PEACE POST by M.C.V. Egan

Have you ever been influenced by a character you created?

As a writer I can be a magician and with my magic wand; my pen, I can create or destroy on whim. I can create places, events and characters. A few years ago I created a character Maggie; I spent time with Maggie in my mind’s eye. Originally I wanted Maggie to be very Zen young woman, a seeker of inner peace. As the storyline developed and the image of Maggie grew so large that my mind’s eye in some ways did not feel big enough.

By tapping into memories of the great invisible friends I had as a child; one should note here that as a child I was fully aware that I created my invisible friends and it was simple to tap into that child-like creativity.

I started to play with my invisible friend, this time instead of making mud pies or having adventures with my dolls, I played like a grown up: I cooked with Maggie, I went for long walks with her and talked to her when I was alone in my car; one must note here that thanks to blue tooth no-one thought I was insane.

As Maggie’s personality grew, the inner peace angle was not enough and Maggie became a great pacifist, one willing to demonstrate to get her point across. A pacifist who believed and led her life with the principle that one of the greatest keys to peace is knowledge.

There is no magic moment when I realized how much Maggie influenced me. I always research when I want to include anything in a story, so I did start reading blogs and newsletters posted by peace groups. At some point I took a good long look at myself and wondered what defined me. What defined me not simply in my immediate surroundings and as a parent, a wife, an American by choice.

As a citizen of the world I am absolutely defined by the desire for PEACE. I was never a war monger per se, I did however feel that some wars were ‘understandable’ or justified. Having experienced Maggie I have come to feel that violence begets nothing but violence and that as unlikely as peace may seem for the world as a whole, every journey, whether made by an individual or by a large group, every journey does begin with a first something, a first step, word or action, so why not the journey towards Peace?

Tomorrow is September 21st, 2013. It is the 33 celebration for the UN’s International Day of Peace. There are movements worldwide, for prayer and meditation, peaceful statement for peace. I plan to attend the one in Miami. A link to the International Day of Peace Facebook page, where you can request if there is a Peace movement near you, is here.

Also visit my Blogs tomorrow where I will be hosting an International Peace Blog Hop.

MCV Egan's blogs:
Bridge of Deaths | 4covert2overt | Is History the Agreed Upon Lie

About the author:

M.C.V. Egan is the pen name chosen by Maria Catalina Egan the author of The Bridge of Deaths. She was born in Mexico City, Mexico in 1959 and from an early age became obsessed with the story of her maternal grandfather, Cesar Agustin Castillo, principally the story of how he died.

Catalina has lived in several countries and is fluent in Spanish, English, French and Swedish.

Maria Catalina Egan is married and has one son. Although she would not call herself an Astrologer, she has taken many classes and taught a few beginner classes in Astrology. This is one of her many past times when she is not writing or researching.

Peace is her ultimate passion.

Connect with the author:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Buy the book:
Amazon paperback | Kindle | Hard cover

Featured Author: Joanna Campbell Slan

Why Once in a Blue Moon Is Often Enough for Me

Written exclusively for A Blue Million Books Blog

By Joanna Campbell Slan,

Author of Death of a Schoolgirl

“So you’re a writer? Well, I have a bunch of great ideas for you,” said a woman at a neighborhood gathering. “Really. You need to call me. Oh, the stories I can tell you.”

While I appreciate her offer, the truth is that I only run short of ideas once in a blue moon. The last “blue moon” happened a month ago when Rafferty, my three-legged rescue pup came down with a horrible urinary tract infection. At first, he seemed unusually restless. Then he started panting and needing to go outside every half hour. Things went downhill fast, culminating with a midnight run to an emergency vet clinic in a nearby city. We didn’t get home until five in the morning. The next day, I was a zombie. I couldn’t think at all! My mind was empty when it came to ideas.

But as I said, that was a month ago. I rarely suffer from a lack of stories. Hardly ever. My mind bubbles over with themes, settings, characters, and situations I want to tackle. My biggest challenge is sifting through my ideas and choosing just one.

For that I rely on the goosebump test. If an idea raises the hairs on my arm, it’s definitely worth pursuing. For example, I was sitting on a panel at a conference a few years ago when a moderator asked, “What’s your favorite mystery of all time?”

“Jane Eyre,” I said. Looking out at the audience, I noticed that many conference attendees nodded in agreement. The skin on my arms began to pimple. Uh-oh. Fantastic idea alert!

“Jane Eyre is not a mystery,” said another panelist.

“You’ve got a tortured man who regrets his past and keeps it secret,” I said. “There’s somebody bumping around in the attic and setting fires. When a visitor shows up, he gets stabbed, and is whisked away under the cover of night. Gee, it sure sounds like a mystery to me.”

So it happened that one of my finer ideas was to refashion Jane Eyre into an amateur sleuth. Since Jane is naturally observant, curious, brave, and intelligent, she’s good in her new role. Once I began noodling this around, I saw another advantage to casting Jane as a detective. Because she went to a charity school but is married a country squire, Jane can move between the upper and lower classes. And since she’s notable for being small and insignificant, she can snoop around without arousing suspicion.

