Awesome Author Interviews

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m an aspiring novelist with two novels under my belt and more sloshing around in my head. I’ve also written two non-fiction books about healthy relationships, one of which was co-authored with Dr. Sidney Simon who wrote Values Clarification and many other books. A sweet project was my children’s book with an adult message, a slightly fictionalized story about when my late blind husband fell into a swimming pool twice within a week’s time.

My day job involves teaching online courses to providers of out-of-school-time programming for school-aged children as well as courses on play and health and nutrition. I draw on my long career in youth development and health in my teaching and in my writing.

I love playing in, on, and near water, hiking in mountains, creating wearable art with beads and fiber, and watching spring bulbs pop up out of the ground in March. I like planting too, but greatly dislike weeding, so I tell visitors that I want my gardens to look ‘natural.’

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Home Place is set on the family farm where I grew up and that I still call my Home Place after decades away. My greats- and great-greats settled that land, and I wanted to see if a young woman – not me – might be able to keep her Home Place intact as my family could not. It’s an impractical goal for Kat Patterson to rehab a 150-year-old house with 15 rooms and 8 exterior doors to live in with her dog, but her love of the place – which is all she and I have in common – makes her determined. It was fun to watch her try – despite a brother (entirely fictional) who wants to turn the place into a golf course which is what really happened to that land I still call my Home Place.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I found great relief when author Rene Denfeld suggested that we’re always writing even when our fingers don’t hit the keys – because I mull a lot more than I type! I’m a pantser so I don’t have a set ending in mind as I write so much of my mulling asks what my characters will do – not in the whole story but in the next ten minutes. By the time I sit at the keyboard, then, the next ten minutes are usually already written in my head – unless the characters take me off on an entirely different tangent as they are sometimes wont to do.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
So many… My first favorite was Julie Campbell who wrote Trixie Belden’s series. I favored Trixie far and away beyond too-good-to-be-true Nancy Drew because Trixie was a real girl who frequently fought with her brothers and got in trouble. Mary Stewart was another early and long-lasting favorite for her engaging characters and thrilling tales set in exotic locales. My next novel or the one after will reimagine what happens to one of Stewart’s supporting characters.

When I consider who I’d like my books to be compared with, I think of Elizabeth Berg, Jodi Picoult, JoJo Moyes, Marisa de los Santos, and more. With sales as robust as Nora Roberts’.

What are you working on now?
My next novel follows a minor character from my debut novel Come Back. Lee’s a small-town girl from the wrong side of the tracks newly arrived in Washington, D.C. The male lead is Matt, a privileged-white-boy aspiring musician. Both are ignorant because of where they’ve lived of racial issues but are ripe to become ‘woke.’ It’s as yet untitled, but when I picture D.C. in spring I see vivid azaleas. So it might be some variation on Bloom.

I put another story on pandemic hold but I’m looking forward to the safe opening of Finger Lakes wineries for purposes of research and ambiance-soaking. I’ve had numerous volunteers to assist in that process!

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Free promotions have been my most fruitful strategy. Each time I offer a book for free, I experience a post-bump in sales and readership through Kindle Unlimited. The Fussy Librarian has so far been my best avenue to publicize those free promos. I’ve had modest success too with Amazon Ads.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write. And don’t worry that you don’t know how. If you really want to learn, keep writing until you do.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Read, write, kill your darlings. And don’t quit your day job.

What are you reading now?
On the strength of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry and The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennesey, I’m reading Rachel Joyce’s latest, Miss Benson’s Beetle – and liking it. In spite of fierce sympathetic itching in response to all the mosquitoes Miss Benson and Enid encounter.

What’s next for you as a writer?
My goal is to complete a first draft of the Bloom novel in 2021, for publication in 2022. God willing and the creek don’t rise.

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?
Besides the ones stored in my head? What better time to finally read War and Peace? How to Survive on a Desert Island for Dummies or the Seriously Unprepared? Tropical Cookery? My own work-in-progress and a blank book with extra pens.

Author Websites and Profiles
Sally Crosiar Website
Sally Crosiar Amazon Profile

Sally Crosiar’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have plenty of writings that were not published or turned into books.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is titled Fickle, I have a tendency to be impulsive and the minute the plot popped in my head i began to write it. It was a struggle to write and think but i always feel the need to push through the mental strain.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really unusual but I enjoy listening to music and drinking coffee to open my brain. i sometimes eat gummy bears and it really opens my mind and helps me become inspired.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Five Total Strangers by Natalie D. Richards. Any book by Jenny Han, If it Bleeds by Stephen King, and the usual young adult genre, fictional stories from Wattpad.

What are you working on now?
I am writing on a more science fiction romance story with a minority lead, don’t want to give too many details because there’s a possibility to publish and I don’t want to spoil it. Just know it has telekenisis

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m still figuring that out but mainly I’ve been using Instagram and Twitter, I’ve been discovering more and more

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Being a new author myself all I could say is, network and make friends and help others. Write what makes you happy and positively affects you.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Not really advice but a saying: “You have all the time in the world, Don’t worry about the grammar, worry about the creation”
It truly helped my writing style and the way I create my chapters in a neat and precise way. It calms me and makes me realize the bigger picture.

What are you reading now?
I am finishing five total strangers.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I just want to create more and write more books. I want to be able to incorporate my graphic design passion into my writing and book creation more and more. I also wanna be able to help other writers in the future who want to be authors but don’t necessarily have the opportunity or chances.

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?
Before I go, Jenny Han TATBILB series,

Author Websites and Profiles
Erin Woods Amazon Profile

Erin Woods’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a former U.S. Marine who got into self-help after exiting the military. I suffered with depression and anxiety, and I discovered that writing was a great outlet for me.
I have a daughter who is a major inspiration to me.
I love visiting new places like little towns and national parks.
I have published one book (The Study: Reflections on a Life of Meaning), and have another one on stand-by.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is The Study: Reflections on a Life of Meaning.
I wrote this book because I had a hospital visit in which I wasn’t sure if I would live through. I began writing this book so that my daughter would have valuable lessons from me even in my death.
Spoiler; I survived. But I continued writing, of course.
I was a fitness coach for several years. It is in me to help others, to inspire them. This book is written for everybody who dreams of becoming their best self.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not that I am aware of.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I enjoyed Tuesdays with Morrie and The Last Lecture.

What are you working on now?
I am working on a book called “Before You Go.”
There is no class that teaches one how to get along in this world once you go out on your own. We basically just hope that we can make it through each day without causing too much of a wave.
Before You Go explores the most important lessons one needs to know before entering the world. If I were to present a class to a group of Seniors in High School, it would be based on this book.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Facebook.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t give up. It took me ten years to finally follow through with publishing.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
My father used to tell me to be nice to myself. If I called myself “stupid,” he would correct me.
I learned to only have positive thoughts about myself, and it made me realize the importance of the story we tell ourselves in our head.

What are you reading now?
“Own Your Weird,” by Jason Zook

What’s next for you as a writer?
Keep publishing about one book a year for the next couple of years.
The books I have so far are based on my life coaching framework, so I plan to expand my reach in coaching.

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?
“Living with a SEAL,” by David Goggins
That’s all I need for motivation.

