Adrienne Giordano writes romantic suspense and women’s fiction. Risking Trust is part of her Private Protectors serieswhich are based in Chicago. Book description of Risking Trust: Roxann Thorgesson’s world is out of control. After her father suffers a fatal heart attack, she must take over as publisher of Chicago’s second-largest newspaper. Then her ex-boyfriend Michael Taylor, CEO of his own security company, shows up needing a favor. The last thing Roxann needs is Michael around causing trouble—and potential heartbreak—but he’s involved in a scandalous story she can’t pass up.
Twelve years ago, Michael walked out on Roxann without explanation. Now he needs her help. Michael’s estranged wife has been murdered and he is the prime suspect. He offers something no newspaperwoman could refuse: exclusive access to his headline-making murder accusation, in exchange for her help in uncovering the true killer. When their investigation leads them to a city hall conspiracy, both their lives and their newly reignited flame could be permanently extinguished…
Interview with Adrienne Giordano
What inspired you to set Risking Trust in Chicago and how did you go about researching the political and media aspects of the book?
I moved to the Chicago area in 1994 and fell in love with the city. I could do without the cold weather, but the city is beautiful. In my time here, I’ve learned I can count on a fresh supply of juicy political scandals. Since I’ve lived here we’ve had two governors convicted of various crimes, so political scandals are not a stretch in Chicago.
With Risking Trust, I didn’t set out to write a book about corruption. I have a newspaper background and thought it would be fun to write a story about a woman who is forced to run a large market paper. The heroine in Risking Trust assumes control of her family’s newspaper after the death of her father. The political corruption element of the story came next, and I spent a lot of time researching different scandals from around the country.
How do you do your research?
Read, read, read. Whether it’s newspapers, trade magazines, the internet, etc. I try to find anything related to the subject matter I’m working on. For the book I just turned over to my editor, I had to hire a researcher to help me. That was great fun because she was able to find some really obscure things.
Do your characters have a “fate”? Or do they get to choose where their story goes?
They have a fate, but that doesn’t mean they can’t alter that fate once in awhile. LOL. I tend to outline the major plot points before I start writing, but usually something comes to me that changes the course of the story and I’ll go with it. Sometimes I wind up going back to the original plan, but I don’t ignore ideas that pop into my head along the way.
How do you come up with ideas?
My ideas usually come to me slowly. I’ll be watching the news or reading the paper and I’ll see something that sparks an idea. I’ll make a note of it and move on. Then I might see something else that sparks another idea. Soon, I start stringing the ideas together until I work it into a usable plot.
What is your writing ritual?
I typically write in bursts. I need to shut everything else down (emails, phone, etc.) before I can really get into the character’s head. Once I do that, I usually go for three hours before I start to get tired. At that point, I go back and edit earlier pages. When my energy comes back, I write new pages. That’s my ritual now. It’s an evolving process though.
Is there a message in your story you want readers to grasp?
All of my characters are passionate about doing the right thing. Whether it’s on a grand scale or a smaller one, they all have a yearning to make the world a better place. That’s what I hope readers see in my work.
What can readers look forward to next from you?
I just turned in book four of the Private Protectors series. This book will feature Billy Tripp, the wise-cracking operative from Man Law and A Just Deception. Billy will meet his match in book four and he’ll be forced to filter before he speaks, which is something he’s never been any good at. Billy’s book will be out in September of 2012.
I’m also working on a novella that will be in the Carina Press anniversary anthology in June. In the novella, readers will get to see Janet, the Taylor Security tech geek, in action. I’m excited to give Janet a story of her own.
BIO:
Adrienne Giordano writes romantic suspense and women’s fiction. She is a Jersey girl at heart, but now lives in the Midwest with her workaholic husband, sports obsessed son and Buddy the Wheaten Terrorist (Terrier). She is a co-founder of Romance University blog. For more information on Adrienne’s Private Protectors series please visit www.AdrienneGiordano.com. Adrienne can also be found on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/AdrienneGiordanoAuthor and Twitter at http://twitter.com/AdriennGiordano.
