Want to know my back story? Know more about me?
Check out my latest author interview, here and enjoy the ride!
Passionate* Playful* Paranormal
11 Apr 2022 Leave a comment
by TK Lawyer in Uncategorized Tags: author interview
Want to know my back story? Know more about me?
Check out my latest author interview, here and enjoy the ride!
09 Aug 2019 Leave a comment
by TK Lawyer in Author Interviews Tags: Amazon, author interview, Author Spotlights, Authors, contemporary romance, ebook, Kindle, romance
Hi Readers,
I am here again with another fantastic author. Check out my interview with the lovely Gina and take a look at her hot books, too!
Thank you, Gina, for joining us.
Honestly, I do not have a favorite; (it’s like your children you can’t play favorites) but I enjoyed writing each one with there unique characters and situations. My suggestion is to start with my stand-alone books, or the sequel sets which ever you prefer. (Rachel or Love Hot/ Lie Royally)
2. Writing is a difficult endeavor. What makes you continue to write?
I haven’t found the writing part to be difficult, it is finding time to write. I am a 40 hour a week working mom, uber mom and sports mom, so on Saturdays and Sundays I may have some free time, but it isn’t a lot.
3. What do you look forward to every day?
I prefer to get some sleep at night, but new storylines or characters wake me from my slumber most of the time.
4. How do you define success? What makes you successful?
Success is the finale to the end of writing a book, cover and all. Successful is when I see four to five-star ratings on Amazon.com for one of my books and when I get to see readers faces at book signing events eager to read the next book.
5. Any tips for a newbie writer?
Never give up. Don’t let anyone diminish your dreams, writing is an art form and it should be shared, expressed and admired.
Follow Gina on Amazon and one click your favorite in her collection:
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00M9C7UUK
19 Jul 2019 Leave a comment
by TK Lawyer in Author Interviews Tags: Amazon, author, author interview, Author Spotlights, Authors, ebook, inspiration, Kindle, life, romance
Hi Readers,
I am back with another incredible author. Check out my interview with Douglas J. McLeod who writes under the pen names: C. D. Melley, and Crimson Nuage and then one click his featured book “The Prairie Fire Within.”
Thank you so much for joining me!
I guess my favorite book to write was my first foray into the romance genre, The Prairie Fire Within. Before then, most of the stories I wrote were of the detective genre; whether it was private eye stories in elementary school, or the paranormal detective tales I write now. However, I wanted to try something different. Since most of the authors I had befriended on social media at the time wrote romance, I decided to give that a go. Only one problem: how to distinguish myself from my detective books? At the time, my great aunt was losing her battle with Stage IV lung cancer, so I made a vow to myself and to her: I would create a new author persona to pay homage to her. Taking the initials of one of my middle names, and my real first name, as well as, her maiden name, the name “C. D. Melley” was born. I released “TPFW” in February 2014, and was the first book of an intended trilogy. Admittedly, with three personas, and a plethora of plot bunnies to chase, the rest of the trilogy has been slow coming. I released the second book, The Prairie Fire Rekindled, in November 2017, and the final tome, The Prairie Fire Ablaze, has a goal of an August 2020 release. Whether or not I make that deadline is yet to be seen.
The Prairie Fire Within is available on Amazon and other fine eBook retailers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IGGNT30
2. Writing is a difficult endeavor. What makes you continue to write?
It is quite a difficult endeavor; even more so when you have a full-time job and are also studying part-time towards a university degree. That being said, I enjoy writing. I feel there are some compelling stories within me, and some interesting ideas that have popped into my head over the years. Granted, some of them have not been seen through to completion. I guess you could argue I have a bit of ADD in that regard. Regardless, I believe everyone has a creative side. For example, my wife makes homemade crafts for herself and the dog rescue she volunteers with. My case, it’s writing. I find it very cathartic to get my thoughts and feelings down on paper, or in a document, after a stressful day or week at work. It helps calm and relax me in the process.
3. What do you look forward to every day?
It’s funny you ask that. For years, I would dread getting out of bed every day because I felt like I didn’t have any real purpose or drive. I was constantly depressed and suffered from anxiety. This was due to a negative upbringing where I was made to believe I wouldn’t amount to anything. But thanks to writing and other positive cognitive practices, I am grateful for what the day brings me. Before, I didn’t have much to look forward to; whether it was in life, work, or romantic relationships. Now, I have a wonderful wife who supports me every step of the way, a day job that, while it can be stressful and aggravating at times, helps put food on the table, and a whole new life I didn’t think was possible years ago.
