This week our Spotlight on Author is on: Jane Godman and her new book, Colton 911: Family Under Fire.

JANE GODMAN is a 2019 Romantic Novelists’ Award winner and 2018 Daphne du Maurier Award finalist. She writes thrillers for Harlequin Romantic Suspense/Mills and Boon Heroes and paranormal romance for Harlequin Nocturne/Mills and Boon Supernatural and St. Martin’s Press Romance. She also self publishes her historical and gothic stories.

Jane was born in Scotland and has lived in Germany, Wales, Malta, South Africa, and England. She still gets the urge to travel, although these days she tends to head for a Spanish beach, or a European city that is steeped in history.

When she isn’t reading or writing romance, Jane enjoys cooking, spending time with her family, and enjoying the antics of her dogs, Gravy and Vera.

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Do you think someone could be a writer if they don’t feel emotions strongly?

My first response to this question was that it would come across to the reader if an author was completely lacking in empathy. Or would it?
We create worlds and characters that are unlike our own lives and the tool we use for that is imagination. In the same way that we describe our settings, heroes and, heroines, we should also be able to engage our readers in the emotion of a story. Whether or not we feel that strongly ourselves shouldn’t matter.
Having said that, I think it helps if an author can bring a range of experiences to their writing. For me, that includes a range and depth of emotion. Of course, the skill is always in the writing. We can feel rage, joy, grief, and love but, unless we can describe those to our readers then we may as well lack empathy.

What was an early experience where you learned that language had power?

I've always loved words and but the power of words really resonated with me when I discovered poetry. In particular, I fell in love at an early age with the classic poem, The Highwayman by Alfred Noyes. I was (and still am) in awe of the way Noyes painted a picture with his words. We hear the highwayman riding up to the inn door, we see the colour of Bess's hair and her love knot, we feel the anger and jealousy of the ostler who betrays them. Reading it for the first time brought me to tears and it has always moved me. That's power.

As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?

An owl. They are wise and thoughtful, just a little bit quirky and definitely otherworldy!

Tell us about your book...

Family Under Fire is part of the Harlequin's Colton 911. It is set in the fictional Arizona town of Cactus Creek. It's Christmas time and FBI agent, Everett Colton is back in his home town to investigate a murder. He's feeling less than festive and his mood is lowered even further when he comes face-to-face with the woman who dumped him four years earlier. But when the reason for their reunion becomes clear, he finds himself with a new family...and a dangerous stalker.

Colton 911: Family Under Fire

An unexpected family

A once-in-a-lifetime reunion in danger…

After a bitter breakup, FBI agent Everett Colton never expected to see his ex-girlfriend, Alyssa Bartholomew, again. Suddenly, tragedy reunites them—and makes them guardians of an orphaned baby girl. Everett suspects that her parents’ deaths were anything but innocent. When his instinct for danger proves correct, it’s his job to protect the child he’s grown to love…and the woman he never forgot.

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