Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am an ADHD success coach. I set up Focus with Faigy, the ADHD success centre. I live in Manchester UK. I work with professional mums who have children with ADHD. I wear the coach hat and the mum hat simultaneously. I am married with 5 children, on the ADHD spectrum. I get your challenges. I will show you how you can implement systems that will bring focus and success in your life, and how you can improve your relationship and bring out the best in your ADHD child.
I originally trained as a professional organiser. I set up an online professional organiser training businesscalled Organise Pro. Establish your professional organiser business in only 3 months without compromising your home and work commitments. (Organise with an “s” as I live in the UK.)
I wrote”Organise Your Home Like a Pro” which discusses the science behind your clutter and how to finally get up and banish your clutter from your life.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My Latest book “Own Your ADHD – Discover Your True Potential” I am a certified ADHD success coach. I live in the UK. Here ADHD diagnosis/treatment and general understanding in schools and the workplace is beyond shockingly ignorant. There is so much work to be done to educate the public. I decided to write a book so that more people can understand about ADHD. This book, culmination of over a year’s hyper-focus and tenacity, is the result.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
During the day your brain has different focus powers. The secret to life success is to find out when your brain focuses best on different tasks. In the morning I work best on deep focused work. I get up at 5am, and write till 7am. I often sit outside in my back garden (even in freezing cold weather, I wrap up and sit outside for a short while.) I find that working in nature really opens up my creative juices.
Then I do not write at all for the rest of the day.
People think they need to devote huge amounts of energy to projects. This is a lie. All you need to do is little by little move forward and be CONSISTENT!!
When I am stuck or I have a question I knock on as “many doors” as I need to until I find the answer.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Julie Morgenstern, USA’s top home organising consultant really inspired me to start my career as a professional organiser, which in turn led me to train as an ADHD coach. Her book “Organising from the Inside Out” is a must read for all aspiring self-organisers.
Marie Kondo’s books helped me formulate my unique 5 step organising system which I use for clients.
Dr Russell Barkley, the ADHD research expert, Judith Kohlberg who is an expert in ADHD friendly organising methods, and Marydee Sklar who taught me how executive functions influence actions, all influenced me and really inspired me to bravely get up and write my own book “Own Your ADHD – Discover Your True Potential.”

What are you working on now?
I am working on promoting my book “Own Your ADHD – Discover Your True Potential”
I am working on expanding my reach as an author.
I am working on actively focusing on spending more time with my family as my book got me really hyper-focused.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Awesome Gang is an amazing website for promoting my books.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
1. Every person has multiple books inside them, waiting to be written. Think about your life, the lives of your family members, your experiences and life lessons that you have learned. The topics are endless.
2. Be honest and open. People want to read about real people who have struggles.
3. Just write. Don’t think about chapters, and layout. That will come later when you have finished writing the book.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Success is in your actions. The results come from G-d”
So many times we are afraid to act, simply because we don’t know what the outcome will be.
Do your part, bravely push through your fears the results are not up to you.
You are a success, your actions are a success, simply because you have done what you need to do.
Don’t be afraid of making mistakes. Its the successful people that make the most mistakes.

What are you reading now?
I am currently reading “Oil Painting for Dummies” I frequently paint in oils, and I want to upgrade my skills. I don’t read so many books. Since I have ADHD I find it difficult to focus on a book for a long time. I use the internet as my reading reference. I am currently writing an online productivity course for a legal company. I do my learning by looking up online resources and adding my two cents worth.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I am currently working on expanding my first book “Organise Your Home Like a Pro” I will be creating a series of Life Productivity books. The series will be called “Banish your Overwhelm.” The first book will be titled, “Declutter Your Life” the second book, currently in the planning stages will be called “Systemise your Space”

The first one on clutter is well on the way.

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?
Secrets of the Millionaire Mind
The 5 am Morning
ADD Friendly ways to Organize your Life
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Author Websites and Profiles
Faigy Liebermann Website
Faigy Liebermann Amazon Profile

Faigy Liebermann’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My 30th birthday was coming up and I wanted to do something big for myself, accomplish something I never thought I could, and I impulsively decided on writing a book. I completed the first draft of my debut novel, The Crying Bird, just days before my birthday. Little did I know how that would affect the rest of my life and my sense of purpose. I’m a writer and a self-published author, and I will be a storyteller until the day I die. Current publications include my novel, The Crying Bird, and a Picture Book for early readers, Milton McMicey–Detective Mouse!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My picture book, Milton McMicey–Detective Mouse! is my latest book. However, I have a sci-fi novel due out this year, and a queue with a variety of stories such as a fantasy novella, another contemporary novel, another Milton McMicey, and other picture books.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’ve finally recognized that I work in bursts and the more I try to follow the ‘rules’ of writing every day and writing whether I’m inspired or not, the less I got done. For me, recognizing my bursts has been more productive and more fun, and I naturally write every day without the stress. (Apparently I don’t like rules, ha!)

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I LOVE all things Sherlock Holmes so, of course, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is an author of note in my life. I have a cat named Sherlock Holmes and I would be awfully tempted, if I ever have a human child, to name him or her Sherlock.

What are you working on now?
My current work in progress is a sci-fi novel (soft) with a bit of mystery thrown in. Two main characters are unwittingly working on the same case in the year 2050 (subject to change) which involves kidnappings, alien conspiracy, a small-town legend, and technology will that change the world once the experimental facility is exposed.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Right now I’d have to say Amazon’s Kindle Select ‘Free Book Promotion’ along with spreading the word about said promotion via websites like Awesomegang (which is Awesome!)

