Talking with Bella Harte

Bella Harte is the guest today on A Blue Million Books. Bella is here to talk about her new YA paranormal romance novel, Scarlett Phoenix-–Book I in The Seraphoenix Series.

About the book: 
"She is the only one of her kind, he is her last hope."

Scarlett Paige is just a regular teenager until her parents suddenly decide move to back to America after living in England for the past 17 ½ years. Thrust into a new school, a new town, and a whole new way of life, things can't seem to get any worse until her 18th birthday arrives. 

Her world as she knows it is irrevocably changed by a set of life-threatening complications when she discovers her true identity, that she is The Phoenix, the only one of her kind, a hybrid human being with supernatural powers beyond mortal imagination. But she is untrained, and unable to use her mystical powers without guidance and training from The Seraphoenix Angels.

Worse still, two mysterious and powerful Angel brothers are looking for her. One to save her and one to kill her. Who will win?

Scarlett finds herself amidst a battle that’s been waged since the beginning of time, as she discovers the disturbing truth that Angels aren't always good! One brother has a terrible plan to rid the world of humanity, while the other strives to save it, and Scarlett is caught smack in the middle, as both the Angels need her Phoenix powers to accomplish their goals.

Will she become a pawn in their schemes, as she is thrown into total chaos and plunged into an entirely different future and one that is utterly unexpected?
There are fatal consequences she never saw coming. Beings she never knew existed, and homicidal demon creatures that she wished never existed at all, are conspiring to change her life forever!


Scarlett Phoenix is the jumping off point for this exciting new YA PNR series ~ The Seraphoenix Saga.


Welcome, Bella, thanks for being here. How long have you been writing?
It seems like forever right now, but seriously I’ve been writing novels for over a decade. I’ve always written in some capacity or another, whether short stories or comedic sketches, before finally taking the plunge and heading into the ‘uncharted novel territory.’

What do you like best about writing?
My favourite thing about writing is finishing the first and final drafts.

What’s your least favorite thing?
My least favourite thing is the seemingly endless rounds of editing. Obviously this is the most important aspect of writing a novel, but it can be rather a fun-killer at times, especially if something isn’t working and a whole section needs a rewrite. But really in all fairness, writing is one of the most awesome things you can do, and no job is all peaches and cream. Hard work comes with the territory.

How did you come up with the title of your book?
It just popped into my head one day while I was, of all things, painting my garden gates and that was it...I was sold on the title and leapt (more like tripped) to the computer and began to write in a total frenzy as the words just poured out.

Do you have another job outside of writing?
Yes I do! The day job is accounting and office admin, and as much as I love my job job, I would love to write full time.

Another accountant. Wow. There are a lot of your left and right brain people out there. How would you describe your book in a tweet? (140 characters or less.)
Scarlett Phoenix  - She is the only one of her kind, he is her last hope!

Do you outline, write by the seat of your pants, or let your characters tell you what to write?
No major outlines, but I do have a rough idea of where I want the story to go and what the characters need/should be doing and how they act.  Usually the story unfolds as I write, so I guess you could say that ‘by the seat of my pants’ is my way.

When you start a new book, do you know what the entire cast will be?
I usually know the main character and a few close supporting characters. But I always like to leave room for the unexpected, as you never know who you might need for some dastardly deed in a one-time only scene. So the answer is no, I never know the entire cast, only the important ones.

I’m constantly on the lookout for new names. How do you name your characters?
I love gathering names. I can be inspired from reading a newspaper to hearing something on the TV or radio. I like to research the meaning of names I’ve chosen to make sure that they are a perfect fit for the character. If not, then the hunt begins again.

What would your main character say about you?
What would Scarlett say about me? I think she would say: “Nice hair, that’s my favourite colour!”

Are any of your characters inspired by real people?
No, they are all total figments of my imagination…

Who are your favorite authors?
a) as a child:
C.S. Lewis, Roald Dahl, etc… 

b) as a teenager:
Douglas Adams, Carolyn Keene, JRR Tolkien, etc…
c) as an adult:
 Terry Pratchett, Tom Holt, John Grisham, as well as a whole host of YA Authors: Becca Fitzpatrick, Lauren Kate, Jana Oliver, Melissa Marr, Richelle Mead, Bree Despain,  Lili St. Crow just to name a few.

What book are you currently reading and in what format (e-book/paperback/hardcover)?
Black Rose by J.T. Schaad on my Kindle. 


Do you have a routine for writing? Do you work better at night, in the afternoon, or in the morning? 
Night is my first preference being more a night owl, but I’ll take any opportunity if it’s quiet and I know I won’t be disturbed.

Where and when do you prefer to do your writing?
I like to write whenever and wherever I can, so most days, evenings and even at work (Sshhhhh – don’t tell the boss - LOL!!)

Your secret is safe with me! Tell us one weird thing, one nice thing, and one fact about where you live.
Weird: My house is haunted.
Nice: It’s a lovely quiet village – most of the time.
Fact: There are no shops.

Sounds wonderful, even the haunted part. What three books have you read recently and would recommend? 
Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins
Gift by Andrea J. Buchanan  
Airel by Aaron Patterson

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be? 
On an island far far away…I’ve always been intrigued by Bora Bora. The name is awesome, just saying it makes you smile!

If you could take a trip anywhere in the world, where would you go? (Don’t worry about the money. Your publisher is paying. ) 
Bora Bora! LOL

What are you working on now?
The Angel of Death Series–-Book I Reaper. So that’s going to keep me very busy till Christmas.

Good luck with it. Thank you, Bella for talking to us and letting us get to know you. Best of luck with Scarlett Phoenix!

About Bella:
Bella Harte has been writing for well over a decade and completed several novels before deciding to go in a whole new direction and write for the Young Adult genre. More specifically, the YA PNR-–Young Adult Paranormal Romance category.

Her first published YA Novel is Scarlett Phoenix--Book I in The Seraphoenix Saga, with Book II, Crimson Fire, being schedule for release in early 2013 and Book III, Red Ashes for later in the year.