Author Websites and Profiles
Jeric Sorrell Website
Jeric Sorrell Amazon Profile

Jeric Sorrell’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Kristofor Hellmeister is an alien—a legal alien born in Canada who has lived in Georgia since he was a young boy. Presently, he lives just outside of Atlanta with his wife, Kristie, and his three-year-old son, Maddox. Kristofor has always pursued writing, ever since he was a young boy writing about dinosaurs, tornadoes, and man-eating plants. He published his first book—a historical fiction called Brothers of Baseball—in 2017. Axiom is his first foray into science fiction and is the first book in the Axiom Chronicles. Kristofor enjoys reading anything from military fiction, to the newest Star Wars or Halo book, to fantasy and spy novels. He also enjoys spending time outdoors whether it is running a 5k, taming his wild backyard, or going on an adventure with his family. The core theme for all of his stories is that of redemption, for he believes this is reflected all around us and throughout history. He has written four books, and is currently working on his fifth.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Axiom was very personally driven and inspired by my own struggles with mental health. I started writing it while I struggled to maintain my own thought life, and this is directly reflected in one of the main characters—Sebastian. He is also a symbol of the culture around me in that he is moving from logical and reason based thinking(Enlightenment thinking) to a more emotional and passion driven thinking(the emotionalism of my generation). My other main character, Damien, is a symbol of a survival of the fittest mindset in that he only looks out for number one—another undertone I have found in my culture. The final main character, Myra, reflects my faith in that she seeks hope and reconciliation even in the darkness. Axiom is inspired by books like Anthem by Ayn Rand, 1984, Children of the Dust, and Fahrenheit 451. I just published the sequel to Axiom, titled Citadel, which picks up where Axiom ended.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m an unusual person, so perhaps that qualifies! I do most of my writing in silence, in my head, before I put the words on paper. Sometimes, I even act out the dialogue!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Many! Bradbury, Wells, Ayn Rand, Orwell, J.K. Rowling, C.S. Lewis, Brian Jacques, and the book Children of the Dust. There’s so many more on top of that!

What are you working on now?
I just published the sequel to Axiom–titled Citadel. Right now, I am taking a break from the Axiom Chronicles and working on a standalone project called Shape of Memories. It’s Science Fiction, and I cannot honestly compare it to any other book I’ve read. It’s about Alpha Grisham (Alpha is the term for Captain I use) who crash lands on a planet and encounters a being who takes on the shape of his memories, including the shape of his dead best friend, his overbearing father, and woman who is soon to be his ex-wife.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Twitter and Facebook.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Network. Network. Network. Don’t give up when your first, second, or third book doesn’t sell. Write from your struggles, your failures, your fears and you will never run out of material. Pour everything you have into each story as if it were the only story you had the chance to write.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
My mom once told me that no matter what, there was someone out there who would read my books. This encouraged me to continue to write.

What are you reading now?
Christianity and the Social Crisis of the 21st Century
Gone with the Wind

What’s next for you as a writer?
I aim to complete the Axiom Chronicles by writing four more novels. I want to publish two books a year. My long term goal is to write a 30+ book series as my magnus opus.

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?
My Bible, Tale of Two Cities, Robinson Crusoe, and a Halo novel.

Author Websites and Profiles
Kristofor Hellmeister Website
Kristofor Hellmeister Amazon Profile

Kristofor Hellmeister’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born in California but grew up in Montana where I lived until graduating with my
Bachelor’s degree in Physics from Montana State University and attending graduate
school at Kent State U. in Ohio where I earned a Master’s degree in Physics. I then
moved to Santa Barbara where I worked several years in the new field of high
transition temperature, thin-film superconductors where I both conducted basic
research ad participated in product development. The first products were passive
microwave filters used in the rapidly growing cellular phone industry. I then worked
as a manufacturing engineer producing two-way text pagers, followed by fiber-optic
components. I currently live in the Northern half of the People’s Republic of California,
though not as far north as Jefferson.

I have written five science-fiction books thus far. These (in order) are the following

Sol is Not Lost
For the Ages
The Gifted
The Serendipity Factor
Treason

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called “Treason”. I will go into as much detail as I can, but since it is
the third book of a trilogy, I hope not too much. All of my books are hitting the market
simultaneously which may or may not be the best strategy.

This question requires some background so here goes. My first book — Sol is Not Lost
— centers on Trevor Van Leeuwan who is the great-grandson of the leading character
in Treason — Marcus Aurelius Van Leeuwan. Trevor is the leading character (I would
say hero, but this evokes the ‘great-man’ problem again — he is the inspiring figure, let
us say.) Trevor’s family have been colonists in a breakaway society on the planet
Magellan, discovered by his great-grandfather Marcus, who also developed Faster-
Than-Light interstellar drive. Only a tiny few in the Earth system know about this
because the technology is deemed too dangerous to fall into the hands of
governments. In any case, Sol is Not Lost and For the Ages were my first books. I then
wanted to delve into the history or this future history (sci-fi used to be called ‘future
history’). This is where the Van Leeuwan Trilogy comes in. We all watch sci-fi, but the
origins of these future worlds just seem to pop onto the scene (I have several complaints of how history is taught). I wanted to explore just what Marcus Aurelius and his brother
Hans Hermann-Hoppe (H-cubed) went through to bring those colonies into existence.

This is fodder for a trilogy (and more?).
This third book — Treason — delves into the nature of intelligence/consciousness in
sync with the interconnectedness of a biome and its implications. As Marcus and his
compatriots start to settle into their environment, there is still no guarantee that they
can ever return to Earth. What if they introduce some tiny virus or prion that would
endanger many billions of people in the home system? Treason refers to being
endangered by a would-be colonist who may have sold them out to the powers-that-
be in the Sol System i.e. their colony, their breakaway technology and all the reasons
why they wished to snap the confines — physical and psychological — of Earth and
increasingly Mars. The ‘Mars Frontier’ or the ‘New Settlements’ as I refer to them, do
not have a government. They do not need one or want one. I will say in all honesty,
this was how I began my world building — based upon Rothbard, Marc Stevens,
Frederick Bastiat and others. Only very recently I became aware that Elon Musk in his
StarLink documentation discussed his Mars Colony very late in 2020 declaring that ‘NO
EARTH GOVERNMENT would hold sway in the colony he was building.

In Treason, of course the colony — many light years from Earth or Mars — technology,
and all are at risk just as they finally found a place to settle for the long term. Enemies
on Earth have been titillated of this possibility but have no concrete proof thus far in
their ongoing attempt to co-opt the technologies of Van Leeuwan et al. We have a
sociopathic crony capitalist — Malcolm Aldrich and later his estranged and equally
psychotic lover, an ex-POTUS and again appointed Senator waging her own private
war to annex the Mars Frontier along with anything else she can get her hands on.

There are targets for abduction or worse and creative ways of dealing with those.
There are intelligence and counter-intelligence operations. In all of this, the deeper
scientific and philosophical discussions with the latest (real world) thinking on both
injected for the reader to ponder.

A YouTube trailer for Treason: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLJej7C63Gs

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
As far as I know — since I’ve never looked into how others write — I do not have any unusual habits unless just getting up, making breakfast and sitting down to write all day is odd. I had never even tried until early in 2020 and five books just flowed out of me like they had been dying to break free. Perhaps they were. I had always wanted to try, but psyched my self out of it. This time, I just tossed out any inhibitions I had in the past and wrote what was on my mind. The odd bit is that once you have breathed life into your characters, they really do start to ‘direct the author’. That might sound a little nuts, but it is not out of line with what authors or actors have said in the past.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I don’t know that I have spent any long period of time with a specific author. One
whom I particularly enjoy currently is Thomas J. DiLorenzo. He is an honest economist
who writes history from the honest perspective demonstrating much what we know
as history is economically driven. He dispels the “Lincoln Cult” as he describes it. His
book on Alexander Hamilton is equally enlightening. He has stated, and I agree, that
historians are quite unable to write about economics, but economists are quite
capable of writing history. This may be a conceit, but reading Murray Rothbard — an
extremely prolific writer when he was with us — I still concur. Rothbard’s “Conceived in
Liberty” covers the entire Pre-War-of-Independence era which American History
courses and writers mysteriously leave out. It is this kind of honesty in writing that
attracts me and inspires me. It is writers like these who do not hold to the “Great-Man”
or “Great-Event” approach to history that has dominated over the millennia. History
has a flow with all kinds of characters influencing matters behind the scenes who are
never discussed. The so-called historical events are not matters that occur in fits and
starts or are generated by one or two minds at the time. It is the surrounding context I
am interested in that breaks through so many accounts that generally become
nothing more than myths. Winston Churchill is attributed to saying that “History will
be kind to me because I shall be writing it.”

