Awesome Author Interviews

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am the author of nine novels and several novellas. My books: The Diary of a Logos, A Logos At Large, Zoey’s World, DenMark Lane, Reality Reports, Tree Hotel, Locked Inside The Monkey Room, and The Logos Omnibus Volume One, are all available via Amazon.com through both eBooks and paperback editions. The Genre? Thanks for asking. Horror/Fantasy/Speculative Fiction. I’ve had a couple of books published through a legacy publisher, made no money and had very few readers so after reading JA Konrath’s Newbies blog about self-publishing and my eyes are open. Reading many success stories about writers who went the indie route have also been inspiring. A friend and I started a production company, MadCoop Productions, a few years ago and have released three DVD’s: Transmissions Volume One, Volume Two and the Collective. These are also in the Horror/Fantasy/Experimental genres. We are producing a web series now titled Workman’s Comp. Check out our Kickstarter program in July 2013 at www.kickstarter.com and help be a producer by donating.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My current book I am promoting is a Horror novel, DenMark Lane. This novel was inspired by writers like Stephen King, Joe Lansdale, and all of the pulp novelists from the 40’s and 50’s. Writer’s like Richard Stark, Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson (RIP), and filmmakers like David Lynch and Don Coscarelli, inspired this novel. DenMark Lane is the first in a trilogy of novels. The sequels are – Copenhagen and The Late Knight Folk. These follow the Logos Universe. You can check my Amazon.com library of books about the Fantasy landscape of the Logos Universe with many of those titles.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I drink lots and lots of GERKON. GERKON is a strong black elixir, much like coffee but much, much more effective. I used to write on an Electric Twelve Sears model typewriter in the closet at my parents home in Lowville NY. Sometimes I collaborate with my cousin Rick Snyder when working on TV/Web?Comics. Wearing my beat up old caramel colored corduroy jacket gives me the source of creativity that I don’t normally feel.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Stephen King, Joe Lansdale, Neil Gaiman, the Beat Writers (Jack Kerouac, William Burroughs etc…), Phillip K Dick, Robert Bloch, H.P. Lovecraft, Samuel Beckett…

I love Clive Barker’s novel – The Thief of Always, William Arnold’s – China Gate, and Stephen King’s – Dark Tower and the Gunslinger.

Peter Straub’s Blue Rose trilogy.

What are you working on now?
I just created a new character named OzValt Grant. Oz is a former sniper in Iraq who became a detective, was later fired for shooting a serial killer suspect and then took on the life of a private eye. Occasionally is is thrown jobs by his former partner Detective Jim Conrad. The first OzValt Grant novella is Mud Street. This is about a rabid dog who goes on a killing spree. The novella is being edited now and I’m working on the cover. Once this is complete I will post is for $.99 at KDP via Amazon.com.

The second book I’m working on is tentatively titled Among Devils. This is a Faustian deal style story. A young man’s parents made a deal with the devil to save his life, he later damns himself and then must reconcile the deal by thwarting the original Faustian deal. What will happen? This is a full length novel and will be ready for publication later this fall.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Indie Reader as well as Ebook Booster. I am just starting to learn the process of promoting my ebooks, and paperback editions. Reading JA Konraths blog has helped hugely. I totally recommend anyone who is a talented writer/story teller, to check out Joe’s website. He is the best.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write, write, write… learn your craft. Be honest with yourself. Making a living as a self-published author is possible, but you must write, never give up and keep pushing forward. Don’t lie to yourself and say I’m a writer and not write. You must write every day, and if you love it this will not be a problem. Push, push, push forward.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Elmore Leonard said, when asked how he was able to have such a long successful career with his writing, he said he just left out the boring parts. This is key to how I approach my writing. My novels as short, because I try desperately to create an entertaining streamline story stripped to the bone.

What are you reading now?
The Ocean At the End of the Lane – Neil Gaiman.

Savage Season – Joe Lansdale.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Currently I am editing my OzValt Grant novella, to be published in about a month at KDP for $.99. I am also working hard at finishing my Horror/Faustian Deal novel Among Devils to be published this fall, October maybe.

I’ll also be starting a comic novel titled Ghosted Written, about a young man whose life-long goal is to be a published author. On the day he gets an acceptance letter from one of the big five publishers he dies. Despite his death, and his wife’s mourning for him he is able to communicate from beyond the grave via email/facebook/tumblr/twitter. He starts a relationship with his wife through digital means and also starts making a living for his wife with his publishers through the digital arena. The story reaches a head after our writer hits the bestsellers list and starts winning awards, people want to meet him but he’s a ghost, what can he do? Stay tuned to my blog at goodreads.com and I’ll keep you posted as I write. I’ll also be asking for cover designs that you guys might thinks works best for the book.

What is your favorite book of all time?
This is a toss up between Stephen King’s novel The Gunslinger, or Clive Barker’s novel The Thief of Always.

Author Websites and Profiles
Bryan Higby Website
Bryan Higby Amazon Profile

Bryan Higby’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My (pen) name is Eric Martin and I have written two books I have written. I was born and grew up in Seneca Falls, a small town in Upstate New York that is in everyone’s history books as the birthplace of women’s rights. I had a pretty active, some would say overactive, imagination and when I was young would write what would be considered ‘fan fiction’ stories today. I graduated from the University of Notre Dame where I worked at The Observer, the student newspaper on campus. I wanted to be a reporter but my first two jobs in the industry-one at a newspaper and the other at a PR firm in Chicago-didn’t quite work out and through a few twists and turns ended up working in the athletic and running goods industry. Currently I work at Fleet Feet Sports in Chicago in sales and also write and edit copy for the store’s website. I wrote a book under my given name back in 2000 and did early print-on-demand self-publishing that didn’t work out very well and stepped away from writing-real life intruded then-until taking writing back up again two years ago.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book, my debut under my pen name, is titled The Trading Society. Around 2000, when I was writing my first book which was dark in tone and dealt with serial killers, I belonged to an adventure story group in Yahoo and, in an effort to take a break from slogging through finishing my first book, created a serial concerning the adventures of a young and beautiful college journalist at Great Northern University named Samantha Grayson who in the first story runs afoul of a ‘white slavery,’ what we now call human trafficking, ring and has to be rescued by her boyfriend, All-American quarterback Tyler McManaway. I grew up in the seventies and every cop show had a ‘white slavery’ episode where pretty college coeds would be kidnapped for sale overseas, I guess I was impressionable back then. The serial progressed from there with Samantha and her friends experiencing danger and peril at the hands of this human trafficking and other adversaries. I always liked writing the serial and when I decided to take a second stab at writing a book I went back to that first story and fleshed it out into a full-scale novel with the idea that the human trafficking ring is run by descendants of those involved in the African slave trade of the 1800s who moved on to kidnapping young women for the rich and powerful when their trade was abolished. Samantha unwittingly discovers this and becomes their next victim to be sold to their most lucrative, and brutal, client.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Other than ingesting copious amounts of coffee when I am writing? I typically do most of my writing in a Starbucks near where I work in Chicago, all the baristas there know me and my gold card has stretch marks on it. I have a particular station on Pandora that plays music from movie soundtracks and I put that on when I am working, letting the music help to set a particular scene.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I might be a little different in the fact that I don’t read much in my own genre as to let my writing and plot and character develop organically, I don’t want to find myself copying what other writers do. I want to be known as Eric Martin, not as a ‘So-and-so imitator.’ That said the author that has had the most influenced on how I write is Tom Clancy. Even though he was known for emphasizing the ‘techno’ in techno-thriller, I took note at how deep he would develop his characters-there were no cardboard cutouts in his stories-and how intricate his plotting was. I still think his best book was Debt of Honor.