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t try to follow ever little piece of advice you see on the internet. Everyone has an opinion about the right way to do things. Experiment and find YOUR right way, what works for you. Most importantly, you know that saying, “Write drunk, edit sober”? Don’t take that literally. That just mean write AS IF you were drunk, as in, get out of your head and let the words flow. THEN scrutinize what you’ve written.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t– you’re right.” by Henry Ford. And, it’s absolutely true. If you start getting down on yourself, all your projects are going to head for the dumps too.

What are you reading now?
I’m re-absorbing ‘How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy’ by Orson Scott Card, which I recommend, by the way, to anyone endeavoring to write SF&F.

What’s next for you as a writer?
My main goal is to write and self-publish as many books as possible without sacrificing quality (which, for me, will probably be 1-2 titles a year, maybe 3 if the projects are shorter.)

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 Sherlock Holmes, An Encyclopedia, an Edible Plants Guide, and some random selection to use a kindling.

Author Websites and Profiles
Emily Stillings Website
Emily Stillings Amazon Profile

Emily Stillings’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I started writing when I was a kid but got serious when I did NaNoWriMo in 2015, well into my forties. I’ve written five books, and have a bunch of stuff written for several more. I have some degree of material for several dozen more, although for some it’s just a logline and a tentative title. I’ve only released two books, but lots more will be coming soon!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my latest book is Resource Economies: Reclaiming the Zombie Apocalypse. It was inspired by my desire to see more hope in zombie novels. It’s dark and violent, but in the end, there is a glimmer of hope throughout the story. Humanity is rising to take back the world.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really. I’m fueled by caffeine and deep house or vocal trance most of the time when I write. One of my short stories was written while listening to the song Nine While Nine by the Sister of Mercy. Does that count?

What authors, or books have influenced you?
So very many. John Shirley is my favourite author and he’s not really that well known. William Gibson credits him with inventing cyberpunk and he fronts a punk band.

What are you working on now?
An urban fantasy series called the Strange Tales of Jenny Dark. Kind of Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Sherlock Holmes. Book 1 is just about ready for editing and book 2 is actually finished, although I think I’m going to revamp the cover before release.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m new to the promo end of things. Up until now, I made my money off of a day job and just kind of coasted, figured I’d start promoting once I had five or six books done. Well, I’ve got five written, so that time is now!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Just write.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Just write.

What are you reading now?
Where the Light Enters by Kathy Miner. It’s pretty good so far. Book two in a series, I enjoyed book 1 a great deal. Lots of survival detail that is accurate and a good story. The two don’t go together very often.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Well, the Jenny Dark series I guess. After that, I have a comedy cyber-noir series called Nic Styx that I want to write or another series about street kids who gain psychic abilities. I have a bunch of stand-alone books I want to tackle as well.

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 SAS Survival Guide, a blank notebook, and something really really long that I have never read. The long book would actually become tinder as I finished reading parts.

Author Websites and Profiles
Traverse Davies Website
Traverse Davies Amazon Profile
Traverse Davies Author Profile on Smashwords

Traverse Davies’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I love writing. It is such a freedom to me. I was born in NYC. I now live and work in the South. I grew up in foster care until the age of 16 when I was adopted. Writing was always the only freedom I’ve ever had. I was in control for once and felt and continue to truly feel free when I write. I have written one novel but I have written a book of poetry and some short stories as well.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my Novel is called The Girls: Book 1: Brandon Returns. It is available on Amazon and Barnes and Nobles in softcover format only right now. I am working on everything else. I was honestly inspired by the television show Daria. There was an episode called “Write where it hurts.” She had to write a story using the names of people she knew. Her mother told her to write what she doesn’t see. I thought that was awesome. Many of the names used are real people but the characters are not them, by far not them. Some names I had to change only because of the uniqueness of their actual names. Thanks Daria.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
When I would write poetry, I would be on the toilet. Lol. I don’t know why I wrote them on the toilet. I have no reason for this.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Jackie Collins hands down- RIP. The first book I have ever read by her is called “Dangerous Kiss.” It was my introduction to Lucky, Max, and Gino. I love this family. Jackie was so bold in comparisons of the books that I have read growing up at the time. She inspired me to just be me…fully!

What are you working on now?
I have a few projects that I have completed. I am currently working on the third or maybe even fourth installment of The Girls series. I am thinking of the fifth book already.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am still learning about Marketing and promoting. I have used social media. I have to dive a bit deeper if I want to see sales.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Have thick skin. Do not allow the mean and rude comments received deter you from writing. If you stop now, you’ll never know what could be.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I wouldn’t say advice but a quote. Michael Jackson made a comment about being better at your craft than you were before. I have taken that to heart. I love what I do and I want to improve the more I do it.

What are you reading now?
I am writing right now. No real reading.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Since this is the first novel, I am just trying to get myself out there and noticed.

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?
Dangerous Kiss
Drop Dead Beautiful
Pretend You Don’t See Her (Mary Higgins Clark)

Author Websites and Profiles
Kashavera Williams Amazon Profile

Kashavera Williams’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have seriously studied and practiced astrology for more than 50 years. But I didn’t decide to write a book on astrology until I was 66. I’ve now completed three books, two of which are published. And I have a four-book series underway.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My most recently published book is WHERE ALPHA MEETS OMEGA. I’ve always been really interested in the ancient symbolism and mythology at the root of astrology, and I’ve been increasingly interested in bits and pieces of information we are getting about the zodiac from space exploration. I kept trying to find a book that brought it all together and made astrological sense of it, but I couldn’t find it. So I wrote it. And it turns out there is SO MUCH I didn’t know. Writing that book was one of the most amazing and mind-expanding journeys of my life.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
When I have a book in my mind, I have a tendency to just sit down not not get up until a book is finished. I have to force myself to get up every few hours and garden or swim, or sometimes just move around the kitchen cooking. Mind body balance is a lot more than words. They really do fuel each other.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Dane Rudhyar for certain. And Eleanor Bach’s amazing work on the asteroid belt. Marc Edmund Jones, Ivy Jacobsen-Goldstein, Baba Ram Das, Hazrat Inayat Khan, John O’Donohue, Ronald Hutton, Joseph Campbell–some traditional Western astrologers, some Eastern, some Celtic, and then of course, the Myth Master of all.

