Friday, November 29, 2013

Finding Fiction Friday - Stephen King


Today on Finding Fiction Friday, I am very pleased to welcome Stephen King!  Well, not that one, as he would be the first to tell you.  Stephen H. King is a writer and dean, and making a name for himself with his "Return of the Gods" series.  I hope you enjoy this visit!

A Mississippi native, TOSK (Stephen H. King) was moved in high school entirely against his will from the small town of Corinth to a city he ended up loving in southern California. A series of mostly unexplainable decisions led him through a strange sequence of events beginning at the United States Military Academy, where he double-majored in physics and electrical engineering, followed by a fairly short career as an Infantry officer and then an electronics technician, a product engineer, a carpenter's helper, and an elementary school janitor, before ending up on the faculty of a small college in Anchorage, Alaska.

During those years, he learned that reading science fiction and fantasy allowed him to escape the strangeness into the more understandable worlds crafted by Isaac Asimov, Piers Anthony, Marion Zimmer Bradley, and many other great writers. As time went on he began to mold his own worlds, and thus his novels were born.


Stephen now lives in Tennessee with his wife, daughter, and two white Chihuahuas that seem to enjoy morphing from therapuppies into miniature dragons at the sound of food being opened.

Stephen, please tell us about your journey in writing.  What made you decide to try to be published?

I’ve secretly enjoyed writing for a long time – since my composition course at West Point, I think, where I experienced my first real success at it.  I’ll never forget receiving that essay back, in fact.  We didn’t all have typewriters or computers back then, so everything was handwritten, and I looked down at the scribbled paper and was shocked by the A at the top.  “You – you – you thought it was good?” I remember asking, and I also remember the thrill I got when the professor nodded.

That said, I majored in engineering because, well, you know, I didn’t want to have to ask anybody if they wanted fries with their burger, and that’s what all the humanities majors have to look forward to, or so I’d been told.  Later it was a master’s degree in business, and then I started a Ph.D.  It was during the Ph.D. period that I realized that I was writing an awful lot anyway and figured I oughtta write something fun in my free time.

The dissertation experience isn’t quite as fundamentally frantic of a time as many think.  It’s more an extreme of the old “hurry up and wait” routine.  You rush out a chapter, send it to committee, and then wait for responses.  Once you receive those, after a wait that can be two weeks or more, you work as hard as you can to integrate those “suggestions” into your work as quickly as possible, and then send the results away for another waiting period.

My first two novels were written while waiting on committee.

We know what your bio says.  Tell us one thing about yourself that you think might surprise us.

Like many creative writers, I found myself gravitating toward a day-job career in teaching.  Unlike many creative writers, I had a mother who threatened to disinherit me if I ever became a teacher.  I did it anyway, but because I was a college teacher who made enough money to buy groceries and pay rent at the same time, it was okay with her.

Do you remember what it was like, the feeling you had when you learned the first novel in your “Return of the Gods” series was out there in the world?

Absolutely.  It’s an incredible feeling.  I had the cover on my cell phone, and everybody at work started complaining after a while because I’d break off in the middle of college-related discussions and ask if they’d seen my new book cover yet.  It really is that exciting.  And, um, occupationally hazardous, if you’re not careful.

Tell us a bit about “Return of the Gods”.  What’s it about, and what inspired it?

The novel, and the series, is, like so many other writers’ first works, sort of a quasi-autobiography.  It’s fantasy, of course, but I kinda wrote myself, personality-wise, into the main male character and, similarly, my wife into the protagonist.  I’ll leave it as an exercise for the reader to determine if I wrote anybody into the role of antagonist.

The first book is about Crystal, a college dean’s wife who survives a cataclysm (hence the name of the novel) through the powers of her husband, who exposes himself at that time as the God of War.  While Crystal comes to deal with the lie she’s been living, her husband’s ex-wife, the Goddess of Love, steps in and wants her old hubby back.

The remaining two books of the series, Ascension and Deception, take the story farther, introducing an entire pantheon of deities based loosely on the Greco-Roman model but also incorporating Norse and, in the third book, some of the Eastern gods.

What do you have coming up next?