The writer and thinker who really caused the scales to fall from my eyes is Marc
Stevens who wrote “Adventures in LegalLand” and “Government: Indicted”. His use of
the basic Socratic Method demonstrates that the world around us is largely a false one
in which people are participating through the veiled threat of violence or duped by
gaslighting rather than acting on their own in their own best interest or that of their
families. “Caesar’s Messiah” by Joseph Atwill would be another fine example of
applying Occam’s Razor to history.

What are you working on now?
Currently, I am not working on anything other than my occasional inputs or comments at goodreads.com or other places. I have been spending all the last three months in an effort to launch five books at the same time. This is likely not the best marketing strategy, but I am hoping that this will convince some readers that this is a serious effort and not just a one-off attempt. I spent the time to learn Sigil to create my e-books and make them acceptable in terms of accessibility and readability on all platforms. I made audiobooks as well, which was quite time-consuming. First I had to come up to speed with Audacity — a free recording and editing program, then spend countless hours to cover all five volumes. Next, I needed a web/writing presence, so I embarked on setting up a website — https://michaelsbookcorner.com — and initially thought I would go with WordPress. I like to think I am reasonably intelligent and have built more than one website in the past, but WP stymied me. I finally gave up and went back to the tried and true.

This, of course, is not what the question was about, but I felt I needed to say why I am not writing at the moment. I do plan to get back to it. I left a lot of maneuvering room in my stories on purpose so I could revert to that ‘world’. It is very comfortable and there is much fodder for new books there. At the same time, should I try to write something completely new? Someone suggested that I try to write ‘comedy’. Thus far I am having trouble defining that. My novels are definitely satirical, and irreverent in launching direct or indirect assaults on the absurdity of the world — present and future. One list claims that ‘Catch 22’ is a comedy. In my opinion it is something of a ‘Black Comedy’ and perhaps my books are in that vein somewhat. I like to think that though they do identify those absurdities, they also highlight the brighter sides of existence and human capabilities. This has been a goal of mine.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have not determined that as it is much too early to say. I have only had my own website up for less than one month. I have established a foothold on goodreads.com with an author page/status. Again, it is a bit early to say and my navigation of that website is coming about in fits and starts. It is not exactly social media, but a close relation it seems. There are lots of distinct groups and discussions that are not nearly as fast-paced as Twitter or Facebook.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
As a new author myself, I can only say what has worked for me — in terms of writing — is just sit down and write. This does not mean a book, necessarily, every time. If you are online, there are plenty of places to write your comments both short and long. goodreads.com is a good platform for this, or social media (though it moves so fast and attention spans can be short). Don’t worry about how many people are going to read it — just express your thoughts — express yourself. I’m new, but I think expressing oneself is a major factor. If you don’t write about what interests or excites you then who else will want to read it?

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I believe it was René Descartes who said, “If you are lost in a forest, continue walking in a straight line. Eventually you will be out.”

Ponder this for a while, and you will find it is true. This is what sustained me through two degrees in Physics. I enjoyed the work, but brute force can take a person a long way past his/her fellows. Use this for writing, and you will find that writer’s block is not the dreadful foe it is portrayed to be. Get up, take a break (not often) and the direction will come. As I have alluded before, it is spooky, but once your characters come to life, THEY WILL GUIDE YOU. This also may sound weird, but I will openly admit it for the first time here. My own characters and their actions have actually made me cry! Not only that, when I come back to record the audiobooks or do other edits, THEY MAKE ME CRY AGAIN! So take note. Stephen Spielberg or Ron Howard movies are not the only stories that can stir up emotions.

What are you reading now?
I am still spending all of my time getting the promotions going.
Next on my list is ‘Chaos of Empire’ by Jon Wilson
On deck is ‘The Jesuits’ by Malachi Martin

Once the initial push of book promotion eases, I will get back to these.

What’s next for you as a writer?
This is a difficult question.
The smart thing to do would be to test myself in terms of coming up with a fully new set of characters and circumstances. All five of my books take place in similar circumstances under the same ‘world’. Some characters are recurring and that is very comfortable. I also, intentionally, made much of this ‘world’ open enough to adding another five if not more stories if I desired. Trevor Van Leeuwan is the great-grandson of Marcus Aurelius Van Leeuwan; leaving a good century of room for stuff happening in between and among the same family or related members. It could be a sci-fi ‘Michener-esque’ saga.

The challenge would be to take a leap and do something different — at least a new ‘world’ and new set of characters. I like the sci-fi realm in terms of the ideas I like to explore. One day, I would like to be up to the challenge of non-fiction. It is possible, in this day and age, to do a decent non-fiction book through only internet research. At least there is one example I know of and that would be Joseph Atwill’s ‘Caesar’s Messiah’. Granted, Atwill knows ancient Greek and, I believe, Latin. He claims he wrote it without combing the planet in research.

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?
One could be stranded for a long time on a desert island, but it might not be such a bad thing.
1) Government: Indicted — Marc Stevens
2) The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy — Douglas Adams
3) Conceived in Liberty — Murray Rothbard