What are you working on now?
I am deep into exploring the fascinating world of marketing a book and have discovered that it is almost as much work as writing a book. You can’t take an off day, you have to always be looking for opportunities to get the word out about your book so it doesn’t get lost in the shuffle. But you have to take a ‘long-range’ view of the objective. You can’t expect a book without the backing of one of the major publishing houses to shoot up to the top right away. You have to take little steps and every one of them is important in establishing excitement for your effort.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
As I have only scratched the surface of opportunities I don’t know if I can really say what is the best, and every author is going to take a different approach. Social media is really important-Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads-to make connections to the audience for your book. One thing is to start with your inner circle-family, friends, co-workers-they will want to support your work and will help to spread the word out to people that they know. But I do hope that this interview with Awesome Gang brings increased attention to my work and I do thank you for the opportunity.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write a good story, something people will want to read. And search for an angle or plot that is unique. The reason ‘Fifty Shades’ and ‘Hunger Games’ and ‘Harry Potter’ did so well is that each was a concept that hadn’t been executed before. Try to be the one who scales Mount Everest first because history doesn’t remember who was second.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
That would be from my Dad and it is pretty simple. “Do what you want to do.”

What are you reading now?
I just finished The Guns At Last Light, the final book in Rick Atkinson’s ‘Liberation Trilogy’ about the campaign of the Allies across Western Europe in World War Two. The detail is fascinating and it some ways it does read like a novel.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I hope to start work on the second novel in the series. Already have the title. ‘Constellation Rising.’

What is your favorite book of all time?
I can’t choose just one so this will be the books I would want to be stranded with on a desert island. I just finished Rick Atkinson’s fabulous ‘Liberation Trilogy’ detailing the campaign of the Allies through Western Europe in World War Two-An Army At Dawn, The Day of Battle and The Guns at Last Light. The books are rich in detail and Atkinson’s writing style is so sublime I would love to see him write a fictional novel. I’m a big fan of the late Stephen Ambrose so I would take Band of Brothers and his book on the D-Day invasion. I’d have to have some Tom Clancy and my choices there would be the aforementioned Debt of Honor and the book that started it all for him, The Hunt For Red October. Throw into the trunk The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara; Catch-22 by Joseph Heller; To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee; The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson; The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe and Berlin Diary by William Shirer, the greatest example of a personal diary chronicling his time as a reporter in Nazi Germany before World War Two. And if I want to do some writing I need The Elements of Style by E.B. White and William Strunk. My copy is autographed by the great Charles Kuralt from when he spoke at Notre Dame in 1986.

Eric Martin’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Well, there’s a difference between the number of books I’ve written and the number I’ve published! I began writing long fiction when I was 19 when the internet didn’t exist and self publishing was both expensive and stigmatized. I wrote 8 novels over 20 years before I got published (by Penguin). I’ve published a total of 10 novels since then, a mixture of mystery/thrillers with an archaeological component (The Mask of Atreus, On the Fifth Day, What Time Devours, and Tears of the Jaguar), a wry fantasy series (the novels Act of Will and Will Power, and the short stories The Cerulean Stone and The Slave Trader’s wedding), and a Harry Potter-esque fantasy series for younger readers whose title character is Darwen Arkwright. I’m also a Shakespeare professor and director, and I recently co-authored Macbeth, a Novel and an upcoming version of Hamlet with Brit mystery writer, David Hewson.

I was born in the UK and lived there till I left university but have lived in a lot of places since–including Japan–and now live in Charlotte, North Carolina.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Mask of Atreus (which is now available in a new e-book edition) is a novel I wrote after returning to some key archaeological sites in Greece. I had always been fascinated by the stories surrounding the archaeologist who found the famous grave shafts at Mycenae and who also discovered Troy, and the way some of his finds tended to go missing. I had been thinking about a story rooted in the last days of the second world war and then found that the two stories came together nicely.

My next book will be the third in my Darwen Arkwright series, in which a young English boy living in Atlanta finds that the mirror in his closet turns into a door after sundown, raking him to a world of monsters which are trying to get out and want something from human children. The third book, Darwen Arkwright and the School of Shadows, wraps the trilogy up and–I hope–explains all lingering mysteries in an explosive show down!

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I prefer to write early in the morning, working for several hours in a block. Lately I’ve adopted a standing desk: the writer’s life can be unhealthily sedentary!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The list is endless. I read slowly, and anything I like gets stored away in my head. I find myself going over it all to see if I can figure out what it is about each book that I like so I can learn from it. As a kid, it was C.S. Lewis who first got me reading, and I grew up on an equal diet of fantasy and mystery, quickly graduating from overtly kid-oriented material to Tolkien and Agatha Christie and Arthur Conan Doyle. Since then I’ve read like I write, voraciously and indiscriminately, wandering from genre to genre without worrying about my career, much to my agent’s dismay. I’d be a lot easier to market if I stuck to one kind of book instead of falling in love with each story I think up regardless of its genre!

What are you working on now?
I’m wrapping up edits on the Hamlet novel, polishing the final stages of two academic books on Shakespeare on stage, and working on a new YA scifi adventure.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am terrible at marketing and self-promotion. For years I’ve left it to my publishers and am only just learning the ropes of how to take control of such things. No one should imitate me. I’d much rather be writing than promoting and I have absolutely no business sense. But I do have a nice author website: www.ajhartley.net and a separate site which is specific to my young reader adventures: www.darwenarkwright.com

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Read as much as you can. write as much as you can. Show your work to people whose opinion you trust and pay attention to what they say. Force yourself to polish the work until it is as good as it can possibly be before you self publish or submit to editors/agents.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Revise even as your publisher is trying to snatch the manuscript from you for final printing. I think that was from John Fowles. And don’t talk down to kids. That was R.L. Stine. It goes without saying that Stephen King’s On Writing is a gold mine of great advice.

What are you reading now?
The Writer’s Tale, a correspondence with Russell T. Davies about his work on Doctor Who! Inspiring and provocative stuff.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Once the fine points of editing on my current projects are done, I’ll turn my full attention to this YA scifi novel I’m working on. The story is still coming together, but I’m excited about it 🙂

What is your favorite book of all time?
Wow. No idea. Many book are dear to me but I’ve been teaching Shakespeare for two decades now and still finding things which surprise and delight within the plays. I’m especially fond of the Winter’s Tale and Hamlet, but I could list many more…

Author Websites and Profiles
A.J. Hartley Website
A.J. Hartley Amazon Profile

A.J. Hartley’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve written 6 complete books so far. My first was a 200K word SF opus, which I consider my apprentice piece. One day I may go back and re-write it to make it fit for publication!

After that, I changed an SF idea I had into a fantasy, aimed at a market in short novels, which promptly folded just as I finished. I’d already started on another set in the same world I’d created, so I continued with that one, and it won a UK Arts Board Award. It also gained me an agent, but subsequently still failed to sell 🙁 This will be my debut Indie published novel, THE PRINCE’S MAN, out on 29th July 2013.

Planned as the first part of a trilogy, I have written about half of the sequel so far, and will be back to it shortly.

In the mean time, I wrote, sold, and had published two non-fiction books: THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF TRAINING and THE SUCCESSFUL DRESSAGE COMPETITOR, based on my expertise in the world of dressage.

Going back to my first love, fiction, I’ve written an Urban Fantasy, DESPRITE MEASURES, which is currently off seeking an agent/publisher, although I’m leaning more towards the Indie route now, and may just go ahead and publish it myself anyway.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
THE PRINCE’S MAN will be my first published novel, inspired by my joint loves of fantasy and spy stories.