My new series is the Dragon Queen saga.  In the first book a young girl reunites with her long-lost father and discovers that it is her destiny to be the queen of the elves.  It’s completed, and I’m deciding which publishing path to take with it while I write the second book, in which the future queen of the elves must undertake a dream quest in order to be completely accepted into elf society.

If there is one character you’ve written or are writing that you would really like people to meet, who would it be?

Gosh, that’s a tough one.  I think you really have to consider a character interesting and either very likeable, or very unlikeable, to write hundreds of thousands of words about their exploits.  In my first series, I think the God of War is probably the least interesting character, which was interesting to me because I started out considering him to be the protagonist.  His wife, Crystal, soon became the actual, obvious, protagonist, and she’s at the top of my list for people to meet.  Believe it or not, though, Aphrodite’s development over the series makes her a fascinating character as well.

That said, my current protagonist, Alyssa, is really, really cool.  She’s half smartass, half Mississippi girl, and all sass.  It’s not really surprising that the daughter of the king of the elves would be feisty, but as I’ve written the words out, she’s developed a personality that has blossomed so much that it has surprised even me.  I can’t wait till those books come out so you can meet her.

What other ideas do you have bouncing around in your head?

That’s part of the problem; I have too many ideas bouncing around to even really describe in detail, much less to make into books.  I have a sci fi work that was my first failed NaNo project; I’ve fixed what is effectively the first quarter of the story, and now I need to finish it.  As are most sci fi books, it’s a bit of a love story featuring a girl, a guy, and a bug.  I’m also working on a more serious novel about life in the country, with bacon.

What about being published and the book industry in general has most surprised you?

It didn’t solve my problems.  In fact, it made more.  When the publisher sent me the acceptance note, I rejoiced.  I started envisioning all of my student loans paid off and my family living in a great big home where I had my own room that could be entirely devoted to writing.  Little did I know that a major dispute over artwork would cause me to follow my own self-publishing path just a few months later.

You are also the dean of a university.  Do you still get to work with students much? How has that whole life experience been for you?

Every day, but I have to point out that for most college students, if the dean knows your name, you’re in trouble.  At the very small campuses where I worked in both Biloxi and Richmond, there wasn’t a lot of structure built up between the students and me, and so I worked with students frequently.  The bigger campus where I work now has more levels of education administration between us, so I spend more time there working with faculty, program directors, and associate deans.

That said, if it weren’t for the students, my job wouldn’t be nearly as awesome.

I worried that I was leaving teaching behind when I became a dean 8 years ago, but it’s turned out that I’m still a frequent teacher.  Now, though, I spend most of my time teaching faculty and other education administrators.

I have to ask, is it a good thing to share a name with that “other” Stephen King?

Absolutely!  And, absolutely not!  It’s mixed.  My name makes for an immediate talking point with people.  I always start my speeches to new students with “not the one who writes those books.”  They chuckle, the ice is broken, and I can then go on with telling them that they need to keep their butts in class.  Some jokes get kind of old, but to be honest, it’s good to have a way to initiate a smile at the beginning of every meeting.

I don’t know if it’s helped my books, though, and I’m okay with that.  Initially I introduced myself to the writing world under a pseudonym, but a few agents said, “Meh, why don’t you just use your name?”  It was easier that way, not having to re-create an identity with all my friends who already knew me as Stephen.  I used my middle initial, thinking that any of that “other” Stephen King’s fans would know his middle initial is E while mine is H.  Then I got a couple of reviews – 3 stars out of 5 – that said, in effect, “it’s a good book but he’s not Stephen King.”  Apparently, then, I was wrong in that thinking.

I tried going by my acronym: TOSK (The Other Stephen King).  But once again, nobody knew me as that; everybody who knew me, knew me as Stephen H. King.  So I shrugged, redid all my covers, and went back to just using my name.

To close the interview, I have ten questions for you, plus one.  Here they go!

