Monday, December 2, 2013
INTRODUCING OUR NEXT AUTHOR -
MARIE LAVENDER
PUBLISHED AUTHOR OF SEVENTEEN BOOKS (TO DATE) AND COUNTING
1 Please tell us a
little about your background.
A: I come from a small town in
the Midwest. It was just my parents and
three kids. I was the youngest.
2 You are an
established author. Have you always
wanted to write or when did you discover this desire?
A: Yes, it seems like I always
wanted to write. Pretty much from the
time I was nine years old, I wanted to be an author.
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| RANSOM |
3 As a teenager,
was there anything else you had considered as a career?
A: At
one point, I considered
owning my own bookstore because I loved books so much. I also thought
about being a singer. I was in choir practically all of my life and
I considered singing professionally, but I was really too shy at the
time for
it.
4 How old were you
when you discovered the writer in you?
A: Nine years old.
5 What triggered
your desire to write?
A: I wish I knew what started
it. It just seemed like I always had an
active imagination. When other kids were
playing outside, I had whole scenes and stories in my head. Not that I didn’t have a couple of friends
too. I was just a little more of an
introvert.
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| A TOUCH OF DAWN |
A: I have published seventeen books.
7 Who and/or what
inspires you?
A: I
write romance so I am
inspired by many things, mostly true love.
Reading about it or seeing it in films is inspiring to me. I prefer to
see it in real life though. When I see two people who are simply made
for
each other in life, that is very inspiring.
My fiancé also inspires me every day, whether it is his encouragement of
me or his own creative ambitions. I am
also inspired any time I can tell how much he loves me. What is more
inspiring to a romance writer
than having her own love story?
8 You are
successfully self-published. Did you
consider going through any of the
mainstream publishing houses first?
A: Of
course I did. And I had certainly planned to all
along. But, I watched how the
self-publishing craze took on a life of its own and it made me curious.
I thought I’d try it myself. I started out with my literary fiction,
knowing it was hard to find a market for short stories, and compiled
them into
anthologies. After that, I published
various books, mostly contemporary romance, romantic suspense,
paranormal
romance and mysteries.
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| PERFECT GAME |
9 ‘Upon Your
Return’ is published through
traditional publishing. How did that
happen, when your other titles were self-published?
A: I really always planned to
publish 'Upon Your Return' traditionally. It was a very long
project for me, a nearly ten year project.
But, I worked hard and got it where I wanted it before I started sending
queries to agents and publishers.
10 The cover of ‘Upon
Your Return’ is beautiful. Who
designed that?
A: Kayden McLeod was the cover
artist.
11 How have you
proceeding with your marketing?
A: I have done what I can. My marketing budget has been pretty limited
so I have mainly used Google+, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. I also try to have listings of my books
wherever I can. And I have a few book
cover ads as well.
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| A MISPLACED LIFE |
12 You enjoy
reading. Do you have any favourite
authors?
A: Definitely. Some of my favourites are Catherine Coulter, Nora Roberts, J.R. Ward, P.C. Cast and Kerrelyn Sparks.
13 What other
hobbies do you have?
A: Besides reading and
writing? Hmm. Well, I love music so I spend a lot of time
listening to different types of music.
Sometimes I use music to set the mood for my writing. And, of course, I sing along because for the
moment, I still have the ability to sing.
LOL. I also have some TV shows I
follow. And I see films when I can.
14 Have you ever
read any titles more than once?
A: Of course. I do that now and then, revisit old titles to
see if they are still just as good as the first time I read them.
14 What is your
favourite genre?
A: Romance is my
favourite. I have branched out and tried
other types of books, but romance is my favourite. I enjoy reading paranormal romance,
contemporary and historical romance.
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| HAUNTED |
16 Have you had much
to do with the media and interviews? How
did you start that – please tell us all about it.
A: I have never been on
widespread media channels, but I have done interviews. In August of 2012, 'Upon Your Return' was accepted by Solstice Publishing. After that, I started to learn more about how
to market my books. I realized blogging
was a big thing, and so were interviews.
My first online interview was with RC Bonitz on his site. It posted in March of 2013, about a month
after 'Upon Your Return' was
released. http://rcbonitz.com/2013/03/20/483/ From that
point on, I did everything I could to find bloggers that might interview me or
spotlight my book. I also did guest
articles. But, I gave back too. I launched my own blog that offered author
interviews, guest posts and poetry spotlights.
You can subscribe or join the blog here. http://marielavender.blogspot.com/ Writing in the
Modern Age has really taken on a life of its own. It’s been such a joy working with a bunch of
different writers.
17 Whether a victim
or not, how do you feel about bullying?
A: Of course, I don’t condone
it. No one should be put down or shamed
for being different. They shouldn’t be
treated unfairly for any reason. I’m not
sure how we can enforce it, but if I had children, I would want to protect
them.
18 Do you feel the
governments and schools are doing enough to try to control or stop this act?
A: There is clearly a public
outcry against it. But, I don’t know if
much is being done about it. I see some
changes, but I think it will be awhile before we see enough done to stop it
altogether.
19 What is next in
the pipeline for Marie Lavender?
A: Well, I just released a new book - 'Leather and Lace'. It is a romantic suspense and was published under my pen name Erica Sutherhome.
I also plan to have an anthology out soon. I am polishing the sequel to 'Upon Your Return' right now. I am also working on another romantic suspense with
a writing partner. Additionally, I plan to re-release all my old titles under one name. So, there’s quite a
bit on my plate. LOL.
20 Do you have a
message you would like to impart to the world?
Links: Website
Blog
Blog
Titles of Marie's Books include:
'Unsettling Responsibility' (short story from 'Writing Out of the Margin' - 2005)
'A Time to Fall' (short story from 'Writing Out of the Margin' - 2005)
'Express Cafe & Other Ramblings'
'Ramblings, Musings & Other Things'
'Soulful Ramblings & Other Worldly Things'
'Hard to Get'
'Memories'
'A Hint of Scandal'
'Without You'
'Strange Heat'
'Terror in the Night'
'Haunted'
'Pursuit'
'A Misplaced Life'
'Perfect Game'
'A Touch of Dawn'
'Ransom'
'Upon Your Return'
and the newly released:
'Leather & Lace'
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