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Ron Clark 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a retired pharmacist with 42 years of experience in retail pharmacy. My wife, Kitty, and I have three children and six grandchildren. We have had the pleasure of living in several Texas cities as well as Richmond and Lynchburg, VA. We have vacationed on two ocean cruises, London, France, Tokyo, and several cities across the United States. We have also participated in two mission trips, once to Calli, Columbia, and Bantoom, and Bangkok, Thailand.

I published my first book, The Prophet’s Secret in 2016 with Tate Publishing, which has since gone out of business and republished the book in 2020 with Kindle Direct. I am currently writing a sequel to The Prophet’s Secret, but have yet decided upon a title.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest, and only book, is The Prophet’s Secret. My original idea occurred to me when I read mention in the book of Maccabees in the Books of the Apocrypha about a letter written by Jeremiah the prophet and sent to the Jewish exiles in Babylon telling them that he had hidden the original Tabernacle and its worship articles in a cave on the mountain where Moses stood and looked out over the Promised Land.

I loved the movie, Raider of the Lost Ark, but I did not want to copy the adventure and I wanted to include the prophetic implications of such a discovery. I also wanted to explain the meaning of several prophetic mentions in the Bible. Thus, The Prophet’s Secret was born.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t believe my writing habits are the least bit unusual. As I write, my characters and the story seem to come alive for me and the storyline just seems to flow of its own volition. When that flow begins to wane, I stumble and must recapture the natural reactions of the characters.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
While I’ve discontinued reading Stephen King, because of his use of profanity in his current writings, his style, and character development was a mighty influence. The Thoene’s and their use of biblical scenarios to extrapolate an interconnected storyline is also a great influence.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on a sequel to The Prophet’s Secret, as yet untitled. At the moment, the flow of the storyline is stumbling along.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
To be honest, I haven’t had much luck with any website. Personal contact and book signings at libraries has served me best.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
My best advice is to be very careful in choosing a publisher. Check them out for complaints and success stories. Tate Publishing was a disaster because the owners began to retain royalties for deposit into their personal accounts and the company provided virtually no promotional services. They have since been prosecuted by the Oklahoma Attorney General’s office and received a very favorable sentence for themselves.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
John D. MacDonald once wrote, “If you really want to be a writer, then write.” Mrs. Miller, my freshman English teacher at Del Mar College, told us that every slaughtered syllable is a deed well done. In other words, don’t be superfluous.

What are you reading now?
Currently, I am reading The Desiderata Stone (The Blind Sleuth Mysteries Book 7) by Nick Aaron. It’s a departure from the usual for me since it uses a dual setting, ancient Rome, and current-day Rome. The main characters are either blind or deaf. It’s interesting.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Currently, I will finish the sequel to The Prophet’s Secret. After publishing that book I will put in a lot of effort to find a new inspiration. I am also facing a move from Fredericksburg, TX to, hopefully, Wimberly, TX.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
My first choice of a book would be the Bible. The Bible has influenced more literature and teaching that any book in history. Almost every book ever written contains some element of the Bible. Secondly, I would choose a comprehensive Bible dictionary and concordance. The God Portal by Tim Ferguson is one of my all-time favorites with time travel and the idea of meeting Jesus fascinates me.

Author Websites and Profiles
Ron Clark Website
Ron Clark Amazon Profile
Ron Clark Author Profile on Smashwords

Ron Clark’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account

Erynn Lehtonen 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hey there, I’m Erynn, author of Spirit of the Dragon and the upcoming The Dragon’s Eye, which are both a part of the Yokai Calling series. I love history and anthropology and pass most of my time typing away at my next book, or with my nose stuffed in one! You’ll usually find me in my office with a cup of tea (one flavour from my obsessive collection) and surrounded by my Squishmallow army.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My upcoming book (June 30th, 2020) is titled The Dragon’s Eye. It follows the events after those in The Dragon’s Eye, all of which takes place in an epic fantasy world inspired by Japanese mythology and folklore. This book follows the same track of inspiration as the first book in the series: I originally set out to write a different series but became fixated on a different set of details, so I ended up writing these books instead. I’ll revisit my other ideas next year, I hope.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not unusual, perhaps, but I find that I’m a bit of a night owl when it comes to writing… I’m the most productive, perhaps, during the day, but I find that a lot my best stuff comes out during the late hours of the night or in the early am’s.

What are you working on now?
I’m wrapping up some minor edits to the final version of The Dragon’s Eye, and then I’ll be moving on to book 3 in the series. I’m planning to finish the series entirely by the end of fall!