  1. What is your favorite word? – Tough question.  I have so many favorites, and when none of those will do I’m known for making one up.  Authorpreneur, for example, is one I melded into being.  My favorite real word, though, is probably onomatopoeia.  It’s got a cool meaning – a word that sounds like what it means, which is both practical and awesome – and it’s both fun to say and to spell.  I know it makes me a bit of a word nerd, but I love the four-vowel sing-song combo at the end.
  2. What is your least favorite word?  Very.  It’s very repetitive in my early first drafts.  It took me way too long to build up a good resistance to its use.  
  3. What turns you on?  An educated inquisitiveness and the desire to use it.
  4. What turns you off? Someone who knows what he/she knows regardless of any evidence to the contrary.
  5. What sound or noise do you love? The early morning sounds of the deep woods.  That, and/or a coffee pot gurgling to life.
  6. What sound or noise do you hate? The early morning sounds of a busy city.
  7. What is your favorite curse word?  Crap.  I know, it’s not really a curse word according to everybody, but that “walking the edge” feeling is why I love it so much.  
  8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?  Historian / history teacher.  I know, I was a good business and technology teacher, but history fascinates the crap (see?) out of me, and so many history teachers and books bludgeon the crap out of their students, resulting in too many people hating the topic.  If we just taught history from a socioeconomic point of view and forgot all the crappy dates, it would be so much better.  Oh, that, or chef.  I love cooking; it’s like real-life magic and makes people feel good.
  9. What profession would you not like to do? Just about anything boring and repetitive.  My first real job after I left the Army was warehouse supervisor, and though I appreciate and applaud the efforts of the folks who worked for me in that job, I couldn’t do what they did.  I mean, yeah, I could show somebody how to look at the order and pick two of this product or three of this other one, but if I had to do it for eight hours a day, five days a week, I would probably go insane.
  10. If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?  “C’mon in, man, the ale is flowing freely, and you never have to worry about your liver again.”
  11. What question have you never been asked, that you wish someone would ask you?  “How’d you earn your first million bucks?” would be a nice start, but I’m not to that point yet.  

Stephen, thanks so much for spending time with us.  Can you let us know where to follow you, and where we can go to purchase your work?

Absolutely!  My author web site is located at http://www.theotherstephenking.com/, and on it you can always find news, links to my works, a link to my blog (http://theotherstephenkingonwriting.blogspot.com), and also my daughter’s beautiful artwork, some of which graces a few covers of mine.

On Facebook, you can find me at http://www.facebook.com/AuthorStephenHKing, and my Twitter account is @skingcharter.  Not that, um, I Tweet very much; I really don’t.  I used to be in an author’s collective where we all Tweeted each other’s stuff several times a week, and I found that pretty annoying.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patricia, Dawn, and I can also be followed here:    Facebook              Twitter

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rudy and Trish are the main characters in Patricia and my published short stories in the "Evernight: Romance in a World of Darkness" anthologies.  You can get to know them as well as get 23 other great stories!  Here's where you can find them:

Evernight Volume 1:   Amazon       XoXo          ARe

Evernight Volume 2:   Amazon       XoXo          ARe



Friday, November 22, 2013

Finding Fiction Friday - Firebrand Publishing COO Amy Cancryn


After a one-week break, Finding Fiction Friday is returning with a rare treat.  Instead of a new author, today we are pleased to welcome the COO of Firebrand Publishing, Amy Cancryn!  Firebrand presents a little bit different business model than either traditional publishing or vanity publishing.  Whether you are an author or a reader, I hope you will enjoy getting to know Amy and her vision.  First, a brief bio ...

Amy Cancryn is a little introverted, but fun (when she decides to loosen up a bit.) She fell in love with reading in elementary school and continued to devour books whether she worked for a toy store, retail clothing store, International Banking Company, sold cars or cosmetics.
Amy has a seven year old daughter who is going on sixteen, and an almost two year old son who thinks he's mini Thor. Amy lives with her wonderful husband Gregory, who has to put up with Amy constantly forgetting their wedding anniversary. (He forgets too.)
Amy works with her husband (and no, neither of them have tried to kill the other...yet) in a suburb outside of Atlanta, where they currently live.
Her first children's book, Hope Learns To Jump Rope, releases November 2013.
Amy, how did you get started in the publishing business?

