Interview with Dawné Dominique, Author of The First Series

A multi-published and award-nominated author of paranormal erotic romance and fantasy, Dawné Dominique's novels instantly hook readers until that last page is read.

Although published in the US, she's a Canadian author through and through. The second novel of her vampire series, Dark Diary, II: The First, is set in Winnipeg, Manitoba, where she resides with her family, and Gunkers, a stray cat she recently saved, and Chumbly, their newest addition to the feline household.

She embraces life with one simple rule: “Everything in life happens for a reason, be it good or bad, and it’s because of this we learn to never take anything for granted.”

Drop by to pay her visit at: www.dawnedominique.com or www.DusktildawnDesigns.com.

Where did you grow up?

I was born in a small Ontario town called Alison Simcoe Co. People used to ask me if I was born in a baby factory. *chuckles* It was an army base way back when. My sister and I were the first set of twins born there. For the record, she's forty-five minutes older than I am. That's why our mom likes her more. *smiles*

What is your fondest childhood memory?

The very first time I ever saw my mom and dad kiss. I was about twelve years old, and I've never forgotten it.

When did you begin writing?

Since I was old enough to hold a crayon, then I'd draw pictures to go with the stories, but it wasn't until the late 1990's early 2000's, after I joined a writing site that I seriously began to hone my craft.

Do you write during the day, at night or whenever you can sneak a few moments?

Well, I'm a contracted paralegal three days a week, and a cover artist for the rest. I write primarily at night because that's when my mind is the most creative. The week leading up to a full moon, my creativeness explodes. Whether it's writing or cover art, it doesn't matter. Some people have called me a were-author. *blushes*

What is this book about?

Crimson Cries is my most recent release and the fourth novel in my vampire series called The First. It blends biblical facts with fiction to give readers a very logical explanation as to where and how the first vampires and wolves came to be. Eden's Hell, the novel that begins the series, was nominated for an EPIC because of its uniqueness from all the other vampire novels out there. This series is definitely not your ordinary bloodsucking series.

What inspired you to write it?

You may get a chuckle out of this, but I entered a writing contest. The prompt was to write a chapter length story about a "unique" vampire. I won the contest, but every critique I received said "it's too short." Thus, Daniella Rolfe was born. She doesn't have to feed every night like other vamps. Only once a month. Like a woman's period, instead of expelling blood, she has to replace hers. So she hunts for a large man for one night of suck and, well, you know. It is erotica after all. Daniella has three days in which to do so. If she doesn't, the hunger can lead to blood madness wherein she risks losing herself in the feeding and can rip the victim apart. Daniella kills, but she's discriminate about who lives and who dies.

Who is your biggest supporter?

I have some very dear friends who have been with me right from the beginning. My associate at the office hadn't read a book since she was a junior high student. After she picked up my series, she told me that it has prompted her to begin reading again, except... she hasn't found an author she likes as much as me. That statement has had a profound effect on me. I lost my big brother a couple of years back. After he died, my joy and love for writing disappeared into sadness. She brought me out of my despair in more ways than one.

Are you a member of a critique group? If no, who provides feedback on your work?

Indeed, I am. There was a time I also moderated a Young Adult novel group in there, but my time right now is too consumed with my own writing and my cover art business.

Who is your favorite author?

I have a lot of them, but J.R. Tolkien and Anne Rice are two of my favorites.

Do you have an agent or are you looking for one?

I don't have an agent. I shopped around for one for a time, but didn't really pursue it too strongly. I should have. I'm a Canadian author published in the US. Everything I do here, such as book signings,promotions, etc., I have to do on my own. It would be nice to have some clout and backup.

Was the road to publication smooth sailing or a bumpy ride?

My very first two submissions to publishers were accepted. That was the smooth part of the ride. However, one of those publishers ended up being absolutely horrid. The experience left me scarred for life. It's also a big reason as to why I became a cover artist too. But I believe that everything that happens in life, be it good or bad, happens for a reason. Even though it was a terrible ride, I learned so much about the publishing business. In the end, it was a great experience, if that makes any sense.

If you knew then, what you know now, is there anything you would have done differently?

The good, the bad and the ugly...it's all a learning curve, and I wouldn't change it for the world. I've met some wonderful authors and publishers along the way, and I've learned invaluable lessons.

Where can readers purchase a copy of your book?

You can find my books at my publisher, Purple Sword Publications, at 
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Dawn%C3%A9-Dominique/e/B003BE8MMK/

Barnes & Noble:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/dawne-dominique

(please note that B&N also lists many books that I've done the author's cover art, but I didn't write them, I swear)

Do you have a video trailer to promote your book? If yes, where can readers find it?