Think James Bond meets Lord of the Rings.

I’ve always been primarily interested in characters, and although I have (I think) solid plot and world building in place, it’s the character development that drives my stories. Since becoming a full time sports coach, I’ve learned a fair bit of psychology and while I am in no way an expert on the subject, I’ve learned a lot about it. My characters all have hang ups of some sort, for good reasons, and some are decidedly less mentally stable than others! I do my best to weave their personal journeys into an exciting, fast moving plot with plenty of action.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I do my best writing in the wee small hours, and I find it hard to write when there is anyone else around.

I can trace this back to my university years, when I did all my course work first, only writing fiction once I’d finished, usually somewhere around midnight. Once it’s dark, and there’s no one around to disturb me, I can fully immerse myself in my fantasy world without fear of interruption.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Far too many to count!

Off the top of my head: J. R. R. Tolkein, Ian Fleming, Peter O’Donnel (the Modesty Blaise books) Ursula Le Guin, Anne McCaffrey, Frank Herbert, David Eddings…

I could go on forever, but then I’d not get my next book written.

What are you working on now?
I’ve decided to get on with the sequel to Prince’s Man.

Underway, I also have the prequel, which is half re-written, plus ideas for novellas to go both with the fantasy series and the urban fantasy, and next in the urban fantasy series too.

Think I’d better get this one done first before I head off at a tangent.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
A combination of:

my blog www.deborahjayauthor.com

facebook www.facebook.com/deborahjay

and twitter www.twitter.com/DeborahJay2

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write!

You need to get hundreds of thousands of words down before you are anywhere near being an publishable author. Like anything else, writing is a skill that only improves with practice and study.

Also read.

And study what you read that you really love – take it apart and figure out what it was that the author did to make you love it.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Take charge of your own writing career.

Although I’ve had books published, I’ve learned that unless you are already famous, you won’t get any marketing help from your publisher – it’s down to you!

That’s why the Indie route is so appealing: you will you be doing the same amount of marketing whether you are traditionally published or indie publishing, so you might as well do it yourself and earn more of the proceeds!

What are you reading now?
I’ve just finished a great little murder/mystery – Death By A Honeybee by Abigail Keam – and I’m about to start a beautiful paperback I won in a giveaway, SORIEL, Starfire Angels: Revelations Book 1, by Melanie Nilles.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Publication of my debut!

I’m just tweaking the formatting and have just had a cover reveal, with publication next on the list!

As I will only have one novel out, I will concentrate on getting reviews rather than just go after sales – the advice I’m hearing is that it takes at least 3 books before you really start to get quantities of fans.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Oooh, tricky!

If I must pick just one, then I’ll go for THE WIZARD OF EARTHSEA by Ursula Le Guin.

Author Websites and Profiles
Deborah Jay Website
Deborah Jay Amazon Profile

Deborah Jay’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born and raised in New York. I graduated from John Jay College of Criminal Justice with a Bachelors in Foresnic Psy. I’m an uber nerd and book worm. Loves, music, reading, dancing and writing. In love with summertime and the beach I don’t think there is anything better than the beach. I’ve written one book so far. The book is called Shattered and it started out as a school assignment for a short story free writing class taken in college and has morphed into soo much more

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Shattered (Part of the Shattered Hearts series) I guess what really inspired it was the writing class I was taken in college. We had to write two short stories. The first one was easy to write because I had recently lost a child hood friend. The second story I just let my love for the beach set the pace of the story; Shattered.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t think I have any unusual writing habits. I have to listen to music…depending on the scene I’m writing I have set playlist for each scene.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Anne Rice, Stephen King, J.r Ward, Lori foster, Sylvia day, Joey W. Hill, Melissa Schroeder and there’s possibly so much more

What are you working on now?
I am working on the second part of the Shattered hearts series

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Goodreads and facebook as well as word of mouth.

www.facebook.com/nicolebanks13

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6917576.Nicole_Banks

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Always write every thing down. Even if it’s stupid write it down

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Let your characters take you where they want to go. You can always go back and edit.

What are you reading now?
Just finished Sylvia day’s entwind with you

What’s next for you as a writer?
Hopefully being able to put out many many books.

What is your favorite book of all time?
I don’t have a favorite. I love all books!

Nicole Banks’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is George Cook. I am a married father of one. I have served in the US army form 1991-1994. I have served on my local board of education since 2009 and have been board president since 2011. I have been writing since I was about ten years old.

I have written nine books. Four books of poetry. Two children’s book and the three books in The Dead War Trilogy.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my latest book is The Dead War Trilogy.

I love zombie stories, science fiction, and old fashioned war movies and those three things inspired me to write the three books that make up The Dead War Trilogy. It’s sort of Black Hawk Down meets aliens meets The Walking Dead.

I had always wondered that if a zombie apocalypse took place in the future would our technolgy really make a difference. This book is my attempt at answering that question.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t know if mine or that unusual. I can write a thousand words a day for a week and then got go back near the manuscript for two or three days. I might then write two thousand words the next day. There’s not musch rhyme or reason to how I write.

I guess one thing I do is find a song that fits the mood of the book I am trying to create and play that on an endless loop. I wrote The Dead War Trilogy to the Jay Z and Kanye West song ” No Church in the Wild”.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’m not that influenced by other authors. That’s a conscious choice I made because I fear their style may seep into my writing. When it comes to books I am influenced by World War Z, The Magic of Xanth series, The Dragonriders of Pern, and even graphic comic books. I try to read some of everything.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on two projects right now. I am working on the first book in the second volume of The Dead War trilogy and the start of a new super hero series.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Doing as many interviews as I can. I find that Twitter and Facebook can be useful if not overused. But I think after the first book the readers and their word of mouth is the best tool for us authors.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t worry about bad reviews. We all get them especialy when first starting out. Take the time to read them and see what the issues are and then work to fix them. This will only make you a better writer.

Also don’t get into online arguments with people that give you bad reviews. It does not help you at all. Use That time could better be used to write and improve your skills.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t limit yourself to any one genre or audience as a writer. Of course we all have our favorite genres to write it but stepping out of our comfort zone can help us expand our horizons.

What are you reading now?
I am currently reading CURE by Belinda Frisch and have just purchased Under The Dome by Stephen King.

What’s next for you as a writer?
As I mentioned earlier I intend to start a new super hero series. I am seriously considering going the graphic novel route in 2014. I think this would be a great challenge but one I would love to try.

What is your favorite book of all time?
World War Z. I love gthe way Max Brooks told the story and it just may the only book I have read more than three times.

Author Websites and Profiles
George Cook Website
George Cook Amazon Profile

George Cook’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I grew up in a small central Illinois town in the 50s and 60s. It was, and still is, the kind of town where kids ride bikes, fish, and play ball as their dogs follow them about. My parents are in their mid-80s and still live there. I was the first in my extended family to go away to college, and I graduated in 1976 with a wife and degrees in education and mathematics. A fruitful 31-year sales management career with a Fortune 500 company and a storybook life with my wife and two children followed college.

Life changed for me and my family when I lost my wife in the spring of 2008. She’d been my best friend for 35 years. Life stood still for a long time, but gradually, everyone finds a way to move forward. I have since met a wonderful woman, Claudia, and we married in the spring of 2012. We share time between a home in Charlotte and a getaway place in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Reading, writing, gardening, hiking, traveling (mostly to visit family and friends) and watching sunsets with a glass of wine occupy our days. Claudia is also an experienced editor and helps me greatly with tightening up my writing. It’s a teamwork that has worked well the past several years.