Part of that was moving away from a Toronto neighborhood where I lived the majority of my life (37 years) to start this aforementioned new life in Florida over three years ago. My anxiety was through the roof because I was not ready to step out of my comfort zone. But thanks to my now wife, she helped me break down those psychological walls, and show me that, in the famous words of basketball all-star Kevin Garnett, “Anything is possible.”
4. How do you define success? What makes you successful?
One would think success as an author is measured by sales, having a devout following of readers, or having a lucrative publishing deal. I don’t see that to be the case for me. As someone who is as eclectic and varied as myself between my three personas and the three genres I write (paranormal detective/mystery, romance with various levels of steam, and reflective poetry), it’s tough to garner a following. While I do enjoy it when I go to an event and sell a paperback copy of one of my titles, or I log into one of my online publishing accounts and see an e-copy has been purchased, I know that there are others who sell a considerable amount more. I think it’s because they have the time and energy to write on a regular basis. Alas, with my schedule, I try to write when I can. I guess, in short, my success is measured in the small victories I’m able to make along the way.
5. Any tips for a newbie writer?
My number one piece of advice for a new writer is not to get discouraged. The road to success has the odd pothole in it, and if you’re not careful, it will mess you up. You might not get the sales you hope for right away, or you might feel like you’re a small fish in a big pond. That’s perfectly alright. Just continue to write what you enjoy. To paraphrase the famous quote from the movie, Field of Dreams, “If you write it, they will read.”
Also, don’t get too intimidated when it comes to marketing yourself and your books. As a self-published author, the promotional aspects fall squarely upon our shoulders, and I’ll be perfectly honest, I can’t market myself worth a crap, so it can be quite daunting when you don’t know what you’re doing. However, getting to know fellow, supportive authors and others in the book community will help you on your journey.
You might hear the horror stories of cliques in the community, and yes, in some aspects, there is a “high school mentality” amongst some individuals. Those are the type of people you want to avoid and not get wrapped up in the drama. But if you do your research, there are some absolutely supportive people out there who will actually help you along the way. Just be prepared to return their generosity in kind because it is truly a “do unto others as they do unto you” mindset and courtesy to them. Just be careful if you intend to turn a hated rival into a dead body in a future work of fiction. Litigation can be an awful bitch.
** Follow Douglas McLeod and his writing endeavors at**
https://www.facebook.com/DouglasJMcleodAuthor
21 Feb 2019 Leave a comment
by TK Lawyer in Author Interviews Tags: angels, author interview, Author Spotlights, Authors, blogger, ebook, Foundations Publishing, Guardian Angels, Guardian League, Interviews, orion, paranormal romance, TK Lawyer, Writers
Many Thanks to Author Patty Perrin for hosting me on her blog!
Check out my latest Author Interview and leave a comment or two. Be sure to one click my latest book, Orion! Available on Amazon, B&N, Kobo, Ibooks and so many more options!
15 Nov 2018 Leave a comment
by TK Lawyer in Author Interviews Tags: Amazon, Amazon Kindle, author interview, Authors, ebook, indie, indie authors, Kindle
Hi Readers,
You know what I like just as much as reading? It’s spending time with great authors like Melissa Banczak. Recently, I was able to catch up with her for an interview. Let me share my experience with you.
Melissa, thank you so much for the opportunity to steal you away from your busy life to answer some questions for my readers. So, let’s begin.
I was a screenwriter for ten years so there were a lot of great characters that I created and still think about. Some produced, some not. I switched to novels a couple of years ago when I’d had enough of that life. So far, I’ve only written one full length book and a prequel, so I’m going with the novel, How to Sex Your Snake. It started as a nanowrimo back in 2004 with a place holder title of, The Aha Moment – A woman falls in love with a guy who collects snakes and then gets caught up in a murder mystery, all while trying to figure out what she wants out of life. I hit the word count but the story was only 2/3rds of the way done and I had no idea how to end it. So I set it aside. Then a couple of years later, my husband left me in charge of his 100 or so snakes (most were babies) while he was out of the country for a year.
One of the first days, I walked into the bathroom and found myself nose to nose with a 9 foot boa hanging from the bathroom light. My daughter had put the snake in the shower and when she’d been done, the snake had climbed up on the light to dry. Everyday was something new and by the time my husband got back, I had the changes I needed for my book, a great new title, and a heroine who had no one to blame for her misery but herself thanks to her bad choices. Maybe because June is completely my creation, she is my favorite. There won’t be an actress to make choices and change how she interacts with the world. She’s all mine.