Three years ago I finished my third novel and wanted to get it published. I had no idea where to start.
I started doing research by googling every idea or question that came to me. I started to familiarize myself with the steps needed to get published.
To get published I had to find a literary agent, they would have to sell my novel and I would then wait to get published.
All the research led me to the conclusion it would take me between 5 - 10 years of querying, writing, etc, before I would possibly get published. The first-time authors who do get published right away are few.
I also researched self-publishing and decided that was the right path for me.
It was a ton of work, but I was able to publish my first book in 2011. It came out well, and my book sold well.
Self-publishing is a lot of work.
I published a few more books for close friends and realized I could help authors publish their books.
I felt authors should be able to experience the benefit and opportunity that self-publishing offers whether they want to put in the time to learn and do it themselves.
So a group of us created Firebrand Publishing, the “publishing house” for indie authors.
We are their production house.
Authors come to use and we produce their book to their specification.
Hassle free self publishing.
What genres does Firebrand Publishing work with?

Firebrand Publishing publishes all genre's.
Thriller, Romance, Action, Horror, New Adult, Young Adult, Kid Lit, Children's picture books, Christian, everything.
We have not been presented with a story or genre we will not publish. However, there are a few caveats, Firebrand Publishing will not publish. Books that glorify rape, incest, bestiality and or hate type books and stories.
Tell us a bit about the philosophy behind Firebrand.  What makes it special, to you?

"Ebooks for dough, Print for show."
Ebooks are the future. With ebooks, self publishers can compete alongside the biggest names in publishing and gain success.
The profits from publishing will come from ebooks.
All of our packages start with ebooks. Ebooks are the default.
With ebooks and professional publishing of books, we feel our authors will recoup the investment made publishing their books, within 3-6 months, many times sooner.
Ebooks are forever, like diamonds :)  So our authors continue to earn profits and royalties long after they have made back the investment from one of our packages.
Professional book publishing, 100% royalties. We feel authors deserve to have their work published, and published to the highest standard. So much so, that we maintain a 100% money back guarantee.
We work until our authors are thrilled with each phase of the book production process.
If they aren't happy we will make as many revisions as necessary. Our authors have the final say.
At Firebrand Publishing, we feel, if you pay to publish your book, you should receive all profits from the sale of your book.
It's a simple concept, but everyone wants a piece of your royalties. Not us.
We don't understand the concept of accepting payment to publish a book AND taking 30-45% of royalties. We feel that's a bad deal for authors.
So,
100% royalties, Professional book publishing with a 100% money back if you are not happy with your book.
If you could tell prospective authors one thing to NOT do, what would it be?

Don't give up. Keep going. You will get there. Never ever ever give up your dream of writing or publishing your book.
People want to read it, people will love it. You are good enough and it matters what you write.
Do you have any big news you’d like to share about Firebrand Publishing?  Any big stuff happening in the next few weeks or months?

At Firebrand Publishing, we are in the process of publishing 8 books in the next 2 months. We are over the moon ( cliche? :) )
We are very excited to present the work of our authors to the world.
The first is a children's picture book, Hope Learns to Jump Rope, by me, Amy Cancryn, which releases November 26, 2013.
The next is a cute story about a little boy and a lamp (Larry the Lamp) by Andy Fox.
A memoir about a woman who was abandoned by her mother at an early age and how she has learned to cope called, Finding Anna.
We have a Thriller/Horror story about a young twenty-something girl who takes a drug at a party and is never ever the same again called Dream Slave.
An erotica called Spark (3 book series). I'll leave the description of that one out. This seems like a family blog :) Let’s just say, it’s very hot and exciting.
A New adult story about a journalism student that gets too close to the wrong people.
A follow up to Hope Learns to Jump Rope.
And a beginner chapter book about two families that go on vacation to Paris and the mayhem that ensues.
...how many is that (counts fingers. I write, not that good at math)
I think that's all of them.
Plus we speak to prospective authors daily.
Are there any recent developments in the publishing industry that have either surprised or inspired you?

I am surprised at the speed of change in the industry. What worked 6 months ago, may not work now. For instance amazon kdp select, when it first came to be, many authors were successful, now the kdp program is so saturated, success with it is a hit or miss.
I am surprised about the merging in publishing. I am surprised that Penguin bought author solutions.
I am surprised that self publishing has gained such prominence in the last few years.
I love the fact that self published authors are finally earning a good living off the creativity of their work. We want to help more authors reach that level.
To close the interview, I have ten questions for you, plus one.  Here they go!

