Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Man, where do I start? I’m a New Adult and Contemporary Romance writer that has a soft spot for young adult that are struggling with the reality of becoming an adult. I’m an avid supporter of diverse books and hope I can encourage others to #ReadBeyondRace and enjoy books that feature multicultural characters. I’m an administrator at Rutgers University in New Jersey. I have a bachelor’s degree in Literature from Stockton University, presently completing my Masters in English and Creative Writing at Southern New Hampshire University, and I’m the current president of the Cultural, Interracial, and Multicultural Special Interest Chapter of Romance Writers of America (CIMRWA).
If you aren’t familiar with New Adult fiction, let me enlighten you. New Adult (NA) is a genre of fiction that targets readers that have outgrown Young Adult fiction. It rose to popularity in 2009 and explores the stressful and wonderful chasm between adolescence and adulthood. It’s the perfect place craft creative maturation plots (i.e. coming of age, rites of passages plots). And since I’m a romance author, the series will also incorporate some romantic elements and show shifts in drama and tension in order to bring new characters to light.
At this time, I’ve published three books and have written three more for publication.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest novel is Jacmuir: Trust Stained Lies.
The Jacmuir series is the book series I’ve always wanted to write. This feeling was formulated from my love of Le Morte d’Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory, Beowulf, and stories from Greek mythology. I inhaled these stories as a young person and then Paradise Lost by John Milton and The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer reinforced my desire to write an ‘Everyman’ story which featured diverse characters.
I created the Jacmuir series in contemporary times after a talk with MacKenzie Fraser-Bub, a literary agent that once worked with the Trident Media Group. (She went on to work for Howard Morhaim Literary Agency and now she’s heads up Fraser-Bub Literary, LLC.) At a writer’s conference, she was adamant that this story needed to be prevalent to today’s New Adult book market.
At the time, the New Adult books were trying to duplicate the 50 Shades of Gray phenomena (young college girl being sexually intrigued by a slightly older businessman) and every story in the genre seemed to be selling coming-of-age sex experiences. Jacmuir is totally different from those books because it deals with coming-of-age based on a young person gaining a better understanding of their world.
There’s something about the college years that makes all students look at their parents and teachers through unveiled eyes. It’s like they’ve finally see the humanity to the adults that monitored their behaviors thought adolescence. The youth start to gain an understanding of who they are and what type of adult they want to be so New Adult novels are very focused on internal turmoil and self-realization.
Jacmuir is a fictional country set in contemporary times with monarchy that emulates what exists in modern day England and Spain but with a few aspects of magical realism. Magical realism has been defined as fiction that interweaves realistic and fantastic details, juxtaposing the marvelous with the ordinary. I’ve incorporated fantastical events and mythology into this book series so the fantasy traits of telekinesis, hyper-speed, and levitation are experienced once a person becomes a Crimson Knight. My love of comic books made me want to write a New Adult series with supernatural aspects that blends with our contemporary, familiar world. I have a strong desire to write a book series I can give to my nieces and nephews that will keep them entertained.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write everywhere and whenever I can. It’s the best part of my day. It’s hard to write my novels while completing my graduate degree but the readers help me stay at it. My days start at 4:30AM and I write each morning before I start my workday at 8:30AM. I’ve made up my mind that writing is a business and as such I need to dedicate time to not only study the craft but to master it so I must write daily. It has to be a habit like brushing and flossing my teeth or eating dinner every evening. It’s the only way to become a prolific writer. Since I cannot quit my day job at the university to make more time, I’ve appointed more board members to the RWA (Romance Writers of America) chapter I’m heading. These volunteers will help me write more because I won’t be trying to market myself and the chapter simultaneously anymore. (Marketing and branding is so important for authors and the time it takes to do it can be maddening.)
What authors, or books have influenced you?
