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Kristina Hall Amazon Profile

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Kristina Hall

Interview With Author Kristina Hall

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a sinner saved by grace who seeks to glorify God with my words. I’m a homeschool graduate and hold a degree in accounting. When I’m not writing, I’m spending time with my husband, editing, reading, cooking, cleaning, arm wrestling, or lifting weights. I’ve currently published seventeen books and hope to publish many more in the future.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest release is a Christian historical romance novella entitled Heart of Trust. It’s the first book in the multi-author series Hearts of the West. The main plot is inspired by (and borrowed from) a story I wrote back in my early writer days and never published. It’s good to see some of it finally make it out into the world.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t believe so. I think I’m a pretty typical writer.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’ve been influenced by a lot of authors. Gilbert Morris, Lynn Morris, Madisyn Carlin, Susan May Warren, and Vanessa Hall are a few of them.

What are you working on now?
I’m currently drafting a Christian romantic suspense novel about a woman whose memory was erased. I’m also supposed to be editing a Christian western romance, but I haven’t pushed aside the procrastination enough to open that file 🙂

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
To be honest, I’m still learning how best to promote my books. I’ve currently been focusing on my blog, Instagram, and Goodreads.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I think my advice is pretty typical … Read a lot of books in the genre you’re writing in and have fun with writing.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I’ve heard a lot of good writing advice. It’s too hard to narrow it down to one thing.

What are you reading now?
Right now, I’m reading Lethal Mark by Madisyn Carlin. It’s a novella featured in The Black Rose Collection, an NA non-magical fantasy collection that my novella Black is the Rose is also included in.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m hoping to release both the romantic suspense novel I’m currently writing and the western romance I’m avoiding editing this year, but that might be overly ambitious.

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
2. The Black Rose Collection (I’m currently reading it, and it’s got seven novellas in one book.)
3. Unknown by Vanessa Hall
4. Iron by Madisyn Carlin

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Kristina Hall Website

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Michael Gross Amazon Profile

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Michael Gross

Interview With Author Michael Gross

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m an author and communications consultant based in Brooklyn, NY who recently published my debut novel at the ripe young age of 72.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My novel is called Spillage. Fifty years in the making, it’s a wild play on the Faustian musical Damn Yankees, a rock and roll romance and a wickedly fun throwback to the crazy days of 1976 New York. I was inspired to write an early version of the novel by the kaleidoscopic chaos I was living through at the time, both in my personal life and the world around me. Recently, after stepping back from my role as a senior communications executive, I returned to the book, hoping to preserve its original vitality while tempering its excesses with the perspective of age.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I wake up incredibly early to write, between 4:30 and 5:00 am. It’s an old habit, begun when I had a full-time day job. Now, it’s just my natural rhythm.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
When I began Spillage back in the 70s, I was influenced by some marvelously inventive popular writers of the time including Tom Robbins, Thomas Pynchon, Kurt Vonnegut, Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Hunter S. Thompson. I also had as a mentor the postmodern master short story writer Donald Barthelme, to whom I am greatly indebted.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on a journal I began during the early days of Covid, when I retrieved my old manuscript from the office I was vacating and began reworking it. The journal looks back at my early years in New York as well as the world I am experiencing now as a retiree.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I encourage people to visit my website, www.spillagebook.com, which has a collection of the great editorial reviews Spillage has received so far, as well as more information about me and interviews I’ve given. I am also active on Facebook @michaeljongross, Instagram @michaeljongross and X @spillageauthor.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I encourage people to visit my website, www.spillagebook.com, which has a collection of the great editorial reviews Spillage has received so far, as well as more information about me and interviews I’ve given. I am also active on Facebook @michaeljongross, Instagram @michaeljongross and X @spillageauthor.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
In my first rewrite of Spillage, I toggled back and forth between a stripped-down version of the old manuscript and my memoir of my time as a young writer. The novel was in essence a book within the book. It was interesting, but the great advice I got from an editor was to take the perspective of the memoir and infuse it into the novel, fleshing out the characters and their world with more of my lived experience and letting the novel stand on its own. I’m very glad I took that advice.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading a lot of crime and spy fiction, including the great Slow Horses series by Mick Herron as well as classics by Graham Greene and John Le Carre.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m going to keep at my journal through the 2024 Presidential election, give it a rest, and then decide whether I want to refine it as a memoir or fictionalize it, possibly as a sequel to Spillage.

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?
Alice in Wonderland, Huckleberry Finn, The Great Gatsby and Catch 22. Each, in its own way, created a wondrous world with larger-than-life characters whom I would love to spend more time with.

Author Websites and Profiles

Michael Gross Website

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LAURI CRUVER CHERIAN Website

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LAURI CRUVER CHERIAN

Interview With Author LAURI CRUVER CHERIAN

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hello, I am a former ESL and bilingual teacher turned author and poet. I was born in Washington state and have resided in Texas for the last three decades. I have written two books of poetry and recently published a children’s chapter book.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called Four Anxious Armadillos, a children’s chapter book about four species of armadillos on an adventure through the pampas, the rainforest and Iguazu Falls of Argentina. I was inspired to write this book after sitting in my hot tub one evening, watching a nine-banded armadillo dig and root about in my yard. Prompted to educate myself on armadillo behavior, my internet search on the local nine-banded armadillos found in Texas led me to discover other armadillos, such as the pink fairy armadillo of Argentina, the screaming hairy armadillo of Boliva, and the three-banded armadillo of Brazil. I thought, “Wow, this is too good to be true; these characters deserve a story!”

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I obey the muse. Whenever the ideas manifest themselves, whether it is three o’clock in the morning or riding in the car, when the creativity hits, I write. I often write with my chihuahua at my side. She has her own little blanket on a chair in the sunshine and she waits patiently for me to finish so we can go for a walk.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I enjoy Ken Follett novels, Bill Bryson, Kristin Hannah, and Abraham Verghese, to name a few. As a child, I loved Jane Austin, Louisa May Alcott, and Laura Ingalls Wilder. I was influenced by my friend, Jennifer, who would pass her library books to me on the school bus in elementary school. I credit her with developing my early love for literature.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on a historical fiction novel about my grandmother and great grandparents who ran a boarding house for immigrant men in Tacoma, Washington in 1910. I found my grandmother’s poetry and a newspaper article she wrote to the Tacoma Tribune. She made mention of her happy life at the boarding house, listening to the stories of the men and the events that brought them to a boom town in 1910.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have a lot to learn about book promotion. I post on Facebook, the local paper, I make iMovies on my cell phone and post those. I know I can and should do more, but writing is a whole lot more fun!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t be afraid to write! Just get your ideas down. You can take all the time you like to edit and fine tune it. Don’t be so critical that you never actually write your creative ideas down. Write while you have the ideas, don’t lose momentum. Form or join a writing group.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Show, don’t tell.

