Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a young author from Northern Minnesota. I’ve loved writing from a very early age; I finished writing my first book early in 2018.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest (and first) book is called “The Ins and Outs of Black Market Organ Trading”, which is about the CIA trying to oust corruption from a pair of highly corrupt hospitals where cannibalism and black market organ trading are occurring.

I actually wrote the book with the intention of saving lives by bringing attention to the exponentially increasing number of deaths from preventable medical errors, which are now the third leading cause of death in the United States.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I wrote this book on pen and paper (filling up 3+ notebooks) – a habit now which I plan on continuing in the future. Even though typing would be faster, I found that while writing with a pen I had more time to think about what to write next, improving the quality of the book overall. Even if it means writing less books overall and making less money, I’d rather give the reader quality over quantity.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Mary Shelly, Irvine Welsh, Hunter S. Thompson, and Karl Pilkington – to name a few. Also, Million Dollar Extreme’s Doctor Manslave was sort of an inspiration.

What are you working on now?
A book titled “Brains in the Forest”, a story about preserved brains which retained the ability to think and communicate with each other, but over long periods of time.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I like promoting my book on internet forums and chat-rooms, which gives me an opportunity to chat with the reader!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep at it! After about 20 pages, you’ll know it’s something you want to keep working on. Writing a book is one of the more rewarding feelings you can get. Make sure you have an overall idea of the direction you want your book to be heading in, but you’ll find that a lot more will come out naturally once you get in the groove.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Punch the keys for God’s sake! Yes, yes! You’re the man now, dog!” -Sean Connery’s character in Finding Forrester

What are you reading now?
I have so many books I’ve hoarded for free from the library, but I really like to read non-fiction. Right now I keep picking up and reading section’s of Don Voorhees’ “The Book of Totally Useless Information”, which unlike the title suggests is actually full of various interesting factoids.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Finishing and publishing “Brains in the Forest” – it’ll be an eerie psychological thriller, but also a charming, heart-warming, and fun read.

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?
Literally? Well, I’d make the smart choice of bringing with me textbooks on physiology/surgery, biology, and chemistry – and a survival manual!

Author Websites and Profiles
Michael Berg Website
Michael Berg Amazon Profile
Michael Berg’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born in 1967 and have worked in design and marketing for most of my life. My first book was Amplified, self published in 2003 on a whim. I completed the first draft of the sequel, but have not finished it at the point.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Quest of Arryn Kaan was created originally by considering things that had not been done in movies, but I could never figure out a way to make it work. One day I was chatting with an online friend and saw his name, Arryn. The spelling was unique. The name Arryn Kaan just appeared in my head and was such a powerful name to me. The missing puzzle piece fell into place and a new world was conceived, including ideas for three more books based on the characters.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I put a lot of myself into my characters. Sometimes that means realistic characteristics and sometimes that means placing characteristics that I would hope I would have to courage to have if placed in the situations of the characters.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My primary interest in books when growing up was Robert Heinlein, Dean Koontz and Clive Cussler. Clive Cussler books would be of primary influence in creating my own worlds with a strong lead character.

What are you working on now?
Currently, I am working on a rewrite of my first book ‘Amplified’. I hope to republish in near future and them place focus on finishing its sequel ‘Barriers’.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m researching and testing several methods and sites. I currently have promotions running on Amazon and Facebook to see what type of success they offer.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
The best advice I can offer is to just Start Writing.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I ever received was to write from the heart and edit from the head. In my case, that advice was very productive in the creation of The Quest of Arryn Kaan.

What are you reading now?
I’m currently re-reading my first book Amplified, in order to update it for re-publishing.

What’s next for you as a writer?
My next goal is to complete the sequel to Amplified. In future, my goals are to complete the sequels (in my head) to both Amplified and the Quest series. Both books have two sequels planned. The fourth book of both series, I hope, will be a crossover that brings both universes together for a truly unique adventure.

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 first book I would bring would be ‘Lightning’ by Dean Koonts. That’s probably my favorite book. The second would be a toss up between the first Dirk Pitt novels by Clive Cussler. The third would have to be ‘The Idiots Guide to Raft Building’.

Author Websites and Profiles
C. Todd Cleveland Amazon Profile
 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I grew up in Buffalo, New York, and this left an indelible mark on me, both positively and negatively. I went off to college in Maine and fell in love with the place, so I never really left. I was an elementary/middle school teacher for twenty years, but I decided in 2014 that my teaching tank was empty. Since I’d been writing every morning and evening for all of the time and my laptop was brimming with finished and unfinished manuscripts, it seemed a natural progression to take my energy and tackle these full-time. I’ve been doing that ever since. Over the course of the last four years, I have published four books – three with the local independent press Maine Authors Publishing (http://maineauthorspublishing.com) and one with Black Rose Writing (http://www.blackrosewriting.com). I miss my students, but I have never been happier doing what I’m doing. I am going to keep at it as long as I can. I live on an island off the coast of Maine with my wife, our two daughters, and our dog Twilight, and I run charters and camps from my lobsterboat in the summers.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Sweating Through came out in August 2018, and it is the sequel to my first book, Hauling Through. I was very proud of the abrupt ending of that story, but friends and family were not. They did not like my ending at all. To make them stop sending me angry emails, I wrote a sequel of the story that takes place ten years after the original and with an ending that appeased these passionate readers.

Where Eagles Dare Not Perch came out in July 2018, and it is a historical fiction about the Civil War. This story took shape while volunteering in our island history museum (https://www.fifthmainemuseum.org). Inside the main hall, the portraits of the veterans of the Civil War look down at us. I began to wonder how those men went and lived through the horrors of war, yet came home to Maine to be our mayors, senators, shoe workers, farmers, and fishermen. We now have modern wars to demonstrate the damages these conflicts do to the young people fighting in them, but what do we know/believe as true about the veterans of these historic wars?

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I am a morning person. For years, I was awake at four in the morning to spend a few hours before work to write. Once I had kids, this luxury wasn’t possible, so I turned to writing on the twenty minute ferry boat ride to and from our island. I put on headphones and listen to music as I write to help me focus and drown out the background noises. Usually, the music has to be familiar so I don’t listen too closely to it. However, the types of music are equally important. Truth be told, Rage Against the Machine was the band I listened to the most during the writing of the Civil War book – it definitely sets a mood.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I like to say that, as a reader and a writer, I am stuck between Kurt and Cormac. I love the zaniness and humor of Kurt Vonnegut, but I also cannot get enough of the dark and literary Cormac McCarthy. As I’ve been putting words to paper these four years, I’ve begun to try to meld these world more and more. In other words, there is the chance to be telling a silly story that has either a hidden or invisible darkness to it or be telling a gruesome tale that is damn funny.

What are you working on now?
I have discovered that I’m not really in charge – the manuscripts call to me to work on them. I was all set to begin a new write that is supposed a serious YA book, but a far more silly story jumped up and got my attention. The tricky part of this is that I do not think this work will ever see the light of day. I’ve gotten in the habit of attempting to write books that I would love to read, but won’t ever get published. With the shackles of trying to conform the story to the somewhat narrow confines of a legitimate story removed, I find such creative freedoms and energies. I will finish it, but then turn that new sense of excitement and enthusiasm onto the YA story that is just waiting patiently for me.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Actually, there are too many options out there for this. I did not know about Awesome Gang until Black Rose Writing put me onto it. I had no idea it was out there. I think this is both the greatest and most challenging aspect to promotion – you may not be aware of the tools before you because the selection is so great it can blind you. Promotion is not easy or quick, but there seems to be a balance between the creativity of writing and using creative ways to get that writing out there. I am still working on that balance.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
No. I don’t think that I can tell anyone how or how not to do something. I can share my own pathway, but that doesn’t represent anyone but me. However, the age-old mantras are all true: just do it (If you love writing, just write, write, write!), never give up (We are our own worst critics; silence your inner negativity and let your creative voice be what it is without judgment.), and it takes a little, done a lot, to accomplish your goals (I wrote forty minutes a day as a teacher, and that was surprisingly enough time to compose entire manuscripts. I’m told that a similar strategy works for cleaning the basement, but I have yet to try this because it still seem too overwhelming). Know thyself – if you want to write, be true to yourself and your passions.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
To pat yourself on the shoulder every so often. We humans tend to not self-congratulate or self-reward ourselves nearly enough. Stop for a moment and look at whatever you’ve accomplished – be it a sentence, paragraph, chapter, or manuscript – and take the time to say, good job, to yourself. Then either keep going, start editing, or go a different direction. But take the time to acknowledge that you just did something that a multitude of people on this planet want to do, but never do.

What are you reading now?
The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. It’s been on my shelf for years and friends have recommended it, but I have picked other titles to dive into. I am really enjoying it. I am a happy carnivore and I don’t want to be swayed away from meat by the horrors of the butchering process, but so far this book is about the human story of the Lithuanians immigrants, who are representative of all people who come to a new place to start a new beginning, and that is grabbing my interest.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I am going to keep on keeping on. I want to make a living writing, but I won’t be able to do that unless I keep working on my craft and getting books out there that people might want to read. I have a dream, now I just need to make it come true.

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 Road by Cormac McCarthy – perhaps not the feel-good story for such a dire situation, but the hopelessness that is generated by McCarthy’s words is unparalleled. Because it haunts me like it does, it is my favorite piece of literature.

The River Run Through It by Norman Maclean – this story is in a collection of his short stories, and it is so beautiful in its language and it honesty, I find myself thinking about it at the weirdest of times. Plus, Maclean was an English teacher with an infinite amount of writing skills, yet he only wrote two works that I am aware of. Quality over quantity, but I so wish there were more.

Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut – this is the type of book I would love to create one day. How this author can make me laugh and then cry between paragraphs is still a magical mystery to me. Although there are great humorous writers like Tom Robbins or Thomas Pynchon, Vonnegut continues to be so simplistic, so pure, I find reading his books a revelation each time I pull a well-loved copy off my bookshelf.

Author Websites and Profiles
Peter Bridgford Website
Peter Bridgford Amazon Profile
Peter Bridgford’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Early on in my dating life, I experienced the hardships of dating women. At that point, I began experimenting to increase my success in attracting women.

Real-life experience and a Communication Degree with emphasis in interpersonal relationships and nonverbal communication transformed me into a dating expert.

My dating advice for men has completely changed their lives by allowing them to be successful in attracting and seducing women. I have also helped numerous men become the best version of themselves in the process.

I have written two books that are published. I just finished my third book, which will drop at the end of the year 2018. I’m currently writing my fourth book to drop spring 2019.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
101 Powerful Habits Proven to Boost Your Life

First, I wrote the book: The Himalaya Playa: The Men’s Cheat Code to Attracting and Seducing Women

I realized after writing that book about seduction, self-improvement and personal development are important to attracting women.

So I put together a book full of researched habits to make anyone more successful.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I usually write on my phone. It’s always handy so I can easily write when I’m feeling inspired.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
R.L. Stine was my favorite author as a child. Neil Strauss was the first “seduction” book I read, but it was more entertainment than application.

Robert Grenne’s books are great! 48 Laws of Power, The Art of Seduction, Mastery, The 50th Law. I didn’t enjoy 33 Strategies of War, but the knowledge was still helpful.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on another book similar to The Himalaya Playa: The Men’s Cheat Code to Attracting and Seducing Women. This next book will go into more about attracting women and act as a “tutorial” for attracting women. I’m digging way deeper and utilizing new research conducted by myself and others in real-world situations.

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

Home

I always add new free guides and blog posts.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write about something you love because it’s a ton of work.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Experience is the best teacher. Also, “Fail fast!”

What are you reading now?
The Laws of Human Nature by Robert Greene! Bought it the day it dropped.

What’s next for you as a writer?
After I finish my book for spring 2019, I’m not sure. I’ll obviously be writing more books, but I’ll have to listen to the community before I know the goal of the book.

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?
48 Laws of Power, The Art of Seduction, Mastery, and The Laws of Human Nature (especially since I just started reading it)

Author Websites and Profiles
DG carter Website
DG carter’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have lived my entire life in the small town of Azle, Texas. Azle is located just northwest of Fort Worth, so while I can live the small town life, I have the big city just a few miles away.
I started dating my husband, James Reasoner when I was a senior in high school. James was writing his own fiction even back then. I kind of stumbled into the business after we married, while I was typing his manuscripts, seeing different ways the story could have gone. Our careers grew as our family did. We were blessed with two beautiful daughters. We raised them in a house we built ourselves with the help of family. We did everything from the pier and beam foundation poured with buckets, to shingling the roof. I found that I love carpentry and tools. James has it easy for presents; all he has to do is buy the latest tool I’ve been yearning for. We lost that house in a wildfire caused by someone burning trash.
My first story, “The Lord Will Provide”, was published in 1980 in Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine. My first novel written with my husband was published in ’83 as by Livia James. In the eighties I had several westerns published in hardback by M. Evans, while I was writing mysteries under my maiden name Washburn. My first mystery novel WILD NIGHT was the winner of The American Mystery Award and The Private Eye Writers of America’s Best Original Paperback Award. I’ve written more than 50 novels in assorted genres, some of which were co-authored with James Reasoner

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
DEATH BAKES A PECAN PIE is the 14th novel in the Fresh-Baked Mystery series. My mother, a retired teacher, always made a killer pecan pie, so that was a natural. Much of the book is set in a park where we used to take our daughters.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Are there usual writing habits? I work on a laptop sitting in a recliner with a couple of Min.Pin/Chihuahuas on my lap. They get one leg and the computer gets the other. I also publish books with my friend, Cheryl Pierson. We have several imprints under Prairie Rose Publications, so writing has to be worked into the schedule when there’s time.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Well, first is my husband. I probably never would have realized any of this was possible without him. Authors who influenced my mysteries would be the many authors who wrote The Hardy Boys series, Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe, the first culinary mystery series, A. A. Fair’s Bertha Cool series, one of the first female detectives, Frederic Dannay and Manfred B. Lee’s Ellery Queen, the king of who-done-it, and Dorothy Gilman’s Mrs. Pollifax series that had an older woman leading an extraordinary life as a spy, and many, many more.

