Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve always been in love with words – even before I could read them. I first self-published a poetry when I was 13. I had two honorary mentions in contests promoted by a small press in my hometown – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Then, I decided to do some living. I did improv classes, I went college, I read a ton of books… and I wrote a couple of short films. I also moved from Rio to Toronto… and back again.
I wrote Showmance, the first book in a trilogy about a fake celebrity couple and their crazy fans, based on my work with the Twilight and Harry Potter fandoms. I majored in Film and I love marketing for film… so, getting to know the fandoms was something I had to do. It was just as crazy and amazing as it sounds.
I’m also creating a vast urban fantasy universe that will host several of my stories in different genres, from Paranormal Romance to action and adventure!
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The title is Love You to Death. It was inspired by talking my college girlfriends. We were always talking about the guys we were dating and how some of them, as we got to know them, turned out to be completely different people from what we had first imagined. So, I thought “there’s a great plot for a book there. What if the guy is not what the girl imagined at all?”
And the plot just took off from that.
Stories are everywhere… you just have to open your mind to them. You never know where a good story might be lurking, just waiting to be discovered.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really. At least, I think I don’t have unusual writing habits. Maybe all my writing habits are crazy. Let’s see… I like to tape things to the wall in front of my desk… like the plot points of a novel. And I have a couple of go-to albums I use for soundtrack for writing. Regardless of the type of scene or plot – or even genre – I’ll listen to the same songs over and over again. Usually, I listen to Aloe Blacc or Panic! at the Disco or Christina Aguilera. But if I get really stuck, I’ll listen to Britney Spears’ Greatest Hits. It works like a charm every time!
What authors, or books have influenced you?
This is a really hard question to answer because I’ll read anything – which might explain why I love genre hopping so much as a writer. I love Oscar Wilde. I love Neil Gaiman. Gillian Flynn, JK Rowling, Mario Puzo and Agatha Christie. And I know they’re not authors, but I’m a huge fan of Billy Wilder and Alfred Hitchcock. They were master storytellers.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on Darkness Falls, which is one of the stories I’m developing in the urban fantasy universe I’m building. It’s Paranormal Romance with tons intrigue and action. It’s a story of unlikely heroes, damsels who refuse to be in distress, pro-Humanity terrorists and political conflicts solved by fights to the death.
I’m also working on the second book in the Showmance trilogy, Smoke and Mirrors.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
This is will sound like a cliché (and I hate clichés), but writing the best book you can write is still the best strategy I can think of. And write a lot. Then, you can start promoting your work little by little, build from there. But without good books, you can invest a ton in marketing and nothing will happen.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Know what you want from your writing. It’s OK to write for a hobby – if that’s what you want. If you want to be a professional writer, an author, focus on that. Take it as seriously as a day job. Respect your colleagues. And have fun.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
It was something my screenwriting Professor said in college: you’re asking people to devote their time to you, in a way. They’ll give you time and money in exchange for a story. So, make it worth their while. Tell a good story and tell it well.
What are you reading now?
I’m reading three books. I always read three books at a time.
01: A book on self-publishing written by the great Joanna Penn,
02: Lock In, by John Scalzi and
03: A Storm of Swords, by George RR Martin
What’s next for you as a writer?
The release of Love You to Death on November 17th.
And the release of Darkness Falls in January.
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?
Three books? Easy!
One: A survival guide. (Does Bear Grylls write survival guides?); two: A book on how to build rafts ans escape islands; and three: The complete works of Arthur Conan Doyle – because if I get stuck on the island, at least I’ll have good reading material.
Author Websites and Profiles
Vivian Wolkoff Amazon Profile
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