Guilty by Association Virtual Book Tour with Pat Simmons

About the Book

The Jamieson Family Legacy series follow the lives of two Jamieson brothers in Boston, Kidd and Ace, and their cousin, Cameron, from St. Louis. The older brother, Kidd, is struggling with anger and resentment issues toward his absentee father who never married his mother. Yet, he had the audacity to demand his illegitimate sons carry his Jamieson name. Ace, on the other hand, is on his collision course to be a chip off the old block when it comes to women. Their highly MIT educated cousin, Cameron Jamieson, is all about saving family from self-destruction.

Through genealogy research, Cameron's mission is to show his cousins their worth as the eleventh generation descendants of a royal African tribe and to give them a choice: live with the stereotypical "angry black men" syndrome or to crush any obstacles that try and stop them to become strong successful black men.There are three books in the Jamieson Legacy series: Guilty by Association (Kidd's story), The Guilt Trip (Ace's story), and Free from Guilt (Cameron's story). Each of the three Jamieson men have to accept that their past and present are in God's hand, and without Him they can't advance to their future blessings. The bonus storyline in Guilty by Association is one that progresses the story of the much-loved character in the previous three book Guilty Series, Grandma BB. This time, she picks up a sidekick Mrs. Valentine.

Guilty by Association is the story of Boston bad boy Kevin "Kidd" Jamieson. His gripe is with his father who dared to insist that his two illegitimate sons carry his last name. To add insult to injury, the man never bothered to stick around to provide love and guidance as his boys matured into men. Kidd's anger overflows into every area of his life. As his animosity festers, Kidd becomes as a roaring lion, seeking whatever and whomever he can devour. He's as gritty as his cousin in St. Louis, Parke Jamieson VI, is polished. The two strong-willed men clash when Kidd relocates to St. Louis where his cousin assures him it's a land of milk and money in job opportunities. Where is lands a job is far from it.

Through a series of events that involve Grandma BB, her dog named Silent Killer and her Stacy Adams shoes, Kidd meets two women who recognize his hostile tendencies and immediately begin to administer CPR to his soul. LPN Eva Savoy eventually becomes his "Eve," a woman God created from the underlying goodness hidden in Kidd's own heart.Reluctantly, Kidd allows Parke to divulge information about their royal family heritage. While everyone's care and compassion begins to smother Kidd, he struggles to keep up the bad boy attitude as his walls start to crumble. Kidd learns it's not his association with the name that identifies him, but the man he becomes that defines him.


BOOK TRAILER

About the Author

Pat Simmons is a self-proclaimed genealogy sleuth. She is passionate about digging up the dirt on her ancestors, then casting them in starring roles in her novels. She has been a genealogy enthusiast since her great-grandmother died at the young age of ninety-seven years old. Pat has won numerous awards for her novels which include: Talk to Me, Grace and Humility and Still Guilty, which was voted the Best Inspirational Romance for 2010. Pat is best known for her Guilty series: Guilty of Love, Not Guilty of Love, and Still Guilty. She is continuing the series through the Jamieson Family Legacy trilogy: Guilty by Association, The Guilt Trip, Free From Guilt. Pat has recently been nominated for the best Christian fiction award by the African American Literary Awards for her latest release, Crowning Glory. Pat and her husband live in Missouri and have two children.

How did you start out your writing career?

I started writing as a dabbler. It was a past time. I would write a couple of pages one day and maybe come back to the project six months later. That behavior is defined as a hobby. Then I made the commitment that I wanted to become a published author and stay published. If a person isn’t ready to put in five, six or eight hours, five days a week to write, then define the goal.

What did you learn while writing this book?

My heart aches for our young men who seem to be on a path of destruction. Those misbehaving young boys grow up to become out-of-control teenagers, and then finally angry black men. My desire was to tap into Kidd Jamieson’s anger and yank it out by its roots. And then plant the seed of hope, love and salvation in his heart. I hope I didn’t miss the mark in Guilty by Association.

