Author Interview with Teshelle Combs

Day: If you had the opportunity to live anywhere in the world for a year while writing a book that took place in that same setting, where would you choose?

Teshelle: Oh, hands down, I would go to Northern Sweden. The extreme seasons and the Midnight Sun. The Northern Lights and the ice cracking on the frozen lakes while the foxes cry out in the darkness. I would write one HECK of a story.


Day: Picture this: You feel uninspired while you have sat at the computer for an hour without conquering any words. How do you get your creativity flowing?

Teshelle: A long barefoot walk followed by a solo shower so I can play out some new scenes in my head!


Day: Are you a plotter or a Pantser?

Teshelle: I’m largely a pantser, but I could call myself a hybrid. I have a basic plan that I feel fine with changing if need be. And I usually outline my last few chapters or episodes to make sure I “land the plane” okay. The rest…is intuition and improv.


Day: What is your most unusual writing quirk?

Teshelle: I have a little brain-hack ritual for snapping my attention back to my work whenever I get distracted (which is often).


Day: What is your favorite genre to read, and why?

Teshelle: I love fantasy. Especially dystopian fantasy. I really enjoy politics, world-building, delicious character development, and a juicy love interest that bends all the rules. So it’s gotta be some sort of fantasy for me!


Day: Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?


Teshelle: I think a good writer does both. I think my readers expect (or demand at this point) for me to write something unique and original. So I need to deliver!


Day: If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?


Teshelle: Don’t give up, silly genius. Write the darn stories.


Day: What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?


Teshelle: Experiences! The more of the world I taste and see, the more my perspective shifts and the better writer I become.


Day: As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?


Teshelle: A hawk. Hands down. I can see what I want from so very far away, and once I’m in motion toward it, my vision focuses impeccably fast. Also…every time I see a hawk, I pay attention to my surroundings and my life at that current moment. It’s my favorite animal.


Day: How many published and finished books/Vellas do you have?


Teshelle: I have 34 total “books” on Amazon right now. Some are poetry, one is a short story, and the rest are novels. And I have 7 vellas currently as well.


Day: What does literary success look like to you?


Teshelle: I want my stories to fuel my family’s dreams. I want my books to be the foundation for every awesome thing we do in the future.


Day: What’s the best way to market your books?


Teshelle: Talk about your books constantly. With great joy. With extreme passion. Never tire of talking about them. Find the best ways and platforms for talking about them, and then…you guessed it. Talk about them. 


Day: What kind of research do you do, and how long do you spend researching before beginning a book?

Teshelle: I usually need to plan most of the aspects of my fantasy world before I begin. Meanings of names, cultural references, types of food, dress, greetings, customs, and societal expectations. All of these I research and map out before I start writing. Usually, some version of the story has been cooking in my mind for many months, if not years. So once I get to the research phase, it only takes a day or two. Then I’m off to writing.


Day: How many hours a day do you write?


Teshelle: It’s different every day because I have a pretty eclectic life schedule. Sometimes one hour, sometimes five.

 


Day: Do you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find?


Teshelle: Oh yes, DEFINITELY. I have had readers sit down together with pencils and pens and highlighters and try to find my secrets! 


Day: What was your most harrowing scene to write?

Teshelle: I am currently writing it. The final scenes in my upcoming release, Tuck Me In, are excruciating for me. I sure hope the story will be worth it. I think it’s an important one to tell.


Day: What is your favorite time to write, and why?

Teshelle: I would love to write around 10am every day, but that’s when I start homeschooling the boys, so it almost never happens at that time. 


Day: Do you feel like it’s most important to have A) Strong characters B) Mind-blowing Plot twists, or C) Epic settings?

Teshelle: Strong characters. If a character is strong enough, they could simply sit in a room for four hundred pages, and it would be intriguing. (Oh no. That’s a good story idea. Uh oh.)


Day: Can you give a shout-out to a fellow author?

Teshelle: I will hands down shout out my dearest friend, LM Siddens. Check out their work because they are kind and whole and also brilliant and talented.