What are you reading now?
I have been pouring over books about Tacoma in 1910. I’m currently reading the “Images of America” books such as Old Tacoma and Mosquito Fleet of South Puget Sound.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Promote Four Anxious Armadillos. Get it into libraries and into the hands of kids. Tour and speak about armadillos and anxiety. Write a series of books to go along with Four Anxious Armadillos. Publish my next book about Tacoma in 1910.

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, Pride and Prejudice, A Treasury of Poems, and something by Bill Bryson or Kristin Hannah.

Author Websites and Profiles

LAURI CRUVER CHERIAN Amazon Profile

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Rebekah Webb Amazon Profile

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Rebekah Webb

Interview With Author Rebekah Webb

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a dedicated wife and mother. I love spending time with my family. Throughout my life I have served God in small and great capacities. I have done ministry in several states, as well as serving in Mexico for 2 months. I have only written one book so far. I am currently writing my next book. Writing has been a passion of mine since I was about thirteen years old. I have many journals chock full of ideas and inspirations.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called, “First Love Lost, True Love Gained.” It is my personal testimony of how God led me to meet my husband. I was inspired to write this book, because I believe that God can help others find their spouses too. God walked me through so many steps in order to meet my husband. There is nothing that God cannot handle. If we trust God in every aspect of our lives, He can do Big things. I have been married to my husband for almost 16 years. He is my best friend. I cannot imagine my life without him.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m not really sure. My husband helped me edit my book, as well as my blogs. He says that I put way too many quotes.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My favorite book is the Bible I read it everyday. It has been my greatest influence throughout my life. I also have enjoyed other books like, “Red Moon Rising: How 24-7 Prayer Is Awakening a Generation” by Pete Greig and Dave Roberts, and “The Purpose Driven Life” by Rick Warren.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on a book about my dad. He has almost died several times. His story is definitely worth writing about.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am still working on promoting my book. This is all very new to me. My Facebook page has the most followers, followed by Instagram.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I am a new author myself. I think that my advice would be to never give up. Keep your eyes on the goal ahead. Try to reach your targeted audience, and be patient with the process. It takes a lot of time and dedication to promote your book. I am still working on doing all of these things right now.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“A person is only as good as their word.” My dad taught me this while growing up. It has helped me to keep my word. When I promise someone that I will be there , then I am there.

What are you reading now?
I actually just finished reading, “Can God Supernaturally Bring me a Husband or a Wife?”
A new friend and fellow author in the same genre, Darnella Tyler wrote this amazing book!
I am also in the process of reading, “Healing Ever After,” by Kristie Guard.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I am currently writing blogs and working on my next book. I would also love the opportunity to speak at women’s conferences one day.

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 would take the Bible, The Purpose Driven Life, and Red Moon Rising: How 24-7 Prayer Is Awakening a Generation.

Author Websites and Profiles

Rebekah Webb Website

Rebekah Webb’s Social Media Links

Clint Adams Amazon Profile

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Clint Adams

Interview With Author Clint Adams

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m rather complex, but I strive every day to live as simply as possible. Throw in honesty and truth at all costs and you pretty much know what I’m all about. I became a writer out of necessity not out of desire…so the truth could be told. Done. I’m addicted to justice and my life’s not complete if I don’t watch DATELINE and Judge Judy every day. A lot of my writing revolves around seeking justice and accepting when it cannot be achieved.

I have written in several genres (middle-grade, young adult, adult thrillers, historical fiction and spiritual self-help). My current published book is my seventh.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
LIVE & LEARN: A Retiree’s Guide to Keep Going. It was released in several formats only a few days ago. Spiritual self-help for seniors. Yes, it’s as niche as niche can be. But, for sure, there’s an audience for it and I hope this book helps them.

I’m 66 years old, an age when folks look back. It took me until 65 years of age to see tremendous value in a rather challenging life lived. I may not have accomplished what I had intended, but I most certainly did learn a lot along the way. At 65, I knew for certain that this was my life purpose, choosing to learn the difficult lessons that were presented to me at birth. I’d love for others my age to see this same value in their own lives lived.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yes, I’ll admit I do something rather odd every morning. At the computer I type out at least 1,000 words of freewriting, like journal writing before moving onto anything else. The odd thing: I delete it all as soon as I am finished. I purposefully erase the past, my past, immediately after I create it.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
THE COLOR PURPLE. A novel about profound suffering. A novel that has a realistic ending, not a Hollywood ending. Alice Walker influenced me in adulthood.

As a kid in elementary school. THE MEMBER OF THE WEDDING by Carson McCullers. I was raised in California and southern life in the U.S. was completely unknown to me. I was introduced to another world and then became fascinated by it.

What are you working on now?
Many more months of marketing this current book, LIVE & LEARN. As I’d mentioned, it came out very recently, and I will probably not be able to get any sleep until maybe next year. No way can I think about the luxury of writing something new right now. Not at all an option.

A few years ago, I pursued and earned a master’s degree in marketing just to market my own books. Writers should expect that this is the bulk of the work they’ll be doing as writers.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
There cannot be any one website that’s better than any other. There just has the be MANY of them. Get your work, your interviews, your books out there everywhere.

I also love people, but I’m not that good at socializing. Thank goodness book marketing can now predominantly be done online. Online mktg. of any kind works for me. I can interact virtually and don’t need to break out into a sweat while doing it.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
More of an adage than advice: the truth will set you free. The biggest understatement of all time!

I’ll reflect on my current genre, self-help, but abstractly, it applies to several. “See yourself in these pages, in this story, in these circumstances.” With regard to my current book (spiritual self-help for seniors) LIVE & LEARN, I learned early on re: constructing my first self-help book, “Make your personal universal.” If it’s not, it doesn’t belong in the book. Meaning, if the reader will not be able to relate to any/all of my personal anecdotes they should be edited out entirely or revised. The whole purpose of self-help writing is to engage the reader, to make it as easy as possible for them to resonate with the concepts and solutions that are presented.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Re: voice. Long ago, when I was learning about the craft of writing, I was told, “EVERY story’s been told by now. The only thing that’s new anymore is the WAY it’s told (the voice). I completely agree. I used to be an actor before I was a writer, so speaking in a different voice is not new to me. My favorite: I wrote five novels writing in a child’s voice. I wish I could do this in real life.