Death of a Schoolgirl, the first title in my new series, The Jane Eyre Chronicles, recently received the Daphne du Maurier Award of Excellence. Winning such a prestigious honor is definitely the thrill of a lifetime. In fact, it’s the kind of pat-on-the-back that only comes once in a blue moon.

About the author:

Award-winning and National Bestselling author Joanna Campbell Slan is the creator of three mystery series, including the Kiki Lowenstein Mysteries (an Agatha Award Finalist) and a new series featuring Cara Mia Delgatto, young woman who runs a recycling/repurposing shop. The first book in Joanna’s historical romance mystery series, The Jane Eyre Chronicles, is Death of a Schoolgirl, winner of the 2013 Daphne du Maurier Award for Literary Excellence. In her past life, Joanna was a television talk show host, an adjunct professor of public relations, a sought-after motivational speaker, and a corporate speechwriter. Visit Joanna’s website at www.JoannaSlan.com See all her books at http://tinyurl.com/JoannaSlan Follow her on Pinterest (www.Pinterest.com/JoannaSlan) Join the conversation at http://tinyurl.com/JCSlan Or communicate directly with her at JCSlan@JoannaSlan.com.

About Death of a Schoolgirl:

In her classic tale, Charlotte Brontë introduced readers to the strong-willed and intelligent Jane Eyre. Picking up where Brontë left off, Jane’s life has settled into a comfortable pattern: She and her beloved Edward Rochester are married and have an infant son. But Jane soon finds herself in the midst of new challenges and threats to those she loves…

Jane can’t help but fret when a letter arrives from Adèle Varens—Rochester’s ward, currently at boarding school—warning that the girl’s life is in jeopardy. Although it means leaving her young son and invalid husband, and despite never having been to a city of any size, Jane feels strongly compelled to go to London to ensure Adèle’s safety.

But almost from the beginning, Jane’s travels don’t go as planned—she is knocked about and robbed, and no one believes that the plain, unassuming Jane could indeed be the wife of a gentleman; even the school superintendent takes her for an errant new teacher. But most shocking to Jane is the discovery that Adèle’s schoolmate has recently passed away under very suspicious circumstances, yet no one appears overly concerned. Taking advantage of the situation, Jane decides to pose as the missing instructor—and soon uncovers several unsavory secrets, which may very well make her the killer’s next target…

Connect with Joanna:
Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads


Buy the book:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookworld | Book Depository | Powell's Books

Enter to win cool stuff:
A Lowood Institution Lacrosse sweatshirt, a “Being yourself is the key” pencil case, a Jane Eyre mug, and a small Jane Eyre quotations journal a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tess talks with Wicked Hunger's Vanessa Roth

In August, Delsheree Gladden, author of the YA urban fantasy Wicked Hunger, sent Zander Roth to talk with Tess, and today Tess is happy to talk with Zander's sister, Vanessa Roth.

About the book:

Vanessa and Zander Roth are good at lying. They have to be when they are hiding a deadly secret. Day after day, they struggle to rein in their uncontrollable hunger for pain and suffering in order to live normal lives. Things only get worse when Ivy Guerra appears with her pink-striped hair and secrets. The vicious hunger Ivy inspires is frightening, not to mention suspicious.

Vanessa’s instincts are rarely wrong, so when they tell her that Ivy’s appearance is a sign of bad things to come, she listens. She becomes determined to expose Ivy’s secrets. Vanessa tries to warn her brother, but Zander is too enamored with Ivy to pay attention to her conspiracy theories.

One of them is right about Ivy … but if they lose control of their hunger, it won’t matter who is right and who is wrong. One little slip, and they’ll all be dead.

About the character:

Vanessa Roth really tries to follow the rules her grandmother has put in place, because she knows it means keeping her secret safe, but it’s not easy. More often than not, her temper, emotions, or hunger land her in a whole mess of trouble.

Tess talks with Vanessa Roth

Vanessa, how did you first meet DelSheree?

If I remember right, DelSheree was visiting Albuquerque for some kind of dental hygiene test. It seems like that’s all she was doing around that time. Anyway, I probably would have walked right by, but her daughter tripped and skinned her knee. Poor kid had forgotten her glasses again and didn’t see the curb. My hunger responded—-don’t worry, I didn’t attack the poor girl—-but my response caught DelSheree’s attention.

Want to dish about DelSheree?

As much as I enjoyed working with DelSheree, she tends to be a little forgetful. If she doesn’t put it in her phone with an alarm to remind her, shell space it out. Her life has been a little crazy, though, with school, job hunting, and family, so I understood and just sent a lot of reminders.

Did you ever think that your life would end up being in a book?

Oh, I pretty much knew someone would right my story from early on. I just expected it to be in the newspaper, under the crime blotter. Being the heroine of our story never crossed my mind.

Tell us about your favorite scene in Wicked Hunger.

I don’t want to give away too much, but under the bleachers after the football game. That is the first glimmer of hope that I can be honest with Ketchup about what I am and not have him run away.

Sounds intriguing. Did you have a hard time convincing DelSheree to write any particular scenes for you?