What are you working on now?
The next Fresh-Baked mystery. I’m thinking about opening it with Phyllis having a new will made. With all the murders she’s had to deal with, it’s probably time to update that baby. I just need a title to get me started. And yes, I do try and have a title first these days. I do not like having to rewrite to make a book fit a title.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
wish I knew. I have a personal and publisher author page, I use Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Blogger, both publisher and personal, I read and promote a lot of other authors.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Do not expect to get rich overnight. It’s a slow process to become successful. Keep writing.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The advice I just shared. It’s hard to think that very few people might read your first book. My first mystery won awards, but sold very few copies. I did get my foot in the door, however.

What are you reading now?
Ann Charles’ FERALLY FUNNY FREAKSHOW.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’ve been playing with the idea of a new mystery series. We’ll see how it goes. But no matter there will be another Fresh-Baked mystery.

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 DESERTED ISLAND (Prepare to Survive)
HEALTH ENCYCLOPEDIA OF NATURAL HEALING: To Prevent and Treat Today’s Most Common Conditions
EDIBLE WILD PLANTS
THE BIBLE

Author Websites and Profiles
Livia J. Washburn Website
Livia J. Washburn Amazon Profile
Livia J. Washburn’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a mystery writer from Atlanta, GA and my seventh novel will be released in January 2019.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I introduced two nosey, widowed ladies in my book ‘Sweet Dreams, Baby Belle’ and everyone seemed to love them. They are witty, sarcastic, behind the times, yet intuitive and quick on their feet. It was a no-brainer to continue their characters and a series soon developed. My latest book is the first in the series and is set in Atlanta, Georgia. ‘Murder Among The Tombstones’ begins with Clara and Iris opening their private investigation firm and much to their disappointment, it doesn’t take off as planned. However, after meeting a street savvy young woman who is willing to step up as their office manager, along with a few mishaps with some Atlanta Police officers, they are thrown into a serial killer case that forces them to learn the ropes quickly, and also puts their lives in jeopardy. Not only is it an edge of your seat thriller, but several lifelong friendships begin to form and their lives take on a much deeper meaning. For these two older women, their lives are just beginning.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’d love to be like so many authors and say that I have a set schedule to sit down and write, but I’ve never been able to do it. I write when my thoughts are flowing and usually accomplish a great deal when I am able to write. However, most of my time is spent swirling ideas around in this unpredictable mind of mine. My office is filled with wipe-off boards and bulletin boards, very, very old school, but it works for me. The real key – ALWAYS write in comfy p.j.’s. You can’t ever go wrong with that!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Sue Grafton was my all time favorite. I love her mixture of humor and suspense. I also like Karin Slaughter, Iris Johansen, Tami Hoag, John Grisham, Robin Cook, and certainly last, but not least, Mary Higgins Clark.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on another Clara and Iris mystery, ‘Murder on the Bayou’. These ladies are taking it on the road and going undercover in the Bayou of Louisiana. I don’t want to give away too much, but I will say, this one is a real thriller. I’m at the point that I can’t write at night anymore. All the lights have to be on and the blinds open. Whew!

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My website is being revamped but should be up and running very soon.
www.kimcarterauthor.com
I can also be reached at kimcarterauthor@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/Kim-Carter-Mysteries-662227190458111/

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t be discouraged by negative people. If you enjoy writing, then write.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Every time I come across a quote that motivates me, I print it out and put it on my office wall. I think the one I refer to almost daily is “Don’t dig up in doubt what you planted in faith.” I have Elisabeth Elliot as penning it and if I’m wrong, my apologies. I like to give credit where it’s due.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading ‘Secrets To The Grave’ by Tami Hoag. Very, very good read, but unfortunately my reading time is limited to sitting in doctor’s offices these days. But I’m savoring this novel as long as I can.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I plan to continue to write as long as I can. I enjoy the traveling and research required to spin a tale, but I most enjoy visiting book clubs. Oh, what fun readers are! I’m starting a Kim Carter Book Club tour in January 2019. If you have a book club that would like to read one of my books and have me come visit, just send an email. I bring lots of freebies and fun along. We’ll be visiting several states so don’t miss out!

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 wow, no pressure here! It’d have to be compilations of Steinbeck, Robert Frost, Emily Dickinson, and of course, a Bible. I’d probably also smuggle in a few Mark Twain stories as well.

Author Websites and Profiles
Kim Carter Amazon Profile
Kim Carter’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 new author, A Fisftul of Honey is my debut novel. I’ve been a writer since the age of 7 though, always a storyteller.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
It’s called A Fistful of Honey. It was inspired by a spiritual experience I had in 2013, during the time of the Trayvon Martin murder trial. I was deeply inspired to partly write my own truth and let the story of healing tell itself.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
My writing habit is reading. The amount of books that I read and researched during my writing process is almost scary. I will read anything that catches my attention because inspiration lives everywhere!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I will be forever grateful to Octavia Butler for being a woman of color science fiction writer. She opened up a huge door of possibility for the world and for me. Although my novel wasn’t influenced by hers, I get the comparison many times to her work. It is an honor. Since I was in the second grade, I’ve wanted to be just like Alice Walker and Maya Angelou. My parents gave me both of their books when they saw I loved writing. I had the most awesome breathe-in-a-bag moment this year when I got to meet Ms. Walker at an author’s event!

What are you working on now?
I just wrapped up the workbook to A Fistful of Honey, which is a 244 page self-help blueprint for readers who want to go through their own healing journey. I also wrote a short story for the July issue of Strange Horizons magazine. Now that that’s finished, it’s sequel time!

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My best method is word of mouth. Readers have been so kind and share the story with their networks and book clubs. I also do specials like this one so A Fistful of Honey can get into as many hands as possible.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Be patient with your writing process. Let the story flow through you, no matter how long–or not–it takes. A Fistful of Honey was a 4 year journey for me. Know that you will have to put an entirely new hat on for the marketing piece which can be awkward for a creative. Learn as much as you can and build your platform even before your book is complete.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Be excellent, let God handle the rest.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading Binti Home, a nice short read since I love the Binti series.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Aside for writing the follow up to my novel, I’m working on more short stories with a water theme.

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 boy. I could ready I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb a hundred times. The I AM Discourses, and then I’d sneak in a few science fiction anthologies.

Author Websites and Profiles
Malena Crawford Website
Malena Crawford Amazon Profile
Malena Crawford’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I think everybody asks at one time or another “who am I?” I’m not much better at answering that question than most people – LO L. I suppose I’d have to answer that I’m kind of a loner. I like solitude, contemplation, and I take a lot of pleasure in solitary pursuits like reading and creative projects.
I love eating at good restaurants, and I have a favorite bar – Gentle Ben’s, in Tucson down by the U of A. If things go well for me I’ll indulge my favorite pursuit which is travel.
As for my writing, my first book was written about 25 years ago, I wrote it when I was living in Bangkok. It was called Death of a Dream; Thumbnail Sketches of the Decline of American Society. It’s a very dark book – about a dozen short bios of different people I knew at the time, and the various aspects of the decay of US society they exemplified.
My other books – Rotting in the Bangkok Hilton, (short stories about my time in Thai prison), and the Nature of Religion – a grisly yet fascinating scholarly overview of spiritual beliefs, are both nonfiction.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
it’s called Lasting Happiness: Secrets of the Heart, Mind and Spirit Revealed. It was the product of immense suffering and pain – but it is also the most important thing I’ve ever contributed. I believe that it holds the keys to contentment and joy for most people on the planet. The book is a paradox – profound insights about happiness that emerged from a terrible experience. The years I spent in prison I was surrounded by death and cruelty. The lessons these things teach can transform your heart and spirit, if you let them. If you strip everything away, you realize that YOU are responsible for your own happiness.
If you are at peace with yourself, and you have people you love around you, you have the foundation you need for a happy life. That is the essence of my book, and it was inspired by my need to make it real for myself and others. All the tools and techniques in the book – which I borrowed from brilliant scientists and philosophers, are just methods of making these central truths real.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?

What authors, or books have influenced you?
it’s hard to separate out my favorite books from books that have influenced me heavily. There are some books I love because they tell a great story – like Robert Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped, and JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series. Those are like old dear friends to me. I love Robert Silverberg’s work, I’m a great fan of Stephen King, and there are many great nonfiction authors very dear to my heart, like Naomi Klein, Derrick Jensen, Dr. Rianne Eisler – too many others to do justice to.
But if I had to pick books that were a great influence a few do stand out. Cosmos by Carl Sagan. The Ascent of Man by Jacob Bronowski. The Golden Bough by James Frazier. The Art of War by Sun Tzu, and of course the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu. Niccolò Machiavelli’s the Prince. The White Goddess by Robert Graves. These are both favorites and seminal influences on my life and writing.

What are you working on now?

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I don’t think there is any one magic formula or “best” way of promoting a book. Local media – your local weekly, community cable and community radio, local university or college papers, and local magazines – these are the most accessible media, and the ones most likely to help you starting out. This has certainly been the case for me.
The many book promo sites are also good, and pretty reasonable financially, to get your book in front of a lot of potential readers.

Do you have any advice for new authors?

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
without a doubt, it comes from Stephen King’s On Writing – keep it very simple, direct, and descriptive. If your work is active and easy to understand, you are doing the job right. Communication is the name of the game, and the simpler your writing style is the more likely it is you’re going to be able to reach the people you want as your audience.

What are you reading now?

What’s next for you as a writer?
I have two very different projects that are going to take up my time for a while. One strangely enough is young adult fiction, a book about a young girl who can communicate telepathically with animals. I’ll only say that the theme of the book is our need to rejoin the family of living things.
The other project is more mundane – a long series of seminars that delve very deeply into all the subjects that I raise in my book. The way I wrote the book Lasting Happiness, it’s very short and concentrated. Each chapter is the summation of literally thousands of pages of scholarly and scientific work. The seminars I’d like to do – both video/audio and print versions, basically flesh out the almost telegraphic style of Lasting Happiness.

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
T. M. Hoy Website
T. M. Hoy Amazon Profile
T. M. Hoy Author Profile on Smashwords

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
(Devi) Nina Bingham is an Author, Life Coach and Clinical Hypnotherapist. Her life coaching company, “Your Guru For Life” is based in Vancouver, Washington. Devi Nina has worked in mental health care since 2003. She lives with her spouse and dog, writes for her spiritual self-help blog, and enjoys kayaking and being a beach bum. Her latest book was the award winning autobiography, “Once The Storm Is Over: From Grieving To Healing After The Suicide of My Daughter” (Big Table Publishing, 2015) about her journey through grief. She also published a poetry trilogy, and “Never Enough: A Recovery Workbook,” a do- it-yourself workbook for addictions, eating disorders and OCD. In 2019 Austin Macauley publishing will publish her first channeled book, “Messages From Metatron: A Course in Self-Transformation.”

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“Messages From Metatron: A Course in Self-Transformation” is my latest book to be published in 2019 (Austin Macauley Publishers). After I lost my teen daughter in 2013, I became interested in life after death. Because I am a researcher, I read about and researched the spiritual and paranormal which revived my childhood ability to channel. On the second anniversary of my daughter’s death I began receiving positive and fascinating messages which I felt compelled to write down by a voice who identified himself at first as “an angel.” Soon he revealed his name was Metatron, an Archangel. The thirty messages took two years to channel and I added a study guide. The book is a dictated course in self-transformation, similar to “A Course in Miracles.”

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’ve written for my blog since 2011 and it covers a variety of subjects from clinical mental health academic research papers to esoteric spiritual articles. I have published a trilogy of poetry, a recovery workbook, an autobiography, and now I’m writing spiritual channeled material, so my writing is unpredictably diverse. I am a Renaissance woman in that I have studied many different subjects in depth and am wisdom-based in my approach as a Life Coach. Though I have degrees in Psychology, my soul is pure philosopher.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My hero is Elyn R. Saks, whose quote is on the cover of my autobiography. She is Associate Dean and Orrin B. Evans Professor of Law, Psychology, and Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences at the University of Southern California Gould Law School, an expert in mental health law. Saks lives with schizophrenia and has written about her experience with the illness in her award-winning best-selling autobiography, “The Center Cannot Hold: My Journey Through Madness” (Hyperion Books, 2007). When my daughter died, her book literally kept me afloat. I have always been profoundly influenced by autobiographies of people who overcame tremendous odds, including: Dale Carnagie, Viktor Frankl, Anne Frank, Helen Keller, Mother Teresa, Mahatma Ghandi and others.

What are you working on now?
I have finished two channeled books, and am completing the third in a series of books dictated by Archangels. After these are published I will complete a book about the teachings of a Hindu saint named Ramana Maharshi, who helped me to understand the subject of enlightenment.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Amazon is where my books sell from now although they can be found on my first publisher’s website (Big Table Publishing).

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I started writing in 4th grade (and never stopped) because my teacher saw promise in my simple stories. She read them aloud to the class and I realized then that I had the gift of communication. No matter how inexperienced you are, your age, or even whether or not you have formally studied writing, go where your soul is leading you in your writing. Follow your heart-let it take you and your readers on a fantastic journey and you’ll never be disappointed or bored with life. Create your own mystery-push yourself to express the thoughts, feelings and experiences that have shaped you, for good or ill. Express the reality of life by sharing your unique perspective. The most important lesson I’ve learned is that to be a worthy writer you must write as bravely as you possibly can. Good writing is brave writing. I would also add that my 4th grade teacher was correct; she got after me about my bad grammar and spelling, and I’m glad she did, because it taught me that you can’t be a solid writer until you have mastered these writing basics.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I’ve heard it said that it is important to write regularly if no daily, and I agree. Don’t let your skills gather rust. If you stand in one place too long you’ll become ineffective, so keep writing even if it is in your personal journal. In fact, my autobiography was completely unintended. It sprang from the desperate journaling I did during my journey through grief. Pain can birth art, I think every artist in any medium has discovered this. So write through the good times, but definitely through the bad times. Use the pain as a springboard into self-discovery.