But honestly, having twin grandsons born one minute apart has influenced me and the way I view astrology more than any book.

What are you working on now?
I’m in the midst of a four-book series called READING BY SYMBOL LIGHT. It looks at astrology in a very different way than “traditional” astrology is taught today in the West. The series focuses on the symbolic language itself, which as it turns out is actually the oldest and most universal language on the planet. The symbols themselves speak. And each person can learn to read–or “see”–an astrological chart in a way that is very unlike memorizing paragraphs of meanings. We don’t have to translate astrology through the French language or the German language or the English language. It’s right there in its own language for anyone to read. That’s what this series is about. The original language.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I don’t promote. I light little fires.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Whatever you do it in life, find joy. And do it more every day.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
To thine own self be true.

What are you reading now?
NATIVE TONGUES by Charles Berlitz and COSMOS AND PSYCHE by Richard Tarnas. I always seem to read in twos.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I need to finish the READING BY SYMBOL LIGHT series. And then I have another book outlined in my head that looks at learning astrology through the study of history, and still another that looks at a meaningful intersection of the Tropical Zodiac and the Sidereal Zodiac. I’d also like to do a series of children’s books that look at ancient goddesses as morality plays because there is so much ancient wisdom in mythology we seem to have lost in popular consciousness. But it’s getting clear to me I’m going to need another lifetime pretty quick to get this all done.

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?
ANAM CARA and TO BLESS THE SPACE BETWEEN US by John O’Donohue.

Author Websites and Profiles
Sonrisa East Website

Sonrisa East’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born in London and moved to Australia in my early twenties. It was only when I retired that I wrote her my first novel, Missing in Egypt, Book #1 the Anna Davies Mystery series. Missing at Sea is Book#2 in the series and Missing in London is Book #3.

All can be enjoyed as stand-alone books.

Winston – A Horse’s Tale was written for horse lovers from teenagers upwards. “It was the book I had to write.”

Dangerous Associations is a crime mystery.

When I’m not writing or reading, I enjoys playing tennis, swimming and taking walks along the local beaches, lakes and river.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Missing in London is my latest book. I love travelling and I enjoy writing about places I have visited. I combined this with horse racing (I love horses) and a missing author.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I think every author writes differently, whether in silence, to music, in the morning, in the evening. I do my best writing when it’s raining as it doesn’t happen often where I live and I’m stuck indoors.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Dick Francis of course, for his horse racing books. I am generally in awe of my favourite authors – how do they write so well?

What are you working on now?
I’m working on a book to be called The Ponciana Tree. It is not part of the Anna Davies Mystery series but it is a crime novel.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My website is http://www.ritaleechapman.com and I interview a different author each week here. It helps me to connect with other authors and attracts new readers to my site.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Edit, edit, edit! It is so frustrating to find errors when you think you have eliminated all of them. If you are not sure about writing a book, just do it. With self-publishing there is no need for your manuscript to lay unread on your computer.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Keep writing!

What are you reading now?
Even the Dead Are Coming by Mike Robbins. It is part of my research for The Ponciana Tree and I am finding it incredibly helpful.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I will be at the Cooroy Fusion Festival next month on the Sunshine Coast in Australia as part of the pop-up library and I am looking forward to finishing my latest 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?
Something by Kate Morton or Rebecca Bryn. I don’t often re-read a book.

Author Websites and Profiles
Rita Chapman Website
Rita Chapman Amazon Profile
Rita Chapman Author Profile on Smashwords

Rita Chapman’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve written three, but only one is published so far! My first published book, Sapience, is a collection of my science fiction short stories. My next book, Saints and Curses, is a collection of fantasy short stories that is coming out this summer.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called Sapience. I would say that many of the stories are inspired by my fascination with Jupiter’s moon Europa. It’s one of the few places in the solar system that scientists are excited about the potential for finding extraterrestrial life. I’ve always interested in scientific discoveries and the potential for life on other planets, human colonization, and artificial intelligence.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Writers are such an unusual bunch, and we have so many strange writing habits in general, that I’m not sure I have any that stand out as particularly weird. I do have a writing group that’s very supportive, and that’s definitely helped me continue writing when I’m having difficulties.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love reading tons of different authors. I’d say some of my favorite authors include Connie Willis, Jane Yolen, and Neil Gaiman. I also have a deep love for Katherine Addison’s The Goblin Emperor.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on the final edits and formatting for my next book, Saints and Curses, as well as a new WIP that’s still a rough draft right now.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use Twitter, Facebook, and my website, www.lunarianpress.com.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep writing, and above all, keep reading! Even if all you can do is listen to audible while you’re on your daily commute, keep reading.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“It’s better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness.”

What are you reading now?
I’m split between reading “The Emerald Circus” by Jane Yolen and “Terra Incognita” by Connie Willis.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m going to just keep writing! More short stories, more novels, more nonfiction–I just want to “make good art,” as Neil Gaiman says.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
I would bring books with titles like “How to survive on a desert island” and “How to Build a Raft.” Haha, honestly, I don’t know. Probably great novels I haven’t read before, like War and Peace, something that could keep me busy.

