Get a behind-the-scenes all-access pass to Danielle Sibarium's Man Up Series!
***Synopis***
The Man Up series focuses on four friends. Each book highlights a different couple and features a HEA.
The first book Man Up Party Boy is Noah and Lexi’s story. It’s a brother’s best friend, enemy to lovers book told in alternating POV.
The second book Man Up Playboy revolves around Cooper and Selene. It’s a damaged hero story told exclusively from Cooper’s POV.
The third book Man Up Husband is about Troy and Marlena. They are already married with a child and in a funk. Troy tries to change things up and spice up their love life. Marlena has a secret she’s afraid will destroy her marriage if Troy finds out.
The final book Man up Stepbrother is about Jagger and Allie. It’s is an enemies to lovers, protector romance. Back from serving in the middle east Jagger becomes very protective of Allie after finding her tires slashed on the same night her ex confronts her when he sees her with Jagger.
Man Up Soldier is the same story as Man Up Stepbrother without the stepbrother element.
What
is the sub-genre and trope? Did your
characters lead you to this genre or was that decided before the story began?
I guess if I had to pick a sub-genre or trope for the whole series I would have to go with enemies to lovers. That theme seems to run through all the books at some point.
Even in Man up Husband. While Troy and Marlena are married it’s a strained marriage filled with and resentment and an uncomfortable anger.
Are you more character or plot driven?
I’m more character driven. I want them to be realistic and flawed.
I take my characters on a journey from the beginning to the end of the book filled with love, angst and personal growth.
With many main and secondary characters, how do you keep them separated in your mind? Do you have a story/vision board above your workspace?
Usually I think about my characters and story a lot before I ever type a word. Weeks, in some cases months.
I get to know them pretty well in that time, although I think after having so many books written it’s time to start getting the details down so I can look back if I forget a name (I change them often through the process) or eye color.
I know from previous interviews that characters take on a life of their own. Were any of the characters in this series determined to take their own direction instead of where you initially wanted them to go?
Cooper definitely had a mind of his own.
As cocky and arrogant as he was, deep down he wanted to be a better man and wanted redemption. At the same time he wouldn’t allow me to write him in a better light.
Are any of the male POVs based on anyone you know?
No. Not consciously anyway.
Are any of the female POVs based on anyone you know?
Again, not consciously. Although, not based off of me Marlena and I have some shared experiences.
Was
there any one character/scene that was harder to write about than the other?
Cooper was harder to write than any of the other characters in the series. He comes off very shallow, but there is a lot of complexity to him, and Man Up Playboy is the first and only book I wrote entirely from the male POV.
The sex scenes are so difficult for me to write. More than the physical feeling, I try to convey the emotions running through my characters. That being said the physical part is important and there are only so many ways you can describe certain actions and how they make you feel.
What is your favorite book in the series?
They are all my favorite when I’m writing them. But the first and last books are probably my favorite if I have to choose.
I know that we aren’t supposed to have “favorites” as far as our children, but seriously, who’s your favorite character and why?
If I could only pick one I’ll go with Jagger Evans.
Series question - Who is your favorite couple and why did you decide on their dynamics?
Noah and Lexi.
I wanted them to overcome a complicated past that could be overcome with humor.
Series - Were any of the books harder to write than others?
Man Up Playboy was more difficult because it was written entirely from Cooper’s POV and I had to do research about Italy, (a place I’ve never gone), and alternative ways to join the Mile High club that excludes the bathroom.
This question is if you write in MULTIPLE POVs not just the hero and heroine
I write in single or double POV’s, but not more than those.
It’s not just the hero and heroine, but we get inside the heads of multiple characters throughout this series. I feel that it gives the story further depth. Do you think you will write another book or series following this multiple POV outline?
I may write another series, although my last few books have been single titles.
How long did it take you to write this book/series?
A little less than two years if you don’t count Man Up Soldier. That was a recent thought.
How did you come up with the title for your book and series?
I like the Man Up because all of the heroes needed to grow up and put their ego aside in some way for the woman they love.
I liked keeping each individual title simple in a way that gave an expectation of what the hero and the story would be like.
If
you met these characters in real life would you get along?
I’d get along with the heroines for sure. I’m not sure how well Cooper and I would get along.
Series question – Did you know in advance that you were going to write this as a series or did one of the characters in book one demand their own story?
It started with Man Up Party Boy for a beach romance anthology.