Teshelle’s Top three Vellas are:

The First Stone

Sanaa of Rote exists only to please her father, the King, by marrying the High Prince of an allied realm. And she will succeed. She must. If she can bear to swallow her hatred for the man to whom she must yield every fragment of her power. | From the world of The First Dryad.

The First Dryad

Aia spent her life in hiding until her secret was discovered, and she was taken to the Palace in chains. Now, among the last crop of an ancient arboreal race, she will have to prove herself useful to the High Prince to survive. But alas, love is ruin. And the last of one race might become the first in another. Season 2 has begun.

Slit Throat Saga

Fantasy like you’ve never read before | They are hunting us. They are hunting me. The death sentence in my veins will stay hidden because I’m clever. Because I’m careful. Because I’m Nexus. Until the people who are supposed to love me threaten to destroy me. But you’ll see. I’ll make a way. And I’ll forge it in blood, in lies…and in metal.


Teshelle’s top three books are:

The Underglow

Aurelie Kendrick hasn’t spoken a word since she was a young girl. Lucky for her, vampires, known in her world simply as “pyres” like Alexander don’t speak either. But in a dark world where pyres are enslaved, forced to drink the blood of their masters, can the speechless find a voice?

The First Dryad

Aia spent her life in hiding…until her secret was discovered, and she was taken to the Palace in chains. Now, among the last crop of an ancient arboreal race, she will have to prove herself useful to the High Prince to survive. But alas, love is ruin. And the last of one race might become the first in another.

Slit Throat Saga

They are hunting us. They are hunting me. The death sentence in my veins will stay hidden because I’m clever. Because I’m careful. Because I’m Nexus. Until the people who are supposed to love me threaten to destroy me. But you’ll see. I’ll make a way. And I’ll forge it in blood, in lies…and in metal.


You can find Teshelle at: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Amazon Author page, and Linktree.


Author Interview with Evie Marceau

Day: What literary pilgrimages have you gone on? For Example, Hemingway’s house.

Evie: I once went to Paris, not as an ode to any one book, but to explore all the quirky little French bookstores. And I even got to visit some castles’ grand libraries. I think I was living out a Belle from Beauty and the Beast fantasy!


Day: If you had the opportunity to live anywhere in the world for a year while writing a book that took place in that same setting, where would you choose?

Evie: My latest book in the Fae of Manhattan series takes place in Tuscany, and I’ve become obsessed with the idea of spending a year writing in an Italian villa!


Day: Picture this: You feel uninspired while you have sat at the computer for an hour without conquering any words. How do you get your creativity flowing?

Evie: I take a lot of inspiration from books, TV shows, and movies I admire. I’ll go online and visit fan sites dedicated to those other stories. Seeing how much stories mean to an audience inspires me to create something special.


Day: Are you a plotter or a Pantser?

Evie: I’m a major plotter. I’ve built out all my fantasy worlds and rules of magic far in advance of ever writing a word.


Day: What is your most unusual writing quirk?

Evie: I usually have a black cat asleep in my lap while I’m writing!


Day: What is your favorite genre to read, and why?

Evie: I adore dark romance with a touch of magic. Something about the combination of danger and romance really grabs me.


Day: Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?

Evie: I think when you read enough fiction in the same genre you write in, you get an innate sense of what readers expect, so you can bring original ideas that will still deliver everything a reader hopes to find.


Day: If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

Evie: Don’t try to write a book that will please everyone. Write the book of your heart, and it will find its readers, even if it’s a small but dedicated niche.


Day: What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?

Evie: Early in my writing journey, I paid $50 for an editor’s critique of the first thing I ever wrote. She ripped it apart (nicely) and gave me so much mind-blowing valuable writing advice that helped me strengthen my craft.


Day: As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?

Evie: Since my black cat is often with me while I write, I’ll go with a black cat.


Day: How many published and finished books/Vellas do you have?

Evie: Currently, I’m working on two Vella series: The Castles of the Eyrie series and the Fae of Manhattan series. As I finish each book within the series, I publish it as an ebook/paperback as well.


Day: What does literary success look like to you?

Evie: Hearing from readers! Getting emails, fan art, and even seeing cosplay costumes of my characters feels amazing.


Day: What’s the best way to market your books?