Author Websites and Profiles
Alexis Lantgen Website
Alexis Lantgen Amazon Profile

Alexis Lantgen’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Kenny Bomer (Mujahid Islam) is a thirty-year revert to Islam from Christianity. He currently resides in Houston, Texas, and is the president of the Brazosport Islamic Society in Lake Jackson, Texas, located an hour south of Houston. He is a student of Mishkah University where he is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Islamic Studies. He is an independent researcher in the field of comparative religions, a public speaker and debater, and a community activist having organized numerous food/blanket drives to feed the homeless and needy in both Houston and Lake Jackson. Kenny Bomer is a former hip-hop artist having signed two record deals in his life with the record labels Mr. Henry/Ichiban Records (1986) and King B Music (2000). He became a certified Protection and Response (PAR) instructor with the Department of Juvenile Justice through Cypress Creek Juvenile Corrections facility in Crystal River, Florida, where he was qualified to train employees in crisis intervention and self-defense/take-down tactics and is currently a certified API (510) Pressure Vessel Inspector through the American Petroleum Institute.

At the age of eleven, he became a ward of the state after he and his younger brother were abandoned shortly after his parents separated. He became a resident of the Brazoria County Youth Home (BCYH) in Freeport, Texas, where he lived until the age of eighteen. While residing at the BCYH, he was first exposed to religion through Christian employees of the BCYH who attended Assemblies of God Churches. It was during that time that he was also exposed to Islam through his partner in music who became a member of the Nation of Islam, best known by Malcom X, Louis Farrakhan, and Elijah Muhammad. He embraced Orthodox Islam at the age of seventeen after reading the Qur’an for the first time, and through examining the religion of Islam during his own independent studies and research.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I was inspired by the unjustified hatred of Islam that is present in the world. It has been generated by propaganda that has been used numerous times to attack various groups throughout history. Technology in modern times has made the use of it even more prominent. My intention is to fight off Islamophobia by speaking about the truth and beauty of Islam.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write when I am inspired and after I have studied, researched, and pondered over the contents and topic of each chapter. Sometimes it comes quickly and sometimes it requires a lot of contemplation.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Bart D. Ehrman is an Author that I greatly respect for his honesty. I am also a big fan of Linda ILham Barto. (The Hillbilly Muslim)

What are you working on now?
I have started my second book, Reasons to Revert, which addresses the reasons why people should and do revert back to the original state of our being which is Islam.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
www.kennybomer.com as well as my Facebook page: Author Kenny Bomer

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t get discouraged. Plan and outline one chapter at a time. Let it develop naturally. Don’t force anything.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Submit to the One God who is our Creator with all of your heart and mind.

What are you reading now?
Memoirs of a Hillbilly Muslim by Linda ILham Barto

What’s next for you as a writer?
More speaking engagements and more book! God willing.

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 Qur’an, The Life of Muhammad by Haykal, Misquoting Jesus by Bart D. Ehrman

Author Websites and Profiles
Kenny Bomer Website
Kenny Bomer Amazon Profile

Kenny Bomer’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a writer, coder and storyteller living and working in Silicon Valley. I’ve written 12 novels to date, a few non-fiction technical works, plays, and short fiction over the years.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Reykjavik: A Novel is my latest work.

Passion always dictates form. My passion for this narrative took shape over a period of years. The seeds were planted a long time ago, drawing on my memories of Reykjavik back in the 1980s and the Summit in 1986, when Reagan and Gorbachev met to decide the fate of the world.
At the time, the world was teetering on the brink of Armageddon, a dangerous and perverse period in history, with nuclear missiles from the US and Soviet Union pointed at each other, within a time window of 30 minutes from launch. Can you really believe that kind of madness? It still boggles my mind. I mean, we had reached the point where mutually assured destruction (MAD) was the order of the day. Once launched, the missiles could not be stopped or return from their targets, the gravity’s rainbow of their paths impossible to change. Millions would be dead within minutes, the world literally blown to pieces. I’d been living with that for years as a young writer, and even now it stuns when I think about it. I knew something about Reagan, had followed his rise to power, and applauded his willingness to meet with Gorbachev and end this nuclear statement. As it happened, I had come to California in the 1960s for graduate school at Berkeley when Reagan was governor and lived through the Dr. Strangelove period depicted in Stanley Kubrick’s movie with Peter Sellers. I had grown up with The Bomb, but not by any means loving it. Anything was possible, the world gone mad. And Reagan, to his credit, wanted to rid the planet of these weapons. He and Gorbachev met a number of times, culminating in the Reykjavik Summit, when they knocked heads to figure out a way to reduce, and ultimately eliminate these monstrous nuclear arsenals on both sides. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union was coming apart. Under the yoke of Soviet rule, people in Eastern Europe – in countries like Poland, the Baltics, East Germany – were growing more and more dissatisfied with the quality of their lives, restless now, hungry for freedom, resistant to the forces of oppression, all of that. Against this backdrop, the elements of my novel began to come together.

How did it come about? You try to dig deep into the wellsprings of feeling and imagination, and trust your instincts when you sit down to compose. As a young writer and journalist, I spent much of my time traveling, writing and reporting, stretching myself and learning my craft, and as it happened, my travels took me to various cities and countries depicted in the narrative. I tapped into those streams of memory and and drew on my experiences back in Berkeley, California during the 1980s, a turbulent time, much anxiety in the air, tensions between East and West, and in Reykjavik, which became the center of my novel, and in Europe before and after the fall of the Berlin Wall. I grew up speaking a half-dozen languages as a typical polyglot, like the central character in the novel, Nathalie Campbell, who teaches Russian in Berkeley and is enticed to work as a “translator,” if you will, at the Reykjavik Summit in 1986. How was she enticed? And by whom? And were their consequences? Yes, those are questions that novel attempts to answer, although the reader must ultimately decide for themselves.