Author Websites and Profiles
Michael Scharen Website

Michael Scharen’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m just your average blue-collar working dude, who also happens to be an avid reader, a keen observer of what’s going on in my surroundings, and as my wife puts it, “a very active imagination.” Heaven’s Door, a Novel is my first book – the first of many in the pipeline. My writing started with short stories, then something happened locally that I had a strong opinion on, so I did some research and interviews, penned a rather long and detailed Letter to the Editor, and submitted it to my local newspaper. That letter got picked up as a news article, got the whole page from top to bottom, and was later called “investigative journalism.” Years later, I got subpoenaed into court by both parties as a witness, but that was quashed because someone decided I had “press privilege” – a great compliment for a guy with no degree, who was just interested in a community hot topic! So I guess that was the start of my real writing career. This book was the next thing, and I have twelve years of research into it, even though it’s fiction. You have to be kind of careful with crime fiction – there are readers who are very well-informed about guns, the law, mechanisms of internal injury, that kind of thing, and there are also victims to think about. You want the narrative to be respectful and to move the reader in the right direction emotionally. My worst fear is to have a reviewer call a section where someone dies “thrilling.” I would rather readers be shocked, horrified, sickened, repulsed. I have a lot of outlines, a lot of ideas, a great deal of draft, and big plans!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Heaven’s Door, a Novel is my first book. It’s a cheap rip-off of a song about a Sheriff’s deputy who is at risk or near death – you’ve all heard it. But it’s also very appropriate to this story: Our Hero starts on one side of the door, and as terrible, horrible events progress, we see him going further and further through Heaven’s door, until just his fingers are left clinging to the near and mortal side. It was good imagery to describe what was going on. Great in a movie, in flash-out closeups, if it was done right.
The book itself was inspired by bones found in my hometown. Someone died and was (probably) left to decay in the open air on this unconsecrated ground. It struck me as horrible and terrible and unfair. I wanted this person to be remembered. I did some research, came up with something that was, if not plausible, then at least possible, and set about making this now fictional person a story that would bring readers to the grief and terror of a last moment.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write in an unusual hybrid of first- and third-person narration called “free indirect discourse.” It’s a very literary technique for an advanced reader, and can be a bit hard to follow at first. The advantage is that the reader is free to experience every character’s viewpoint, and either empathize with it or detest it. The overall narrator makes no judgement – you could write up an axe-murder, and the folks that are afraid of axes would think the author is on their side, while the sociopaths who like swinging the hickory would think the writer is one of them. Some other authors have tried it, here and there. I use it through and through. It lets you, the reader, into characters’ heads and puts you right there on the street and in the action with them.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
(Smiling, here…) I was very moved by some of Ian McEwan’s work; threw down one book and cried for an hour. Also very moved by some of the bitter-sweet themes in some Neville Shute. I tried to make Heaven’s Door a mashup of McEwan, Shute, and Grisham meet the screenplay writers of “A History of Violence” and “Copland.” I’m told the book is actually reminiscent of Sons of Anarchy and Twin Peaks… I’ve never seen an episode of SOA, but I was a big fan of – and horrified by – the Twin Peaks movie. I didn’t consciously think of that movie when I was writing, but I can see it what they mean.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on a followup to this novel, a Prequel, actually. The manuscript is about 1900 pages, so I’m going to have to split it up into several books (Cut something? Never! These are characters LIVES we’re playing with!). I want to explore the OTHER side of crime fiction: the victims, and the lives of those who are waiting for the victims to come home. There are stories there, too. You have this victim in your crime fiction, but who was he? Who did he leave behind, waiting at a window every day, wondering when – IF – he’s going to come back? What kind of hole did that make in society when that person disappeared forever in a violent crime? Murder victims are more than a case number or a statistic, or even a person: they are integral parts of a community, one that sometimes becomes very fragile when one piece is carelessly and cruelly removed. I want to bring readers along on one victim’s journey through life, through the eyes of those who survive and still wait for him. I suppose that for years, somebody or somebodies were waiting for the owner of bones to walk back in the door. Jesus, what a tragic thing. Can I bring that angst to readers? I want to try.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m still waiting for the answer to that one, myself! Sometimes it seems like Heaven’s Door, a Novel is a “cult favorite” that’s still waiting for its cult following! Some people REALLY like it. I haven’t figured out, yet, how to reach the rest of those people. In my Beta Reader group, I found that veterans of actual shooting wars, survivors of violent crime or trauma, people who’d found dead bodies… those were the types of folks who best liked my work. How do you reach that demographic? Word of mouth, I suppose. I’ll let you know when I find what works!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Go Smashwords (for an E-book distributor). They distribute everywhere, very user-friendly, very forgiving of first-time author mistakes. Hands-down the easiest book platform to learn, they have a GREAT “how to” (formatting) manual that walks you right through it, and once you have a document that will work for Smashwords, that same document will breeze through other distributor compilers with very little tweaking. Once I have something that their “meat-grinder” likes, eligible for Premium Distribution, I find that I can take the same base Word Document, upload it to KDP, and have a Kindle Edition and an Amazon P-O-D ready to go right out of the box. That’s my advice for new authors. THAT was one of the things I got right when I started my year-long book-release process. The other advice? See the last sentence. I wish I’d done everything a year before my “release date.”

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Find a couple of mentors. You have no idea what you’re getting into.” Now I know what THAT meant! I’ll pass it along: find someone or someones in your area who are successful writers and who are willing to tell you a little about their experience. If you can’t find someone, look at blogs or author websites – however you have to do it. We beginning writers need that long experience, or we’re all just building the wheel from scratch every time. Read everything you can from Smashwords, and also check out an Indie writer’s E-magazine called InD’tale Magazine. The folks at InD’tale interview successful authors who are or were Indies, and ask a lot of questions that yield the answers you might be looking for….

What are you reading now?
“Lies She Told” by Cate Holahan. It’s a suspense-thriller. I’m to the point where I think I know what’s going to happen, and I don’t like it (the situation), and I’m starting to squirm a bit – it’s making me uncomfortable. Good! That author has REACHED me! Sign of a good book, a good author. So far, I’d buy it again. Next up are Bruce Chatwin’s “In Patagonia” and Marlena DeBlasi’s “A Thousand Days in Tuscany.” Sometimes I like to travel in my reading.

I also have a few standby favorites right here by the chair: a few from Robert B. Parker’s Spenser series, the Andrea Camilleri’s “Inspector Montalbano” Series, a couple of books by Peter Mayle, John Grisham’s “Playing for Pizza.” If I like a book, I read it again and again.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Well, I’ve written LITERARY fiction. For my prequels exploring other lives that intersect with characters from Heaven’s Door, I’d like to write POPULAR fiction – both in the sense of selling well, but also in the sense of being an easy-to-read, fun-to-read, and at times lighter adventure. I want to write something that the average reader would see as “comfort reading” for that cold, dark, snowy night: the literary equivalent of mac-n-cheese! Eventually, I want to bring the series back to Heaven’s Door – quite literally – when everything comes full circle and we’re with the detective as he takes his first lurching, falling step into the afterlife. Whenever we move into events that are out of a characters’ control, fraught with terror and danger, or simply overwhelming, I want to return to the original writing style in Heaven’s Door. I want to use style as a literary device to bring the reader on an emotional back-and-forth that is best experienced from the safety and comfort of a favorite reading chair – in other words, I’m going to try to manipulate emotions, play with minds, put the reader in some very frightening and unsafe situations. I’d like you, the reader, to know the hopes, joys, loves, sorrows, regrets, and terrors of my characters not just by READING them, but by FEELING them, or at least EMPATHIZING with the character. I’ve got some work ahead to make that come out right.

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?
I think I already touched on this… some books, I just want to read them again and again. “Comfort books,” I suppose I’d call them. Number one? “Round the Bend” by Nevil Shute – what an amazing, and amazingly imagined, story. How grateful I would be to have lived the last paragraph. “Home to Italy” by Peter Pezzelli – it’s a nice story. Really stranded, like, forever? King James Red-Letter Edition of the New Testament of the Christian Bible… I would find that very comforting in my long days and hours and years away from the Known World. Funny, really, considering the nature of what I’ve written – it’s as far from God and Heaven as one can go.

Author Websites and Profiles
J. Kilburn Website
J. Kilburn Amazon Profile
J. Kilburn Author Profile on Smashwords

J. Kilburn’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve written 6 books as Paul James, a fictional diary of a Canadian family at the time of 9/11, a collection of my newspaper articles, and a four-book YA Sci-Fi series, The Modest Proposal Institute.
Recently, as P.C. James, I’ve begun writing cozy mysteries and I have three books of a four-book series, The Miss Riddell Cozy Mysteries, written. The fourth book will come out in May 2021.
I’m a retired manager and a budding writer. When I’m not staring at the computer screen in the hope inspiration will strike, you’ll find me running, walking, and taking wildlife photographs around Whitby, Canada. My cozy mystery series begins in northern England because that was my home growing up and that’s also the home of so many great cozy mysteries. Stay with me though because the stories will take us to many different places around the world.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
This latest book is A Murder for Christmas: An Amateur Female Sleuth Historical Cozy Mystery and it features my super-sleuth Miss Riddell, modeled on Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple and particularly all my elderly aunts when I was growing up.
The setting and inspiration for this book was the harsh winter of 1962/63 in England. It was ferocious but not if you were a schoolboy or girl because we couldn’t get to school for days. I remember the time fondly.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not unless procrastination is unusual for writers. I try to write every day sitting at the table in my office. It feels a lot like my last years at work, to be honest.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My favorite authors are what I’d like to aspire to:
Jane Austen
Agatha Christie
Bill Bryson
Douglas Adams

What are you working on now?
Book four of the cozy mystery series, tentatively titled, Miss Riddell and the Heiress.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I haven’t identified one ‘best one’ yet. I use a number of promotion sites, including Awesome Gang

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write every day. Look at the books in the genres you’re writing in and learn from the successful authors. What they do will likely work for you too.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Write to your genre.

What are you reading now?
Recently, I’ve gone back to reading non-fiction books. At present, I’m halfway through Manthropology by Peter McAllister.