But Cooper insisted that since I wrote him as such a jerk I give him his own story and a chance at redemption.
If your book/series were made into a movie, which actors do you see as playing your characters?
I honestly have no idea. I’d much prefer to hear who my readers would like to play them.
Can you give us a hint as to what we can expect next? Whether a new book and series or a sequel to an existing series? Can you share a small tease?
In addition to working on short stories for anthologies, I’m working on a New Adult enemies to lovers, single father romance. Sliding Home.
As of right now I don’t have a release date. I thought it would be late 2022, but I’m thinking 2023 is more likely.
https://readingbydeb.blogspot.com/2022/07/author-at-glance-danielle-sibarium.html
Danielle grew up as an only child of divorced parents in Brooklyn, New York. Her imagination was developed at an early age. Surrounded by stuffed animals and imaginary friends, she transported herself into a fantasy world full of magic and wonder. Books were the gateway between her play world and reality.
Danielle always loved dialogue and in elementary school began writing plays and short stories. This is when she began to understand she could not only bring her fantastical world to life for herself, but she could enchant others as well.
In 2007 Danielle collaborated with Charlotte Doreen Small to write songs for her CD More. Danielle wrote the lyrics for Take My Hand, and Goodbye, while Charlotte contributed the melody. In 2011 her Debut novel For Always topped Amazon charts in the Young Adult category.
Danielle graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson University with honors, and currently lives in North Carolina with her husband, three children and their family dog.
Connect with Danielle:
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Lexi can’t stand party boy Noah. At least, that’s what she thinks. But when she sees him talking to a blonde at the bar on their first night in the beach town, jealousy takes over and she interrupts them with a kiss. One kiss leads to another. Before either of them realizes what’s happening passion and desire are awakened between them, but Lexi knows better than to fall for Noah. He is, after all, just a party boy.
Cooper Sutton loves nothing more than living up to his reputation as a playboy. That is until he meets Selene Davis in a coffee shop. Unlike the girls he's known before, she doesn't fall for his good looks and witty charm. She makes him work for every bit of her time and attention.
Haunted by memories of his childhood sweetheart, Cooper doesn't believe in love, marriage or monogamy. And much to his delight, neither does Selene. She appears to be his perfect match. Until she changes the rules of the game. And he finds himself knee deep in a committed relationship.
When the stakes are raised, Cooper's faced with a decision. Can he put the past behind him and move forward with Selene, or will he push love and happiness beyond his reach forever?
Falling for Troy Evans was a fairy tale. As real life took hold, things changed. Once upon a time, we couldn’t keep our hands off each other. Now we barely touch each other. Talking is close to impossible, until Troy turns the heat between us up a notch. I’m falling in love with him all over again, but I have a secret. A secret I’m afraid will destroy us.
Marlena Madden was everything I could ever ask for. She’s smart and beautiful, my perfect match. I love her more than anything. Somehow we allowed married life and parenthood to swallow us up and come between us. Exploring ways to pull us out of the humdrum routine we fell into, we’re making our way back to each other. But I can’t help but feel there is something she’s not telling me. Something dark. Something that’s threatening to destroy us.
One minute this strong, stubborn soldier is warm and tender melting my panties along with my heart, the next everything changes. With a look he has me burning hotter than the sun, and a single touch causes my insides to spontaneously combust. I hate how he teases and tempts me when he’s so off limits. I’m torn between what my heart wants and what I know is right. This man is hot. This man is sinful. This man is my stepbrother.
Allie’s got me hanging on by a thread. A tiny, thin, unraveling thread. What she doesn’t realize is I’m too hard-headed and stubborn to walk away. Whether she likes it or not, she will be warming my sheets and molding my mattress. Stepsister or not, Allie is mine.
One minute this strong, stubborn soldier is warm and tender melting my panties along with my heart, the next everything changes. With a look he has me burning hotter than the sun, and a single touch causes my insides to spontaneously combust. I hate how he teases and tempts me when he’s so off limits. I’m torn between what my heart wants and what my head tells me. This man is hot. This man is sinful. I don’t know if I can risk trusting him.
Allie’s got me hanging on by a thread. A tiny, thin, unraveling thread. What she doesn’t realize is I’m too hard-headed and stubborn to walk away. Whether she likes it or not, she will be warming my sheets and molding my mattress. Whether she likes it or not, Allie is mine.
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