There is a scene where I’m working with Noah at his house that we had some arguments about. DelSheree wanted it to go one way, but I knew what direction it was really supposed to go.

I'm telling you, we have to be forceful with our authors sometimes. What do you like to do when you are not being actively read somewhere?

Controlling my hunger is always a high priority, so you’ll usually find me doing ballet or practicing Jeet Kune Do.

If you could rewrite anything in Wicked Hunger, what would it be?

If I could rewrite anything, it would be before the book started when my brother Zander nearly killed Ketchup and ruined my chances of being with him.

Ketchup. I love that name. Do you think he knows Pickle? Never mind. Back to the topic. Tell the truth. What do you think of your fellow characters?

Zander is one of the most pigheaded, frustrating people I know, but he’s my brother and I still love him. Ivy, that girl rubbed me wrong from the second I saw her stupid pink hair. Noah is so sweet and normal. Being around him makes me believe I can actually have that one day. Oscar, well, he’s certifiably nuts, but sometimes I still think he’s the sanest of anyone I know. And Ketchup…I better not say anything about Ketchup or I’ll jinx myself.

If you had a free day with no responsibilities and your only mission was to enjoy yourself, what would you do?

Disappear with Ketchup, and NO I won’t tell you where we’d go or what we’d be doing. 



Gotcha. What impression do you make on people when they first meet you?

When I first meet people, they generally think I’m weird and moody. I’m generally just trying not to kill them.

How about after they've known you for a while?

Not many people stick around to get to know me, but the few who do realize I’m actually a pretty nice person—minus the hunger issues—and I love music and dancing. 



What's the worst thing that's happened in your life? What did you learn from it?

Both of my parents were murdered, and it taught me that protecting my family comes before anything else, including personal relationships.

Wow. That's horrible. You must have some good friends to get you through something like that. Tell us about your best friend.

My best friend is Laney. She never stops talking, falls off her shoes on a regular basis, and makes me laugh when I really need someone to pull me out of my dark thoughts. 



What are you most afraid of?

Losing the people I love. 



What’s the best trait DelSheree has given you? What’s the worst?

That would probably be the same trait for both. Passion. I am a very passionate person when it comes to protecting my friends and family, but it tends to put me in hot water fairly often as well. 



How do you feel about your life right now? What, if anything, would you like to change?

Pretty uncertain, actually. I know that there are some big, scary events on the horizon, but I can’t pinpoint what they are or who is going to set them in motion. I’ve had to put my life in the hands of someone I don’t trust at all and that scares me more than I can tell you.

What aspect of DelSheree’s writing style do you like best?

DelSheree always manages to capture the emotion of a scene just the way I remember it happening. She makes people feel what I felt so they really understand my story.

If your story were a movie, who would play you?

I’d have to go with AnnaSophia Robb. She seems tough info to take on my life!

Describe the town where you live.

I live in Albuquerque, NM. It’s big enough for us to hide in, but secluded enough that we won’t draw a ton of attention if something goes wrong.

Describe an average day in your life.

I’ve got school, like most normal kids, but along with classes to suffer through, I have to deal with keeping my hunger in check. There are dozens of kids at school that my hunger wants to make a snack out of, so it can get tricky trying to dodge all of them. After school I try to feed my hunger through the physical pain hours of dance practice gives me. When all else fails, Zander and I can always use each other to keep our hunger in check.

What's next? Will you encourage DelSheree to write a sequel?

I have been hounding her daily to finish the next book! She’s almost halfway through it, but I’ll keep on her until it’s complete and ready to land on the editor’s desk. Readers are already asking for the next book!

That's terrific! Tell DelSheree to let us know when the next book comes out.

About the author:

DelSheree Gladden lives in New Mexico with her husband and two children. The Southwest is a big influence in her writing because of its culture, beauty, and mythology. Local folk lore is strongly rooted in her writing, particularly ideas of prophecy, destiny, and talents born from natural abilities. When she is not writing, DelSheree is usually teaching yoga, coaching gymnastics, reading, painting, sewing, or working as a Dental Hygienist. Her works include Escaping Fate, Twin Souls Saga, and The Destroyer Trilogy. DelSheree's newest series, the SomeOne Wicked This Way Come series, follows Vanessa and Zander Roth, siblings with an uncontrollable hunger for pain and suffering that will either gain them limitless power or lead them to their deaths.

Connect with DelSheree:
Website | Blog | Facebook: DelSheree | Facebook: The Destroyer Trilogy | Facebook: Twin Souls Saga | Twitter | Goodreads: author | Goodreads: book | Wattpad

Buy the book:
Amzaon US | Amazon UK | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

Featured Author: Paul Anthony

I'm happy to welcome back Paul Anthony to A Blue Million Books. Please check out Paul's feature from when he was here in February. He's a prolific writer, with ten published books, to date. His latest book is Bell, Book and Candle. As a former police detective in the UK, Paul knows crime. And now he writes about it. It's my pleasure to have him here again to talk about his books.

Interview with Paul Anthony

Books, scripts, screenplays, oh my! How long have you been writing, and how did you start?