She has also been working on two other YA PNR series:

The Angel of Death Series
Book I – Reaper     Book II – Touched     Book III – Afterlife

Nine Lives Series
Book I – The Glaring    Book II – Midnight Calling     Book III - Hunters Moon
  
Aside from writing, Bella has worked as a fashion designer, interior designer, artist, and currently she is figuring out ways to best market her novels. She attended Business College after leaving school, followed by Art College, where she studied ceramics, fashion design, pattern cutting, textiles, and art. 

She has a solid business background and has worked for a World-Wide Export Company which enabled her to travel to far off places around the globe and enjoy a wide and varied cross section of cultures.  

Bella says of the future: No one can predict what’s around the corner, but the journey will be a fascinating one to say the least, and I always expect the unexpected!

Find Bella:
Website   
Blog
Facebook page
Goodreads author page
Twitter
Amazon


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Yvonne Wang Answers Eight With Amy

My guest today is Yvonne Wang, author of Bridge Across The Land. Yvonne is a writer, financial analyst, and Kung Fu medalist. Born in China, 
she came to the United States as a teenager. In 2011 she graduated from University 
of Southern California with a degree in Business Administration. In the past few 
years she worked at The Walt Disney Company, Merrill Lynch, and Yuno Inc. 

As a foreign born writer living in Los Angeles, Yvonne dedicates much of her time 
contemplating and extracting memories from her multicultural background and 
historical Asian knowledge base to develop and constantly create rich 
storylines. Her storytelling brings out exquisite depictions of the environment 
along with vivid physical appearances and the martial actions of the characters to create visual impact through 
her eyes. Thus, her novels are known as "books that read like movies."

About Bridge Across The Land:
When Angela, a woman of humble status, is revealed to be a lost Mongolian princess, she becomes the lynchpin in a plot for a warrior, Tianyin, to take down the entire Mongolian empire.

Welcome, Yvonne. Can you start off by telling us how you started writing?
I started to write at an early age. My mother was into literature, so I randomly picked up books from her desk. I read with her, book after book, and eventually started my first novel written with a pencil. The plots went back and forth and each chapter was so short. However, my mother encouraged me to go on, and I found my passion in creating stories.

Since then, I kept reading, writing, and learning literature. As pages built up, so was my ability to create a memorable story. In the past 17 years I finished three major fictions, one screenplay, and other short stories. Bridge Across The Land was created after all those “practices,” and it also took years to complete.


How did you come up with the title of your book?
Bridge Across The Land indicates the continental connection between Europe and Asia. The story is based on the Mongolian invasion, when the cultures of the West and the Far East collide. East Asia and Europe have cultures that are so different, yet they are amazingly located on the same continent. Mongols fought on horseback, so they couldn’t have reached Europe if a gulf ever existed. Just like the King of Poland sighed in the fiction, “Why did the God connect us?”

Bridge Across The Land also implies the link between the inner self and the collective. In the book, the characters undergo an awakening by taking the journey from Europe to East Asia. The scenes they see and the struggles they endure enlighten their minds. From there, they started to question their beliefs. “Bridge across The Land” means seeing things from a new perspective (a new land) and the courage of thinking differently.

Do you have another job outside of writing?
Yes, I am a full-time financial analyst at Yuno Inc., a real estate company located in downtown Los Angeles. I do property valuation, financial projection, and oftentimes, client communication. I enjoy my position and see it as a source of inspiration. Each day we meet different clients and listen to their different stories. They have varying concerns and scenarios, all of which could contribute to my future writing.

As an analyst, I think in numbers during work, but as a writer, I think in vocabularies at home. My job gives me a balanced exercise of both sides of the brain. It makes me pursue logical and scientific answers in all of my books: does this deal work for the character? What’s the most efficient way to write this scene? Is this setting realistic? After all, I love being a financial analyst just like being an author.

Are you like any of your characters?
I think I have something in common with each of the characters. I am as stubborn as Angela, as proud as Alexander, as naive as Kyrigu, as honest as Wonbayer, and as willing to sacrifice as Tianyin. When I write a character, I go deep into their hearts and see the world through their eyes. This is how I understand them and am able to represent them. Overtime, I merge with my characters and learn from them too.

How do you handle criticism of your work?
To me there is no criticism, only reviews from different perspectives. As an author, I wish each reader would have their own interpretation of the story, and I appreciate each comment I receive, no matter if it is positive or negative.

What’s one of your favorite quotes?
We have so many needs in our life, but at the end of the day, all we need is to be needed.
--unknown quote

What are you working on now?
I am working on a new contemporary fiction related to the Mafia. Well, it is not the classic Mafia type of story you always see. Or in other words, you don't have to classify it as a Mafia novel. The story is told from an innovative perspective, and it will lead you to a new world which no other Mafia movie or book has shown. Just like Bridge Across The Land, this new fiction would be a movie written in a book format, with elements of romance, martial arts, some mind-blowing, and more. It is 1/3 finished now, and I am taking my time to write it with my heart. I sincerely hope with my best efforts it would touch you one more time just like Bridge did.

Thank you for stopping in, Yvonne. Best of luck with Bridge Across The Land!



Yvonne's website
Facebook page
Blog in Chinese

Book excerpt from Wander Home

Wander Home's book blurb:
Death is what you make it...Eleanor never wanted to leave the daughter she loved so much. The overpowering urge to wander--to search without knowing what she sought--drove her away. She left little Cassidy in her family's loving care. But Cassidy and the others died in an accident before Eleanor could fine her way home. Cassidy has her grandparents and her Great-Grandma. And all of them have what may be eternity. Memories can be relived or shared. The wonders of the world they left behind are only a thought away. The one-way tyranny of aging is no more--a white-haired and stooped great-grandmother one moment can be a laughing young playmate the next. But nothing can ease Cassidy's longing for her mother, and Eleanor's parents know better than to hope that Eleanor's life has been a happy one. Now, they are all reunited, with the chance to understand and heal. But the restlessness that shaped Eleanor's life still haunts her in death. Somehow, she must solve the mystery of her life--or none of them will be at peace.



PREFACE



This book is set in an afterlife: what sort of afterlife, the reader may 
decide.