What are you reading now?
Sadly, I only have time to read up on new ways to market books. There are always new and different methods that come about, and as they come along, these methods are usually nothing more old ones made easier.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I would absolutely love to have a reason to write something related to LIVE & LEARN, supplementary material that will help the reader. In L & L, there are actionable items at the end of every chapter, but they are entirely optional. If exercises interrupt the reading experience, the reader should not be reading them. I would like to write a book that’s entirely actionable.

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?
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD (to remind me of the human condition), THE GAME OF LIFE AND HOW TO PLAY IT (because it’s spirituality made very simple, the way it should be), THE COLOR PURPLE (to remind me that there’s value in suffering).

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Clint Adams Website

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C.C. Legault

Interview With Author C.C. Legault

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I work full time and have three young children and live in a small town in Canada called Sturgeon Falls. Northern Ontario is a corner of the world that means a lot to me which is why I decided to use it as the setting for my novel. Writing is something that I am deeply passionate about. It makes me feel connected to myself and the world in a unique way. For me, writing is the fun part. I’m still learning about how to reach readers and connect with them. Although it’s a bit scary, I’m really looking forward to this next step in my journey.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My debut novel is called Who Is Bobbie-Mae? The idea first came to me when I was in my twenties. I had just been through a break-up and was feeling kind of lost. I started thinking about my past relationships, the different places I have lived and the people I had met and started wondering, what if I forget the things that have happened to me, would it change who I am? Later on, when my grandfather was diagnosed with Alzeihmers, I started questioning even more the relationship between our soul and our memories and the relationship between the two.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I almost always write at night when the house is quiet and I have time to reflect. What helps me the most is listening to a lot music before and during my writing sessions. I like music that is emotionally moving. Some songs I listen to on repeat if I feel they are particularly inspiring for a specific scene or the emotions my characters are feeling. The other thing that has really helped is thinking about my characters and what going to happen next in my story, even if I don’t have time to write that day. I also like to write random ideas on my phone or in a notebook as they come to me. My notebook is a big mess of ideas!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My favourite authors are Margaret Atwood, John Irving and Paulo Coelho but I’m always on the lookout for new authors. For me, reading and writing, like music, is all about emotional connection – to yourself and to others.

What are you working on now?
At the moment, I’m mostly focussing on learning how to promote my novel and engage with readers and other authors in a way that feels authentic to me. I plan a starting to write again soon. I always have multiple ideas on the go. I just have to chose which one to focus on next.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
That’s a tough question for me to answer because I’m still learning and trying things out to see what will work the best.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
My advice would simply be to write. Carve a bit of time every day to do it and make it fun. Don’t over think it. Enjoy it.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
A year ago, I read somewhere that if you want to write a novel, you have to treat it like a part time job. You have to work on it regularly. That advice really helped me complete my novel.

What are you reading now?
I am reading a book of short stories by Margaret Atwood. I’m trying to decide if my next book will be a novel or a collection or short stories.

What’s next for you as a writer?
The book that has influenced me the most would be The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I have read it many times and have even gotten my children to read it. It’s the book I read when I feel disconnected or that I’m falling off course.

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 would bring The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, The World According To Garp by John Irving, The Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom and The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood.

Author Websites and Profiles

C.C. Legault Website

C.C. Legault Amazon Profile

C.C. Legault’s Social Media Links

Richard Harland Amazon Profile

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Richard Harland

Interview With Author Richard Harland

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a full-time author writing fantasy, SF and horror, for an Adult or YA or Children’s readership. I’ve had 17 books published, by Pan Macmillan, Penguin, Scholastic and Allen & Unwin, also indie publishers Karl Evans, Chimera and IFWG Publishing. All my books were first published in Australia, but Worldshaker and its sequels were republished internationally, including by Simon & Schuster in the US. (Worldshaker won the Prix Tam Tam du Livre Jeunesse in France!) I’ve written a few more novels that haven’t been published, and I had 25 years of writer’s block where I produced a whole cupboard-ful of MSS I couldn’t even manage to finish.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Book 1 of the Ferren Trilogy – Ferren and the Angel. It came out from IFWG last November, and Book 2, Ferren and the Doomsday Mission, comes out in July this year.

The Ferren Trilogy began with a dream. I dreamed I was under a blanket, then peeked out. There were uncanny, moving lights in the night sky, and ominous, inexplicable sounds. Suddenly I knew – the way you can know things in dreams, as though someone just told me – that this was the great war going on between the armies of Heaven and the armies of Earth.
I was still watching when one of the lights came hurtling down out of the sky straight towards me.
That was the moment I woke up, but I was still in the drowsy, not fully conscious state when you come out of a dream too fast. And I decided to myself, ‘That must have been an angel shot down and crashing to the Earth … and she must have landed very close by … perhaps she’s dead or perhaps she’s injured …’
I thought some more about it as I came to full consciousness. One thing I thought was, ‘Wow, I’ve been given the start of a novel!’ And I had! It took me a decade to fill out the background behind that first scene, then many, many drafts and versions. But through every draft and version, one thing always stayed the same: the opening scene. With Ferren the protagonist taking my place, the first ten pages of Ferren and the Angel have never varied. They were just handed to me on a plate!

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
One thing I do is what I call ‘pre-filming.’ After writing through the morning, I do jobs around the house, then some time in the afternoon I relax into a sort of vague, unfocused sort of state and start picturing the episode I’m going to write tomorrow. Like a movie! I think of it as if I’m there, how it’ll look and sound and unfold. But I don’t write it down, it’s just a better version among a hundred other possible versions.
Instead of trying to fix it and clarify it, I let sleep do the job for me. That’s the real trick! I go to bed with all that pre-filming floating around in my head, and the unconscious mind goes to work on it. The not-so-good possibilities are shorn away, and what’s left when I wake up in the morning is the episode as it has to be, the single definite movie! It’s not my imagination any more, it’s as if it really happened. All I have to do is record it.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
A whole mess of influences from all over the place! When I first wrote stories as a kid, I loved Edgar Allan Poe, so all my earliest stories were full of sable drapes and guttering candles! Then there was Tolkien, who took over my mind as a teenager. Later on, Mervyn Peake and his very strange Gormenghast world … I’ve loved many very different kinds of books, including thrillers, crime, literary classics, and I suppose they’ve all left a mark. I could name fantasies nowadays that relate to the fantasies I write, and also fantasy authors I hugely admire, but I don’t know if they influenced me. If I was looking for influences behind the background world of the Ferren Trilogy, I’d have to name some very odd sources, like William Blake, Dante and Milton!