Evie: Marketing Vella series can be a challenge. I’ve had the most success with Facebook ads.


Day: What kind of research do you do, and how long do you spend researching before beginning a book?

Evie: Before I begin writing, I’ll do just enough research to make sure my plot and setting work–then I’ll write the book, doing some research as I go along, and then do a final polish at the end.


Day: How many hours a day do you write?

Evie: I tend to write in bursts. No writing at all for two or three days, then a few days of 10,000+ words.


Day: Do you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find?

Evie: Absolutely! I sneak little easter eggs into my books for my VIP Reader Group. I’ve also held contests within the VIP Reader Group to have them name characters and locations.


Day: What was your most harrowing scene to write? 

Evie: There is a death scene near the beginning of Scarbound (Castles of the Eyrie Book Two) that broke my heart to write.


Day: What is your favorite time to write, and why?

Evie: I’m at my most creative first thing in the morning. In the afternoons, my brain tends to turn to mush, so that’s when I do marketing or research. Then sometimes before bed, I will edit.


Day: Do you feel like it’s most important to have A) Strong characters B) Mind-blowing Plot twists, or C) Epic settings?

Evie: It’s been said that readers come for the premise but stay for the characters. I think that’s true. Every book needs a great idea to hook readers, but if the characters aren’t compelling, no one will care or remember what happens to them. 


Day: Can you give a shout-out to a fellow author?

Evie: Lately, I’ve been devouring Elizabeth Ash’s Vella series!


Evie’s Vellas are:

Wilde City (A Modern Fae Romance)

When Willow answers a mysterious nanny ad, she’s shocked that the employer is the handsome and reclusive billionaire Severn Wilde–and even more surprised to discover he’s a fae prince in disguise. But as wondrous as Severn’s realm is, rival fae courts, witches, and shifters make it a risky job–though falling for her magical boss might be the greatest danger of all.

SCARLIGHT

As a child, Bryn was saved from wolves by a prince from a rival kingdom. Rangar’s people believe that a life saved is a soul owned, and ten years later, Rangar comes back for Bryn. Swept away to his seaside kingdom, Bryn falls under the spell of the wild Baer lands and the three magical brothers who rule it. But which prince will end up with her hand–and her heart–not even magic can foretell. 


You can find Evie on: Instagram, Her Website, Facebook, and TicToc.

Cursed Rebel

 

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Title: Cursed Rebel
Author:  H.G. Lynch
Published:  July 14th, 2015
Publisher:  Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly Publishing
Genre:  Young Adult Fantasy
Recommended Age:  15+

 

 

~Synopsis~ 

 

     Never trust a pretty face. My grandma taught me that. She warned me about the Fair Folk but I never believed her…until I was kidnapped by one. And damn, he is pretty.

     But Fin was sent to bring me to his King, and if I want to survive the Otherworld, I have no choice but to trust him – for now.

     Oh, and did I mention my sexy best friend is hunting me? I should’ve listened to Gran.

Read FREE with Kindle Unlimited



~Excerpt from Cursed Rebel by H.G. Lynch~

 

     Looking at the faery boy in front of me, with his exquisite features and striking eyes, I thought that Grandma had been right. I was realizing she had been right about a lot of things. I wished I’d listened to her better, wished I’d believed her when she warned me about the Fair Folk.

Staring into those inhumanly bright eyes, seeing the glitter of something cruel beneath that prettiness, I whimpered. I didn’t mean to, and the second I did, I wished I hadn’t. I couldn’t show fear there, or the beautiful monsters would tear me apart like well-disguised lions.



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About the Author:

     H.G. Lynch is a Scottish Paranormal Romance author, avid reader, and cat-lover. She spends most of her days writing, while wrestling her cat, Sooki, off her laptop. She believes that chocolate cake can save the world, and is highly caffeine-addicted. She loves horse-riding, Star Trek, and snow.
     Her books are dark fantasy romances, usually with a bad boy and a bad girl. Sometimes with zombies, sometimes vampires, sometimes other things.




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Giveaway Details:

There is a tour wide giveaway. Prizes include the following:

  • $15 Amazon gift card. Giveaway is International.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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