What are you reading now?
I am reading Raja Yoga by Swami Vivikananda at the moment, because I am a Hindu and meditate daily. I want to increase my comprehension of the ancient master’s meditation techniques.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Because I am an unpredictable writer (I never imagined I would be channeling books), I don’t want to predict which direction my writing will take me. I like it best when I’m just along for the ride.

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?
That’s a tough one, asking me to choose just a few books because I was a bibliophile for many decades. I suppose I would choose to take autobiographies of great souls, the Mahatmas who faced life’s worst yet turned it into a silent prayer. The greatest Hindu gurus and swamis like Sri Ramakrishna and Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi would undoubtedly be in my island book bag along with a more contemporary Hindu voice, Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev.

Author Websites and Profiles
Nina Bingham Website
Nina Bingham Amazon Profile
Nina Bingham’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I always had a passion for writing, from a young age I had the instinct to jot down any ideas I would have for a possible book. I made the decision to write my first book Madison when my son went to summer camp for the first time. I used the time instead of missing him I put it all in a book, it was the first book I self published. I went on to write 6 more books I know my writing was inspired and still is inspired by him. I write because he believes in me.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Agent Silver is my latest book, I always wanted to write about outer space and aliens but wanted it to be different then what was out there. I wanted to instead of writing about post apocalyptic future world, I wanted mine to be pre apocalypse and how the world would be without destruction.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t know if it is unusual but I do listen to music, what kind of music? Gangster Rap, Heavy Metal and just recently Soft Rock.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Definitely Stephen King and Judy Blume, I wanted to write just like she did, it was when I found my love of writing. Its was thought of a dirty book when I was younger, but it was real all of her books were to me. Thanks Judy Blume.

What are you working on now?
My next book in the Agent Silver series.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Twitter, Facebook, Inkkit, and talk about my books to anyone who will listen.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t give up, if it is your passion or your calling don’t let rejections stop you. Believe in yourself and your work.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I have a few, a rejection is just a sign to work harder, read your book out loud it is the best way to find mistakes. When you think you edited enough do it one more time.

What are you reading now?
The Silent Betrayal by Momus Najmi

What’s next for you as a writer?
To continue writing I have more to say and write about.

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 Silent Betrayal by Momus Najmi just because I am not done yet.
One of my own books, can I do that? Beauty and the Beasts by Me
and Touchdown by Alexa Summers
I believe in supporting new authors so those are the books I would take with me.

Author Websites and Profiles
Leanne Krieger Amazon Profile
Leanne Krieger’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a regular guy with a family who had put on quite a few extra pounds. This is my first attempt at writing a book. It is a difficult and time consuming process but I am satisfied with the work that I produced.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Low Carb & Keto Solutions: A Diet Plan for People on the Go
I wrote this book because friends and family asked me how I had lost weight.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
The book was written as a giant brainstorm and then I moved around the sentences and paragraphs to make it coherent.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I would have to say the book that has influenced me most is: How to win friends and influence people by Dale Carnegie. It showed me me how to focus on what other people want or need, instead of focusing on myself.

What are you working on now?
I am still finding new products and ways to stay healthier, so I am working on a second edition of this book.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
The book was only published a few days ago, so this is my first attempt at promoting my work.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I hit a serious roadblock until I shared my work with a friend who is an English major. She helped me through the process when I wasn’t sure how to structure the book.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people.
-Eleanor Roosevelt

What are you reading now?
I have actually been reading poetry lately, which is completely out of character for me. It is something different and helps me to view other peoples perspective.

What’s next for you as a writer?
There is more material I would like to add to this book, so I will release a second edition in about a year. I have other ideas, but writing is a huge endeavor and I will not start a new book until late next year.

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?
Beside the obvious survival book, I think it would have to be a non fiction book about someone overcoming great odds.

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Certainly. I’m an author/land surveyor based in Sicily, Italy. I take great pleasure in observing, studying everything that draws my attention. And when something does, I have this almost obsessive need to understand how that something works, down to the most minute detail.
I’m a lover of fine arts, meaning anything whose whole value is greater than the sum of its single parts. Hence, fine art can be found nearly everywhere, be it a good dinner, a painting, a movie, music, even football.
I also adore impossible challenges, if nothing else for their paradoxical nature. Nothing is impossible. As for the writing, I first became interested in storytelling. In fact, my first endeavour of this kind was to be a comic book. It never really went on to be something more than just an idea, but I will work on it in the not too distant future. It’s a promise I made to myself, partly because it is a story worthy of being told.
As for the writing part, well, it all started as a game. I wasn’t even sure I could write a full-length novel when I put hands on That Which Must Happen. Yet, here we are.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
That Which Must Happen is a novel about fate. Not the same fate we’re all acquainted with, rather, a series of interconnected events all influenced by each other and by our choices. In other words, an active fate.
It’s also Benjamin’s story. Benjamin is a child able to foresee, forestall, and alter these events happening all around him. In other words he’s able to control fate. But does he do that of his own accord? Surely there must be a set of rules for this. What that set of rules is, I’m not going to say.
However, at some point during the novel, his personal attachments are going to get in the way, as the one person he truly cares about is faced with a less than ideal fate. Considering that every event is connected to another and so on, he cannot simply save her. That would make the entire novel rather dull, wouldn’t it?
He was a very interesting character to develop, as I had to think outside the box.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I was always fascinated by Luigi Pirandello’s works. He has this way of turning psychological analysis into simple writing and concepts. The crisis of the relative self, his thoughts about humor, the contrast between life and form. These are all subjects worth studying in depth, as they’re all enlightening. The fact that we’re all wearing a mask, a concept upon which he wrote Uno, Nessuno e Centomila, is an actual psychological concept developed by Jung, (the concept is interpreted slightly differently by the two).
Although he’s not an author, Christopher Nolan’s works are a great inspiration as well. Yes, he’s a brilliant storyteller. His manipulation of time and subjectivity/objectivity is so thought-provoking and enjoyable. His films are study-worthy material.

What are you working on now?
A novel involving Romania, a priest on pilgrimage to Turkey, and nothing of the supernatural. (As Romania is home to Dracula, I feel it is my duty to be really clear about this). All set around the end of the XIX century.
It’s going to be slightly smaller than That Which Must Happen, probably better than it. It’ll almost be an exercise for my third novel. I’ve got some very exciting ideas for it.

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

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Always, always edit your work yourself before sending it out to an editor. Let your novel alone for a few months after you finish writing it, then take it up and get editing all those surplus words you’ve written. Don’t be afraid to cut it away. If you’re not sure whether you need it or not, you probably don’t.
Also, always look for natural ways to evolve your story, never force it in ways that are less than so.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?

What are you reading now?
At the moment I’ve barely enough time to breathe! But I can tell you about the last book I read, The Penguin Book of Norse Myths: Gods of the Vikings by Kevin Crossley-Holland. A very interesting read, it goes into some detail into Norse mythology. In fact, I’m planning to take it one step further and read the Elder Edda.
Oh, recently I also sank my teeth in Sun Tzu’s The Art of War.
Next? What does this Button do? by Bruce Dickinson.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Like everything else in life, I tend to take it on a “one step at a time” basis. Six years ago I thought I couldn’t possibly write a full-length novel. A few years ago I thought I wouldn’t get past page 1 of That Which Must Happen. Now it’s published. Next week (hopefully, if I manage to take a breather for 5 minutes) I will start working on my next novel. After that who knows? Any number of things can happen. Hopefully most of them good.

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
Sebastiano Lanza Amazon Profile
Sebastiano Lanza’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I worked in corporate America for many years. I did well climbing the ladder to Vice President of Operations at a Fourtune 50 company. I early-retired to become an author. I have always loved writing but started my career in Engineering to earn money to take care of my family.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Bullets and Bosses Don’t Have Friends: How to Navigate Tough Challenges in the Workplace is my latest book. It was inspired by how clueless I was starting work in America. I had no idea of the rules: written or unwritten. I learned everything the hard way. I worked hard to define exercises in the book that are practical, to help anyone understand the way corporate management thinks. I put together a separate workbook for those that really want to work through the exercises to gain insight to getting promoted.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write from my bed every morning, even before I head to the bathroom.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love all of the crazy horror and syfy authors. I consume at least 20 books a month; sometimes many more.

What are you working on now?
I am working on another how to book that details my trip through University. I was the first in my mothers family to go to college. I had no idea what I was doing. Again, no one needs to repeat my mistakes… I have already made enough mistakes for everyone.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My best method is my core launch team. These are people who support me through my ups and downs. I am very lucky to have them.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t give up. Being an author is a tough gig.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Do what is right, be a decent person, follow your heart BUT always take care of your family.

What are you reading now?
The Last Dragon Standing by Rachel Aaron
The Liberators Daughter by Deborah Levine
Difficult Women by Roxanne Gay

What’s next for you as a writer?
Writing and selling more books!

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?
On Writing by Stephen King
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
The Shack by Wm. Paul Young
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

Author Websites and Profiles
Toni Crowe Website
Toni Crowe Amazon Profile
 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I Have been married for 43 years and ten grandchildren with our dog Molly. I have written five novels, three short stories and one children’s book.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Run Till It’s Over is my latest book. I like stories with action and suspense and my book has both.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not in particulate. I may write on the spur of the moment or if i get a new idea for a story

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Karen Kingsbury

What are you working on now?
Another action and suspense story called M.A.I.D. A story about a man who stills money out of ATM machine under the influence of drugs.

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

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep at it even if your stories are rejected be publishers. A good book will fine it’s way to be published.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Never give up on your dreams.

What are you reading now?
Nothing specific.

What’s next for you as a writer?
To finish my current book and to reach the public with newest book.

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 and other inspirational books.

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been writing nearly all my life, first cutting my teeth on fanfiction. I hav a book out now and am working on a paranormal thriller.

I love books, anime, coffee, chocolate, manga, Beatles music, and dogs – not necessarily in that order.

I’ve always been a bookworm. I was the type to hide novels behind my textbooks in school and secretly read under my desk during class. And then get caught and punished. #NoRegrets

When I’m not writing, I’m usually blogging, reading or trying out strange online recipes on my Air Force officer husband, and playing with my son.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My book, “Dark Things Between the Shadow and the Soul”, is an anthology of short stories that retells famous legends from Indian mythology—with a twist.

Designed to delight lovers of the unusual, these short stories feature cross-dressing assassins, were-snakes, goddesses and demon kings, along with an afterword to each story explaining the mythology to casual readers.

“Dark Things” had its roots in the TV show “Supernatural”. One of the pivotal episodes in the fifth season depicted Indian gods in contemporary USA—and while I enjoyed seeing the gods I knew on screen, the ending to their story disappointed me immensely.

I wanted to see more of that—figures from Indian mythology in modern settings, age-old gods and demi-gods dealing with contemporary life. The idea of mythology fanfiction fascinated me.

I started out by writing a story a week, posting the stories on my blog every Friday. Soon I had built an audience, which was when I decided to collect the best stories into an anthology.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I wrote my first book one story a week.

When I first started writing, I was stuck in a block. I hadn’t written in a while. I challenged myself to start writing again by picking a theme close to my heart: more representation for Indian mythology—specifically as fractured fairy tales.

By committing to posting a story every Friday, I forced myself to get into the writing mindset every day. It’s how I got nearly 40,000 words done.

While I’d like to write based purely on inspiration, waiting for it to strike is a slow affair. I’ve found that it’s better and more productive to force oneself to write every day—or every week, if that’s what works.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I find that my favourite books and authors influence me in ways I can’t really pick up on with my conscious mind. Their way of looking at the world, their turns of phrase, the flow of their writing—it all helps broaden my literary horizons and colours my voice.

So, coming to my favourite authors and books: I love Terry Pratchett’s “Discworld” series for its mix of satire and fantasy. Another favourite is the book “Dandelion Wine” by Ray Bradbury. I also love the works of Agatha Christie, which I first picked up as a schoolgirl.

What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on my first novel—a paranormal thriller about an ordinary girl caught in a deadly situation. Here’s a short synopsis:

When Bhavani first hears someone knocking from inside her mirror, she thinks she’s lost her mind. Trapped in an unbearable home life, stuck in a dead-end job; she’s sure the pressure has finally caught up with her. But the being from the mirror promises to set her life right, and Bhavani thinks to herself: what has she got to lose?

At first, everything’s perfect.

As time goes by, though, it becomes clear that Bhavani’s reflection isn’t what it seems. It has needs of its own—and some of them are decidedly bloodthirsty.

You can read more here: https://sudhakuruganti.com/books/upcoming-work

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’ve done a lot of research to find sites that promote my book for a minimal cost—or for free. These two sites have a great list:

List of Sites To Promote Your Free Amazon Kindle Books

Free Amazon Kindle Book Submission Tool

It’s how I discovered Awesome Gang, which is a really cool site.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t doubt yourself. Don’t stop writing. And conversely, know when to take constructive criticism.

Writer’s Block is real. But you need to keep at it. When I’m in the block myself, it’s like I’m struggling to walk through wet sand. Every word is a struggle, every sentence a battle. But you have to keep going. Whether it’s a month later, or a year later, you have to start writing again. And one day it will come naturally to you again.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The worst enemy of creativity is self-doubt.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading an ARC of “Evenfall”, part one of the Shadowfire series, by Gaja J. Kos.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m working on my paranormal thriller – it’s in the edit/rewrite stage. I have another book on the anvil, in the plotting stage.

I’m also working on another series of weekly stories—microfiction, this time, that I post on my Twitter (https://twitter.com/SSKuruganti) and Instagram (https://instagram.com/sudha.kuruganti). I also occasionally blog writing advice on my site, along with tips and tricks that have worked for me.