There are so many wonderful novels and authors that inspire me; I’m not really sure how I can narrow it down. When I read as a writer, I’m looking to improve my craft; I concentrate on a fiction writer’s intended audience, use of dialogue and any performance words that provoke a strong reaction. When I read fiction for pleasure, I enjoy being transported into another place and viewing the protagonist’s perspective of life; I’m reading solely to connect to the characters, not to discern the mechanics of writing.
I think reading style is formulated by my moods and whims. If I want to be transported into an epic poem, I’ll curl up in a blanket and read Beowulf or the Iliad. If I wish to be rooted in the present day, I’ll read the works of romance authors I’ve met at writers’ conferences. Due to my affiliation with the Romance Writers of America, I’ve read more romance novels in the past five years than any other type of genre. That’s why working on my master’s degree is so important. It forces me to seek out other genres for inspiration and insights to character development.
What are you working on now?
I just finished up the second book in the Jacmuir series and two prequel novellas to the series. My plan is to submit for Book Two and the novellas to my publisher for publication as part of a three book push for the series. I’m trying to make up for the fact that many things caused me not to meet my writing deadlines last year: I got married, became president of a Romance Writers of America chapter, and entered a vigorous creative writing graduate school program. I don’t regret any of those decisions but my readers are a little upset that I didn’t get another book out this winter. So I decided to make the wait for Jacmuir (Book Two) worth it by featuring two prequel novellas along with it. (On a very small scale, I know how George R.R. Martin feels… oh, the pressure to get the work done.)
I think the Jacmuir novella series will do very well in today’s market. The stories are strong and the characters are fully developed. If my readers are happy then I’ll be happy. The market can be swayed greatly by marketing but if a story is good and the writing is consistent, readers will catch on.
I’m very fortunate that I took a risk and pitched a multi-book deal with my publisher that she loved but the prequel novellas weren’t part of that package. I’ll give her a chance to place the novellas under contract because she has great movie studios connections but if she doesn’t bite, I’ll check my contract for any non-competition clauses and self-publish them myself.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I love Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and Instagram but I’m also connected on other social media outlets. If I’m blessed with success with the series I will do more podcasting on the AMB Novels Talk show featured on YouTube.
I’ll also get back to blogging on my website. It’s time. My passion for blogging weaned when my older sister and fellow writer was found dead in her Baltimore, MD home in 2014. (See http://www.angelinembishop.com/blog/saying-goodbye-to-my-sister-and-fellow-author ) I was able to publish a few post but it wasn’t the same know she was out there reading each entry and cheering me on. This interview has helped me see the best way to honor her memory is to keep writing the series and share my point of view with my readers. I hope you’ll join me on this next new, and hopefully exciting chapter.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
The first thing I would tell them to do is join a professional writing organization so they can be surrounded by other writers that will help them master their craft. People forget being a professional writer is not a hobby, it’s a business; and we have a product that needs to improve over time. I’m learning and growing as a writer every day. Do I cringe when readers point out the mistakes that weren’t corrected in my first novel? Yes, I do. But that novel is also a testament of where I begin as a writer. It’s a snapshot in time and as my sister would say… there’s an audience for all types of fiction and what’s not for one person maybe perfect for another.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice that I hear all the time is to P.B.I.C. (Place Butt In Chair) and write the next book.
What are you reading now?
I just finished read Frankenstein by Mary Shelley for my graduate course. It’s great to read the classic as an author and not as a high school student.
What’s next for you as a writer?
My goals are to pass the CIMRWA presidency over to another person wishing to move the chapter into the next phase. I’ve been an Executive Board member for four years so it’s time to give my complete focus to my writing.
I also want to see the Jacmuir series being read by youth that needs some motivation to see the prince or princess within themselves. Speaking engagements are starting to take off now and I want to continue my sister’s work of encouraging young writers to add their voices to the literary landscape.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Bible, Cooking on an Island for Dummies, Island Survival 101, and How to Attract Search Airplanes Quickly
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