Do you have any advice for new authors?
It’s cliche, but never give up. Success (in whatever form you value) often comes to those who are relentless.

What are you reading now?
Currently reading The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin with my book club! We’ve only just started, but it’s a fantastic book so far.

What’s next for you as a writer?
The sky’s the limit, really. After I finish my current series I’ll move on to the next, which I plan to take place five years after the end of my current work in progress. Between then and now, who knows? I have lots of ideas and plans that need attention.

Author Websites and Profiles
Erynn Lehtonen Website
Erynn Lehtonen Amazon Profile

Erynn Lehtonen’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Peter J Aldin 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
A raging introvert. Passionately moderate. In love with fiction in all its forms — but especially scifi, fantasy and horror. And a keen supporter of Chelsea FC in the English Premier League.
Under the name Pete Aldin, I’ve authored the Doomsday’s Child series of post-apocalyptic stories set in Australia, along with a werewolf novel Black Marks (also available on iTunes and Audible). Fifteen years ago, I wrote for several parenting magazines including Kindred and Natural Parenting, but now I’m devoted solely to fiction.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Eventide is the first of a long series of space opera / military scifi I’ve been working on for a long time. The book was inspired by the fight for indigenous land rights (and human rights) around the world, along with the entitlement that continually drives wealthy nations to war and abuse. (Phew! That got dark quick!).

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Two pretty simple ones.
When I’m creating new content, I listen to movie/game soundtracks.
When I’m editing/polishing existing content, the music gets turned off.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
David Morrell (if you’ve never read the novel First Blood, you need to).
Martin Cruz Smith (the first three of his Arkady Renko are my favourite crime novels of all time)
Niven and Pournelle’s Mote in God’s Eye
Raymond Feist’s Magician.
(And, hey, Stephen King. Why not?)

What are you working on now?
Book two in the Envoys series (a series that takes place 850 years after Eventide).
Also, a proposal for a novel set in someone else’s universe/franchise (very excited about that).
Also also, the final book in the Doomsday’s Child series…

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

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Finish stuff. Polish stuff. Get connected to a wide group of other authors to critique it (and freeze out the disrespectful ones from your network early — life’s too short).

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Michael Stackpole: “You’ll learn more by finishing the first draft of 20 chapters than will by writing 20 drafts of your first chapter”

What are you reading now?
Albert Camus’s The Plague
Ann Leckie’s Ancillary Justice

What’s next for you as a writer?
Cutting back on the day job and writing more.

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?
Ouch. Only four?
Okay.
Graham Greene’s The Power and the Glory
AA Milne’s The House at Pooh Corner
Niven & Pournelle’s The Mote in God’s Eye
The Bible (why not?)

Author Websites and Profiles
Peter J Aldin Website
Peter J Aldin Amazon Profile

Peter J Aldin’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile

Leon Edwards 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Leon Edwards and my background is an accountant specialising in tax as well as preparing accounts.
I have been an accountant for 21 years now dealing with small businesses.

I became an author when I turned forty years of age and looked back at what I have always wanted to achieve.
Weirdly enough, becoming an author was not high on my agenda. I actually had dreams of becoming an actor when I was five. This carried on till I reached fifteen and thought I was kidding myself.
I mulled over getting into acting again when I turned thirty and looked into it. But knocked it on the head.
I then turned forty and looked into it and this time went on a taster course. After a few weeks of deliberating, I decided not to go ahead. I thought about the long unsociable hours and missing my newly wife.

Throughout the whole idea of becoming an actor, I developed lots of story ideas in my head and already created a beginning, middle and end. I imagined becoming a writer for the silver screen and making my own movie with my stories already established inside my head.
So after turning forty and coming to the realisation of not acting, I had a light bulb moment. Why don’t I put my story ideas to paper and pen, in my case a laptop.

