Friday, September 16, 2016

Getting to Know Kim McMahill, #RomanticSuspense Author

Romantic Suspense author Kim McMahill makes a return visit today to Journeys with Jana. This time she's sitting down for an interview and I'm looking forward to getting to know her better. Please welcome Kim McMahill!



Where did you get the idea for your newest novel(s)? 

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve begun paying more attention to what I eat and my overall health. The more I read about nutrition and fitness the more confused I become. Available research isn’t much help since often one study appears to contradict the next. There are a myriad of products out there that make all sorts of claims, but what’s true? I’m sure the answer is very complex because there are a lot of variables that influence a product’s effectiveness, which makes the subject an excellent topic for suspense. In my Risky Research Series, I explore just how far a deadly group will go to manipulate the multi-billion dollar-a-year diet product industry and if there is anyone who can stop them.

Are you a plotter or a pantser?

I’m a little of both, and the degree of each depends on the story. Shrouded In Secrets had so many complex scenarios to keep track of that I had note cards and maps pinned to a cork board and a fairly detailed chapter-by-chapter outline. I always keep a running chapter-by-chapter cheat sheet at a minimum, but if the story is flowing, I just let it go and see where it takes me.

What book for you has been the easiest to write? The hardest? The most fun?

Marked in Mexico was probably the easiest to write. It’s set mostly in places in Mexico that I’m familiar with and enjoy, and the characters just clicked. Shrouded In Secrets was the most difficult because it required the most research and it had a complex plot that took a lot of effort to keep straight, but I think the resulting suspenseful archaeological adventure thriller was worth the effort. The most fun would have to be my current Risky Research series project. The first book is A Dose of Danger, the second is A Taste of Tragedy, and the third, A Foundation of Fear, is in progress. The series has been extra rewarding because it allows so much more character development as I continue to reveal new layers to the main characters’ personalities and motivations with each novel.

What’s your favorite thing about being a writer?

I enjoying sharing stories with others and taking readers on amazing adventures all over the world. In most of my books I have ordinary people put in extraordinary situations and it’s always exciting and entertaining to see how they react and if they have what it takes to survive.

What’s your least favorite thing about being a writer?

I love to write and tell stories, but I’m not all that comfortable with the marketing aspect of being a writer. Marketing takes a special talent even if it’s a product you believe in whole-heartedly. Maybe that’s my problem; how do you market something that has become a part of you? It’s difficult to make business decisions about something so personal.

How do you think your life experiences have prepared you for writing?

I travel whenever and where ever I can, which has provided me with an endless supply of settings for my stories. Probably the most fodder has come from my childhood. I grew up in the country and horses were a huge part of our family life. We recreated in the mountains as a family and had some interesting, and at times, harrowing adventures that often sneak into my stories.

What genre is your favorite to read?

I read, write, and watch adventure and suspense. I love stories of survival against the odds and being taken on adventures and journeys outside the comfort zone of my day-to-day life.

Name two authors we might find you reading when taking a break from your own writing. 

Clive Cussler and James Rollins.

Tell us a little about your current work in progress.

I’m working on my third novel in the Risky Research series titled, A Foundation of Fear. In this novel, we get to know the criminals and those trying to bring them down much more intimately, and learn that even the most ruthless assassin may have something to fear.

What’s your tagline? Why did you choose it?

How far will a deadly group go to control the multi-billion dollar-a-year diet product industry, and can anyone stop them?

I chose this line since it the common thread that ties all the novels in the Risky Research series together.

If I was a first time reader of your books, which one would you recommend I start with and why?

Even though I try to construct each novel in the Risky Research series to stand alone, I would recommend reading A Dose of Danger first because it will introduce the reader to characters who show up throughout the series and provide additional background.

Tell us about your next (or current) release.