2. Writing is a difficult endeavor. What makes you continue to write?
I have no idea! I’m horribly lazy. Notes from my readers help. People asking for the next in the series or what else I’m working on. Seeing sales on my amazon dashboard and knowing I have no idea who those people are. I’m a tiny bit ambitious so that helps me pop my computer in the case and head out to the coffee house. I hate the idea of my characters being stuck in limbo. (my head)
Chocolate cake! Some days, one of the only ways to get out the door, is to tell myself I’ll get a slice of chocolate cake and eat it while I write. I never do, though. I look at the cake in the case and think about how great it would taste. And then at the last minute, I change my mind. I think about how crappy I’ll feel with all that sugar in my system. And I just get tea. But, I absolutely love chocolate cake, so on some days, the very idea of it is the only way to get me on my way. I never write at home. Too many distractions.
Selling books! As long as people are buying I’m a happy camper. I have enough sales on Amazon to suggest that I’m building an audience. Hopefully, they want more. As I write the sequel to How to Sex Your Snake, I’m world building two additional series. I plan on holding back both until they’re complete then rapid releasing. Probably one every month. When readers find a series they like they want to binge. I know I do.
You know your story. Don’t ever let anyone talk you out of telling it. Yeah, an editor will help you shape it but if there’s something that you really don’t want to change, fight for it. But understand why you want to keep whatever it is. And be able to explain the reason. If you can’t, you don’t need whatever it was.
How to sex your snake is available on Amazon!
Follow Melissa:
https://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Banczak/e/B01N7UG4ZW
https://www.facebook.com/melissabanczakauthor/
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7103263.Melissa_Banczak
Join Melissa’s Newsletter:
A pool of blood…A missing body…A famous brother accused of murder. June Nash has the worst luck. Get the first 56 pages of my new book, How to Sex Your Snake, free! https://melissabanczak.com/mailing-list/
29 Oct 2018 Leave a comment
by TK Lawyer in Author Interviews Tags: Amazon, author interview, Author Spotlights, Authors, ebook, halloween, horror, indie, indie authors, Kindle, kindle unlimited
Hi Readers,
Love Halloween? How about some thrilling, heartbeat racing, horror? Well that’s what you will find with this scream-worthy author Steven Evans. Check out my interview with him:
Just trying to continue and add to a story that is already known
world wide and keep the integrity of I intact even if you’ve changed
the basis of it, it’s an adventure in itself.
2. Writing is a difficult endeavor. What makes you continue to write?
world of published books. If even one person enjoys what I write, it
all becomes worthwhile.
3. What do you look forward to every day?
worries. I really like no plans just seeing what comes my way.
4. How do you define success? What makes you successful?
what success entails. I guess, I’d have to say, to me, success is more
if I can actually get the story out of my head the way it’s supposed to
be.
5. Any tips for a newbie writer?
First: If you believe in yourself then you can never give up. Always
keep striving to improve your style.
Second: Don’t be afraid to ask your peers for help. Many indie authors
are happy to give advice. This is also a two part answer. Never believe
you are so talented or popular that you forget to be grateful. Remember,
no matter how hard you’ve worked to get to this point, you haven’t done
it alone. There have been people helping throughout your journey.
⋙•⋘Daddy’s Angel (Weeping Willow Book 1)⋙•⋘
Written by Steven Evans
$0.99 on #Amazon OR #FREEonKU
Check out Daddy’s Angel – Trailer
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=454101794937441&id=306536453027310
Blurb:
“For some, living is a daily struggle. Their loneliness guides them and their sadness isolates them.”
Tortured by his guilt, a man’s suffering allows an Evil force to enter his dreams.
his life becomes a living nightmare. Memories blurred by reality; he longs for a sweet release. “A release that can only be found in Death.”
To ease his pain, will he mingle with the Darkness and surrender his soul?
#NowLive #KindleUnlimited #UltimateLoss #Nightmares #Death #WeepingWillowSeries #DaddysAngel #StevenEvans #ParanormalActivity #Possessed #Darkness
15 Oct 2018 Leave a comment
by TK Lawyer in Author Interviews Tags: Amazon, author interview, Author Spotlights, Authors, books, ebook, fantasy, Foundations Publishing, goodreads, new books, sci-fi, science fiction
Hi amazing readers,
Who loves Halloween and things that go bump in the night? How about a thrilling Sci-Fi/Fantasy during this phenomenal month? That’s what this stellar author’s new book is all about.
Check out my latest interview with author Steve Soderquist. His latest book The Mor is available now!