I had to mull over which story to write first and the one that will get me buzzing while writing the story.
I did not want to be one of those people who say I am going to do a bungee jump, travel the world and never do it. End up in my sixties at the pub and telling people I could have been an author but I couldn’t find the time.
So my first story that I had mulling in my mind for about three or four years was a female spy character. I based the character on James Bond of course but stripped out the wooden features. Don’t get me wrong, I love all the James Bond films but I wanted the emotions to come out. So when the latest actor came along and showed those emotions, I felt about time.
I also wanted the character to be vulnerable and not strong and indestructible. I wanted the villain to have to be a physio path rather than just a bad guy wanting to kill everything insight.
So my first book was ‘Jane Knight Rogue Officer’. Since completing my first book, I have now written six to date. They are Blind Love, Eternity Wing And A Pray, Jane Knight Fair Game, To The Stars and Ponta Delgada A Good Place To Die.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The latest books I have written are the last two I named. They are To The Stars and Ponta Delgada A Good Place To Die.
My inspirations for the last two books and indeed all six comes from watching loads of movies. I am a movie buff. My favourite of all time is Star Wars saga. I have no idea why. I am not like a trekkie fan that goes to conventions dress as their favourite character. I would say it was the technology of its time.
So going back to the last two books, To The Stars is based on a film that starred Dakota Fanning called ‘Now Would Be Good.’ I have no idea if it was based on a novel or a screen writer. I went with my now wife to see it and we cried together when getting back to the car. We were surprised how much it touched us.
So I would say that film inspired me to write To The Stars telling the story from a character who is ordinary. You would not pick her out from the crowd.
The second most recent book is Ponta Delgada A Good Place To Die. My inspiration of the location is from a Alfred Hitchcock Film called To Catch A Thief and the mission impossible films.
I wanted to have a mission impossible theme that deals with a snippet of how ruthless drug cartels are. Then having the main plot to try to stop a poisonous drug from entering the drug trade that can potentially kill millions because of its mass production factory.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
My unusual writing habit is now writing two books together, back to back. I like to make sure they are completely different genres so not get bogged down with the same theme.
I have to make sure a chapter is finished before I stop writing for the day. I have a bug bear of a half finished chapter.
My chapters have to be within a number of words to feel satisfied that I have written a good chapter. Some times I have written enough content but falls below my word limit. I just live with it so long as I am happy with the content.
My other writing habit is changing the plot slightly and having no idea which chapters are affected. Also I get the continuity issue that my proof reader and editor reminds me each time. But it is a safe net like how I prepare my accountancy work.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I do not have a book that influences me as I love films and it is that, that influences my plots. However I do have a favourite author who’s name I can never remember. His name is Harlan Coben. I have only read about four of his books. His writing reminds me of movies and so that is why I like his work.
It is interesting as some of his style of writing I am not used to but overall I like his plots and how the stories unfold. My older sister got me into his books as we have similar likes.
I had not heard of him at all before that. The book that stands out is ‘Tell No One’ and ‘Just One Look’.
When I am retired from accountancy, I will read all his books.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on two more books. A crime thriller based on a unsolved disappearance The second book is about a young woman in her twenties who accidentally falls into a boxing career without actually knowing.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am still struggling. Of course it is Awesome Gang. I have tried Written Word Media and Book Raid. I am still dipping my toe into various ways to make my work known. I am glad that I am writing because I love it than for the money and recognition. Because I would have given up after my first book.
The real struggle of advertising is pigeon holing your work. My books are based on emotions and facing adversity. I write these in various genres except horror and paranormal/ fantasy. So my books could fit in more than genre. It is finding the right genre to advertise for.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
The best advice I can say for new authors is write from your heart. Not your head. If you write from your head, you will chase the money and your art will get lost.
I have found from experience being a self employed accountant is that the money came last. I crafted my work and found ways of streamlining my accountancy process. Once I got this right, the recognition from word of mouth came and the money then followed.
Anyone can write a great story if it comes from the heart and wanting to bear your sole on paper, for everyone to see.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I have never had a good advice from anyone. I never did when getting into accountancy. But one advice I had was be yourself and try not to be someone your not. People will see through that.
Show your personality and people will love how you work and understand your novels.

What are you reading now?
I am currently not reading as I am scared that I will read a really good story plot and accidentally copy it for myself. Then get sued. I find that if I read a good book, it will effect my story telling and fall in the trap of copying some else’s style and lose my own.
Films never seem to effect my writing as they are not my themes in relating to my work. When I read a book, they then to be the books I want to write.
However, I am in the process of getting into audio books. Have bought a Kindle and so want to listen to my books in the background. Music is getting boring now.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I am in the process of doing an overhaul of my website. It happened to coincide with my current supplier closing his business. So have found another person who also does my book covers. Hoping it will be more engaging, including a blogger section.
I am still no where near to giving up accountancy and so continuing with this until the right time comes along.

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?
If I was stranded on an island, I would bring a solar powered tablet, if you could find one. Then have all of Harlan Coben books on them.
I would start with ‘One False Move’, ‘Hold Tight’ and ‘The Boy From The Woods’.

