Author Jill Blake Shares Their Story

About the Author
A native of Philadelphia, Jill Blake now lives in Southern California with her husband and three children. During the day, she is a physician with a busy medical practice. At night, she pens steamy Contemporary Romances.

Jill’s trilogy, the Doctors of Rittenhouse Square, is now available on Amazon Kindle as a boxed set. The books can also be purchased individually, and read as stand-alones, though it’s always fun to see characters you’ve read about being reintroduced as bit players in someone else’s story:

• Pursued by the Playboy ~ Kate and Marc
• Taking a Chance ~ Samantha and Alex
• This Time for Keeps ~ Isabelle and Luca

What inspires you to write romance books?
As a female physician with a busy medical practice, as well as a mom to three young children, one of my biggest challenges is work/life balance. For many professional women, this is more than just a buzz phrase. It is an issue we face on a daily basis, one which forces us to make tough choices that impact our careers, relationships, and sense of self.

While in real life we can’t always control what happens, in fiction we have the opportunity to arrange things exactly as we want. This is why I enjoy writing. And with contemporary romance, I can guarantee that all my books provide the optimistic promise of a happy—if imperfect—ever after.

Tell us about how you write:
I’m a planner. With a full-time job and three small kids, I wouldn’t survive if I didn’t plan ahead. This approach carries over to my writing, from carving out dedicated time for writing, to doing the “foundational work” of research and outlining. I prepare character sketches, chapter-by-chapter outlines, timelines (on an actual calendar!), and individual files for background information (aka research)–all before I even begin chapter 1.

I start with character sketches, often written in the first person. In these preliminary monologues, I become the character. Later, as my characters interact with each other on paper, I often read their dialogue out loud, to make sure it flows. This is often the time when my characters start saying things off-script. And sometimes, I’ve learned it’s best to just listen and go with the flow. Which doesn’t mean I simply chuck my original outline out the window, but I do adjust it now and then to keep my characters happy.

What advice would you give other writers?
Read everything you can get your hands on.
Write down ideas as they come–if you don’t, you’ll forget them.
Carve out dedicated time to write.
Silence your inner critic while working on the first draft.
Go write.

How did you decide how to publish your books?
I was lucky enough to enter publishing at a pivotal time, when the digital e-book revolution transformed indie publishing into a user-friendly, mainstream phenomenon. Joe Konrath clinched it for me with his blog, “A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing.”

What do you think about the future of book publishing?
Legacy publishing will need to adjust to the new realities of an e-book driven marketplace. I hope there will always be paper books. But I also hope that e-books will continue to provide both readers and writers with opportunities to explore new worlds without all the hurdles and restrictions imposed by traditional publishers (gatekeepers) in the past.

What genres do you write?
Contemporary Romance, Medical Romance

What formats are your books in?
eBook

Website(s)
Author Home Page Link
Link To Author Page On Amazon

Your Social Media Links
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6899971.Jill_Blake
https://www.facebook.com/jill.blake.3386
https://twitter.com/Jill_Blake_