#Thursday13 Secondaries

Welcome Sarah Cass to Romance Beckons.

It's not her first time visiting us - she's a friend of our blog and we're happy to have her share her newest book today! Sarah’s world is regularly turned upside down by her three special-needs kids and loving mate, so she breaks genre barriers, dabbling in horror, straight fiction, and urban fantasy. An ADD tendency leaves her with a variety of interests that include singing, dancing, crafting, cooking, and being a photographer. She fights through the struggles of the day, knowing the battles are her crucible and though she may emerge scarred, she’s also stronger. While busy creating worlds and characters as real to her as her own family, she leads an active online life with her blog, Redefining Perfect, which gives a real and sometimes raw glimpses into her life and art.

You can find Sarah here:

Redefining Perfect  |  Sarah’s StoryLines  |  Twitter  |  Facebook

Today, she's presenting Thirteen Secondaries for Thursday 13.

I have a love affair with secondary characters. It’s real and it’s deep. Not sure when it started. Maybe with my love of the musical Cats—because all of the background action in that was almost better than what we were supposed to be watching. Maybe with my Dr. Quinn watching—because I fell out of love with the main characters once they got married and really started paying attention to the characters around them. Maybe it all started with Hammy. I’m not sure, but I adore secondaries. In my series the secondaries take on lives of their own to the point I’m often asked if I’ll give them their own stories.

So here’s a list of my favorite 13 secondaries from the Dominion Falls series.

1. Gilbert Hamm i.e. “Hammy”. It was him that started it all. He was supposed to be a one-liner in book 3, but grew into one of my most beloved characters and showed up in the first chapter of book 1 during rewrites. 
2. Katherine Daugherty. The bestest of best friends a girl like Jane could have. Kat is one hell of a woman, and I’ve had demands for her story early on. You have to read to see all that she’s done in her time. 
3. Tommy Young. Unfortunately you don’t get a lot of him in the original trilogy, but he’s pretty awesome. What you do see of him in Dark Territory (due in September 2013) always makes me grin. 
4. Graham Cooke. He’s a bastard, he really is – but he has moments of brilliance, wit, and I have to believe there’s hope for him. 
5. Dr. Daisy Pearson – the doctoring whore. Need I say more? 
6. Mr. Kilmurry – the town leathersmith. He doesn’t play a big part, but he always has a kind word for Jane. 
7. Cora Turner – after her husband’s death she keeps on running their restaurant and general store all on her own…not to mention raising their two boys. 
8. Major Marshall “Al” Webb. Poor guy ends up with the short end of the stick, but I believe he’ll find his love. Some day. He’s a good man. 
9. Mike Young – He’s a good guy. A great brother. Pretty sure he’s getting lucky with the doctoring whore, but we’ll have to wait and see… 
10. Norman Woodward – He’s the man with the magic fingers. You’ll have to read to find out what I mean by that. 
11. Lillian Daugherty – Her role changed over the course of revisions and I adore her all the more for it. It’s easy to see where Kat gets her strength from (Lillian is her mother, after all). 
12. The kids. Isaac, Arthur, Cindy…I say Jesse but he’s not so much secondary as he is a main character in many ways. Still, all the kids always add light and laughter. They are so much fun to work with. 
13. Jackson Krenshaw – I can’t believe he’s on this list…but then I can. He is the first character I ever wrote where my stomach turned just writing him. He’s a sleaze, a bastard, and I just shudder when I have to write a scene with him in it. So I guess he’s a character I love to hate…but is he a red herring or a true villain? 

I couldn’t, in good conscience, include David Schaffer in this list because he’s much more than a secondary. I almost didn’t include Mike Young for the same reason. Those two have a larger part in the story than “secondary” covers. Still, David is pretty damn amazing. I’ve been asked to give him his own story too. It might happen. If I ever find this thing called time. I did set him up for his own side story in Dark Territory, just in case.

Dominion Falls is a town filled with fun and unique characters. You’ll find yourself asking for more. Because what is a story without secondary characters?
*~*

Derailed (Dominion Falls Book 2) Blurb:

The sins of a past she can’t remember could destroy a present she’ll never forget.

The crimes of her forgotten past threaten the very life Jane Doe has learned to cherish.

Jane is out of time. With a warrant on her head, a maniac out for her blood, and a secret baby on the way, something has to give.

Without Cole Mitchell's help to find the answers, there may be no hope left.

Cole has nowhere left to hide. He unwittingly let Jane into his heart, and is ready to share the secret of his dark past.

Fate has a way of playing its hand, and tragedy strikes. With the world crumbling around them, it's easy to lose faith. If they can't forgive past sins, they have no hope for the future.

Because the noose waits for no man or woman. 

Buy Links:

Secret Cravings  |  Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble  |  All Romance Ebooks  |  Bookstrand  |  Goodreads 

Excerpt:

“Miss Jane.” Boards clattered to the floor to help announce Hammy’s arrival. He pulled off his hat and slipped his fingers along the brim. “I brung some scrap wood like you asked. Got my men headin’ over to help.”

It was impossible not to smile at the man. Jane found him endearing despite his regular drunken state. Except on very rough days he was never anything but polite, and the man never seemed to have a rough day. “Thank you very much, Mr. Hamm. Did Cora give you a list?”

“Sure thing, Miss Jane. Right here. Said the tables ain’t gonna get in for three days. Lent four tables to you until then.” The paper trembled when he handed it out, and he slipped his hat back on. “Guess four is better than nothin’.”

“It is. That will give us five. Unless you can help.” Jane squeezed his hand, her smile straining her cheeks when he blushed. “Do you think you can make tables and chairs out of some of your scrap wood?”

“Aw, gee. We can sure try. Don’t know how fast, though.” Hammy stuffed his hands in his pockets. “There’s an awful lot ya want doin’.”

“Well, Mr. Hamm, look at it this way. The sooner we get it done, the sooner the saloon can open and you can get your beer.”

That perked him up. A grin formed. “True. Guess I best get on it. Will you be stayin’ here?”

“I would, but I need to go see Graham at the jail. Then I need to help Reverend Greene with his deliveries.” Jane kissed his cheek. “We’re low on beer, but I told Cuddy that you got priority. Your beer is on the house at least until Cole gets back.”

“Weren’t necessary, but I’m much obliged.” He tipped his hat again and shuffled his feet. “I best get on it so’s the saloon can open.”