What’s next for you as a writer?
After I’ve finished the first four books in my cozy mystery series, I’ll take stock and decide whether I should do more or do a second series of my YA Sci-fi series, The Modest Propsal Institute.

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?
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
The Complete Miss Marple Collection by Agatha Christie
The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid by Bill Bryson

Author Websites and Profiles
P.C. James Amazon Profile

P.C. James’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I didn’t start writing my first book until after I was diagnosed with a malignant glioblastoma (brain tumor). I was given 60-90 days to live, with “zero chance of survival.” That was over ten years ago.

Now, I make it a point to live a life that brings inspiration & joy to others. I love interviewing successful leaders & sharing their insights with my audience!

At this point, I’ve published four books, but I’m blessed to be doing this full-time now! It’s incredible to live life on my own terms & work around my own schedule, doing podcast interviews & videos that stream to my channel on Amazon Fire TV! If you have a new smart TV, search “M. Curtis McCoy”, or “Success, Motivation & Inspiration” on Amazon Fire TV & let me know what you think of my show!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“How To Be Successful: Think Like A Leader” is the title of my most recent book.

I’ve always enjoyed motivational talks, pumped-up workout music, & inspirational books. Each day, I commit to doing something to improve. In 2015 I launched “Success, Motivation & Inspiration” as a blog to motivate & inspire others to achieve more in their lives.

Around the same time, I began connecting with aspiring entrepreneurs & seasoned experts. I was looking for others who wanted to increase their business & expand their market presence. I used the blog to jot down thoughts when I discovered something that inspired me.

As my social media groups gained thousands of members globally, I started receiving calls & messages from people whose lives had improved because of the principles I shared. Others reached out for guidance or advice on how to become successful.

I started spending time with successful people who were achieving improvement in their own lives. Many of these new friends had created lifestyles that allowed them to do things that others could only imagine.

The more time I spent around successful friends, the more ideas & opportunities started falling into my lap. Even though I wasn’t concentrating on writing or social media, interest from readers continued to grow.

Why Did I Start Writing This Book?
One night I received a call from someone who was contemplating suicide. Desperate for hope, this individual told me they didn’t know why, but they joined the Success, Motivation & Inspiration Facebook group while trying to decide if they should end their life or not. Thankfully, I got a chance to talk with them before they made a terrible decision. We talked about how they felt as if they had no chance of being anything but a failure. That’s when I began to realize this project deserved additional attention. When I launched the website a couple of years earlier, it was just a hobby. I just wanted to help prospective entrepreneurs in my free time.

After this call, I decided to include real-life stories & interviews with people who chose to improve their lives. I’ve interviewed professional athletes, preachers, wealthy investors, inventors, expert negotiators, & even ex-convicts turned entrepreneurs.

In “How To Be Successful: Think Like A Leader”, I mix these interviews with life lessons that apply to business, relationships, & all aspects of being truly successful. I hope this book will help you achieve your ambitions, motivate you never to give up, & inspire you to pursue greatness.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write books & create content as a way to influence the world positively. Because money is not my primary reason for writing, I write each chapter of my books as a blog post that is free for the world to read. I was advised against putting every chapter out for free.

It’s actually been a great (accidental) marketing strategy because many book sales come from people reading a blog post & deciding to buy my books.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I typically read ~6 books per month as part of my daily routine.

I love the Book of Proverbs in the Bible. I often re-read “How To Win Friends & Influence People” by Dale Carnegie.

“Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill is another favorite!

“The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen R. Covey is a favorite of mine.

My memory is absolutely terrible after surviving brain cancer, so reading & re-reading books often help me keep sharp.

What are you working on now?
Right now, I’m doing a lot of research on growing my M. Curtis McCoy personal brand via social networks, guest blogging, podcast interviews, radio interviews, etc.

I’ve read a dozen books on personal branding, & I’m taking some online classes as well. I currently only have ~600,000 followers across all platforms, but I think my next book will be on personal branding: what works & what doesn’t.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Awesome Gang is… AWESOME!

I’ve also been getting a lot of sales from https://instagram.com/MCurtisMcCoy/ & from my author page on https://facebook.com.com/MCurtisMcCoy/

I’ve been invited to speak at Caesar’s Palace & other venues that helped create brand recognition for me as an author.

I wasn’t a celebrity. In fact, I don’t think anyone knew who I was when I started writing my first book. I think creating a personal brand is necessary for every author who plans on doing this full-time.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
You can do this! Just start writing & get your thoughts on paper (or your blog). There’s always time to edit & edit again, but you won’t get them back if you don’t put the words on paper (or blog, etc.)

A quick suggestion for new authors: Buy your name as a domain name! If someone searches for your name, and there’s no website, or worse: if it takes them to a site you don’t own, that’s not good!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I’m interviewing successful leaders every week on my Amazon TV show & on the “Success, Motivation & Inspiration” podcast, so I receive an incredible amount of great advice.

The advice I’m about to share was actually given to me when I was young. My mom says, “no one has time to worry about what you’re doing because they’re too worried about how they look to other people.”

We often feel shy to talk in front of a crowd or be the first couple on the dance floor, but everyone else is self-conscious too. Stop worrying & enjoy yourself!

What are you reading now?
Author Laura Bull surprised me with a copy of her newest book, “From Individual to Empire: A Guide to Building an Authentic and Powerful Brand”. I’m reading it for a second time this week, and I’m really enjoying the lessons she shares!

My friend, H.J. Chammas, is an award-winning best-selling author and self-made “Employee Millionaire” who has achieved financial freedom by investing in rental properties throughout Asia, Dubai, and Europe. I’m listening to “The 4 Stages of Building Wealth: How to Achieve Financial Freedom Before Leaving Your Day Job” again on Audible & always learn something new from his books as well!

What’s next for you as a writer?
Right now, I’m working to build the M. Curtis McCoy brand & my goal is to get the blue (verified) checkmark on the social platforms I’m active on. That seems to provide credibility when potential readers search for an author.

I’m also planning to spend some time traveling the world & writing in foreign countries soon.

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?
1.) The Bible. That may be cheating because there are so many great books crammed into one.
2.) A book on wilderness survival.
3.) A book about how to build boats.

Since this is a theoretical question, I’d also bring my phone (with a ton of audiobooks downloaded) & a solar charger.

I may not ever use the book on wilderness survival or boat building until I memorized each book I had downloaded.

Author Websites and Profiles
M. Curtis McCoy Website
M. Curtis McCoy Amazon Profile
M. Curtis McCoy Author Profile on Smashwords

M. Curtis McCoy’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

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Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have lived in California all my life, preferring the quieter, scenic places. I love animals and nature and have spent much of my life pondering life’s big questions. My interest in birds led me to write several birding guides and my first published book, A Natural History of the Nipomo Mesa Region. As a musician and poet, I’ve performed in festivals and theater, though I always come back to writing stories. My first novel was published by Black Rose Writing and they are going to publish my second novel, too, in May 2021. Fathers of Edenville and Mothers of Pine Way are Books One & Two in my Pine Valley Series. I have already written Books Three & Four. Look for them in the years ahead! I live on the Central Coast of California, appreciating the nearness to the beach, since I now live in the suburbs. I also have a serious love for reading while enjoying a good cup of chai made with almond milk!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Fathers of Edenville was my first published novel. My latest novel is Mothers of Pine Way. They are the first two books in my Pine Valley Series which is set in the fictitious small town of Edenville and follows the lives of its residents, both straight-laced and naughty, some definitely quirky!

I was inspired to write Fathers of Edenville when I had a premonition about my father’s death. I sat down to write a what-if story, what if he died, how would I react. I was surprised it was a fiction work, my first novel. Likewise, facing my mother’s aging and fearing for that loss, I wrote Mothers of Pine Way. There is a fifteen-year span of time between the two books, which bothered me. One day, though, I pulled out a chapter I wrote years ago and took off with it, happily surprised it was the sequel to my first book! Books Three and Four came easily after that.

