Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I wrote two books. The first book is Rhythmic Beats, which is a compilation of poetry that I wrote over the years since childhood. Some poems from this collection were published in other venues. The second book is the Lazy Dog and the Quick Fox. There are several editions of this book. For the newest edition, I added chapters 23 through 27.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Lazy Dog and the Quick Fox title was inspired by the famous pangram, “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.” The word “lazy” as used in the pangram doesn’t necessarily have to have a negative connotation. It could reflect a contrast between the life of a wild forest animal and a civilized tame pet. Foxes have to be quick to survive, but dogs don’t.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I am slightly ambidextrous because I had broken my right arm when I was learning to write at the age of 4 years old. I found that I could write my signature backwards with one hand and frontwards with my other hand at the same time. It didn’t matter which hand did which. They were either moving inwards toward the center of the page at the same time or moving outwards toward the edges of the page at the same time. This ability has great entertainment value with new friends because one signature was a mirror image of the other signature and they would look at the back of the page to read it right.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My favorite authors are Anne McCaffrey, Larry Niven, and M Terry Green. Their books, such as the Pern books, the Ringworld books, and the Techno-Shaman books, have influenced me greatly. The Pern books broadened my imagination to daily life on other worlds. The Ringworld books demonstrated the sheer size of the Ringworld where each section on the Ringworld was a copy of a world from somewhere in the galaxy, The Techno-Shaman books illustrated spiritual dimensions that I didn’t know existed in real life for a shaman.

What are you working on now?
I plan to update the Spanish version, El Perro Perezoso y el Zorro Rápido; Una Aventura del Laberinto de la Acción en Color Todo-cromático.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
So far, the best method has yet to reveal itself. The best website seems to be the individual book pages in the Createspace store website because there is a like button on each page that’s a good indicator of how many people have looked at it. I also customized the Createspace book pages to match my book themes and/or editions. I also can do a search on rebaorton on the Createspace store and all of my books would show up in the list.

Rhythmic Beats; Poetry by a Deaf Lass
https://www.createspace.com/6083126

The Lazy Dog and the Quick Fox; An Action Maze Adventure in Holochromatic Color
https://www.createspace.com/6364416

The Lazy Dog and the Quick Fox; An Action Maze Adventure in Monochromatic Grey
https://www.createspace.com/6103057

El Perro Perezoso y el Zorro Rápido; Una Aventura del Laberinto de la Acción en Color Todo-cromático
https://www.createspace.com/6508156

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I encourage new authors to use the same user name on social sites in the Internet in order to achieve consistency and optimal search engine results. For example, I use my user name rebaorton for many sites, not just social sites. I can set up a Google alert for my user name and for certain keywords. I also recommend using unique or semi-unique keywords that represent the books you write. For example, pangram, holoalphabetic, friendship, and emotional intelligence are keywords that I use to find areas on the Internet that might be good for promoting my book or for increasing my network of connections that ultimately leads back to me and my book.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I think the best advice is the one that says to get it done and when it is done, then improve on it. Don’t wait until it is perfect because then it would never get done! Perfection is in the eye of the beholder, just like beauty is. This is how I built up my website over the years since 1999 and this is the approach I’ve been taking towards my book since I started in early 2016.

What are you reading now?
I’m in between books at the moment, but my most recent reading streak was for the Reflections and Dark Reflections books written by Dean Murray or his alter ego, Eldon Murphy. I read five books of his last month (September, 2016). They were Left, Shattered, Burned, The Greater Darkness, and a Darkness Mirrored.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m thinking of a tesseract, which includes a fourth dimension beyond a 3D cube. In other words, a tesseract is a cube within a cube. I want to create a children’s story based on this concept. As a child, the wheels within wheels English phrase was a difficult concept for me to understand but it was mentioned in the Good News edition of the Bible. I thought it would be a cool children’s book to explain this phrase and the tesseract with my deeper understanding of these concepts.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
I would bring a blank spiral notebook to write notes in, a dictionary, and a thesaurus. These are the things I grew up with and I may find them essential without a computer and the Internet.

Author Websites and Profiles
Rebecca Rose Orton Website
Rebecca Rose Orton Amazon Profile
Rebecca Rose Orton Author Profile on Smashwords

Rebecca Rose Orton’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a mother, wife and career woman. 3 and a half years ago I went to Colombia to teach English and live abroad. There in Pereira, I met my husband and had my son. To date I have written two eBooks and am currently working on a third.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Pereira City Guide. Freelance writing was something I did to escape teaching and to allow me to stay home and care for my son after he was born. From there I was inspired by my mother to publish my first eBook. When Pereira City Guide became an idea, making an eBook out of it was the next obvious step.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yes, I like to burn a candle when I write at night. During the day I focus better by going to a cafe where the only sound is the dull roar of life in Latin America and my own thoughts. If I can’t concentrate or imagine new stories, I smoke marijuana.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Henry David Thoreau, George Orwell, Mark Twain, Louis L’ Amour and Hunter S. Thompson.

What are you working on now?
I am half-way finished with an eBook about Gluten-Free Pancakes. I will be introducing a Colombian super-food that has revolutionized my gluten-free kitchen, and all my favorite pancake recipes will be included.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Having a blog should be automatic. I have sold more eBooks through my own Social Media and website presence than anything else. It’s very hard to be found and discovered, especially as a new author who doesn’t have many published books.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t stop writing. No matter what we do its a matter of time and experience. I myself have learned so much, and realized that I have so much more to learn as a result. Don’t be afraid to take risks either.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Always check your back trail to prevent getting lost on the return trip.

What are you reading now?
A series called the Barren Planet Romance series. I like a good science fiction.

What’s next for you as a writer?
To continue documenting the hidden gems of Pereira with my website PereiraCityGuide.com via weekly blog posts.

I am writing my first “recipe/foodie” eBook, and enjoying it tremendously. Cooking pancakes is the chicken soup of my expat-abroad soul. It helps me to cope with living abroad, its a fun hobby, and my family likes the variety when I am exploring new recipes or ideas.

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?
Walden by Henry David Thoreau
The Bible
Love in a Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (so I can finish it!)
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

Author Websites and Profiles
Erin Donaldson Amazon Profile

Erin Donaldson’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Gabrielle Genhart, and I’m an eighteen-year-old, self-published author. I have written three books, the first two of which are part of a series. These two books are a part of The Forbidden Saga, which will eventually consist of four books. The first two are Beyond Mortality and Everlasting.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Purple Lips, which is a poetry compilation separated into five categories that have to do with mental illness. I derived inspiration from my life and the lives of my close friends, including our experiences with the mental health world. I feel the need to share my experiences so as to help strengthen understanding for everyone struggling and their support system.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I tend to rewrite my novels over and over again, sometimes even changing the tense of them. Most of the time, I also watch TV while I’m writing, which I know most people find distracting. I generally write slowly but consistently, although if I don’t write a poem in one sitting, I never finish it.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I am incredibly inspired by Cassandra Clare and Amanda Lovelace. The book Two Girls Staring at the Ceiling is one of my favorite works, and it inspires my poetry greatly.

What are you working on now?
Right now, I’m working on a new series about the zodiac signs.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Instagram is where I do most of my promotion.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
My advice for new authors is to know the story you’re telling on an emotional level and to go with it, disregarding page numbers and word counts.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I have ever heard is cliche but true: Never give up.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading poetry books by Amanda Lovelace and Rupi Kaur. I also just finished The Selection Series by Kiera Cass.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I am going to continue to write poetry and my new series.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
I would bring Clockwork Princess, City of Heavenly Fire, and City of Glass by Cassandra Clare.

Gabrielle Genhart’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Reno Nevada’s own Cowgirl Romance Writer Lilly Christine has authored nine titles in the McGreers Series with McGreers #7 “Last Chance, Cowboy” and McGreers #8 My Kinda Bull released October 2016.

Coming Soon, readers return to Lilly’s birthplace for “Philadelphia Stories” a four book Holiday Series. “New Year’s Baby!” will debut November 2016.

“Crashing Into Tess”, Lilly’s first novel, garnished the prestigious Toronto Romance Writer’s “Catherine” Award, and is a 2014 GDRW Bookseller’s Best Finalist in Best First Book and Best Contemporary categories. Other titles in the McGreers series include Crazy On Daisy ( #2) Right Kinda Bull (#3) Designs on Daphne (#4) Loving Lulu (#5) Whole Lotta Bull (#6) McGreers Special Edition “Candi For Christmas”, Last Chance, Cowboy (#7) and My Kinda Bull (#8)

About those McGreers…hard-working boys endeavoring to deserve the women they crave, my lifelong fascination with the American West is media and travel driven. As a six year old, I regularly tuned into “Big Valley” for a dose of Barbara Stanwyck’s tough, outspoken “Virginia Barclay”. Heck, how did she get those big, strapping boys to behave? Second grade riding lessons on a paint pony Beauregard and Johnny and Jane West’s paperboard ranch provide the setting for all of my cowgirl fantasies, competently executed via heroines Tess, Daisy, Daphne, Luanne, Janie and Lindsay…..

When not hunched over my laptop dreaming up female leads in sassy dialogue with dashing male counterparts, I’m strolling the Truckee River with my new rescue Chihuahua, Sir Edwin Saint Francis Chesapeake. Pets feature prominently in my life and they’re always in my novels, too. After all, a girl is only as good as the horse, pup, kitty or chicken she comes home to!

I’m always available for book-signings, readings and appearances, especially to benefit my reader’s favorite animal shelters and rescues. Please email me at lillychristine13 (at) gmail.com or find me on FB.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My Kinda Bull just released this month. I loved the idea of doing an opposites attract on the topic of climate change. Christina and Heath have other differences, too. She’s hispanic, and was hungry as a child, whereas he was born to wealth and privilege. I played with a role reversal too; she’s a college student, more interested in hookups than a relationship, while he’s ready to settle down. Here’s more:

Activist Christina Rodriguez and geophysics engineer Heath McGreer are on opposite sides in North Shore Alaska, and the rift only widens when her expose photos put him in jail!

Heath’s made a fortune in fossil fuels, but the destruction in the gulf didn’t sit well with him. He’s been thinking about a new career, and can’t help admiring the risks Christina’s willing to take to set things right with the planet.

100% dedicated to the cause, Christina’s is nobody’s fool. Sure, it’s nice to think some perfect, enlightened guy might have her back some day, but she Heath are complete opposites! What does the rich enabled rich playboy really want with her, anyway?