What are you working on now?
Book 3 of the Ferren Trilogy, Ferren and the Invaders of Heaven

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I love doing readings from my books. I think I must’ve always had a would-be actor inside me! And live talks about my books and writing – it’s old-fashioned, it’s time-consuming, but it works. For web promo, I think the video trailer for Ferren and the Angel was a real coup –
https://youtu.be/JGwpmn8nuIc?si=vBseXS_OSKfc6UV5. I can praise it to the skies because someone else created it, the very talented Liana Burrage.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I guess I can speak from the experience of my 25 years of writer’s block.Never give up! Whether, like me, it’s finishing your first novel, or whether it’s having that first novel accepted, or whether it’s having that accepted novel gain readers and approval, you need to be very patient and very stubborn and very,very persistent.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Find the thing yo do best, and do it. I spent many, many years trying to write literary fiction (the first half of those 25 wasted years). I’ve got nothing against literary fiction, but it wasn’t me – my talent is for imagining worlds and telling exciting stories that suck the reader in.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading all the Harry Potter books properly. First time around, I read some books as books and watched movies for the rest – I lost track of some characters and parts of the narrative.

What’s next for you as a writer?
When I finish the Ferren Trilogy, I’ll go back to the big adult fantasy series I was in the middle of developing before.

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’d go for books I already know I can keep re-reading: Lord of the Rings, Perdido Street Station, the Old Kingdom trilogy by Garth Nix, and – literary hangover! – Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky.

Author Websites and Profiles

Richard Harland Website

Richard Harland’s Social Media Links

Roberta Gold Amazon Profile

Author Interview Series

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Roberta Gold

Interview With Author Roberta Gold

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Roberta is a Recreation Therapist and Certified Humor Professional, an inspirational keynote speaker, author, and Attitude Adjustment Coach. While working in mental health facilities, Roberta saw the power and connection of humor and laughter and developed Laughter for the Health of it with a mission to empower everyone to have a more positive outlook.
Roberta’s weekly group, The Sanity Savers, helps those struggling to find the bright side of life – with tools to flip the switch when falling into the negativity pit.
Realizing that to change the world we need resilient, happy children, Roberta created programs for students, teachers, and parents to withstand bullies, difficult people, and situations we have no control over. She empowers parents to leave their stress outside the home and be more present with their kids. Her weekly Zoom group, Parent Power Happy Hour, is free for all.
Roberta’s books: The Family That Laughs Together…A Quick Guide to Sanity When You Feel Like Screaming, Laughter Rocks! Tips and Tools to Help You Keep Your Cool and Have a More Positive Mindset, and her latest, Laughter Rocks! 2.0 More Tips and Tools for More Positive Mindset.
Sign up for her free weekly newsletter, Laughter Rocks! www.laf4u.com

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Laughter Rocks! 2.0

This book is the second in the Laughter Rocks! series and continues a compilation of my weekly newsletters.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write upside down. HAHAAHA No, I write as often as time permits. Having a weekly newsletter helps inspire me.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I was raised on Agatha Christie but I have many authors I enjoy – from

What are you working on now?
I am actually working on a fiction book in which my character uses the tools I teach in my non-fiction books as she navigates her complicated life.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My website – www.laf4u.com
Having a virtual book launch party which I am having on April 17th
wwww.BASSforAuthors.com
Organic promotion in Facebook groups
Friends and family

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write something every day – even if just a letter to a friend.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Pay to have your book professionally edited, a cover designed, and help with marketing.

What are you reading now?
Fiction: Tom Lake
Non-Fiction: Atomic Habits

What’s next for you as a writer?
As I wrote above, a fiction book

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?
Several How-To books, a memoir, and a very long fiction book.

Author Websites and Profiles

Roberta Gold Website

Roberta Gold’s Social Media Links

Marilyn Flower Amazon Profile

Author Interview Series

If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.

Marilyn Flower

Interview With Author Marilyn Flower

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
This baby-boomer writer-poet also answers to ‘Sacred Fool,’ and claims to live at the corner of Humor Lane and Satire Street. Being retired allows me all kinds of time to write–in theory, anyway. Real life, well…you know how things go…

When I’m not writing or blogging, you might be able to catch me doing improv or reciting poems silly and sensuous at an open mic. I’ve written four non-fiction books, three published, one on the way. My first is about overcoming bucket list fears. Two are guides for writers, one about character creation, and the other about blogging as your characters. The bun in the oven is about using a process called SoulCollage® to enhance our writing.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I’m a sucker for challenges. In 2020 Ninja Writers hosted a challenge. We were to publish a daily blog post on a topic near and dear to our hearts. Then compile and edit those posts into a book. BYOB they call it—Blog Your Own Book.

The notion to do a series of posts as the characters of my novel in progress smacked me on the head, grabbed my hat, and threw it into the ring. That was numero uno. Once I got started, I couldn’t stop.

The most recent fallout from this addiction is Developing Characters: Fun Ways to Cast Your Fiction, available on Amazon. In particular, envisioning your characters using SoulCollage®, hearing their voices through blogging as them, and discovering their strengths and fatal flaws via the Enneagram. Because, Hokey Pokey fans, that’s what it’s all about! I use all three of these with my two novels in progress. Why? It works and it’s fun.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I love writing dialogue. Sometimes I speak my character’s voices out loud as I write. If I get into a flow or it’s a sensitive conversation, I get the dialogue down as fast as I can so I don’t miss anything that comes through me. Later I go back and add the tags, beats, actions, and setting. But when the tap’s flowing I don’t stop for the side bits.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Pat Conroy could have been my brother. When I read the opening lines of The Great Santani, I went, “I know that man. He’s my Dad!” Mercifully, my dad was only about a three where as Pop Conroy was off the chart in narcissistic pain and violence.

But we’re such kindred spirits, I read and reread the entire Conroy cannon regularly—even his cookbook. By the way, our Scorpio birthdays are only a day apart. He broke my heart by dying before I ever got a chance to meet him.