Author Websites and Profiles
Leon Edwards Website
Leon Edwards Amazon Profile

Leon Edwards’s Social Media Links
Pinterest Account

Gavin Baird 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am Oregon born and raised and have written two full length novels. The first one was unnamed, and I never published it. It is a sci-fi novel. My second novel, however, is out now. I love writing, and have dreamed of self-publishing since I first learned how to read. Other things that I enjoy are mountain biking, reading, and making things with my 3D printer.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book, The Genesis of a Ranger, is my first fantasy novel, inspired by Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance Cycle. I also took some narration style from James S. A. Corey. The main character’s struggle to find a purpose and overcome his own self-destructive habits are inspired by my own experiences.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t know if this is considered unusual, but I listen to music while I write , and I also like to draw maps of the worlds that my characters explore.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
The most influential book for me is Christopher Paolini’s Eragon, and the rest of the Inheritance cycle. I first read it over a decade ago, and every time that I reread the series I get something new out of it. Some other books that have influenced me are James S. A. Corey’s The Expanse series, and Pierce Brown’s Red Rising.

What are you working on now?
Right now I am working on a thriller horror novel that takes place in the Siuslaw National Forest in Oregon. A group of young outdoor enthusiasts discover a sinister force deep within the forest that is being covered up by the park rangers. In the course of the story, people go missing, and they must find a way to get them back.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
So far, the my best results have come from promoting on Instagram.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Whatever you do, don’t stop. If you can’t reach your daily writing goal, at least write one sentence, one paragraph, or even just one word. Writing is the only way to get better at writing.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Write even if the you can’t think of what to say. Some bad writing is better than no writing at all.

What are you reading now?
Right now, I’m reading Robert Jordan’s The Eye of the World. It is also a fantasy novel, and my friend Austin recommended it to me.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Hopefully, getting traditionally 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?
Eragon by Christopher Paolini, Thick Face, Black Heart by Chin-Ning Chu, and some kind of a survival manual.

 

Micah Dank 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Micah and I was an actor in High School who became an English Major in College. I have written 6 books so far in this series and the first one is coming out June 30th.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Book series is called Into the Rabbit Hole and goes into a pretty big rabbit hole of religion, secret societies, hidden information from the public, and a Bible code written in Astrology and Astronomy that permeates through the series. This is the greatest secret hidden from mankind. I was inspired to write it when I first discovered it 7 years ago and realized it had to be made a book series.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
My main character is a functioning alcoholic and when I write his monologues, I have a 6-12 pack beforehand to get in the character. Guess I’m a bit of a “method” writer. Also, most of the humor in my series comes from conversations I have with my girlfriends at the bar.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Paul Auster’s The New York Trilogy was one. I liked the mental illness of the main character. I also like the Rule of Four which showed me how to take a story and embed another story within the first story. And of course, Dan Brown’s works. My books are heavily influenced by his anagrams and cryptograms and Boston setting.

What are you working on now?
Currently, I’m working on your interview. Besides that, I’m just editing my books. My Publisher is releasing one every 3 months, so my 6 book series will be out in 18 months. Lots to do.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My own website is probably the best. https://www.micahdank.com/

Do you have any advice for new authors?
My books are unlike anything that’s ever been written before. I’ve put my whole life’s knowledge base and heart into each one. I always knew this was a series that was going to take off. I kept every single rejection letter both From Agents and Publishers. It’s in the 300’s. If you believe in your story, don’t EVER give up. From the first word, I typed to my Publishers release of my first novel will be almost 7 years to the date.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t ever give up. And make your voice unique all to yourself. Don’t be the next Dan Brown, be the first Micah Dank.

What are you reading now?
I’m reading books on alchemy, astrology, the Bible, secret societies. I tend to read about 4 hours a day and if I find something interesting, I write it down for my next book.

What’s next for you as a writer?
Lots of Publicity. Lots of author networking. The Author community is very tight-knit and very supportive of one another. Just networking and planning a “possible” 7th 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?
’d bring my series. Not only is there a fluid storyline, but I’ve also encoded each book to have hidden messages in them. Easter Eggs if you will. Also my books very deliberately blur the lines of our world reality and fiction.

Author Websites and Profiles
Micah Dank Website

Cliff Anderson 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is Cliff, and I like to write non-fiction ebooks about topics that really interest me. Specifically autograph collecting, the paranormal, and crime.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is,
Autograph Collecting 101: How To Collect Autographs Through The Mail

It’s a how-to ebook where I talk about how I’ve been able to get more than 1,000 autographs, either for free or just the cost of stamps by requesting them online, and through the mail. I also share some interesting experiences that I’ve had along the way.