I had so much fun writing, drawing from observations, memories of my own hometown childhood years, quirky people I’ve known, dreams, wishes, and the like. All have gone into the story. I learned a valuable lesson as a writer, that if I can’t go there, neither can my characters. Jim Hart was the most challenging character I depicted in my books. He is an emotionally disturbed alcoholic, which forced me to explore the darker areas of myself, something that actually brought me some very deep healing. I am very thankful for Jim Hart.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I have purchased numerous journals and fancy little booklets to write in, but I always end up using the blank side of already printed paper that I save for recycling. I stick it in a clipboard and write away. I also have periods of insomnia and get up in the night to write. Some of my most profound and creative stuff has come out of the wee hours of the night. I keep a little black book of wisdom to do my automatic writing, in which I simply write without thinking about it.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
John Steinbeck and the Grapes of Wrath, Harper Lee and To Kill A Mockingbird, Jane Austen, William Faulkner, Sometimes A Great Notion, Jack London, Mark Twain, Tolstoy, California and British authors, and many more, too numerous to name.

What are you working on now?
I am going through my edits on Book Three in my Pine Valley Series, Children of the Way. Book One introduces the town and its main characters. Book Two covers the years leading up to the incidents that take place in the first book. Book Three returns to the childhood years of these characters, showing their parents’ lives and delving more into the source of their difficulties.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am learning that timing is everything! I rely heavily on my publisher’s marketing guru and on sites like Awesome Gang for that extra support I need that I can pursue on my own. I also like to promote on Linkedin. I have been building connections with some really great people that way. I also joined AuthorsDen, which I actually like better than Goodreads.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Avoid talking about what you’re going to write before you’ve written it. You can take all the creative energy out of your inspiration by talking about it. It can deflate your ideas when you share with someone who is hypercritical or jealous of your creativity. When you’re working on something new and need help or guidance, seek it from those you trust (not relatives!). Trust your gut and your instincts! Be thankful for your creative gift and never take it for granted. Write, write, write. Without criticism, without editing, simply get it all down on paper! Once you tap into that creative stream, go with the flow.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I listened to Ray Bradbury speak at the Santa Barbara Writer’s Conference in California many years ago. He said, if you want to write a book, write a page every day. By one year, you will have written a 365-page book. I’ve followed his advice religiously and it has never let me down.

What are you reading now?
I always juggle a few books. I’m reading Tali Nohkati by Koza Belleli, On Viney’s Mountain by Joan Donaldson. I just got Talking As Fast As I Can by Lauren Graham, which I can’t wait to start reading! I’m watching The Gilmore Girls series right now, so I”m looking forward to reading her book.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I hope my publisher will agree to publish Books Three and Four of my Pine Valley Series, Children of the Way and The Valley of Dreams. My fantasy is that the series will be made into a television series. Of course, I would love to be interviewed by Oprah Winfrey.

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?
Besides books on how to survive on a deserted island, I would bring Ramona by Helen Hunt Jackson, Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee, and Pilgrim of Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard, because I can never seem to get around to reading them.

Author Websites and Profiles
Corrine Ardoin Website
Corrine Ardoin Amazon Profile

Corrine Ardoin’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

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Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am originally from Northern Ireland but have been living in Scotland for ten years.
I am in my mid forties but have been writing since my teens. It is always something I have done. I started writing (bad) poetry but over the last decade my focus is on the short story.

I have written more stories than I can count. I am currently going though a process of publishing 20 stories for the Kindle this year.

I have previously had stories published in regional and thematic anthologies.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My most recently published Kindle book is called Jill.

Jill is just a random name but that matters. The story is about a deceased sister and how she impacts on the life and identity of the sister left behind.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I wish I had.

My first draft id always a mess. I fire words down. I don’t care about spelling or grammar at this stage. The symbols on the page are just little reminders of my mental landscape.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Bukowski. It’s more to do with his attitude to life and of getting through the bad times. His novel Post Office is a good place to start.

What are you working on now?
Getting my unpublished work published.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am still starting out as a publisher – so I am trying different things and learning as I do so.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t listen to much to people who think they know the rules of writing.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
There isn’t one right way of doing things.

What are you reading now?
A Nick Cave novel.

What’s next for you as a writer?
After my series of 20 short stories are published I will be editing a novella I wrote last year.

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?
1984 by Orwell.
The Stranger by Camus
Being and Time by Heidegger
Women by Bukowski

Author Websites and Profiles
Glenn Robinson Website
Glenn Robinson Amazon Profile

Glenn Robinson’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a retired industrial research chemist whose great fortune is to have experienced some unique aspects of life. . However the passage of time has given them their slant. humorous.
This is the first book I have written. Since it’s a nonfiction narrative I had to live the events before I could write about them.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my book is It Began in Brooklyn. Website – itbeganinbrooklyn.com.
The inspiration to actually write a book came about from my Friday breakfast meetings with friends. We would often tell a funny story about the past but I seemed to have more stories than most. That’s when they suggested that I should write a book, and so I did.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t believe I have any unusual writing habits. I just sit down after breakfast, start remembering, laugh about some incident in the past, and start writing.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The only thing I can say about other authors is that good stories always have a ring of truth and believability that is what I hope I have done with my book.

What are you working on now?
I am presently working on a sequel to my book. After reading my first book I was flooded with memories of other events in my life. My first book really woke up my past.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
You can always go visit my website itbeganinbrooklyn.com.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
The only advice I could give to new authors is that whatever you write. Make sure it entertains you first, then you have a good shot at entertaining others.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I’ve ever heard is never to lie. If you don’t want to tell the truth and don’t want to lie just keep your mouth shut.

What are you reading now?
The only thing I’m reading now is some technical papers. Most of my time is focused on my sequel.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I think when I finish the book sequel I will write a sequel to my screenplay. I think I like writing screenplays. better than a book. You can become anyone you want. Good guy, Bad guy, Priest, Rabbi, Good girl, Hooker. Now that’s a lot of fun.

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?
Some of my favorite authors are Tom Clancy – Patriot Games, Jack London, White Fang – Mel Brooks -Young Frankenstein, Roald Dahl- Charlie and the chocolate factory, and King James Bible – in particular the old testament.

Author Websites and Profiles
Vito Altavilla Website
Vito Altavilla Amazon Profile
Vito Altavilla Author Profile on Smashwords

Vito Altavilla’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I spent as much of my childhood as I could lost in a good book. I spent most of my adult life lost in a good job as a nurse, midwife, CEO, coach, and facilitator (amongst other things). After years of encouraging my children and clients to follow their dreams, I finally got around to remembering what I wanted to be when she grew up – so I began writing fiction.
“Ochre Dragon: The Opal Dreaming Chronicles Book 1” was my first fantasy (in a book). I hope you get lost in it. I’m currently completing “Soul Staff: The Opal Dreaming Chronicles Book 2”, which is due for release in early 2021.
My novelette, “Peace on Earth”, was published in “Christmas Australis: A Frighteningly Festive Anthology of Spine Jingling Tales”, along with stories by seven other Australian authors.
I also write as Veronica Strachan and teamed up with my daughter Cassi for a new children’s picture book series, “The Adventures of Chickabella”. Book 1 is “Chickabella and the Rainbow Magic”, and book 2: “Chickabella Counts to Ten”. Book 3: “Chickabella Shapes Up” is coming mid 2021.
Also as Veronica Strachan, you will find my memoir, “Breathing While Drowning: One Woman’s Quest for Wholeness”, as well as a guided journal “The Wholeness Quest Workbook & Journal”.
I live in a mudbrick home in north-central Victoria, Australia with my ever-patient husband and a menagerie of animals.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Ochre Dragon: The Opal Dreaming Chronicles Book 1 was inspired by all the magical, dragon-filled fantasy books I read as a child, but influenced by all the brilliant women I’ve met in my career as a coach and facilitator. So many women just needed a little reminder to believe in their gifts, believe in their strengths, and follow their dreams.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Perhaps not unusual, but I do get up at 5:15am each morning to write in the quiet, before the real world gets going. I check in with a fabulous group of writers on Twitter – the #6amAusWriters for support and ideas and then write for a couple of hours.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Ursula Le Guin, JRR Tolkien, Robert Jordan, Traci Harding, Julian May, Sara Douglass, Jane Austen, Jasper Fforde, Gloria Steinem, Marianne Williamson, Steven Erikson, Kate Elliot, A.A Milne, Stephen Donaldson