Back at Red Rock Ranch, tempers ignite and sparks fly. . . Then the combustion lands them between the sheets!

Like the other McGreers, it’s steamy hot, a tiny bit comedic, and full of loveable, realistic characters.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m a pantser; I write the first third of the story with an idea of how it will end, then figure out the key conflicts and climax. I generally write for three of four days, than leave off. The first two thirds take longer, and the last three or four chapters usually go quickly, though I often have to work so my endings aren’t too abrupt. When I get frustrated, I build a story board on Pinterest and start liberally populated with images of story details. My McGreers series is linked, and I love catching up on past characters in new stories. For instance, Hank and Daisy ( Crazy On Daisy, McGreers #2) got married in Whole Lotta Bull ( McGreers #6) and the backdrop of their wedding worked as an effective foil for Lindsay’s difficulty committing to Ty, even though by then they have a child together. Each McGreers story is like a season in the McGreer’s television series. Which I would love to have happen!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The Jackalope scene with the Tarleton twins in “Crashing Into Tess” McGreers #1 is a nod to the barbeque scene in “Gone with the Wind”. Jane Austen’s “Emma” inspired the plot for “Designs on Daphne” McGreers #4. For dialogue, you can’t beat Jennifer Crusie. I love Rachel Gibson’s plot and character descriptions; she nails tiny gestures so well, you are brought right into the scene. Megan Crane writes with such a strong voice, and if I’m going to cry, it’s no doubt reading a Jane Porter Tule romance. She knows how to tug at the heartstrings!

What are you working on now?
Jane Ireland, a divorce attorney, and Derek Dawson, a filmmaker, make their appearance in Philadelphia LOVE #1, New Year, Baby! my November 2016 release, to be followed by a Valentine, St. Patty’s Day/Flower Show and 4th of July novellas in 2017. All are linked characters. I’ll pair of Jane’s ex husband, a bit of a jerk named Win, her best friend Elizabeth, a single mom, and then Derek’s sister, who happens to be the Mayor of Philadelphia, in an interracial romance with the Chief of Police.

I also have a “Bad Boys of Tahoe” series coming, and the first novel in Egypt Island, a New England coastal setting is complete as well. Oh! And since I spend a lot of time in California, I started a Sonoma Series, which takes place in wine country!

There are plenty more McGreers coming, too!

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m still looking for the magic touch!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Sure! Learn as much as you can from books, websites and the work of authors you admire. Good story, dialogue and character development is an art, but plotting is a science!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t give up!

What are you reading now?
I just finished Molly O’Keefe’s INDECENT PROPOSAL, which I loved!

What’s next for you as a writer?
This is going to be my busiest year, with many new releases.

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?
Jane Austen~ Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Mansfield Park and Emma!

Author Websites and Profiles
Lilly Christine Website
Lilly Christine Amazon Profile

Lilly Christine’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
First of all, thank you very much for this opportunity to be interviewed!

Humanitarian efforts have always been held very dear to my heart and I often volunteer and donate to a variety of organizations like “Save the Children”, “The Red Cross”, and efforts to help the homeless among others. I am also a writer for “Kids on the Porch” (KOTP) a web series created to help prevent bullying among children and teenagers. I have written “Dreams of the Heart” vol. I & II book compilations of poems about love, life, loss and inspiration and “Keep Joy in a Pocket & Love in a Heart Locket” for a total of 3 books.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called “Keep Joy in a Pocket & Love in a Heart Locket”. It was inspired by the “Dreams of the Heart” series. There were many poems in the series that contained catchy, inspirational phrases and I realized a third book would be perfect to highlight those phrases. For example, “shoot for the moon and you’ll be among the stars” is a household quote that is beloved all over the world. “And, blessings unto you dearest angels, be not ever blue, for He has always loved you” and “smile to replace the stars” is an example of the type of inspirational verses that can be found in this book.

Currently, I am working on a novel series.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I guess it depends on what someone might consider unusual, but I typically only write when I feel like writing. I understand that some writers create a schedule for themselves, but I write only when I feel inspired to write.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Some exceptionally talented and universally loved authors that have influenced me include Shakespeare, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Robert Frost.

What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on a novel series.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
When it comes to promoting my books, I’m not sure if there’s one best method, but I have read at book readings, have a Facebook fan page, my website is www.JoieSchmidt.com, etc.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
A writing teacher once told me that it’s important to write something every day to fully know one’s writer’s voice. In other words, the more a person writes, the more he or she will feel natural writing their own thoughts.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“If you can dream it, you can do it!” (-Walt Disney) That quote has done wonders for my confidence.

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:34)

And, this bible verse says it all: “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26)

What are you reading now?
Currently reading and studying the bible.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m currently contemplating some new book ideas.

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?
Great question. I would say the bible, “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle, “The 28 Laws of Attraction” by Thomas J. Leonard, and for leisure reading “Twilight” by Stephanie Meyer.

Author Websites and Profiles
Joie Schmidt Website
Joie Schmidt Amazon Profile
Joie Schmidt Author Profile on Smashwords

Joie Schmidt’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a children’s speech therapist and mom and dog owner living outside Seattle, Washington. I love chocolate, travel, knitting and watching good tv. This is the first book I’ve ever written.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
This book is called Summer Melody. I began to think about how people communicate, and how hard it is to find a way to communicate when the person you want or need to communicate with can’t in a traditional manner. Then I thought it would be really interesting to make that the challenge for each of the three protagonists in my book, although the people they can’t communicate with each have different reasons (autism, Alzheimer’s, PTSD).

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
While I was writing this book, I’d think about it all week but didn’t have a lot of writing time. So on Sundays, I’d leave my kids with their dad and go to a coffee shop with a portable keyboard and not leave until I’d gotten 2000+ words written.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love authors like Julia Glass and Anne Tyler, who write about normal everyday people and the mundane things that happen to them, but in ways that lift the mundane to something lyrical.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on a romantic comedy/parody of suburbia/living in a development (which is where I live at the moment, so this is really biting the hand that feeds me…:)).

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Still trying to figure that out!! Probably the most fulfilling method is just getting out there and meeting people at different types of author days.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Be gentle with yourself – even once you’ve written and published a book, you may not feel like a “writer.” This whole process is a marathon, not a sprint. So give yourself the space to experiment in marketing, make mistakes, take risks, and enjoy the process,

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
This is so trite but so true. “Show, not tell.”

What are you reading now?
A wonderful YA novel by Gary Schmidt called Okay for Now. Boy, is it wonderful. I don’t want it to end.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Try to finish this current novel and survive my children’s teen years.

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?
How to Survive on a Desert Island
How to Make Things Taste like Chocolate
How to MacGyver Anything to Make a Raft

Author Websites and Profiles
Toddie Downs Website
Toddie Downs Amazon Profile

Toddie Downs’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a Canadian author. I write fiction with a focus on Contemporary Romance. I have published Broken: Frost Series Part 1 and I’m currently working on my upcoming book, Unbroken: Frost Series Part 2.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest published book is Broken: Frost Series Part 1. The character’s formed in my mind and their story followed.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really. I try to write or edit daily. I had stopped writing for many years, so I make the effort daily now.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Some of my favourite romance authors are Sylvia Day, Annie Arcane, and Karen Marie Moning.

What are you working on now?
Unbroken: Frost Series Part 2

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Each platform offers their own benefits.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just write! Don’t procrastinate like I did.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Write something every single day.

What are you reading now?
One (Count to Ten) By Jane Blythe

What’s next for you as a writer?
I am editing Unbroken and then I am gong to begin my next series. It is a fantasy series with a bit of romance.

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?
Harry Potter for my YA
Feversong for my fantasy/romance
Heartsick for my thriller
Pride & Prejudice for my classic

Author Websites and Profiles
D.L. LeBlanc Website

D.L. LeBlanc’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a mid thirties world traveler, and my travels have given some inspiration for my short stories. Africa will always be a great love of mine, and that led to two bestsellers on Amazon… Esther’s Well and Mombasa Heat. Both are set in East Africa, and both feature sweet and safe BWWM Interracial attractions. Being British by birth I decided to set another story back in the UK, Charlie’s Choice, the tale of Charlie and Anna. Both slightly disillusioned in their rather lack lustre marriage I put temptation in their paths in the form of artist Robert, and sexy young blonde Tracy… which inevitably leads to Charlie’s Choice.
Moving away from the Romance genre for a while I wrote Countdown, a short piece of literary fiction, presented as the dairy entries of an abused and hen pecked husband.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest work is a compilation entitled Tales of Love and Hope, comprising Esther’s Well, Mombasa Heat, Charlie’s Choice and a sneak preview of The Mermaids Purse. (due out in 2017)

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m a binge writer, and it has nothing to do with writers block, but some days I am filled with inspiration and ideas, then I write until I drop. Other days I’m a complete blank. (most days, some say!)

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Too many to mention here, but although I write romance, I rarely read romance!

What are you working on now?
My latest work is due out early in 2017 and is entitled The Mermaids Purse. Set in a small fishing port on the south coast of England it is the story of a young woman coming to terms with the tragic loss of her family in an accident, and a crusty old sea captain that sets her on a path that leads her to places she never imagined existed. Being both psychological and paranormal this romance will appeal to those who prefer their romantic fiction to be a little bitter-sweet.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I find twitter to be the best for me.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Edit and proof thoroughly, embrace constructive criticism, and don’t let bad reviews get you down.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t give up!

What are you reading now?
The Constant Gardener

What’s next for you as a writer?
Possibly a full length novel.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Bible, any of the Harry Potter books (JK Rowling) Gondell’s Quest – Destiny (Andy Lang) and The Wind in the Willows (Kenneth Grahame)

Author Websites and Profiles
Beth Kean Website
Beth Kean Amazon Profile
Beth Kean Author Profile on Smashwords

Beth Kean’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Brazen Violations is my first book, and I am currently working on my next.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Brazen Violations is my first and latest releases. There wasn’t a single inspiration, rather the exploration of different characters. Concepts came while exploring the key characters. As they grew, aspects of the story emerged that I began to focus on, that demanded focus. And a lot of the time, that exploration starts with simply asking “what if…?”

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I try to write for at least an hour a day.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Shakespeare, Hemingway, Patricia Highsmith, Stephen King, Elmore Leonard, Roald Dahl, David Morrell – there are dozens of them.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on another thriller about a lawyer who begins to unravel a conspiracy that seems to have been orchestrated by a powerful client, but goes far beyond that.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m new to promoting my book. So

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write quickly. Then rewrite, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite.
Get feedback from trusted sources.
Get it proof read professionally.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite.