Of course, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. It’s because of Atticus. And how much I longed to have a dad like him I could be proud of and learn from, as well as a timeless story about racial hatred. Oh, and Boo. My heart went out to Boo. Still does. In many ways he’s the soul of the story, not just a ghostlike man who only comes out at night.

And I’m head-over-heels in love with doctor-writer, Abraham Verghese. I’ve read almost all of his work. Favorites include My Own Country, about the early days of the AIDS epidemic, Cutting for Stone, and his latest best-seller, The Covenant of Water. Those two novels are based on his family and his life in Ethiopia and India, with lots of fascinating medical history woven into the stories.

What are you working on now?
Man Pregnant! Is the story of an unfaithful pro-life pastor who winds up pregnant. You heard right. And the mother of his baby is not his wife. It’s his choir director. His best friend’s wife by the way, and they’re both black. I contrived the story just so he’d have to walk in the shoes of young pregnant teens. He desperately wants what he fights to keep them from having.

Long, Hard, & Twisted has no socially redeeming features whatsoever. My soft-boiled detective’s partner in crime-solving’s been turned into a mouse. By a shape-shifting femme fatale who hides from the world as a unicorn. She has the hots for him and turns his boo into a bunny she threatens to feed to a snake if he doesn’t return her love.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have both a website and an Facebook author page. So far, the Facebook page’s getting more action.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep learning and keep writing. Don’t get so lost in learning craft that you stop writing. You master craft through the act of writing. And, of course, read, read, read! Don’t just read books. Devour them. Read them twice. Once as a reader, the second time, as a writer. Try to dissect how they do what they did that captivated you.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
As you write, read your work out loud. You’ll catch things your eyes gloss over. Listen for voice. You author voice and the voices of each of your characters. Hint: those are all distinct. Keep practicing. Keep listening. Read other authors out loud as well.

What are you reading now?
I’m currently rereading All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood. This would be To Kill a Mockingbird if young Scout fell in love with a tender giant of a Native American in his early twenties and Atticus ran a meth lab. WTF? But it’s that compelling because it’s that well-written. So compelling and well-written, I’m reading it again.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I envision a cozy mystery series set in Berkeley, California where clues to whodoneit are revealed in the process of doing SoulCollage®.

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?
God’s Hotel by Dr. Victoria Sweet
The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy
Hamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter
Playing with Fire by Julie Taymor

Author Websites and Profiles

Marilyn Flower Website

Marilyn Flower’s Social Media Links

Cinthia James Amazon Profile

Author Interview Series

If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.

Cinthia James

Interview With Author Cinthia James

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m Cinthia James, an illustrator and surface pattern designer based in Berlin, Germany. I have authored one book designed to establish a creative process that supports both beginner and seasoned artists. It offers strategies to find inspiration and tackle art block effectively.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I needed to revisit my artistic foundations after earning a graphic design degree and navigating a career that didn’t align with my creative goals. This led to the creation of “Treasure Found: An Art Journey.” The book is a personal account of overcoming the challenges I faced, embracing uncertainties, and celebrating my unique style. It’s packed with insights on pursuing art with discipline and joy, aimed at inspiring others to kickstart their creative journeys and build rewarding artistic practices.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really; my writing habits are somewhat structured, much like the art process outlined in “Treasure Found.” I typically start by taking notes and brainstorming, then I create an outline, and gradually tackle each chapter and subject—though not necessarily in that order. I haven’t written a novel, but if I were to, I imagine I’d follow a similar approach.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My book focuses on art, so I’ve been influenced by artists who have written about their creative fields or techniques, as well as art books in general. I assessed what I had collected, what I enjoyed, and what I felt was missing from an art book. The design of my book is clean and straightforward, featuring a conceptual treasure hunt theme. Among my influences, I really enjoyed “In Progress” by Jessica Hische and the pattern books by Bowie Style.

What are you working on now?
You can regularly see my new illustration projects on my website and Instagram, where I’m thrilled to continue sharing my artistic journey. Building on the momentum of “Treasure Found,” I’m now exploring art licensing to bring my creations to a wider audience. Additionally, I’ve begun outlining a second book that promises to delve even deeper into the creative process. There’s much to look forward to for those who support and follow my work.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have primarily focused my promotional efforts on blogs within the art and K-pop communities. I am now beginning to expand my reach to websites like Awesome Gang.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Go for it! Write the book and don’t be afraid to self-publish. You can gain a lot both professionally and personally. I was initially fearful and experienced major imposter syndrome, but now, with my book “Treasure Found: An Art Journey,” I am an award-winning author and illustrator.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Starting is the hardest part; the rest gets easier.

What are you reading now?
I am currently reading Iris Murdoch’s “Under the Net”. From an art perspective, I’m also reviewing the fashion books in my collection.

What’s next for you as a writer?
As a writer, my second book will focus on a particular aspect of the creative process, aiming to thoroughly explore and expand on that theme. It will offer new insights and practical advice, enabling artists to delve deeper into their creative practices.

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?
Choosing books for a desert island is a tough call for me since I usually read a book and then move on to the next. For a novel, I’d need a crime drama. The other three would be art books: Piet Paris’ “Fashion Illustrations”, Antonio Lopez’s “Fashion, Art, Sex & Disco”, and either my own book, “Treasure Found: An Art Journey”, or a spontaneous pick from my shelf.

Author Websites and Profiles

Cinthia James Website

Cinthia James’s Social Media Links

Author Interview Series

If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.

Rich Linville

Interview With Author Rich Linville

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
For 45 years, I enjoyed teaching all subjects in elementary, middle school, high school, and college. Since retiring in 2016, I have published on Amazon over 300 children’s ebooks and paperbacks, over 150 audiobooks, as well as hardcover books. I have custom-written books for adults and children.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is “Tongue Twister” because as a storyteller and writer of illustrated, chldren’s books, I love to have fun and play with words.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I work back and forth on 1 to 5 books at a time. Sometimes, I will first write the ending and then go back to the beginning.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The Little Golden Books, Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein have greatly influenced my approach to writing.

What are you working on now?
A book about a boy who is confused when someone asks him if he likes his pea soup, and he yells, “Who peed in my soup?”