I wrote The Fragile Peace in 1994 and tried to get a publisher. I kept getting letters telling me I needed an agent first. So I tried to get an agent and then received replies telling me I need a publisher first. Eventually I jumped off mad hatter’s roundabout and approached a vanity publisher in London. I did a 50/50 deal with them for the first 2,000 copies. Everyone said I was mad. They went to press and we were published in 1996. The contract ended in 2012, and I put it into kindle. It’s sold over 25,000 copies in hardback and now sells regularly on kindle with a paperback version that I updated. It reached #1 in its genre on amazon some months ago. It’s a great story, and there’s a film script doing the tour. I’ve learnt so much about writing since 1996. More interesting perhaps, is the fact that shortly after the publication of The Fragile Peace I did indeed end up with a literary agent. I then received a commission from a traditional house via my agent to submit a manuscript and Bushfire came along. Six months and 6,000 copies later, the publishing company went into administration, and we didn’t get a penny for our troubles. It was round about this time that the ‘net book agreement’ was being called into question in the UK. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Net_Book_Agreement) and the world of publishing changed overnight. Supermarkets flooded the market with books by celebrities, TV chefs and gardeners. I left books for a while and turned to writing a score of scripts for film and television with mixed success. Eventually, I returned, in retirement, to the book world with The Legacy of the Ninth.

Congratulations on those numbers! You have ten published books so far, not to mention scripts and screenplays. Do you have another job outside of writing?

No, I’m a retired policeman living close to Hadrian’s Wall on the edge of the Lake District in England. I was first published when I was a serving officer hence the pseudonym which was part of the regulations those days. I kept the pen name because when I retired I had a following and a regular readership relevant to Paul Anthony.

Which character did you most enjoy writing?

I have a quadrilogy and a trilogy in place. The quadrilogy features the detective, Billy Boyd. He’s a Cumbrian who joins the police as a youngster and rises to head a specialized unit of the anti terrorist branch. As the quadrilogy develops, readers can see how his life story evolves with each tale. Each book stands alone from the others so it’s not a ‘follow on’ series. The main characters are consistent.

The Boyd Quadrilogy consists of:

1) The Fragile Peace - a parallel story of two children - one grows up to be an IRA bomber, the other grows up to be the leader of an anti terrorist squad.

2) Bushfire - A group of police and MI5 officers go to a conference in 

Lisbon, but when a bushfire breaks out in the Algarve all hell breaks loose and a drug war explodes with a Columbian drugs cartel. (Books 1 + 2 are inspired by true events.)

3) The Legacy of the Ninth - When the Romans drive the Jews from
Jerusalem to King Herod's fortress in Masada, a Jewish artifact is stolen, ends up in a
river in Cumbria 20 centuries later, and is the basis of a contemporary assassination plot.

4) Bell Book and Candle – My most recent release of August, 2013, - when
Al-Qaeda send bombers from the Yemen and Pakistan to carry their war to the English mainland. The plot explodes on the Caldbeck Fells, Lake District but it also involves the disappearance of a local teenager. (Books 3 +4 are inspired by history.)

Boyd’s life is dominated to some extent by the women in his life – Meg, a nurse who becomes his wife. Antonia, an upper crust MI5 officer with whom he works closely, and Anthea, his deputy and close assistant. It’s the characters who make the books, and my readers often comment on how much they enjoy the Boyd character. He knows every trick in the book, and uses them all.

My Davies King Trilogy features a detective on the south coast of England. We join him as a widower who has thrown himself into his work - following the death of his wife, Angela - to the extent that he becomes ‘Chief of Detectives.’ He’s an ex boxer, the chairman of the local gymnasium, and as stubborn as a mule. A constant pain in the side of authority, Davies hates losing and will bend as many rules as possible to win. Davies runs the job from a local pub where he occasionally has a brandy, but interestingly, he’s not a big drinker. He plays chess with every Tom, Dick and Harry and these include a bag full of local hooks and crooks. The stories are sprinkled with criminal characters and the detective’s informants as King bends, makes and destroys the rules at every which way you turn. He even teams up with British Intelligence when he needs to. As the trilogy progresses, his adversaries are identified and vary from minor thieves to megalomaniacs. Basically, my editors love the King character. He’s really caught the imagination. The Trilogy is:

1) The Conchenta Conundrum is a murder mystery. There’s a murder or two, a murderer or two, and a mysterious cause of death not easily proven. Corporate corruption and greed on England's south coast.

2) Moonlight Shadows is an Espionage and crime tale. An MI6 agent is rehoused and given a new identity. The agent becomes a double agent when they discover a way to use technology to unbalance the world's money system. When the software goes missing an international chase explodes across the globe and Davies King ends up chasing two murdering megalomaniacs.

3) Behead the Serpent is an Espionage tale that takes us to the edge of dystopia. A corrupt British Intelligence officer teams up with the country's enemies to blackmail Her Majesty’s Government, launch a cyberspace war, and plunge the country into darkness along with parts of Europe and North America. Problem is, the case lands on Davies King’s desk and someone knocks over his chessboard. Look out.

Both Boyd and Davies are different in so many ways. Davies has a time-served elderly detective as a sidekick, an efficiently officious private secretary in Claudia Jones, and a second in command called Annie Rock.