What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on the second book in my epic fantasy series ‘Soul Staff: The Opal Dreaming Chronicles Book 2’, as well as a co-authored supernatural-action-adventure-romance ‘Beneath a Burning Heart’. And just finishing up the illustrations for my third children’s picture book ‘Chickabella Shapes Up’

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Amazon ads work quite well and as an Australian author, Australian Book Lovers is a good website to be a part of.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Take your time and persist. Balance your creative writing with learning more about the industry. It’s never too late to start – or to start again.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
For life? Never live with regret!
But for writing… write the book you want to read – then edit, edit, edit.

What are you reading now?
Darkening: Queen of Spades Book 2 by E. J. Dawson
Relics, Wrecks & Ruins – a scifi, fantasy and horror anthology edited by Aiki Flinthart.
Inkspell by Cornelia Funke
Save the Cat! Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody
(I always have a few books on the go – some ebooks, some paperbacks)

What’s next for you as a writer?
More writing…
Publish Book 2 of The Opal Dreaming Chronicles, draft Book 3. Publish my co-authored supernatural-action-adventure-romance and get my third children’s picture book out in the world.
More involvement…
I’m working on building up the Australian author community, especially for under represented groups, which includes a podcast (AustralianBookLovers.com) to help promote and support other Australian and First Nation authors.
More book business…
And working on getting better at marketing my books, and all the other business elements of the book world!

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?
Only 3 or 4? Too cruel.
I love fantasy series so I’m going to smudge the rules and say: The Ancient Future Trilogy by Traci Harding, The Axis Trilogy by Sara Douglass, The Lord of The Rings by J.R.R Tolkien, The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan, and The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant by Stephen Donaldson.
Okay, I know that’s five and way more books than I’m allowed, but we can always dream, right!

Author Websites and Profiles
V. E. Patton Website
V. E. Patton Amazon Profile

V. E. Patton’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a complete geek, and I’m the author of two geeky YA novels. The Order of the Key is a YA Urban Fantasy, and Never Say Never is a YA Contemporary. I’m also a freelance editor, and I serve as an Editor-in-Residence at WriteHive an online writing collective. I live in Bronx, NY with my husband, son, and a cacophony of cats.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Never Say Never is what came of being the child of a rough divorce, wanting to tell the story of a closely knit collection of true friends like the ones I have, and a love of Greek Mythology. That’s right, Aphrodite herself is a driving force in that book.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really unusual, but I have created a habit of literally writing in every spare second I can. It comes from raising a child and trying to maintain a writing career.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld series had a strong influence as did Patrick Ness’s everything. Leigh Bardugo as well. And comic books. All the comic books.

What are you working on now?
The sequel to my flagship series, The Order of the Key.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Twitter is my favorite place to talk writing and to get people interested in my books.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t give up. This business is all about persistence and learning by writing and rewriting. Keep at it and you will grow as a writer.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Zoom in. Don’t tell the story from a distance. Always get as close as possible and give us the details. It’s the details that make us feel connected to the characters and the setting.

What are you reading now?
I’m taking a little break from reading anything difficult, and the book is by my friend, so I’m reading a middle grade novel called Meow or Never by Jazz Taylor. It’s truly adorable and very well-written.

What’s next for you as a writer?
The Order of the Key universe is a trilogy so there’s going to be a little more of that. But I also have a YA Dystopian, a YA Superhero Action story, a YA Fantasy/Noir, another YA Contemporary, and an adult Supernatural rattling around in the back of my head. Who knows, really? 🙂

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?
Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
No Humans Involved by Kelley Armstrong
I wish I could bring more. This question is totally unfair.

Author Websites and Profiles
Justine Manzano Website
Justine Manzano Amazon Profile

Justine Manzano’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Sophy Smythe is my pen name. I am a Dutch medical doctor, living in Antwerp. Just like my protagonist.
During my medical career, I have written numerous non-fiction articles and co-written two non-fiction books. The book (in Dutch) are about how to stay healthy.
After closing my medical practice, I decided to pursue my dream and write fact-based fiction about the world I know best: the pharma and medical world. THE MEDICAL CODE is the first book in this genre and the first in the Charlie Martens, MD-series.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
THE MEDICAL CODE is inspired by the facts that two pharmaceutical organisations pleaded guilty for the illegal promotion of their medicines with disastrous consequences. Not long after that The Implant Files were published by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, which brought to light the fraud and corruption in the implant industry.

What if…… and then my fantasy started spinning.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Every morning I start with my daily yoga. That keeps me sane. Then I take long hikes with my dog Pepper, and take her on my standing up peddling board. That’s where I get my inspiration.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The da Vinci Code by Dan Brown was an eye-opener for me. It was the first fact-based mystery-thriller I read and got me dreaming that I wanted to write a book where facts and fiction blur.

What are you working on now?
Now I’m working on the sequel of the Charlie Martens, MD series. Again based on real facts.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
That wasn’t easy. Because I use a pen name, I had to start from scratch. Now I have an author’s platform of my website, newsletter, Instagram, Pinterest and Goodreads.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just write.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Take control over your own destiny and go Indie.

What are you reading now?
Congo by Gregor Vincent. The true hideous history about king Leopold 2 of Belgium and Congo. Beware, there are no good guys in this book.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m spinning the sequel of THE MEDICAL CODE, in which my protagonist Charlie Martens, MD, takes the lead in a suspenseful mystery.

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?
– Legacy of War, the upcoming book of Wilbur Smith. One of my favourite authors.
– Identity Reboot by Arwen Smit, about the problems about privacy and dis-information. (Think Cambridge Analytica)
– Obama – a promised land

Author Websites and Profiles
Sophy Smythe Website
Sophy Smythe Amazon Profile

Sophy Smythe’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Pinterest Account

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Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Charlie King from London, England. I have always liked to write in some manner since an early age and felt there was always a book in me, whether it was any good or not is another story.
I have been writing for five years now starting with my self-published works, The Lyons Orphanage and The Lyons Legacy, before having my latest book, Lizzie’s Dream Journal, taken on by a publisher.
I currently work as a legal assistant as a Law firm so I find it makes a good balance between the creativity of writing and the more matter-of-fact work I do as my day job. When I’m not writing (or reading), I’m usually watching television and playing video games to unwind; I’m very much an indoors-y person, pandemic or not.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Lizzie’s Dream Journal, a story about a girl who writes stories in a journal which then become people’s dreams. My story ideas, whether they go anywhere or not, are usually inspired by things that are unexplained in the world and I like to write a story that might explain them. Like dreams for instance, nobody really understands why they happen and why everything is so random and so the explanation that someone is creating these dreams through writing makes an interesting story to tell.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m not sure if it is unusual exactly but I can only seem to write lots or nothing at all. Unless I’m forced to by being interrupted, I usually find that even if I plan to write a couple of pages then I will keep going. If I struggle to even begin writing the first page, I usually won’t get anywhere at all.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Not so much in writing style or content, particularly as Lizzie’s Dream Journal is a children’s book, but George R R Martin and the Game of Thrones series have influenced me. This is because there is nothing black and white about the characters; one minute you hate them, the next you empathise with them entirely. While this doesn’t work for a children’s book, I still take the ideas of the heroes being flawed and selfish at times while the villain, who may genuinely be bad, shows some sign of compassion and understanding.

