My Chat with Morgan Ashbury aka Cara Covington

Hello and welcome!

Today I am happy to introduce to you a wonderful lady and author whose books I discovered a few years ago and fell in love with her world of Lusty, Texas. I had the honour of meeting her in person a year ago, looking at the calendar, two days shy of THE day 😀 I still remember fondly the few hours we spent talking and looking at the pictures taken that day, I grin like a kid. It was an experience that I will cherish for life.

Please welcome Morgan Ashbury!

Morgan has been a writer since she was first able to pick up a pen. In the beginning it was a hobby, a way to create a world of her own, and who could resist the allure of that? Then as she grew and matured, life got in the way, as life often does. She got married and had three children, and worked in the field of accounting, for that was the practical thing to do and the children did need to be fed. And all the time she was being practical, she would squirrel herself away on quiet Sunday afternoons, and write.
Most children are raised knowing the Ten Commandments and the Golden Rule. Morgan’s children also learned the Paper Rule: thou shalt not throw out any paper that has thy mother’s words upon it.
Believing in tradition, Morgan ensured that her children’s children learned this rule, too.
Life threw Morgan a curve when, in 2002, she underwent emergency triple by-pass surgery. Second chances are to be cherished, and with the encouragement and support of her husband, Morgan decided to use hers to do what she’d always dreamed of doing: writing full time.
Morgan has always loved writing romance. It is the one genre that can incorporate every other genre within its pulsating heart. Romance showcases all that human kind can aspire to be. And, she admits, she’s a sucker for a happy ending.
Morgan’s favorite hobbies are reading, cooking, and traveling – though she would rather you didn’t mention that last one to her husband. She has too much fun teasing him about having become a “Traveling Fool” of late.
Morgan lives in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, with a mysterious cat that just showed up one day, a dog that still has no dignity, and her husband of thirty-nine years, David.

Cara Covington is the pen name of Morgan Ashbury and she has many published books under both names. I love all the books I read so far and I totally recommend her books, the wonderful world she created where life happens, but love always wins.

To get in touch, keep up to date check out the website • blog , also Cara Covington Facebook • Morgan Ashbury Facebook and say hello from me.
Here are the links where you can check out the books:
• Cara Covington – Bookstrand • Amazon • Goodreads
• Morgan Ashbury –  Bookstrand • Amazon • Goodreads

Read on and find out what we chatted about this time around.

Do you have a nickname?
Well, when I was very young, about 4, my daddy called me “tootie cake.” But since then? I have just one nickname, and it’s very recent. It’s G.G. That stands for great-grandmother, because I am one.

What is one word best describes you?
Anal-scatterbrained. Yes, it’s not a real word but when I was in grade 9 my English teacher said if I ever got published I could make up my own words. So that is what I do sometimes. And that is what I am—I’m anal about some things, and scatterbrained about others.

What makes you laugh out loud?
Funny things. Not the stupid funny you see on some sitcoms. But funny funny. Usually, the unexpected funny, like when you see a meme on Facebook and you’re reading it and wham: it ends with something totally outrageous.

Mr. Tuffy – Ms. Morgan’s sidekick

Also, Mr. Tuffy makes me laugh out loud, especially when he decides to run laps around the house. For no apparent reason. Except perhaps, just for the joy of running.

What is your favourite smell? What does it remind you of?
There’s a soap called Cashmere Bouquet, and the first time I smelled it as an adult I was overcome with a sense of peace and well-being. I later found out it was the soap that my mom used on me when I was a baby.
I’ll have to find that soap, sounds like it has a great smell.

I also love the smell of fresh baked bread, and lilies of the valley. Um, not necessarily together or in that order.
You make me laugh Morgan!

Favourite place to spend time in.
I love my bed. I’m not kidding. I have feather pillows, 3 inches of memory foam, a wonderful feather duvet—and 1500 thread count sheets. Well, one set is 1500. The other 3 sets are 800, 800, and 1000. I take my bed and my sleep very seriously. But where you’ll find me, mostly? At my keyboard.