Chapter One



Cassidy stood tall and watched the wave approaching. Fifteen was a good age
for confronting the ocean. That morning she had been five years old, playing
happily in her sandbox;  from sand to beach, from beach to ocean waves,
seemed a natural progression.



The wave loomed above her, glowing turquoise and green. She dove under the
crest, through the surging water, and popped up behind the swell, bobbing in
the follower waves. The water held her and rocked her; over the hiss and
roar of the waves, she could hear the distant squawk of seagulls. All around
was the smell of seaweed and salt and sunshine.



Once, her mother had held her, carried her, rocked her, surrounded her with 
love and safety. She had no idea how long it had been, but she remembered.
 Remembering, she let herself slip younger as she floated on the swells. But 
larger waves were coming, so she grew again, six, ten, sixteen; then caught 
a wave and rode it into shore.



Her grandparents and her great-grandmother were waiting for her.
 Great-Grandma was young today, slim and blonde and straight, standing like a
 dancer just before the music starts. Grandma Sarah and Grandpa Jack had
 chosen to be older, gray-haired, with the comfortable look of a couple who
 for years have weathered each other's moods and followed each other's 
thoughts.



Cassidy ran up the beach toward them. She slipped to eight years old as she
 reached them, so Grandpa Jack could pick her up and toss her in the air. The 
sun flashed in her eyes as she flew up, and again as she fell back toward 
his hands. He set her down again and flopped onto the sand, patting the
 space next to him. She sat, folding her legs tailor fashion; Great-Grandma 
flowed gracefully down to sit on her other side. Only Grandma Sarah remained
 standing, younger now, her hair in a long red braid.



Grandpa Jack and Great-Grandma both put their arms around her. Cassidy 
looked at Grandpa Jack. He was blinking as if he had something in both his 
eyes. She swiveled around toward Great-Grandma; Great-Grandma nodded toward
 Grandma Sarah.



Cassidy threw her head back, looking up at Grandma Sarah and squinting in 
the sun. Grandma Sarah squatted down in front of her. "Cassie, love, we have
some news for you. Good, important news."



The seabirds were calling as if they wanted to be first with the message,
 whatever it was. Grandma Sarah leaned forward to kneel in the sand, reached 
out and took Cassidy's hands.


"It's your mother, sweetheart. She's coming. She'll be here soon. We'll all 
be seeing her again."



Cassidy felt herself getting smaller, small. She was two years old. She
 scrambled to her feet. "Mommy!"  Her own shrill voice frightened her, and 
she called even louder, twisting from side to side, searching the beach and
 the water. "Mommy!  MOMMY!"



Great-Grandma had slipped old, white hair shining in the sunlight, her
 cheeks pink, soft wrinkles in her face, smelling of flour. She pulled 
Cassidy close, crooning, "Hush, hush. It's all right, baby. Shhhh."  Cassidy
 burrowed against her and breathed the comforting scent. She thought she 
might feel better if she got big again, but nothing happened.



She heard Grandpa Jack speak. "Mama, Sarah, let's go somewhere cozier."
 Then the sun, the waves, the seabirds were all gone, and they were in 
Great-Grandma's living room. She was snuggled up next to Great-Grandma on 
the big shabby couch. There were shortbread cookies on the coffee table.
 Grandma Sarah sat on Grandpa Jack's lap in the big armchair, Grandpa Jack
 playing with Grandma Sarah's hair.



"Cassidy, honey, it's time to be a big girl. We have more to talk about."
 Great-Grandma stroked her cheek, then kissed it.



Cassidy squeezed her eyes tight. "I'm trying. It's hard. Why is it hard?" 



Grandpa Jack spoke. "Well, baby, you were just this age when your mama left.
 You're remembering it so hard, right now, that you're maybe a little stuck.
 Relax, honey, and know that everything's all right. It'll come."



Cassidy took a deep breath, and another, and another. Great-Grandma 
skootched away to give her room. Cassidy opened her eyes. She was thirteen
 years old. She reached for a cookie.



"There, that's better, isn't it?" Great-Grandma picked out a cookie for
herself and took a hearty bite.



"When will she be here?  When can I see her?"



Grandma Sarah brought Cassidy a glass of milk, then sat back down on Grandpa
Jack's lap. "Honey, those are two different questions. She'll be here very 
soon, and you can see her just a little while after that. It's going to be
-"



"Why can't I see her right away?" She didn't want to yell at Grandma Sarah, 
but she felt like yelling. It was always harder to be patient at thirteen. 
She slipped to twenty, but it felt wrong, too big, too grown up for a little 
girl missing her mother. She slid back to ten.



"Cassie, you were so young when you got here, only six years old. You
 weren't set in your ways yet - you expected to learn new things every day,
 to have adventures and surprises. Coming here was just another and bigger 
adventure. But it's different for older people. It's more of a shock. We 
think it'd be best if Great-Grandma welcomes her first, and explains 
things."



"How long will that take?" Cassidy swallowed tears and washed them away 
with a gulp of milk.

 Great-Grandma moved back over and hugged her. 

"Not as long as it will feel 
to you. I'll bring her to see you as soon as I can."

About the author:
Karen A. Wyle was born a Connecticut Yankee, but moved every few years
 throughout her childhood and adolescence. After college in California, law
school in Massachusetts, and a mercifully short stint in a large San 
Francisco law firm, she moved to Los Angeles, where she met her now-husband, 
who hates L.A. They eventually settled in Bloomington, Indiana, home of
 Indiana University.



Wyle's childhood ambition was to be the youngest ever published novelist. 
While writing her first novel at age ten, she was mortified to learn that 
some British upstart had beaten her to the goal at age nine. 



Wyle has been a voracious and compulsive reader as long as she can remember. 
Do not strand this woman on a plane without reading matter! Wyle was an
 English and American Literature major at Stanford University, which suited
 her, although she has in recent years developed some doubts about whether 
studying literature is, for most people, a good preparation for enjoying it. 
Her most useful preparation for writing novels, besides reading them, has 
been the practice of appellate law -- in other words, writing large
 quantities of persuasive prose, on deadline, year after year.  



