Marie Force & Line of Scrimmage (An Interview)

Line of Scrimmage: One of My Favorite Scenes
By: Marie Force

Over the last month, I’ve had the pleasure of talking about my debut novel, Line of Scrimmage in many different forums. So as the month draws to a close, I thought I’d let the book speak for itself. I love writing arguments, so here’s one of my favorites between Ryan and Susannah. The last line, in particular, sums up Ryan’s character in one pithy comment. Enjoy!

Excerpt

Ryan watched her go and then kicked one of the kitchen chairs in frustration. He winced when pain cut through his midsection. “Damn it!”

Nothing was going according to plan. He hadn’t expected it to take this long to bring her around.

He’d had more than enough time over the last year to think about what had gone wrong between him and Susie and to take responsibility for his share of it, which was most of it if he were being honest. He was trying to show her he’d changed, but he was finding she had changed, too. She was no longer the wide-eyed girl who had loved him unconditionally, who had stood by him through all the highs and lows of his illustrious career, and who had made him feel adored even in the most trying of times. That girl was gone, and in her place was an older, wiser woman who wouldn’t be so easily led this time.

But he couldn’t give up, especially now that he knew she still loved him. They needed some more time. The only problem was they didn’t have much time. In just over a week they were due back in court, and unless he was somehow able to convince her to give their marriage another chance, he was going to be handed a divorce he didn’t want. If that happened, how was he supposed to live the rest of his life without her? Since she was no longer susceptible to what he’d often been told was his formidable charm, he was going to have to take his game up a notch. But how? He had no idea, but he had to think of something—and fast.

Desperate and panicky, Ryan went to find her. There was no sign of her in the house. In the front hall, he noticed her coat was gone. Grabbing his coat, he shrugged it on and went outside.

“Susie?” he called but was greeted by silence. “Susie!” he called, breaking into a jog that made him painfully aware of his weakened state. He found her perched on a ridge that overlooked the town. “Susie,” he said, weak from exertion and relief. “Susie, come down from there. Come on.”

She didn’t move or even indicate she had heard him.

“I can’t do a damned thing for you if you fall off that rock!” he yelled, still clutching his side as he tried to catch his breath. “So get down. Now!”

“Leave me alone, Ryan. Will you please just leave me alone?”

He hated the tears he saw on her cold-reddened cheeks—and hated knowing he had put them there.

“If you don’t come down, I’m coming up.”

“I got myself up, I can get myself down. Now, go away.”

He scaled the icy six-foot climb with his eyes, groaning inwardly at what it would cost him to climb up there in his current condition. Reaching for the first notch in the rock, he grabbed hold of it and grunted as he eased his way up the craggy slope.

“Oh, for God’s sakes,” she said, descending with ease. She wiped her hands on her jeans and glared at him. “Happy now?”

“No,” he said. “No, I am not happy right now.”

She tried to push past him, but he blocked the path.

“I need you to leave me alone for a little while.” Her bright blue eyes spit fire at him. “Can you do that? I can’t think when you’re taking up all the space.”

He fought to conceal his smile. “Out here?” He gestured to the snow-capped aspens and pines. “Or in there?” he asked, resting a finger on her chest.

She swatted his hand away. “Ugh! You’re driving me crazy!”

“Right back atcha, darlin’. You drive me crazy, you drive me wild. You drive me. That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you.”

“Well, I’ve been trying to tell you it’s time for you to get a new driver, but you refuse to listen to anything other than what you want to hear.”

“I don’t want another driver. I want you.”

“You can’t have me! What part of that do you not understand?”

“Um, the ‘can’t’ part?”

Interview

Terra: What made you decide to do a contemporary romance when it seems like the hot and running big thing now being in the paranormal sub genre'?

Marie: This was a no-brainer for me, Terra. I wrote what I love to read. I'm a contemporary girl through and through. I know there's a huge fan base for paranormal, and I'm thrilled by anything that expands the romance genre, but it's not something I normally choose to read (unless one of my friends wrote it, of course!) I also love (and write) romantic suspense, but I tend to be longer on the romance than the suspense. It's thrilling to hear that contemporary is making a big comeback. Perfect timing, if you ask me!

Terra: With having the stereotypical Jock mindset when we think of sports, what was the influence behind giving Ryan a conscience?

Marie: I wanted Ryan to be an ordinary guy who happens to have extraordinary talent on the football field. He's ordinary in the sense that he has the same problem a lot of guys have—his wife is fed up with him! His response to that is somewhat extraordinary in that most guys wouldn't put forth the level effort Ryan does to save his marriage, but Susannah means everything to him. It's high time he showed her that.

Terra: I really love the stubbornness of the characters and the bantering conflict between them. Did you inject some of your own personality into either character and what trait would you say was the most fun to write about?

Marie: Yes! I love a good banter, and I think that came through in my characters. My husband and I spar constantly—all in good fun, of course. And I do love to write a good fight between my characters. I hate to say it, but conflict is the most fun to write! Gee, what does that say about me?

Terra: I must say you really had me going there for a bit when I was reading about the Super Bowl wins and the dreaded word "Dynasty". Even though you have given us a fictional team I immediately recognized the history of the New England Patriots and their wins as a backdrop to your story. Are you a sports fan and what made you decide to use football over all the other sports that are out there?