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
For promoting my books, I use Awesome Gang and Amazon.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
You write for the fun of writing. Also, as a small business, a writer has many tax write-offs. See your tax preparer.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Write daily and save numbered versions from time to time. Take a break. Later, read what you’ve written, rewrite as needed, and edit. Read out loud and have others read before you publish.

What are you reading now?
I’m enjoying “101 Science Fiction Short Stories” by different writers.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I plan to write more children’s books.

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 Penguin History of the World, The History of the Universe, A History of the World’s Religions

Author Websites and Profiles

Rich Linville Amazon Profile

Author Interview Series

If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.

Laura NElson

Interview With Author Laura NElson

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a former librarian who loves to read and write anything related to history, romance, or fantasy. Usually a blend of all three. I’ve written numerous books and published fourteen of those since 2021. When I’m not writing, I’m spending time with my kids and sometimes playing video games where I can escape into fantastical new worlds.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Modern Day Muses. It’s the second book in my Tempus Viatores series and it is inspired heavily by some of my favorite books and television shows growing up, including Doctor Who, the Librarians, Warehouse 13, A Wrinkle in Time, the Percy Jackson series, and even Outlander. It was also inspired by the lack of men in the past going forward into the future in most time travel novels I’d read. I always wondered why the women would stay in the past (where life would have been less awesome for them) as opposed to the men traveling forward. So I decided to play around with that idea and explore what it would be like for a man from the past to travel to the future.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I try to write wherever I can. With three young children, a lot of time that means I’m in the car writing either on my laptop or my phone. I also have begun writing while listening to ASMR writing videos on YouTube, which has been fun (when I’m not getting interrupted!)

What authors, or books have influenced you?
More authors than I can count honestly. But a few off the top of my head would be Diana Gabaldon, Tamora Pierce, Madeleine L’Engle, and Rick Riordan. I love the blend of fantasy, mythology, and magical realism.

What are you working on now?
Some many different projects! Mainly I’m working on more books in my Tempus Viatores series. Modern Day Muses is the second book in the series and I have three more in the works that I plan to release this year. The next book takes place in Fes, Morocco during the 9th century and taps into one of my favorite subjects, women in academia.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I mainly promote through social media (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads) where I am @llnelsonauthor. But you can find more information on all of my books at my website, www.llnelsonauthor.com

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep writing, hone your craft and believe in yourself. Definitely choose one social media platform and connect with people on there, even if you’re not published yet.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Keep writing, hone your craft, and believe in yourself—those are the only things truly within your control.

What are you reading now?
The Chronicles of St. Mary’s series, a bunch of books on Fatima Al-Fihri, and a whole bunch of non-fiction books about direct sales and mindset.

What’s next for you as a writer?
More writing! Seriously. There is a chance that I’ll have to slow down my publishing schedule depending on what 2024 brings my way, but I’ll still be writing a lot. Those stories will be on my Ream site—The Bōchōrd Community Library (www.reamstories.com/llnelsonauthor) before they are anywhere else. That is (and will be) the place to find early access to my stories (first drafts), bonus content, and exclusive stories from the worlds of my stories.

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?
ooh, that’s a hard one. First and foremost, SAS Survival guide (or something similar) because if I’m going to be stranded on a desert island, I want to know how to survive for more than a few days. Second, a guide to foraging and identifying different plants, so I can figure out what plants are safe to eat. Third, a homesteading book, so I can make myself a solid base camp. Fourth, an omnibus of Brandon Sanderson’s most popular works. That should be plenty of reading material until someone finds the island 🙂

Author Websites and Profiles

Laura NElson Website

Laura NElson Amazon Profile

Laura NElson’s Social Media Links

Author Interview Series

If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.

Pam Withers

Interview With Author Pam Withers

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve written 23 young-adult novels and 3 nonfiction books (including many bestsellers and award winners). They’re all about outdoor adventure or extreme sports and are particularly popular with teen boys.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Cave-In
I was originally inspired both by a Kartchner Caverns tour in Arizona and time spent wriggling through Upana caves near Tahsis, B.C., the town on which the book is based.
The town’s website states that “Tahsis is without a doubt Canada’s ecotourism caving mecca! Cavers from all over the world come to explore the more than fifty kilometres of passages found so far in the mountains around town.”
I was intrigued to learn that a church was swallowed by a sinkhole in that region many years ago (but not with anyone inside). In my novel, the church is packed…
I was also sobered by PBS’s Nova documentary, “Sinkholes: Buried Alive.”

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I talk to my cat while writing.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Farley Mowat, Gary Paulsen, Willard Price, Robin Hanbury Tenison and Will Hobbs.

What are you working on now?
I write dozens of book reviews per year on the not-fot-profit site YAdudebooks.ca. Also preparing for a tour of school presentations when Cave-In comes off the press later this year.

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

Home

I also belong to dozens of YA teacher-librarian websites.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Read, read, read. Write, write, write. And remember that you have your own unique voice and life experiences, and that’s more important than being a perfect writer.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
When you’ve completed your first paragraph and are happy with it, you’re half done with your novel.

What are you reading now?
Bad Bot by Pierrette Dube

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m working for two websites doing author interviews and book reviews and I find that very fulfilling.

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?
Anything by Farley Mowat and Michael F. Stewart.

Author Websites and Profiles

Pam Withers Website

Pam Withers Amazon Profile

Pam Withers’s Social Media Links

Jaime Reid Amazon Profile

Author Interview Series

If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.

Jaime Reid

Interview With Author Jaime Reid

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am completing my 3rd in the Midnight Magic Series 🙂 The 1st – Lily’s Mountain Adventure is up, the 2nd: – Lily’s Italian Adventure too, and Lily’s English Adventure is being illustrated right now, and I have started Lily’s American Adventure as well! Lily is very inquisitive and Reggie (her possum mate and tour guide!) loves to take her exploring so they have many, many plans for more!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Lily’s American Adventure – Lily has so mich to see in the USA!

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I tend to giggle a lot whilst I’m writing! Sometimes coming up with nonsense, and silly names brings me such pleasure! I love that Lily is not limited to some of the practicalities of life – it’s no trouble to tunnel through the Earth and pop up on the other side, and it’s completely acceptable to do time travel back to meet interesting people from history etc!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I absolutely loved reading Hair McClary (Lynley Dodd) and Katie’s book series (James Mayhew) to my children.

What are you working on now?
Ideation for all the places and things Lily and her friends can do!