What are you reading now?
Patricia Highsmith’s Ripley Under Ground.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I hope to release my next novel in the coming weeks.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
I’d bring my kindle and take ’em all!

Author Websites and Profiles
Jonathan Macpherson Website
Jonathan Macpherson Amazon Profile

Jonathan Macpherson’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been a writer all my life, but unintentionally took a seven year hiatus while navigating through a marriage and life as a teacher. While this isn’t the first book I’ve ever written, it’s the first one I’ve published.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“A Fateful Melody” is book one in my Song for You series. The idea came to me when I was fifteen at LAX airport. I was visiting my best friend in California and we were waiting for my plane to board when we thought we saw someone famous and my friend had said, “What if he is on your flight?”

As the years went by the story morphed into something else completely. The main characters, Christie and Galvin, have been knocking around in my head for more than half my life. We grew up together and I think a lot of the hard truths we learn as we grow older (that I, at least, learned) are reflected in Christie’s life.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Sometimes I’ll wake up in the middle of the night from an amazing dream and start writing a story about it. More often than not writing inspiration hits me in unlikely places: in the middle of teaching a math lesson, waiting for the bus, driving down the highway, washing dishes. I get irritated when I can’t find a pen in those moments!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Growing up I was addicted to R.L. Stein, but as I’ve grown older I thoroughly enjoy anything written by Jonathan Carroll. I also like to indulge in mysteries, especially Heather Blake’s Wishcraft series.

What are you working on now?
I have several projects: finalizing a novella, compiling a book of short stories, writing the first book of a mystery series I planned out, and working on an action story (novella? book? I don’t know yet!) based on a dream I had.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
This is the first book I’ve had the privilege of promoting, since it’s my first published book. I’m still trying to navigate through the best channels to promote books. I’ve had a good experience with Awesomegang, Armadillo eBooks, freebooks, and Book Daily, but I’m enjoying promoting my book through my Facebook page, Instagram account, and Pinterest.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
You’ll never reach your dreams if you’re scared of them. Bite the bullet and march on…. you’ll be so glad you did!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
What will happen, will happen and you’ll have to meet it when it comes.

What are you reading now?
“The Witch and the Dead” by Heather Blake and “Unwind” by Neal Shusterman

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m currently looking into writing contests to enter to add to my CV as a writer.

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?
“White Apples” by Jonathan Carroll, “Peter Pan” by JM Barrie, “It Takes a Witch” by Heather Blake, and “How to Survive on a Deserted Island” by Tim O’Shei

Author Websites and Profiles
Megan Rivers Website
Megan Rivers Amazon Profile

Megan Rivers’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
The basics?

I was born in Romania (yep, Dracula’s country!) in 1992. As a curious kid, I devoured every book I could on Greek, Roman, Ancient Egyptian mythology. I studied university in political science and languages. I speak five of them: french, english, romanian, italian, spanish (feel free to correspond to me in whichever language!).

My current hobbies outside of writing? Training dogs, running, reading.

So, how did I get into writing?

I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. I wrote my first novel, The Sage’s Legacy, when I was 14. It’s currently undergoing a new editing process, and hoping to release it along with the sequels sometime soon My second, Avalon Dreams, just released at 24. I’m working on book 2 of each series, and hoping to continue writing!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I’m one of those people with an overactive imagination (my main #1 reason as to why I can’t watch horror movies!), so I put it all on paper. I dream about it, zone out about it, doesn’t really matter when or where, something’s always in my head.

My latest, Avalon Dreams… I actually dreamt one of the scenes, a night way way back, when I still kept a journal. Woke up at 5am, wrote it down in my faithful little notebook, and forgot about it for years!

My lovely fiance found it one day while we were cleaning, and asked me what it was all about. So I started telling him about the story, and as I’m talking, it develops into this larger narrative… And yep, you guessed it, I wrote it down. I worked on it for months, and spent even more months editing.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I love writing at night after a glass of wine – read or white.

What are you working on now?
Avalon Chronicles book 2 – Avalon Wishes
Sage’s Legacy book 1 & 2

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Social media, blogging, submitting to websites, word of mouth, libraries.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
To never give up! Never has it been more important than in writing.

What are you reading now?
Rain – By India R. Adams

What’s next for you as a writer?
Lots of writing in the winter months, I hope

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?
HARRY POTTER! Yes, that deserves the caps! I’d bring books 5 & 7.
I’d also bring 1 Rock Chick series book – either one!
And a good mystery/historical novel like James Rollins’ – The Blood Gospel

Author Websites and Profiles
Alexa Whitewolf Website
Alexa Whitewolf Amazon Profile
Alexa Whitewolf Author Profile on Smashwords

Alexa Whitewolf’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Two books. Both address the same issue. Is Self Employment for You? The first book was published in 2005 and the second book has recently been published on Kindle. I have been in business for myself for over 25 years. I have written numerous articles and have hosted radio shows on what it takes to succeed in self-employment. This provided me the vehicle to interview hundreds of successful entrepreneurs.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Is Self Employment for You? Ten years later. After reviewing the first book, I wanted to see if what I wrote over ten years ago was still relevant today.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t know the answer to this question.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Mainly books of non-fiction.

What are you working on now?
Lifestyles of the Self-Employed.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
There is no one perfect method. It takes numerous platforms: website, emails, social media, radio, word of mouth, presentations, etc.Write every day. Set aside 30 minutes, one-hour, two-hours; whatever you can fit into your schedule. Also pick a consistent time. 5 a.m.? 7 a.m.? or 7 p.m. and stick to the regiment of writing every day.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write every day. Set aside 30 minutes, one-hour, two-hours; whatever you can fit into your schedule. Also pick a consistent time. 5 a.m.? 7 a.m.? or 7 p.m. and stick to the regiment of writing every day.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Only three things in life are real. Death, human folly, and laughter. The first two are beyond our comprehension, so do with the third what you can.

What are you reading now?
Age of Discovery.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Trying to think about more platforms where I can help people succeed if they take the step into self-employment. As you can see, I am narrowly focused when it comes to writing.

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?
My first book would be on biographies of famous Americans and other world leaders. Many people are fascinated with how a bridge is built or what makes an engine run. My interest lies in what makes people run and why they do what they do. “Nearly all men can stand adversity but if you want to test a man’s true character, give him power”. Abraham Lincoln. My second book would be fiction that centers around white collar crime. My third book would be of beautiful photos of countries and people from every part of the world. Since I am stranded on a desert island I am sure I would crave seeing other sights of our incredible planet. You don’t want to know what the fourth book would be about.

Author Websites and Profiles
Paul E. Casey Website
Paul E. Casey Amazon Profile

Paul E. Casey’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I live in Thailand. I have lived in the UK and Italy. I worked at “La Sapienza”, University of Rome, for many years. I published poems and short fiction in the past in small magazines. Some poems also won prizes. I have written more than five books and published three, two on KDP.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“Collected Selected Words” / Thailand

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Well, insomnia which means you can find me writing at three and four a.m.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Well, I like to think everything I’ve read. Different books inspire you at different periods of your life. If I had to be specific, I’d say the classics I read in my teens and after up to about fifty years of age.

What are you working on now?
I have just finished rewriting “After Dawn” a short novel about young love.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Not very good at promoting but do like the idea of reciprocal reviewing.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
No, nothing inspirational. Just “read, write, read, write, practise, rewrite better, write with joy, remember the classics, remember your English classes at school!”

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Too, too much excellent advice out there but we have to know how to sift it….example : “We don’t receive wisdom. We must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us, or spare us.” That’s meditation from a great guy.

What are you reading now?
My own bloody stuff!!!

What’s next for you as a writer?
Keeping on.

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?
Collected works of Shakespeare
A big collection of great novels – as many as an editor could stuff in
One of the epic poets’ complete works
(then I’d mourn for what I had left behind)

Author Websites and Profiles
Jonathan Finch Website
Jonathan Finch Amazon Profile

Jonathan Finch’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m from Nova Scotia, Canada, and I write dark fantasy and horror books. I’m a big fan of science fiction, fantasy, history, myths and legends, and action movies. I’ve written over a dozen books, a mix of novellas, story and poetry collections, and I’ve had a few short stories published in various anthologies.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is a poetry collection, Horror Haiku and Other Poems, inspired by the Twitter hashtag event #HorrorHaikuesday. I collected all my dark poetic offerings to social media, threw in a few more poems and photos and published.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really, unless you count pacing the halls when I need inspiration, or the occasional mumbling out loud about plot points.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Ray Bradbury is my biggest influence. He is the author that inspired my great love of short stories; his work has a way of drawing you in on an emotional level that is perfection. I am also a huge fan of Neil Gaiman, and the Canadian author, Guy Gavriel Kay. Their lyrical style has been a big influence on me.

What are you working on now?
I’m finishing up the first draft on a fantasy novella, called Ghosts of the Sea Moon, about an unusual sea captain (who is also a god), his ship of undead spirits, and his dysfunctional family. The tag line for that book is, Ghosts, Gods, and Sea Monsters.
I also have two steampunk books in the works. One a steampunk adventure novel, called Racing the Hellfire Club, and another horror/fantasy steampunk book, with vampires, anarchists, witches and secrets. Plus, two more fantasy books wait patiently for my attention, one revolving around a prophecy, and the other based on Arthurian legend, but set in the modern era.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Of course, I use email newsletters and this wonderful site, but I also have a fondness for Twitter.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t get discouraged if things aren’t perfect. Snags, roadblocks, setbacks, plot points blowing up in your face, characters not behaving, it all happens. Take a breath, roll with the punches and figure things out. If something doesn’t work one way, try it another.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I ever received was from an English teacher. He told me to write a story like the reader was an alien who knew nothing about life on Earth. In other words, never assume the reader knows what you’re writing about and what you mean to say. Things have to make sense, don’t take shortcuts, and never leave plot holes.

What are you reading now?
I am current reading Lizzie Borden Zombie Hunter by C. A. Verstraete, The Northern Queen by Kelly Evans and Echo from Mount Royal by Dave Riese. With many, many others waiting on my to-read list.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Finishing my novella, and then back to work on my novels. And gearing up for my appearance in the Brain to Books Cyber Convention and Book Expo in April 2017.

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?
Any Ellery Queen mystery novel, The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman, Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay, and From the Dust Returned by Ray Bradbury.