Wyle's voice is the product of almost five decades of reading both literary
 and genre fiction. It is no doubt also influenced, although she hopes not
fatally tainted, by her years of law practice. Her personal history has led
 her to focus on often-intertwined themes of family, communication, the 
impossibility of controlling events, and the persistence of unfinished
 business.


Find Karen:
Karen's website
Karen's Facebook page

Talking With Author Karen Wyle

Author Karen Wyle is here to talk about her book, Wander Home, a family drama with mystery elements set in an afterlife. Before we begin, take a look at a little more about Karen's book.

About Wander Home:  
Death is what you make it. . . .  Eleanor never wanted to leave the daughter she loved so much. The overpowering urge to wander -- to search, without knowing what she sought -- drove her away. She left little Cassidy in her family's loving care. But Cassidy and the others died in an accident before Eleanor could find her way home.  Cassidy has her grandparents, and her Great-Grandma. And all of them have what may be eternity. Memories can be relived, or shared. The wonders of the world they left behind are only a thought away. The one-way tyranny of aging is no more -- a white-haired and stooped great-grandmother one moment can be a laughing young playmate the next.  But nothing can ease Cassidy's longing for her mother; and Eleanor's parents know better than to hope that Eleanor's life has been a happy one.  Now, they are all reunited, with the chance to understand and heal. But the restlessness that shaped Eleanor's life still haunts her in death. Somehow, she must solve the mystery of her life -- or none of them will be at peace.

Hi, Karen, and welcome to A Blue Million Books. Let's begin with your thoughts on writing. What do you like best about it?
I love having a story or its characters surprise me--for example, when an element I added casually or for one purpose turns out to be important for some quite different reason.

I know exactly what you mean! What’s your least favorite thing about writing?
The hardest part of writing, for me, is fighting the invisibility of self-published work by new authors. But my least favorite aspect might be the constant threat of carpal tunnel syndrome.

I’ve never had trouble with carpal tunnel, but I’m with you on the invisibility thing. How did you come up with the title of your book?

I'm basically bad at naming things, tending toward the dull and literal. My daughters' special sleep-toys were named Special Bear and Puppy. I once had a coffee plant named Coffee. My first novel, Twin-Bred, was named for the human-alien fraternal twins who bore that label in the book. So I had quite a time finding a title for my second novel.

I started with the working title "Reflections," which had some subtle connection to aspects of the book. Various people following my progress, and then some beta readers, found that title boring and thought it didn't (so to speak) reflect the book well enough. I also realized that it had been used quite often, and that one recent book with the almost-identical title Reflection had some thematic overlap with my novel. I came up with a few alternatives that sounded like romance or YA, when my novel was neither. After that, I started reading poetry, hoping that a line would jump out and declare itself a good fit for my book. For a while, I was ready to go with "The Story of Our Days," from a somewhat-appropriate poem by Sir Walter Raleigh – but it reminded me and too many others of the soap opera Days of Our Lives . . . . My next candidate, "Nor Whence Nor Whither," was adapted from a stanza in The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam – but not even the people who liked it could remember it. 
Finally, I spent some time thinking about my book and free-associating words and phrases, writing them all down and reading them over and over. My final two possibilities were "The Road Behind" and the title I finally chose, Wander Home. I liked the feel of the latter, and its slightly paradoxical and somewhat optimistic connotations suited me.

I like it too. Good choice! Did you have any say in your cover art?
As a self-published author, I had total control of my cover art, within my technical limitations – which are substantial. I needed to collaborate with designers to realize my ideas.


I wanted faces on this cover, although I know the arguments against using faces. After a couple of attempts to find an artist to draw my characters, I decided to use stock photos that came close to how I imagined them. I encountered some frustrations in this process: in one case, the version of a photo that I saw online and fell in love with was subtly but crucially different when I bought and downloaded the full-size file. The photos I ended up using don't completely match my character descriptions, but they're close enough to content me, and they're wonderfully striking photographs. (The photographer credits are in the front matter of the book.)

Tell us about the artist. 

Two designers in a row had the unenviable task of coping with my many requests for tweaks. (The first one eventually dropped out of the process; the second, Michelle Hartz, who is also an author and our local NaNoWriMo municipal liaison, picked up where the first left off and actually still talks to me.)

What do you think of it?

I'm very pleased with the final result!

Sophie’s choice: Do you have a favorite of your characters?

It'd be a close competition between Eleanor's father Jack and Jack's mother Amanda. Jack is a big strong hunk who's not afraid of strong and somewhat dominating women (including his wife Sarah). He's a thoroughly nice and affectionate fellow, and he's good with his hands. What's not to like? Amanda is (at certain points) a very talented ballet dancer, hailing from a different background than many of the inhabitants of that world. She's both shrewd and wise, with a talent for accepting people as they are. In her latter years, she looks like my maternal grandmother, of whom I have warm memories.

When you start a new book, do you know what the entire cast will be?

Some day I may work out my whole plot and all my characters ahead of time, but so far, I start with a situation, some scenes, and a few key characters, and then let the story lead me.

Are any of your characters inspired by real people? 
Eleanor, the central character in Wander Home, has some resemblance to my late brother. He was a troubled soul who caused a fair amount of heartache to those close to him but was fundamentally a good and decent person and deeply creative. One could say the same of Eleanor – although the reasons for her problems and life choices are unrelated to my brother's lifelong mental health issues.

Tell us about your favorite scene in the book.
I'm not good at choosing a favorite anything -- but I'm quite fond of the very first scene, and of the very last scene. Other contenders include Eleanor's introduction to the surprising features of the afterlife, and her reunion with Cassidy (the portion that takes place in Grandma/Amanda's kitchen.)

How do you handle criticism of your work?
I remind myself that there are other readers who love my work, sometimes more than it deserves. I acknowledge any areas where I agree, at least in part, with the criticism. If the reader doing the criticizing appears to have misunderstood some aspect of the book, i.e. on what planet it takes place, (this actually happened with Twin-Bred) I examine whether there is some deficiency in the book that made that misunderstanding more likely. Finally, I look for any grammatical or logical flaws in the criticism that allow me to feel superior to the critic. (I'm only human!)