Wow. Quite a list. Tell us about your favorite scene from one of the books.

I would say my favourite scene in Moonlight Shadows is one of the chases in Amsterdam. It’s a high octane rush which blows the story wide open.

If you could only keep one book, what would it be? 

A thesaurus. It’s the only book I read on a daily basis.

I'm totally with you there. Your last meal would be…

Swordfish steak washed down with a red Grenache from France

You won the lottery. What’s the first thing you would buy?

The mortgages of my entire family.

You’re given the day off, and you can do anything but write. What would you do?

Normally, head for the gym and kettlebells.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

I enjoy travelling and would continue my extensive journeys across Europe.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Cumbria, supported by holiday homes in the Algarve and Fuerteventura.

What are you working on now?

I’m marketing Bell, Book and Candle, which was released in August, 2013. So I’m promoting that work to my current readers. I spend quite a bit of time promoting other authors on my facebook page, marsocial.com, and various social media sites. Sadly, I don’t have enough time to participate regularly in the hundreds of groups on these sites. On the writing side, I’m crafting Breakwater which I intend to self-publish later this year.

Thanks for stopping by again, Tony. You're welcome back anytime.

Thank you for the interview opportunity. Good luck with your own Murder & Mayhem in Goose Pimple Junction.

About Bell, Book and Candle:

From an ancient Silk Road in the Spin Ghar mountain range and the red-bricked chocolate box skyscrapers of one of the oldest civilisations known to mankind, the travellers begin their journey. Fourteen hundred years of struggle and anguish arrive in the unspoilt backwaters of Cumbria’s Lakeland Fells and erupt in a bloody, deadly climax.

A simple bell, book and candle adorn the altar of a village church yet the parishioners are unaware of the gathering storm clouds that herald the arrival of the ‘Eternal One.’
Will the Cumbrian detective, Boyd, work out why it has taken since the seventh century for the problem to arrive in his back yard? It’s not until a child is kidnapped that Boyd realises he needs to separate out good from bad; normal from extreme, and the innocence of youth from the guilt of maturity. Boyd is fighting the biggest dog in the pack and the Shimmering Dawn is about to unleash its terrifying dogs of war.

Crammed with intrigue and drizzled with Machiavellian conspiracy, the plot dissects the culture and very existence of the Middle East as it gradually and passionately boils over into a turbo charged thriller of acrimonious conflict and religious aura when the history of yesteryear explodes with the reality of today.

About the author:

Paul Anthony is the pseudonym of a man born in Southport, Lancashire. He has written a number of fictional novels and a collection of poetry in Print, Amazon Kindle, Apple iPad and PDF Download. He has also written television scripts, screenplays and film scripts as an individual or with the award wining scriptwriter, Nick Gordon. The son of a soldier, Paul Anthony settled in Cumbria before becoming a police cadet. Seconded to Haigh Colliery in Whitehaven, he mined the pit face and then worked at a biscuit factory, in Carlisle, as a machine operator. Our author also worked with deaf people and was trained in the treatment of drug addicts and alcoholics. He went to Eskdale Outward Bound School but eventually joined Cumbria Police proper. Working as a detective, he served in the CID, the Regional Crime Squad in Manchester, the Special Branch, and other national agencies in the UK. He has an honours degree in social sciences, and diplomas in management and office management.


Connect with the author:
Website | Independent Author Network | Facebook |

Paul also runs THE CRIME WRITERS GROUP and THE BRITISH WRITERS GROUP…

Buy the books:
Amazon UK | Amazon US | Lulu

Featured Author: Ellie Grant

I'm happy to feature another cozy mystery writer, or I should say writers, since Ellie Grant is actually the pen name for best selling husband and wife team Joyce and Jim Lavene, authors of several great mystery series. Check out their interview from when they were here in May. Now they're on tour with Great Escapes Book Tours for their new novel, Plum Deadly.

About the book:

Unjustly accused of cooking the books, Maggie Grady is forced to retreat from her high-flying New York financial career to the town where she grew up. Her aunt Clara greets her with open arms and a job at the family-owned business that has baked the best pies in the South for over forty years. Unfortunately, while Maggie is determined to return to banking, her reputation there seems permanently in the pits. That is, until her old boss, Lou, visits with news that he’s found the real crook. Before he can reveal the details, though, Maggie finds his body right behind the pie shop.

With only her own word that Lou planned to exonerate her, Maggie is in the spotlight. The police seem to suspect that Aunt Clara’s damson pie may not be just dangerously delectable, but downright deadly. Maggie doesn’t just have her own name to clear; she has to make sure that her aunt’s beloved business isn’t harmed, either. Yummy local reporter Ryan Summerour appears eager to help, and Maggie can’t help hoping that it’s not just the police who find her a person of interest-—but Ryan, as well. She’d thought it challenging to make the perfect pie crust that Aunt Clara demands, but that turns out to be nothing compared with finding a murderer. . . .

Interview with Ellie Grant

How did you come up with the title Plum Deadly?

Plum Deadly was named for the plum pie that the police think may have killed Maggie’s former boss.

Do you all have another job outside of writing?