What are you working on now?
At the moment, I have tentatively started a sequel to Lizzie’s Dream Journal. I do not have words down on a page in terms of writing the book but I do have the basic story set up and the structure of the book and chapters. I also have a couple of ideas in my head for other stories but these ideas haven’t been developed into something tangible yet.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
In terms of children’s books, contacting local schools is the best way to promote the book as you can ensure it is reaching your target audience and the teachers are more than happy to host.
Otherwise, I feel like Twitter is the best way to promote, perhaps not directly, as your posts are generally more open to being seen by strangers but it also allows you to build up a base of bloggers and writers to converse with, share advice and maybe take a peek at my book.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t put any pressure on yourself to write. Having a plan to write a certain amount each day can be helpful but if you don’t for a day, a week, a month, don’t worry about it. If you don’t have a deadline to reach, simply write when you feel it is right. If you’re forcing yourself to write when you’re not enjoying it or the ideas aren’t flowing, you probably won’t be too happy with the end product.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I have heard is to just keep on writing. If you’re an author waiting for a publisher to take your story or you’ve been published through any route but have few sales, try and take your focus off of it. There’s no point stopping everything you’re doing waiting for one thing to take off, just keep on doing it and maybe one book will hit big and it will draw people to your previous work.

What are you reading now?
I am currently in the middle of a classics phase with the good and the bad. On the good side, I finished novels like Dracula and Little Women and on the bad side you have books like Wuthering Heights.
At the moment, I am reading Treasure Island but haven’t read enough of it to form an opinion.

What’s next for you as a writer?
My first step was to write a book. The second was to publish a book. The third was to have a book taken on by a publisher. Now I have reached those goals, I won’t stop there and be content with it. Now I want to write multiple books at a time, I want to build relationships in the writing community and grow a small fanbase of people just waiting on my next work.

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?
Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban- I would take all the books if I could but this one was clearly the best. Escapism from the real world might be needed on a desert island.

Little Women- The fact I liked this book so much shocked even me but there’s something about it that just stays with me. Opposite of above, this would make you miss the more mundane things about the real world.
Frankenstein- I had a lot of required reading at school and this is the first one that comes to mind in terms of ones I enjoyed reading and has a powerful message.
1984- The actual story of this isn’t really up to much but the background of the world is an interesting concept and reading this over and over again would give a lot of food for thought.

Author Websites and Profiles
Charlie King Website
Charlie King Amazon Profile

Charlie King’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Retired USAF Mustang–Captain. 22 years distinguished career, 14 enlisted, 8 as officer, with special joint service tours of duty at Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Pentagon; Commander-in-Chief, Pacific (CINCPAC) Hawaii; USAF Honor Guard, Wash DC under Reagan Administration; White House Fellowship nominee; Superintendent of Publishing, HQ 15AF; Commander, Civil Engineering SQ & Commander, Operations Support SQ, supporting two F-16 fighter squadrons in Korea. Received Bronze Star device for Desert Shield/Storm; Lauded as USAF Outstanding Administrator of the Year…

Born in Ashland, Oregon. Retired from USAF on New Years Eve 1993 (age 40) returning to Grants Pass, Oregon to raise my then three young sons as a single dad in the hometown atmosphere I enjoyed growing up among some 250 remaining relatives.

Created a comic strip in 2005 based on a retelling of my youth. Published for five years in the Daily Courier then picked up in the Sneak Preview (readership 200k) est. Ended the Stevie Tenderheart strip to write more as those panels were so confining.

Published my first Stevie Tenderheart children’s book, My Favorite Place to Be…(A Bedtime Story). It comes with a companion coloring book. Then, Stevie Tenderheart Wait a Minute! (A Bedtime Story) also with a companion coloring book.

To date 600+ Goodreads ratings/reviews. Worst: “Too many words.” Best: “Best children’s author to come along since Dr. Seuss.” [As if, but still. Pretty cool.]

After a few more Stevie Tenderheart illustrated picture books (Ages 4-8):
Tick Tock (Midnight Confusion); Seven Rules (On Becoming a Fantastic Kid) along with Seven Rules (On Raising a Fantastic Kid); I made the transition to Stevie Tenderheart novellas: Billy Jack (The Great Escape) & A Silent Kiss Goodnight (Stevie and the Tooth Fairy) along with a family fun night returns board game book about a board game I created as a single dad. It’s called, Backfire by Kodel

I wrote Billy Jack (The Great Escape) for 10-year-old men & the kid still inside you. #GigglesAssured

It will get boys reading again for pure entertainment. It was written in a storyteller’s voice rather than quoted he said, she said conversations making it much easier to read & follow along with in the lessons being shared without their knowing. There are 1-2 page stories within stories presented with losds of humor & hijinks. The lessons are based on true stories & not preachy. They’ll learn better that way.

Lessons about responsibilities, personal & financial; competition & sportsmanship; first crushes; anti-bullying; independence; and consequences.

Billy Jack is a really fun read/ride. #CowboyPromise

It makes for a wonderful bedtime story bonding experience reading 5-10 pages each night until children can read it on their own.

Seventeen books to date. Many Stevie books are available in print, Kindle & audobooks.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Stevie Tenderheart A Silent Kiss Goodnight (Stevie and the Tooth fairy) a novella meant to excite children sparking their imaginations and put to rest any fears they might have about losing their first tooth. It’s based on a true story mixed in with fairytale musings. Kids will never really be sure when their legs are being pulled. It’s a splendid bedtime story. It is in print, Kindle & audiobooks.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I become the child! My discipline comes from writing my comic strip. I audition every word. I write with a lot of tongue-in-cheek humor. It has to be funny the first time and the umpteenth time. At 2am and again at 10am or 4pm. I basically sit & my laptop in the quiet of the evening not looking up again for 15 hours with only a thought. Then, somehow, as it’s still not clear to me, I channel my inner-child. My audience is ever-present in my mind.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Hemingway for the vibrant detail. Twain for the adventure & exploration of imagination.

What are you working on now?
Stevie Tenderheart A Second Kiss Goodnight (A Bedtime Story) likely my final illustrated children’s book.

My goal as an American children’s author is twofold.

1. Stevie books help parents put their children to bed on time, every time. Just be mindful when you say, “It’s Stevie time.” As they will likely hear, “It’s TV time.”

2. Stevie books help children feel safe, loved, silly & cozy at bedtime.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have 4M+ engagements (likes, loves, shares, comments) using Facebook’s boosted posts over the past five years.

I also use Cost per Click (CPC) “click” advertising (bids) on Amazon (Sponsored Branding & Lock Screen) ads Kindle & Fire tablet) devices which also populate Amazon’s eight global platforms (US, UK, CANADA, SPAIN, GERMANY, ITALY, FRANCE, & AUSTRALIA) in adfition to Google ad words.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write for the joy of it. The pure love of creating & expression. Let your stories become your legacy…

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Listen.

What are you reading now?
Where the Crawdads Sing…Diary of a Wimpy Kid series…

What’s next for you as a writer?
To expand my transition from illustrated picture books writing more true life misadventures (novellas of about 120 pages) for children (Ages 10+).

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?
A rhyming dictionary. Stevie Tenderhert Billy Jack (The Great Escape) because I am so proud of it & enjoy reading it often as my childhood lives on those pages; any of number of books on Walt Disney (as I met him once when I was five or six). He knelt down & patted my head whispering magic in my ear. I felt anointed all the while Alice in Wonderland (the real one) kissed me on the cheek. The Eloquent Universe (String Theory).

Author Websites and Profiles
Steve William Laible Website
Steve William Laible Amazon Profile

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Author Interview Series

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