Welcome to Author Wednesday. Today Cate Beauman stops by Writing Whims to tell us about her new release Justice for Abby. Cate is the widely successful author of the romantic suspense series, The Bodyguards of L.A. County. Justice for Abby is the sixth book in this series.

Welcome back, Cate. You’ve been busy since you last visited. Since you’re relatively new (and successful) as an author, tell us when you first discovered your voice as a writer? 

I’ve always said that my writing career started from divine intervention. I never had a burning desire to write. I didn’t even know I could. I remember the day I decided I was going to tell stories. It was October 2010 and nothing seemed to be going right in my life. My family and I had just made a cross-country move that didn’t go particularly well. I’d accepted a job position similar to the one I had always loved in New Hampshire only to hate it in the school system I was working for. I ended up resigning, gorging myself on chocolate, and reading Nora Robert’s novels to soothe my soul. One evening after finishing yet another book, I had this epiphany that I was going to tell a story about a bodyguard and the woman he would protect. Five Amazon bestsellers later, and I never looked back.

That’s quite amazing. So you took a down time in your life to turn it around to something quite amazing. Good for you. So tell us what writing rituals have you developed?

I’m a mom and wife before I’m anything else, but storytelling takes a close second! I follow the same routine pretty much everyday. Each morning starts by getting the kids ready and off to school. I typically tidy up the house because I can’t stand working in a mess. Next, I sit down to check e-mail, play a quick game of Bejeweled or Mahjong Tiles to clear my mind and get to work. I work until the kids come home, cook dinner, help with homework, and get back to it after everyone heads to bed.

Nice. I like to play hearts on my computer to clear my head, so I’m happy to hear someone else does that same thing. You’ve been writing this series since the beginning, but I’m curious if all six of these books have the same thread.

They sure do! All of my books thus far chronicle the close protection agents from Ethan Cooke Security.

We all get bad reviews at some point, but it’s never easy.What advice can you give to other writers about receiving a bad review?

Not everyone is going to like our work. I never read my reviews, good or bad, because they aren’t written for me. They’re written to share their opinions with other readers.

That is an excellent philosophy and practice. I find the reviews mean less to me the more I get. How did you choose the title, Justice for Abby? 

Justice for Abby sort of came to me, as have all of the titles for my books. I felt this title fits this story well because Abby’s finally getting her chance to face the men who tried to ruin her life.

Tell us a little bit about how you came up with the plot for Justice for Abby.

The idea for Justice For Abby came to me one evening while watching an episode of Vanished with Beth Holloway. The story of a young woman named Amy Bradley vanishing from a cruise ship caught my attention. They believe she is still alive and stuck in the horrific world of human sex trafficking. I couldn’t stop thinking about her horrible situation and started my research into the subject immediately after.

I always tell folks who wonder where I get my ideas to just read the paper or watch television. Ideas are rampant. Human sex trafficking is certainly an intriguing and horrific topic. Since you’ve recently switched careers, how does your immediate family feel about your writing life?

I’m very lucky to have a wonderful husband and kids. They are very supportive of my career. It’s not uncommon to discuss plot snafus or character issues over dinner along with how everyone’s day was. I couldn’t do what I do without their understanding. There are days when dinner is late or I’m lost in my own head during first and second draft mode, and my men just roll with it!

How wonderful. I couldn’t do what I do without the support of my husband and my grown daughter either. My daughter is one of my beta readers, and I find her opinions invaluable. It sounds as if you keep a busy schedule with the family and your writing, so what do you do during your down time?

I don’t have a whole lot of down time. My world revolves around two active kids, two huge dogs, and storytelling. When I do take a break, I like to make jewelry or spend time with my family.

It sounds as if you’ve found your niche and with your family’s support, I know you’ll be writing many more books. Thank you so much for stopping by today, Cate. I wish you much more success with your books.

About Cate Beauman: Cate currently lives in Tennessee with her husband, their two boys, and St. Bernards, Bear and Jack. She is the author of the best selling romantic suspense series, The Bodyguards of L.A. County. Before her career as an author, Cate worked in special education for 12 years.

“I’m a pretty lucky girl; one day I woke up and my entire life changed. I saw the light, so to speak, and decided I was going to be a writer. Now, three years later, I’m working on my seventh novel, Saving Sophie, and I’m an Amazon best selling author. I’m very grateful for the support and success I have had.” – Cate

Contact Cate:

Amazon Author Page 

Justice for Abby Amazon link

Social links:

Twitter: @CateBeauman

www.catebeauman.com

www.facebook.com/CateBeauman

www.goodreads.com/catebeauman