Award-winning and international bestselling author Ashley Fontainne is taking her new suspense book, The Lie, on tour! Find out all about the new release, read guest blogs and interviews with Ashley, PLUS enter to win an eBook copy of The Lie, an audio copy of Accountable to None (from the hugely popular Eviserating the Snake Trilogy) and the chance to interview Ashley live on Blog Talk Radio!
The Lie - Ashley Fontainne
What they say:
'Karmen Moncrille's name has been known throughout the world since the age of sixteen when her first book shot to the top of the bestseller's list. Now everything she writes is an instant hit, and her legions of devoted fans eagerly await her next release. The mysterious Karmen always blamed debilitating panic attacks as the reason she avoided publicity and has become a recluse. Which is exactly what she wants the world to think. Only Karmen knows the truth behind her introverted nature. Terrified of being asked where her ideas come from, she fears being branded a raving lunatic. Now just a week before her twenty-third birthday, Karmen s world implodes. The madness that haunts her dreams spills over to her reality and she questions her sanity. Suddenly everything has changed and now the world will transform with her. Her last book will unleash the truth and alter mankind forever. Is Karmen's ability to write a gift or a curse? She's about to find out if her entire life is a lie. And why she was destined to write it.'
Guest Post by Ashley Fontainne
My Writing Journey
At the age of 42, I decided to return to college. My goal was to obtain a degree in science to fulfill my dream of becoming a registered nurse. I tackled the hard classes first then realized I needed a few elective courses to finish out my degree. I can only draw stick people, on a good day, so art was scratched off the list. Music and theater were crossed off as well, since my taste in music is not the same as my taste for classical literature, and theater? Forget it. So, creative writing won out.
Expressing my emotions on paper is something I’ve been doing since early childhood, but it was a personal release, not anything I imagined I would ever share with anyone other than close friends and family members. That all changed after Creative Writing I & II—thanks to an incredible instructor by the name of Melody Berning.
Accountable to None was my semester project for Creative Writing II. When I turned it in to Ms. Berning in March of 2011, she encouraged me to publish it, and in April of 2011, I uploaded the electronic version on Amazon just to see if she was right: people would enjoy my writing. After a few hiccups and pitfalls, Accountable to None hit number 1 in suspense in December of 2011 in the Kindle store.
Nursing went right out the window at that point, and although I did graduate with a degree in science, a new and previously hidden passion emerged: writing.
I didn’t realize that my story would have the impact that it did. The day I received a private message on Goodreads from a reader who just finished Accountable to None was the first time I felt like a writer. She wanted to let me know that after reading the book, she was going to finally seek therapy for the buried trauma she suffered, inflicted on her over ten years prior when was raped. She told me that she knew she needed to let go of the pain and anger and face her demons, and thanked me for opening her eyes to that.
I remember that I stared at the computer screen, mouth agape and heart pounding as tears streamed down my face. That moment in my life made every difficult turn and bump in the road worth it. To know that my words helped another person is something I will cherish forever.
My muse for penning the Eviscerating the Snake series was The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. The revenge on all those who hurt and betrayed Edmond Dantes and the incredible rollercoaster ride his journey takes you on intrigued me. My love for this book is what sparked my desire to write Accountable to None. With a modern setting to the tale, I wanted to delve into just what lengths a person is willing to go to as they attempt to seek justice on their own for heinous acts perpetrated upon them. The second novel in the series, Zero Balance focuses on the cost and reciprocal cycle that obtaining revenge has on the seeker. For once the cycle starts, where does it end? How far will the tendrils of revenge expand? Adjusting Journal Entries answers that question: far and wide.
My award winning novella entitled Number Seventy-Five was written at the suggestion of penning something short about survival by Charlotte Foreman, the amazing reviewer for BestChickLit.com. Not one to back away from a challenge, I picked the backdrop of online dating as the setting and started out with one woman’s horrific tale of a date gone awry. I am truly honored that Number Seventy-Five won the BRONZE medal in the 2013 Readers’ Favorite Book Awards in the fiction/suspense category.
In all of my books there are messages I hope the reader takes with them when finished. In the Eviscerating the Snake series, the central message is that when seeking revenge, one must first weigh the staggering costs that pursuing personal justice may involve. In Number Seventy-Five, it is a warning to be careful of the digital world we live in. In The Lie, I wanted to answer the question: what would you do if you found out your entire life had been a lie?
The Lie happened in a very interesting way. The concept actually came to me one Saturday while I was drying my hair (maybe too much blood rushed to my head?). I was grappling with some of the more difficult aspects of being an author that week. Writing is the easy part. All the things that fall into your lap after the book is written are enough to drive one insane. That particular day, I contemplated my decision to write. Was it really all worth the craziness? Would it drive me to the verge of insanity? I couldn’t shut off the flow of ideas in my head that pushed to emerge onto paper, so what was I supposed to do? Take a vacation from my brain?
Then, the thought hit me: what if the words inside a writer’s mind were not thoughts of their own? What if they were implanted there by dark forces? Within twenty minutes (enough time to finish drying my curly mop) The Lie was born.
About the author:
Award-winning and International bestselling author Ashley Fontainne is an avid reader of mostly the classics. Ashley became a fan of the written word in her youth, starting with the Nancy Drew mystery series. Stories that immerse the reader deep into the human psyche and the monsters that lurk within us are her favorite reads.
***GIVEAWAYS***
Win the chance to interview Ashley Fontainne LIVE on
Giveaway closes on 9th November
Win 3 e-Copies of The Lie by Ashley Fontainne
Giveaway closes on 9th November
Win an audio version of Ashley's bestseller Accountable to None (Eviscerating the Snake Trilogy) via Audible.com
Giveaway closes 9th November
Want more from Ashley?
Why not check out Ashley's other books, such as the bestselling Eviserating the Snake Trilogy and award-winning thriller Number Seventy-Five.