No. We are full-time novelists since last year.

How did you create the plot for Plum Deadly?

We visited pie shops and spent time in Durham, North Carolina at Duke University. Once we had our main characters, Maggie and Aunt Clara, the rest just came.

What’s your favorite line from a book?

"Except that Lou would never see another blue sky."

How do you get to know your characters?

We eat and sleep with them for about six months. We take them on long rides and try to understand them. They go with us on vacation.

Which character did you most enjoy writing?

Aunt Clara. She was fun to play around with!
 
I like writing characters who do and say things I never would, as well as characters who do and say things I wish I could. Do you have characters who fit into one of those categories? Who, and in what category do they fall?

Aunt Clara is definitely that way. She can say off the wall things at inappropriate times and get away with it.

If you could be one of your characters, which one would you choose?

Aunt Clara. She’s great!
 
Sounds like it! Tell us about your favorite scene in the book.

Our favorite scene is when Maggie and Ryan first kiss. We’re suckers for the romance!

I am too. What song would you pick to go with your book?

"Satisfaction" by the Rolling Stones.

Who are your  favorite authors?

Barbara Hambly, Anne McGaffrey, Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher.

How long is your to-be-read pile?

Never ending. We only read when we’re not writing.

You get to decide who would read your audio book. Who would you choose?

Julia Roberts as Maggie!

Do you have a routine for writing?

We get up every morning Monday through Friday, eat breakfast, have coffee, and sit down to write. We write about 5,000 words each day and do promotion and revision later in the day. We try to be off on nights and weekends.

Where and when do you prefer to do your writing?

We have a nice, cozy office in the house with big desks and computers.

Where’s home for you?

Midland, North Carolina.

Tell us one weird thing, one nice thing, and one fact about where you live.

Weird: People who live next door have peacocks who make sounds like cats fighting all the time.
Nice: We have a lot of beautiful trees and farm land surrounding us.
Fact: Our town’s population is 3,500 people.

Would you rather work in a library or a bookstore?

Library.

What’s one of your favorite quotes?

“Do not be too timid or squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

What are you working on now?

One Witch is Not Enough, the first book in the Retired Witches Spell Book series, coming out with Berkley next year.

About the author
:

Ellie Grant writes award-winning, bestselling mystery fiction as themselves, J.J. Cook and Joyce and Jim Lavene. They have written and published more than 60 novels for Harlequin, Berkley, Amazon, and Gallery Books along with hundreds of non-fiction articles for national and regional publications. They live in rural North Carolina with their family.

Connect with the authors:
Website | Blog | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter

Buy the book:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Featured Author: Christina Freeburn

I'm happy to feature another cozy mystery writer today. Christina Freeburn is the author of the Faith Hunter Scrap mystery series. She's here today to talk about book number 2 in the series, Designed to Death.

About the book:

Faith Hunter planned the perfect event at her grandmother’s shop, Scrap This, featuring local scrapbooker and Life Artist Diva, Belinda Watson. But the extravaganza goes up in a cloud of glitter when Belinda and her cousin, Darlene, brawl over scraplifted designs. Faith attempts to break it up, but only makes things worse. Then when Belinda turns up dead behind the Scrap This store, Faith’s involvement goes viral.

As accusations against her turn vicious, Faith sets out to prove her nemesis, Darlene, committed the crime, only to realize they are both innocent. Now they must team up or the murderer’s plan will come together seamlessly with the frenemies sharing a jail cell—or worse, a funeral.

Interview with Christina Freeburn

Christina, how long have you been writing, and how did you start?

I’ve been writing since I was a freshman in high school so ... wow ... almost thirty years. I started during a long, boring bus ride to school. It was thirty minute drive so a friend and I decided to write a teenage romance book together. She grew bored after a few weeks, but I continued on.

How did you come up with the title of your book?

Since the first book in the Faith Hunter Scrap mystery series is Cropped to Death, I wanted to pair another scrapbooking term with “to Death.” The second book in the series deals with scraplifting/stealing designs so I went with Designed to Death.

How would you describe your book in five words?

Cozy, crafty, humorous, sassy, and engaging. 

How did you create the plot for this book?

The plot came from combining a couple of different incidents that happened years ago in the scrapbooking community and adding a twist or two to make it a little more unique. I didn’t want the plot to be similar to the actual events and also needed to up it just a little more so it seemed “reasonable” people would find themselves willing to commit murder. And since Faith is the kind of person who is driven to help others, I wondered what would happen if the person in need was someone she didn’t particularly like. 

How do you get to know your characters?

By writing about them. I try and do biographies and write out their back story, but I’ve discovered the most important things, and their deepest secrets, come out when I’m writing the stories and giving the characters freedom to do and say what they want.

What would your main character say about you?

That I’m bossy and fight to get my own way with the story even though she has a better idea and knows what’s really going on in Eden. I need to let go of what I want to happen so what is actually happening can take place on the page.

Tell us about your favorite scene in the book.

Without giving too much of the plot away, it’s a toss-up between Faith and Darlene getting caught by Detective Ted Roget as their looking for clues at someone’s house, and a scene involving Washi tape.