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, that’s a tough one! If I was only allowed a few books, it would have to be something from Terry Pratchett’s “Discworld” series: “Nightwatch”, because I love Sam Vimes as a character, along with “Small Gods”. I’d also take some of my childhood favourites, books that I can read again and again, like “Daddy Long Legs” and “Anne of Green Gables”. Of course, as a fantasy lover, one of my favourites is “The Lord of the Rings”.

Author Websites and Profiles
Sudha Kuruganti Website
Sudha Kuruganti Amazon Profile
Sudha Kuruganti’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I began my writing career at only nineteen years old. I am now twenty two years old and have had four books published. I live in a small town and am attending college, majoring in art education. In my free time, I enjoy singing, dancing, painting, and studying foreign languages. My latest book, The Gifts of Christmas, is a cozy romance mystery, and is included in the Books To Go Now Christmas Mystery Anthology.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my latest book is The Gifts of Christmas and was inspired by writing prompts given by my publishing company (I know that’s not the most exciting of inspirations), as well as a trip my parents and I took to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, when I was a child. I’ve also always liked the idea of receiving gifts from a secret admirer, which was the main focus of this book.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yes, I always write my books down on paper before typing them. I know it’s an outdated method, but I always feel more comfortable when I write things down on paper first.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’ve always enjoyed the Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer and the Shiver trilogy by Maggie Steifvater, because they have interesting plot-lines and achieve the goal of painting mythical creatures as something real and tangible. I also enjoy the details both authors describe in their stories.

What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on a young adult romance, called Homeless. The story will follow high school student, Chris Wells, as he makes friends, falls in love, and just tries to live as normal of a life as possible, even though he ran away from home and now lives in an abandoned car at the local junk yard.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I try to find as many websites as possible and promote to as many people as I can, but I don’t currently have a method for this.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Yes, just write what you want and don’t give up when somebody tells you no. Don’t write what you think everyone wants you to write, but instead write what is truly in your heart.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Follow your heart instead of logic. At the end of the day, you’ll be happier doing what you’re passionate about.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading The Coffin Club, which is the 5th book in Ellen Schreiber’s Vampire Kisses series.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m just going to continue writing books for as long as I can, and do what I love.

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 rest of the Vampire Kisses book by Ellen Schreiber and a book on how to get off of a desert island.

Author Websites and Profiles
Tori Wilson Website
Tori Wilson Amazon Profile
Tori Wilson’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I write the sort of books I’d like to read. They’re all hot and sensual,. The more I write, the hotter the books get. I currently have 15 books on Amazon and one more going through edits with Stormy Night Publications.
I love to write paranormal romance, but also write contemporary and Regency romance.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Breeder – A Mechanic’s Tale. The title will probably change soon.
I fell in love with the Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood – the book not the TV series.
Then the what if’s started.
If the human population was decimated by plagues and the paranormals weren’t, what would the world be like? And what if only a few surviving females were Breeders?
Clearly, my story headed off in a different direction to the Margret Atwoods, but I stared in the same place. Of course, I added werewolves, vampires, demons and lots of spankings.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I read or write anywhere. On the bus. In the car – as a passenger. On the beach. You name it, I’ll put pen to paper there

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I fell in love with Georgette Heyer in my teens. Hence my love of Regency Romance. Sherrilyn Kenyon and Kresley Cole plunged me into a world of paranormal romance. Honestly, I have a reading adiction, but thanks to Kindle Unlimited, it’s under control.

What are you working on now?
I’m just about to start a third Regency Romance. A minor charactor in Wickeldy Used had a bigger role in HIs Innocent Bride. Now it’s time he had a story of his own

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I wish I knew. It’s like Alchemy. I grab any opportunity I spot and spend far too long on Twitter.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Never give up. I did a writing course to see if I was any good. It was about magazine writing, and I earned triple the cost of the course in six months. Only I wanted to write romance.
Getting a start was hard, and I will always be grateful that the now defunct Loose id gave me a start.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Adverbs are not your friend.
Its from Stephen King. If you only read one book on writing read his ON WRITING.

What are you reading now?
Erica Ridley’s historicals. I’m about half way though them and loving each one.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I wanted to get in the top onehndred on Amazon – and I did with His Innocent Bride.
Now I’m aiming for a top ten. It might take a while, but I will get 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?
The complete works of Shakespeare.
Is there a compendium of Sherrilyn Kenyon? If not, their should be. I’d take that.
The same applies to Georgette Heyer.

Author Websites and Profiles
Kryssie Fortune Website
Kryssie Fortune Amazon Profile
Kryssie Fortune’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
This is the second book I have written, The anti-inflammatory diet for the 50 plus and A book on one of my favorite hobbies , Photography called ” Perfect Exposure”.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The anti-inflammatory diet for the 50 plus, was inspired by my joining this illustrious group, and from my living in Brazil for the last 10 years, I saw that arthritis wasn’t as prevalent in my hideaway by the sea.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
By that question if you mean if I start with a title of a particular subject that interests me, then research it , try to add in a different perspective ,and add some personal opinions that are not science based but that someone might relate to….then Im unusual…

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My first book was wind in the willows, my first author I enjoyed was ernest hemingway and the old man and the sea. Later on in trying to understand the world I fell into david icke and the matrix we live in.

What are you working on now?
I started working on politics in medicine and why Ozone therapy is not allowed in Canada and USA , while it does great things all over the rest of the world . Cuba is one of the leaders in ozone therapy , Russia is also very active in their adoption and documentation of the information, and protocols for its safe use in treatment of cancer, aids, diabetes etc…

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
they are all awesome gang but I am partial to awesomegang.com

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write about what you love and care about without regards on the dollar amount. If you can help or touch one reader, you can be satisfied, if you touch 100 people you can rejoice, any more than that you will be hooked on what a gift it is to share, and bridge the gap between all of us.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
read a book a day

What are you reading now?
Spin selling , blue ocean strategy, the psychology of influence, psycho cybernetics

What’s next for you as a writer?
Maybe a book on Brazil the Beautiful, with miles of coastline, incredible wildlife, decent diving, beautiful women, Joie de vivre only rivaled by the French city of Montreal.

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 build a fire with no matches, how to fish with a shoelace , how to open a coconut without an ice-skating blade, how to desalinize sea water .

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Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a black, 18 yr old, who is currently in school at Morehouse College. I like to write, eat, and play video games. Writing is my hobby, but I do want to continue doing it in the future after I graduate. I have written five books so far, and four of them are published.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my latest book is “The Hunt For The Great Beasts Book 1: Water.” It is about a post apocalyptic society that is trying to survive against four mythical beasts. I take a lot of inspiration from anime and real world problems. This book has to do with nature, and how it will try to hurt us if we continue to neglect it.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write anywhere, at any time, under any circumstance. I could be in a meeting and begin writing or continuing a story

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Directly, no authors have inspired me; but, indirectly, those such as Rick Riordan, Toni Morrison, and Clarissa Clare.

What are you working on now?
Right now, I am working on the second book in my first series, as well as editing another separate book. I am always looking for beta readers, if anyone is interested.

 Do you have any advice for new authors?
If I were to give any advice to a new author, it would be to never give up, and always read over the draft of your book at least three or four times.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I have been given is, “Don’t give up.”

What are you reading now?
At the moment, I am not really reading anything. Due to being busy, I have not found as much time as I would like.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I plan to branch out into as many genres as I can. I want to create something wonderful and do it over and over again. Until then, I won’t stop 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?
The Leviathan series by Scott Westerfeld and “The Coming” by Daniel Black

Author Websites and Profiles
Jeremiah Davis Website
Jeremiah Davis’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
One of the first things I want people to know about me is that I’m just an average person, but I decided not to live an average life. Born into a middle-class family in a suburb of Tacoma, Washington, I decided that chasing dreams was a good idea, and most of the dreams I chased have come true.

These dreams included riding a bicycle from Washington State to California when I was 18 years old, hitchhiking from London to Central Africa when I was 20, and finding success in business and life as I grew into an adult without losing my youthful enthusiasm. A few of the practical and impractical dreams that have come true include graduating near the top of my class at UCLA and received a master’s degree in Anthropology from the University of Virginia, traveling to over 80 countries around the world, creating and selling successful businesses, summiting the highest mountains of nine countries and eight states, and writing a book.

I’ve written thousands of pages for myself, magazines, and academic papers, but my first completed book was just released in October 2018.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The full name of my latest book is Ordinary to Extraordinary: Stories of Exotic Places and Remarkable People & How Purpose and Belonging Can Transform Your Life.

Even the super-long title seems to break the rules, but I’ve found that breaking rules is one of the first “rules” of living an intentional life. The book originally began as a series of true first-person narratives about my life, and after showing it to a few friends, I realized that it could turn into something beyond just a few stories for myself. It took three years working though the narratives and weaving in a larger narrative about the meaning of life.

The book’s focus is on how the experiences helped me find meaning through pillars of belonging, purpose, transcendence, and storytelling. These pillars are from a book called The Power of Meaning by Emily Esfahani Smith, and they helped me harness where meaning could be found in my life, and in Ordinary to Extraordinary, I try to help readers reflect on where meaning can be recognized in their own lives as well.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Absolutely! Many of my most creative thoughts occur in the early morning hours, and I’ve learned that when one of them strikes, I need to get out of bed and get it down right away, or it will be lost by the following morning.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Early on, the French existentialists had a big impact on both my thoughts and my writing. More recently, I’ve been spending a lot of time with books about breaking the mold and creating the life we want to live rather than just going through motions. Some of these authors include Tim Ferriss and Jesse Cole.

What are you working on now?
Since I’ve just completed Ordinary to Extraordinary, I’m excited to begin working on two projects already in the works. One is transforming my master’s thesis about living with the Wayana Indians in the Amazon into a complete book, and the other is about small changes that can make giant transformations in our lives with what I call “success habits”.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m still figuring things out, but I’ve had a lot of support from fellow authors, and right now it is all about creating stronger connections with those already in my network.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Yes. Do not edit while you write. Just let it flow and worry about typos and unfinished thoughts later.

Second is, you need a professional editor. I taught grammar for over ten years, and I still make grammar errors which are invisible to me since my brain knows what I want to say, it fills in the gaps correcting obvious errors in my manuscript without even letting me see the errors. A professional editor is a necessary step in creating the best book you have in you.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
In my first year of graduate school, one of my professors said to me, “If you try to read every page of every book on your course reading list, you’ll fail.” He was telling me that learning how to prioritize what is important is more valuable than trying to complete everything.

What are you reading now?
Bigger Than You by Kelly Roach

What’s next for you as a writer?
My biggest challenge, which I think a lot of writers have, is filtering through all my great ideas and focusing on one at a time. My next two projects include an anthropologically based book about the Wayana Indians (whom I lived with in the Amazon for six months in the early ‘90s), and a book about simple but Extraordinary Habits that transform lives without a lot of effort.

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, Either / Or by Soren Kierkegaard, Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss, The Complete Works of Edgar Allen Poe

Author Websites and Profiles
Erik Seversen Website
Erik Seversen Amazon Profile
Erik Seversen’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Sara Fitzgerald. Sara was named Writer of the Year by the League of Utah Writers in 2006. She has written four romance novels and two young adults paranormal novels; plus two Christmas stories.

She lives with her husband and daughter in the Rocky Mountains. She enjoys spending time with her family.

Other Titles by Sara Fitzgerald

Saving Savanna
Mine for Keeps
Just What the Doctor Ordered
Yesterday’s Wish
Anything for Charity
Darkness Within
Magic Within

Available on Amazon

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My newest book is called A Miracle for Ann.,
I wrote A Miracle for Ann because of my daughter. Savanna has autism. When she was first diagnosed, private insurance did not cover treatment for autism. My husband and I struggled to pay for the expensive treatments she needed. We had many miracles from God to help us along this journey.

I got involved in helping get the “autism” bill passed so private insurances now cover autism. We were blessed to have her attend Pingree as a toddler and now Spectrum Academy.

Savanna is our miracle child. We prayed for her every day for seven years. She has blessed our lives with so much love and joy. I dedicated this story to my husband, Russ, and Savanna.

I think some of the best stories are written from the truth you know. Although A Miracle for Ann is fictional, the emotions are real. I hope you enjoy reading this story, and wish you happy holidays this years.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I have a brand new writing office that is beautiful, but I still prefer to write in my bedroom.

 What are you working on now?
I am working on a full length novel about a woman who has a mental illness.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I really like this one.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t listen to all the noise. Write because you love it. Write what you know.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Follow your bliss

What are you reading now?
Just finished the Christmas Spoons by Cindy A Christiansen

What’s next for you as a writer?
I want to publish my full length novel next Fall. Also finish up some projects I am 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?