Absolutely.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vSbqa4bHtc&feature=youtu.be


What is the best investment you have made in promoting your book?

I'm still working on that. Between my paralegal job and my cover business, I don't have a lot of time to promote myself, so Pump Up Your Book may turn out to be my best investment. *crosses fingers & toes*

What is one piece of advice you would like to share with aspiring authors everywhere?

Never give up. Be unique. And grow thick skin. You're going to need it.

What is up next for you?

This May or June, I'll be releasing a fantasy novel that I wrote many moons ago called The Tears of San'Ferath. It's about a land called Allanoria, with Druid Knights (who are good) and Nongéva Druids (who are evil). When the mage'ic begins to disappear because of the evil taint left by the Nongévas dark mage'ic, all the mage'ical creatures begin to die. When the last Druid Knight invokes a spell called The Undying Sleep on San'Ferath, the king of dragons who, incidentally, is the last dragon left, they do so in the hope of preserving whatever mage'ic is left in Allanoria. Then an illness called the Blue Fever sweeps through the lands and begins wiping out the humans. The prophesy of "The Cleansing" has begun.

Some five hundred years later, a freelance mercenary and dancer hold the key to restoring Allanoria's mage'ic, but it's a Nongéva Druid who awakens more than he bargained for.

For the record, there's no erotica in it. ; )

Is there anything you would like to add?

A HUGE thank you for having me here today. ☺

Book Spotlight: Semi-Coma: Evolution of My Intermittent Consciousness by Gulten Dye

This book is about self-discovery and the journey that awakened me to the many facets of life. The road hasn’t always been easy with its tolls and junctions. It’s about my struggle to discover who I really am, what I believe in and how I’ve arrived at a place where I am able to appreciate myself and my surroundings.

Most of my life I lived in a state of arrested consciousness without being aware of it. Then one day out of nowhere my eyes opened just enough for me to question my way of living and my state of mind. That was the day questions started to arrive. They were nothing like the questions I had before. As if they weren’t even questions they were an unraveling string of realizations followed by overwhelming sorrow. How could I have lived my life as if I was in a semi coma and in turn induce my own suffering?

Of course in the beginning of seeing I didn’t realize that my eyes would open slightly from time to time to give me an illusion of happiness, but because I had no idea what true happiness was I would drift back to my state of familiarity. I lived my life mostly on an automatic life-sustaining machine by my body without my mind interfering with it.

It is my hope that the stories I share with you will somehow touch your heart, perhaps crack open a door and shine a light for you to embark on your own quest of self-discovery. I don’t presume to have all the answers; I don’t even know all the questions. At the very least, I am seeking to understand and allow life to happen; learning to take responsibility and ownership of myself and my actions, and appreciating all that is.
Read the chapters, each on its own. As you move through them, you will uncover my intermittent consciousness as I explore my thoughts or beliefs and might be able to even get a glimpse of my evolution along the way.

I am blessed to have had so many people touch my life and, knowingly or unknowingly, helped me on my journey. I have come to realize that because we are all one, that anything I come to know and am willing to share with others affects all of us in a positive way. With great humility, I open up my imperfect, yet perfect, life for you to walk beside me. I am forever grateful and honored.

PURCHASE HERE!

Gulten Dye was born and raised in a small town in Turkey and moved with her family to Istanbul as a

small child.  It was there that she earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing, and worked as a nurse at a local hospital before moving to the Philippines with her boyfriend.

After being there a little over a year, they got married and a short while after that moved to Shreveport, Louisiana where she immediately began her studies to be able to work as a Registered Nurse. While studying for her boards, she was allowed to work as a scrub technician in an operating room at a nearby surgery center. She passed her boards and worked in an operating room for many years before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada there she worked at a busy University Medical Trauma Center as a staff nurse for several years until she earned the position of Charge Nurse.

By 2001, she was divorced and living with her two young sons.  Her desire to make more money became her impetus to start her own business, which soon became her sole source of income as her success grew.  She has never looked back.

Gulten found her talent and passion in creating one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces and sold them to well-known people, such as Celine Dion, Rachel Ray and Mary Higgins Clark.  She became an international success when her work showed on Entertainment Tonight and Insider and was for sale in the high-end casinos in Las Vegas and on high-end cruise liners. She then created a jewelry line called Metamorphosis, a line of interchangeable jewelry that brought her even greater success.

