Today’s House Guest is Ms Betty-Ann Harris. I’m sure you’ll make her welcome.
*****
My first book in the Special Agent Series, Eureka Point, is a romantic suspense, in which the main character, a beautiful and successful Park Avenue interior designer, must assume a new identity and relocate to a somewhat desolate area far away. Eureka Point is an old Victorian seaport town on the rocky shores of the coast of Northern California. The setting is the opposite of New York, where the main character is from, and represents a new start for her. But the severe rocky coastline, with its cliffs and rough seas relates to the danger that still surrounds her. The setting adds a sense of mystery, suspense, and danger to my story.
The setting is so essential to my story that I don’t think I could write the same story with a different setting. One thing I do as a writer is spend a good deal of time describing the scene and scenery in order to draw the reader into the story.
A rather strange thing happened to me while I was writing this story. I decided on Northern California and just picked a name out of the air. I picked Eureka as the name of the town, but I also wanted to use a lighthouse on a point, so I decided on Eureka Point. When I was researching Northern California on a map, low and behold, there was a town on the coast named Eureka. Friends tell me they think I lived there in former life, or they think I’m psychic. Even though I’ve never been there, I feel such a strong connection to the area.
Several months ago I was at a store where my book, Eureka Point is being sold. The proprietor had just finished reading the book and she asked me when I had been to Northern California. I replied that I had never been there. She asked me how I knew about The Cliffside Inn, a restaurant I used in book. I explained that I had made up the name. And she replied, “Well, I was just there in the summer and had dinner there. We were on vacation and took a drive up the Pacific Coast Highway and stopped there. It was exactly as you described it in the book.” I got goosebumps!
Here's a peek at Eureka Point, the place and the book:
Tour of Eureka Point
If you drive about one hundred miles up the Pacific Coast Highway from San Francisco, you'll come to the dramatically beautiful historic seaside town of Eureka, California. If you take Cliffside Drive Northwest from the town of Eureka, you'll see the Pacific Ocean on one side, and steep hills and cliffs on the other, which makes for a dramatic and breathtaking scene. Eventually you'll come to Eureka Point and the lighthouse. It is rumored that the ghosts of old sea captains whose ships were wrecked on the rocky shores, still roam the cliffsides. If you walk around the lighthouse grounds, the sound of the surf crashing onto the rocky shore can be almost deafening. Sometimes the sea spray will splash you, leaving the sticky residue of salt water on your skin. Venture out to the Point in the early evening so you can watch the sun plummet into the sea, and you'll sware that you hear a sizzle as the orange sun sinks into the water. Lovers often come to Eureka Point and share a passionate kiss in the moonlight as it shimmers on the water below. The scenery and surroundings are breathtaking. This is where the story in my book, Eureka Point, takes place. Go ahead, get swept away and visit Eureka Point today!
Book Review
"It will keep you on the edge of your seat as you see what will happen next." ~ Red Roses for Authors
Betty Ann Harris - Spellbinding romantic suspense
My website: http://www.bettyannharris.com
Find my books at Red Rose Publishing, http://www.redrosepublishing.com
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