I’ve published two books. The first, CORRUPT CONNECTION, is the story of a modest businessman and beautiful PhD who become the targets of a drug cartel attempting to raid futuristic technologies developed by their company. The second, BETTER LATE THAN EVER, is about Phil Greenfield, a 60-year-old, recently retired bachelor, and the dangerously misdirected focus on youth Phil discovers behind the private stone walls of a modern retirement community.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My most recent book, BETTER LATE THAN EVER, was published in January 2013. It’s about Phil Greenfield, a 60-year-old bachelor, and what he discovers after moving to a futuristic retirement community. I was inspired to write this book after a close friend of mine retired to a planned retirement community. I extrapolated and infused his experiences with elements of romance, danger, and intrigue.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I prefer to write late at night and early in the morning. Occasionally, these times overlap and I end up not sleeping. That’s usually a good night.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’m not sure any single book or author has strongly influenced my life or writing. I’ve never had an “Ah Ha” moment where I’ve read a passage or a chapter of a book that drove me to becoming an author. It has been more a fascination with how authors are able to make their characters and stories come to life that has made me want to try to emulate their work.

My favorite authors are John Grisham and Vince Flynn.

What are you working on now?
I’m within a few months of releasing my third novel, MELTING SAND. It will be the first in a series featuring Miles Stevens, a CIA agent who’s sent back in time from the year 2050 to alter tragic events throughout history. In this book Miles is teamed with Terri King as they work to avert a chain of events leading to nuclear war in the Middle East in the year 2027.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I think press releases, direct emails, and word of mouth have been the most effective ways to promote my books. Like most authors, I use social media, but it is difficult to measure the effectiveness. I find that my Facebook page gets the most traffic week to week, followed by my blog.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Focus on producing a product that you are proud of. Pride in your work is its own reward. There are a lot of things that get in the way of writing –marketing, blogs, social media, etc., but writing needs to take priority.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Be prepared for the occasional bad reader review. You can’t please all readers. To please everyone, would likely mean you excited no one.

What are you reading now?
I’m currently reading Vince Flynn’s book, KILL SHOT. It’s another great story about Mitch Rapp, a CIA assassin who finds himself as a target after a botched hit on a Libyan official. The suspense and fast moving drama are pure Flynn.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I will be focused on finishing MELTING SAND for a Fall 2013 release and then I will immediately begin the next book in this Miles Stevens series. I also will continue to post to my blog and read several books every month. Write, Read, and Post… the cycle continues.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Hemingway’s OLD MAN AND THE SEA is right up there.

Author Websites and Profiles
D.R. Shoultz Website
D.R. Shoultz Amazon Profile

D.R. Shoultz’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
In the Beginning is my first book. I wrote in back in 1997 and found it in my daughter’s garage in 2011. Decided to brush it off and get it published. Now it seems I’ve caught the bug. I’m now working on the sequel as well as the first book I hope will be part of at least a three-book series.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
In the Beginning is the name of my latest book. And it’s funny, I can’t remember what gave me the idea for it. I remember I had just lost my job and was sitting at home depressed. Worried how I would take care of my teenage children and my eighty year old mother you had recently came to live with me. And I remember thinking, I’m going to write a book.

Whatever the inspiration, I believe it to be unique as I have yet to come across another book with the story in my book.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
When I found the manuscript of the book and decided to publish it, I found I didn’t have an electronic copy of it so I had to rewrite the entire book. I learned during the rewrite that there are actual rules and methods employed by “real” writers. Who knew? One such rule is the use of an outline, or starting at the beginning of the book and writing straight through. I don’t. I write a scene here or there and fill in the rest of the chapter over time and then move it around until I find out where the chapter fits in. Sometimes, I hear conversations or new research that I think would fit nicely in the book, so then I write around that to make it fit into the book. It’s a haphazard way to write, I’m sure other writes shutter at my method, but it’s how I do it.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I didn’t read before and during readying the book for publication. Once it was published, however, I decided that perhaps I should see how others write. (Again, to learn about those writing rules I didn’t know existed). People said that my story was akin to Dan Brown’s story, so I read him. I found I didn’t like his stories much, although his writing was good. (My book was written in 1997 so it actually pre-dated his books).

I found that The Secret of the Seventh Son by Glenn Cooper taught me that it’s not the writing necessarily that makes a book good, but how good the story. I also think that my writing is a lot like Harlan Coben’s and his books have influenced me not to worry so much about those pesky rules of writing, but just to be myself.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on the sequel to “In the Beginning” and it’s titled “The Westbury End Book Club.” Hopefully it’ll be out later this year. The story in my first book tells about manuscripts hidden 2,000 years ago at the caves of Qumran. The sequel will reveal how they got there.

I’ve also decided to start a series of books about a family tree. Each book will tell about a different branch of the family and their secrets and of course, all the dysfunction that happens within family. The stories will span from about the 1870s to the present. The first installment in the series “1203” will be out in early 2014.

I’m very excited about them still finding it hard to believe how much I love to write and what an active imagination I have after hitting the half century mark.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
During the time I was making an electronic copy of the book, I up chapters on authonomy.com. There I met a lot of people, so that helped to build an audience. I think that first reads and amazon.com are both good ways to promote books as well as social media platforms.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
GET AN EDITOR. It is so hard to see all of your mistakes because you are so close to your work. Even if it’s an unpaid editor, your neighbor, child, sibling, someone. Be sure to get someone to read over your work.

Another piece of advice, which is a pet peeve for me, is continuity. Make sure that you check on your facts as you progress through the book to make sure they add up. And be sure to let your readers know how you get from place to place, and from clues to conclusion. Don’t suddenly introduce people. And watch putting in facts or knowledge that others could not know about without explaining how that knowledge or fact was acquired.

Other than that I say, “Happy Writing.”

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I think there are two things that I found good in my writing endeavors. The first is to use “I said” instead of “he exclaimed,” or “she mumbled,” or “she chuckled,” at the end of dialogue.

The second piece of advice is not to use too many beats around your dialogue. Let the dialogue set the mood, the tone and the feelings of the characters.

What are you reading now?
Harlan Coben. As much of him as I can. Right now I’m reading Stay Close and Caught. Just finished Six Days. I love mysteries and he does a good job.

I am also reading Unbound Brothers by Rob Rowntree. He just published and is a fellow member of goodreads.

What’s next for you as a writer?
To write, write and then, write some more.

What is your favorite book of all time?
In the Beginning by Abby L. Vandiver

(lol, can I say that?)

Author Websites and Profiles
Abby Vandiver Amazon Profile

Abby Vandiver’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Born overseas I have a tendency to wander somewhere every few months. I came to writing through the need to rewrite books I found dissatisfying as a child. Due to health defects had limited physical abilities reading and writing were and remain my favorite occupation aside from vegging out with a good flick.

I write experimental novels of literary and historical merit in a wide range of genres. I’ve written four interconnected novels about an English manor house from 1923 to 2016. My second novella involves a man who melts and will be published this fall.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
We the Separate Together is a fantasy novella set in a country where the ruling race begins to systematically segregate and marginalize a race descended from bears.

The story began as a bit of this and that I told myself drifting off to sleep. An unlikely romance between a princess and a man from the unclean race. At the time I was reading Wolf Hall and enjoyed the particular perhaps created words Mantel used to authenticate the text. With that voice in my head, the names of my fantasy world came together with a bias towards Norse mythology.