Gulten is also an author and self- published her first book Semi Coma – Evolution of my Intermittent Consciousness in 2011, currently selling on all digital media as well as in hard copy.  Her second book “The Missing Link” is awaiting publication in 2013.

In 2013, she opened her new concept store where she not only sells her own designs, but includes many local artists of different medium, including a local authors section.  In turn for being able to sell their artwork in her store, all artists have agreed to teach others their medium for the future generation free thinkers.
Gulten lives and creates in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Visit her website at www.gultendye.com.

Book Spotlight: Fly Away by Kristin Hannah

As teenagers in the seventies, Tully Hart and Kate Mularky were inseparable. Tully, with her make-up and her halter tops, was the coolest girl in school. Kate, with her glasses and her high water jeans, was the geeky outsider. But chance and circumstance brought them together and through the decades they were devoted to each other. This was the story of Tully and Kate which began on a quiet street called Firefly Lane. Best friends forever.

But sometimes stories end, and we have to find a way to begin again.

Now, years later, Tully is a woman trying to deal with the loss of her best friend. She wants to fulfill her promise to Kate—to be there for Kate’s children, but it’s a promise she has no idea how to carry out. What does brash, lonely, ambitious Tully know about being part of a family?

Kate's daughter, sixteen-year-old Marah Ryan, is as lost in her grief as Tully is...until she falls in love with a young man who makes her smile again and leads her into his dangerous, shadowy world.

Tully's mother, Dorothy Hart, is an unstable woman who abandoned her child too many times in the past and ultimately broke her heart. Now, when Tully is in danger of losing everything and is more vulnerable and alone than she’s been since she put those rough childhood years behind her, Dorothy returns once more, desperate for another chance to be a good mother. But can she be trusted this time? To help her daughter, Dorothy must face her darkest fears and reveal the terrible secret in her past—only then can she become the mother her wounded daughter needs.

In Fly Away, tragedy will bring these three women together and set them on a poignant, powerful journey of redemption. Each has lost her way and they will need each other—and maybe a miracle—to transform their lives…

Book excerpt:

Chapter One
September 2, 2010
10:14 pm

She felt a little woozy. It was nice, like being wrapped in a warm-from-the-dryer blanket. But when she came to, and saw where she was, it wasn't so nice.

She was sitting on a closed toilet seat in a restroom stall, slumped over, with tears drying on her cheeks. How long had she been here? She got slowly to her feet and left the bathroom, pushing her way through the theater's crowded lobby, ignoring the judgmental looks cast her way by the beautiful people drinking champagne beneath a glittering, nineteenth century chandelier. The movie must be over.

Outside, she kicked her ridiculous patent leather pumps into the shadows. In her expensive black nylons, she walked in the spitting rain down the dirty Seattle sidewalk toward home.

A bright pink Martini Bar sign caught her attention. A few people were clustered together outside the front door, smoking and talking beneath a protective overhang.

Even as she vowed to pass by, she found herself turning, reaching for the door, going inside. She slipped into the dark, crowded interior and headed straight for the long, mahogany bar.

"What can I get for you?" asked a thin, artsy-looking man with hair the color of a tangerine and more hardware on his face than Sears carried in the nuts and bolts aisle.

"Tequila straight shot," she said.

She drank the first shot and ordered another. The loud music comforted her. She drank another straight shot and swayed to the beat. All around her people were talking and laughing. It felt a little like she was part of all that activity.

A man in an expensive Italian suit sidled up beside her. He was tall and obviously fit, with blond hair that had been carefully cut and styled. Banker, probably, or corporate lawyer. Too young for her, of course. He couldn't be much past thirty-five. How long was he there, trolling for a date, looking for the best looking woman in the room? One drink, two?

Finally, he turned to her. She could tell by the look in his eyes that he knew who she was and that small recognition seduced her. "Can I buy you a drink?"

"I don't know. Can you?" Was she slurring her words? That wasn't good. And she couldn't think clearly.

His gaze moved from her face, down to her breasts, and then back to her face. It was a look that stripped past any pretense. "I'd say a drink at the very least."

"I don't usually pick up strangers," she lied. Lately, there were only strangers in her life. Everyone else, everyone who mattered, had forgotten about her. She could really feel that Xanax kicking in now, or was it the tequila?

He touched her chin, a jawline caress that made her shiver. The boldness of it, just touching her; no one did that anymore. "I'm Troy," he said.

She looked up into his blue eyes and felt the bone crushing weight of her loneliness. When was the last time a man had wanted her? She couldn't even remember.

"I'm Tully Hart," she said.