  1. What is your favorite word? Success
  2. What is your least favorite word? Can't
  3. What turns you on? Porn. Clean version "Hard work and perseverance"
  4. What turns you off? Laziness"
  5. What sound or noise do you love? The laughter of my husband and kids
  6. What sound or noise do you hate? Screeching
  7. What is your favorite curse word? Fuck
  8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? Engineer, OBGYN, Dancer in a dance troupe, Movie producer, Beyonce
  9. What profession would you not like to do? A port-o-potty worker. The person who cleans out the port-o-potties. I have a phobia of public restrooms.
  10. If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates? "Oh, you look like you've lost weight. Have you been working out?" while Frank Sinatra croons  "I did it my way"
  11. What question have you never been asked, that you wish someone would ask you? Can you hold this 10 million dollars for me?

Amy, thanks so much for spending time with us.  Can you let us know where to follow Firebrand Publishing?

Follow us on TwitterFacebookwww.firebrandpublishing.com or call us 888-338-2767.
Thank you for having me, this has been fun. If your readers have any questions, I'll be here all day to answer them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patricia, Dawn, and I can also be followed here:    Facebook              Twitter

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rudy and Trish are the main characters in Patricia and my published short stories in the "Evernight: Romance in a World of Darkness" anthologies.  You can get to know them as well as get 23 other great stories!  Here's where you can find them:

Evernight Volume 1:   Amazon       XoXo          ARe

Evernight Volume 2:   Amazon       XoXo          ARe


Friday, November 8, 2013

Finding Fiction Friday - A.B. Shepherd


I love science fiction!  And as such, I am very pleased to have writer A.B. Shepherd here with us today.  Her first publication is the science fiction story "Lifeboat", but as you will see she has more going on than just that.

"Never stop dreaming or reading." - A.B. Shepherd

A.B. Shepherd grew up in Lansing, Michigan, but moved to Australia in 2009. She now lives in the Limestone Coast region of South Australia, with her husband and their imaginary friends. She can usually be found seaside at Port MacDonnell, or lost in a fantasy world.

"Lifeboat" is her debut novel. "The Beacon", her second novel, has an anticipated release date of Christmas 2013.

A.B., please tell us about your journey in writing.  What made you decide to try to be published?
                                                                                          
My journey has been a long one. I’ve always wanted to write, yet I always thought I had to have the whole story plotted out beforehand. That led to many stops and starts over the years because I just couldn’t figure out where to go. Basically, I got in my own way. Last year I discovered NaNoWriMo and decided to try something new - writing without plotting the entire story in advance. I “pantsed” it. I loved the experience and learned so much about myself and my writing in the process. Lifeboat is the end result of that experience.

We know what your bio says.  Tell us one thing about yourself that you think might surprise us.

Okay, here’s something that is not obvious based on my bio. I met my Australian husband online and moved here to marry him after only having spent 12 days together physically. How’s that? We did have a three year online relationship before that. Are you shocked? While I recommend doing it with eyes wide open, sometimes in life you just have to take a risk.

Do you remember what it was like, the feeling you had when you learned your first novel “Lifeboat” was out there in the world?

Honestly? It wasn’t the feeling when I learned it was out there, it was when the first person bought it. I cried. It was overwhelming. I thought, wow - this is real. I can call myself a writer now.

Tell us a bit about your story in “Lifeboat”.

Lifeboat is an alien abduction story that is a bit different than most. It is highly character driven. Cassie is in a bad place in her life. She’s lost her husband and young son and is extremely depressed. Her life has no focus. One night she sees a UFO and she becomes obsessed with them. She meets a couple of Ufologists and they become friends. But one fateful night she is abducted - or rescued - by the UFO because natural disasters have destroyed the Earth. She and some others are taken to a  new world where the human race can start again. But not everything is as it seems and people start disappearing. It’s a bit dark. A bit suspenseful. And highly entertaining. So far my readers have reported really enjoying it.

What do you have coming up next?