Author Websites and Profiles
Sara Fitzgerald Website
 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve always been a writer, even before I could write! I would draw pictures on different pieces of paper, in order of events, and make little stories. All my life since then, I’ve been writing like mad, and graduated to writing novels when I was in early high school. I got a degree in English, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I’ve published 29 novels and more than 70 fanfictions. My original novels are currently available on Amazon, and I also have a Patreon page, where members get to read chapters of my books as they’re being written, and earn rewards like signed copies of the paperbacks. It’s deeply rewarding to be able to spend my days imagining and spinning tales, and to share these adventures with people who enjoy them!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is entitled “The Last Scene,” and it’s about a young woman named Anne who, with her dad’s encouragement, tries out for a small play in New York City–and getting the part throws her entire life into an adventure she wasn’t prepared for. She’s pulled totally out of her comfort zone, because the last scene of the show is always improvised and she’s never done anything like that before. Also, she becomes fast friends with the other lead, Peter Wren, who is just a freaking genius. He’s a master of improv, he’s an extremely talented actor and impersonator, he can dance and sing and he’s hilarious. But he develops a drug problem, which just traumatizes Anne–and she has to figure out how to help him through that and maybe even save his life. It was inspired by lots of things: I often visit NYC, and it’s such a fun city to explore. I’m also troubled by how many extremely talented and wonderful people seem to be eaten up by drugs, alcoholism and destructive lifestyles, and this is my way of working through that and maybe shining some light into the darkest corners.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I always have animals around me. I have two birds and usually a cat in my study whilst I work. I also make playlists to listen to whilst writing–I’m also a singer and musician, and music has always pulled strong emotions out of me. I put music to work to inspire me.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My favorite writers are JRR Tolkien, Charles Dickens, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the Bronte sisters, whoever wrote Beowulf, C.S. Lewis, Jane Austen, to name a few. I love Tolkien and Dickens’ descriptive language and the way they paint a scene and make you feel like you’re there, which I try to learn from; all Sherlock Holmes stories are delightfully atmospheric and thrillling; the Bronte sisters are so brooding and deeply-emotional, yet well-structured; Jane Austen is simply too much fun; C.S. Lewis has knife-edge logic and sees so clearly. I try to learn from these masters and implement these things into my own work.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on two things: a novel entitled “Curse-Maker: The Tale of Gwiddon Crow,” which is part of my fairy-tale retelling series. I’ve already done Beauty and the Beast (“Scales”), The Snow Queen (“Glass”) and The Little Mermaid (“Tide”). I am also plotting out a sequel to “The Last Scene,” which I can’t wait to get started on.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
So far, I’ve had the best luck when I talk to people one-on-one, be it instant message, email, or in person. They seem to like the personal connection, and I certainly enjoy it, too.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep writing, and explore all avenues, even unconventional ones.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Be still, and know that I am God.”

What are you reading now?
I just finished Agatha Christie’s “Death on the Nile” and it was AWESOME. I’m now hunting down the Arsene Lupin series by Maurice Leblanc.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I keep writing, like always!

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, my Brit Lit anthology, my European Lit anthology, and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare.

Author Websites and Profiles
Alydia Rackham Website
Alydia Rackham Amazon Profile
 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a writer who created a new genre called Eros Macabre (which is really just a combination of horror and erotica).

What are the two most popular types of films. Porn and Horror. Or said another way Sex and Violence.

I don’t know why but for some reason there have tried to mix genre’s before, like Horror and Comedy. Both good in their own respect, but horrible together. Like Peanut Butter and Ketchup, instead of Peanut Butter and Jelly.

I got it right thou.

My first book, “Yes Master: Rise of the Witch,” was about a beautiful thirteen year old redhead (only true withes), who practices witch-craft to protect herself from Rape and Incest. It was very contemporary and realistically written, so much so, that Amazon banned the printed version and now the uncut version is only available in E-format on my private website:

https://payhip.com/b/Ntng

I have been “ghost-writing” for over twenty years, so if you have never heard of me, its by choice. I have been perfecting my craft and building my confidence.

Now I’m ready!!!

Support me by buying this book, and my others, and join me at my website: www.worldofrath.com, for a preview of all.

Thank You

Jason Gabriel Kondrath

Author’s Website: www.worldofrath.com

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Stang
It is the story of a young woman who purchases her dream car, one with Artificial Intelligence and that’s when the nightmare begins…

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
All of my habit are unusual that’s why I’m a writer.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Everything has influenced me in one respect or another.

What are you working on now?
The Aggregate a collection of three novella’s that will be put together to complete one novel.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Social Media.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
No.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t Kill Yourself.

What are you reading now?
I try not to read the same genre as I write in as I do NOT want other writers saying, “Hey, that was my idea…”

What’s next for you as a writer?
Making money with my work.

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?
Dear God, I think I would be more interested in looking for food or trying to get rescued.

Author Websites and Profiles
Jason Kondrath Website
Jason Kondrath Author Profile on Smashwords

Jason Kondrath’s Social Media Links
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Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Ferdynand Luydze Andrade. I am a Brazilian author born in 1965, graduated in chemistry, researcher, intuitive, spiritual and motivational counselor, focusing on self-improvement and spirituality.
For many years I have written and translated extremely technical texts related to my fields of training, Chemistry and Information Technology. In parallel to my main job, I became a photographer, cameraman, copywriter, and a beginner in performing arts. I wrote some radio ads that brought me satisfaction when I saw the positive outcome for my client.
Many fiction stories popped up in my mind, of which I made only a few notes as the years went by without making any of them public. One night, in the second half of 2017, I had the strong intuition of writing a book for a literary contest that would end its submissions within twenty days. In the next twenty days my first published book, Juliana Blucceli – The Search, was born. Originally written in Brazilian Portuguese, I translated into English and Spanish in the subsequents months. See my bio in my website ferdynandandrade.com

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Juliana Bluccelli – The Search is my most recent book. In fact, the first published. The inspiration was the wish to participate in an Amazon Literary contest.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
My habit is not to think about the obligation to write something. When it is to write, the ideas arise in my mind. I have no rituals or magic.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
In this little more than half a century of life, I have read many books by various authors. I have learned a lot, just as one learns from teachers in school, and I’ve developed my own way of writing without a specific influence.

What are you working on now?
It’s still a secret, but I’m writing the continuation of Juliana Bluccelli’s adventure, which will be surprising. The first book Juliana Bluccelli – The Search, was the preparation of the way for the growth of the character. In addition, I have other professional activities related to information technology.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I continue to try some paths, but nothing I can indicate with certainty of good results.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
For aspiring writes I usally say not to leave to write in the future. The future may never come. So, start writing anything to comes into their mind and do not be so strict about themself. Try to write with quality, and for this they must know their language as perfectly as possible. Do not write murdering their language.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Do everything as perfect and honest as you can.

What are you reading now?
I usually do not comment on books I’m reading.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I listen my readers to know the way I should go.

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?
Books on survival in jungle, constructions in wood and maritime navigation

Author Websites and Profiles
Ferdynand Luydze Andrade Website
Ferdynand Luydze Andrade Amazon Profile
Ferdynand Luydze Andrade’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve written four unusual format books and one novel. My first was The Miniature Book of Miniature Golf, a playable mini golf course in book form. I followed that up with The Pocket Book of Pocket Billiards, a book about billiards games from around the world and throughout history that comes with a tiny working pool table. Then I created two children’s books — Train and Rocket — where a plastic vehicle moves across the page… and then onto the next page! Children can drive the train or fly the rocket across the page, following the words of the story, and then onto the next page and to the end.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book, Selfdestructible, is a departure from my previous books. Those all involved paper engineering; this one’s a regular novel. It’s about Marie, a 20-something borderline alcoholic who’s still trying to put her life together years after her parents’ death, and Charles, a straightlaced high school freshman who nearly burns down his school. Both of them just want to keep their heads down and stay out of trouble, but it’s hard to stay out of trouble when you have super powers.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
My first four books were unusual in that my “writing” process was building prototype after prototype until the mechanics worked, and the text came later. (In the case of Train, my wife Lorraine wrote the text.) Although Selfdestructible involved more actual writing, my process was messy — I wrote at home, on my lunch break at work, on the subway, at my kids’ swimming lessons, on laptops, on phones, on scraps of paper. I have a full-time job and two kids, so any time I could snatch a few minutes to write, I did.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I grew up on sci-fi/fantasy, and my favorite was Lloyd Alexander’s Prydain series. When I was in 4th grade, I wrote to him with a question about the ending of the series, and he wrote back with a thoughtful response, and that really stayed with me.

When I had the idea for Selfdestructible, I wasn’t entirely sure how to make it work as a book until I read Lev Grossman’s The Magicians. He uses fantasy genre elements to tell a more literary story — his main character goes to a secret college for magic, but the real heart of the story is the main character realizing that, if he’s still not happy after literal wish fulfillment, the problem might be him. Once I read that book, everything clicked into place for mine, as I wanted to use superhero elements to tell a grounded story about wasted potential and damaged characters looking for emotional connections and a sense of purpose.

What are you working on now?
A YA sci-fi book about a teenage girl who was born on a spaceship in the middle of a 26-year journey to the nearest star. (Proxima Centauri, which we recently discovered an Earth-like planet orbiting.) Hers is the second ship, and three years from landing, they get a message from the first ship: S.O.S.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Still figuring that part out, sadly. My early books had the good fortune to have a traditional publisher—Workman—who put a lot into promoting my books and getting them into stores. But their fiction imprint focuses on Southern authors and doesn’t do much genre material, so I decided to self-publish Selfdestructible, rather than take a chance on another publisher letting the book die on the vine, which happens too often. I know enough to design a good cover, do some advance promotion, use social media, etc., but promotion has still been a process I’ve had to learn. I’m hoping I’ll get better at it with every book.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Find a beta reader who’s not afraid of hurting your feelings. That can be someone you know, or a stranger on the internet (usually someone who wants you to critique their book in exchange, which is something else you should do — taking a microscope to someone else’s writing is a good way of thinking about what works and what doesn’t, so you can apply that to your own writing.) The worst advice you can get is, “that’s great!” It tells you nothing. What you want is someone who’s honest about what works and what doesn’t, so you can fix what doesn’t.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?

What are you reading now?
I’m always in the middle of a bunch of books. Right now it’s Marlon James’ The Book of Night Women, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (yes, that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar)’s Mycroft and Sherlock, Tim Mohr’s Burning Down the House (about punk in East Germany) and I’m reading Kelly Barnhill’s The Girl Who Drank the Moon with my kids. And shout-out to two terrific self-published books I recently finished. Paul Briggs’ scarily realistic climate change disaster novel Monsoonrise, and Mege Gardner’s Undertakers, Harlots, and Other Odd Bodies, about a woman trying to escape her oppressive family and work at a mortuary in 19th-century Maryland.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I mentioned the Y.A. book I’m working on. I’m also pitching a kids book about the solar system to my nonfiction publisher. And I write a weekly column for The A.V. Club called Wiki Wormhole, that looks at odd Wikipedia pages.

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’m stealing Ardal O’Hanlon’s joke: I’d bring a big inflatable book, and one called How To Build Oars Out Of Sand.

Author Websites and Profiles
Mike Vago Website
Mike Vago Amazon Profile
Mike Vago’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a part time actor and I’ve written two short stories.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my lastest book is The Russ Bros. Gangsters To Gods.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yes I do have unusual writing habits.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The People Vs Jamaal Russ has influenced me to write The Russ Bros. Gangsters To Gods.

What are you working on now?
I not currently working on nothing at this minute but will be soon.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My best website when it comes to promoting my book is amazon.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
My advice to new authors is keep going don’t give up. It can be very hard in the beginning.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I’ve heard was you can’t lose until you quit.

What are you reading now?
Currently I’m not reading anything.

What’s next for you as a writer?
What’s next for me as a writer will be screenplays.

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 people vs Jamaal Russ
The Russ Bros. Gangsters To Gods.

Author Websites and Profiles
Jamaal Russ Website
Jamaal Russ Amazon Profile
Jamaal Russ’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
W have two published books, with another one due at Christmas, several online comic books and a poetry collection

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The latest release , Poohsticks Bridge was inspired by my Twin, and my reaction to her loss. It tells the story of two small children who find comfort in each others company and stay together throughout their lives, as Helen and I would have done had she lived.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I usually write the story in my head first, and have almost a completed map of it before I even pen one word

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Alan Moore for Halo Jones, Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, Bradford Gorby, Carl Barks, Floyd Gotfredson, Christopher Broom.

Most of these are comic book and graphic novel authors, which is mainly what I read growing up.

What are you working on now?
Tales from belle Starr House, a prequel to my latest release, Poohsticks Bridge.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Facebook tends to work fine, if the ad copy is good enough, and with paid for advertising, it results in sales. Amazon marketing doesn’t seem to work. I can usually manage to persuade local newspapers and radio stations to interview me ahead of a book release.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t expect to be an overnight success, and if you fail to market your book, don’t be disappointed if your spouse/parents buy the only copies. Marketing and selling is harder than writing.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Grow a beard.

Seriously, if you are male, and are able to, get that beard grown. It’s like instant respect. females and males alike love it, and it makes an author look like an author.

What are you reading now?
Arthur Miller Death of a Salesman,

What’s next for you as a writer?
For my new book, Tales from Belle Starr House to achieve double the sales that Poohsticks Bridge did.

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?
Harper Lee To Kill a Mocking Bird/ Steinbeck Of Mice and Men (I havent read thee for years)Shakespeare complete works

Author Websites and Profiles
The Birch Twins Amazon Profile
The Birch Twins’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Reading my books you will find the best ways to prepare your favorite dishes, the simplest ways to solve problems, exciting stories of fiction and just a pleasant reading for a good time. Each book is a magical adventure. So never stop travelling!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My last book is about thanksgiving day. I dedicated the book to a wonderful holiday, the history of which I was inspired before filling the book with the best recipes.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Many well-known and little-known authors have cool habits by which you can distinguish a book writer from other professions. Maybe it’s just a stereotype. I don’t have those habits. Maybe I’m not a great writer yet. Haha!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My favorite books are Harry Potter books. I’ve read it a million times and I keep re-reading it. Amazing books by the great writer JK Rowling. I also love the exciting adventures of Hercule Poirot.

What are you working on now?
Now I’m working on a book in the genre of fantasy, adventure.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Any kind of advertising is suitable for promoting books.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
For all writers and readers, I can say this. I always say a book is a little adventure. There are many wonderful authors in the world, already known and only beginners, whose books must be read by all means. After all, when the author writes a book,he puts there a piece of his soul, his emotions and impressions. Never rate a book by its cover and never stop reading.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The advice I have heard somewhere and always use it: never stop dreaming.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading a book about Queen Victoria now. One of the greatest personalities.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I continue to write and improve. I’m going to release a lot of new books.

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 prisoner of Azkaban, order of the Phoenix and Deathly Hallows.