I’ve gotten autographs from all different kinds of people like athletes, actors, authors, politicians and even from people such as military veterans and criminals. I think of each autograph as being a piece of history. When it comes to autograph collecting, the possibilities are endless!

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I always work on more than one book at a time, that’s just how my mind works. It’s good because when I get “writers block”, I can work on another book for a while then go back to the other one, and look at it from a different perspective. It helps.

What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on two books at the moment. One is almost finished, it’s a collection of 20 paranormal stories from around the world.

The other book is about a guy that had a wife, kids, everything. Now after a couple of bad choices, and dead bodies later, he’s in prison and never getting out alive. Not every monster is born a monster, they don’t all drift from town to town in a creeper van. Sometimes they’re the nice guy that lives next door! I’m excited about writing that book because there’s so much to it.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“When you write a story, you’re telling yourself the story. When you rewrite, your main job is taking out all the things that are not the story. Your stuff starts out being just for you, but then it goes out.”
-Stephen King

Author Websites and Profiles
Cliff Anderson Website

Chaz Logan 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Chaz Logan is an international best selling author.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Devils Avocados is my latest title. It is inspired by the corruption taking place in Mexico in the avocado industry and the evil behind the sex slave trade.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love to read John Locke novels.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on the second book of The Devil”a Avocados series

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

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write write write !

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Visualize your dreams and feel them before they manifest.

What are you reading now?
I love chess and am currently reading books on chess strategies.

What’s next for you as a writer?
To continue to develop The Devils Avocados series.

If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Bible… The Da Vinci Code … This Present Darkness

Author Websites and Profiles
Chaz Logan Website
Chaz Logan Amazon Profile

Jane Richard 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Jide Omiyale is my name but my pen name is Jane Richard. I have written books outside Amazon, and they include Profitable Businesses for Developing economies and Dollars from Singapore among others. I had tertiary education in science, marketing and business administration with working experience in teaching, management, consultancy farming and writing.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
150+ Amazing Uses Of Baking Soda You Never Knew. The inspiration came from the need to make people be more aware of the uses of Baking soda.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
No

What authors, or books have influenced you?
God Father by Mario Puzo, Things Fall Apart, and The Wheels.

What are you working on now?
None now except this one I am promoting

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
This is the first time. Before I was just selling on my site.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t think I am qualified to advise now as I am not yet an established author, but if I were to advise, I would say ‘stay there don’t quit’

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Be honest and guide your integrity

What are you reading now?
Not now. I am working on promoting this book.

What’s next for you as a writer?
T write another ‘tips 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 three books mentioned above

Author Websites and Profiles
Jane Richard Website
Jane Richard Amazon Profile

Abigail Morales 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I live in Northern California with my husband and our three kids. Growing up we were pretty poor so there weren’t many extras in my life. Our house was a couple of miles outside of town so on days when my dad had the car my mom would load my baby brother into a stroller and we’d walk to the local library where she volunteered. It was one of my favorite places. The Carnegie family donated it to our town just after the turn of the century, and I was in awe of the high ceilings, arched windows, and tall dark wood shelves. I loved the warm Mediterranean colored bricks of the exterior, old fashioned light fixtures, and cool, shady foyer. It was like a cathedral to my young eyes. I used to love wandering through the quiet building and hiding amongst the stacks as I ran my finger tips across the spines of books as I passed. Though I was poor and lacked many of the luxuries some of my peers had, I never felt deprived when I stood surrounded by so many stories. It spawned a love of literacy and writing before I was even properly literate. My first published book was a romance my husband challenged me to write, but I usually write for children. In addition to Love’s Design I have written two picture books intended for 3 – 6 year olds catalougueing the everyday antics of my older two children. “The Tigress in a Tutu” and “The Racing Raccoon”. I have written a third and fourth for my youngest as well as my oldest and closest niece that I am currently illustrating. I intend to publish them soon.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“The Racing Raccoon” is the name of my most recently published book, though in another couple of weeks I will publish both “The Marvelous Mare” and “The Wildest Unicorn”. All three were inspired by my children and their day to day silliness.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I think some of the most influential writers in my life were the classics. I loved Austin, Bronte, Tolkien, and C.S. Lewis. If I’m in the mood for a funny beach read then Janet Evanovich Stephanie Plum series is one I can keep going back to. I also really enjoyed “A Wrinkle in Time”, “Tuck Everlasting”, and “The Dark is Rising” series growing up.