Something a little bit different than Lifeboat. I am about to release my second book on December 1st. It is also suspenseful and a little dark, but it is not science fiction and there are no aliens. It is a psychological thriller - and a novella. It is called The Beacon. I hope you will keep an eye out for it.

If there is one character you’ve written or are writing that you would really like people to meet, who would it be?

Oh boy. You know that is a really tough question Aaron. I think I would really like to meet MOST of my characters, except for one in The Beacon that I find a little scary. Okay, well there might be a couple in Lifeboat that are a bit scary for me as well. Hmmm.

What other ideas do you have bouncing around in your head?

I have a couple of other works in progress. One that I’ve kind of put on hold which is another psychological thriller, and the one I’m most excited about right now, which is a sequel to Lifeboat. When I finished Lifeboat I felt it was a stand-alone book and there was no way for me to write a sequel and I held onto that belief for a long time. I honestly think I was grieving the end of the book and wouldn’t let myself see beyond that. But not too long ago I came up with an idea for a sequel and I am really eager get those ideas written so I can share them with all the wonderful people who begged me for a sequel after they finished reading Lifeboat.

What about being published and the book industry in general has most surprised you?

Since I am self-published I will tell you that what I have found most surprising is how hard it is to get the word out about my book(s). I’ve had such great feedback and I think many people would enjoy them. It’s just a matter of helping those people find the book(s), and as a self-published author all the marketing falls on my shoulders. It is a part of the business I don’t enjoy much. I like the writing part best.

What other things besides writing do you have going on that keep you busy?

Besides writing? So my blog and my writing group don’t count. Okay, well I do a little bit of fiber crafting, and I spend a lot of time with my husband, and less time with family and friends. We live about 30- minutes away from the Southern Ocean and we like to spend time down there on the coast when the weather is nice. It is a special place for us. I like my life. It’s a good one.

To close the interview, I have ten questions for you, plus one.  Here they go!
  1. What is your favorite word? Periwinkle. I just like the way it sounds.
  2. What is your least favorite word? Impossible.
  3. What turns you on? Readers who tell me what they think of my writing - even if they don’t like it.
  4. What turns you off? Marketing my book(s).
  5. What sound or noise do you love? Laughter - especially my husband’s.
  6. What sound or noise do you hate? Almost everything mechanical.
  7. What is your favorite curse word? Fuck. I know it is pretty crude, but sometimes there is just no better word.
  8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? I love music. I’d  love to be a singer. I’m not good enough though.
  9. What profession would you not like to do? Plumbing. Ick.
  10. If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates? All the people you love are here waiting for you.
  11. What question have you never been asked, that you wish someone would ask you? I’m cheating a little on this one, because I have been asked it before but it’s been over 30 years ago. My brother used to ask me to sing for him while he played his guitar. He passed away, but I wish someone would ask me to sing for them.

A.B., thanks so much for spending time with us.  Can you let us know where to follow you, and where we can go to purchase your work?

You can catch me on my blog ... on Facebook ... or on Twitter 

And you can get Lifeboat now (and soon The Beacon) on Amazon in Trade paperback, Large print paperback, or Kindle.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patricia, Dawn, and I can also be followed here:    Facebook              Twitter

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rudy and Trish are the main characters in Patricia and my published short stories in the "Evernight: Romance in a World of Darkness" anthologies.  You can get to know them as well as get 23 other great stories!  Here's where you can find them:

Evernight Volume 1:   Amazon       XoXo          ARe

Evernight Volume 2:   Amazon       XoXo          ARe

Friday, November 1, 2013

Finding Fiction Friday - Haven Malone


I'm very pleased to introduce you to Haven Malone!  I met Haven online through our mutual friend, Denyse Bridger, I'm pretty sure before she was published.  So I'm very excited to add her to the long list of interviewees we have had here!  First, a little about her ...

Hi everyone. I am a mother of 3 daughters and 5 grandchildren. I am retired now with plenty of time on my hands. I pass a lot of time on facebook but also like to go to certain websites as well. I usually spend time with my grandchildren about every two weeks or so. They and my daughters are my life. Without them, I am nothing.  

Haven, please tell us about your journey to published writing.  What made you move in this direction?  Did you have someone encouraging you?