I love that! Tell us one weird thing, one nice thing, and one fact about where you live.
Weird: it isn't anywhere. That is, we're not in any municipality -- only in a county.
Nice: we're in the woods, and it's beautiful much of the year.
One fact: Indiana University basketball is coming BACK! (Yes, it's a fact! . . .)

It certainly is. They’re currently number one. And I’d like to point out that the University of Louisville and the University of Kentucky are numbers two and three! Go CATS! Okay…if you could take a trip anywhere in the world, where would you go? (Don’t worry about the money. Your publisher is paying. )
I would go to Venice during Carnavale. I visited Venice once for two days, many years ago, and felt as if I'd been there much longer. I found it not only beautiful, but soothing, at a time when I needed some emotional healing.

What are you working on now?
I'm in the middle of editing the sequel to Twin-Bred, tentatively titled Reach (or, more completely, Reach: A Twin-Bred Novel). I also plan to format Wander Home for paperback publication via CreateSpace.

And then there's NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month)! I’m hoping to finish the VERY rough draft of my latest novel.

I hope you’ll come back and talk about it here when you publish it. Thanks for being here today. 

Thanks, Amy!
                                              

About the author:
Karen A. Wyle was born a Connecticut Yankee, but moved every few years 
throughout her childhood and adolescence.  After college in California, law
 school in Massachusetts, and a mercifully short stint in a large San
 Francisco law firm, she moved to Los Angeles, where she met her now-husband,
who hates L.A. They eventually settled in Bloomington, Indiana, home of
 Indiana University. 

Wyle's childhood ambition was to be the youngest ever published novelist.
 While writing her first novel at age ten, she was mortified to learn that 
some British upstart had beaten her to the goal at age nine. 

Wyle has been a voracious and compulsive reader as long as she can remember.
 Do not strand this woman on a plane without reading matter! Wyle was an
 English and American Literature major at Stanford University, which suited
 her, although she has in recent years developed some doubts about whether
 studying literature is, for most people, a good preparation for enjoying it. 
Her most useful preparation for writing novels, besides reading them, has
 been the practice of appellate law -- in other words, writing large
 quantities of persuasive prose, on deadline, year after year. 

Karen's website

Facebook page
Twitter

An Excerpt From The Life List

Congratulations, Chrissy for making it into the top 20 Free Kindle Bestseller list!
 
Chrissy Anderson, a twenty-eight year old fashion executive, created a seven-point life list at the age of sixteen, and she’s been steadily checking off the boxes and mocking the style and life choices of everyone around her ever since. Her life begins to run amuck when she unexpectedly meets a much younger man, Leo, who makes her question her “perfect life.”
Chrissy’s lifelong friendships and her marriage are put to the test as she tries to sort out her feelings for Leo. With the help of her brassy, no-nonsense therapist, Dr. Maria, Chrissy learns more about herself than she anticipates. But, it isn’t until the untimely death of her best friend that Chrissy is catapulted into long overdue authenticity and scrambles to correct the mistakes of her past...trying to figure out if it’s her husband, Kurt, Leo or both that she has to get rid of to make everything right.

Women of all kinds- twenty-somethings, housewives, and superwomen wannabes- will all be able to relate to the pressure of constructing the ideal life, only to fall short.  Not everyone will agree with Chrissy Anderson’s decisions, but all will pause as they follow along on her journey to ask, “What would I do if I were her?”


Lost

January 25, 1998

It’s noon when I finally open my eyes. Even though I know I’m alone and I will be for another couple of days, I totally expect to get caught. So, I lay silent and still for as long as I can. After an hour passes and I know the coast is clear, plus I have to pee, I roll onto my side and slowly scan my body. I’m still wearing my jeans and lime green cashmere sweater set. It appears that I had some sense about me to kick off my boots, because there they are on the floor. My eyelashes are stuck together and as I rub my hands over them, I’m horrified that I still have mascara on. I went to bed with make up on? That’s a first. I got home a little after 6am, so I guess I can forgive myself for the dirty face, but certainly not all the other dirty stuff. 

What exactly happened again? Think, think, think. Omigod! The bits and pieces are coming back to me and at once, desire is waging war against shame. Why the hell was I even there? Why did he have to be talking about that? Why did I leave with him? Disgraced, I cup my hands over my face and right away I’m hit hard with the intoxicating smell of him. It’s sexy and smart and it’s clinging to my sweater set like a scarlet letter. It makes me want to do last night one more time. I want to see those eyes and feel his hands on the back of my neck and in my hair. His amazing hands… they were so strong and soft, perfect. And that voice, it was so serious and hypnotic. My body is trembling with exhilaration as I frantically dig for the phone number that’s hidden in my pocket. I want to see his handwriting, touch the paper he touched. I’m like a frenzied drug addict hunting for leftovers. Pleeeeeease let there be something on the other side of the paper that’ll give me more information about him… a grocery list, a store receipt, something. 

The instant I find the scribbled on piece of paper, I feel heavy with remorse. I go from feeling seventeen and silly to seventy and sucker punched. Don’t even look at it Chrissy, you CAN’T call him! I look. 925-397-08… D’oh! Flip it over. Nothing on the back. I’m such a fool. I wad up the tiny piece of paper and throw it in the garbage like it’s a piece of contaminated hospital waste.

I can’t understand why he wanted me to call him so badly anyway. I mean, I’m so much older than him. I was shocked when we revealed our ages, twenty-eight and twenty-two. Oddly, he didn’t flinch at the huge gap. Shaking my head as if to magically purge the insanity of all of this, I stumble over to the closet, all the while making sure I don’t look at my cheating ass in the bathroom mirror. After delicately removing my sweater set, I sniff it one more time and then shove it as far back in my closet as possible. I’ll take it to the dry cleaners to destroy all evidence. But not yet, I want a few more days to inhale it.