What song would you pick to go with your book?

By the end of the book, Faith’s theme song is "Undo It," by Carrie Underwood.

What book are you currently reading and in what format (e-book/paperback/hardcover)?

Travel Unscripted by Mark Murphy in ebook format.

Where’s home for you?

West Virginia.

Would you rather work in a library or a bookstore?

I used to work in a library and loved it. So I’d pick a library.

You won the lottery. What’s the first thing you would buy?

A house or condo in Florida that’s close to a port and also Orlando.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

I like to scrapbook, read or quilt. And my favorite thing of all to do would be traveling, especially to Disney World though we can’t do that very often.

What are you working on now?

I’m working on Embellished to Death, book 3 in the Scrapbooking series.

About the author:

Christina has loved books since she can remember. There was nothing better than picking up a story and finding herself in another place and meeting new people. The love of reading evolved into the love of writing, and she's been writing since her teenage years. Her first novel, Parental Source, was a 2003 Library of Virginia Literary award nominee. Whether it's a detective story or an inspirational romantic suspense, her stories usually involve some sort of crime where the characters are determined to see those wrongs righted.

Featured Author: Christopher Compton

I'm happy to introduce you to Canadian fantasy and adventure writer Christopher Compton today to talk about his book Eternal Dreams: The Curse of Memories.

About the book:

Eternal Dreams is a fiction fantasy tale about six teenage friends who escape into a dream world to hide from the horrors of their own lives, only to find that reality is catching up with them anyway. Drephoria, the name of the stunning dream world created from their collective minds, will test the limits of their friendship, break the balance between good and evil, and prove the true value of memories and the imagination.

The first book in the trilogy, The Curse of Memories, focuses on the central character Kail and his dark past, told through memories, while simultaneously introducing the rest of his friends (known as The Inseparable Six) and the other strange and deadly inhabitants of Drephoria. Pitted against the dark queen Malise and her legendary allies known as The Forgotten Four, Kail and his friends must rid their world of evil before they lose themselves forever. Nostalgic, thrilling, heart-breaking, and consistently memorable, Eternal Dreams is a fantasy at its finest.


Interview with Christopher Compton

How long have you been writing, and how did you start?



I used to read Hardy Boy detective novels when I was really young, probably around seven or eight, and just couldn’t get enough of them. It got to the point where I had run out of books to read and decided to write my own stories, just to read them after. Gordon Linker Mysteries, they were called. I obviously knew the endings before I started reading them, but I quickly started to realize that I was having more fun writing than reading anyway. I would give the stories to my parents and friends to see if they got the same enjoyment out of reading my work as I got out of reading the Hardy Boys. That inclination to produce and share enjoyment is where it all started.

How did you come up with the title of your book?

To be honest, Eternal Dreams was just a working title for quite a while. I knew I wanted the sub-heading to be The Curse of Memories, because of how the book depicts memories as something that holds people back, but Eternal Dreams itself was a placeholder. The more I wrote, however, the more it just made sense. Eventually I stopped trying to think up something that could replace it.

How did you create the plot for Eternal Dreams?

As cheesy and possibly cliché as it sounds, the plot came to me in a dream. Not all at once, of course. That would have been overwhelming. It started with an image, really. Two people standing in a white dreamscape created from their combined imaginations. I didn’t know all the details of who they were or why they were there, but the basics of a dream world were clear to me. By the time I woke up, I started to flesh out what that image could possibly mean. I filled the dreamscape up with heroes and villains and sights people could only see in dreams. That’s when I knew I had a book on my hands.

How do you get to know your characters?

Getting to know my characters was like hanging out with a group of people I knew would be destined to be good friends. It’s a little awkward at first, but after someone cracks a stupid joke and names are exchanged, everyone becomes comfortable. I ask difficult questions of myself and let each character answer them in their own way. I like to think creating each chapter in Eternal Dreams is like rehearsing a scene for a play. I give them the lines, they memorize them, but there’s always room for some improvisation. In those unscripted moments, that’s when I discover who these people really are.

Which character did you most enjoy writing?

Each member of The Inseparable Six is very dear to me and picking a favorite to write for is like picking which kid I am most proud of. I guess I’ll just have to live with those consequences. Kanoa, the dreamer of the group, always strikes a chord with me. While he isn’t the main character, the story practically revolves around him. He packs a huge amount of momentum behind him and every scene he’s a part of has a chance to go completely off the rails. That level of danger and unpredictably is always a thrill, but it can also be somewhat emotionally exhausting writing him. Sure, he’s a dreamer finally getting his dream world, but in his mind, he had to wait far too long and suffer far too many disappointments to get there. Reality has taken a toll on him as the damaged layers start to pull away it becomes obvious that letting his imagination go wild is perhaps not the best idea.

Are any of your characters inspired by real people?

It would be unfair of me to say that all the characters in Eternal Dreams are totally original or pure works of my own imagination. The overlap in personal qualities between my own friends and The Inseparable Six are impossible to ignore. I’ve literally lifted parts of conversations I’ve had with my friends to use as dialogue, with their permission of course. I won’t go into specifics as to which character resembles which friend, but they probably know who they are. I just hope I don’t owe them royalties.

