The first book of my Dream Series, DREAM STUDENT, takes place in
1989-90, and my heroine, Sara Barnes, is twenty-one years old. She’d have
been sixteen in 1984, when “Romancing the Stone” came out, and Sara would
definitely have seen the movie, and she would have loved it. But what
would the movie’s heroine, world-renowned, best-selling romance author Joan
Wilder, think of Sara and her story? Let’s ask her!
J.J.: Hi, Joan! Let’s get right to it. Tell us what you
thought about DREAM STUDENT, and Sara?
Joan Wilder: First off, I’m happy that she’s a fan of mine.
When she describes herself as a “world-class hopeless romantic,” she must have
stolen that from one of my interviews.
But aside from that, I have to say, I liked her. I know what
it’s like to be thrown into a situation that you’re simply not prepared for,
and you have to sink or swim, so I absolutely felt for her and all the trouble
she had once she started jumping into other people’s dreams. I thought
she handled herself really well. I don’t know if I would have done half
as well at her age. And even knowing how difficult it was for her, I
wouldn’t mind being able to do that myself. If I knew what Jack Colton
was thinking…never mind, we’re not talking about me, are we?
J.J.: What did you think about her romance with Brian?
Joan Wilder: Well, I was very impressed by the way she took the initiative.
Most of my heroines don’t do that. At least not until my last couple of
books, anyway. She did go to bed with him pretty quickly, but I guess
that’s what they do in college these days. I didn’t go to college all
that long ago, but there would have been hell to pay if I’d ever brought a boy
up to my room unescorted. And co-ed dorms? No chance!
I kept expecting there to be some challenge to the relationship –
there always is in my books – but when I realized that wasn’t really Sara’s
story, I just went along for the ride.
J.J.: Your heroines always seem to end up in life-or-death
situations. How do you think Sara handled her own brush with death at the
end of the book?
Joan Wilder: She did just fine! I especially liked that she
had to face her final conflict alone, just like I did when Colonel Zolo came
after me, and Jack couldn’t help because he was trying to catch that
crocodile…oh, never mind. Ignore that, I’m just babbling. Anyway, I
thought Sara was very brave, confronting a serial killer in his own lair,
unarmed and injured. You don’t get much more heroic than that!
J.J.: So you’ll be reading Sara’s next story?
Joan Wilder: Definitely! I’m very curious to see what comes
after her “happily ever after.” I can tell you from experience, sometimes
that’s the biggest adventure of all!
Title: Dream
Student
Publisher:
Writing Dreams
Date
Published: March, 2013
Genre:
Paranormal Romance/Suspense
Word
Count: 94,000
College
junior Sara Barnes thought her life was totally under control. All she had to worry about was her final
exams, Christmas shopping, applying to medical school – and what to do about
the cute freshman in the next dorm with a crush on her. Everything was going according to plan, until
the night she started seeing other people’s dreams.
It’s
bad enough that Sara is learning more than she ever needed to know about her
friends and classmates, watching their most secret fantasies whether she wants
to or not. Much worse are the other
dreams, the ones she sees nearly every night, featuring a strange, terrifying
man who commits unspeakable crimes. Now
Sara wonders if she’s the only witness to a serial killer – and the only one
who knows when and where he’s going to strike next.
Dream
Student is the first book of the Dream Series.
Excerpt:
Excerpt:
So this is
goodbye, for now. Who knows when or if
we’ll be able to get together during the holiday? I am
pretty sure we won’t be able to get together the way we were together last
night until we’re back at school in January.
I can’t believe I’ve known him less than three weeks; it feels like I’ve
known him my whole life, and, yes, I do know how that sounds.
Anyway. We’re at the gate, and they start boarding
his flight. I throw my arms around his
neck, and I kiss him. I put everything
I’m feeling into it. He does, too. It feels like the moment in one of those old
movies where the girl is sending her guy off to war, and she kisses him like
she knows it might be for the last time.
They call
his row, and he breaks the kiss. He
heads for the jetway, but he’s looking back at me the whole time. I stand there, exactly in that spot, until
his plane is in the air and out of sight.
I can only
imagine what Beth would think of all that.
She’d say that it proves I really am a hopeless romantic. Maybe even a world-class hopeless romantic. You know what? She’s absolutely right. And I don’t care one bit.
Dream
Student is currently FREE on Kindle and elsewhere!
Author
Bio:
J.J.
(James) Dibenedetto's fans would swear he's got a sixth sense when it comes to
seeing into the minds of others and often wonder if his stories could possibly
be fiction. He enjoys suspending disbelief with suspenseful paranormal tales
that are a perfect blend of reality meets fantasy.
His
popular Dream Series continues to delight readers with each and every exciting
installment.
Born in
Yonkers, New York, he currently resides in Arlington Virginia with his
beautiful wife and a cat he is sure has taken full advantage of its nine lives.
When it comes to the cat, he often wonders, but then again it might just be his
imagination.
Author
Links:
Hi James,
ReplyDeleteWelcome back to the Snarkology. It's great to have you with us again. The confession will date me but I have to admit that I adored Romancing the Stone as a girl. Wonderful movie. :-)
Thanks for hosting me! I really enjoyed coming up with this. And I guess it dates me, too :)
ReplyDelete