One of the Oscar shorts of 2012 became very influential in the setting of the prison. Shortly I’ll be posting a bit about that on my blog.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Nope. I’m one of those boring disciplined types. My best writing is in the morning.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
At large my novels have been strongly influenced by Virginia Wolf, Robert Zimmerman, James P. McCartney, Roberto Bolano, and Jennifer Egan’s brilliant A Visit from the Goon Squad.

What are you working on now?
I am editing a novel involving a nanny who goes to Hollywood to work for a film director and finds herself in a love triangle between the director and the adult son of his first marriage.

I am also researching a new novel involving Far-Right Terrorists, Surfers, and some teen idols.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My books and reviews can be found on my blog or through Goodreads.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Focus on writing. There is always more than be learned by writing. Publishing is nice but your writing is who you are and it should always be the priority.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Tomorrow is always fresh, with no mistakes in it.” Miss Stacy

What are you reading now?
Stories I only Tell my Friends by Rob Lowe

In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust

Various books on American conservatism and surfing.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Slowly but surely I’m learning marketing and social media networking.

A second novella, The Circle Game, will be published this fall.

What is your favorite book of all time?
This is a silly question. If I have to fill in this blank I suppose I’d say A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

Author Websites and Profiles
Jaye Viner Website
Jaye Viner Amazon Profile
Jaye Viner Author Profile Other Bookseller

Jaye Viner’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Flower of heaven is my debut novel but my second book. The first book was on financial planning which I co-authored called Wealth Building for Professionals in 2001. I had a lifetime career in the corporate and legal world and hold a BS, MBA, and PhD, all in business. I also served as an adjunct professor in finance and investments on the graduate level at several colleges and universities. I started Flower of Heaven at age 46 and have just completed it at age 71. I have begun the sequel and hope to have it done by year end.

The book is a recent winner for General Fiction in the 2013 New York Book Festival held on June 21, 2013 and was the Indie Book of the Day for March 19, 2013. It has a favorable Kirkus Review and a 4.6 rating on Amazon.com.

When I am not writing, I am an avid tennis player and golfer and run a highly successful investment club for professionals. I reside in Cumberland, RI with my wife of 50 years, Pauline. We have three grown children.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Flower of Heaven, an international thriller, is my debut novel and was inspired because of the many number of priests that I have known over the years. I have found that they make the same mistakes in life that we do; they just don’t expect to have to pay for these indiscretions thirty-five years later.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yes, I write longhand, partly due to a hand ailment I’ve had for years, and partly because the words flow better for me as I begin to write rather than type. Once I’ve written several pages, I then type and refine them as I go along. At times, I can write almost an entire chapter, and at other time not a single sentence, although I don’t find that unusual.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
John Grisham, David Baldacci, James Patterson and Stephen King.

What are you working on now?
I am currently much into writing the sequel to Flower of Heaven and hope to complete it by year end.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My own. www.flowerofheaven.com, because I send out email newsletters to over 1200 contacts every other month with news updates, recent awards, etc. which encourages readers to spread the word. I am hoping that my recent involvement in Author marketing and several othe ebook sites will increase that exposure soon.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Yes, never give up on completing your manuscript. It took me 25 years to finish and I am ecstatic that I did. Perseverance does pay off. If you have a dream, go for it, I am.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
If someone else can become a success in writing, so can I!

Constant exposure of my novel may turn out to be a movie offer someday and I will be ready if that ever happens.

Never give up, never!

What are you reading now?
Second Chance by Christina Paul and Boom by Jim Brown.

What’s next for you as a writer?
More award recognitions for my debut novel, you can never have enough.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Centennial by James Michener

Author Websites and Profiles
Julien Ayotte Website
Julien Ayotte Amazon Profile

Julien Ayotte’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a creative busybody, to put it in a nutshell. I have an awesome husband and three super kids. I go to school full time, nearing the end of my degree in elementary education. I’ve returned to writing after a 2 year hiatus when my daughter was diagnosed with leukemia. I love writing young adult fiction, specifically those in paranormal or fantasy (anything that has to do with the impossible becoming possible). My debut novel, MAGICBOUND, was recently released on Amazon, and was my first book. I have, however, written other books in the YA genre and will eventually be releasing them into the wild as well.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My debut novel, MAGICBOUND, was inspired years ago when I had the time for online RPG (roleplaying through writing). It was a great creative outlet for a beginning writer to fine tune my skills. In that experience, one of the characters I had created was Lusa. She was my bad girl, and eventually, I decided to write a story revolving around her. That was back in 2000. I had not yet decided to become a “serious” writer, and life distractions kept me busy until 2008. I finally decided writing was going to be a full time job for me, and joined a great writing workshop in the area (DFW Writers’ Workshop), attended conferences, and became a part of a super online writing community. Through these relationships, I honed my craft and finished two books. Then, I had my third child, and the day after, my daughter was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, so I decided writing would have to be put on hold.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not entirely sure they would be considered unusual. I typically have to listen to music. I have a station on Pandora, and for about a month, I plant the “seed” of my story in my mind and “water and feed it”, letting it develop and bloom, or “marinate” so-to-speak, until I have developed enough ideas to create a general outline. I typically keep notes in a journal or via my voice recorder. Once I’m actually writing, dark chocolate is usually a companion along with the music. I also have to read each chapter again once I’ve completed it to make any immediate revisions. I’m a bit OCD.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Aside from my Purgie friends and their amazing books, I love Maria V. Snyder, Rachel Vincent, Alyson Noel, Lauren Kate, Kristin Cashore, Libba Bray, Rick Riordan, C.S> Lewis, Tolkien, Cassandra Clare…I mean, the list goes on!

What are you working on now?
Currently, I am working on the sequel to MAGICBOUND, tentatively titled MAGIC RIFT. It will continue to follow Lusa & Kaden’s story.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I enjoy social media through blogging (http://christacarol.blogspot.com), twitter @christacarol, and Goodreads.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t become discouraged, and grow thick skin to take some constructive criticism. Find a group of good writers and share work, revise, find a beta reader, and be open-minded! It’s hard to step away from your “baby” and hear what others have to say, but it’s so important in the growth of your writing skills.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Never give up, never surrender! 😉

What are you reading now?
I plan on finishing the Fallen series by Lauren Kate, and This is W.A.R by Lisa Roecker.

What’s next for you as a writer?
To continue growing in my craft, finish the sequel to MAGICBOUND, and work on some of my other works I have not completed, including a dystopian, and a middle grade fantasy.

What is your favorite book of all time?
That is such a hard question. Some of them stem from childhood, like the Chronicles of Narnia and Lord of the Rings. I also enjoy the Harry Potter series, the Hunger Games series, The Forest of Hands and Teeth, and so forth. I can’t really just pick one!

Author Websites and Profiles
ChristaCarol Jones Website
ChristaCarol Jones Amazon Profile

ChristaCarol Jones’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hi, everyone.

It’s nice to meet you.

I was fairly sure I wanted to be a newspaper reporter by age 12, and started covering high school sports for a daily newspaper when I was 14. I began by writing very simple “briefs” that listed who scored for each team and the results. The sports staff took me under its collective wing and taught me how to write game and feature stories. By the time I graduated from high school I’d been working for the Greenwich Time for four years. I also did a yearlong college internship there, and officially began my journalism career soon after I graduated from Manhattanville College in 1991. I have since devoted more than 20 years to community journalism.

To date I have written one book, and I am about to start work on my second.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My first — and to date — only book, is my memoir, “Truth Be Told: Adam Becomes Audrey.” In it, I share how I met, fell in love with and married the man of my dreams, only to find out that he self-identified as and planned on having gender reassignment surgery in order to become a woman. I also share what happened after I learned the truth.