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Still working that out, to be honest!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just do it! Make it happen. It is so rewarding! Bringing Lily to life fills my heart! Seeing people read her adventures to their children with smiles on their faces is simply the best feeling.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Persevere – use the feelings of joy and the satisfaction of creating to drive you over the hurdles.

What are you reading now?
Philippa Gregory – The Lady of The River. I LOVE her books!

What’s next for you as a writer?
More more more….

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?
Probably Philipa Gregory series

Author Websites and Profiles

Jaime Reid’s Social Media Links

David Marston Amazon Profile

Author Interview Series

If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.

Neil Jackson

Interview With Author Neil Jackson

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve actually authored 5 books now, who would have thought! I’m 64 years old living in Australia and have been in corporate business all my life. I always had a book or two in me and the topics I’ve chosen are dear to my heart – AntiBullying, helping older people thrive, and art for children.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is How to draw like the greatest women artists, and is the 3rd title in a series. Its aimed at encouraging young art enthusiasts by helping them create old master paintings step by step whilst having fun.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really although loud music almost always accompanies my work, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, Elton John that sort of thing.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Soooo many books but they tend to be in Science and Nature, biographies which I read a lot of and murders, grisly ones

What are you working on now?
Book 4 in the How to draw like the greatest artist series, and a second book on mental creativity for seniors

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
AwesomeGang of course

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep going and stay the course, its a schlep

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
keep going its a schlep

What are you reading now?
Forces of Nature By Brian Cox, my brain explodes daily on this one.

What’s next for you as a writer?
developing the Art series for children and Seniors self help books

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 Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead, The wonderful story of Henry Sugar by Roald Dahl, and The little book of Ikigai by Ken Mogi

Author Interview Series

If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.

David Marston

Interview With Author David Marston

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
2 novels

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Habits Of The Ever Living. It was inspired by the idea of entropy and how it is not considered part of everyday life. There seems to be a collusion amongst people in what is called The West, to pretend we don’t really die and that we can go on using up the earth’s resources and have GDP growth for ever.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t know, haven’t compared.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Brothers Karamazov, Crime and Punishment, The Fall, The Outsider, Thus Spake Zarathustra, The Unbearable Lightness of Being

What are you working on now?
I’m working on a novel based on the life and thought of Martin Heidegger.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have no idea, I don’t try to write marketable books, but I would love to be read.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Do it! My first novel is much worst than my second. The sense of achievement of completing a novel, even if it isn’t read is wonderful.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Become yourself.

What are you reading now?
Death at Intervals by Josu Saramago

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m reading and percolating for my next story

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?
Wisden, Being and Time, Bible (King James)

Author Websites and Profiles

David Marston’s Social Media Links

Melissa Fowke Amazon Profile

Author Interview Series

If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.

Melissa Fowke

Interview With Author Melissa Fowke

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a new children’s book author with a passion to create children’s books like I remember growing up. I live in Southern California with my husband and 3 pets. I come from a Scottish and Italian family and my parents inspired me to read and write growing up. I have always wanted to write a children’s book and when my parents passed away, I wanted to keep their memories alive as children, as they gave so much to my siblings and I. I also feel the world needs more positive life lessons in books for children these days. I have only written the one book so far but am currently writing my second book in the series.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Lovable Lucy The Kitten in the Garden is the title.

My mother and father as children in Scotland inspired me and also my love for kittens and wanting to emulate the love our family had for one another.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I tend to ramble a bit and have to reign myself in because I forget I am writing and not speaking in front of someone! I am also a stickler for grammar.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Gosh, so many as far as children’s books when I was young. C.S. Lewis has always been a big one for his imagination. Shel Silverstein, Dr. Seuss, E.B White to name a few…

What are you working on now?
My second book in the Lovable Lucy The Kitten in the Garden series

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Amazon, Instagram, Facebook, recently started Twitter, and I am working on a website after my second book is released.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I am so new myself, I do not feel much qualified; however, finding a great illustrator that know the particular style you like is everything. Also, do your due diligence when it comes to publishing. I had great luck picking my illustrator on the site Reedsy. Highly recommend. I suppose also just do not give up, even if sales seem dire. You did it! You wrote a book! That is the prize in itself.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Know that we all have an innate love inside us for each other. Some have just traveled a different path and have lost their way which has caused fear and anxiety for them. We just need to leave little crumbs for them to find their way back. 🙂

What are you reading now?
The David Wolf Mystery Thriller series books 🙂

What’s next for you as a writer?
Following my heart and going with my gut on my writing path. Creating more children’s books for the wee ones around me, as Lucy would say, and hopefully continuing bringing parents and children close together with reading.

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?
Oh geez….the bible, and any book on how to get off a deserted island. 🙂

Author Websites and Profiles

Melissa Fowke’s Social Media Links

Caelen Walker Amazon Profile

Author Interview Series

If you are looking for a new book to read check out our Featured Books Page.

Caelen Walker

Interview With Author Caelen Walker

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a US Army veteran, and father of 2, who lives in the San Antonio, TX area. I started writing fiction as a method of coping with the things I’d seen and been exposed to while serving and only allowed a select few friends to read the stories. It let me explore certain situations and emotions and even change the outcome in some cases. After a few years of doing this a close friend challenged me to write a book, and I decided to answer the call. I wrote Frost Rising, my first book, and ended it in such a way that if I never wrote again I could be happy with it as a stand-alone novel, but I was fortunate to get a lot of pressure from friends and supporters asking for a second book, so I put out Frost Settles. I decided I wanted to tell more of the story than just one small area and one or two groups of people, so my next move was to stay in the same “universe” but change locations, which resulted in Rebel’s Redemption. The three books have come together quite nicely in my opinion, and I’m now working on 2 more in this “universe.”

