Barbara Samuel captivates readers by weaving irresistible stories about ordinary women in an extraordinary style.  A multiple RITA award-winning author, she has published more than 25 books -- historical and contemporary romances, and women's fiction.  Barbara Samuel’s mastery of writing craft shines.

DEEP EDITING ANALYSIS:

Here are several examples of fresh visceral emotion from Madame Mirabou’s School of Love:

Page 248:  My chest constricted so much I could barely breathe.  Was I having an asthma attack or something?  I took hitching little breaths and told myself to relax.  I paced out to the hallway again, and the hitch in my throat eased. 

NOTE:  Barbara showed the reader the POV character’s recovery.  Authors frequently build visceral emotion (e. g., pounding hearts, tight chests, difficulty breathing) creating a psychologically empowered read.  Few authors include the character recovering from their adrenalized state.

Several lines later:  “Hi Mom, are you busy?”  To my horror, my voice broke on the last two syllables, and the wretched tears were back.

NOTE:  Smart to share the paralanguage cue from the POV character.  Smarter to add her horror and the tears.  Instead of one line carrying one paralanguage cue, one line carried three Emotional Hits.

Page 249:  Something broke, an egg full of terror.  The contents spilled out harmlessly.

NOTE:  In two short sentences, Barbara Samuel conveyed that this character’s fear dissipated, implying a recovery.  She gets extra credit for writing it in a fresh way.

Page 268:  Butterflies leapt, soared, fluttered.  Anticipation?  Fear?

NOTE:  Using those few words Barbara keeps the pace going strong.  She nailed the visceral response and raised questions about what the character is feeling.

Barbara Samuel imbues her characters with a depth of emotion so real, the reader forgets they’re fictional.  Powerful visceral cues.  Powerful internalizations.  Powerful stories.