Author Websites and Profiles
Violetta Polovinko Website

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a wife, mother, follower of Christ, educator, and writer. I have overcome a lot of adversity and have come out victorious with a message of hope to spread. I have written several books but have published only one thus far.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Lonesome Wolf is my novel. It is actually inspired by another book that featured a couple with similar obstacles to their being together. The other book did NOT end how I wanted it to end, so I wrote my own book with an ending I liked.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m not sure they’re unusual, but I like to write in the middle of the night. Sometimes I wake up at about 2am with a scene or dialogue in my head, so I get up, grab my computer, and type away.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The two authors who have most influenced me are Louis L’Amour and Tamera Alexander. I love westerns and the Old West and tough cowboys, and I am all about love stories. I respect each of their styles and like to think my style falls somewhere in between theirs, as differing as theirs are.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on the next book after Lonesome Wolf in the Klein Creek Series, Jack Ellison. It follows a hero whom I thought I wouldn’t like, but I have fallen in love with him.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
So far, Facebook has generated the most interest and sales for me. I have my own website, which I hope will play a big role in my future.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t give up!! When you look down at your computer and see about a third of the number of words you’re shooting for, or you get to a point in the story where you hit a brick wall, DON”T GIVE UP! It CAN be done, and YOU CAN do it!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Oddly, the best advice I have ever heard is the worst advice I have ever heard. A critiquer told me not to put myself into my stories. Huh?? Why on earth would I not? So, I decided to purposely, actively put some of myself into each heroine I write; they all share some part of me, of my personality or of events in my life that have heavily impacted me.

What are you reading now?
I am reading Cliftoplis: BELOW by Grant P Ferguson. It is part of a series written for middle-schoolers, and I am digging it. Grant is an incredibly nice man, and I am happy to be experiencing his work.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Next for me is getting out there and getting word spread around about Lonesome Wolf. I am going to hit the streets and let people know about me and this book. ANd I’m going to write the sequel.

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?
ugh! only 3 or 4?
1) Hondo, by Louis L’Amour
2) A Man called Noon, by Louis L’Amour
3) To Whisper Her Name, by Tamera Alexander
and 4) THE BIBLE to keep me fed.

Author Websites and Profiles
Lanna Webb Website
Lanna Webb Amazon Profile
Lanna Webb’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
1

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my latest book is “Dear World: What The Fuck?”. I became inspired to write the book after I found myself becoming increasingly enraged about the current state of the world.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
nope

What authors, or books have influenced you?
none

What are you working on now?
A docuseries to go along with the book.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Writing when I feel is necessary

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Take your time. Don’t try to overwrite. You’ll just wear yourself out.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Take my time.

What are you reading now?
A mixture of different novels.

What’s next for you as a writer?
A part two to this book.

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 could never choose.

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hi! My name is Olianna. I’m best known for my motivational quotes and my first non-fiction novel, Fairytale Formula.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I have always been a fan of motivational talks and inspirational works from people like Albert Einstein, Tony Robbins, Esther Hicks (Abraham) and Rhonda Byrne. I’ve been studying Kabbalah for years, and attended Tony Robbins workshops. I have published motivational quotes which have gone viral, and had success with my first blog called Tinder Chick, which was teaching women to fairytale in the post Tinder era. It wasn’t until my mom’s passing that I started writing. And, when I started, I couldn’t stop. I started writing for myself, to lift my spirits during a difficult time when hope was scarce and the world seemed dark. And, then it somehow turned into a 200 page novel. It helped me get through dark times, and I hope it will help other people as well.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I wouldn’t think so. Writing is a hobby. It’s something I do when I feel like it. I never have a schedule. I write when I’m inspired.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
My biggest influences are: Albert Einstein, Tony Robbins, Esther Hicks and Rhonda Byrne— all of whom are in the book, with Einstein’s theories leading the way.

What are you working on now?
Right now I’m working on my second book, which is based on my blog “Tinder Chick”. The book is called Swipe Right: A Single Girl’s Guide to Fairytales in the Post-Tinder Era.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m brand new to self publishing world, and I’m learning as I’m going.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
My biggest advice would be– to write, and to not stop writing. Writing is a muscle which can be developed. The more you write, the better you get.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I have ever heard came from my late mother– which also inspired this book. Every time life would get hard, she would say that: “Life is a fairytale, but to see it, you must open your eyes.”

What are you reading now?
Right now I’m reading a book called “The Soul’s Code” by James Hillman.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I want to continue to write, inspire and motivate people to live their best lives.

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?
That’s a great question. I would bring a book of inspiring quotes, one book of Tony Robbins, one Kabbalah book, and Fairytale Formula.

Author Websites and Profiles
Olianna Portnoy Amazon Profile
 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
1

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my latest book is “Dear World: What The Fuck?”. I became inspired to write the book after I found myself becoming increasingly enraged about the current state of the world.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
nope

What authors, or books have influenced you?
none

What are you working on now?
A docuseries to go along with the book.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Writing when I feel is necessary

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Take your time. Don’t try to overwrite. You’ll just wear yourself out.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Take my time.

What are you reading now?
A mixture of different novels.

What’s next for you as a writer?
A part two to this book.

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 could never choose.

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
This November, I’ll have five books published.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Evil’s Ultimate Huntress. It is book two in the Alexis Black novels. The series was inspired by the old 1940’s Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer show. The little elf who didn’t want to be an elf, he wanted to be a dentist. I wondered what if a vampire didn’t want to be a vampire, how would they go about getting their humanity back.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
My desk has to be clutter and cat free in order for me to be able to focus on my writing.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Jennifer Estop, Jeannine Frost, JR Ward, Jaye Wells, Sarah J Maas. Anne Bishop.

What are you working on now?
Evil’s Avenging Angel, book three in the Alexis Black Novels

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Amazon Ads have been the best for me so far.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just keep writing, no matter how many rejections you get, just keep doing your best to create the best story you can, the story that you want to write.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Write the story you want to write, not the story you think will sell.

What are you reading now?
Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J Maas

What’s next for you as a writer?
Figure out how to sell more books and keep working on 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?
The Black Jewels Trilogy by Anne Bishop. The Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J Maas.

Author Websites and Profiles
Jenn Windrow Website
Jenn Windrow Amazon Profile
Jenn Windrow’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 former teacher, inspired to write by a colleague who had his eleventh grade students write a novel each year. I tried my hand at it and discovered my passion. I’ve written over twenty books since then in a variety of genres: sci-fi, time travel, paranormal, dystopian, coming of age, and thriller.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Time Bender series was inspired by a book blurb I read about a girl discovering she had mermaid blood in her veins and a destiny she couldn’t have imagined. I never read the book, but the idea of being part alien took hold and an entire four book series flowed out of the simple idea.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write in the quiet of a full log home early in the morning before breakfast. I edit and rewrite constantly and I rarely outline. I’m as surprised as any reader as to what will happen on the next page. I let my characters take over.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Dean Koontz first and then every single author I read contributes to my learning and growing.

What are you working on now?
I’m now stretching out to see if I can break into the adult contemporary category with a novel that is part thriller and part break-your-heart romance.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
AMS, Awesome Gang, Pinterest, Instagram

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I’d advise new authors to take writing courses, read all you can on the subject, and hire a really good editor.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I’ve ever heard was try to learn from your mistakes and definitely try to learn from other people’s mistakes.

What are you reading now?
I’m currently reading The Marsh King’s Daughter for a neighborhood book club I belong to.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m editing my last two novels and waiting for the next bit of inspiration to set my fingers flying again.

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?
Only 4 books? I’d have to take the first four in the Outlander series.

Author Websites and Profiles
Debra Chapoton Website
Debra Chapoton Amazon Profile
Debra Chapoton Author Profile on Smashwords

Debra Chapoton’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 writer; motivational speaker; host and producer of The Healing Place Podcast; a registered Pet Partners therapy dog handler of my Labradoodle, Sammie; and founder/director of the volunteer organization, Sammie’s Bundles of Hope, benefiting children with trauma history. Known as the “glitter shitter,” I radiate a contagious energy of joyousness and hope.

I grew up in a volatile home, filled with sprinklings of love and affection. I was the oldest of two girls, having a three-year head start on my sister. I carried dark secrets within the confines of my soul long into my adult years. My struggles with the symptoms of Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD) would come to a head in 2013, after a 25 year battle with severe panic attacks. It was then, I would seek help in the form of EMDR therapy. Within the confines of that safe space, I would dump the contents of my compartmentalized traumas into a heap of unprocessed memories. Sifting through that pile, trauma by trauma, with the help of my therapist, I set out on a life-altering healing journey.

It was on this healing journey, when I also began to develop my own self-care regimen, including, but not limited to: yoga, meditation, nature walks, continued mindfulness training, journaling, prayer, positive affirmations, grounding exercises, tapping, and connecting with others through the miracle of hope. I am excited to share my journey with others, in the hopes of offering a hand to hold as those first steps toward healing are taken.

I graduated magna cum laude from the University of Cincinnati with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. I utilized this degree while working with children in school and mental health agency settings.

I am the owner of InvizaShield, handling the accounting, marketing and IT functions of my business. Having built this business from the ground up, I have learned the importance of strong marketing efforts, utilizing social media in growing the company’s following and name recognition. Applying self-taught skills, I built the company website and various social media outlets. I have worked diligently to increase the sales of my company, reaching a new sales record every year since starting the company in 2005.

As a mom of three beautiful children, ages 25, 22 and 12, I live with my partner, and our daughter, in a quiet suburb outside of Cincinnati. We spend our summers entertaining friends and family at poolside dive-in movie parties in our idyllic backyard – with guests vying for a favored spot in the tiki hut. I enjoy hiking at The Cincinnati Nature Center, hosting a Euchre Club, volunteering at school functions, and having deep, laughter-filled conversations with my beautiful collection of friends and loved ones.

** trigger warning for those interested in the trauma part of my story **

By age 22 I had survived an attempted drowning by an alcoholic parent; physical abuse at the hands of a parent; sexual molestations by various predators; date rape; gang attack; attempted rape by a police officer; bank robbery in which a gun was held to my head and my co-worker was stabbed 3 times with a hunting knife; and a second bank robbery in which my co-worker was shot and murdered and I found myself face-to-face with an armed gunman. Those are merely the highlights.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My first e-book is titled, “Stop Thinking . . . Just Love” and was inspired by a message I received through a friend from my recently deceased father. His message was that exact sentiment. Soon after, I started finding hearts everywhere. Every day. Without fail. My reminder to focus on the love surrounding me.

I am in the process of finishing up the manuscript for a book titled, “Unicorn Shadows”, about my triumph over trauma. The proposal is complete and once the manuscript is finished and edited, I will be sending it out into the universe to find an agent or publisher. Right now my focus is on building my platform and following.

I wrote a children’s book with my daughter (who was nine years old at the time of publishing) about our therapy dog, Sammie. Our sweet labradoodle works with children in school settings, helping reduce anxiety for the kids. Sammie has her own website, www.sammiethedoodle.com, Facebook page and Instagram. She’s a rockstar.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I have an amazing writing space! It is filled with peace and love. I record podcasts and YouTube vlogs of the podcast from here, as well. This sacred writing space helps me share the tranquility I have come to savor in my own life.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Oh my gosh . . . so many! My current favorite is probably Dr. Wayne Dyer. I have an entire collection of book titles I share with audience members when I share my story of hope on stage in presentations/speaking roles. Those are the books that helped me along my healing journey in profound ways: “The Body Keeps the Score” by Bessel Van Der Kolk, “Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself” by Dr. Joe Dispenza, “The Miracle of Mindfulness” by Thich Nhat Hanh, “Getting Past Your Past” by Dr. Francine Shapiro, “Waking the Tiger” by Peter A. Levine, and many more. “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle was probably the most impactful.

What are you working on now?
Next, my now twelve-year-old daughter and I will be writing a follow up children’s book about our therapy dog, Sammie. This one will be about bullying.

I will continue to focus on finishing my “Unicorn Shadows” manuscript. That book has been a work in process for years and is close to being born.

Growing my following and platform through the podcast, blogging (Unicorn Shadows is my blog name, too), YouTube vlog, speaking, and writing is tops on my to-do list.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am new to this! So, I am hoping you can help. I am researching avenues for promotion. Both free and paid. My goal, while grandiose, is to reach one million people with my story of hope! Through my podcast, books, blogs, and speaking.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I am a new author! Always looking for guidance as I build my platform.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
My therapist told me, “Just notice” and a friend advised me, “Be gentle with yourself”. Two of the most profound moments of my life. I was in EMDR therapy to process old traumatic events and a panic attack was surfacing when my therapist advised, “just notice” . . . without judgment of what was surfacing or the emotions swirling. I began a journey that day of allowing the scary stuff to arise and release. When I learned to “be gentle” with myself, my healing journey thrived. This has all led me to a place of peace and joy which I share with others through my writing and podcasts (Unicorn Shadows blog, books, and The Healing Place podcast).

What are you reading now?
For research: Treating Self-Destructive Behaviors in Trauma Survivors-A Clinician’s Guide by Lisa Ferentz. Also, Platform-Get Noticed in a Busy World by Michael Hyatt. And Codependent No More by Melody Beattie. For fun: Turbo Twenty-Three by Janet Evanovich

What’s next for you as a writer?
A million little things . . . learning to promote, writing every day, continuing on my personal healing journey and sharing the lessons learned with others, blogging, podcasting, finishing the manuscript on my “Unicorn Shadows: From Trauma to Triumph – A Healing Guide” book, writing a second children’s book about our therapy dog, Sammie, with my daughter, finding hearts, and enjoying my “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?
“The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightment” by Eckhart Tolle as my reminder to enjoy the moment, whether stranded or not, and focus on mindfulness practices. A Janet Evanovich book just to make me laugh. “Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Life” by Dr. Wayne Dyer in order to keep my perspectives in check on the importance of love and positive thinking. Finally, my own “Stop Thinking . . . Just Love” book as a beautiful recollection of the love that has surrounded me.