"I know."

He kissed her. He tasted sweet, of some kind of liquor, and of cigarettes. Or maybe pot. She wanted to lose herself in pure physical sensation, to dissolve like a bit of candy.

She wanted to forget everything that had gone wrong with her life, and how it was that she'd ended up in a place like this, alone in a sea of strangers.

"Kiss me again," she said, hating the pathetic pleading she heard in her voice. It was how she'd sounded as a child, back when she'd been a little girl with her nose pressed to the window, waiting for her mother to return. What's wrong with me? that little girl had asked anyone who would listen, but there had never been an answer. Tully reached out for him, pulling him close, but even as he kissed her and pressed his body into hers, she felt herself starting to cry, and when her tears started, there was no way to hold them back.

***

September 3, 2010
2:01 am

Tully was the last person to leave the bar. The doors banged shut behind her; the neon sign hissed and clicked off. It was past two now; the Seattle streets were empty. Hushed.

Traffic made the pavement hum beneath her bare feet. She made her way down the slick sidewalk, a little unsteady on her feet. A man had kissed her - a stranger - and she'd started to cry.

Pathetic. No wonder he'd backed away.

Rain pelted her, almost overwhelmed her. She thought about stopping, tilting her head back and drinking it in until she drowned.

That would be good. Drowning.

It seemed to take hours to get home. At her condominium building, she pushed past the doorman without making eye contact.

In the elevator, she saw herself in the wall of mirrors.

Oh, God.

She looked terrible. Her auburn hair - in need of coloring - was a bird's nest, mascara ran like war paint down her cheeks.

The elevator doors opened and she stepped out into the hallway. Her balance was so off it took four tries to get her key into the lock. By the time she opened the door, she was dizzy and her headache had roared back to life.

Somewhere between the dining room and the living room, she banged into a chrome side table and almost fell. Only a last minute Hail Mary grab for the sofa saved her. She sank onto the thick, down filled white cushion with a sigh. The table in front of her was piled high with mail. Bills and magazines. Junk mail.

She slumped back and closed her eyes, thinking what a mess her life had become.

"Damn you, Katie Ryan," she whispered to the best friend who wasn't there. This loneliness was unbearable. But her best friend was gone. Dead. That was what had started all of it. Losing Kate. How pitiful was that? Tully had begun to plummet at her best friend's death and she hadn't been able to pull out of the dive. "I need you." Then she screamed it: "I need you!"

Silence.

She let her head fall forward. Did she fall asleep? Maybe...

When she opened her eyes again, she stared, bleary-eyed, at the pile of mail on her coffee table. A Star magazine lay on top - a small, business card size photograph of her was in the upper right corner. Beneath her name was a single, terrible word.

Addict.

She reached forward, grabbed the magazine. It was a small story; not even a full page.

The Real Story behind the rumors.

Aging isn't easy for any woman in the public eye, but it may be proving especially difficult for Tully Hart, the ex-star of the once phenom talk show The Girlfriend Hour. Ms. Hart's goddaughter, Marah Ryan, contacted Star exclusively. Ms. Ryan, 20, confirms that the fifty-year-old Hart has been struggling lately with demons she's had all her life. In recent months, Hart has "gained an alarmingamount of weight" and been abusing drugs and alcohol, according to Ms. Ryan--
Marah.

The betrayal hurt so badly she couldn't breathe. She read the rest of the story and then let the magazine slide to the floor.

The pain she'd been holding at bay for months, years, roared to life, sucking her into the bleakest, loneliest place she'd ever been. For the first time, she couldn't even imagine crawling out of this pit.

She staggered to her feet, her vision blurred by tears, and reached for her car keys. She couldn't live like this anymore.

Copyright @ Kristin Hannah 2013 

KRISTIN HANNAH is the New York Times bestselling author of twenty-one novels. A former lawyer turned writer, she is the mother of one son and lives with her husband in the Pacific Northwest and Hawaii. Visit her at www.kristinhannah.com or on Facebook.

Interview with Christa Jeanne, Author of White Girl in La Casa

Christa Jeanne lives and writes in the Los Angeles area, which means at any given moment she is likely to be stuck in traffic somewhere. When she isn’t writing her next romantic comedy, she is either busy getting clobbered at Candyland by her daughter, educating anyone who will listen about how her son with autism is going to change the world one day, or lovingly doting on her handsome, charming, intelligent and perfect husband (who totally fed her that line). Christa is the ringleader of her circus at home and as soon as the kids go to bed, she can be found at her computer rocking out to a playlist that matches the mood of the current book she’s hammering out. She loves writing about the funnier side of love since falling in love can be pretty hilarious sometimes.