Marie: LOL, very clever, Terra, you saw right through me. Yes, I'm a fan of the New England Patriots (now) and a HUGE fan of the Boston Red Sox. When I say "now" about the Patriots, I wasn't a football fan until the Muse delivered Ryan to me. He refused to be remade into a baseball player (believe me, I tried), so I had to immerse myself in football. That's how I came to choose football, which was WAY outside my comfort zone. I have to say that I enjoy the Patriots a lot more when Tom Brady is on the field, and I'll confess that Tom influenced Ryan's career. Off the field, their lives have been very different since Ryan has been married the whole time he's been in the NFL, unlike Tom.

Terra: The old adage, "You don't realize how good you had it until you've lost it" really hits home here. What do you think is the main reason for Ryan finally waking up to the realization that he really does love and need Susannah more than he could have ever imagined?

Marie: Good question! I think Ryan never really believed that Susannah would go through with the divorce. He doesn't realize how far apart they've drifted until it's too late. When she becomes engaged to her old boyfriend, that's a huge heads up to Ryan that YES she does intend to go through with it.

Terra: In a couple of scenes it shows Ryan's teammates being very protective of Susannah and it's almost like she's every one's little sister. I caught the men's mentality of, "You mess with her and you're gonna pay, don't care if we are friends". I found this to be quite endearing and did you have the Big Brother, Little Sister mentality in mind when you wrote those scenes?

Marie: Interesting observation, Terra! No, I didn't really intend the brother-sister thing (but it's great that you got that impression). However, I did want the guys on the team to friends of hers, too, which I thought would only be natural after ten years of marriage. Ryan's friend Bernie, in particular, is very protective toward Susannah. I also thought it would be interesting to show some of the heartbreak that would occur in any group of friends when one of the core couples break up.

Terra: The love scenes between Ryan and Susannah were quite delicious. What do you think of, "Fighting is so hard to do but making up is the best part"?

Marie: LOL! Isn't that the truth? Love scenes are normally tough to write for me and most writers. In fact, I know of writers who put "Sex Scene Here" and go back to it later. I can't do that. The love scenes between Ryan and Susannah evolved quite naturally for me, so they weren't as hard to write as others have been. Of course it doesn't hurt that he's one sexy devil!

Terra: I know the differences between Ryan and Susannah are on quite different levels. Ryan considers possession nine tenths of the issue while Susannah is much more on a simpler level. Would you say this could be a major sticky point with couples in society today?

Marie: Ryan is definitely an alpha male, which is a turn off to some women, including his wife! She wants nothing to do with his egotistical foolishness. I can't imagine that many women in today's world would have a lot of patience with that behavior. Susannah comes across "simpler" in the story, but I imagine it takes a pretty complex woman to put up with all the craziness that goes along with being married to a guy like him.

Terra: What possessed you to make that giant leap into the world of writing romance novels? Did you ever consider writing something else before romance came up?

Marie: The old adage "write what you read" definitely applies to me. I love to read romance, so it was only natural that I wanted to write in that genre as well. My early books had a definite "women's fiction with strong romantic elements" feel to them. I still hope to see them published. But at the end of the day, I'm a romance writer. It was never much of a decision for me.

Terra: Being an author your mind must be going a million miles a minute all the time, how would you say this affects your professional and home life? Also, how hard is it to juggle so many different aspects of life without having a nervous breakdown? Gosh, you must be in constant hyperdrive.

Marie: LOL!! This question made me laugh. Hyperdrive is a good way to describe my mind and my life lately. I have a very demanding day job as the communications director for a national membership organization on top of my writing career, and I have two kids, ages 13 and soon-to-be 10. Throw in a husband, a house, and a dog, and yes, it's safe to say my life is pretty busy. The good news is I enjoy all of it. Up until recently, I haven't had much trouble juggling things, but this launch month for Line of Scrimmage has been a bit insane. I'm talking with my publisher about another football book for next Fall that would require me to write on deadline for the first time. Talk to me after that to ask how well I'm juggling things!

Terra: After having been through the entire writing process and turning in your manuscript, doing the deadlines, edits, re-edits and everything else that encompasses an author's life, how do you feel seeing your book published and sitting on the shelf of bookstores knowing your novel is finally out there, exposed and ripe for everyone to read?

Marie: Oh, wow, Terra, there just are no words to describe that feeling. And to get emails from people I've never met telling me they loved the book... It's all "pinch me" stuff. Today I had a signing at my local Barnes & Noble where I (and my kids) got star treatment by the staff. The kids loved the cheesecake, but I loved that display of MY books at the front of the store. Line of Scrimmage was the seventh book I wrote, so it took me a while to get to this point. I used to stand in that very same store and wonder why, with all those books, just one of them couldn't be mine. Now one of them is, and it's a wonderful feeling. It makes all the ups and downs it took to get here so worth it!

Marie Force has worked as a reporter, editor and writer for the last 20 years, serving most recently as the communications director for a national membership organization. A lifelong reader of romance, she lives with her husband and two children in her home state of Rhode Island and had to become a football fan when the muse delivered Ryan to her doorstep! Line of Scrimmage is her first novel.

Her second book, Same Time Sunday, is coming next Spring from Sourcebooks Casablanca. A Baltimore prosecutor set to begin the biggest trial of his career and a hair stylist with a dysfunctional family meet in the airport on their way to visit their significant others in Florida. After they each endure a disastrous weekend, they meet up again on the flight home, striking up an unlikely friendship that leads to love.

Visit Marie online at www.mariesullivanforce.com, http://mariesullivanforce.blogspot.com or http://casablancaauthors.blogspot.com.

Marie will be giving away a copy of Line of Scrimmage at the end of the day to one lucky winner who comments about the interview!

GO RED SOX!