What are you working on now?
Because my husband and I are a biracial couple and several of his cousins have gone on to have children with even more diverse groups these recent protests have really hit home. My children are primarily white/hispanic, but have cousins who are African American, Pacific Islander, and Chinese decent. They also have cousins who are all white and all hispanic. My middle daughter, the tigress, recently asked some hard questions about what was going on and expressed anger and hurt both for what happened to George Floyd and also those people and businesses being attacked by rioters. It hurts her to think that there are segments of society who would hate her for being brown and others hate her sister for coming out white. It upsets her to think about what could happen to her brother and cousins. In our house we try to encourage our children to ask themselves whether or not they are responding with love when they are angry or hurt. The conversation with my little tigress got me to thinking, while she is old enough to understand and process what she’s seeing and hearing, her sister and many of the cousins are not. Lately I’ve been working on attempting to write a picture book for young children to help them process what’s happening around them and in the media so that they can hopefully look at the situation with mercy and love.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
I know it sounds cliche, but write what you’re passionate about. Write what you know. Also, don’t worry about time unless you’re currently under a deadline. Sometimes when you write it comes fast, others it comes slow. But as long as you are proud of the results time doesn’t matter.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Other people’s opinions of you are none of your business. That’s their problem. Worry about what you can control, what you can influence. And don’t be bothered by failure, everyone does it. Failure is the opportunity to come back smarter and better.

What are you reading now?
I am really enjoying the Noir series by Larry Corriea.

What’s next for you as a writer?
When I’m done illustrating the two I’ve got already written. And when I’m done writing and illustrating the book regarding coping mechanisms for anger and hurt, I’d like to finish a fantasy novel for fifth graders I’ve been writing on and off for the last decade.

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?
OMG, I couldn’t hope to choose.

Author Websites and Profiles
Abigail Morales Amazon Profile

Abigail Morales’s Social Media Links
Pinterest Account

Emily Horabik 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have a severe case of the travel bug, so quarantine has been a challenge! In my travels I love meeting new people and learning about each city’s unique culture. I have written one book so far and it is about a mentor I met in my travels while living in NYC.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is named Comfort Zone Correction: Unfiltered True Stories In Successful Selling. It was inspired by a walk in the park. I’m not kidding. I was walking with my friend Kaushal one day and the idea for the book just hit us like a ton of bricks.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I do, i definitely do. I’m a night owl and some nights I will come home from work and write until the sun comes up. I’m also very forgetful, so anytime I have an idea, I write it in my notes section of my phone. Sometimes I have full on dreams that are stories. I will wake up the next morning not being able to read all the misspelled words I woke up and wrote in the middle of the night.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I am a big fan of Romance Novels and Self Help. I’d say my biggest influences were Gypsy Lord – Kat Martin and Do You -Russell Simmons. I feel like the two of those books together basically sum up my writing style.

What are you working on now?
Right now I just started (as in pressing “go live” tomorrow morning kind of just started) a travel blog to capture all my encounters with fun characters and budget travel hacks.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
This is my first time promoting my book. I’ve always been a fan of Dave Chesson’s Kindlepreneur Youtube videos so most of the tips I have acted on have come from him.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Ohhhhh yes… 1- You just have you write write write! Just keep writing! It doesn’t matter what it is. 2- Then, when you have content that seems to be in the same genre, collect that content and see what you can do with it. 3- Once you have a solid pillar to grow from, you need to actually show your writing to people! BUT, don’t let their opinions bother you. 4- Share your stories with the world and listen to constructive criticism. 5- Us writers tend to get wrapped up in the perfection of things, but it will never be perfect… and if you look at the same sentence for 3 hours, you will change it 3 million different ways and it will always sound interesting.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Have an accountability partner. It keeps you focused and you feel really bad when you don’t get your to-do list done for the day.

What are you reading now?
Rich Dad, Poor Dad

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m going to continue to inspire people to travel and get out there and meet new and interesting people. I will also see where Comfort Zone Correction takes me, and I will continue to grow the brand. Keep an eye out for me on Etsy!

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?
Draw The Circle – Mark Batterson (to keep me sane)
Anything Historical Romance by Kat Martin (I know that’s kind of cheating – but she’s hours of entertainment)
Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus – John Gray (just to remind me there is life on other islands lol)
And lastly, a book that had to do with island survival tactics

Author Websites and Profiles
Emily Horabik Website
Emily Horabik Amazon Profile

Emily Horabik’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Pinterest Account

Danielle Miller 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hi, my name is Danielle! I started writing as a young girl and my love for it has only grown throughout the years. My first book is titled Happily Ever After and my second, The Quarreling Wife was just published through KDP a few days ago!