What did you hope to accomplish with this book?

To ease the guilt that parents, especially single parents, who might suffer from second-guessing themselves. Where did they go wrong to cause their sons to lash out for no apparent reason? We are our brothers’ keepers. If we can reach out to a young man—or woman, don’t be shy. Let’s save them from self-destruction. Sometimes, they may need a listening ear, or a hug or a job.

What came first with this story, the characters or the plot? Why?

Definitely the plot. I wanted to get away from the good-hearted, positive-thinking Jamieson men from the previous books. Readers are fascinated with the bad boy characters, so I wanted to include some in the same family and then watch their transformation.

What has surprised you most about becoming a published author?

Readers don’t pick up an author’s novel by chance. It takes money to promote, attend conferences and word of mouth to get an author’s name circulating.

What aspect of writing do you love the best, and which do you hate the most?

I loved it when I write a perfect scene where I sniff or grin while experiencing a character’s emotion. I hate re-writes—period.

What are three things you wish you’d known before you reached where you are now?

The amount of time it takes to write. When I log off a computer at five o’clock doesn’t mean my characters aren’t still active in my head. I have turned back on my computer and jotted down notes, so that I wouldn’t forget great details of a scene. Second, the amount of money it takes to publicize a novel. A day job or a monthly inheritance would definitely foot the bill for tours, printed material, hotel stays, etc. And third, understanding the writing craft would have been a plus, but I have learned from my freelance editor.

Can you give us one do and one don’t for those aspiring to be a writer?

Pay for an editor who has edited author’s manuscripts before submitting it anywhere. DON’T sign a contract without a literary attorney if you don’t have an agent. I consider myself pretty smart, but not in legal matters.

What one thing about writing do you wish other non-writers would understand? If you mean non-writers such as readers, my answer is authors stay published because readers support them. If you mean non-writers such as people in different fields, writing is work whether I’m at home or in an office, it is a job. To earn my pay, I need to put in eight hours.

Tell us something few know about you?

I’m more bark than bite. Ask my children.

When you're not writing, what do you like to do in your spare time?

I enjoy watching romantic movies with my husband or hiding out in the library’s genealogy dept.

What do you do to interact with your readers?

If possible, I like attending book club meetings and conferences.

This month we have two themes our first is Family Literacy. Do you do anything to promote family literacy?

I recently donated books for a shelter and I committed to donate books for a group of young girls in Africa.

Our second theme is Local Authors, what are you doing locally to promote your books?

I try to participate in as many local literary events as my schedule permits, which include signing at company’s vendor days and our military base.

Oprah always asks, What do you know for sure?

That Jesus saves.

Can you give us a sneak peek of your next book?

Ace is Kidd’s younger bad boy brother from Boston. Aaron Jamieson is living a carefree life. He's good-looking, respectable when he's in the mood, but his weakness is women. When a woman tries to ambush him with a pregnancy, he takes off in the other direction. Responsibility as an option is something he learned from his absentee father. Talise Rogers has a bright future ahead of her. She's pretty and has no problem catching a man's eye, which is exactly what she does with Ace. Their chemistry is undeniable and their passion explosive. Trapping Ace is the furthest thing from Talise's mind, when she learns she is pregnant. She is determined to be a good parent. When Ace rejects her she lets him know, "I want nothing from you Ace, not even your name," and she means it. But Ace's big brother and cousins don't plan to let the child who represents the twelfth generation descendant of a royal African tribe leave the fold. Whether Ace decides to accept his responsibility or not, his family embraces Talise and baby. As for Ace, they turn him over to the LORD. How long will he be able to endure the guilt trip he's experiencing because of his choices?

How can readers get in contact with you? (mail, email, website)

Snag mail: Pat Simmons, P.O.Box 1077, Florissant, MO 63031; http://www.patsimmons.net/
 or pat@patsimmons.net.




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