A Taste of Tragedy is the second novel in the Risky Research Series. In the first novel, A Dose of Danger, a researcher and her team believe they have discovered a miracle weight loss pill, which makes them the targets of a deadly group intent on controlling the multi-billion dollar-a-year diet product industry. In A Taste of Tragedy, a company uses and promotes a potentially deadly sweetener in its Healthy and Delicious Foods line. The product turns the company into a global powerhouse, but when their newest vice president uncovers evidence that the healthy foods she’s been hired to promote may be dangerous, she is forced to reevaluate her priorities. As questions mount and the body count rises, she finds herself caught in the crosshairs of an organization that will stop at nothing to hide its secrets and protect its profits.

How can readers reach you or find you online? 

Readers can find me online at http://KimMcMahill.com, on my blog at http://KimMcMahill.blogspot.com, and I love meeting new followers at https://twitter.com/kimmcmahill

Thank you so much, Jana, for having me on your blog. It was a pleasure to be here.

Thank you, Kim! It's been great having you on my blog.


Here's the blurb for A Taste of Tragedy:

Morgan Hunter sacrificed everything for her career. She had yet to encounter anything she wasn’t willing to do to succeed . . . until now. When she uncovers evidence that the healthy foods she’s been hired to promote may be dangerous, she must reevaluate her priorities. As questions mount and the body count rises, she finds herself caught in the crosshairs of an organization that will stop at nothing to hide its secrets and protect its profits. With no one else to trust, Morgan is forced to seek help from the man she drove away, but whom she never stopped loving.


Excerpt: 

“Here, let me help you,” Morgan said as she draped Devyn’s arm around her shoulders.

Morgan tried to relieve as much weight as she could from Devyn as she helped her hobble to the waiting vehicle. Once Devyn was seated in the cramped back seat, Morgan dug out her emergency supply bag. She handed Devyn a blanket and a bottle of water. “I have a first aid kit, but I think you need something a little more than a bandage.”

“It’s just a few scratches. I’ll live.”

Morgan could see why Nick trusted Devyn with his back. As she looked at the battered and bruised woman, who had taken off into the desert in the middle of the night in bare feet to prevent a criminal from getting away, she had to admire her. Devyn had to be in extreme pain, yet not a complaint escaped her lips.

“Make room in the back,” Nick huffed.

Morgan looked up to see Nick trudging toward her with an inert Aaron slung over his shoulder. She raced to the tiny back cargo area and moved a few items around so Nick could squeeze the body in the vehicle.

“Is he dead?” Morgan whispered.

“Not quite, but we need to get him medical help A.S.A.P. The bullet didn’t hit any vital organs, but I’m not sure how much damage he suffered from the knock to the head.”

Morgan watched as Nick set the man down in the vehicle, and then she joined Devyn in the back seat. Turning around and kneeling, she was able to lean over the seat and assess Aaron’s injuries. She folded up a handkerchief and placed it over Aaron’s gunshot wound and applied pressure. She wasn’t sure which was bleeding more, the bullet hole or the bump and cut to the head, but she had to try and slow the blood loss any way she could.

“That’s all we can do for now,” Nick said. “Just keep the pressure on the best you can.”

Morgan nodded as Nick secured the back and then got behind the wheel.

“You okay?” Nick asked as he turned to face Devyn.

“I’ve had better days, but sadly, I’ve had worse.”


Buy link:
Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01DTE29U2/

Bio: 



Kim McMahill grew up in Wyoming, which is where she developed her sense of adventure and love of the outdoors. Kim started out writing non-fiction, but her passion for exotic world travel, outrageous adventures, stories of survival, and happily-ever-after endings soon drew her into a world of romantic suspense. Along with writing adventure novels Kim has also published over eighty travel and geographic articles, and contributed to a travel anthology and cookbook. Kim currently resides in Colorado, and when not writing, she enjoys gardening, travelling, hiking, and spending time with family.

3 comments:

  1. Thanks for being on my blog today Kim!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Proto-col Slim-Fizz is a unique appetite suppressant that contains the groundbreaking fibre Glucomannan, which is an organic dissolvable fibre extracted from high quality fresh Konjac.

    ReplyDelete