Red Zone by Kelli Hughett

This week my guest is Kelli Hughett, author of the romantic suspense, Red Zone. She is one busy lady and I know you will enjoy meeting her. Make certain to comment and sign in on the Rafflecopter at the end of the page for a chance to win a Kindle copy of her book! 

 

 

Fabulous Fridays

Welcome, Kelli! When did you first discover that you were a writer?

I’ve been writing since I can remember, but I didn’t seriously consider writing a novel until I was in my early 30’s. I had three small children and needed a place in my brain that was “all mine”. I found a great escape in writing.

You wear a lot of hats Kelli. Tell us a little about your family and how you balance your busy schedule with your writing.

I homeschool our three children and have a part-time ministry in addition to working with our local congregation and, of course, writing and marketing. My husband is the minister for the church of Christ in Windsor, Colorado and I love helping and cheering him on in this work. He’s the brightest spot in my world.
How do I balance it all? To be honest, I haven’t been doing a great job at this lately. When I’m doing school, I’m thinking about marketing. When I’m doing marketing, I’m thinking about my next speaking engagement. When I’m working at church, I’m thinking about writing my next book.

Here’s the schedule that helps me (when I can actually stick to it):

Monday: School and Marketing

Tuesday: School and household Chores

Wednesday: School and Bible Class prep (or speaking prep)

Thursday: School and Ministry (blogging)

Friday: Writing (my favorite day!)

Saturday: Family time…unplug! (okay, I might Tweet…)

Sunday: record video devotionals

Introduce us briefly to the main characters in Red Zone.

Jack Briggs is a retired NFL linebacker who’s nursing a nagging injury. He’s oh-so-delicious even if he’s not playing in the NFL anymore. He’s wondering if there’s life after football.

Marcy Farris is a widow with a past that sticks to her like a goat-head. Her husband drowned himself in the world of football as a player agent and she wants to forget it completely. She’s wondering if she’s cut out for more than carpooling and laundry.

If you could spend the day with a character from your all-time favorite novel, who would it be and what would you do?

I would visit Prince Edward Island with Anne Shirley.

Why did you choose the particular theme in your most recent novel? What were you trying to say to your readers?

Beauty and meaning are found in Christ. They aren’t found in your profession or your relationship with others.

How do you see the importance of Christian fiction?

Christian fiction serves many purposes. I write suspense and romance that won’t offend your soul, but I leave the preaching to my husband. I want to read and write books that are “safe”, not books that pollute my soul with sins. Christian fiction fills this need.

How did you weave a spiritual thread through Red Zone without being preachy?

Genuine faith fluctuates and grows from the inside out. I try to create characters with faith that grows this way.

Dialogue is key. How do real people talk about faith? I try to give my characters this feel in dialogue.

Who/What spurs you to write? Where do your story and character ideas come from?

My husband never lets me give up. He keeps me writing in the dry times. The plenty times are easy. I write for pure pleasure. Stress relief. Joy.

I am always looking at trends and then spinning book ideas off of that. Women are the fastest growing NFL demographic, so I wrote Red Zone. Women are taking up hunting faster than any other sport in America, so my next novel focuses on woman who owns a hunting lodge.

Would you share with us your favorite scene from your book?

My favorite scene is in Marcy’s kitchen. She’s doing the after-dinner dishes and Jack comes up behind her to help. It’s my favorite because of the romance of the moment in the ordinary moment of her day:

Jack’s eyes followed Marcy from his perch in the doorway. She ran water into the sink, and suds rose up in a mound. Her jeans transmitted every movement of her hips. One hot mama.

She glanced over her shoulder and pushed her bangs off her forehead with her wrist. Water glistened on her bare arms. “You just going to watch?” She turned back to the sink.

Not a bad idea.

Jack crossed the kitchen in three strides. He came behind her and submerged his hands into the water on top of hers. She melted back against him, but her hands never stopped moving.

She trailed the dishrag through the water, but they both knew she wasn’t washing dishes. Jack shivered. Amazing where the mind could take a man. He joined her in the fluid motion, their fingers tangled beneath the bubbles. A crescendo of emotion drowned him, and he grabbed her shoulders and turned her to face him. Water dripped on the floor from the rag in her hand, so he grabbed it and tossed it into the sink with a plop.

Breathless, he crushed her against the counter and claimed her lips with his. He kissed her until the mask slipped, and she returned his ardor with a taste of what she hid from the world. The feather-soft skin of her neck begged his attention, but he pulled back and stroked her cheek with the backs of his fingers. “Dinner was amazing.”

She trembled against him and exhaled a ragged breath. “You know my limits, Jack.”

He knew. She’d  explained  the  rules  without  a  word  in  every conversation they’d had. He buried his lips in her hair. “You’re testing mine.”

Book Blurb:

There’s nothing random about this murder.
When Marcy Farris comes face to face with a murder victim at a high school football game, she’s plunged into a game no one wants to play. Despite police conclusions, she knows it wasn’t a random murder. Could she be the next victim? To defeat her opponent, she’ll have to tackle painful memories of her husband’s suicide. He may have made one too many enemies before he died.

Struck down by an injury in his prime, former NFL linebacker, Jack Briggs, wonders if there’s life after football. The game changes when he meets Marcy. She’s his heart’s number-one draft pick. Now, Jack’s got to prove to Marcy they’re on the same team.

There is no overtime in the game of murder. Marcy and Jack must discover the madman behind the murder before the killer has a chance to score the game-winning drive, and exact his revenge on Marcy.

Sometimes, an athlete’s biggest play is made off the field.

About the author:

Kelli was raised in Colorado where she and her husband are now raising and homeschooling their three kids. Kelli writes suspense with His fingerprints all over it when she isn’t tending the chickens and the garden or speaking to women’s groups. Faith and Family are the most common notes in the soundtrack of her life.

Connect with Kelli:

Website: http://www.kellihughett.com

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelli-Hughett-Author-and-Speaker/

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/kellihughett

 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KelliHughett

Book Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Red-Zone-There-overtime-murder/dp/1941103367/                             

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/red-zone-kelli-hughett/1120674853?ean=9781941103364

 

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