It was extremely difficult to share this story so publicly, but I chose to do so because I wanted to tell the other side of an oft-told tale. While many members of the LBGT community write about their experiences, we seldom hear how those experiences affect their friends and families. I think it’s important that those people also have a voice.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Well, right now I’m answering these interview questions with Wimbledon on the television in the background. Somehow I always seem to get more done when there’s some sort of background noise, and I tend to succumb to writer’s block more when there’s complete silence.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
That’s a good question and it should be fairly easy to answer. But I can’t honestly say I’ve been influenced by any one specific author or book.

That being stated, I love to read and there are plenty of authors I admire, including J.K.Rowling, David Baldacci and Patricia Cornwell, to name a few!

What are you working on now?
Within the next month or so I’ll start the research for my second book. It will be based on my father’s life as a staunch anti-Communist and political refugee in post-World War II Europe.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’ve really enjoyed networking on goodreads.com. It’s a fantastic resource, especially for new authors. I’ve read some interesting books, met a lot of great people and I now have friends all over the world.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I think the most important thing to remember is that publishing is a big business, just like anything else. In the overall scheme of things, very few authors become rich and famous. If fame and fortune is what you’re after, remember it will likely come at a price.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
If you want to be a published author, you’d better have thick skin!

What are you reading now?
I’m reading a very good memoir called “A Russian Princess Remembers: The Journey from Tsars to Glasnost” by Ekaterina Mescherskaya.

I started reading it in order to get some perspective on some of the things my dad went through when he was growing up in eastern Europe, and I wasn’t sure what to expect at first. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how much I’m enjoying it.

What’s next for you as a writer?
As I said earlier, I’m about to begin the research for my second book and hope to start writing it in early fall. Hopefully I can have it completely wrapped up by next summer.

I also have an idea for my third book, so stay tuned…

What is your favorite book of all time?
I’d have to say “The Black Stallion” by Walter Farley. Aside from the fact that I love horses and have ridden semi-competitively, it’s just a classic story. It never gets old.

Author Websites and Profiles
Alexandra Bogdanovic Website

Alexandra Bogdanovic’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been around for a long time now, so trying to tell you about me would probably take too long, although it would probably be interesting, as I have had an interesting life. I’ve been a teacher in the Australian Outback, taught male inmates in a medium security prison, travelled the world, been a professional astrologer, owned and operated a New Age Book Store, raised two boys (one who had disabilities and died at 20), survived breast cancer, been a Head Teacher in Further Education, moved 12,000 miles from home to the country of my father’s birth and found my roots (and stayed), worked as a life coach and currently a project worker for a mental health organisation… oh and I write romance novels (14 to date). Some people see me as an over-achiever, I see myself as an adventurer. I think that my favourite adventuring is done in my writing where I create worlds that other people tell me they enjoy getting lost in.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
‘Caught in a Dream’ is interestingly enough my most recent book to be published but is probably one of my earliest pieces of writing. It bears some resemblance to The Matrix in that it deals with a world that seems to be real but isn’t. It has a metaphysical component, but is mostly just an exciting adventure/romance. It was inspired by my own thoughts on ‘reality’ and wondering if what I really see is ‘real’ at all.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Other than sitting for 12 hours straight with my laptop on my lap (literally) typing as fast as I can to get the story that’s unfolding in my head onto paper? No, not really. 😛

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’m a Time Travel Buff so Diana Galbaldon has been influential, and of course we shared the common stimulus of Dr Who as kids. I also loved Traci Harding’s early books (she’s an Aussie writer for those who have never heard of her). She combines metaphysical concepts with a rip roaring tale. There are dozens more but I won’t bore you.

What are you working on now?
I’m writing the second in my Werewolf Keep Trilogy. Its a classical werewolf tale where people turn into werewolves 3 mights a month and must be imprisoned in a Castle Keep on the Yorkshire Moors. Its very Gothic and set in the mid Victorian era. For me, it is more than just a story of the paranormal. It is an exploration of what Jung calls our Shadow, which I seem to have worked with in my career in many situations.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use a wonderful promoter called DesertGirl on Fiverr.com. She gets my books out to the right places when they’re offered free. I’ve also joined Author Marketing Club and the Kindle Club to try to get me more savy with the whole promoting/marketing scene. Oh and I’ve done two Book Tours with Orangeberry but I’m still waiting to see any results from those. But it is still early days.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Make sure what you have to offer is a quality product, but at the same time don’t dismiss yourself because you aren’t published by mainstream. Find your audience and enjoy their feedback, but don’t pay too much attention to the negative stuff. One reviewer on Amazon said they were sooo disappointed by ‘The Way Home’ because they bought it thinking it was by another author and expected it to be a Christian book and finished off telling me I needed to find Jesus. I got a big kick when one of my fans slammed the review. Having people you don’t know go in to bat for you like that is a buzz. But they won’t do that unless you’re writing books they really enjoy.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Fantasy writer Ursula K. Le Guin wrote: “Children know perfectly well that unicorns aren’t real, but they also know that books about unicorns, if they are good books, are true books.” I have always remembered that and so, while I write about ‘unreal’ subjects, there is always truth in my stories… or I try to make sure they’re ‘good books’, so there is truth to be found in them.

What are you reading now?
I non-fiction book called ‘Living Magically’ by Gill Edwards, just to remind me of stuff I tend to forget. and a lovely little time travel romance called ‘Across the Winds of Time’ by Bess Mc Bride, which has the feel-good factor down pat.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Finish my latest book and then get started on another New Atlantis time travel book that has come up out of the blue. I’m trying to see if its possible to create a romantic hero out of a Gestapo agent.
My early research is broadening my knowledge about these historical ‘monsters’. Many were just policemen when the Nazis took over, and weren’t even Nazi Party members themselves. They simply served that government as they did the previous one. So I’m interested in finding the point when a person’s conscience kicks in and they start to rebel against their ‘job description’. I have spoken to a fan whose husband is a cop and she says that it is an issue for many police when government regulations change and they are asked to do things they may not agree with.
I’m not sure whether I can pull it off, to be honest, but its interesting exploring a different aspect of Nazi Germany. I’ve been there twice before in the New Atlantis series, once writing about the Death Trains in Poland and then the last in the series dealt with a German University student who was an anti-Nazi activist. I based that character on a real person.
That makes my books sound a bit heavy, but they aren’t. I try to keep my books light while not trivialising serious matters.

What is your favorite book of all time?
I sat for a long time trying to decide the answer to that question. I have sooo many favourites (which includes my guilty pleasure: JR Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood series and Harry Potter, of course,) I can’t even hope to answer it properly. If I had to say what the most influential book was in my life I’d say Jane Roberts’ non-fiction work, ‘Seth Speaks’, because it came at a perfect time in my life and reminded me of what I’d always known. Powerful stuff (but not much fun).

Author Websites and Profiles
Nhys Glover Website
Nhys Glover Amazon Profile

Nhys Glover’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m Australian and have lived in QLD, SA, NSW and now reside in Perth on the west coast. I grew up reading Enid Blyton, Trixie Belden, Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, John Marsden, Goosebumps, and many horror/vampire/fantasy books that I hid from my parents and read under the blankets by torchlight. As I got older I became obsessed with both fantasy books and movies. I’d always had an overactive imagination that I assuaged by coming up with my own stories. I discovered Dean Koontz whose books fed my curious mind making me want more. When I was 24 I wrote my first book. Needless to say, it was terrible. I think the story is fine, but my writing was atrocious. Honestly, I wrote the book for fun, and never intended to publish. Bitten by the writing bug, I couldn’t stop writing. I ended up with 3 novels, 2 novellas and several short stories. I found so much joy and meaning in the process that I knew I’d always be a writer.