The novel moves beyond the 1980s. Quite a bit further, as matter of fact. We as readers land in Berlin on the eve of the fall of the Wall, in November 1989 (as I did personally), then beyond to the 1990s when the Soviet Union collapses and a new class of oligarchs emerges to rule and take power and grab the wealth of the country, which was enormous and ripe for the pickings. In the story we return to Reykjavik in 1996 to hear David Bowie perform, then later in the 2000s to visit the gravesite of Bobby Fischer, the extraordinary chess master who is buried in Iceland, and who beat Boris Spassky in 1972 in the chess match of century, and finally, we taste the consequences of revenge all the way up to the present. The consequences, well, can be quite bad, as the younger generation, the youth of today, emerge and take power and control away from their elders, and set things right. That’s how we evolve, how history plays out.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Writing habits? What happened during the composition of the novel? Well, before too long, the seeds broke through the fertile garden of memory and started to grow into what the novel was to become. And then, seemingly on their own, the characters in the narrative began to haunt my dreams. One night Nathalie Campbell appeared, then Andrei Heilemann, both professionals in their respective fields, one a teacher of literature and the other a nuclear scientist, pulled together by the forces of nature, or history, or some combination, their lives intersecting at precisely the moment in time when it mattered the most, when each had to give up something of themselves and change direction in life.
Nathalie Campbell is the central character in the narrative, and as she came to me in my dreams, I began to see her as a kind of everywoman, an anima type, a woman you could not easily forget, a woman who kept you spellbound, a woman whom you could love yet not ever truly know, being somehow elusive, fleeting, magical, a woman with great depth and feeling, a woman of the world with many stories to tell. Does that make sense? Probably not. Even now, having written the book, I still can’t figure her out. Andrei Heilemann, the Soviet scientist who defects to the West, was my neighbor down the street, the colleague at work, the man whom I knew, not as a brilliant nuclear scientist, but simply a fellow I could depend on in a crisis, a good man, perhaps even a great man, yet a man with a past, a man with a vengeful brother, a man swept up in the torrents of history, caught in its dangerous cross-currents and multiplying dark forces.
For me, novels take on a life all their own if the characters won’t let go, and in this case, Nathalie and Andrei did just that. They wouldn’t let go. I began living and breathing the lives of these characters, writing about them as if they were part of my family, sharing their lives with my wife, who later worked hard and brilliantly to edit the book and understand these characters, what made them tick, what motivated their actions, what made them real in the best sense of the word.
The story of Nathalie and Andrei’s personal lives seemed important and needed to be filled in. Another character appeared, much later. Dylan Rose, the probing, inquisitive journalist, appeared to tell their story, the story of a family caught in the crosswinds of huge geopolitical changes. And of course, there had to be the resentment of the younger brother in the old Soviet Union, whose anger at the fall of Empire could not be underestimated or denied, the embodiment of all that happened when the Soviet Union crumbled and fell apart, and a new class of oligarchs emerged. He would not rest. He would go after his older brother who defected to the West, and do it with a vengeance.

Once the characters and narrative began to take shape, I was able find the unclassified documents from the Summit, released in 2004 by the State Department into the public, and then review the many books and articles written on Reagan, Gorbachev and the Summit. It gave me some understanding of the “official” version of events, but nothing really below the surface. I kept digging and digging to find the missing pieces, the backstory, the untold events. My novel was an attempt to get to the “truth” of the Summit and how it affected the collapse of the Soviet Union, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the rise of a new class of ruthless oligarchs in the new Soviet Federation, oligarchs with global reach and command, why the new leadership in Russia felt the way they did when the Empire collapsed, the degree of resentment toward the West, toward the US as the lone global superpower, and why that mattered, why it was part of the motivation by the current leadership to divide the West, restore the Russian Federation to its former glory, all that retribution, moral equivalence, what-about-ism that you get hit with in the news today. Reykjavik puts it all in perspective, so you can see where it came from, how it evolved and morphed into our present situation in relations between East and West. That’s probably why I had to write the book. No, not probably. That’s why I wrote the book.

Reykjavik relies on a confessional technique as a way of telling the story of Nathalie and Andrei’s lives.
The way a story is told has a major impact on how the reader experiences the narrative and whether it comes to life, whether it breathes and rings true. As a writer, you have a few choices, like third-person omniscient, second-person (the you narrative, I call it), and first-person, as you find in most novels these days. But to me, the first-person technique can get boring very fast, because you have a limited field of view, the story is told through the eyes of single person. It’s much more interesting to tell a story in the first-person as it’s told to that person, with multiple voices, and greater depth of character. In effect, there are many characters, as in real life, with first-person stories, all woven together in the narrative. It’s a technique that Sebald uses brilliantly in Austerlitz because it takes you inside the mind and experience of not just the narrator but the main character who tells his story to the narrator.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
J.M. Coetzee, Orhan Pamuk, Roberto Bolano.

What are you working on now?
A sequel to an earlier novel I wrote.