Christa loves visitors, so please visit her at www.christajeannebooks.com.

Connect & Socialize!

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Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

Sure, let’s see, I write (obviously) because I absolutely love to challenge myself by taking two sweet victims, oops scratch that, ‘characters’, and throw them into crazy situations so that by the end, they are in love and have stories to tell their fictional futuristic grandkids. I’m also a wife and mother of two of the greatest kids in the world, which by default also makes me the ringleader of the three ring circus that is my home. But I love it. My favorite things are reading (if I was in Kevin Costner’s Dances With Wolves tribe, I’d be Christa-comes-with-a-book) and of course writing. I’m also a huge Dodgers fan, so don’t hold that against me. Random Christa Jeanne trivia: my favorite color’s orange and I can’t say the word Worcestershire sauce without it coming out as Worsh-ti-sure Shaush…

Where did you grow up?

I was born and raised in northern California near San Francisco in a little suburb named Fremont. My grandma would drag me on BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) to the theater in San Francisco all the time to see live theater plays and the SF culture. As a kid, I always thought BART should have been called Freeway Alternative Rapid Transit so we could call it FART. I should have taken it up with city counsil…

When did you begin writing?

I began writing in college, specifically my senior year. I graduated from California State University, Long Beach with a degree in Criminal Justice and I had it in my head that I wanted to write thrillers and novels about serial killers and sharp detectives. And I did write one. But life happened in between all this, as it often does, and I had to put my goals on hold for a while. I started reading lighter stuff, romantic comedies and comedies in general, and decided that’s what I wanted to write. I wanted to write books that make people laugh.

Do you write during the day, at night or whenever you can sneak a few moments?

Good question. I work a full time job in addition to having my writing career, so my day consists of getting up, getting the kids dressed, getting them to daycare, getting to work, working, pretending like I’m working while thinking about my characters in my book (if you’re my boss, I’m kidding about this part), getting home, helping the hubby get dinner on the table, trying to convince the kids to eat, playing with my kids, bed time, and then FINALLY at around 8:00, I get to put on my headphones, turn on the playlist I’ve created for my book I’m working on at the moment, and write like a mad woman! I’m definitely a plotter with my books. I write ridiculously long notes before I start writing, to the point where my notes look like the creepy journals of serial killers or something. But I always know exactly where I want the scenes to go so when I get at my laptop at night, I can just go for it. I usually try to get out a couple scenes every night.

What is this book about?

White Girl in La Casa has been in my mind for a LOOOONG time. It’s a story about a white girl named Calliope who is in love with her college buddy, Peter. She met Peter after a bad break up and she thinks he is her Hispanic Prince Charming. He’s easy on the eyes, a perfect gentleman, great smile—the complete package. However, he keeps telling her, they are just friends. They live together in an apartment in Los Angeles and one day Calliope comes home to a flood. Peter gets it in his head that they can stay with his mother Margarita, who is your typical old school Mexican mama. She only speaks Spanish, she is rooted in her Mexican heritage and like any Hispanic over-bearing mother, she wants her sons to marry Latinas and make grandbabies. So, when the white girl comes to the door acting as Peter’s girlfriend, she is not pleased. It’s quite the culture shock to both of them as Calliope tries to play the sweet, adorable girlfriend to keep up the lie for Peter. Not only do Calliope and Margarita clash, but enter Peter’s brother Eddie, and things go downhill quickly. Eddie knows she’s faking it with Peter and he wants to know why. Calliope struggles with the friendship she has with the guy she thought was The One, and the other guy who is slowly chipping away at the unraveling lie, while also heating up her heart. White Girl in La Casa is a love triangle, definitely, but it also has a fun perspective of cultures colliding between the white girl and the no-nonsense Mexican mama.

What inspired you to write it?

To be quite honest, a lot of the funny scenes in this book have come from my own experiences with my husband’s family. Particularly his mom. I’m part Irish and part other stuff (basically your run of the mill white girl) and my husband is Mexican. My mother-in-law is not at all like Margarita, but there have been many culture differences that I’ve gotten used to over the years. The funny scenes in White Girl in La Casa have come from a very exaggerated and twisted part of my imagination. But there is one scene in the book that did actually happen to me…it involves soup…and that’s all I’ll say about that. My husband still teases me about it till this day.

Who is your biggest supporter?

I’d have to say my hubby. He’s the best. Oh, well, and my mom. If I don’t mention my mom, you know, she’ll get all bent out of shape.