Author Websites and Profiles
A. F. Stewart Website
A. F. Stewart Amazon Profile
A. F. Stewart Author Profile on Smashwords

A. F. Stewart’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a medieval fantasy author. So far, I’ve written four books, but only one has been published.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Knights of the Dawn, hitting the market in late 2016. My research into the Middle Ages has inspired this one.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I like to get really baked when I write, and I often blast heavy metal when I’m writing an action scene.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I know this is a cliche now, but GRRM is my fav!

What are you working on now?
I am working on Sir Eveland’s Medieverse and Gods of the Grotto. Both are fantasy series.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
So far I must say Facebook because I haven’t tried out many others yet. My method is messaging my friends. In a few years my answer to this question will be completely different, I’m sure. I’ve just had no reason to promote heavily yet. I don’t have enough material for sale. But that’s changing rapidly.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t release your material until you’re sure it’s ready. If you spent a long time writing a masterpiece, don’t throw it out there with out giving it time to settle in your mind. Come back to it after a few months and edit again before you release it. I wish I did that with Kings on the Mountain. Now I’m rewriting the book because it doesn’t meet my standards. It met my standards when I was a noobie, but not any more.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Only take advice from people who are where you want to be.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan. I don’t like it nearly as much as A Game of Thrones, but it’s alright, More fore nineteen year olds.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I plan to publish 30 books/short stories before I’m 30 years old. I’m 25 years old today, and only have three short stories out, so that should tell you how much I’ve been writing lately. I aim for 7,000 words a week minimum to reach my goal.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Bible (I’m not a Christian but that’s still a good book to keep your mind occupied), the largest dictionary in the world, and three other blank books so I can write my own books.

Author Websites and Profiles
Timothy Eveland Website
Timothy Eveland Amazon Profile

Timothy Eveland’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m the author of the Charles Fort Historical Mysteries, and I’m due to release the second book on the 19th of October.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The new book is called ‘Charles Fort and the Beast of Loch Ness’. For my second book I wanted to do a country house mystery, the sort of thing that Agatha Christie excelled at. So my detecting duo, Charles Fort the phenomenologist and Edward Moreton, his plucky partner, set off for the deepest, darkest Highlands of Scotland to solve a murder. I grew up not far from Loch Ness, so it was great fun to write about somewhere I know, although sadly I have never seen the monster!

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
My favourite place to write is my shed. Just a normal 6 by 4 shed on the outside, on the inside it’s a fully insulated, cozy little writing den. It’s the perfect place to escape the madness of family life and write for a couple of hours.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I read anything and everything. My books were inspired by the great Golden Age detective stories, and I grew up on Agatha Christie, Dorothy L Sayers et al. But I read many genres, and a few years ago actually completed a PhD in fantasy fiction. One day I hope to write some fantasy novels too: watch this space!

What are you working on now?
A short novella for Christmas, because everyone loves a Christmas story. It will hopefully be released in early November and is tentatively titled: ‘Christmas with the Abominable Snowman’.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am not the world’s best promotor, so I find that I use facebook mainly to promote my books. I try not to spam people with too much information, just a post a week is enough. I like sharing some of my research tips as the historical element to my books really fascinates me.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just do it! With the growth of self publishing it is easier than ever before to find readers for your stories. Even if just one person reads your book that’s one more than if you’d never published it at all.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
‘Bum on seat, hands on keyboard’. Books, sadly, do not write themselves. You need to put in the time and the effort to get them written.

What are you reading now?
I’ve been reading the Kate Ellis series of crime novels. They are nicely written, not too gorey and I like the archaeological elements. I recommend them!

What’s next for you as a writer?
I definitely want to write another couple of Charles Fort books. But I have a fantasy trilogy waiting for revision, and half a James Bond style thriller, so who knows? That’s what I love about self-publishing, I can do what I want.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Ooh, tough choice. I’m going to say Roald Dahl’s Danny Champion of the World, which is my favourite book from childhood. Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere which is just the perfect fantasy novel. And a big bumper book of Sherlock Holmes stories, because sometimes you can’t beat the old master.

Author Websites and Profiles
T E Scott Website
T E Scott Amazon Profile

T E Scott’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Keith D. Guernsey is retired and living on Lake Lanier with his lovely wife Susan and his four-footed son Harley (who really is the king of this castle!)

“Confessions…” (http://amzn.com/1503101797) is a story of my recovery from two rounds of life-threatening brain surgeries to play on three championship softball teams in two states.

It’s sequel, “Fathers and …” (https://amzn.com/153338763X) includes a chapter on the most controversial sports topic of our time; Deflategate.

It is also a story of love and devotion between a son and his father.

An interesting article about the author is here;
http://www.gainesvilletimes.com/section/199/article/118140/

thegurns2005@yahoo.com
Twitter=@thegurns

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Fathers and Sons-Sports and Life

The uncommon bond between my late father and I.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yes,

I lock myself in my man cave every morning (at 0630 hours) and knock out a minimum of three sentences

What authors, or books have influenced you?
James Patterson
Dan Shaughnnessy

What are you working on now?
Promoting my book signing on 10/27/2016

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

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Persist through all obstacles
Accept constructive criticism

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Be pleasantly persistent without being overbearingly obnoxious

What are you reading now?
Murder House by James Patterson

What’s next for you as a writer?
short stories on controversial topics (i.e. police shootings)

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?
Alex Cross or Michael Bennett books by Patterson

Author Websites and Profiles
Keith Guernsey Website
Keith Guernsey Amazon Profile
Keith Guernsey Author Profile on Smashwords

Keith Guernsey’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born and brought up in Liverpool, England, and moved to Bristol in 1990 after I graduated as a librarian at Liverpool Polytechnic. I met my husband Keith there and we married in 1993. We still live in Bristol, but Liverpool will always be home.

I have been writing since I was a teenager and since 2007 I’ve self-published five books for children and young adults:

Goalden Girl (2007) is inspired by my love of the Beautiful Game. (I’m an avid Liverpool supporter). It tells the story of Gemma Sutherland and the challenges she faces when she tries to persuade her new school to allow girls to play football. ‘Goalden’ is a play on words to reflect the football theme.

Abbie’s Rival (2008) is about Abbie Palmer and her French pen-pal Collette who steals away the love of her life, student teacher Richard.

Both Goalden Girl and Abbie’s Rival are both for readers aged 9-12.

Epiworld (2010) is a science fiction time travel novel for readers aged 12+ and is inspired by my personal experience with epilepsy. Travis is from the future and his seizures are powerful enough to transport him through time.

Big Brother (2012) is also for readers aged 12+ and is science fiction with a hint of a ghost story spliced with a bit of horror. When Ash is being bullied the mysterious Big Brother comes to his rescue, but it seems he has an agenda of his own.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Goalden Sky (published in 2014) is the sequel to Goalden Girl. Although there’s a seven year gap between the two books, I wanted to continue Gemma’s story. She is faced with another challenge when her step-sister Portia has a potentially life-changing accident that could end her own career as a budding footballer. The title is inspired by the lyrics in the footballing anthem ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’: ‘at the end of the storm is a golden sky.’ Portia is going through a storm and no one knows if a golden sky is waiting for her at the other end.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write best when there’s music in the background. I love listening to Jean Michel Jarre because his music is mainly instrumental and there are no lyrics to distract me. Sometimes I read aloud to my cat Treacle, even though I know she’s not interested.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The first book I ever read from cover-to-cover was First Term at Malory Towers by Enid Blyton. I was ten-years-old and believed I could write something just as good or better. That was the book that made me want to be an author. I didn’t realise back then just how much hard work I was letting myself in for!

What are you working on now?
My current project is called Episode and I hope to release it in 2017. It’s taken a while to write because in 2015 I lost my mother and my husband had a major health scare, so I’ve had other things on my mind. It’s a loose sequel to Epiworld, this time focusing on Alice’s seizures as she finds herself in Ancient Greece. Travis, from Epiworld, joins her in her adventures.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use my own website and blog, I have a Facebook author page and I use Twitter a great deal. I’m always on the lookout for free promotional sites like Awesomegang and Readers Gazette and I’m also a member of the Independent Author Network, Independent Author Index, Goodreads and iAuthor.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Try to write something every day, even if it’s only a few words, and make sure you have a big internet presence. Don’t worry if someone doesn’t like your book, someone else is sure to love it. You can’t please everyone!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t give up.

What are you reading now?
Mary Barton by Elizabeth Gaskell. I enjoy the classics and I also like reading sequels to classics where someone in the present day has continued with the story.

What’s next for you as a writer?
To finish Episode, have it edited and get it published

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
I’d take anything written by one of the Liverpool writers like Lyn Andrews, Maureen Lee, Anne Baker, Katie Flynn or June Francis.

Author Websites and Profiles
Tracey Morait Website
Tracey Morait Amazon Profile

Tracey Morait’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born on March 4, 1992 in New Delhi, India. Despite being born in a typical Hindu Brahmin family, I am an atheist. I am a little less sociable, reserved, blunt and meditative by temperament, but that does not make me an introvert. I can as easily crack a joke as I can bear one at my expense.

As far as my academic credentials are concerned, I so far have earned a Post Degree Diploma in Business Administration from Langara College, Canada and a Bachelor Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi. I like to eat different types of vegetarian foods and write opinion articles for various online platforms. If I am not sleeping or eating, I am either writing something or figuring out what to do with my life.

I have written four books so far; three textbooks and one fiction.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
‘Gone are the Days’ is my latest book. It is an autobiographical fiction. It is my debut novel and hence, I decided to collect instances and memories from my life and spiced them up with some creative fiction.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
There is no routine or fixed time for me to write. I write whatever I wish and whenever I want. I have written opinion articles on various online platforms viz. youthkiawaaz.com, helpost.com, prachyareview.com etc.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I started writing when I was 19. My first three books were textbooks. The struggle of my fellow classmates and juniors in college inspired me to write those books. Needless to say, my knowledge and understanding of respective subjects helped them secure decent marks in exams.

I have some of my friends and teachers who have been published as authors. I extract my motivation from them.

What are you working on now?
I am working on ‘God of the Sullied’, my fifth book and second novel. It shall be published in less than a year from now in all likelihood. It would be a mythological fiction highlighting the era of Kaliyuga.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I promote my books through publisher’s website, my social media profiles and pages and videos. Besides, I promote my amazon author central page, lulu spotlight and authorsden page as well.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Getting instant recognition and acknowledgment in the writing world has become very hard these days. That does not mean it is impossible to be established as an author/writer. It’s just that new authors have to keep trying and they should produce more and more good work, because if they quit, they are definitely not going to be acknowledged.