I have to do something to take my mind off of last night or else I’m gonna go crazy. I’ll clean. I scrub my floors, my toilets, refrigerator, anything and everything. I do it all except empty the garbage can, which I casually pass by every few minutes. I want a cocktail real bad but it’s only two in the afternoon and I’ve been conditioned not to drink before 5pm. I can’t think of a better time to change that retarded way of thinking, so I slam a beer. Just as I’m about to crack open another one, I impulsively leave the house and head straight for the walking trail at the end of my street. 

I look like a crazy person… on a trail… in pouring down, freezing rain. But I don’t want to go home. What if he’s out here? Wouldn’t that make us meant to be? Wait, he was there last night, so why can’t that make us meant to be? Jesus, cheater, stop thinking so much! My heart races whenever someone appears in the distance. It stops when I realize it’s not him. I point my face up towards the sky and let the rain pound onto it, hoping it will wash away the improper thoughts racing through my mind. I stand motionless for what seems like an eternity.

Friendly people that have already walked past me are now walking past again to return to wherever they came from. Soaking wet, staring up at nothing, they now rush past me and keep their heads down like I might leap at them and stab ‘em or something. I can’t blame them; I look like a lunatic. I’m wearing nothing but jeans and a t-shirt and even though I’m totally drenched, I’m not cold. I’m numb. I look like I should be begging for food and, in a way, it feels like I am. But as hungry as I am for him, he’ll never find me. He has no idea where I live and even if he knew the city, he would never guess this neighborhood. Only married people live here.

About the author:
Chrissy Anderson is the author of The Life List, and the people, their quirks, and the major events of her story are derived from personal life events.  She sees bits and pieces of her checkered past in almost every woman she encounters, and she wants to help them, tell them they’re NOT crazy.  Chrissy’s choices were stupid and sometimes sleazy, but, unfortunately, not all too uncommon.

Chrissy currently lives in Portland, Oregon, with the love of her life and her beautiful daughter. A former fashion executive, she is now a writer, wife, and mother, who spends her life doing exactly what she always wanted, doting on those she loves.


Did you miss the interview with Chrissy or with Leo? Click on their names, or go to the home page for more on The Life List.


Follow Chrissy:
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Buy the book

Today and tomorrow--November 7 and 8--you can download The Life List for free on Amazon. Yep, for FREE. Tell your friends. Tell your neighbors. Grab it while you can!

Meet Leo From The Life List

News Flash! November 7 and 8 are two free download days for The Life List on amazon.com.

Today we meet Leo from Chrissy Anderson’s The Life List. He’s a tall, sexy, brilliant investment banker with a temper and a guarded heart. Leo was one of three adopted children whose parents couldn’t afford to send him to college. He knows he’s of German, Irish, and Native American descent and wants to be somebody. He worked full-time in a blue collar job while attending private college in the Bay Area. He is bluntly honest, knows who he is, and you never have to guess with Leo. He wears his heart on his sleeve, is a loyal friend until you burn him, and is fiercely protective and jealous. His quick-temper and territorial nature combine to be his biggest draw and his biggest flaw. If Leo is not hard at work, he can be found drinking beer or working out at the gym while obsessing about Chrissy – the first and only woman he’s ever truly loved.

Hello, Leo. Thanks for taking a few minutes to talk to us. Did you ever think that your life would end up being in a book?
Not at all. I’m a very private person, and I don’t like a lot of drama, but it just so happens that I fell in love with a woman who is the complete opposite of me, and that’s how I ended up as one of the main characters in Chrissy Anderson’s real life love story, The Life List. I hope to God I’m around by the time she writes the final chapter of the last book in The List Trilogy, The Hope List, because that’s how much I love that woman.

(Swoon) Are you for real? Well, ahem, I guess that would be a yes and a no. Anyway, tell us about your favorite scene in the book.
Hands down, it’s the make out scene from the night I met Chrissy at Buckley’s. I thought for sure she was going to let me get out of that car without a kiss. She was definitely interested in me, but I got a sense that she was afraid of something. Little did I know just how HUGE that something was! Anyway, her words really tried to persuade me to exit the car without making a move, but when she kept talking and talking as a way to keep me from exiting, that’s when I knew there would be a kiss. The scene really happened in real life, and she did an amazing job of recapturing the intensity of it in that chapter.

Wow. I need a glass of sweet tea to cool off that scene in my head. While I’m getting that, tell us what impression you make on people when they first meet you? How about after they've known you for a while?
I’ve been told, mostly by Chrissy, that I can come off as a real asshole. I’m not at all though, I’m just guarded. I like to get a good feel for the person I’m first meeting before I jump in and give them my life story. I’m a good judge of character, and I know pretty quickly if you’re someone I want to let into my world. If you are, then watch out, because I have a very dark sense of humor, and I tell it like it is. We’ll have a good time together if you can be real. I hate phonies, namedroppers, and people that are hell bent on showcasing their careers or how much money they make. If you’ve known me for a while, I’m pretty sure you’d say I’m one of the most reliable and trustworthy people you’ve ever met.

Do you have any brothers? Oh, never mind. What's the worst thing that's happened in your life? What did you learn from it?
Oh, man…If you asked me that before Chrissy started the sequel, The Unexpected List, I would’ve said finding out it she was dragging her feet on getting a divorce. Finding out she was married didn’t bother me half as much as she feared it would. I was already crazy in love with her, and I thought, “Hey, she’ll be divorced in eight months tops, and we can start our lives together.” When I realized it wasn’t going to work out that way, I flipped out.

But, like I said, that shitty stuff was before something even shittier happens in The Unexpected List. Unfortunately, I’m not allowed to reveal what that shitty thing is right now because the book isn’t out yet, and I’ll spoil it! Let’s just say my world gets turned upside down, and I potentially lose one of the most important people in my life. From the experience that Chrissy wrote for me, I’ve learned not to take one single day of my life for granted and more importantly, not one single person I love.

Whoa. Does The Life List come with pictures? I’m sure readers would love to see if you look as good as you sound. What’s the best trait your author has given you? What’s the worst?
Integrity means everything to me. I try to live my life with truth, honor, and respect, and I think Chrissy did an excellent job of making those things integral characteristics of Leo. At times in The Life List I’m forced to go outside of my integrity comfort zone. Especially when I found out Chrissy was married, and she had lied to me so many times. But, I had fallen in love with parts of her that trumped those less than attractive things, and I found myself forgiving her for things I’d NEVER forgive other people for.

