Guest Post: Welcome Kelly Moran, author of The Dysfunctional Test

Today, please welcome Kelly Moran to the blog. Her first release with Samhain Publishing, The Dysfunctional Test, comes out September 24, 2013. She’s here to tell you all about this contemporary romance—and to give away a copy to a lucky commenter.

The Dysfunctional Test is your first book with Samhain–congratulations! Do you have any other books available or is this your first publication?
The Drake House (romantic suspense) and Summer’s Road (contemporary romance) are my two previous books, both with Wild Rose Press.

What prompted you to write The Dysfunctional Test?
My dad’s side of the family is Serbian, and I thought it was long past time to write a quirky romance about a crazy Serbian family. Hope I pulled it off, LOL.

Have you always wanted to be a writer or did the itch to write come later in life?
Always wanted to. Or rather, always had the insane writer brain with stories in my head.

The Dysfunctional Test plays on two popular romance tropes, the fake date that turns into a real romance, and the old friend who becomes a lover. What other romance tropes are favorites of yours?
Both are hard to write too because one is cliched, so you have to be fresh, and the other needs stronger than the norm conflict to pull it off. Friends to lovers has always been my favorite. There’s just something about learning someone pines for you that just does it for me. I’m pretty open to anything with romance, except maybe the have-to-marry-for-money plots. The only authors I’ve read who’ve done it fresh are Amy Lillard or Catherine Bybee.

You manage to make your heroine Cam’s initial dilemma both touching and funny. She’s suddenly single, right before her sister’s wedding, and dreads the ruckus that her solitary state will provoke among her romantic (and interfering) family–and that’s just the start of her problems. Could you talk about striking a balance between heart and humor in this book?
The balance came with her internal. She has these scenarios in her head she envisions to keep herself from crying. Ironically, I do the same thing. For me, that was an easy write. Think one thing, say another. Someone says or does something hurtful–it still hurts, but picture something else. Add in the nut case family, well..you have a wild emotional ride.

Your hero Troy is described as “Playgirl material” and he knows it. He’s also an old friend of Cam’s brother. But this handsome man has a painful past. Can you tell us more about him, and his connection to Cam’s family?
Troy was Cam’s foster brother, and remained close to the family–specifically Cam’s brother, Fisher. He’s good looking, charming, and funny. He also knows it, but doesn’t use it or flaunt it. Very sexy. He came from abuse and a broken home. All he ever wanted was family. He still has that innate fear of being abandoned.

Cam’s family sounds unique in some ways, yet also typical of large, close-knit clans. Are you from a large family yourself–and if so, how much trouble will you be in at Thanksgiving once everyone’s read the book? 🙂
Yes, pretty large family on one side, small on the other. LOL. Um, no comment. I’ll just stuff the turkey with Prozac and call it a day. (Good luck with that, Kelly. You can come to our house instead if you’d like.)

And now for a few purely silly questions:

Mountains or ocean for a vacation spot?
Ocean.

Dark or milk chocolate for indulgence?
Milk.

Cats or dogs for pets–or do you fancy some more exotic critters such as ferrets or pygmy goats?
Dogs, but I like cats too. My sons want a turtle. Does that count?

Sean Connery, Pierce Brosnan, Roger Moore or Daniel Craig for the best James Bond?
Pierce all the way!

Thanks so much for having me on the blog today, Teresa. I’ll give away one eBook to a commenter.