What are you reading now?
I am deep into writing my next novel and can’t take on anything else right now.

What’s next for you as a writer?
After completing ‘God of the Sullied’ I am planning to write another book with some of my ‘author’ friends. Collaborating with them will keep me engaged in writing. It will also help me to transform creative ideas into reality.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
I would certainly take all of my books with me as my work gives me motivation. Apart from that, I would bring books written by my friends and teachers. ‘Orphans of the Storm’, ‘Blue Bangles’ and ‘Love (Re)defined’ are some of the titles.

Author Websites and Profiles
Gaurav Sharma Website
Gaurav Sharma Amazon Profile

Gaurav Sharma’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a Canadian author, currently living in Sudbury (Ontario), and I’ve written three books – all in the same series. I can’t say what possessed me to write this series, but I can say I did it out of a desire to see Sudbury front and center instead of standing in for something else (there’s been quite a few movies filmed here… but they’re never about Sudbury). I write mostly speculative fiction, particularly post-apocalyptic adventure and survival, so you can guess what happens to my city.

I’m from Northern Ontario. I was born in Kirkland Lake, and I went to school in North Bay and Toronto (okay, Toronto isn’t Northern Ontario, but it’s still part of Ontario). I moved around quite a bit so I’ve lived in Elliot Lake, Sault Ste. Marie, Blind River, as well as Timmins. I’ve been to many other places and my writing reflects this. Usually my books and stories take place in one of these places as the backdrop… and why not? Ontario has a lot to offer for artists and writers. “Bear” took place near Sault Ste. Marie and it won one of our top awards here, so there’s plenty to pull from.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Between Silence and Fire, and it’s the third book in the Kingdom of Walden Series. Other than being in the series, what inspired it was my community. What inspired the series are the people within Sudbury and their resilience… not to mention the area surrounding Sudbury is phenomenal and deserves to be front and center.

The series itself, the storyline and the characters within, came from a creative gaming campaign. We were playing Dead Reign (it’s kind of like the Walking Dead, only a pen & paper roleplaying game) by Palladium books.

And I hate zombies.

So, while I love post-apocalyptic and dystopian fiction I try to find something different. In my case, it was how could I write something that draws on this game but doesn’t involve zombies or nuclear apocalapyse… and I watched a documentary about the End of Oil and Peak Oil. I thought to myself, “This is it, right here… what would happen to Sudbury and the characters in it if this happened?”

And that started After Oil which then became The Last Iron Horse and now Between Silence and Fire.

The second part of the inspiration was the characters themselves. They had stories to tell, and I’m just the one that channeled their stories.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Doesn’t every writer?

The most unusual is actually a mix of a bunch of habits. People often joke that a writer can get away with writing in their pyjamas. Not me – I have to dress, if comfortably, like I’m going to an office for work. I set up my office much like an artist’s studio, complete with painting sets, paints, brushes and other media for creating… as well as plants and greenery. I have to write someplace that inspires the creative spark, but still feels like I’m going to work.

I just happen to love what I do and I need my writing space to reflect that.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The first one to inspire me, and kick off the survival/post-apocalyptic adventure bug was a book that wasn’t post-apocalyptic at all. It was about a boy that rejected his modern life and decided to move up into the mountains and live off the land (My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George). I think I read that book until the cover fell off.

My writing style is most influenced by a bit of Stephen King (whose style, so everyone tells me, is very similar to my own) as well as a bit of Tom Clancy, Margaret Atwood (the undisputed queen of Canadian speculative fiction), as well as Elizabeth Moon and Anne McCaffrey.

What are you working on now?
I am working on “Red Sails”, which is book five of the Kingdom of Walden series. It follows a plot thread left dangling back in the second book which I promised one devoted reader I would eventually tie up. I can’t give away too much of it as it would spoil not only Between Silence and Fire, but also the fourth book, Ghostwalker, which is due out in April 2017).

I’m also working on a cozy mystery (because my grandmother, who loves Murder She Wrote, challenged me to) under the pen name “Eve Morrison”, and a harder crime thriller under the pen name “Meredith Hayes”.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
So far I’ve found the best method is to get out there and be face to face with readers through in-person events, signings, and going to conventions… as well as being engaged with fans on different social media platforms. That’s the key thing right there – you can advertise a book all you want but if your fans can’t reach out to you and feel that there is some engagement, then your career is basically dead in the water.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t worry about the first draft. Just write it. Get that finished – you can edit it and rewrite it to your heart’s content after the hardest part, in my opinion, is done… which, for me, is the first draft.

Also, outside of editors, publicists and ad campaigns (so long as they’re not too expensive), cover artists, etc… don’t pay a cent to be published. A publishing company will never ask for money up front, especially if they take a hefty portion after the fact out of your royalties. If a publisher offers this kind of deal, run away.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Forget all distractions and just get that first draft done. You can always revise it later.

What are you reading now?
Bloodhound by James Osiris Baldwin. Baldwin is another indie author, and another NaNoWriMo participant. His books are about a mage who is also a Russian mafia hit man. Yeah. He went there. However, the research and storytelling are wonderful. The end polishing is so professional that it makes some traditional published books pale in comparison.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’d like to finish the Kingdom of Walden series for now… tie up the loose ends (but not too many) so that my readers are satisfied and then finish a project I have been working on for ages but never been able to publish. I’d also like to feature more of my mixed media art. I’m not a one-trick pony. I paint, I sculpt… and I write… and sometimes I mix all three. I’d like people to see this in addition to my writing.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Oh dear God, don’t make me choose. The first would be my copy of the SAS Survival Guide, which is full of ways to just survive on that deserted island without dying. The other three would have to be Hunting Party by Elizabeth Moon, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood and The Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy.

Author Websites and Profiles
Kristan Cannon Website
Kristan Cannon Amazon Profile

Kristan Cannon’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a science fiction writer based in Los Angeles. I’m also an expert spelunker, a devoted student/practitioner of shaolin kung fu, a former spy, and an octopus psychologist (just kidding–I’m only one of those things).

I’ve just launched my first ever published title, The Heresies of World (Book 1 of the “World” series), on Amazon Kindle Unlimited. I also have two free short stories that take place in the same universe available on my website (www.oabeckett.com), with more to follow. My goal (tentative, of course) is to release one free short story every other month, so check my website for updates.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I’m just starting out, so my novella, The Heresies of World, is both my latest publication and my first ever. It’s Book 1 of a series which will (if all goes well) span several hundred pages of thrilling prose, replete with political intrigue, action, adventure, romance, and humor (shameless plug). Plus, ample amounts of laser guns and robots. You can never go wrong with robots.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I like to alternate between pen and paper and typing on my computer. I generate ideas by scribbling furiously with black gel pens in composition notebooks, then I give the ideas prose form by typing madly on my laptop keyboard. When I get stuck, I get up and pace around, sometimes mumbling lines to myself like a madman (fortunately, I usually do this in my apartment when no one but my cats can see me). It’s a frenzied, fevered, frenetic process (how’s that for some consonance?), but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love Ursula Le Guin. She’s a true genius, an innovative thinker, a deeply humanitarian yet radical mind, and a killer prose stylist. Oh, to be as good as Ursula! (but I digress). I’m also a big fan of Isaac Asimov, Phillip K. Dick, Arthur C. Clarke, Samuel Delaney, Alice Sheldon (James Tiptree, Jr.), George R. R. Martin, and many others, both “genre” and “literary” (problematic terms, I’m sure many will agree, but sadly unavoidable when discussing science fiction). On the more “literary” end (although Le Guin and Delaney, at the very least, are undoubtedly literary enough to upend these silly distinctions), I enjoy modernist poetry (e.g. Stevens, Eliot, Pound, Moore), as well as the fiction of Graham Greene, J. M. Coetzee, George Orwell, Toni Morrison, Arundhati Roy, Patricia Highsmith, and Alan Moore, to name a few.

What are you working on now?
Right now, I’m trying to make progress on the second installment in the “World” series, tentatively titled “All of World in Time.” I am also slogging through some short story ideas, because I need/want to get another story out soon (either free on my site, or “perma-free” on Amazon–I haven’t decided yet, so stay tuned).

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m still trying to figure that one out, given that I’m a new author. So far, I’ve got a Facebook page, a Twitter account, a website, and an Amazon author page. I’ll get back to you when any of these starts to bring me success! (the woes of a first-time writer, “first world problems,” and all that nonsense). Perhaps this Awesomegang interview will do the trick!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Read as much as you can. Write every day if possible. If not, set up some kind of regular schedule. Read Steven Pressfield’s The War of Art–if that doesn’t motivate you to get your butt in gear as a writer, nothing will. Most importantly, swallow an ample serving of salt with any advice you take from new authors you just stumbled upon on the internet!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“The amateur believes he must first overcome his fear; then he can do his work. The professional knows that fear can never
be overcome.” — Steven Pressfield, The War of Art. OK, I know. That’s not really advice. It’s a pithy quote, an aphorism. But the implied advice–to press onward, to do the hard work of writing, in spite of fear, self-doubt, and skepticism–is worth its weight in gold.

What are you reading now?
Blacksad by Canales and Guarnido, The Man in the High Castle by Phillip K. Dick, The House of God by Samuel Shem, and re-reading the Seamus Heaney translation of Beowulf.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I have a couple of ideas I’m plotting out in my notebooks that I might tackle after I finish the “World” series. But right now, “World” is all I’m actively working on.

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?
Other than Pressfield’s War of Art, which I think I’ve mentioned enough in this interview, I’d want to bring the King James Bible (endless source of poetic inspiration–I remember reading that Hemingway liked to recite from it aloud to get his bardic juices flowing), the Riverside Shakespeare (for similar reasons), The Dispossessed by Le Guin (I can read that book over and over and never become bored), The Foundation trilogy by Asimov (despite its flaws, it always gets me going in the space operatic mode), and The ABC of Reading by Ezra Pound (say what you want about Pound and his unfortunate politics, but this book is a single-volume literary education–you learn as much by disagreeing with it as you do from absorbing its message). OK, that was more than 4, but what writer could really survive on just 4 books?