I have to say my most recent book ‘The Mor’ has hit many soft spots regarding favorite characters and moments. I’ve always loved the sci-fi genre but never felt compelled to write anything of it myself, preferring to stay in fan-boy status. However, when I was helping to remove some dead shrubs from our front yard area to keep from strangling the live ones, I kept running across these little pod-like red blisters on the dead branches. They looked almost alien to me, which isn’t saying anything mind-blowing as I have a zero green thumb. Still, it was the catalyst to the idea that eventually made its way to becoming a book.
I had many intimidating factors, such as: Will I need to write about spaceships? Will I need people to visit different planets? Will there be gooey aliens or things that are so far-fetched I’ll find myself sorely out-matched by a lack of imagination or ability to explain my vision of what I see?
I am very much a character author. Meaning, I write about people responding to circumstances, not circumstances dictating what people will do. If you take three different personalities and put them in a stressful scene, they will all respond differently. This is the meat and potatoes to my writing style. I enjoy writing real people in unreal, or dangerous, or strange situations, then having them realistically and depending on their own talents and abilities, find a way out. ‘The Mor’ was able to do that as even though the two opposing alien races in the book were as night and day as we are, they still had to coexist in the same dynamics of our world. It allowed for some great setups and situations.
2. Writing is a difficult endeavor. What makes you continue to write?
I love the challenge of figuring out how to get from point A to point B and beyond. If a writer can tell the story in a way that’s interesting and that clicks with the reader – so they’re along for the ride – so much the better. For me, writing is only difficult if nothing in the story is going on. I always need to remind myself to slow down at times and get a little back-story, in the story. If I don’t, I tend to 90-to-Nothing the whole book.
A good book should be like a roller coaster ride with building tension, followed by stomach-rolling drops and turns. It’s a writing process that can takes years (if ever) for a writer to get. I don’t know how many times I had to slow down ‘The Mor.’ Too many to count. Often it was like a car with no brakes on a steep hill. But, thanks to careful editing, re-writes, and beta-readers who are about as subtle as surgeons operating with baseball bats, I found a happy balance.
3. What do you look forward to every day?
As I edit, format, review submissions, and handle other day to day operations for Foundations, I’ve been incredibly blessed that I still love what I do. I can work 12 or 14 hours in a day,
unplug, then sit up and read in bed for an hour…lol. I’m really in love with the written word that much. The more I read, the more I learn—both the good and the bad. I’ve learned just as much from a badly written book as I have from a great one. What I MOST look forward to, however, is spending some quiet time with Laura, my fiancé, business partner, and best friend. Not many people can take my level of intensity except in small doses, but she has a way of winding through those roads without needing any headlights. Catch us late at night, and you’ll most likely find us vegging and binge watching a Netflix or Hulu original. We have the same tastes in entertainment, so that’s one of our mutual happy places.
4. How do you define success? What makes you successful?
There was a time when success for me circled around monetary wealth and possessions. After being humbled time and again, I now gauge success by how much you enrich the lives of those you encounter. It’s the basis of how I live my life and how I treat others. The smallest pebble thrown in water makes ripples that spread all around it. I am a pebble.
5. Any tips for a newbie writer?
Read and write, write and read. Do both every day. Push yourself to learn the mechanics. A mediocre story that’s well-written will sell, and often sell very well… a great story that’s badly written won’t. Proper English isn’t something anyone is born with. It’s a learned subject that needs to turn into a habit as natural as breathing. Take courses, go to classes, and study. Most of all, don’t let anyone tell you that you’re wasting your time. No one can write like you. Not the trillions of people who lived before you or the trillions after. Just you.
And have fun!
Social Links:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/steve.soderquist.3
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/SteveSoderquistAuthor/
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/stevesoderquist
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6626657.Steve_Soderquist
Google+: https://plus.google.com/116546158818053309346
Twitter: https://twitter.com/skirascal – @skirascal
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevesoderquist/
Email: https://steves@foundationsbooks.net
Website: http://www.SteveSoderquist.com/
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV55b1YWTrqw5ihuBMBfcnw
Foundations: https://www.FoundationsBooks.net
04 Sep 2018 Leave a comment
by TK Lawyer in Author Interviews Tags: Amazon, angels, author interview, Author Spotlights, Authors, blogger, books, ebook, fantasy, fiction, Foundations Publishing, goodreads, Guardian Angels, Guardian League, Interviews, Kindle, Nightfall, Paperback, paranormal romance, shifters, TK Lawyer
Hey Readers,
You know what’s great? Being the very first author interviewed by a fellow blogger. Wow!!
I am so honored and excited to share with you my Author Interview on Andrea’s site. Go check it out and show her some love, too!!
http://254bookaholic.blogspot.com/2018/09/mwandishi-spotlight-my-first-interview.html?m=1#more