Is there a genre that you refuse to read?
You know how there are those people who LOVE to be frightened by scary movies and books? Well, that’s not me. I refuse to read scary stuff. I’ve a young, impressionable mind. I get nightmares. So, no horror books for me. That covers supernatural horror, and blood and guts stalker-killer stories kind of horror.
I am of the same mind, I watched 2 horror movies in my life and only because a friend begged me to see them with her, she ended up with a bruised arm, I was holding on so hard and I had nightmares for months after that.

Writing! What started it?
My daddy died when I was 7-1/2 . Being the baby of the family, I was lonely. Life sucked. My sister picked on me, and my brother, being ten years older, had no time for me and my mother worked and was deep in her grief. So I sat down and made my own world, with words. And the more I wrote, the better I felt. Then, my mother told me that my dad had written when he was younger. So then, writing was a way to keep him front and center in my heart. And that really was the beginning of it all.
I think many of your readers would agree with me when I say I am glad that you decided to write.

If you could choose another career what would it be?
Why would I want to do that? I love what I do. But if given the opportunity, I might teach. One course. But not as a full out career because I have the best career in the world already. Or maybe I could become an actress. As long as I didn’t have to dance. 😀

Audiobooks! Any plans to have any of your books in audio format?
I’m not self-published. I have a publisher, who is wholly in charge of formats and marketing and everything else to do with making my books available to the public.

That said, Love Under Two Masters is available at Audible. 😉 I have not heard of any other of my books going that route as of yet.

Does your work convey a specific emotion or message?
Every single book I have written has a specific “theme” or message. My series, over all, presents the best of what family and community is all about—what love is all about. They’re stories about women and men finding their best destinies, and learning to love themselves as well as each other.

Who is your intended audience and why should they read your books?
My audience is primarily women from age 21 to 121. My heroines are to a one, kick ass. They may not be the most beautiful women in the world, but they are the most beautiful to their heroes. I seek to show women the power they already own. When Ginny Rose “got so mad” that she pulled her abuser out of his car and took him down, she was taking back control of her emotions, of her spirit, and of her life.

If a woman wants to spend a couple of hours escaping from her own life—the trials and tribulations we all face, then she should pick up one of my books. She’ll get drawn in, entertained, find her second wind, and feel good when she’s finished reading.

What is next in your writing?
I’m just going to keep on writing the Lusty Texas series for the foreseeable future. Why? Because I told my readers I would, and I always keep my word.
I hope you do Morgan! I love Lusty, Texas! I hope one day you relent and give me the map to get there 😀

Thank you for coming to my little corner of the blogging world.

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Hope you enjoyed the chat and thank you for stopping by. If you have not read any of Morgan Ashbury or Cara Covington‘s books, I hope you do. I have a few to catch up still, but what I read so far, they all got 5 stars from me.

Here is my review for the last one I read, A Very Lusty New Year :

An outstanding book. I love the feeling Ms. Covington’s books leave me with, happy and satisfied, and this one is no different. The love and devotion between Anna and her men, Craig and Jackson, is amazing. The whole combined family of Lusty is so loving and accepting, caring and humble despite their wealth. The women are strong, protective and a good match for their husbands, as Ana showed when her husbands were in danger. Loved the story to the last word. Thank you Ms. Covington for another great read.

A new release just happened, Love Under Two Extroverts, I downloaded today! Guess what I will be reading tonight? 😀

Jacqui doesn’t want to fall for New York City slicks Will and Norm Kendall. But their cheesy pick-up lines are stealing her resolve. They remind her of her dad—a natural salesman whose business has always been more important than his only child.

Will and Norm come to Lusty to decompress from their high-stress careers. They expect to relax, read, and more or less zone out. They don’t expect to be drawn to prickly Jacqui Bethune. The more they see her, the more they want to get to know her better.

But a problem arises in the form of a former client of theirs, a man who’s now wanted by the law. And he blames Will and Norm for his problems.

And the closer this miscreant gets to Lusty, the more stressed out Jacqui becomes—and the more Will and Norm learn about family—Lusty Style.

Click on the title above, the link will take you to Bookstrand website where you can read an excerpt.

To start you on your reading journey, Ms. Ashbury is giving away an ebook copy, winner’s choice from her backlists.

One lucky commenter, chosen by Sexy Mr. Random, will be announced after 3pm, EST, Monday, March 30, 2015. GOOD LUCK!

Until next time read a book, listen to a book and don’t forget to show your love by leaving a review!