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Quarreling Wife

This book was inspired about a year ago and was because of all the fighting my husband and I were going through over the last few years. I was so sick of the fighting and felt like it was destroying my marriage. In hot pursuit for answers to ending the fighting between us, I turned to the only One with the answer, God. This book is my journey of what I have learned about being the quarreling wife myself, and has utterly changed my life. I hope it can change the lives of other wives who are sick of fighting with their husbands…

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
no

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I grew up loving Karen Kingsbury, also Beyond Daughters of Sarah who inspired The Quarreling Wife

What are you working on now?
Tampering with a sequel to The Quarreling Wife called Beyond The Quarreling Wife

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Right now it is Facebook, but I am promoting my book on other free promotional sites

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Never stop writing and follow your heart!

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
From my mom: “Stop wishing that your life could be perfect because one day you might wake up and your entire life will have seemed to have passed you by wishing that it could be ‘perfect.’ Live in the moment and enjoy what God has given you today!”

What are you reading now?
Just finished To Raise a Child by Debi and Michael Pearl

What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m not sure. I will undoubtedly keep writing but so hoping that The Quarreling Wife will change the lives of wives all across the world!

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 Bible
2.) The Quarreling Wife (yes, my own book! The truth in it is that good!)
3.) To Train a Child by Michael and Debbi Pearl

 

Thomas Brigger 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have done a lot of writing over the years, but my first novel was recently published. My background extends from construction worker to corporate executive, and I have traveled around the country extensively, which gives me a unique perspective on American life.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My book is Beyond the Higher Ground, a novel about intrigue and suspense amid the opioid crisis in Appalachia. My initial inspiration came from my experience doing business in the area, but my decision to publish the book came when I personally witnessed the effects of the opioid epidemic.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write at varying times of the day, but my best writing seems to occur late at night.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
John Grisham and David Baldacci are my favorite contemporary storytellers.
I have also drawn from John Irving, Ernest Hemingway and William Faulkner.

What are you working on now?
I am currently working on a novel about a miscarriage of justice evolving from a sophisticated illegal drug network in the Midwest.

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

Do you have any advice for new authors?
For fiction writers: Establish your premise and work on your characters. Well-developed characters will guide your storytelling.
For non-fiction writers: Always know your subject thoroughly and keep learning.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Better to act and risk failure because inaction is a failure in itself.

What are you reading now?
William Faulkner’s Light in August (again).

What’s next for you as a writer?
I intend to complete and publish my current novel, publish a collection of completed short stories and continue writing novels and short stories.

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 William Shakespeare;
Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman;
Tales of O. Henry
The Complete Works of Edgar Alan Poe

Author Websites and Profiles
Thomas Brigger Website
Thomas Brigger Amazon Profile

Katherine Powell 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m an avid reader and writer from Bel Air, Maryland, currently living in Provo, Utah to attend school. I’m an upcoming senior at Brigham Young University studying Political Science with an emphasis in Political Strategy and a minor in Creative Writing. I’ve written over a dozen books on the writing website Wattpad, and have published three books in print and Kindle in the past few years.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The name of my latest book is ‘Restricted,’ and it’s the second book in my trilogy, ‘Three’s Company.’ And if we’re being honest, it was inspired by a Taylor Swift song! The entire trilogy was, really. I love music and often it makes me want to write about how I feel while listening to it. So, the book came about after being based off of the song ‘Wildest Dreams.’ It expands on the feelings of having a love that you know you can’t have, and how that can become dangerous, while including characters from the other books in the series.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I have to listen to music when writing. I have a Spotify playlist called, ‘in the zone,’ and it is my writing (or studying) playlist. All instrumental and all songs that I feel energized and inspired by. I also am quite a type A personality, so I keep track of my daily word count using Excel spreadsheets, which is probably not super normal.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Rachel Hollis has influenced me so much. She writes a lot of self-help and inspirational books directed at women, and they have helped me gain the motivation to write on down days and have made me a more confident person and writer.

What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on editing ‘Lost,’ the third book that follows ‘Restricted’ in the ‘Three’s Company’ trilogy, as well as writing a mystery/thriller book called ‘Treadmill,’ that can be read chapter-by-chapter as it’s uploaded on Wattpad!