I can't say that it was  really a journey to published writing. I started through the encouragement of a good friend and mentor, Denyse Bridger. She encouraged me and helped me to write a  short story for an anthology. I never really expected to end up with a published story but Denyse was able to get me in a book with four other authors. That's where the ball started. I had lots of ideas in my head that I hope to spin into a book of my own.

We know what your bio says.  Tell us one thing about yourself that you think might surprise us.

I think the one thing that surprises people the most about me is that I am a 61 year old grandmother who enjoys reading and trying my hand at writing erotica.

Haven's story in this anthology is
published under the name Susan Van Nort
Do you remember what it was like, the feeling you had when you learned your first work was out there in the world?

When I was told that my story was picked for publication, I was ecstatic. I found out later in the evening and had to call my girls and tell them that their mother was about to become a published author. We were all screaming! Of course, it wasn't until the story was about to released to the public that I got very nervous and hoped that those who read it would not hate it!

Tell us a bit about your story in the anthology “Lost to the Night 2”.
             
That story is entitled The Ghostly Story and is about a young woman who inherits a house from an uncle that is occupied by several ghosts. It's all about her journey to deal with a situation that she had never encountered before.


What about your other publications?

I only have one other published story and it's titled "Victoria's Haunting." It's a paranormal story of love and loss.

If there is one character you’ve written or are writing that you would really like people to meet, who would it be?

I am currently working on a story entitled The White Queen. The lead character is Elissa and her daughter is Corinna. I plan to develop Corinna into a young woman of determination and think she would be the character I would want people to meet just because of her strength and determination to live her life her way.

What do you have coming up next?

I am currently working on a story with another author. The title is Murder in Wonderland and is based on the characters from the classic Alice in Wonderland but with a twist. We hope that this will published within the next six months.

What other ideas do you have bouncing around in your head?

Other ideas include expanding on short story I have entered into a contest called "The Ghost of Pere Cheney" and a Christmas story entitled "The Heart of Christmas."

What about being published and the book industry in general has most surprised you?

I guess the most surprising is the amount of self published in the market. I love that authors have this ability when they get far too many rejection letters. For me, Victoria's Haunting is a self published and I did that just to see where it would go. Unfortunately, it has not done much. So, likely next time I am ready to publish, I will send to as many publishers as necessary to see that happen.

What other things besides writing do you have going on that keep you busy?

Well, outside of spending time with my family, I enjoy watching hockey and the many new paranormal shows on television this season. I also like to cook for myself and my family.

To close the interview, I have ten questions for you, plus one.  Here they go!

  1. What is your favorite word?  There are several that include publish, author, story, love, friendship, and many others really.
  2. What is your least favorite word?  Anything vulgar but I really hate the f word! Although I will admit I have used it a few times in my life.
  3. What turns you on?  A book that catches me in the very beginning and I have trouble putting it down.
  4. What turns you off? A book too full of sexual encounters. I want to see a plot.
  5. What sound or noise do you love?  I love piano music. It helps me think and relax.
  6. What sound or noise do you hate?  Someone playing their music so loud that all you can hear is the bass. 
  7. What is your favorite curse word?  I don't have a favorite curse word.
  8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?  Anything public related.  Maybe a greeter for Walmart.
  9. What profession would you not like to do? The job I did for more than 20 years, housekeeping.
  10. If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?  Come right in, the love of your life has been waiting for you.
  11. What question have you never been asked, that you wish someone would ask you?  Never really been asked any questions until now. So, I don't know of any I wish were asked of me.

Haven, thanks so much for spending time with us.  Can you let us know where to follow you, and where we can go to purchase your work?

It's been a pleasure spending time with you Aaron. Thank you so much for having me.

My links are:

Blog       Facebook       Twitter       Google+

Lost to the Night 2:  Amazon    All Romance

Victoria's Haunting:  Amazon

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patricia, Dawn, and I can also be followed here:    Facebook              Twitter

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rudy and Trish are the main characters in Patricia and my published short stories in the "Evernight: Romance in a World of Darkness" anthologies.  You can get to know them as well as get 23 other great stories!  Here's where you can find them:

Evernight Volume 1:   Amazon       XoXo          ARe

Evernight Volume 2:   Amazon       XoXo          ARe