Chrissy also gave me a lot of anger. I’m not saying I’m not an angry person, because I can be when it’s deserved. But, the anger she gave me in The Life List made even me flinch sometimes! I’ve been told that my character gets quite angry again in The Unexpected List. Makes me wonder what Chrissy does next!

I can’t wait to find out. Well, Leo, Chrissy says that’s all the questions I can ask. Feel free to come back anytime, though. You sound like a keeper. Readers, if you missed my interview with Chrissy herself, scroll down and take a look. And I hope you'll come back on Wednesday for an excerpt from the book.

About the author:
Chrissy Anderson is the author of The Life List and the people, their quirks, and the major events of her story are derived from personal life events. She sees bits and pieces of her checkered past in almost every woman she encounters, and she wants to help them, tell them they’re NOT crazy. Chrissy’s choices were stupid and sometimes sleazy, but, unfortunately, not all too uncommon.

Chrissy currently lives in Portland, Oregon, with the love of her life and her beautiful daughter. A former fashion executive, she is now a writer, wife, and mother, who spends her life doing exactly what she always wanted, doting on those she loves.
 

Talking With Chrissy Anderson

My guest today is Chrissy Anderson, author of The Life List, book one in The List series. Chrissy's book is fiction, based on a true story--hers.

About The Life List:
Chrissy Anderson, a twenty-eight year old fashion executive, created a seven-point life list at the age of sixteen, and she’s been steadily checking off the boxes and mocking the style and life choices of everyone around her ever since. Her life begins to run amuck when she unexpectedly meets a much younger man, Leo, who makes her question her “perfect life.”

Chrissy’s lifelong friendships and her marriage are put to the test as she tries to sort out her feelings for Leo. With the help of her brassy, no-nonsense therapist, Dr. Maria, Chrissy learns more about herself than she anticipates. But, it isn’t until the untimely death of her best friend that Chrissy is catapulted into long overdue authenticity and scrambles to correct the mistakes of her past….trying to figure out if it’s her husband, Kurt, Leo or both that she has to get rid of to make everything right.

Women of all kinds- twenty-somethings, housewives, and superwomen wannabes- will all be able to relate to the pressure of constructing the ideal life, only to fall short. Not everyone will agree with Chrissy Anderson’s decisions, but all will pause as they follow along on her journey to ask, “What would I do if I were her?”

Welcome, Chrissy. I‘m so glad you’re here to talk about The Life List. How did you come up with that title?
I came up with the title pretty easily as it was what I called the piece of paper that I carried around with me since I was sixteen years old. I’m one of those types of people who, once she puts a task or a goal on a list, she’s committed to accomplishing it. Unfortunately, I started getting more satisfaction out of crossing things off of my life list than what I was actually accomplishing. Needless to say, I woke up one day to realize I had everything I ever wanted, but happiness was nowhere in sight.
The original title of The Life List was "When She Died," but my editor thought it was too depressing. Given that there is a whole lot of humor in the book , it was a good choice!

I agree. I like The Life List. Your book is based on your real life. Am I right in assuming most of the events in the book really happened, but you've fictionalized parts and some of the characters?
You are correct. Most of the events happened, but of course, no one's life is that interesting so parts were definitely embellished to make it more..."WOW this girl is a mess!"

Why did you choose to write fiction instead of a memoir?
After five minutes of researching agents for each genre, I determined no one really wants to represent memoir. Plus, I knew my story wasn't 100% true and didn't want to get James Frey'd by the media if I advertised it as a memoir!

Which character did you most enjoy writing?
Without a doubt, Slutty co-worker! Interestingly, Slutty is the only character not based on an actual single individual from my past, she’s a morph of three women. It was fun to take the most influential (and hilarious) aspects of three women I used to work with and build this character that I just knew readers would adore. Out of all characters in The Life List, the most endearing feedback I receive is about Slutty co-worker. Everyone seems to crave her honesty, her humor, her unwavering support…her sex life!

I’ll bet. What would your main character say about you?
Chrissy Anderson is the main character, and since she’s me, I hope she’d say I have a lot of courage for putting her story out there. I cover some very heavy subjects in my book: teen pregnancy and adultery. I also dive deeply into integrity and conviction and the powerful roles they play in living a fulfilling life.

I think Chrissy would thank me for bringing to light some very taboo subjects and demonstrating that seemingly normal people have deep dark secrets that haunt them every single day, and in a lot of instances those secrets makes them stuck.

What song would you pick to go with your book?
Great question. Music plays an important role in Chrissy’s life and sets the mood for many of the chapters in my novel. There’s actually a sound track to The Life List on iTunes.

We’ve all been “that girl,” sitting there next to the fireplace, reflecting on some kind of heartbreak or obsessing about a major decision we’re petrified to make. We sit there with our sad music and ginormous glass of wine, listening to sad music, wondering, “what the hell?” Or, one song on the radio can take us back to some magical moment from our past, and it’s as if we can almost reach out and touch the experience. That’s what happens to me whenever I hear Alphaville’s, Forever Young and Dave Matthew’s, Crash Into Me. I’m able to hear laughter, feel excitement…nervousness. I’m literally transported to these moments in my life that, without realizing it at the time, defined me.

What song would I pick to go with my book? Ironically, it’s one that didn’t even make it into The Life List. It’s the song that’s associated with my book video trailer and it’s the song that opens the first chapter of the next book in The List series, The Unexpected List. It’s MaryAnne Marino’s, For One Moment. It encompasses all that The Life List is about. Like me, MaryAnne isn’t that well known. I hope that’s about to change for the both of us soon!