Who is your favorite author?

I have a lot of favorites. My favorite for romantic thrillers is Karen Rose. Hands down. Whatever she writes, I will have a copy on my Kindle the same day. My favorite romantic comedy writer is Kristan Higgins. Again, I’ll have her stuff on pre-order. My third favorite is Christopher Moore. The guy is a comedic genius!

Do you have an agent or are you looking for one?

I don’t have an agent. I’m a self published author and proud of it! I wrote my first book My Midlife & Married Romance Novel Life and I was so in love with it. I had it open on my laptop, all primped and perfect, just the way I wanted it, and I knew I could either send it to endless agents and wait and wait and wait or I could just self publish it. So, I got one of those gut feelings, call it a mom thing, and I decided to just publish the darn thing! I had worked so hard on it and loved it with all my heart that I decided to self-publish.

Where can readers purchase a copy of your book?

White Girl in La Casa is on sale at Amazon. It’s available in Kindle format and in paperback.

Where can readers can find out more?

Please come visit me at www.christajeannebooks.com. I also make really fun book collages on Pinterest for all my books. They include people I pictured as the characters, songs from my playlist I put together for the book, recipes, jokes, and just anything else I can find that goes with the cool stuff in the book.

What is one piece of advice you would like to share with aspiring authors everywhere?

Don’t give up! I write because I absolutely love to write and make up really fun stories that other people love to read. If you want to be a writer, write! And once you publish that first book and do the little happy dance of author joy (not saying I have firsthand experience at so said happy dance…or cartwheels across the living room floor at seeing my name listed as an author, ehem), start writing again! Finish another book so you can perfect the happy dance routine. But don’t give up. It’s very easy to do, but don’t. Because then there’s no happy dancing going on.

What is up next for you?

Ooooh, very excited for what’s next for me! I’m writing a new series that will consist of 3 books total. I have the titles for all three and notes for the first two. It’s going to be the Dating Disasters Anonymous Club Series and it’s going to be very very very fun to write and fun to read. I’m hoping to be done with the first book in the series later this year. AND, if I have time, I would love to do a little Christmas novella for my White Girl in La Casa characters! I may just put it on my website as a free download or something awesome like that.

Interview with Gianna Day, Author of Sylvie and the Spark

Gianna Day writes erotica and erotic comedies. She lives in the pacific northwest where she enjoys running, flying kites, exploring museums, and eating late-night desserts in all-night diners. She believes that with a healthy sense of humor, everything will be just fine. She's the author of the Hot Secrets Collection, which includes five erotic, lesbian short stories, and The Sylvie Series, a collection of hetero-novellas full of both comedy and naughty bits (sometimes at the same time). Sylvie & the Spark and Sylvie Says Yes are available now on Amazon. Sylvie on Strike is soon to follow. Visit her at www.GiannaDay.blogspot.com.

Connect & Socialize with Gianna!

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Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

I’m a bit of a health nut, generally happy, and for most the part, drama free. I think life is too short to waste on all that’s negative in this world, unless you are actively and earnestly trying to change it. Happiness begets happiness.

I count any day when I can read, write, and move as a good day. I have a pretty eclectic reading list. In addition to humor and erotica, I’ve been known to write some really abominable poetry. As far as movement, I love running and yoga.

When did you begin writing?

When I was very young. I wish I had dated some of my early stories, so I knew for sure. By the handwriting, I guess I was about 8 or 9, but I still have them and keep them in a binder. They are short stories that show a bit of an obsession with the macabre, which I must have eventually grown out of because there’s nothing dark about the adult me or my writing.

I continued writing through adolescence and into adulthood. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was really trying out different genres and styles to find where I fit. That’s a question many young writers face and I think trial-and-error is the best way to go about finding the answer. When you experiment with different content and form, eventually you find your place.

Do you write during the day, at night or whenever you can sneak a few moments?

I used to try to train myself to be able to write anywhere at any time. Waiting rooms, parking lots, and other places where you sometimes find yourself stuck with a few minutes to spare. Eventually I surrendered to the fact that without a chunk of time, I’m pretty much useless. Two to four hours is ideal. I find that getting up early in the morning (earlier than my body wants to) works well for this.

What is this book about?

Sylvie realizes that while her relationship with her boyfriend might be momentarily satisfying in the bedroom, she is neither excited about it nor in love with him outside of the bedroom. What follows are a series of relationship misfires in the quest for Mister Right. The novella is equal parts erotica and comedy; chapter one combines both of those elements and readers usually know right away if the book is for them. Much of the comedy comes from the characters in Sylvie’s life, her quirky mother, humping dog, and the grossly inappropriate but entertaining and gorgeous twins with whom she works at a diner.

