Be My Guest - Jana Richards

Welcome back to Be My Guest!

In the Be My Guest studio, I invite friends to stop by for a chat and to share their work.

Today in the Be My Guest studio is Jana Richards. Jana is celebrating the release of her book, I'll Be Seeing You. Jana is going to tell us a little about her new book, and answer a couple of questions for us. Let's start chatting...

Five Things You Need to Know About the Twice in a Lifetime Series

1.      The Twice in a Lifetime Series is a time-travel, second chance at love romance, with angels. There are three books in the series: I'll Be Seeing You is book one.

2. Apprentice angel Gabriel Daniels, the main character of the series, must go back in time three times to give three mortals a second chance at love before he’s admitted into Heaven. He goes back to the 1940s, then the 1970s, and finally, 10 years before the current time.

3.      The names of the books correspond with a song of the era in which the book is set. I'll Be Seeing You was made popular in the 1940s by singers such as Vera Lynn. Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. Never Can Say Goodbye was first released by the Jackson Five in 1971. Numerous other artists released a version of the song, but probably the most famous is Gloria Gaynor’s disco take. The third book takes place about ten years before present time. I went with Bruno Mars’ 2012 hit When I Was Your Man for the title. Sloane was the love of Gabriel’s life, and he remembers a time when he was her man.

4.      Turns out that the clothes you’re wearing when you leave the Earthly plain end up being the clothes you wear for the rest of your afterlife. Gabriel was on his way to a fancy gala, so he’s stuck wearing a tuxedo. At least he looks sharp!

5.       As one of the conditions to be admitted into Heaven, Gabriel’s mentor, senior angel Thomas, requires him to examine his life, especially all the mistakes he made with love. Gabriel made many mistakes and he finds reliving them all very painful. Will he emerge from this ordeal with more understanding of the things he did?

I'll Be Seeing You

Genre: Time Travel Second Chance Romance
Themes: Time travel, angels and Heaven, second chance at love.
Keywords: time travel romance, historical fiction, WW2 time travel, WW2 love story, angel paranormal romance, second chance at love romance.
Heat Level: PG
Release Date: March 1, 2026

Tagline:
When apprentice angel Gabriel takes Frank back in time for a second chance at love, they both learn lessons about trust.

Back Cover Blurb:
Apprentice angel Gabriel Daniel’s first assignment in his quest to become a full-fledged angel is to give WW2 veteran, Frank Brennan, a second chance at love. With help from his mentor, senior angel Thomas, Gabriel takes Frank back to 1944 to Plymouth, England. There, Frank made his biggest mistake with love. He fell in love with Claire Cartwright, but when he found her kissing another man, he ended their relationship, despite Claire’s insistence that things weren’t as they appeared. This time around, Gabriel’s task is to convince Frank to trust in Claire’s love and fidelity, despite the evidence against her.

At the same time, Thomas takes Gabriel on a journey through his relationship with Sloane, the love of his mortal life. For the first time, Gabriel sees how his jealousy and distrust tainted their love.

Unless Gabriel persuades Frank to trust Claire, his goal of becoming a citizen of Heaven is doomed, along with his desire to watch over his mother and brother back on Earth. Frank has a complicated history that Gabriel must help him confront before either of them gets what they need.

About Jana

When Jana Richards read her first romance novel, she immediately knew two things: she had to commit

the stories running through her head to paper, and they had to end with a happily ever after. She also knew she’d found what she was meant to do. Since then she’s never met a romance genre she didn’t like. She writes contemporary romance, romantic suspense, and historical romance set in World War Two, in lengths ranging from short story to full length novel. Just for fun, she throws in generous helpings of humor, and the occasional dash of the paranormal. When not writing up a storm or dealing with dust bunnies, Jana can be found pursuing hobbies such as golf (which she plays very badly) or reading (which she does much better). Jana lives in Western Canada with her husband Warren and a senior calico cat named Layla.

Social Media Links:
Website: http://www.janarichards.com
Blog: https://www.janarichards.com/blog
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JanaRichardsAuthor
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/JanaRichards_
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/janarichards155/
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/author/janarichards
Newsletter Signup: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/k2b4c3
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/janarichards.bsky.social
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2892274.Jana_Richards
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jana-richards

Readers Want To Know

1. When you're feeling down and/or experiencing writer's block, what do you do to pick up your mood?
I went through a period of burn-out a couple of years ago. I got to the point where I had to put writing aside for a while, at least writing in novel-length form. The constant marketing and promotion also wore me down. So, I had to take a break. I read for pleasure, did some volunteering, and enjoyed spending time with my new granddaughter. I didn't totally abandon writing and marketing; I still wrote blog posts and did a bit of social media. But it meant that the release of my Christmas themed book missed the season and I had to wait another year to finish and release it. Last year I got the rights back to five of my books and I re-released and published them myself. It was a massive undertaking. I updated manuscripts, got new covers, formatted book interiors, and uploaded the books to various retailers in print and ebook formats. With the release of I'll Be Seeing You and the other two books in the Twice in a Lifetime series, I recognized I was in danger of burning out again. So I made the decision to take it more slowly this time. Instead of being on all the retailers right away, I decided to upload only to Amazon to begin with. I'm delaying the release of the print version a bit, too. Eventually the books will be available in many locations in different formats. But right now it's more important to preserve my energy and my mental health.

2. If your life were a novel, what would the title be, and why?
My life might be a non-fiction novel entitled “Perseverance and Determination”. There have been times in my life when it would have been easier to give up but something inside kept pushing me forward. Despite painful losses, my husband and I were determined to have a family. We kept trying, and in time, we had two daughters. Then there’s my work life. I tried different jobs/careers over the years, but nothing clicked with me the way writing did. But my writing career was almost over before it began. I wrote for years before selling anything to a publisher. I’m not sure why I kept writing, but I did. Eventually that first sale happened and it gave me the confidence to continue. I’m never going to make a lot of money with my writing, but I’m going to continue until I can no longer string two words together coherently!

 
3. What is one thing that readers would be surprised to learn about you?
Maybe it would surprise readers to know I volunteer at my local zoo in the summer. Mostly, volunteers like me help visitors find their way around the zoo and hopefully make their experience more enjoyable. I’ve reconnected lost phones with their owners, distributed band-aids to children with boo-boos, and picked up litter with my handy grab-stick. It’s fun to interact with people and I love getting to see the animals regularly. I enjoy volunteering because people are usually happy. Nobody is having a bad time at the zoo!

Thank you, Jana, for sitting down with me today in the Be My Guest studio and for sharing your book and for letting us get to know a little about you!