Author Websites and Profiles
Teri Wellbrock Website
Teri Wellbrock Amazon Profile
Teri Wellbrock’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 written six books – two nonfiction and four fiction, including the highly-praised Alexandria Rising Chronicles, a trilogy that has elements of action adventure, alternative history and conspiracy fiction.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My new book is a YA Fantasy novel, “In Pursuit of The Pale Prince.” I was inspired to write a ‘children’s story’ because it was a venture into a new world and I could create what made up that world including names, places and histories. I was also inspired by my love for the genre including favorites such as Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and Lloyd Alexander.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write in the margins of life which means I write when I can, how I can and where I can. I’ve written in my car at lunch break, waiting in the dentist’s office and on the sides of mountains.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Tolkien, Tom Clancy, Dan Brown, Susanna Clarke, C.S. Lewis, Frederick Buechner.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on the sequel to, ‘In Pursuit of The Pale Prince.’ I hope to publish it in fall 2019.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Sites like this, Facebook and amazon advertising.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write, edit, revise. Repeat.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I can accept failure, I can’t accept not trying – Michael Jordan.

What are you reading now?
I am re-reading Ferrol Sams.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I am working on four books and hope to publish the sequel to In Pursuit of The Pale Prince next fall.

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?
Lord of The Rings.

Author Websites and Profiles
Mark Wallace Maguire Website
Mark Wallace Maguire Amazon Profile
Mark Wallace Maguire’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been writing as a hobby since at least 9 or 10 years old. Back then, I used to write what I called “paper books”: That is, I’d write and illustrate usually a backyard adventure story using magic markers on ruled paper; then, staple the pages together; and voila…a book was published! I must have penned 50 or 60 from grade school into junior high, with alas maybe 10 preserved. I was a high school and college newspaper editor and columnist, winning various local, state, and national student journalist awards. I finally returned to fiction writing in 2010, and since then have written 3 novels: All multicultural mysteries with action, adventure, and even a little romance added.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The basic plot of “The Diamond Head Deception” came about from a simple question: If diamonds are partly born of volcanoes, then why doesn’t Hawaii (a famously volcanic region) have any? Answering that question led to lots of geological research into diamonds and volcanoes and even into geopolitics.

Formulating a mystery from that research led to choosing a character type that’s sort of been forgotten in 21st century fiction: The insurance investigator. In the past, particularly the 40’s, 60’s, 50’s, and 70’s, insurance investigators were chic alternatives to private eyes and spies. Barton Keys in James M. Cain’s “Double Indemnity”; Faye Dunaway’s Vicki Anderson in the big screen classic “The Thomas Crown Affair” (and later, Rene Russo in the remake); and TV star George Peppard’s Boston blueblood Banacek inspired my choice of an independent insurance sleuth named Luna Nightcrow as the heroine.

Making Luna a Cherokee female was brought about by there being few roles in fiction for Native Americans that don’t involve being relegated to a “western” or overly spiritual context. Luna, for whom “The Diamond Head Deception” is the second book in a continuing mystery series, is cosmopolitan and thoroughly modern, with an almost 007 air (given her jetting from state to state, dressing to the nines, and employing a real-life smartphone stun gun as protection). Luna often ends up saving not only the insured, but civilization, as her cases rarely involve what they appear to be.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really. Other than when I get started on a book, it’s hard to stop. I mean, having been a jock, I get into what’s called “the zone”: You’re concentrating, focusing on hitting a home run or making the right play that you see nothing but the ball being thrown or flying your way. The research leads me to so many ideas that sometimes, I’ve written all night or all day into night!

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Raymond Chandler’s gift for characterization and imagery with his iconic Phillip Marlowe books is probably foremost. Peter O’Donnell’s “Modesty Blaise” (essentially the feminine answer to James Bond) is another. And sadly forgotten Illinois newspaper writer Bill Granger’s Americanized super spy series “The November Man” (which was loosely adapted to a Pierce Brosnan standalone film).

What are you working on now?
I have another Luna Nightcrow mystery-adventure set in Alaska called “The Burning Desire Dupe” that involves what seems to be an open-and-shut arson investigation. Then, I veer off course with a sci-fi novel –my first return that genre since high school — called “Moonbuggy” that involves “helium-3”: An isotope that is in abundant quantity on the Moon and could be Earth’s new energy source. I’m hoping to publish both next decade (2020).

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Probably Amazon.com, inkwaterpress.com, and barnesandnoble.com.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Have fun with writing. Don’t try too hard to write “what’s popular” or “fan fiction.” Also, be prepared for rejection and the possibility that fiction writing, for most, will be a hobby, not a five or six-figure safety net. So ALWAYS have a day job (lol)!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Perhaps from Polonius in “Hamlet”: “To thine own self be true.”

What are you reading now?
Not a lot of fiction, but instead current events and future trends. That’s where most of my plots come from. Again, “The Diamond Head Deception” came from wondering why diamonds “grow” in certain regions as opposed to others, what their present and future value is, etc.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Hmmm. Learning how to better market what I write. I’ve never had a problem coming up with stories or characters, but publicizing them tends to be more challenging.

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?
1. The Holy Bible, particularly Genesis (if limited to 1 book from it) because of that nifty story about how to build and float a boat (lol).

2. A copy of The U.S. Constitution: Perfect for starting what might be a new island nation.

3. One of my own … probably “The Diamond Head Deception” (as it takes place in Hawaii and features a brainy and beautiful heroine who’d ensure I wouldn’t suffer a solitary fate).

Author Websites and Profiles
James Blakley Amazon Profile
James Blakley’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am the best-selling author of “Launching for Revenue: How to Launch Your Product, Service or Company for Maximum Growth” and the curator of “Changing Tides: Powerful Strategies for Female Founders.” I am also the founder and president of ThinkResults Marketing, and own the publishing house, HAL House. I’m known as a high-energy and inspiring keynote speaker and workshop facilitator for startup accelerators and corporate teams, with speaking and workshop events designed to galvanize audiences into action.

In my private coaching work, I work with female founders, entrepreneurs and change agents to provide them with the tools and connections they need to succeed. Silicon Valley Business Journal awarded me the Silicon Valley Women of Influence Award in 2016, and ranked ThinkResults Marketing as the 10th Fastest Growing Private Company in Silicon Valley in 2017. Under my leadership, ThinkResults has also been recognized as one of the top Silicon Valley agencies (2013-2018). I have also been an advisor to President Obama, Congress and the SBA via the National Women’s Business Council.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is “Changing Tides: Powerful Strategies for Female Founders”

“Changing Tides” follows closely on the heels of “Launching for Revenue,” my first book earlier this year. As I was writing “Launching for Revenue,” it became apparent that there are certain structural challenges present for female founders in launching their companies, and so I decided to write this follow-on book. Here’s a bit of background information about “Changing Tides” and why it’s imperative that we support female founders and funders:

Women receive less than 2% of venture funding and make up 8% of VC partners, yet research shows that companies with female leaders and board members outperform all-male companies. “Changing Tides” brings together experienced female venture capitalists, entrepreneurs and thought leaders who share their expertise and tactical guidance through a collection of essays. This book is intended as a resource for anyone wanting to win — or support a woman to win — at the heavily stacked entrepreneur and funding game.

Author Websites and Profiles
Jennifer LeBlanc Website
Jennifer LeBlanc’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born and raised in Tucson, Arizona. I grew up in a household that encouraged creativity. I started playing the guitar at 7 and can remember reading and drawing. My parents, but my father especially, was always really into fantasy – I remember my dad reading David Eddings, Robert Jordan, and Terry Brooks. I watched Star Wars and the cartoon of The Hobbit religiously.

I am a firm believer that someone can be both athletic and artistic at the same time. That seems to be a juxtaposition in much of our modern day society. I played a number of sports growing up and am currently wrestling and football coach as well as a high school teacher, and I assist our Strength and Conditioning coach with our weight lifting programs.

I have written three books so far, all three of them a part of the Shadow’s Fire Trilogy – A Chance Beginning, Dark Winds, and Breaking the Flame. Book 3: Breaking the Flame is currently in the hands of my editor.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My most recent book is Breaking the Flame and it is the third book in a three book series. The thing that mostly inspired me about this series was that typical epic fantasy always seems to focus on grandiose ideas and the hero. And even though my series does, in a way, emulate your typical fantasy novel or series, it focuses on the little guys, the guys who support the heroes.

Another title I am working on is called To Kill A Witch and it combines my love for Fantasy with my love for history, as it takes place in 11th century England, just post-Norman conquest.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t think I necessarily have any unusual writing habits, only that I must find odd times to do most of my writing. If I give my students a test or a project, those are the days when I get a lot of writing done. I use many of the same motivations I think a lot of writers use. If I experience writer’s block, I’ll listen to music, look at artwork that deals with the fantasy genre, or read.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I think, like most fantasy authors, JRR Tolkien is a huge influence. Recently, George RR Martin has also been a huge influence. I have read the whole range of fantasy, from high epic fantasy to urban fantasy and, in each sub-genre, there are authors that seem to influence and inspire me. Most recently, I have been paying alot of attention to independent authors who have made it big in fantasy, guys like Jonathan Renshaw.

What are you working on now?
Right now I am working on two books. The first is To Kill A Witch, the Historical Fantasy I mentioned earlier, and then another series of books that centers on my main protagonist from The Shadow’s Fire Trilogy – Erik Eleodum.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
So far, Facebook and Twitter have probably been the best modes of advertising as well as some websites like this one that will help promote authors for next to nothing. I have my own website and a blog that I try to put out once a month. I have been working with a local, Tucson publishing company (they haven’t contracted me, just helping me with author services) and one of the services they offer is marketing and advertising, so we are hopeful that that will be fruitful.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
You need to read what you want to write. If you write fantasy, read fantasy. You also need to have structure to your writing process. One of the worst pieces of advice I ever got was to just write – ket the muses do their work. Thats a terrible idea. Outline your story. Create a story map. There are all different types of resources out there to help you do that. Before I ever start actually writing, I create a paragraph or two for each chapter so I know where I am going and then I create a story map of the journey, with checkpoints at certain percentages.

Secondly, save up money so you can do it right. Get help from a professional editor. I know it can be expensive, but in the long run it will be worth it. Same with cover artwork and design and even the internal structure of your book. If your story is good, people will excuse a few mistakes here and there, but if they’re all over the place and there’re major inconsistencies with the story, readers are brutal. They’re spending money after all. And do ask a friend to be your editor. You need an objective eye, someone who has been in the industry and knows the industry.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
It takes time and money to put out a good product. I rushed into publishing and my first edition of A Chance Beginning was awful. The story was pretty much the same, but the design, the cover, the editing, and some of the content was just subpar.

What are you reading now?
I am currently reading three books depending on how I fell.
Wayward Soldiers by Joshua P. Simon
Fatemarked by David Estes
Byzantium by Stephen Lawhead

What’s next for you as a writer?
Just keep writing. I want to expand on the world I have created in A Chance Beginning. I want to expand on some of the ideas I have created in my book To Kill A Witch. I have a couple ideas for a young adult urban fantasy book.

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
Lord of the Rings
The Jack Ryan Series
Any history book

Author Websites and Profiles
Christopher Patterson Website
Christopher Patterson Amazon Profile
Christopher Patterson’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a scientist who has worked across unconventional computing, computational chemistry, neuromorphic computing, A.I., machine learning, device physics, basically anything that involves trying to make the technologies that you see in Star Trek. As I child, I couldn’t decide whether I wanted to be a scientist or an author, so I decided to do both, penning my first novel after finishing my PhD and being forced to cut out all of the cool sword fighting scenes (apparently, such drama wasn’t inappropriate for a nanotechnology PhD thesis!). Currently, I’ve drafted 10 books, in the genres of sci-fi, cyberpunk and gritty crime, of which only the first is out at the moment, but the rest should be coming in the new year.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Up and up, and this one is under the pen name of Erik Sturm. This one was inspired by two events, the first, the stock market crash of 2008 when many bankers seemed surprised that the system had collapsed, although only someone very wise could have seen that coming, I wanted to preserve some of the things I heard them say in the boom years that they won’t admit to now. The other inspiration was a discussion with a fellow author at a book group about working class life and culture, which made me want to record what it was actually like growing up in London in the ’90s.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I like to write either standing up on my laptop, or lying down on the sofa. And I have written a vast amount of copy in airport smoking lounges and bars at the early hours on the morning. Thankfully, I have a good editor, so only the boozy inspiration makes it onto the page, not the typos (I hope!)

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Steven King. Martina Cole. Phillip K. Dick. Dean Koonst. Isaac Asimov. J. G Ballard. William Gibson. Virginia Andrews.

What are you working on now?
Final draft/re-edit of ‘Blood Hack’, a cyberpunk novel about a hackervist, the singularity, possession in the information era, memory, police brutality, activism, hacker culture and the possible end of humanity. And readying my sci-fi space opera ‘Sun Shadow: Voyage’ for publication, a military, sci-fi space opera.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Still working that out!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
When you are writing, write every single day, try for 2000 words, then sleep and let your subconscious work out the problems. That, and find that one person (or people, if you’re lucky) who’s willing to listen to you talk about your plot, read the drafts and be as engaged in your books as you are — you can then get them to help you with plot issues!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Write everyday, at least 2000 words, I got this from Steven King’s book on writing.

What are you reading now?
The speed of sound by Eric Bernt

What’s next for you as a writer?
Get those two novels out the door! Then start editing and promoting the next ones.

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 count of Monte Cristo, Lord of the Rings trilogy, and to be honest, whatever was highly rated on Amazon under ‘desert island survival’

Author Websites and Profiles
E M Gale Website

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I currently reside in Katy, TX, with my wife, three children, and a horde of animals. Thus far, I’ve written one novel, one book of poetry, one book of short stories, a compendium, and ten novellas. All of this was written over a four-year period. Talk about prolific!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“Gods and Gunslingers” is my latest book and this was inspired by my fascination with Spaghetti Westerns. However, this story takes a whole different turn.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really. I try to write in the morning when my brain is fresh.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Without any doubt, Harlan Ellison, who passed away last year. He was, in my opinion, the best American writer ever. He had a terrible disposition and was too radical politically but he was a literary genius. His passing was a terrible loss.