What inspired you to write it?

I self-published a collection of erotic short stories. A publisher read them and approached me about doing a series that incorporated comedy. I’d written humor before, but never put the two together. As soon as he presented me with the idea, I knew that I could pull it off and that it would be a lot of fun.

Do you have an agent or are you looking for one?

I don’t have an agent, but I’m fairly content at the moment without one. I know how to produce work on my own and I’m also happy with the arrangement I have with my publisher. If my work gains a much greater following, I may give more thought to looking for an agent, but I’m not quite there yet.

Was the road to publication smooth sailing or a bumpy ride?

Because of the publishing industry today, I think the road to publication is extremely smooth, but that doesn’t guarantee success. In the case of Sylvie and the Spark, a publisher read some of my self-published work and approached me about writing this series. I hadn’t worked with a publisher before but I’m game for just about anything. So far, so good.

If you knew then, what you know now, is there anything you would have done differently?

No, which doesn’t mean I’ve done everything right, but I’m constantly looking forward and moving forward. Every time you put pen to paper, fingers to keyboard, or engage in an aspect related to writing, you learn more about the process. Writing is constant improvement. Publishing and marketing involve continual education. I wouldn’t change a thing about the past and I think it helps improve the future.

Where can readers purchase a copy of your book?

The series is currently available only on Amazon. Sylvie and the Spark and Sylvie Says Yes are up now. The third novella, Sylvie on Strike has been written for some time and the publisher assures me it will be up soon.

What is the best investment you have made in promoting your book?

Hiring someone to help put together a blog tour. I used Pump Up Your Book and definitely will again. Depending on how technically savvy you are, you may or may not need to hire someone to help you set up your presence online. Beyond that, one investment many writers are surprised about is how much time they will need to devote to getting the word out.

What is one piece of advice you would like to share with aspiring authors everywhere?

You can talk about writing, you can buy books on writing, and you can fret about writing. Or you can sit down and write.

What is up next for you?

I’m not sure. Like I said, I’m game for just about anything. The twins in the Sylvie books were such a blast to write, I’ve considered a series focused on them. Outlining a book can be so much fun but also very revealing. Sometimes you think you have the general flow of a book in your head, but when you start to put it in print, it takes an entirely different direction.

First Chapter Review: Ghost of the Gods by Kevin Bohacz

I received the first chapter of this techno-thriller from the author through Pump Up Your Book.

BLURB:  Was it the accumulated wounds to the environment that had finally triggered the nanotech plague or was it simply one more step in a shrewdly crafted plan to replace us with humans 2.0? As I write this at least one pair of these transhumans breathe the same air as us, and there are likely many more. They may look like us, they may even be almost human, but they are also cybernetic and will live for an extraordinary length of time. Trust me, their goals are not the same as ours. It was not a natural plague that almost drove humankind to extinction but an attack from within, turning our own biology against us. Scientists discovered all too late an artificial entity, a sentient machine foolishly created in the image of god, had been studying us and genetically altering us for longer than we can imagine. Perhaps it is because of this god-machine that we evolved into creatures who can think and speak and know our own mortality? This silicon god is so different from us that we may never truly understand it, but what we do know is that it is terrifyingly intelligent and it hates us. What we do know is that it tried to eradicate us from the face of our planet and then stopped for no discernible reason. What we do know is that its work is not done.

COVER: Fascinating. I'm not overly fond of the color scheme and title font, but this cover speaks so well to the genre and the content that it fits perfectly.

FIRST CHAPTER: In the settlement of Pueblo Canyon, Arizona, Dr. Kathy Morrison taps away at her notebook computer, jotting notes down in her journal. She misses Mark, her former lover and now best friend, who has gone on a search to discover other hybrids such as himself; and she fears how he will change because of his nanotech mind as much as she fears for his safety. The government knows settlements such as Pueblo Canyon exist and that they know the truth. That makes life in Pueblo Canyon very dangerous.

KEEP READING: I have to admit to being on the fence about this one. The concept fascinates me but the pace of this first chapter is slowed by a ton of backstory. Now, it's possible that's important for readers to understand this second book in the series. As I read through to the end, however, I couldn't help feeling that the opening of this book would have been more satisfying and hooked me more soundly if the action from the arrival of the unexpected visitors had come first, followed by the backstory. What the author does well is paint pictures of the locale for the reader and get deep into Kathy Morrison's head. That encourages the reader to continue. Readers of government conspiracy stories will want to check this one out. 