 

How do you handle criticism of your work?
My editor said it best when she said, “We want people to either love the book or hate it, no in-betweeners…bad for business.” And she has to keep repeating it to me! For the most part, feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. I’ve been falling in the 4-5 star review range on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Goodreads. I also have a very loyal following on my Facebook page and my website. However, I do get an occasional review that punches me in the stomach! Like, recently I logged on to Goodreads to see if there was any new action, and I found that someone had given me 1 star. I scrambled to look at the ratings she’d given to other books (that’s just how insecure I am!) and found that she never gave ANYONE more than 3 stars, including Stephen King, Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Weiner. It made me feel a little better, but I was still pretty upset. I went to Amazon and looked at the hundreds of thousands of bad reviews written about The Twilight series, Fifty Shades of Grey, and all the other stuff making a killing out there and then I felt a lot better! Bad reviews can be just as good for business if you have just as many great reviews to counter them. It creates interest and makes readers want to be the judge of things themselves…the result is more readers and potentially more fans. And those are very good things.

Surprisingly, no one has been critical of my real life experiences that I write about in The Life List. That was the thing I most feared as I entered the publication stage of my work. In fact, at the last minute I almost pulled out; I was too afraid of being called a failure, a cheater…the bad guy. The big three I never wanted to be! (That’ll make a lot more sense when you read the book.)

But my husband talked me off of the ledge and convinced me to put my story out there, and I’m sooooooo glad he did. I haven’t been called a derogatory name yet! In fact, I receive emails every week from woman who have been, or currently find themselves, at the same crossroads as Chrissy Anderson. They’re either thanking me for having the courage to tell my story or asking me for advice on how to get through their own.

That’s great. And I think you’re right about a few bad reviews. It generates interest. Tell us one of your favorite quotes.
The tagline to The Life List is…

“The difference between doing something and doing nothing is everything.”

The journey through my real life love story taught me that, and now I apply it to every single thing I tackle in life. In fact, my husband used it against me when I was struggling with whether or not to publish! If I caved in to my fears of public scrutiny I never would’ve known the joys of taking the risk. I never would’ve experienced the thrill of a book sale or good review. I never would’ve received emails from women thanking me for the courage to tell my story, and I NEVER would’ve been given the privilege of hearing their own stories if I didn’t put myself out there. Nothing would’ve happened with my story if I did nothing.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
I’d pick my house up and move it 10 miles west to Helvetia, Oregon. I love my home, and have worked very hard on it for the past two years, but my neighbors live like pigs, and I get anxiety attacks whenever I leave the house and am forced to look at their home. My husband and I have worked very hard for what we have, so we take really good care of our stuff. And now that I’ve given up a stable income to do this writing thing, we don’t buy too much new stuff! I wish other people in my neighborhood would have the same pride of ownership as us, but they don’t, and a million dirty looks from me hasn’t done much to change that. I’m not one who can block out things easily, so our next house will not be in a neighborhood, but down some remote road instead. Hopefully some healthy book sales will help make that move happen before I have a heart attack. Oh look….there they are now! Getting on their tandem bike to go for a ride as the siding on their house is falling off and their lawn is 3 feet tall! I need a cocktail!!!!!!!!!!!!

I feel for you! You published with Abbott Press. Can you tell us about your road to publication? Do you have an agent? How many queries did you send out before finding the one? How long did it take for you to find a publisher? Do you have any advice for unpublished writers?
Ugh. The road to pub. was harder than writing the damn book! I don't have an agent...yet! I sent out about 40 queries, and I have NO DOUBT not a single one was even read. The rejections came thru like they were on autopilot. It hurt, because as you know each query is very specific to each agent and they take HOURS to create. But, I'm an unknown, unpublished writer, and my name isn't Kim Kardashian or Snooki! Also, I've never won $1.00 in my life and figured the chances of me becoming the next Stephani Meyer were slim to none. I knew I had a great story that spoke to millions of women, and to keep spinning my wheels in agent land was a road block in getting my story out there, so I self-published. It took me many months to research self-publishing, and I was scared to death to take the leap, but I'm glad I did, and I don't regret it for one minute. I feel like I have so much more control over my processes, and I like that. Sadly, I don't have any advice for unpublished writers as I'm just trying to figure this all out for myself. Plus, everyone's story is different, and I think the paths for publishing them is different.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on book #2 in The List series, The Unexpected List. I’m in the final stages of the last draft, and then it’ll go to my editor. The goal is to have it out by March, 2013. It’s crazy because it took me four years to write The Life List and only six months to write The Unexpected List!

I’m in absolute love with the characters, and I know them so much more intimately now. I know where they’re all headed, and I can’t wait to get them there! In fact, it’s hard for me to take baby steps sometimes. Right now all of my characters are on edge and in this gigantic state of limbo, and sometimes when I’m writing, I yell at them. I’m like, “UGH! Why do you guys keep creating these roadblocks to getting you to the end of your journey! You’re making me crazy!” Then I laugh at myself because it’s the exact reaction I want my readers to feel. I want them to get frustrated with Chrissy, Leo and Kurt. Mostly though, I want them to identify with them. So far…so good.

Can you tell us the major theme of The Unexpected List? What will readers
learn or take away from it?
It's part II of The List Trilogy and covers the next two years of Chrissy's
life. The Life List leaves on an "Oh no, what did she do now?" note and The
Unexpected List tells ya! In The Unexpected List, Chrissy does a good job of
showing readers how much she's grown from her experiences in The Life List,
but something so majorly unexpected happens, and it throws her world out of
whack once again. Readers are once again left wondering, is it Kurt, Leo or
both she has to get rid of to make her life right. The cover art for the
book gives you a little hint of things to come.

Oh my! I've seen the cover art. I won't give it away except to say I'm expecting people to love it. Hint hint.
 
About Chrissy:
Chrissy Anderson is the author of The Life List and the people, their quirks, and the major events of her story are derived from personal life events. She sees bits and pieces of her checkered past in almost every woman she encounters, and she wants to help them, tell them they’re NOT crazy. Chrissy’s choices were stupid and sometimes sleazy, but, unfortunately, not all too uncommon.

Chrissy currently lives in Portland, Oregon, with the love of her life and her beautiful daughter. A former fashion executive, she is now a writer, wife, and mother, who spends her life doing exactly what she always wanted, doting on those she loves.


Find Chrissy:
Website 
Facebook page 
Twitter 
Amazon