What are you working on now?
A sequel to my detective thriller, “Death Has Sharp Teeth.”

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Promotion sites. I’ve had bad results with Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and Linked-in. People on social media just don’t pay attention to book promos.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep writing and keep rewriting. the more you write, the better you’ll get. Writing aptitude is a muscle. The more you train it, the bigger it will grow.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t be enamored with what you write. There’s always room for improvement, even with stuff you are in love with. Lose your ego. Nothing’s perfect.

What are you reading now?
Very little. I’m too busy writing. I’d love to take a year off and immerse myself in Ellison. I would come out a better writer and with a lot of fresh ideas.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Who knows where my writing sojourn will take me? I’ve written horror, fantasy, crime, and I could branch out even further. I’m a restless spirit.

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 Have No Mouth and I Must Scream.” “Shatterday,” “The Deadly Streets,” and “Strange Wine,” all written by my mentor Harlan Ellison.

Author Websites and Profiles
Dennis Stamey Website
Dennis Stamey’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am originally from England and moved to the United States in 1979. When I met my husband in the 90’s I became a commercial fisherwoman and fished off the southern coast of California for ten years. They were the most brilliant times of my life, thus far. I am the youngest daughter of science fiction author, James P. Hogan and I owe my passion for reading and writing to him. My other passions include, hiking, fishing, camping, kayaking, and riding ATV’s RECKLESS BEGINNINGS is my first novel and I’m currently working on a sequel titled BETTER ENDINGS and also a prequel, THE JOURNALS OF TAMMY MELLOWS

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Reckless Beginnings is women’s fiction based on True events that have happened in my life. Tammy Mellows, (the main character) is me. I wanted it to read like a story and not a memoir, (personal choice,) therefore, names, places and some facts about certain events have been altered.
I developed a passion for writing at the early age of fourteen. I think having an author for a father had something to do with it. It was around this time, one of my older sisters ran away and couldn’t be found. Unable to search for her, I became frustrated and began writing in a journal to gather my thoughts. My book begins with the disappearance of my sibling.
A few years later and with my sister still missing, chaos began to erupt in my own life.  I was on a path of making hideous choices and in denial because I wanted the white picket fence and the perfect American family life and ignored any signs that may disrupt that dream.
I allowed my life to be dictated by a heroin addict, the father of my child.  Believing that his needs were more important than mine, I got swallowed up in his lifestyle, losing my sense of direction, courage, and identity. Throughout the chaos, I continued to write in my journals.
During that time, I searched for books written by other women that found themselves in the same predicament as myself but came up short.  I only discovered “How to” books, but they were not the voices I wanted to hear. I needed to know how they coped.  What did they do? I wondered what their everyday lives were like; I yearned for some sort of connection with someone.  I had so many unanswered questions.
That was when the seed was planted for my debut novel, Reckless Beginnings. But it didn’t happen right away. I tucked it away and continued to struggle with the battles in my life.
Twenty years later I still had not written the book, but the thought never left me. When my father suddenly passed away in 2010 and a year later I was diagnosed with breast cancer I began to think seriously about the book and began writing the outline. Eight years later it’s finally published. (Phew.)

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
If you consider having a need to be barefoot while I write unusual, then I do. I’m not sure why this is a must when I sit down to write. I think it has something to do with being able to wriggle my toes while I’m contemplating the next line and I’m deep in thought. I guess It’s part of my thinking process.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Other than my father, there are so many great ones to choose from. But if I have to choose just one then it has to be Lisa Gardner. She never disappoints me with her mystery thriller. I love her style of writing and the suspense build up in every novel. Her books usually pull me in within the first page and I find myself engaged throughout the entire story. For me, her books are hard to put down. Now that’s a good book.

Other greats for me are the all-time classic authors, Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, and both Emily & Charlotte Bronte.

What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on a sequel titled BETTER ENDINGS and also a prequel, THE JOURNALS OF TAMMY MELLOWS

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My Book is fairly new and I’m still experimenting to see what works and what doesn’t. Having an author’s page on Facebook is a huge asset and I ‘ve gained quite a following. I do most of my promotions there but branching out to other venues. Pinterest has been great. I started a group board for authors, readers, and writers and that has helped with followers and exposure. Here is the link if allowed. https://www.pinterest.com/tinahogangrant/authors-readers-writers-everything-books-group-boa/ anyone is welcome to request to join

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep writing and read a lot. It doesn’t matter what you write, a story, poem, journal, letters. Just write every day. Use writing prompts. They are a great way to get your creative juices flowing. Join writing groups on Facebook and websites. Talk to other writers, mingle in the groups. Read what you like to write. Learn from the successful authors. Pay attention to their writing. Ask yourself why you like him/her as an author?

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
My father’s favorite answer to me while growing was “There’s no such word as Can’t.” I’ve lived by that motto my whole life. I’m not a quitter, I love a challenge and I WILL achieve what I set out to do.

What are you reading now?
I run the book club at our local library. We are currently reading STATION ELEVEN by Emily St. John Mandel. A compelling novel about the end of the world how we know it today that currently has me intrigued.

What’s next for you as a writer?
After completing the sequel and prequel I have plans to start a new series which I’m excited about.

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 my, that’s a tough question. With so many books to choose from. I absolutely love J.R. Tolkien’s Hobbit series and they provide great reading material that I can read over and over again. So the entire series would be my choice.

Author Websites and Profiles
Tina Hogan Grant Website
Tina Hogan Grant Amazon Profile
Tina Hogan Grant’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 Christian author who owns No Fear LLC, an organization that designs custom courses and personal coaching for adults and teens, as well as editing and publishing services. I am also currently a board member for non-profit organizations, including The Literacy Project and New Ability Wellness Center. I enjoy traveling the country speaking to diverse audiences through lectures, interactive workshops, and seminars from a Christian woman’s perspective about increasing happiness and joy, improving relationships, increasing life’s fulfillment, gaining favor in God’s eyes, and reducing stress. I have published two books and I look forward to sharing even more valuable content at www.devote52weeks.com

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“25 Lifehacks: Cultivate Your Child’s Spiritual Growth” is the first in a series of “Lifehacks For Your Soul” books which are designed to encourage sincere and consistent behaviors, rooted in love and not fear. These lifehacks are designed to support you in the nurturing process.
I am not a perfect mom, but my intentional, consistent, and honest love gives my children a safe place to develop their relationship with God. This book is not a manual about how to control the process. Each child is a star in their own movie, called life. God is the producer and director, the child is the star, and we are simply the supporting cast. I pray that this book will help you to let go and let God, while creating a safe space for your children to grow into what God has destined them to be.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
When I am experiencing a bit of writers block, I like to write backwards. I start with the end of the story and work my way towards the front. Also, when editing and needing a fresh look at my writing, I like to also start from the end and work my way to the beginning to avoid self-editing my most common mistakes.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I enjoy inspirational, motivational, and self-help/self-love books. Some of my favorite authors include Joyce Meyers, Rachel Hollis, and Gabrielle Berstein.

What are you working on now?
I am working on my third book, a more traditional devotional, which takes you through an entire year of devotionals with the theme of focusing on God.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
This Awesome Gang website is an great collection of readers and writers that have

Do you have any advice for new authors?
The best advice is to never stop writing. Don’t simply focus on producing a perfect writing piece, but rather think of your power to create something significant through your writing each step of the way. Be sure to keep the momentum going by writing daily, in a journal or blog.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Fear is a liar. Do not give in to fear. Don’t be afraid to take risks and leaps in sharing your gift with the world.

What are you reading now?
Currently, I am reading “A Tribe Called Bliss” by Lori Harder.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I have curated a series of workshops for inspired writers, college students, and those seeking a way to walk in purpose.

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?
Bible, The 4 Agreements, Things Fall Apart

Author Websites and Profiles
Alicia McKay Website
Alicia McKay Amazon Profile
Alicia McKay Author Profile on Smashwords

Alicia McKay’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hi- I’m a doctor and a writer. My first book Dating Daisy is all about internet dating in middle age. I am about to publish my second novel Daisys’ Love Secrets.

I have been a Sexual Health doctor for 30 years working in the NHS. Most of my work has been with women and I’m a menopause specialist. I couldn’t resist adding lots of stories from the clinic to my book Dating Daisy!

Without spoiling my book tooo much ! … I just got married (last week in fact!) ! We live near Winchester and have 6 grown up children between us! Life is busy and happy, and I write all day, most days, about something!!

I love hearing from readers, and other authors, and I answer sexual health/menopause queries so do get in touch via my website.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Dating Daisy is my first novel, although I have a second one pending – Daisys’ Love Secrets.

I also write blogs – Dr Daisy on Menopause Matters https://www.menopausematters.co.uk/daisyblog.php

and Daisy Mae at The Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/author/daisy-mae/

plus medical web content for medical/pharmacy sites.

I write blog posts for my own website, and guest posts with other authors – please contact me if you would like to do that!
I also run a book club and write book reviews.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write anywhere, anytime, any place. I have a notebook in my bag, and sometimes stop the car if an idea takes me and write notes in a lay by.
Last year I had the idea to write about my imaginary date with Santa Jingles while walking round Asda! I though the idea was hilarious! https://www.datingdaisy.net/single-post/2017/12/09/Will-Santa-be-my-Perfect-Date-this-Christmas

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love a good story well told. There are just so many out there!!

My favourite author is Khaled Hosseini who has written The Kite Runner, A Thousand Splendid Suns and, And the Mountains Echoed. He writes in beautiful prose and I am transported. I adore his writing.

I could write so much here. I recently really enjoyed Our Endless Numbered Days by Clare Fuller, and Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman, for example. I love writing that makes me laugh, and Eleanor Oliphant was very funny!

What are you working on now?
I am about to publish my second novel Daisys’ Love Secrets. This is a sequel to Dating Daisy. I was so amazed by the interest and the questions everyone asked me, I thought I would put it all in a second book! Yes – the book is very funny!

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
This is difficult. I haven’t found a magic solution, however there are a few suggestions.

I have been running author guest posting on my website which has been very successful. I have met some super authors, read books I would otherwise not have written, and written some fun guest post for them, as well as publishing interesting work on my website.

I also answer medical queries, via my blog sites and this generates interest in my book.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
You need the whole package – social media, book reviews, guest posts, book promotion and yes some advertising. Its disheartening at times – but keep going. Try and be thick skinned and remain positive and optimistic about your own book. Contact other authors – we are all in the same boat and it helps to support each other.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Try, try and try again.

I like to think of selling my book as a kind of magnetic pastime. It’s fun to browse through book review sites, see what other authors are doing, decide what I’m going to do next. Promoting my book is very important to me, and I like to make is as fun as I can.

I feel sure inside myself that I have written a good book – unique, funny and interesting – so I am confident I just need to make people aware of it. Dating Daisy has been described as a cross between Bridget Jones’ Diary and Sex and the City, so that can’t be bad can it!!

What are you reading now?
I am currently reading a book for my book club called Artemis by Andy Weir. Its a totally different type of book for me to read – about life in space – but I admire the author’s imagination hugely.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I will be publishing my new novel, Daisys’ Love Secrets, and continuing my blogging and medical writing. There is so much to write and so little time ….!

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 like books I haven’t read! So … on my list are –

Swimming Lessons by Clare Fuller
Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan
They all love Jack, by Bruce Robinson

Author Websites and Profiles
Daisy Mae Website
Daisy Mae Amazon Profile
Daisy Mae’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a US Air Force officer, also a huge sci fi fanatic. I have written two books, with three more on the way.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called Scorpion: the Rae Wars. It was inspired by a plethora of books, games, movies, comics, history, and my life. But all in all, I just wanted to write a sci fi series that a dedicated and detail-oriented reader like myself could immerse themselves in and would want to keep reading.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
White boards. I love white boards, they are great for throwing down ideas quickly so you can use them later. I have three around my house, and one at work. They are all covered in bizarre notes that really only make sense to me.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I could go on all day about authors and books that have influenced me. My favorite book is Armor by John Steakley, so I definitely throw some nods toward him and his style in my work. Frank Herbert is also a huge inspiration, I love how he built the Dune universe and gave us so many stories within it.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on the second book in the Rae Wars series, as well as a pet project that I’m calling Exodus. I tend to work on two things at once, when I get writer’s block working on the main project, it’s nice to switch to the pet project.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Word of mouth. My writing is slowly building a fan base and they keep me accountable. Facebook is pretty convenient too.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Never quit. The first thirty pages are super easy, getting from there to the end is a true test of who you are as an author and when other things in life start happening writing is an easy thing to throw out the window. I have the beginnings of several stories collecting dust that I worked on before I finally put my nose to the grind stone and finished one. The second thing I’ll say is don’t be afraid to delete things. While going through a second draft I deleted nearly ninety pages of writing that just didn’t fit with the story…and it felt like removing one of my own organs. Despite how much effort I put into writing it and how attached I was, it just didn’t fit (no matter how hard I tried to justify it with myself) and it had to go.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
When I first started writing I never really took it too seriously, thought of it more as like a silly hobby, and I stopped. My dad gave me the book “The Savage Tales of Solomon Kane” by Robert E. Howard. I absolutely loved the book and the character and my dad told me Howard was only 18 when he first wrote Solomon Kane (I was 18 at the time). Then he said, “So, why can’t you?”

What are you reading now?
I am currently reading Armada by Ernest Cline

What’s next for you as a writer?
Book two of the Rae Wars! I’ve got to finish that up and get it out to my readers. Then it’s on to book three.

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?
Armor – John Steakley
Dune – Frank Herbert
Martian Chronicles – Ray Bradbury
Atlas Shrugged – Ayn Rand

(honorable mention would be the Red Rising trilogy by Pierce Brown, but that’s three books dude)

Author Websites and Profiles
Kyle Mata Amazon Profile
Kyle Mata’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account