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

www.tommaremaa.com

That’s where I do blog postings, novel excerpts, pointers to my work.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Experiment with different storytelling techniques in your novels. That’s what I do, although I don’t recommend it to other writers necessarily.
It just happens for me. In the course of writing many novels, I’ve experimented with different techniques. My novel Metal Heads was about the Iraq and vets who were suffering from traumatic brain injuries in a hospital that was like something out of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, with a bit of Burgess’s A Clockwork Orange thrown in for good measure. A kind of looney bit where soldiers were being used for medical testing and body repairs in hopes of creating some hybrid and more advanced kind of warrior. The technique I used was a combination of first and second person, but always focused on how the main character, in this case, Spoon, a Marine missing an eye and a limb from an explosion in Iraq during the war, would tell the story. His voice and language had to be all its own, unique to him, yet convincing to the reader. In other novels, like Of Gods, Royals and Superman, I’ve used the third-person, which was appropriate to the characters and story that I wanted to tell, a coming of age narrative like Fielding’s Tom Jones, with chapters headings, comic characters, the typical father-son conflict, episodic scenes, wild flight of language and voices.

So my work doesn’t fall into any particular genre. Is that a problem?
I don’t think it’s a problem, though. Maybe literary fiction is the best way to describe each novel. Literary fiction is almost a lost genre if you can all it a genre at all. Literary fiction is always about language, about its power and mystery to evoke emotion. You’ll see it in the works of Coetzee, Pamuk, Franzen: every word carefully chosen, loved and hated, played like musical notes. There are pluses to working without genres. Because I don’t produce genre fiction, it frees me up to focus on the inner and outer lives of my characters and allow the narrative to unfold over time in whatever style or technique works best for the storytelling. I’m not bound by formulas or conventions. I don’t have a publisher who demands that I product the same book over and over again because that is what my readers want and expect. I can write works that defy categories, that liberate the reader from manufactured formulas or predictable plots and cardboard characters. You know a form, like the novel, is really dead, as Gertrude Stein once said, when everything in it has to be made a certain way. Again, passion dictates form. And passion doesn’t always answer to its name. You can’t turn it on and off like a spigot. It comes when it’s ready to come, when you allow it to come, when it takes hold of you and won’t let go.

Novels used to make news in their own right. Novels used to give us another version of history, deeper and more profound than what we got in college textbooks. Novels used to be more than entertainment fodder for movies to be made. Novels used to change people’s lives, and I think they still do if we give them half a chance.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Listen to all the advice you can get, but then toss it out the window.

What are you reading now?
A half dozen books, mostly non-fiction. When I read fiction I do so in order to learn how others plot, structure, shape their narratives. I read Borges, for example, to see how great fiction lives on, survives beyond one or two generations. I read Bolano to be dazzled, Coetzee to see the world through a dark lens, Pynchon to see the world satirized, Kundera to understand the complexities of love in the modern age (see The Unbearable Lightness of Being).

What’s next for you as a writer?
Whatever, wherever my characters take 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?
I doubt that I’d take any book at all to a desert island. I’d be too busy trying to survive the heat, lack of drinking water, the loneliness. Every novel I’d ever read would surface from memory, be with me and help me survive.

Author Websites and Profiles
Tom Maremaa Website
Tom Maremaa Amazon Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hi readers! Claimed is the premier novel in my series The Land of Schism, and is my first full-length published work. I’m happily married to a Polish man, and fell in love with Poland when we visited his family. I notoriously live in a world of my own creation, and love to read in different genres but fantasy is my go-to. My hobbies are varied and wide from self-education, traveling, hiking, playing video games, watching anime and Asian dramas, martial arts, and drawing. I graduated college (again) a few years ago, and have been pursuing my dream ever since while holding a day job. Felines are my spirit animal, but I also love horses, owls, and foxes. Find out more on my website or instagram page!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my latest novel is Claimed (the Land of Schism Book 1), and the inspiration for it came from many different places. The seed was planted while watching an anime series over a decade ago where two female friends had to enact a scene of friendship turning to hatred for an acting gig. It really stuck in my mind, and I began to wonder what types of choices had to go into moving from one emotional spectrum to the other inside of a friendship. Of course, I’ve always had a love for fantasy and sci-fi, so the setting was a no brainer. As the years passed, my faith matured and that type of journey spilled over into my writing as well.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m a visual person, so I like to write out my major plot points on stickies and put them in a notebook with tentative scene elements listed beneath them. I move the stickies around in different orders depending on where the story and characters take me.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I don’t have a particular book or author that I can look back on, point to, and say “that was a turning point” or anything. I just love to read, lol.

What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on the sequel to Claimed, and letting a multitude of other story ideas brew in the cauldron of my brain.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I try to be organic when promoting my book because I realize that not everyone is going to be interested in a Christian Fantasy fiction novel, and that’s okay. I have a website, Instagram page, and Goodreads page where I keep in touch with readers because I like to know their thoughts and opinions.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
As a new author myself I don’t have much advice other than what I tell myself. Which is to keep looking up, keep writing, and keep moving forward.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
There is a lot of advice out there about writing, and some of it can even come from people who have never written a book. I wouldn’t say that anything I ever read, heard, or was told was the best advice. Good advice on some levels, sure. However, everyone has a different method of writing, and what works well for one person may not work well for another.

What are you reading now?
The Soulkeepers by G.P. Ching

What’s next for you as a writer?
Getting all of the stories in my mind out into the world. Why be selfish with my imagination? Lol!

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?
Hmmm, only 3 or 4? Pffft! Time to start an island library! Lol! I would take the Bible, a survival manual, a book teaching a foreign language, and a compilation of fairy tales (Hans or Grimm).