A few years later the Ebook market grew and publishing platforms for indies became available. After a being thunderstruck with a new book idea last year, I decided to write and publish my first book: Concealed Power (The Healers of Meligna, Book #1). It’s out on Amazon now.

I wrote Concealed Power and realized it would be an epic saga spreading four books. After writing the first instalment, one of my supporting characters, Klawdia, began to speak to me during the day (no not actually speak to me that would be worrying). Her presence became so strong I couldn’t help but write about her, but in smaller instalments as I’d already committed myself to the Healers of Meligna series. The Bear Heart novella is permanently free on Amazon and Book #2 in the Healer Series will be out in August.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
While Bear Heart is my latest book, it’s not my main series and so I’ll speak about Concealed Power. If you want to read more about the inspiration for Bear Heart you can find it on the books Amazon page.

The idea for Concealed Power (The Healers of Meligna Series) came to me while I was at the doctor’s office for my annual check-up. An impression imprinted on my mind, and I realised I wanted to write something controversial, yet still in the genre of Epic Fantasy. I wanted to build a world full of loveable characters, and interesting societies, that when forced together, create conflict and tension based on differences of beliefs, rather than alluding to clichés of good and evil.

I knew I would write this story from a first-person perspective. I’m a very heady/analytical type of person, and have a keen interest in psychology, so I like to bring my readers really close to the main character. I want you to feel my protagonist’s highs and lows. In Concealed Power, when Adenine is perplexed, I want you, my readers, to care as much as she does about finding a resolution. I want your eyes to be glued to the pages until you’ve discovered, through her, the answers to all enigmas.

As I was writing the story I found myself playing games with my readers. When a book lacks swordfight and fire breathing dragons (although you might find aspects of this in the future books in the series), the author must create intrigue and mystery like a Sherlock Holmes or Miss Marple novel. The reader should be guessing ahead, thinking about the future and sorting through the clues to answer the book’s questions.

This series has changed me as a writer. It’s helped me discover my strengths and weaknesses as an author, while constantly challenging my tenacity (I spend a great deal of time scratching my head over the plot).

This story has its own life force that on rare occasion has moved me to tears (especially towards the end of the second book that I’m writing right now). This story wanted to be written and I hope that you get something from reading it.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Hah! What’s a normal writing habit? :–)

I recently bought myself a wonderful laptop that has given me freedom to write anywhere I want, but I still prefer sitting on my bed/couch, windows closed to block out suburban racket, ear plugs playing some form of sombre classical/violin music (or Imogen Heap, Muse, Evanescence, Ludovico Euinadi). I write a lot of heartfelt scenes, and the music helps to dunk me into an emotional frame of mind.

I have a steady writer schedule. I get up, have breakfast, shower (I have to make myself do this because it’s so tempting to just get straight into writing) and edit from 8am – 8pm. I have another job I work my own hours and I fit writing around that. I work in 45 minute sprints and allow myself 15 minutes per hour for breaks and doing chores. I have a very free life and my time is my own. Because of this I can write between 5000 – 7000 words a day, and edit at the same speed. I prefer deadlines and will work phenomenal hours over short stretches.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’ll just mention direct influences.

Kristin Cashore
Trudi Canavan
Maria V. Snyder
Robin Hobb
Charlaine Harris
Anne McCaffrey
Brandon Sanderson
J.K. Rowling
J. R. R. Tolkien
George R. R. Martin

What are you working on now?
Right now I’m working on the second Healers of Meligna book called Blood Healing. I’m about to send the novel back to my editor after doing some extensive redrafting and editing and it will be released in August. The cover for the book has been designed and on the front of the book it says:
“War begins with an open wound.”

I intend to have three out of four books of the Healers of Meligna series finished by December, but I’m aiming to have them all finished by Jan… I’ll see if I can get them out by Christmas but it will be a lot of work in a very short amount of time. I also want to release the second novella in the Bear Heart series which I’ve already written, it needs another redraft, edit and a cover, though (about 3 weeks of work).

I’m extremely excited about the release of Blood Healing and I think my readers will thoroughly enjoy the mind-shattering twists.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m new to the publishing game, so I don’t have any certain promotional tools except interacting with people either through Goodreads, Twitter or Facebook. Be real, be genuine, talk to people and don’t be afraid to ask them for help but make sure you give back. Acknowledge those who help you, give them signed copies, favours, gifts, whatever it takes to build a supportive group of people who can help you be the best writer you can be.

The publishing game is a game because you take risks, you take gambles, you follow leads and you test the waters. It doesn’t mean you have to be fake, or dishonest, you can be you and still fave faith in your work and your stories.

There is no certainty when it comes to publishing except writing a solid book, attaching a professional cover and ensuring that the formatting is without errors. I don’t like to get caught up in watching my sales, overly promoting, worrying about the ups and downs of the industry. My passion is for writing and that’s where the work counts!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
This is not for the faint-hearted. Dig deep and pull out every ounce of hard work you have within you, and use it to improve your craft, learn the industry, and write, write, write. Don’t think you’ll find relief on the other side of publishing your book, you won’t. When one goes out, there’s the pressure of releasing the next in the series. Don’t procrastinate on your work. Set time schedules and take care of your health, but mostly, don’t ever give up.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Lower your expectations, work hard and persevere.

What are you reading now?
I’m currently researching the contemporary romance genre, so right now I’m reading Damaged 2 by H.M. Ward. She’s a fellow indie writer and on Amazon’s best sellers list right now.

Because I work so much in the fantasy genre, I get tired of fantasy narrations. When you write medieval fantasy 9 hours a day, you don’t want to be reading it in your spare time. A break means a proper break 😉

What’s next for you as a writer?
Finishing this Healer series and the Klawdia series, and then focusing on contemporary fantasy and NA fiction. Having worked in mental health I am working on a fun series about a female psychologist who’s life spirals out of control. After that I intend to write another three books set in the Healers of Meligna world, depending on whether my readers want that or not. I like to listen to what people enjoy and write accordingly.

I’m interested in EVERYTHING and I have an extremely curious mind so I don’t care what I write. I just LOVE writing worlds and characters.

What is your favorite book of all time?
More of a series of books than 1 book in particular. And that’s Kristin Cashore’s Graceling/Fire/Bitterblue. I read Kristin’s blog and her words, thoughts, books inspire me no end. I hope to be half a good a writer as she is.

Author Websites and Profiles
K. J. Colt Website
K. J. Colt Amazon Profile

K. J. Colt’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Emma Right is a happy wife and homeschool mother of five living in the Pacific West Coast of the USA. Besides running a busy home, and looking after their five pets, which includes two cats, two bunnies and a Long-haired dachshund, she also writes stories for her children. This is Right’s first, of many books to come.

Right worked as a copywriter for two major advertising agencies and won several awards, including the prestigious Clio Award for her ads, before she settled down to have children.

Visit Emma Right at her home site and blog for tips and ideas about books, homeschooling, bible devotions, and author helps of various sorts: www.emmaright.com and follow her on facebook emma.right.author

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I was inspired to write Keeper of Reign after reading the book, Destined to Reign, by Pastor Joseph. Of course the Chronicles of Narnia and the LOTR series are also some of my favorite books and I have always loved fantasy. I just wanted to write a fantasy book for young readers, so they can see how through Jules Blaze’s trials they too can reign triumphant.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write the entire story in my head and let it all gush out on paper. Of course, there’s tons of editing work that needs to be done, after it’s all out. I call it downloading the book from my head.