Author Websites and Profiles
O. A. Beckett Website
O. A. Beckett Amazon Profile

O. A. Beckett’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m just a guy who loves to write. I typically write horror / thriller, and I’ve been doing it since I was about eight years old. I’ve written dozens of short stories – some have been published and some just collect dust. I’ve also written a couple of novellas and 5 novels, which have either been published traditionally, independently, or left to rot, either way it was fun writing them.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest published book is titled, All the Pretty Ones. My family and I made a move for a career opportunity. We ended up in one of these subdivisions where every lawn is perfectly manicured and the houses are all relatively new and well taken care of. From the outside it’s the perfect little neighborhood, but I started to wonder, ‘What goes on behind some of these closed doors?’. Because things go on, they always do, and it’s often the places where you’d least expect it. I decided to explore that, and the story just took flight.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Is writing naked unusual? Well, I don’t do that. I don’t think I do anything unusual, actually. I do have a few habits that tend to help me out though. When I go places I tend to take pictures of landscapes or things that I’d like to use in a story. It could be a creepy, old house, the way a dirt trail winds through the trees, the way the sky looks just before a nasty storm… You get the picture. I do this so that i can look back and use the pictures to enhance my description, because my brain doesn’t always remember every little detail. Another thing I do is after a couple of drafts of a book I’ll wait a few weeks and then convert the book to Kindle format and put it onto my Kindle. This allows me to view the book with fresh eyes and from the reader’s perspective. You have no idea what a huge difference this makes in editing. This helps tremendously.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I used to (and still do) love to read short horror stories. I think a lot of those inspired me. I’ve always loved a really good twist ending. I’ve always enjoyed reading stuff by Ramsey Campbell, Richard Laymon, Ray Bradbury, and Stephen King. Stephen King is inspiring not only for the personal challenges he’s overcome, but for how effortlessly he can pull you into a story. That’s really important and not nearly as easy to do as it may seem.

What are you working on now?
I’m finishing up final edits on a book that I hope to release in early December. The book is called The Shadow Walkers. The book is about a group of people who inadvertently attract something really bad into their lives (entities that are known as shadow walkers), and their only recourse is to face the darkness in their own lives, because that’s what these things thrive on.

I’ve also completed a book called, Obsession. This is in the third draft. It’s a ghost story that gets more graphic than I’m typically comfortable with, but so far I’m really happy with it and excited to release it.

I am also about a quarter of the way into a new book, which is coming along well.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Promotion is something I wish I was a lot better at. I use Facebook, Twitter, and my blog. I’m always trying to come up with new ideas and ways to reach people, but it’s not always so easy.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I don’t know that I’m the person to be giving advice, I’m still hammering this thing out myself, but I guess there are a few things I’ve learned that I’d pass along. Id’ say you’ve got to do what you love. Life is too short to live in fear. If you want to write, write, and do it everyday. The more you write and the more you read, the better you’ll be. It’s just like with anything else. Don’t get hung up on old stuff. We all write crap. See where you went wrong and write better from that point (everything’s a stepping stone). And most importantly, never let other people’s fears and doubts become yours.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
There’s so much great advice I’ve heard over the years, but here’s my favorite because I think it pertains to one of the hardest things about writing (or anything, really). You can hand the same book to 100 people. 50 will love it, 50 will hate it. That’s just the way it is. You’ll never please everyone, so don’t try to. You’ve got to write for yourself first. Write what you love. Become engrossed in the story, the characters, the world you create. Not everyone will like it, but you can’t expect everyone to. This is a very subjective field. Take any criticism with a grain of salt and learn from it. don’t be offended by it.

Side note: I’ve actually written editors back and asked where I went wrong. Some never responded, but others gave me some of the best feedback I could have asked for.

What are you reading now?
The Shining by Stephen King

What’s next for you as a writer?
More books, more stories. I’m in it for the long haul. My plan is to write full time. Everything I write is a step in that direction.

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?
Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett
Anything in the Mammoth Book of Horror series
A survival guide – somehow I think this would come in handy

Author Websites and Profiles
David Probert Website
David Probert Amazon Profile

David Probert’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Jordan Alexo from Portugal. I have been an Internet Marketer for more than 5 years. I have wrote about 5 books so far.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Recovery Breakup Guide for Men: How To Overcome A Devastating Break Up And Triumph!

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
No, not really!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Napoleon Hill, Jim Rohn, Alexander Dumas

What are you working on now?
I am writing another book about dating for men.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I promote it in Facebook and Twitter groups

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep trying until you succeed. Your first book, or even second might not be your biggest hit!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Do the thing, and you shall have the power.

What are you reading now?
The way of Men, Slight Edge

What’s next for you as a writer?
Build a business selling books in Amazon

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?
Slights Edge, Think and Grow Rich, and The Five Major Pieces To The Life Puzzle by Jim Rohn

Author Websites and Profiles
Jordan Alexo Website
Jordan Alexo Amazon Profile

Jordan Alexo’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have written have had lots of short stories, flash fiction and poetry published in literary magazines, but my memoir ‘Piece by Piece’ is the first full-length work I’ve had published. I am currently looking for representation for my first novel, while writing my second.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
‘Piece by Piece: Remembering Georgina: A Mother’s Memoir’ is my account of losing my 15 year old daughter Georgina to cancer. Georgina died only 4 short months after being diagnosed with liver cancer, and I poured my thoughts and feelings into a diary while she was ill, and for months afterwards, to help me cope. Lots of people have asked how I have managed to survive this loss, so I decided to share my diaries. Georgina was a talented singer-songwriter who had a posthumous hit single with one of her own songs entitled ‘Two Thirds of A Piece’ and I have written about trying to put my life back together, ‘piece by piece’. Georgina was very supportive of my writing, so I hope she would be proud of the book.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Most writers seem to get up early in the morning, but I do ‘evening pages’, followed by writing stints late into the night. I am a grumpy, slow individual in the mornings. I also love sitting in coffee shops, imagining my fellow customers’ stories. I make notes on them in the style of shopping lists, so they (hopefully) don’t know what I’m doing!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Fiction-wise, I loved Carys Bray’s ‘Song For Issey Bradley’ and Emma Healey’s ‘Elizabeth is Missing’. I also love Jeanette Winterson’s ‘Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?’

What are you working on now?
I am working on a novel set in a North Yorkshire fishing village. It’s about a family who loses their son in mysterious circumstances. As well as being a story of loss, it’s about finding your voice and yourself.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I blog about writing at http://www.helenvictoriaanderson.co.uk but I also post regular updates and snippets on http://www.facebook.com/helenvictoriaanderson. Increasingly, I am active on Twitter, too http://www.twitter/helenvanderson.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just to keep at it – as I am doing! And enjoy yourself.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Stephen King’s “If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.” Plus pretty much everything he says in his book ‘On Writing’.

What are you reading now?
Right now, it’s Max Porter’s ‘Grief Is The Thing With Feathers’. A complex but worthwhile read.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Gluing myself to my desk chair until I’ve finished my novel.

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?

Author Websites and Profiles
Helen Anderson Website
Helen Anderson Amazon Profile

Helen Anderson’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
International novelist, short story writer, and ex-lawyer. I’ve been publishing my work mostly in Europe where I grew up.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
What Have We Done?

What inspired it? – Realizing how good people can be selfish. We are all someone’s weak spot, whether we believe it or not. Human nature is what inspired me for this story.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I wouldn’t say it’s unusual, but I always listen to corresponding music to my writing. When I write something emotional, I want to dwell in sadness as much as I can. It makes me a better writer.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Even though this particular book has nothing to do with my writing, I have to say it’s “The picture of Dorian Gray”, by Oscar Wilde.

What are you working on now?
What Have We Done? Part two.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Using my own blog for eBook promotions, as well as the other blogs.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Believe in yourself. When it get’s overwhelming, push harder!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“If you don’t pursue your dream of becoming a writer, one day you will wake up realizing that your entire life was wasted.”

What are you reading now?
The girl on the train

What’s next for you as a writer?
Becoming a better writer every single day.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Of course, The picture of Dorian Gray. Other three: Crime and Punishment, Wuthering Heights, The Great Gatsby

Author Websites and Profiles
Zoe Moor Website
Zoe Moor Amazon Profile
Zoe Moor Author Profile on Smashwords

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a retired Air Force officer who hasn’t yet decided what to do when I grow up, so I write science fiction and fantasy novels instead! Actually, I’ve been writing since some time back in elementary school, third grade for sure, when I wrote a one-act play based on the Mercury space missions (yes, I’ve been around that long).

I’ve written and published the first two books of an SF trilogy: The Eternity Plague and Chrysalis. Book #3 is in work. More on that below.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest published book, Chrysalis, is the sequel to The Eternity Plague. In Chrysalis, the Eternity Plague viruses (naturally mutated viruses that have infected everyone) cause most of humanity to, over a period of a few months, become encased in chrysalis-like shells. Once encased, their bodies mostly dissolve but then are reformed so that when people hatch, they are transformed–still identifiably human but with new capabilities, including not only an enhanced empathic sense, but the ability to transmit those feelings too.

There wasn’t any one particular inspirational event that kicked off this book (other than needing something more for the viruses to do to humanity!), although clearly the transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly was an influence.

The main thing with this whole series is that I wanted to get away from the “evil scientist unleashes a deadly virus to get revenge” cliche. Dr. Janet Hogan, the scientist-heroine of the series, is much put-upon, but anything but evil.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Because I write in the afternoons and my mornings are spent doing lots of other stuff, I’ve found it helpful to spend the first 20-30 minutes of my writing time in what I call “napitation,” a cross between napping and meditation. This lets me calm my mind down and get it ready to write, edit, or whatever is on the schedule for the day.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Hard SF writers like Michael Crichton for weaving real science into SF, and Ray Bradbury for stretching the boundaries of the imaginable.

What are you working on now?
Book #3 in the trilogy, tentatively titled Guardians. I’m finishing up draft 2 but there will be at least one more before I think it’s ready to be sent to an editor.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
BICFOK. No, that’s not a swear word. It stands for “Butt In Chair, Fingers On Keyboard.” That novel’s not going to write itself, Jackson! Oh, and by the way, you’d better be there on a regular and frequent basis. I write five days a week at the same time every day unless something unavoidable gets in the way.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
From Anne Lamott: “Give yourself permission to write a shitty first draft.” Man, is that powerful advice! Your first draft is NEVER your final draft (unless you die before starting draft 2), so feel free to stink up the page. The work WILL get better in drafts 2 and 3 and… 4 and….

What are you reading now?
Kristen Lamb’s Rise of the Machines, Human Authors in a Digital World.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Book #4, something completely different from the first three: an SF/fantasy mash-up featuring a character whom I’ve loved since I first met him in a short story that almost got published in Fantasy & Science Fiction a decade ago.

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?
How about a satellite-receiver equipped ebook reader so I could read all the books I wanted. (Oh, yeah, and a solar battery charger for it too.)

Author Websites and Profiles
Ross Lampert Website
Ross Lampert Amazon Profile
Ross Lampert Author Profile on Smashwords

Ross Lampert’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I grew up on a farm in Southern Alberta Canada (far away from the literary world). I moved to Vancouver where I studied screenwriting and have since optioned two scripts. I have written two books, a non fiction film history called 101 Most Influential Coming of Age Movies and a fiction YA novel called Tractor.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Tractor was inspired by my love of anti-western movies in the sixties, the atmosphere of the southern US, and my own feelings growing up on a farm and wanting to leave.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m very 9-5! I can’t write past 8 PM of I won’t be able to sleep.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love the works of Jack Keuroac and Ken Keasy. Catcher in the Rye is one of my all time favorites!

What are you working on now?
I’m working on a new novel and a screenplay for a local film company.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
https://www.amazon.com/Tractor-Ryan-Uytdewilligen-ebook/dp/B01HN4YBAU/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1468423647&sr=1-2

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write! Write! Write! As much as you can! It gives you practice and content to sell and share! You just have to find the time to write!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
When you’re in a bowl of cheerios, be a fruitloop!

What are you reading now?
Bruce Springsteen’s biography!

What’s next for you as a writer?
Keep on writing and getting my work out there.

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?
Biographies never get old to me. Chris Farely’s the Chris Farely Show is amazing. Catcher in the Rye of course! And maybe… my Oscar trivia book. I think I look at that one more than any other book!

Author Websites and Profiles
Ryan Uytdewilligen Amazon Profile

Ryan Uytdewilligen’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Melinda Irvine (Mel) and I am an Australian writer, poet and musician. After coming to the Philippines after a calamity in 2014, I have found myself unexpectedly an adopted mom and living dual lives between the Philippine Western Visayas and my home country. Sometimes my life can get a little challenging and my outlet is writing, photography and music, all channelled into my blog.

I’ve just released my first book, a small collection of poetry called Paperbark Wetlands.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Paperbark Wetlands: 10 Little Multimedia Poems Lyricing the Australian Landscape was inspired by a quiet place near my parent’s house in my home town. Whenever I go home to visit mum and dad, I grab dad’s old ute (pickup), dad’s brown dogs and head onto an old dirt road which eventually turns to black sand. The melaleucas (paperbarks) arch a little trail to the beach. It’s a magical place and I have been walking there since I was a kid, or riding my bike when a teen. It’s my place of calm, nostalgia and rejuvenation. There are so many photographs and poems on my blog in that space.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write everywhere, roadsides, truckstops, bushwalks, coffee shops, restaurants, waiting in queues, walking the beach, wandering the wetlands, aeroplanes, lobbies … everywhere. Being a songwriter sometimes I compose songs lyrics and melodies while I am driving and can’t pull over, I never write them down, just memorise the whole thing in my head.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I read a lot of poetry, especially that older style verse poetry by poets like Tennyson and Longfellow. I’m fairly obsessed with Sylvia Plath’s Ariel. I first read the Hobbit when I was 12 and I can’t count how many times I have read it over the years. Tolkien also satisfies my love of rhyme. Oh and Enid Blyton too.

What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on another book of multimedia poetry called “My Mother’s Garden”. The book is themed around family and that feeling of home, wherever you find it. It’s a more substantial work than Paperbark Wetlands and has a lot more humour. After all that’s what families are, when they’re not driving us crazy they are awfully funny. One highlight is a poem I have literally been working on for almost 10 years now called ‘The Red-bellied Black Snake”. I am determined to finish for the book. The story surrounds a phone call from the city (me) back to the country (mum) who, while on the phone, is shouting directions and orders at my father and my brother-in-law, while they try to direct a rather large snake in the backyard into a hessian sack. True Story. Mostly true poem. It should be out in about 8 weeks.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Used well, social media can be great BUT, focus your attention on what you already know how to do and in the place or places you love. Meaning if you love Facebook and use it all the time, that’s your place, though it could be your blog, it might be emailing, it might be Twitter or Pinterest. Whatever it is stick to what’s true for you.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I am a new author so I am actually doing a lot of listening. Write, write, write, write, write. Edit, edit, edit, edit, edit.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
If you move to a small town, make friends slowly.

What are you reading now?
Mother Teresa: An Authorised Biography (Kathryn Spink)
Faunaverse: Australian Wildlife in Poetry (Alexander Dudley and Jane Sullivan)
The Famous Five Series (Enid Blyton)
Ariel (Sylvia Plath) (I’m always reading it)

What’s next for you as a writer?
My next major project is a book about my adopted son Jerry. He has a tragic yet beautiful story. I feel a great desire to get it down and share it with the world. There are so many kids like Jerry out there who need love and a future.

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?
Ariel (Sylvia Plath)
The biggest art book I can find, maybe Gardner’s.
The Republic (Plato)
The Hobbit (Tolkien)

Author Websites and Profiles
Melinda Irvine Website
Melinda Irvine Amazon Profile

Melinda Irvine’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been knocking around the writing biz since college. I started out writing screenplays. There were some slight options. I stumbled into writing for an animation series, a video game and several comedy troupes. A few years ago, looking for an outlet, I began taking some of those scripts and turning them into books. I’ve got 4 books out, one on the way and I’m included in several anthologies.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Halloweenies is a much more lively version of my love of Halloween. I’m the kid who would make his own costume, because I was too picky about store-bought ones. I was the one who decorated the house. I was the one to set the trap to catch the neighborhood pumpkin smashers. Also, I’m a big fan of candy. I wanted to do a funny, joyful story about a kid who loves and enjoys the holiday.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write on a boat! I live in Staten Island and have to commute to the city to work. So, twice a day I get to ride the Staten Island ferry, which is a great place to pull out the pad and pencil and start writing.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Catch-22. Our high school English teacher assigned that book. It was the first time I was exposed to “literature” that was funny. Absurd situations, snappy dialogue. I found a meeting place where my love of old movie comedies and English Lit met. I was dumbfounded.

What are you working on now?
I’ve doing the final prep on my latest Nick Flebber detective series. I wrote Lost Claus and liked the character but figured that was that. Then a group of writers were putting together an anthology about love and an idea came up for a sequel to Lost Claus, a short story. That turned out so well, I pulled out some old notes and found some material where I had been pitching Nick Flebber as a series and had several stories mapped out. That led to me writing Space Case and now I’m coming out with Author in the First.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Nagging people on Twitter and Facebook seems to get results.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep writing. If you have one story, you have two. And if you have several stories, it makes a bigger mass for people to run into.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Just keep getting your material out there.

What are you reading now?
The Account, a Wall Street thriller

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m working a another Nick Flebber story. And I’m trying to get my script writing muscles active again and do some major work on an old script of mine, The Men from S*W*A*K. Submitting smaller pieces to some websites. And sketches to some comedy troupes.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Harry Potter series. Man, those books sucked me in so bad. And they’re quite funny, too.

Author Websites and Profiles
Dan Fiorella Website
Dan Fiorella Amazon Profile

Dan Fiorella’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Raymond was born and raised in England in a small village in Essex. The Witchfinder General, Matthew Hopkins, once owned the village inn and ‘tested’ many witches in the area from 1645-1647. The village is situated just 7 miles from Colchester, the oldest town in England, hence his interest in historical fiction of that era.
The first book entitled “The Witchfinder” is based on that area and covers two time zones, both the present day and the 17th century, switching between ties as the story unfolds.
The genre changed with the second offering entitled “The Importance of being Roger” This book follows the trials and tribulations of Roger Sidebottom as he stumbles through life with often hilarious results.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The latest book about to be published is “The Witch Pond” where Raymond returns to his favourite topic. The book once again switches between time zones where it follows the saga of Clare as she mysteriously disappears into an old ducking pond close to her home. She emerges in the time of the Witchfinders where she discovers she has lived before, but in a very different lifestyle. With no prospects of any decent life she relies on her feminine wiles and quick wits to secure herself a future in those turbulent times.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I find it difficult to comprehensively plan out a book. Rather, I formulate a topic and begin writing, allowing the story to lead me on an adventure. Usually I have no inkling of the ending until I find myself instinctively tying up loose ends and heading for the climax.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Diana Gabalden, Barbara Erskine and Graham Follett mainly. I only hope I might aspire to some of their greatness.

What are you working on now?
At present I am writing a ghost story set in Lincolnshire, England. It is based on the occasion I visited an old bakery in the middle of nowhere which was vacant and on the market for sale. My experience inside the old property was nothing short of ‘hair raising’ and later, on recalling the incident, I decided to write a book detailing perhaps how the building became to be full of something sinister.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Currently relying on amazon ad campaigns.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Allow your mind the freedom to explore the possibilities you may not yet know you possess.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t grow up. It’s a trap!

What are you reading now?
Too busy writing myself at present and don’t want to cloud my mind with the brilliance of others.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I cannot see myself ever stopping now.

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?
Charles Dickens which can be read and re-read over and over. Plus of course J.R.R. Tolkien, the master craftsman of the imagination.

Author Websites and Profiles
Raymond M Hall Amazon Profile

Raymond M Hall’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am an author and singer/songwriter. Currently, I have published three novels. The latest book, A Rebel Among Us, was just released and is the third book in the Renegade Series.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
A Rebel Among Us was inspired after I took a trip to Gettysburg. I had never seen a Civil War battlefield before, and the sight left me awestruck. I decided to write a book about a common Southern soldier who didn’t own slaves and wasn’t an officer.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I like to play Civil War music when I write. It helps put me in the mood for that particular time period.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Gone With the Wind, Widow of the South, and Cold Mountain are some of my favorites.

What are you working on now?
I am working on a nonfiction book about Confederate warhorses.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use several methods including promoting on social media websites, sending out emails, and holding local book signing events.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Be true to your heart and tell a story that is meaningful to you.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Everyone gets bad reviews. Don’t let them get you down.

What are you reading now?
The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

What’s next for you as a writer?
My nonfiction book will be published next year. After that, I intend to publish book 4 in the Renegade Series.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Bible, Gone With the Wind, The Yearling, Old Yeller.

Author Websites and Profiles
J.D.R. Hawkins Website
J.D.R. Hawkins Amazon Profile
J.D.R. Hawkins Author Profile on Smashwords

J.D.R. Hawkins’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been in the US Army for 11 years as military police. I am also currently employed as a deputy sheriff, so I have a lot of experience with other cultures and every spectrum of human personalities. I’m completed 7 books – working on an 8th. All are fantasy, and 5 of those books are part of a series. All of this is a culmination of 16 years of writing… since I was 15!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The War Queen. I went for a walk above ISU campus (in Pocatello, Idaho,) where they have pillars on a hill top. The pillars are broken, and I started imagining what might of broke them, so my over-imaginative mind created a story that a god fell on them and broke them, and that became the prompt for The War Queen.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’ll write anywhere. In a car (not driving), at home, at work, during a court trial… and I’ve taken pictures of strangers because they look like my characters. The strangers never know.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Warriors in the Mist – by Susan D. Kalior
Dragonlance – by Margret Weis and Tracy Hickman
Classic novels, like Phantom of the Opera, Sea Wolf, and Animal Farm

What are you working on now?
The sequel to a historical fantasy romance based on Victorian Era England I’ve written. That book is called The Last Wizard. The sequel is called The First Sorcerous.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
http://jmrobison.wixsite.com/jmrobison

Do you have any advice for new authors?
It took me 16 years and 47 rejections before my first publishing contract. I made a commitment that I would never give up. Now I’m published. Use each discouraging moment as a stepping stone to take you higher and higher.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Tried once? Failed once? No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.

What are you reading now?
Wizard’s First Rule – by Terry Goodkind

What’s next for you as a writer?
Get my ebook into print. After that? Have it made into a movie (hopes and dreams!)

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The bible, shakespear, my military survival novel, and instructions on how to build a boat.

Author Websites and Profiles
JM Robison Website
JM Robison Author Profile on Smashwords

JM Robison’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been a professional journalist for the past five years, and my reporting has earned me several awards.

So far, I’ve written one book, a collection of short stories and poems called “Metacognition.”

I plan to write a novel next. I have several ideas, and I’m trying to pin one down to work on.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is titled “Metacognition.” It’s a collection of short stories and poems I’ve written over the years. Most of the stories are basically speculative though experiments; what if *this* happened?

The majority of the stories take place at what I call the intersection of science, faith and fantasy. They explore how these very different areas affect us and the world we live in.

For example, one of the stories in “Metacognition” is about time on earth being frozen for five billion years, then starting up again. This time-warp was very localized and only affected the earth; time outside of earth moved normally. So the sun is five billion years older and is on the verge of engulfing the earth, and every single human being has to deal with the knowledge that they’re going to die.

How does your faith come into play when you realize that your death is imminent — and not just YOUR death, but also that of your children, of your legacy? And then, how does science fit into the scenario? Is there a chance you could engineer yourself out of this crisis, for example, by building some kind of space ark to ferry at least a small sampling of humanity to another planet? These are the kinds of dilemmas I enjoy exploring in my writing.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not particularly. I don’t write as much as I should, but when I get going, it’s difficult to stop.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Growing up, I loved reading Michael Crichton’s books. I love the way he is able to take complicated scientific concepts and make them accessible to the average reader, while building a fantastic adventure story.

Isaac Asimov is another author I loved growing up, particularly his Foundation and Robot series. And his novel The Gods Themselves is a classic.

What are you working on now?
I have a couple projects I’m working on simultaneously, but I’m trying to pick one to focus on. They’re pretty much all science fiction or fantasy works.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I think Twitter is a cool social media platform for authors, and not even particularly for promoting your works. It’s more about just interacting with other authors.

Also, this doesn’t pertain to promoting your books as much as writing them, but CritiqueCircle.com is absolutely the best critiquing website I’ve ever come across and I think more authors should check it out to improve their writing.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
It’s trite advice, but I think it’s true: Read. Read any and everything you get your hands on, and analyze what works or doesn’t work. The best way I learn is through observation.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
See the above question. I think reading with a critical eye can greatly improve one’s writing.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading a book called “Unusual Punishment” by Christopher Murray. It’s about Walla Walla prison in Washington state in the ’70s and ’80s. It’s fascinating. You see some of these prison shows — Orange is the New Black is the most recent one that comes to mind — and think that some of this stuff that goes on in prisons is so over the top and would never happen in real life. But as I’ve been reading this book, I can’t believe some of the stuff that actually happened in Walla Walla. Someone should turn this book into a TV show.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m going to continue writing news stories. I’ll probably be doing that for the rest of my life. But as far as books go, I’d like to publish a novel next. I also have a few ideas for nonfiction books I’d like to publish at some point.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
– The U.S. Army Survival Handbook (I need to stay alive to read the rest of the books, right?)
– The Bible (I’ll need to keep my spirits up)
– A Game of Thrones and A Clash of Kings — I haven’t read these books yet, and they’re big, thick books, so I’ll get a lot of mileage out of them.

Author Websites and Profiles
Steven Wyble Website
Steven Wyble Author Profile on Smashwords

Steven Wyble’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m an Ohio country boy who joined the Army infantry to escape farm work. I admit, it wasn’t a well thought out plan. I eventually became a police officer, starting out part-time in Jamestown, Ohio. I moved on to the City of St. Bernard, which is surrounded by Cincinnati, and finally retired from Huber Heights.

I served as a patrol officer, detective, field training officer, crime scene investigator, school resource officer, and still train the next generation from time to time in the police academy.

I live on the same farm in southwestern Ohio that I ran away from, with my wife Gloria. We have two children, both of which graduated from The Ohio State University. Our daughter, Nadia, is a behavioral therapist for children in Columbus, Ohio. She was my first and most critical editor for Becoming The Wolf. Our son, Richard Jr., is a police officer in San Antonio, Texas.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Becoming The Wolf: A White Wolf Justice Thriller, is my first novel. The story was inspired by a lifetime of law enforcement, and watching my brothers and sisters in blue try to lead two lives. One as a husband, mother, parent, sibling, and friend. The other as a law enforcer, victim’s advocate, and guardian of justice.

I represented the two lives by forcing JD Ward, a young rookie city cop who grew up in the country, to become a reluctant vigilante to protect his family. It might be easy for one of those TV loner cops to moonlight as a vigilante, but not an ethically-driven farm boy with a wife and two kids. I watched many officers try to live separate lives, but our profession is more than a job. It becomes part of who you are, and sometimes it’s messy when the two mix. But they will mix whether we like it or not.

The struggles and fears that officers deal with every day are highlighted throughout the pages of Becoming The Wolf.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write in Narnia. No kidding! I walk through a wardrobe filled with coats and boots to enter my office. There are photos of it on my website www.RHNeil.com

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My favorite books are The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. They have stayed with me since third grade, but I mostly read thrillers nowadays.

David Baldacci and Lee Child are my favorite storytellers. I also enjoy Clive Cussler, A.G. Riddle, Robery Crais, and Janet Evanovich. And I read some fantasy, my favorite being anything from Brandon Sanderson.

What are you working on now?
Joining The Pack is the second book of the White Wolf Justice Thrillers. It will hopefully be out in March of 2017. I outlined three books before writing Becoming The Wolf.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
www.RHNeil.com

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write the kind of book you enjoy reading.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Regardless of your doubts, never give up. Be persistent. Finish.

What are you reading now?
A Jack Reacher novel, by Lee Child.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’ve been remodeling our farmhouse, which was built in 1814, but I’m back to working on book two of the series.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Swiss Family Robinson, The Count of Monte Cristo, and The Jungle Book seem to be obvious choices for survival. And enjoyment.

Author Websites and Profiles
Richard Neil Website
Richard Neil Amazon Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I started writing satire four years ago for the local Gridiron Show, but my first book was just published on October 7.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Fail to the Chief imagines the current presidential election as a reality show. I wrote it after watching a cable news channel and noticing the many similarities between the election and reality programs I’d watched. Here’s a brief description:
After years of emceeing insipid singing competitions, TV personality Bryan Seafoam can’t wait to host “American President,” the world’s first reality show to elect a president of the United States. Finally, an opportunity to be a real journalist, digging up dirt and playing hardball with the top ten candidates.
But it doesn’t take long for the contestants to start slinging mud at Bryan – literally, when billionaire candidate Ronald Chump is challenged to dig his proposed moat along the Mexican-American border himself. Forced to work in a fast food restaurant, an anti-minimum-wage-hike candidate learns his coworkers are struggling to survive with multiple jobs and claims to have solved the unemployment problem in his state-leaving Bryan to duck ketchup bombs from customers. To make matters worse, Bryan’s producer pressures him to be nicer to the candidates, and his former crush, now an experienced political correspondent, shows up-and shows him up at every turn.
When a cheating scandal rocks the show, Bryan begins to suspect it’s just the tip of a very underhanded iceberg. Will trying to expose a plot to wreck the most hysterical, er, historic election in history cost Bryan his career-and his personal life

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I get most of my ideas while running on the treadmill, but I don’t know that I have any unusual habits.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love so many different authors and read widely, in many genres. I read everything from Stephen King to Andy Borowitz. I learned a lot about humor from reading The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

What are you working on now?
I currently write satire for Humor Outcasts, and was recently published on The Satirist. I’m also working on my second novel, The Trust Pill, a satire of the pharmaceutical industry.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I try to use as many different methods as possible for the best reach. Of course I have a blog, Sharable Sarcasm, which can be found at: https://sharablesarcasm.wordpress.com/. I’m also on Twitter and Facebook, and through the end of October I have a Kindle giveaway on my Facebook page that’s really helping to increase followers. I also write a lot of guest blog posts, plus as I mentioned earlier I write regularly for Humor Outcasts, which gives more people an opportunity to learn about my work.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Find a good critique group. Mine has helped me immensely, and even inspired me to turn a short story into my first book. If you can’t find one locally, look for one online.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
When I was a kid, my music teacher told me, “The only people who never make mistakes are people who say nothing, do nothing, and are nothing.”

What are you reading now?
“Year Zero” by Rob Reid. It’s hilarious.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I will continue blogging, writing for Humor Outcasts, and working on my second book, The Trust Pill, which I hope to finish and publish some day.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Probably something I currently had not yet read by an author I really enjoyed, so it would depend on what I’d read. I always prefer reading books I’ve never read before.

Author Websites and Profiles
W. T. Fallon Website
W. T. Fallon Amazon Profile

W. T. Fallon’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account