Google+ https://plus.google.com/+AnnetteMardis/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nx6WNGA94bQ