This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Purchase your copy: 

Amazon

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I am Kevin Bohacz the bestselling novelist of Immortality and a lucid dreamer… Welcome to my dreams. I am also a writer for national computer magazines, founder and president of two high technology corporations, a scientist and engineer for over 35 years, and the inventor of an advanced electric car system – the ESE Engine System (circa 1978). I was also a short order cook for I-Hop, flipped burgers at McDonalds, and delivered Chicken Delight. All of those careers and more are behind me now that I am a full time storyteller, a catcher of dreams. Thank you for reading my stories and making this all possible.

Visit me online at www.kbohacz.com or follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/kevinbohacz.

Interview with Joan Heartwell, Author of Hamster Island

Joan Heartwell is an award-winning novelist, and now, with the publication of Hamster Island, a memoirist. She makes her living writing and editing for private and corporate clients.

The Hamster Island website is at www.hamster-island.com or www.joanheartwell.com.

The Hamster Island facebook site is at www.facebook.com/hamsterisland.

Hamster Island is published by Twilight Times Books, www.twilighttimesbooks.com.

When did you begin writing?

I wrote some bad poetry in high school, but I really got the writing bug when I hit my twenties.

What is this book about?

Hamster Island is my story of growing up with a mostly absent father, a religious fanatic mother, a kleptomaniac grandmother, and two special needs siblings, all more or less in the middle of a parking lot. It’s presented in two parts. The main section is a sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking “coming of age” narrated by the child, teen and then young adult me and describing my dogged pursuit of an unremarkable life. The second, shorter section, narrated by me as a seasoned adult, describes how I became the sole caretaker for both my siblings following my parents’ deaths, and some of the extraordinary measures I resorted to in order to find the midpoint between their needs and my own.

What inspired you to write it?

I had two short stories published early on, in my twenties, and then three novels back to back, and then another novel…. And all this time I was writing for clients too. I started off writing press releases and newsletters for a PR agency and I did some ghostwriting and book editing and so forth. So it seemed crazy that I was doing all this writing, for myself and other people, and here I had this rather unique personal story that I was totally avoiding. Parts of my story have popped up here and there in my fiction, but that was about it. Then a friend of mine, a woman who is a wonderful writer, started nudging me about writing a memoir. So I decided I’d give it a try. And once I started, it turned out to be a sort of fun project. And various people who read various drafts have opened up to tell me about their own stories of family dysfunction. We’ve all got them. If my book continues to inspire readers to talk about their lives, then I’ll consider it a great success.

Who is your favorite character from the book?

I related better to my grandmother than to any of my other family members. Our house was very noisy. The TV was always on, and there was often a lot of screaming and yelling going on, especially if my father was home. He worried that if he didn’t teach my developmentally disabled brother how to “be a man,” that after he was gone my brother wouldn’t be able to make his way in the world. Unfortunately, his method for inspiring my brother to manhood was by bullying him. He yelled at him constantly. My grandmother hated my father, so when he was home, my grandmother was up in her bedroom, usually sewing. Sewing and smoking. I loved going up there. It was quiet there, except for the gentle chicka-chicka-chicka of her sewing machine. My grandmother was a serious kleptomaniac. When I first found out, which was when I was about 13 (the episode is included in my book), I was very upset. But I learned early on that nothing I could say was going to change her, and when I stopped trying, I was able to enjoy the fruits of her labors. If I needed nylons, she always had a supply. If I needed a new wallet or a handbag, all I had to do was go up to her room and see what she had in stock. She would give me whatever I asked for, or, if she wanted it for herself, she would loan it to me. Also, since she was a seamstress, she made me clothes for special occasions. For my senior prom we went to a fabric store and I picked out this linen/cotton material that was probably meant for drapes, white with loud splotches of purple and blue. The pattern I chose had a sexy halter top with a very low back. This was back in the days when girls were all wearing buttoned-up-to-the-neck pastel pink and yellow chiffon. I probably looked like I just got off the space(boat) from Remus, but I felt like Cinderella the night of the prom.

Where can readers purchase a copy of your book?

People can buy Hamster Island through my publisher’s website or on Amazon or really anywhere that books are sold. My publisher uses traditional distributors, so it can be ordered if it is not being carried in a store.

What is up next for you?

I have a novel coming out with Twilight Times Books later in the year. And I am working on a historical novel that takes place in the Amazon jungle in the early part of the twentieth century.