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use Instagram for a lot of my self-promotion, and I’m trying to research and branch out looking for other promotional outlets.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write what you love! Don’t feel like you have to write for a specific audience or stick to just one genre–branch out and write what you feel like writing. I’ve written everything from teen fiction to romance to fantasy to murder mysteries to thrillers to science fiction to combinations of multiple genres. Write what you love! You’ll always have an audience for it.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it. My math teacher sophomore year of high school had that quote hanging on his wall and I’ve taken it to heart. I want to be able to live a full life full of everything I love, and that’s only going to happen if I take everything in stride and learn how to react positively when things maybe don’t go my way.

What are you reading now?
‘The Whistler’ by John Grisham! I love law thrillers in both books and movies, and John Grisham is a phenomenal writer.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I just became a part of the Wattpad Stars program, which is a great opportunity that I’m so excited about. I also plan on publishing more books and trying to keep a more consistent update schedule for my online WIPs.

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?
‘Girl, Stop Apologizing’ by Rachel Hollis, ‘Emancipated’ by M.G. Reyes, and ‘The Fault in Our Stars’ by John Green.

Author Websites and Profiles
Katherine Powell Website
Katherine Powell Amazon Profile

Katherine Powell’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account

Parth Pandey 

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Okay so Hi! I am Parth Sarthi Pandey from Jaipur, India. A 1st-year Medical student and I am an introvert, at least when I don’t know peoples, and once I know them, I can assure you that I love talking. Especially about life, stars, love, and all. I am 19 years old, uh… 20 after 30 September 2020, and I love writing. This is my first book, yes! I just started writing, although I want to write from 2017 I guess. There are lots of books to come, and I hope they do well like this book. I learned my mistakes and I am improving myself, I hope my upcoming titles, which are non-fiction, at least 70% of them, to do extremely well, maybe a thousand times better than this one.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Near Future, and it is highly inspired by my observations of our changing lives. I was born in 2000, Generation Z, and the way I look around my surrounding, our life changed radically, and it will change more. Technological advancements are becoming more rapid, we now don’t resist the changes anymore. Take the notches for example in iPhone X. Surely many peoples didn’t like the idea of notches, but we all know what happened. So, we may be able to create Genetically Modified Humans, we may not like the idea at first, but these are the crucial steps of development. There is a balance of complaints and advancements in each new technology. Consumers want them, Developers create them and earn a profit, and consumers, or in a bigger picture, the world is benefited. So I see the potential rising technological idea, that may benefit the humankind of becoming a type 2 civilization.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Yeah! I do, it may sound funny, but whenever I think about a story for my fictions, I start writing the draft, and never think about the end. It just comes to me in the middle of my draft, And I love them.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I am a reader, I love to read, and I may have read more than 50 books in my life till now. I generally read critically acclaimed books, but if you ask me, I love the work of many authors, that are just not that famous, my teacher has also written a book, and it’s a great one. But if I have to choose my absolute favorite, it has to be Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton. It is dark, horror, fun, and it is like my type of book to read.

What are you working on now?
Presently I am working on another non-fiction book based on dinosaurs, and I will try to simplify there evolution and their evolutionary tree. And also, something that is very close to my heart, it’s a fiction. I call it “A Tale of Zhu Illhi”, which I am not writing, I write the draft and a general story of the book, my very best friend Ange Noir is writing it, and what I can tell you about her is, she is great, Just extraordinary. I believe in her more than anything right now, and I understand that it is very hard to work with me on a project, but she is just phenomenal at that.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Awesome Gang, I guess. I didn’t find any other website like this.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Although I am a new author too, I can say that You don’t want to spend much money on your book. And you don’t need to spend also, because there are a lot of things to take care of. Also, ever feel to not want to write, just tell yourself to write just for 5 minutes, you may develop the habit of writing fairly soon.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
To just write. Don’t think of your grammar, just write, your idea will not return again in your brain, but grammar mistakes can be corrected anytime. This advice works great for me.

What are you reading now?
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy and re-reading the Harry Potter books, presently, prisoners of Azkaban.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I can’t say where will I go, but I am enjoying this ride, and to be honest, I don’t think of anything when I write, my only goal is to write until my last breathe, and roam around the world to know different cultures, and their traditional music, food, and tales.

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?
It may be Survival in the southwest by Arizona bushman, The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton, and maybe a new book like the Unfinished tales by j.r.r. Tolkien.

Author Websites and Profiles
Parth Pandey Website
Parth Pandey Amazon Profile

Parth Pandey’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account