Author Websites and Profiles
Nicole Adamz Website
Nicole Adamz Amazon Profile

Nicole Adamz’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a self-published, multi-genre author of twenty books published books so far.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called Haunted In Colorado. It is the sixth book in the Truly Paranormal series. The inspiration behind the series was my own curiosity about the history of supposed haunted locations in each of the US states. I wanted to know what happened in the past at these locations to have caused them to have, in some cases, such extreme paranormal activity. I started the series leaning more toward the claims of unexplained occurrences at each of the places, but then with the second book and so forth the history of the location is more of the focus. Although, the paranormal claims are still told as well.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I am not sure one would consider it unusual, but I prefer to write my rough draft with a pen or pencil and notebook paper. I do the same when I am collecting research for my books. I have dozens of spiral notebooks with rough drafts in them in my home.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I really enjoy reading Nicholas Sparks’ books. His ability to tell a beautiful romance story without all the erotic bedroom stuff intrigues me. Heather Graham’s ability to write more than one genre has been a big influence on me doing it. I thought if she could be successful with it, then so could I. Ann Rule has also been an influence for me when it comes to writing true crime and telling the stories of people who are no longer here to tell them for themselves.

What are you working on now?
I have four different books in three different genres in the works at the moment. Haunted In Connecticut (Truly Paranormal #7) and The Unsolved (True Disturbing Files #2) are the two that are far enough along to have names already. I am also working on the fifth book in the Colt Investigations series and a book about Meniere’s Disease, which I suffer from.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I have had a lot of success with promoting my books in the various book groups on Facebook. Awesome Gang and Snick’s List are also among my top ways of promoting.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
You won’t make a lot of money with your books at first, but don’t give up. If writing is your passion and your dream is to be published, then stop at nothing until that happens. Don’t let others try and talk you out of doing what you love. Write what you would like to read, because there is always someone else out there who would like to read it too.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t give up no matter what.

What are you reading now?
I am currently reading three books: Dictionary of the Supernatural by Peter Underwood, Growing Up Psychic by Chip Coffey, and Ghost Hunt by Jason Hawes.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I plan to continue adding to my published list. I found an outlet to get my writing into the hands of readers, and I have no intentions of slacking off anytime soon.

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 is a tough one. I think I would choose Ghosts by Hans Holzer, The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks, Fear the Dark by Kay Hooper, and some type of survivalist manual.

Author Websites and Profiles
Marie Tayse Website
Marie Tayse Amazon Profile
Marie Tayse Author Profile on Smashwords

Marie Tayse’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a retired property manager and have written two historical novels, Voyage to Venning Road and A Divided Heritage. I was born and brought up in Yorkshire and lived in Zurich and London before finally settling in East Hampshire. Once retired I resurrected my love of writing and have written numerous short stories for my writing group, two, of which have been published. Another retirement hobby is family history research and my first novel, Voyage to Venning Road, was based on a true story I turned up concerning my great-uncle who lived and worked in Malaya.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
A Divided Heritage. It is in a sense a sequel to my first novel as it takes some of the fictional characters introduced into that book and continues with their lives. The main hero of A Divided Heritage was a child in the first book. This second book addresses the issues of racial prejudice and homophobia as they presented in the 1920s and 30s and also illuminates the sheer barbarity of war, at the same time as being a heart-rending love story.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really, but I do make copious shorthand notes when carrying out my research and also do a rough hand-written draft before typing up each section, editing as I go. I am meticulous about attention to detail, which is especially important when writing about a different era.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The Bronte sisters, Patricia Highsmith, Dinah Jeffries, Noel Barber, amongst many others.

What are you working on now?
I am taking a break from writing novels – I will wait until a story starts writing itself in my head. Meanwhile, I am promoting my last novel and writing short stories.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Local media, Facebook, websites such as Awesome Gang.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Follow your dreams and write the stories you feel you must write.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Stick to your guns and write what you want to write.

What are you reading now?
Farewell to France by Noel Barber.

What’s next for you as a writer?
More short stories – I write one each month for my group – and maybe another novel, which will also be set in a an earlier period, as I love doing the historical research.

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?
Tanamera by Noel Barber, The Tea Planter’s Wife by Dinah Jeffries, Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte.

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Joanne and I write under pen name J.S Ellis. I’m the author of the thriller novel “In Her Words” which will be published on the 7th of May.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The book name is ‘In Her Words’ it was on Christmas of 2014 where I got an idea of a glamorous woman who works as an accountant but has a drinking problem and keeps a diary. She goes out with her a friend and wakes up the next day with no memory what happened to her.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yes, I do. I write with music on but when I’m editing, the music is off. I always have water coffee and snacks ready normally its cheese or chocolates.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Nicci French Killing Me Softly was a huge influence on me also novels by Partick McGrath.

What are you working on now?
At the moment, I’m working on two novels that I’m doing self-edits one is a thriller about a poker player who steals on million pounds from a gangster it’s a novella which I plan to publish in next few months. The other is dyopstian series.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m not sure I’m new to this game so I’m still learning.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t give up writing is hard the easier you think it is, the harder it gets but keep at it. It’s one of the most rewarding experiences.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
If you want to learn about yourself, write a book.

What are you reading now?
The Hiding Place by C.J Tudor

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m working on the next thriller novella than a dystopian series which is a learning curve and then hopefully, I write a romance novel but that’s in the later future.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
1984 George Orwell
Catcher in the Rye J. D. Salinger
Killing me Softly Nicci French

Author Websites and Profiles
JS Ellis Website
JS Ellis Amazon Profile

JS Ellis’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I previously worked for a nonprofit’s publishing department in Manhattan. I started writing children’s books in 2018 and I have nine unpublished children’s books (picture books & middle grade). I have a children’s novel in the works, too.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I just finished Sammy the Bear, a picture book. It was inspired and written for my best friend, Samantha. It’s about Sammy the Bear traveling across the forest with some friends (Jenny the Fox & Kylie the Panda) to get the best honey in all the forest.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t, but if you blink too fast, I might have wrote a new children’s book.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Kristin Hannah inspires me and Paddington inspired my JoJo series. It’s a series about a cat named JoJo who goes adventures with his best friend, Jasper! It’s a picture book with a novel that is half done. I’ve JoJo, The Surf Contest, Visits the Zoo, Goes to the Park, and Plays Soccer. JoJo was the first book I wrote!