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Rebel’s Redemption was born from a desire to tell more of the story than what fits into the main Crown Acres series. The main character, Alex, was so intriguing to me, but he never really fit in with Clint and the people that surrounded him. Every time I tried to put him in he caused problems with the continuity or common sense of the story, so I kept pulling him out. I knew I wanted to write more about what was going on outside of the area that Clint and his family lived in, so it seemed like a natural fit to introduce Alex in his own story. I’m proud of my work around Clint and his family, the the way that Rebel’s Redemption came to life has been amazing.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Well, I sleep with a digital recorder by my bed!? LOL! In all seriousness, it sounds cliche, but I don’t outline much. A couple of high-level things I want to have happen in the book and maybe a cool scenario or two I hope the characters end up in, but all-in-all, I just let it unfold. The characters themselves have conversations and I just record them. The situations unfold in the way that I see them happening, even if I don’t agree with the decisions being made. It just kind of happens and I feel more like an observer than a creator.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Oh man, A. American, Walt Browning, and William Johnstone instantly come to mind. On the classics side, I’m a huge fan of C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and Hemingway.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on Book 3 of the main series, Hard Frost. Things are starting to really unwind in Clint’s world and people are becoming more feral and less civilized as we near the “6 months since the event” mark. I’m also working on two other projects within this universe, The Traveler’s Journal, which will be an entirely first-person, journal-style entry that follows one man who is stuck on the road 1,400 miles from his home. I’m interested in how the first-person, past-tense account will unfold for him. I’m also starting my process around another spin-off book that will discuss how upstate NY is dealing with life after the event and the challenges they face.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
The best method would be my website https://www.caelenwalkerbooks.com/

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Take your time! It’s exciting to write your first book but take your time. I was in such a hurry to share my first novel with people that I sent it off to print before giving it a thorough reading and editing. I had a typo where I had put the wrong name for a beloved character and it still haunts me to this day (even though it’s been fixed). I’ve been tempted to create a character with the typoed name and kill him off just to try and find some peace! LOL!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Wow. Ever? “To thine own self be true.”

What are you reading now?
I’m reliving Frost Settles to prep myself for Hard Frost, as well as C.S. Lewis’ Screwtape Letters.

What’s next for you as a writer?
More books, more appearances. I’m working on a couple of book signings and hoping to put out another book (Hard Frost) in October of ’24.

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 mean… “How to Escape a Desert Island” comes to mind… but in reality: The Art of Racing in the Rain – Garth Stein, and then as complete of works of Tolkien and Lewis as I could manage.

Author Websites and Profiles

Caelen Walker Website

Caelen Walker’s Social Media Links

Author Interview Series

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Niska Morrow

Interview With Author Niska Morrow

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve written two books, but only published the second one. This first one is so close to my heart, but I knew I needed to take a break from it and come back to edit it once I’d had some space from it. I’m so happy I did, because I learned so much from writing my second book, Comet Cruise, that I’m excited to work on the first one again!
I originally started writing by submitting short erotic stories to Literotica during lockdown, and got such good feedback from readers that I decided to try writing a book. I’ve also written a play about six people living in a space station 500 years in the future but I don’t think it’ll ever be produced, I don’t think there’s a huge market for weird space smut in the theater world. I had so much fun writing it though, and my friends got together and acted it out, each reading a part, we had the best time!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Comet Cruise was actually inspired by a space fact that a good friend told me. She said, “did you know Halley’s Comet will pass by earth again in the year 2061?” and we talked about how incredible it would be if space tourism was advanced enough that people could go see it up close. I ended up picking a different comet, Swift-Tuttle, because 2061 isn’t all that far away for humans to have built space cruises!

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I do my best writing late at night. Sometimes I write from midnight to 5AM. I wish I could be as focused during the day as I am in the tiny hours but I just can’t seem to crack it!
I do 15-minute writing prompts a few mornings per week with a gorgeous deck of tarot cards. I shuffle the cards, draw one, and write a short story based on the card. If nothing comes to me right away, I just start describing the card: “The High Priestess had long golden hair…” and see where it goes. I’ve written some truly wild science fiction and fantasy stories doing this, it’s a great way to branch out creatively.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Margaret Atwood, especially the MaddAddam series for unsettling futures that seem all too possible. The Chrysalids by John Wyndham is my favorite book, it’s the first post-apocalyptic book I read and I haven’t stopped since. I read a lot of classic scifi like JG Ballard and Robert A Heinlein. Recently I’ve been trying to read books with diversity, especially well-written queer characters. The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson was one of the first books I read with a bisexual woman as the main character, and it was so important to me at the time to feel seen in that way.

What are you working on now?
I’m writing another queer, kinky, poly erotica, but this one takes place on Earth in a partly civilized North America where small communities are struggling to survive in the aftermath of a biochemical act of war that decimated the planet. The four main characters are tasked with bringing supplies from one community to another, and form an unusual BDSM relationship between them as they travel across the dangerous wasteland. It’s kind of like The Last of Us but with horny bisexuals and Shibari.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’ve been using social media: Instagram and TikTok. Newsletters like ExciteSpice and ShamelessBookDeals are great for spreading to a wider audience.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just because you’ve spent time on something, even a lot of time, doesn’t mean you have to keep working on it. You’ll always be more productive and write your best work if you’re excited about something. If you write 40,000 words but just aren’t feeling it anymore, take a break and work on something else that excites you. You can always come back to it, and might see it differently once you’ve had some distance from it.
Also working with professional editors can be very expensive, but I think I’ve learned the most about writing from them. Reedsy is where I’ve found most of mine. Fiverr has more affordable options.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I saw a post on social media of an author saying how relieved she was when she realized her social circle was NOT her target audience. Especially as someone writing a very niche genre, this was so important for me to hear. There are millions of readers out there, so if my friends aren’t excited about a concept I’m working on, that’s totally fine, and certainly doesn’t mean no one will read it.

What are you reading now?
I’m re-reading The Summer Tree, which is the first book in a fantasy trilogy called The Fionavar Tapestry by Guy Gavriel Kay. I read it at 18 when I was traveling, and have never been so thoroughly gripped by a series. It came up again recently and I decided to read it again and I’m so happy I did! I was in a bit of a reading slump and this book has dragged me out of it.
I’ve also been reading a lot of short-form erotica ebooks. There’s a series of stand-alone books called First Time Surrender by Chera Zade & Steele Star I just can’t get enough of! The female character always starts naïve and innocent but ends the story very empowered and taking control of her own sexuality and her future. And the sex scenes are incredibly hot.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’d love to finish and publish the book I’m working on, then go back to the first book I wrote and edit it. It’s such a special story for me because the main character’s journey to accept her queerness and kinks is based on my own journey, and writing the book helped me explore them in a way I never would have otherwise. Writing that book changed my life in the best way, and I want others to enjoy it!

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 Certain Hunger by Chelsea Summer
Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood
The Complete Short Stories by JG Ballard
Is there a book with song lyrics from angsty female vocalists? I’ll take that

Author Websites and Profiles

Niska Morrow Website

Niska Morrow Amazon Profile

Niska Morrow’s Social Media Links