Are you like any of your characters?

Even more so than my friends, The Inseparable Six are reflections and fractions of me. At the risk of that sounding completely conceited, I’ll explain that I think everyone has more than one personality they share with the world. A single person can have many personas. The Inseparable Six are an expansion of my many personas. Kail, the main character, is the introverted, pessimistic side of me, Cora is the ambitious side that never stops looking forward, Thalia embodies my youthful, energetic qualities etc. I take multiple traits that match with one another and flesh them out until they form a character. So while no single character is more like me than another, they combine into a pretty accurate portrait of who I’ve been, who I am, and who I might become.

Tell us about your favorite scene in the book.

I absolutely abhor spoilers, so I’ll attempt to pick a scene that is still memorable without revealing too much. Early on in the novel, right when The Inseparable Six hit the dream world, they don’t have a very good handle on how to control their thoughts or the world they’ve unknowingly created. This leads to quite a few instances of the world reacting to their emotions in undesirable and unintentional ways. My favorite is a scene that juxtaposes how Kail deals with his new surroundings compared to his best friend Kanoa. Kail immediately gets stuck in jungle and has difficulty finding his way out because the jungle keeps shifting around. He doesn’t know he’s the one doing it, or how to stop it. It takes everything he has to make an escape. It’s clear that he’s going to have some troubles adjusting to the rules, or lack thereof. Then he meets up with Kanoa, who is riding down a mountain on the back of an avalanche as if it was second nature. It’s such a shocking contrast that it’s practically comical, while hinting at the true capabilities of the world they find themselves in. That’s the moment I think the reader might stop and think "literally anything can happen here." And I want them to know that they’re right.

What song would you pick to go with Eternal Dreams?

Eternal Dreams wouldn’t exist in its current incarnation of it weren’t for one single song. When I was trying to peg down a tone to slap onto the narrative, it was originally much lighter. It was going to be a lighthearted fantasy romp through a fun, colorful dream world. The day I heard MGMT’s "Time to Pretend" while writing, was the day that changed everything. It’s dark, energetic rhythm and reckless, melancholic lyrics infused Eternal Dreams with a rusted, jagged edge courtesy of reality that didn’t exist before. Suddenly, it was a story about kids coming to terms with the flaws in their dreams, realizing they weren’t invincible, and the harsh truth that not everything was going to be okay.

Who are your favorite authors?



My favorite authors will probably surprise a grand total of zero people. I grew up on J. K Rowling and J. R. R. Tolkien like most kids from the 90s. I’m pretty sure Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter are required reading to pass your teen years as a human being. Other than that, I like to cherry pick my favorites. Stephen King is a great author for the millions of books he’s written, but It really sticks out to me the most, not just of his work, but of anyone’s. Stephen Chbosky’s Perks of Being a Wallflower should also be mandatory reading in high school, in my opinion. And without Lewis Carroll and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, I’d probably not be doing this interview or have a published book.


Do you have a routine for writing?

Whenever I’m in the hazy divide between sleep and awake is when I’m writing. First thing in the morning, before I eat breakfast or brush my teeth, I’m writing. Last thing at night, just before my head hits the pillow, I’m writing. Exhaustion is apparently fuel for my imagination. Once I become fully awake, the ideas start to fizzle out. I’m probably one of few who love waking up in the middle of the night. Some of my crazier ideas were born in the dead of night with eyes full of fatigue.

Where and when do you prefer to do your writing?


I can’t write with people around me. I like to shut myself off from the world and just pretend it doesn’t exist. I don’t need a specific place to write, but I do need solitude. Outside stimuli is distracting to me. There’s only one thing that will get me in the perfect mood to write: music. Nothing kills my abilities faster than silence. I need to absolutely drown out everything around me with noise. It has to be songs I’m familiar with though, or I’ll just end up focusing on the words or instruments instead of the words in front of me. If I can get alone, swallowed in a soundscape, I’m golden. 


What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

To me, making memories is the point of life, if there really is one. I don’t want to be one of those people that has a hard time filling a single page if I were to write an autobiography. I love being with my friends, getting into adventures, traveling, pretty much anything that has the potential to create a memorable moment. I’m aware that every day can’t be remembered, however, and sometimes I’m comfortable just watching a movie, reading a book or playing video games. Consuming entertainment is important when creating your own.

What are you working on now?

Right now is pure promotion for my first book. I want to get the word out there as best as I possibly can to anyone that’s willing to listen. If I’m going to make a career out of this, I have to be as ambitious and persistent as possible. I’m also writing the follow-up to The Curse of Memories, titled The Gift of Memories. Hopefully it doesn’t take too long and everyone can see the adventure continue. I’m just excited about every opportunity that comes my way.

About the author:

Christopher Compton, an aspiring young writer with dreams probably a little too big for this world, received the Most Imaginative Setting Award for Eternal Dreams: The Curse of Memories. He’s from a small town north of Toronto called Keswick. He is a graduate from Western University with a major in English Language and Literature and a minor in Creative Writing. He hopes to settle in his favourite place of all, New York.



Connect with Christopher:
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