What are you working on now?
I just finished an exciting book called Riley & Scare World, it’s for fans of Monster’s Inc.

It begins on Riley’s birthday. Riley goes to the zoo and dinner with her parents, but then everything changes. She is kidnapped, by Johnny the Monster. Johnny takes Riley to his world in Scare World. The monsters are having a contest and Johnny is Riley’s coach. Riley must win the talent show, otherwise she might be in Scare World forever. What would you do, if it was you?

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m fairly new, but I’ve my own Twitter and Instagram I’m trying to build up. I also have a website.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
It’s a tough industry, but never give up! Send your manuscripts out as much as possibles or self publish, do research, and write some great stories!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I’ve been rejected from a few agents and as a response I’ve received something like “this is one person’s opinion and all you need is that one person who shares the same vision as you.” It gives me fire, confidence, and motivates me to keep sending my books out until I get the right person to read it.

What are you reading now?
I don’t have the time to read right now, but the last book I read was Night Road by Kristin Hannah.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I think I’m going to take a little break and work on getting my current books published!

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
That’s easy! The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt and Kristin Hannah’s The Nightingale and Firefly Lane.

Author Websites and Profiles
Steven Friedman Website

Steven Friedman’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a self-published author of the new Series called “Why Men Love Bitches”. I’ve written five books until now, the newest one (Part One of the Series) – “Dear Mr. G., I’m a Bitch Of My Own Mind” is now available on Amazon.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“Dear Mr. G., I’m a Bitch Of My Own Mind”

The book was inspired by personal experience, art, and one mysterious Mr. G.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yes, I always start with the dialogs, and with the ending.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
S.King, A.Rice, F.Kafka

What are you working on now?
Part Two of my new Series “Why Men Love Bitches”.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use Social Media, and websites like yours

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Yes.
The things you are most afraid to write. Write that.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The one I’ve just given to the new authors:
The things you are most afraid to write. Write that.

What are you reading now?
“4-Hour Workweek” by Tim Ferriss

What’s next for you as a writer?
Publishing a paperback version of my 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?
Any four of those written by Tolkien.

Author Websites and Profiles
Kate Chomka Website

Kate Chomka’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Thomas (Tom) Juarez is a retired United States Army soldier with about twenty-one years of active federal service. Hailing from Wetumpka, Alabama, Tom currently enjoys his military retirement with his wife in Sterling, Oklahoma.

This is my first book to date.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Awakening Cocijo. The inspiration behind the book was admiration of the Zapotec people.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I wrote this book with a 3D printing of Cocijo

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Robert Masello, Richard K Morgan

What are you working on now?
Torn between a part two or perhaps something Germanic

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Still learning how to promote my book

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Quit waiting for the book to write itself! Get started and adjust your outline as you go.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Show others consideration before expecting the same in return.

What are you reading now?
The night Crossing by Robert Masello

What’s next for you as a writer?
if I succeed with this book…write another. If I do not succeed, write another.

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?
Current Almanac, A Survival book, and book full of funny pictures.

Author Websites and Profiles
Thomas Juarez Website
Thomas Juarez Amazon Profile

Thomas Juarez’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am the author of A Gregory Green Adventure series, which is a series of picture story books about a little boy and his teddy bear. Currently this series has three installments (Pea Soup Disaster, Doctor Mom, Halloween Ride) with more coming, including The Missing Alphabet, which will be published June 2019 and Sleigh Ride, to be published November 2019. Each year, I plan to come out with two or three books about Gregory and Sammy and their adventures together. All of these books can be read alone and in whatever order you wish.

I also write chapter books for children, such as a trilogy about a spunky fairy. For adults, I like to write romances and frontier/westerns.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
I first created Gregory Green after my son, who loved her homemade pea soup, thus inspiring the story Pea Soup Disaster. He had a Cabbage Patch Doll named Sammy, and that’s how Sammy the Teddy Bear came to be.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I have a physical Sammy the Teddy Bear that sits on my desk. He tries to distract me a lot, but he tells me adventures, too.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
For children’s books: Curious George, Corduroy, Tinkerbell

For adult books: Debbie Macomber, Jan Karon, Beverly Lewis

What are you working on now?
I am always working on the next book for A Gregory Green Adventure series. I am also writing my fairy books and revising the first book in a frontier/western series.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My daughter, Chrys Fey, orchestrates blog tours for me for my new releases and lines up reviewers. Those are two of the most important things done to promote my books.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Find a small group of local writers/authors. Many get-together at the library for a meeting once a month. I am part of a group that meets for lunch once a month. During these gatherings, you can give advice or get advice and talk to other writers about your struggles or successes. That connection is important.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Then do it.” What my coworker told me when I said I’d always wanted to write a book.

What are you reading now?
An Amish book.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Writing!!!! I will also be a featured author at Space Coast Book Lovers, held in June each year in Florida.

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 four books of Jan Karon’s Mitford series.

Author Websites and Profiles
Elaine Kaye Website
Elaine Kaye Amazon Profile
Elaine Kaye Author Profile on Smashwords

Elaine Kaye’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account