What are you working on now?
Book 2 for Keeper of Reign. And another YA series targeted at a little older, but still the YA crowd–13 and up. it’s a suspense mystery/murder style book.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I submit my website www.emmaright to the search engines, and have the social media platforms. I also belong to a marketing group called John316 marketing. It’s a Christian group and everyone is very supportive.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
If you think writing the book was hard, wait till you have to publish, and then market it.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
In the words of Winston Churchill, “Never, never, never give up!’ And read, read, read!

What are you reading now?
I have several books in my kindle that i am reading simultaneously. I must say sometimes I do get the plots mixed up, but in the end they all sort themselves out!

What’s next for you as a writer?
Read, learn and live. I know I have a lot to learn as a writer and author, from the craft, to the book marketing, to the publishing, to the living. As a Christian, I stay focus by keeping my eyes on Jesus.

What is your favorite book of all time?
It’s hard to beat the classics. I love Jane Austen, Dickens, Tolkein, Tosltoy and CS Lewis. Then there’s geaorge Elliot, who happens to eb a woman…oh, and the Laura Ingle’s Little House series, To Kill a Mocking bird, and the Anne of Green Gables books. I can’t really pick one.

Author Websites and Profiles
emma right Website
emma right Amazon Profile

emma right’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I always liked to write and always liked to cook. It seemed only natural that after I closed my Italian Deli/Specialty Shop that putting out a few recipe books was my next career step. My books are not only filled with good quality recipes, but I share many stories that have a direct connection to the food I hope everyone will enjoy.

To date I have written three books all in a series titled “Gracie’s Italian Living Series.’ Named for my mom (as was my shop Gracie’s Ravioli) who was the biggest influence in my life. Her love of family, food and life are what has shaped me as an adult. The first book “7 Days of Italian Cooking – Gracie’s Guide to Everyday Meals” highlights the meals mom prepared almost religiously each week. It also allows the reader a look into what it was like growing up in a household shared by my Sicilian Grandparents.

The second book in the series is “Gracie’s Christmas Eve Recipe Book – Night of the 7 Fishes,” is filled with seafood recipes that work year round. It also tries to make sense out of this Sicilian tradition of nothing but seafood on Christmas Eve.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The latest book “The Mediterranean Diet Recipe Book – Gracie’s Guide to Healthy Meals,” is a footprint to traditional foods, an Old World approach to eating and the Mediterranean lifestyle. The inspiration for this book actually came out of the first two. As I started sharing my mom’s recipes I realized that our eating habits were healthy and that no one in my family really ever suffered from being overweight or sickly. We all ate together every night. Mom and dad enjoyed a glass of wine with dinner and after the dishes were done they went out for a walk.

Yeah, the inspiration comes from a desire to return to a more traditional way of living.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I like to write first thing in the morning and in the evenings. It just seems like there is less pressure to get things done, as writing at this point is still a hobby.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Classic writers like Mark Twain, John Steinbeck and Herman Melville. I love good story tellers.

What are you working on now?
My plan is continue with the Gracie’s Italian Living Series and hope to max out with 10 books in the series. The next book, which up to now is untitled, will feature pasta, sauces and pesto. I’m also working with a landscape architect on a book that will focus on the Mediterranean Garden as both an outdoor living space and a food source.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m still struggling with that, but I have a few ideas on how to not only sell more books but also make a little difference in the world we all share. I’ll keep you posted on how that works out.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I consider myself very much a new author and my only advice would be to follow your dream if writing is it and don’t get discouraged. No one every said it would be easy, but if it is your desire that stay with if.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I once had a t-shirt that read “The race is not always to the swift but to those that keep on running.”

What are you reading now?
I love non-fiction history. I can’t get enough of it. I just finished “Unbroken” by Laura Hillenbrand. You may remember her from the Seabiscuit story. It’s a World War II survival story about world class runner, Louis Zamperini.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I love baseball and my all time favorite player was Roger Maris. After the Gracie’s series, I would like to write about Roger and his struggles during the “61 season. Please don’t get me started on this, as I really believe the committee that votes on players no longer eligible needs to put him in the Hall of Fame. That has always been a pet peeve.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Grapes of Wrath

Author Websites and Profiles
Mike Angarola Website
Mike Angarola Amazon Profile

Mike Angarola’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve written three novels and three screenplays. My novel, THE GIRL FROM LONG GUYLAND, is currently for sale on Amazon. It has ranked #1 in Suspense and Women’s Contemporary Fiction during Amazon promotional days. and has over 100,000 downloads.

My screenplays have all been optioned by Hollywood producers and have garnered finalist and semi-finalist wins in the Austin Heart of Film, Southwest Writers, TV Writer, Chesterfield and Writer’s Digest contests. I am currently working on a new novel based on my screenplay, THE M&M BOYS.

Originally from New York, I moved out west to attend college. As an English major, I studied under esteemed authors Rudolfo Anaya and the late Tony Hillerman as well as attended the prestigious Iowa Writers Worksop. I now divide my time between Austin, TX and Taos, NM.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest completed novel is THE GIRL FROM LONG GUYLAND.

MEMOIR MEETS THRILLER: Set against a 1969 psychedelic love-in backdrop, THE GIRL FROM LONG GUYLAND is shared through the eyes of Laila Levin when decades later, an unsolved murder pulls her reluctantly into her past. A dramatic collision of then and now – entwining family, marriage, profession and ethics.

I’m at an age when I’ve begun reflecting on different periods of my life and examining what I’ve learned from them. For me, the late sixties was an aberration from the rest of my relatively conservative lifestyle. I wasn’t near as naïve or crazy as Laila, but I was a quintessential hippie, feminist, and anti-war protestor. Evidently, the novel has struck a cord with other baby boomers thinking about the same things.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write at weird hours and they vary. Sometimes I work at night and continue through sunrise. Other times, I write in the late morning after I’ve exercised. Bottom line, I try and write every day to stay in the rhythm of the project.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
GONE GIRL – Gillian Flynn

THE SECRET HISTORY Donna Tart

THE PRINCE OF TIDES – Pat Conroy

SHE COMES UNDONE – Wally Lamb

COMPROMISING POSITIONS – Susan Isaacs

What are you working on now?
I’m working on a historical novel based on my screenplay THE M&M BOYS:

In the summer of 1961, Marshall Elliot, a young little league player’s joy of making the All-Star team evaporates when his father, too busy with a girlfriend, misses his triumphant opening game, and his mother spirals into a bed-ridden depression.

Then his life suddenly changes when Yankee superstars Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle move next door as they battle to break Babe Ruth’s home run record. The three unlikely friends find solace in each other’s triumphs, frustrations, celebrations and disappointments.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
AMAZON works the best for me.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Study the craft. Take a creative writing novel class. Read books on the craft of writing. Talent and a good story are only part of writing a successful novel. You need to hone your skills and pay your dues. Some book recommendations include:

John Gardner – The Art of Fiction

The Anatomy of a Story – John Truby

Techniques of the Selling Writer – Dwight Swain

A Writer’s Journey – Chris Vogler

Join a quality critique group. Hire a professional proof reader.

Don’t write with your “mother” on your shoulder.

Don’t be afraid to use events from your own life but remember that fiction is different from real life.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Quoting from my first creative novel writing professor, the award-winning author, Rudulfo Anaya, “A writer writes.”

What are you reading now?
And the Mountains Echoed by Khalad Hosseini

What’s next for you as a writer?
I plan to continue writing and indie-publishing novels until I can’t.

What is your favorite book of all time?
Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. I read it at least five times and saw the move many more.

Author Websites and Profiles
Lara Reznik Website
Lara Reznik Amazon Profile

Lara Reznik’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile