Top Selling Authors: Get To Know Them Better

Featured Interview With Fiona Rintoul

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I’m a Scottish writer based in Glasgow and on the Isle of Harris. I flit between these two very different places with my husband and our two Labradors. I grew up in East Kilbride, a new town on the outskirts of Glasgow, and spent many years living and working abroad and in London, before returning – gratefully – to Scotland in 2005.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I was a voracious reader as a child and have always loved writing. The first time I remember being really excited by creative writing was aged about 12 during a school test, when I felt I’d nailed a description of some trees. However, I love all kinds of writing – not just fiction writing. Anything to do with words interests me. That’s probably why I ended up working as journalist for years. I wrote about investment, which as lot of people think is a dry topic, but I enjoyed the challenge of writing about it in an interesting way. I also love translating. I studied French and German at university, and in 2014 I published my first full-length literary translation, Outside Verdun by Arnold Zweig. The book is a German classic of the first world war, overlooked in the west because Zweig was a communist. It was incredibly complex to translate, with a lot of military vocabulary and dialect, but I enjoyed every minute of it. The thrill of finding just the right translation was the same as the one I got when I nailed the trees.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
When I was young I loved ‘the Margarets’: Margaret Atwood and Margaret Drabble. They portrayed women who were feisty and fit for the fight, and they wrote, I felt, with great humor. Then I got into ‘the Ians’: Ian McEwan and the Scottish writer Ian Banks. They too both wrote with humor, and there was often a mystery at the center of their books. I love books that unveil a secret or some terrible event from the past. One book in that vein that I love is Out Stealing Horses by the Norwegian writer Per Petterson. Another is In Times of Fading Light by the East German writer Eugen Ruge, which keeps circling back to one event on 1 October 1989 shortly before the Berlin Wall fell. I also love books that somehow make the world sparkle in new ways, even if sparkles rather darkly. The Japanese writer Haruki Murakami does this, as does Jenny Erpenbeck, another East German writer.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
In The Leipzig Affair, which is my first novel, I tried to create the kind of world I like to read about. The book is set in the former East Germany and has at its heart a series of secrets and betrayals, which are slowly unveiled. I lived in East Germany as student and I wanted to show what it was like to live in a fairly grim dictatorship, where betrayal was common currency. However, I also wanted to show the country’s romantic side – because it certainly had one. There was always something a little bit glamorous about the border crossings, the guards, the dusty, car-less streets. And it was fascinating to live in a country where money wasn’t that important. People had big, book-lined flats in tumbledown, turn-of-the-century apartment buildings. They went on holiday to Bulgaria. And there was a thriving arts scene that was all the more exciting because it was underground.

The glamorous side of East Germany is embodied in the central character of Magda. She’s a strong-minded, independent young woman who can be quite ruthless. But, of course, she also has feelings and vulnerabilities, and her trust in one particular friend is in the end her undoing.

The book took me a long time to write: over a decade from conception to publication, though I wasn’t working on it consistently all that time. It took me so long because there was a doubt at the back of my mind about whether I was ‘qualified’ to write it, as I’m not East German. A trip back to Germany quashed my doubts. I realized there was still so much suspicion between east and west that an outsider was probably the best person to write the story.

When the book was published, my favorite response was from an elderly woman in Dresden, who wrote to thank me for writing it because she said it perfectly captured her memories of what it was like to live in East Germany both before and after reunification. She said she appreciated that I was neither an ‘Ossi’ nor a ‘Wessi’. That was a lesson. You can write anyone, because the character you are creating is unique.

The Leipzig Affair is in two parts. The first part takes place in the 1980s during the communist dictatorship, and the second after the fall of the Berlin Wall. In the second part, Magda begins to uncover some of the secrets that so affected her life during communism. The second part also tells the story of German reunification, which was much more complex, particularly in the eastern part of the country, than the dominant narrative allows. This is topical again today because of political developments in the European Union. It is poignant that Helmut Kohl, the architect of German reunification and of the single European currency, died just as talks on the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union began.

We’re entering a new period of history in Europe and a time of great uncertainty. I hope The Leipzig Affair helps a little to illuminate what went before.

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Fiona Rintoul’s Website

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Featured Interview With Kirsten McKenzie

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I’m a full time author living in Auckland, New Zealand. Apart from a year working and living in London, I’ve always lived in Auckland. I do travel extensively. You have to living at the bottom of the world!
We’ve just adopted a crazy tortie cat from the SPCA, to replace our beloved stray who lived with us for eighteen years and died just before Christmas.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I have always loved reading. And my room at home was packed full of first editions of The Famous Five, and every other Enid Blyton book under the sun. I only wish I’d been more careful with them!
I was a customs officer for fourteen years, which I adored, but my father died suddenly, so my brother and I took over the running of the family antique business. It was working at Antique Alley that I started writing, basing my work around the objects that came into the shop. And some of the more eclectic customers! Imagining their stories and the stories behind how the objects came to be in the shop.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favourite authors are, Enid Blyton of course. I will love her for ever. J.K. Rowling – because anyone who can inspire such love for reading in such a diverse planet deserves our adoration. Edward Rutherfurd for his epic tomes. He ability to weave stories though multi generations is inspiring. G.R.R. Martin for his descriptions. You don’t need to watch the Game of Thrones series – you can see the characters and their outfits and their worlds on the pages of his books. And Deborah Harkness, a historian turned storyteller. Her books really inspired me to put pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
After writing two time slip books, I’ve tipped one bloody toe into the realm of horror. My first horror novel, PAINTED, will be published on the 30th June 2017. PAINTED is centred around an art appraiser sent to catalogue a collection of portraits. PAINTED touches on all things antique. The genesis for the book was the upstairs art room at Antique Alley, our antique shop. It’s the sort of room you don’t want to be in with the lights off… One reviewer called it ‘Caravaggio meets Poltergeist’, and I couldn’t ask for a better review than that!

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Kirsten McKenzie’s Website

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Featured Interview With Beverly Nault

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Born and raised in Texas, I married my high school sweetheart and we set out to see the world courtesy of the air force. We moved from Texas to England, then to Florida and many states in between, and finally landed in California where we’ve lived for twenty years. We have a married daughter who’s given us a granddaughter to spoil, and also a married son. We’re moving into our motorhome we’ve named Flight Risk to explore the backroads and national parks, small towns, and other interesting gems at a slower pace.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
My first book was about a line that wanted to join a parade. My mom quickly noticed my talent and stapled the pages together, so I became a published author by the age of 6.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I’ll read in just about any genre, but nonfiction books about expats, travelers, and enjoyers of nature are my current favorite for fun reads. I’ve just finished a long list of true-life spy stories for my latest book, and I’ll continue reading spy novels now that I have time.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
“Misdirect, a Novel of Spies, the Sahara, and Searching for God” is the book that I told my family and friends was kicking my keyboard to the curb because of the details, research, and complicated plot. I wanted to not only write about the world of espionage, but also include the reader in what it must be like to live essentially telling lies, or misdirecting as they call it, in order to get the job done. Because of the details and plot I had to weave together without giving away the ending, I had to re-do and re-write this story many times.

To add credibility, I researched the world of espionage and had the opportunity to interview two intelligence experts. I can’t reveal their names, but trust me, these are fascinating people!

I believe I accomplished my goal because the first reviewers made comments like, “a climactic, incredible ending,” and “the author seems to have more than a passing knowledge of how the CIA would carry out a field operation of the kind described. It is well researched — either that or Nault has a gifted imagination.”

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Beverly Nault’s Website

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Featured Interview With Katerina Baker

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I am a mother to two witty girls, a project manager at a large corporation in New York City, and a writer at night, the only time of the day when I can be sane while plunging my characters into insane situations.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I wrote my first book in middle school, although I doubt you’d be interested in reading it. Since then, I can’t remember the time I wasn’t writing.

I think most authors have these “voices” in their head that keep changing the outcomes of reality. For example, I am crossing a street and a huge ass SUV pulls up with tinted windows. I can hear arguments inside it and some female voice. I begin to imagine that the guy is an undercover cop who is pretending to be a driver of a mafia leader and the girl is the bad guy’s daughter who never stops bickering with her “driver”. A story forms in my head and then windows roll down and I hear baby’s cries. Turns out the woman is upset her husband woke up their son. Reality is sometimes mundane, but writers grasp onto some tiny inspirations thrown at them all around and create fiction that’s entertaining to read.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I’ve recently read and highly recommend Camilla Monk’s Spotless series. I love Camilla’s dark humor and voice, and this series will make up stay up reading and laughing. What can be more fun than a serial killer with an OCD paired with a nerdy IT programmer who loves romance novels?

Tell us a little about your latest book?
The Corner Office is a story of a thirty-something year old female executive and her journey to “achieve it all”: in career and personal life. It’s about the mistakes that she makes along the way, including her affair with her subordinate that almost destroys everything she worked for. He is very different from other men she is around: a tattooed biker who is intense and domineering in bed, he is set on pursuing her, and she is initially drawn to him.
But the novel is not just about work. The Corner Office is a fun, fast-paced story that centers around two characters who spent years hating each other and fighting. They are competitors in the office, but their feelings lie deeper than hate, and each of their interactions are explosive.
I wanted to layer in fun scenes and situations to offset topics that would be dry on their own. I threw Tara into awkward situations. For example, the guy she ends up having an affair with meets her on a bike, and she refuses to get on at first. She is wearing her work clothes: pencil skirt, tight shirt, high heels. There is a masturbation scene; here is a short excerpt:
A woman had other ways to satisfy her sexual cravings. Mine came in trendy silver, with an electronically operated, “modest-sized” device designed specifically for ”her” pleasure. It was there for me when I needed it, it didn’t require any work on my part to get it ready, and it didn’t ask to rank our latest adventure when we were done. “Tara, sweetie, how was it? I feel like this one was at least a solid eight.” My Adam & Eve had a bit more common sense than that.

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Katerina Baker’s Website

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Featured Interview With Aislinn Kearns

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Hi! My name is Aislinn Kearns and I write romantic suspense with ex-military heroes and heroines. In the Soldiering On series, a group of friends that were injured in the line of duty band together to open a security company to show the world they still have what it takes, and fall in love along the way.

I was born and raised in Adelaide, Australia, and have recently come back from a two-year stint working in Qatar. It was a fascinating experience.

It’s no secret that I adore dogs and would probably own 20 if my tiny apartment would hold them. Alas, I have to wait until I move to somewhere with a yard before I can fulfill that dream.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
Oh, I’ve always written stories, ever since I first knew how to write. I used to write little stories when I was young – in between my voracious reading, of course! I think I read every book in my school library when I was a kid. But I first started writing books seriously when I was doing the final semester of my Masters degree. I wanted something to take my mind off my studies, so I wrote a historical romance novel! That one won’t be published any time soon, though. 😉

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I’ll read any subgenre of romance – as long as it has a happy ending, I’m there. This includes historical, suspense, steampunk, contemporary, sci-fi, and many more. (Occasionally I dip into crime, particularly on audiobooks, but I’m very selective.) I love beta heroes (or at least not alphaholes!) and all kinds of tropes, such as snowed in together, fake dating, and survival in the snow or jungle.

Some of my favourite authors include Suzanne Brockmann (who is a huge influence on my writing), Jayne Ann Krentz, and Lisa Marie Rice.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book is book #4 in the Soldiering On series, called Hotel Hideaway. Out June 30th! It features a female bodyguard protecting a CEO with assassins on his tail – but both have secrets they’re unwilling to share.

When Sam foils an assassination attempt against a handsome stranger, she’s given a dangerous opportunity. A few months prior, her friends were caught up in a deadly hostage situation, and now she has one chance to go undercover with the people her boss thinks are responsible. Only Sam isn’t good at lying, particularly not to the sexy CEO whose life she saved. But was he the one that ordered the terrorist plot that nearly killed her friends?

Cameron Lawrence has his own reasons for working at Beaton Security—reasons he can’t share with Sam. No matter how intriguing he finds his new bodyguard—or how beautiful—he knows she’s hiding something, and he needs to find out what before it puts them both in danger. When a second assassin strikes, they have no choice but to work together. But can they also learn to trust each other, before it’s too late?

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Aislinn Kearns’s Website

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Featured Interview With Ben Jackson

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Hi! I live in Tasmania, Australia, but travel between Canada and Australia frequently. While working during the week as a Boiler Maker/Welder, specializing in Aluminium Welding, I also write of a night as a Freelance Writer and Indie Author.

I’m currently in a Long Distance Relationship with my wife Sam Lawrence. Sam is also my co-author and publishing guru! She lives in Canada and works as a full-time formatting professional, publisher, and author.

Be sure to check out all of my books, there is definitely something there for everyone!

As Indie Authors, we rely on our valuable customers to write a review, if you could spare a minute to leave a review of one of our books, we would greatly appreciate it.

I have numerous books in progress so stay tuned for information on those by following this page, connecting with him on Facebook or Goodreads.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I have always loved reading. I can devour books at a rapid pace and love to go back and visit books from my past. I started writing two years ago and haven’t looked back since! Right now, I have moved more towards children’s books.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Wilbur Smith, Bernard Cornwall, James A Michener. True stories, action and adventure stories. Throw in James Patterson and Clive Cussler.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book is The Day My Fart Followed Me To Soccer! My Little Fart series of books teaches children lessons about friendship and acceptance, with a lot of laughs and giggles mixed in! Timmy is a young boy with an imaginary friend, the Little Fart! They go on adventures to hockey, soccer, with Santa and much more!

You can grab my latest book here https://www.amazon.com/Ben-Jackson/e/B00S4A4W5C/

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Featured Interview With Nicole D’Settēmi

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was raised in Niagara Falls, a small town that borders Canada. I currently live in the Hudson Valley, but have lived in 5 regions, with about 10 relocations, numerous cities and towns, including NYC and South Florida.
I do not have pets at the moment, but ADORE animals, especially dogs. I am looking into fostering dogs. I also run ‘Drawing4Doggies,’ which is a charity that donates 35% of proceeds to dog rescue teams, from sales of artwork.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I was always comprehensive to the extreme in learning, but especially with reading and writing. My grandmother instilled the importance of reading in all of us from a young age, I remember getting my first library card with her. I joined a summer challenge at around 7, and won by accomplishing the perusal of about 30 novels that Summer. Around the same time, I was part of the young author’s club at 6, and already showed signs of becoming a writer. I wrote my first lyrical poems by 7 or 8, and had my first poem published which was penned at 12.
My father told me I’d be a writer, and was so excited that I’d started a newsletter for my childhood hero at only–again, 12–he would sneak and photo copy all of the issues for me to send out to members, at his place of employment. I also penned letters to 30 pen-pals internationally at that time! By my early twenties after many years of writing poetry, I moved in novel writing.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I’m a huge fan of the greats, especially Anais Nin. She has had the biggest influence on my writing. Contemporary favorites include Janet Fitch and my bizarro literate hero–Chuck Palahniuk.
My favorite genres are literary fiction–especially Diaries and old-fashioned memoirs, and poetry. I love lyrical, philosophical AND confessional pieces the most.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
Addictarium was penned when I spent two years in a therapeutic community for mentally-ill drug addicts, and would-be felons, as well as many homeless patrons. I learned so much in that invaluable environment! The book shines a very stark light on recovery from heroin addiction, but is interlaced with MANY themes. It’s a poetic, candid, and real account of suffering from many addictions. I had to recuperate from being addicted to pain, and torment, self-destruction, and despair. I was on an emotional roller-coaster, and had to patch myself up. The central theme may be addiction, but it touches on other matters as well. Toxic love, depression, suicide, and so much more really. The book exudes a raw but philosophical quality, and I poured my soul into every sentence in it.

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Nicole D’Settēmi’s Website

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Featured Interview With Mohamed Aslam

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Hi,
I am Mohamed Aslam. I am a simple Indian who loves writing. I don’t want to bore you with my bio data. I love Coffee, the important criteria for an author. My writings are based on different genre. My first book is “A Road to the life I want” a mystery novel. I love surprising people with my writing. So my novels as never expected.
My simple belief is doing what you love. Yes, I am really passionate about writing.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
My fascination for books started during my school days. I loved reading books. I used to write poems and short stories during my school days.
I started my writing career in Wattpad. I have completed one book, ‘A Road to the Life I Want’ and it is available in Amazon (Ebook and Paperback). My writings are based on different genres.
I want to give the reader a new experience to live. I love writing because it gives a chance to live many characters. It creates a new experience to the Author as well as the Reader. I am currently writing “20 days to die”…

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I don’t have any favourite authors. I read all types of book. But My favorite genre is Mystery/thriller. I was inspired by my mother. She is the reason I started reading books and started writing.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
I am currently working on “20 days to die”. You can find my novel on Wattpad. The story is based on a person who is going to die within 20 days due to a brain cancer. His life changes when he discovers that death is on his door. What will he do in the last few days of his life? What can a person do with only 20 days to live. What will you do?
The novel gives you a glance of a person trying to make the best out of the last 20 days of his life. He discovers the importance of time. He tries to change his whole life. Join me on Wattpad to know more.

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Mohamed Aslam Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Ian James

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
There are places I remember…

I spent my childhood in New York City, watching the snow whirl past the apartments. My family moved to an island in Maine when I was six. I wound up attending hippy college before moving to South Korea to teach English eight years ago. Every place I’ve been to has been ridiculously different from the last. In Korea, everyone tries to be the same; at hippy school, everyone wants to be different; in Maine, everyone wants to get out; in New York, everyone is struggling to stay (kind of but not really).

But each place does have some things in common. Interesting fact: although Koreans generally view marijuana use as being no different from molesting children, traditional Korean medicine smells virtually identical to marijuana. You can be walking around a massive city of millions of people here, where there won’t be a stoner for hundreds of miles in every direction, and suddenly you’ll catch the unmistakeable hippy school scent of marijuana wafting through the air like an invisible Chinese dragon. It really does have the exact same smoky fart twang. But it isn’t marijuana—if it were, the cops, who are usually pretty hands-off, would throw you in the slammer for decades. One of my friends almost wound up in jail because some sleazy houseguest mailed himself a care package of weed. The police thankfully believed my friend’s explanation; the sleazeball who was staying with her is possibly still languishing in a cushy Korean jail cell, eating rice, kimchi, and seaweed off a steel tray and watching variety shows on a standard-issue government flatscreen. The previous president may even be in the next jail cell over.

When it comes to pets, my family’s house used to be a zoo. At one time we had two dogs, two cats, two lovebirds, and an iguana. I don’t know why my parents put up with it. In South Korea, raising pets is difficult—open spaces to take your dog are uncommon—so we don’t have any. We’re actually going to be moving back to Maine in a few weeks; we love it here, but my wife and I can’t abandon our kids to the cramschool machine. I’ve heard that managing mice is pretty much impossible without a cat, so we may wind up infecting ourselves with Toxoplasma gondii if we haven’t been mind-controlled—Dark Archon Cat-style—already.

I don’t think any cats have mind-controlled me, but I do, on occasion, feel the odd compulsion to beg every cat I meet to eat me.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
Books are in my genes. Seriously, if you sequence my DNA, you won’t find the usual A-G-C-T that everyone else has. The compounds you’ll pick up instead will be made from famous literary works. For example, one will read (in your sequencing machine): “All happy families are the same…” Another will say: “Madame Bovary, c’est moi!” And still a third: “Sing, muse, of the many-minded man…”

This has the unfortunate effect of giving me all kinds of genetic abnormalities. For example, I am the only person on Earth with three heads.

Like most of the writers here, I started writing as a kid. There was never a time when I wasn’t interested in books. And, unfortunately, I have to be that guy here: my great-grandmother is Gertrude Berg, whom you will find, if you do a google image search, sitting atop a throne composed of scripts she wrote for her radio and TV shows. I hope one day I can take a picture just like that.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Right now I really, really, really, really want to get Sir Vidhia’s Shadow, because I love both the authors involved. It’s basically a memoir full of travel, sex, and writerly gossip; what more could anyone possibly ask for? I need me a paper copy, though, since scientific research (of the non-fraudulent variety) has shown that reading on paper gets the fecal matter to stick in your brain far more viscously than on any e-reader.

Otherwise, I read the greats, I’m inspired by the greats. Sooner or later I’m going to have a bunch of framed portraits of Tolstoy, Flaubert, Gogol, Nabokov, and Borges, so I can take them down from the mantelpiece, one by one, and clutch my head, and say something like: “Gustave! I really don’t know what I’m going to do this time! No man could possibly deal with selling a million books on one day! It’s such a heavy burden to carry upon my shoulders!”

Tell us a little about your latest book?
I write sci-fi, because that’s (apparently) what sells.

Seriously, I love sci-fi. I drifted away from writing it when I was younger because I thought only serious people composed serious fiction. But now that I’m faced with the prospect of having to get an actual full-time day job, I’m doing my darndest to get readers to buy my stuff.

So let me work you guys.

The Battle of Earth is the first book in a new series about the human species’ conquest of the stars. It begins several months in the past—just after Trump’s inauguration—with an alien invasion. It features diverse characters fighting their way out of an orbital prison; the characters are so memorable you’ll mistake them for your closest family members; the science is completely realistic, except for the FTL drives the aliens use to zip across the stars.

Disclaimer: this book is so awesome, I’m going to say you shouldn’t read it if you like good books—it will actually overwhelm you and drive you insane, Lovecraft-style, due to the blinding power of its endless stunning literary achievements. Definitely don’t come near this thing if you’re about to operate heavy machinery, if you’re pregnant, or if you’re soon to become pregnant. You may wind up making your baby into a science fiction fan before he or she is even born—and we all know what a dark fate that is!

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Ian James’s Website

Featured Interview With Prakash Vir Sharma

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Born in a remote Indian village in 1973, I am presently living in Kolkata with my family.
I don’t have any pet but feeding to birds in the morning is my hobby and a routine.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I was fascinate about reading inspirational stories and novel. As I grown, I felt that I can write for the society. I started writing in 1990 with some regional news papers.
My first co-authored book published in 2016.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favourite authors are great Indian authors, freedom fighters. I inspired by Rhonda Byrne’s “The Secret” and of course my wife inspired me to shape my thoughts in the form of books.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My recent book “Life In Shackles” contains 14 short stories on social issues. It’s all about the plight of Indian women in our society. How she has been treated just like a commodity, I tried to elaborate her ordeal in this book.

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Prakash Vir Sharma’s Website

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Featured Interview With Bailey Ordiway

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born in Michigan and moved around a lot until settling in the Upper Peninsula. I grew up on farms and in small towns, going to small schools until I dropped out to get my GED. Now I live in South Dakota where I’m happily married and writing.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I was very young when I started writing, and even younger when I started reading. I started out writing stories that got longer and longer until I wanted to see my name on a bookshelf.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
John Green has been the most inspiring writer to me. Jonathon Rand’s Chiller series is really what broke me in to books.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
American Holdovers is my third published novel and chronicles not only my time, but, also my many friends and fellow holdovers during our time as a holdover at Ft. Jackson during a hurricane and the consequences and events that transpired because of this a couple years back.
https://www.createspace.com/5959013

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Featured Interview With DAWN KOPMAN WHIDDEN

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Dawn Kopman Whidden is a native New York author who grew up in the close-knit community of Little Neck Douglaston during the baby boomer era. She graduated from Queensboro Community college.
Twenty years ago, she traded in her days of living in the bustling city for a more serene and tranquil life on a small farm in the town of Bell, located in North Central Florida.
She is retired and shares her life and love with her husband of nineteen years and an adopted stray dog she named Casey. She has also been blessed with two beautiful grandchildren.
The world is full of crazy people. Once upon a time, stories like the ones that Grimm Brother’s wrote were just something that came from their imagination. Classic tales of stepmothers serving her new husband’s children for dinner…( not for dinner, but THE DINNER) Crazy old ladies putting lost children in an oven..

Today the craziest and most inexcusable things happen to the most vulnerable, and it’s reality not fantasy. I hope that my story never finds it’s way into a local newspaper…but who knows. Anything can happen and it does.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I fell in love with writing when I was only 7 or 8. I loved to read, but I’ve began writing down stories to entertain myself. I still have the very first story I wrote when I was in third grade titled ‘ How The Giraffe Got His Neck’ and I still remember the look on the teacher’s face when she read it out loud to the class. It was my version of the Aesop Tables.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My very first favorite author was Beverly Cleary and the Henry Huggins series. I then progressed to The Bobbsey Twin series. I was always fond of reading authors who kept the same characters and I suppose that is the reason I love authors such as JD Robb, Patterson and Lisa Gardner today and I’m sure it is the reason I have developed my characters as well.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
Keeping Hope Alive is my latest book. It is the fourth and very well may be the last. I don’t know why but when I started to write I lost the desire to read and it’s breaking my heart. I would much rather read than write and I find that frustrating.

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Featured Interview With Rob Kelley

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I’ve always had a fascination for magical writers who can transport readers into a totally fictional world and make us believe that we are in a particular town or place and that we are part of our character’s lives, even if it is only for a couple of hours. As one of the characters in Pride and Prejudice once said, “I was pleasantly diverted.”

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
Writing novels, for me, came later in life. I had been writing textbooks, trade books, and family history books as a young man and was pretty much focused on writing non-fiction. (which is a heck of a lot easier than writing fiction). In the 1980’s, I used to fly down to Santa Barbara, California every July 1 to attend their week-long Writer’s Conference. They let you choose your own classes. So one afternoon, I had a free time slot, and chose to sit in an advanced creative fiction group in which novel writers read pages from their latest manuscript. I was fascinated by their passion and the breadth of topics and genres they covered. I was hooked. Non-fiction just seemed dull by comparison.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I used to read Medical-themed novels, then I got into reading Murder Mysteries and Thrillers: James Patterson (particularly, an the Women’s Murder Club series), John Grisham, David Baldacci, Janet Evanovich. And I taught law for a decade, so most of my novels have these elements in them: a hospital, a courtroom, a romance, and a murder mystery in them. They reflect my background and reading interests.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
In my early years as a writer, I tended towards fast-paced suspense thrillers. In my later years, as I mellowed, I became more interested in writing Cozy Murder Mysteries. My latest project is a three-book set of cozy mysteries set in a small town in Vermont where the Orange County Sheriff’s Office and the County Court House is located. My latest novel is called The Lottery Winner. A seventy-two-year-old widower wins a half billion dollars (after taxes) in the Power Ball Lottery. A week after his picture, with him holding the winning ticket, appears in the local newspaper, he is found murdered.

Featured Interview With Jonathan Dunsky

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born in Tel Aviv in 1978 and grew up in a suburb of Jerusalem. Later I lived in a number of cities in Israel, spent a few years in Amsterdam, and then returned to Israel where I now live with my wife and two boys.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I’ve always been a reader. I remember reading Enid Blyton novels by the bushel as a child, and right around my thirteenth birthday, I discovered Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Clive Barker, Robert Silverberg and other Science-fiction, fantasy, and horror writers, and spent a few years devouring a massive number of books in those genres. I wrote my first novel when I was eighteen. It was terrible. Then I took an eighteen-year-long break before writing my first two published novels, The Dead Sister and The Auschwitz Violinist in the summer of 2015.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
These days I read mostly crime novels and non-fiction work. My favorite novelists include Lawrence Block, Donald E. Westlake, and Ross Thomas. I also recently read a few excellent books by Christa Faust, Elmore Leonard, and Reed Farrel Coleman.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest novel is called Ten Years Gone, the first in a three-book-long-and-counting series of mystery novels taking place in the early days of the State of Israel and featuring Holocaust survivor and private investigator Adam Lapid.

Ten Years Gone is the third published novel in the series, but the first in chronological order. It takes place in 1949, and the story revolves around the search for a boy who’s been missing for ten years, after his mother, a German Jew, entrusted him to a friend who was fleeing Germany to Israel in 1939.

The character of Adam Lapid is unlike any I’d come across in the mystery genre. Adam is a survivor of Auschwitz, a former Nazi hunter and soldier, and someone who hates evil with a vengeance. As one Amazon reviewer wrote: “Adam is an honest and admirable character. I wish he was real so I could know him.”

I spent a number of months on Ten Years Gone as the plot is more complex than those of my previous novels, with more twists and turns. It took a while for the story to become clear in my head. I’m very happy with the end result. I believe that anyone who likes mystery novels, especially private investigator novels, will have a blast with Ten Years Gone.

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Featured Interview With Justine Johnston Hemmestad

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I’ve been married for 27 years and my husband and I have seven children and one grandchild. We live in the midwest.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
In 1990 (I was 19 and living in San Diego with my husband of three months) my car was hit by a city bus as I was driving home from work – I sustained a severe brain injury, I was resuscitated, in a coma, paralyzed, and the doctors thought I wouldn’t recover. Within a few months I was walking again and my husband and I moved to Iowa where we started our family of 7 kids (doctors also told us we would never have kids after my crash). After we moved I began writing to cope with my severe PTSD, and I began my story about Alexander the Great a few years later. In the mid 2000s I started college part-time – with my first course being world religions, which helped me understand Alexander’s motivations and was also therapeutic for my mind. I had become interested in Alexander’s story in the mid ’90s after watching a documentary about him because I identified so much with his persistence and perseverance. I kept researching until I was able to integrate his soul into the story I had been working on. I continued college, earned my BLS from The University of Iowa, and I’m now working on a Master’s Degree in Literature through Northern Arizona University.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Shakespeare is my ultimate favorite and I feel I’ve learned the most about character development and freedom in character story lines through reading him. Emily Bronte has also taught me about depth in writing through her book “Wuthering Heights.” Rumi has taught me symbolism and metaphor in writing. Mary Shelley has taught me how cool it is when the writing style reflects the story itself through her book “Frankenstein.”

Tell us a little about your latest book?
“Visions of a Dream” focuses on the spiritual fire that ignites Alexander the Great’s actions as he learns from the other cultures he comes into contact with. His closest relationships vie for his love but they also provide the steel he needs to be sharpened spiritually and emotionally, for before he conquers the world he must first conquer his own mind. He’s inclusive of all people, all cultures, and all religions and he honors that belief. Alexander’s relationships with his fellow man know no restrictions, nor does his love of the sublime. He immerses himself in the Persian culture when there, the Egyptian Culture when there, and also the Indian culture when there, for he believed in the individual beauty of each culture rather than assimilation. The exploration of his heart and mind becomes the greatest legacy he leaves behind in the world. The romance of the story is highlighted in the book trailer on youtube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFMe1DFLyRs&t=25s and I’ve been interviewed on CBS Radio’s People of Distinction with Al Cole.

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Featured Interview With Dayne Edmondson

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born and raised in a relatively small town of Port Huron, Michigan. After I met my beautiful wife in 2010 we moved to an even smaller town of Richmond, Michigan. It’s technically a suburb of metro Detroit but straddles the line between country and city (go a mile or two north and you’re in fields, go 4 miles sound and you’re more suburban). Very quiet town but we like it.

I have two small children (4 1/2 and 15 months at the time of this interview) and they are a handful but so fun. I also have a dog, who is a handful as well, named Samson.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I’ve always been an avid reader, ever since elementary school. I read above my grade level right from the start and read countless books outside of school as a child.

What really got me into the Science Fiction and Fantasy genre as a reader, however, was when my grandparents got me “Star Wars: Tales from the New Republic” as a Easter gift when I was 11. I devoured that book of short stories set in the Star Wars universe (now made non-canon and dubbed “Legacy”) and that opened the door to me reading countless Star Wars books that summer and during the years to come. I was heavily influenced by the New Jedi Order Series, the Thrawn Trilogy and other books in the Star Wars expanded universe.

On the fantasy side of things, my first real fantasy book that I remember was Elizabeth Hayden’s “Rhapsody” when I was probably 15. It was in a library bundle of books they were selling for $1 per bag of books. My step-father got it for me because he thought I would like it. He was right. I loved it, read it in record time and was then hungry for fantasy. That started me on the path to countless other authors similar to her and eventually I found the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan, the Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind and other series I can’t remember right now.

I started writing at the age of 15, after being influenced by all the books I was reading. My first short story, titled “The Windriders” is now lost to time but was an influence for one of my characters, Dawyn Darklance, years later. I also conceptualized the concept of teenagers from Earth being sent to another world where they harnessed elemental magic at that age. it later morphed into college students and became the story “Time of Shadows.”

But somewhere along the way I stopped writing (after a particularly harsh critique on said short story I mentioned above) and just outlined for about 5 years.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite authors are Brandon Sanderson, Robert Jordan, Terry Goodkind, L.E. Modessit Jr., Richard Fox, Elizabeth Hayden, Lindsay Buroker. My favorite genres to read are fantasy (epic or sword and sorcery) and science fiction (prefer space opera or military science fiction).

I draw a lot of inspiration for my space opera books from the Star Wars Expanded Universe. I draw inspiration for my fantasy books from Elizabeth Hayden’s fantasy series.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book, Ruin, is the third book in my Dark Tide Trilogy. The trilogy as a whole details the emergence of an ancient enemy of humanity, the Krai’kesh. They were first introduced in my fantasy trilogy, The Shadow Trilogy, and now it’s 2000 years later and some of the characters from my fantasy series are still alive (called Eternals). Many of said Eternals are also from Earth originally and were sent through time specifically to fight the Krai’kesh.

Ruin is the third chapter in this leg of the over-arching war. I am modeling my books off the Star Wars model they used with their New Jedi Order series. They had duologies and trilogies set within the greater New Jedi Order series that recounted the war against the Krai’kesh. For example, there was Dark Tide 1: Onslaught and Dark Tide 2: Ruin as a duology and then Agents of Chaos I-III as a separate trilogy but both were under the New Jedi Order series umbrella. I am doing similar with my Dark Tide Trilogy. It is the first trilogy as part of the larger conflict, though the book does wrap up the current crisis. As the saying goes, they’ve won the battle but the war is far from over.

I started the Dark Tide Trilogy in October 2016 and wrapped it up in May 2017. I did take a little hiatus in January/February 2017 or I would have been done sooner. With Ruin, in particular, I got into a cadence and was writing at least 10k words a week.

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Featured Interview With T L Huston

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
T L Huston grew up in a sleepy little riverfront town about fifty miles east of Cincinnati. He currently lives in Wesley Chapel, Florida with his wife Kathy, a declining skill set in his golf game, and a crazy thirty mile commute down I-275 that might explain some of the anger issues his characters display in his novels. When T L isn’t locked away in his enter-at-your-own-risk writing dungeon he can be found on the golf course working hard on that skill set.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I’ve been an entrepreneur most of my life. I started my first business at age twelve. It’s been a wild ride, and until recently, business was my passion. I discovered the thrill and joy of writing later in life and now it has become my passion. I’ve discovered that some of the principles I used successfully in business-dedication, perseverance, persistence-are applicable to my self published writing career. I love to write and that’s the fun part of being a writer. The hard stuff, like editing, book cover design, etc. I leave up to the professionals so my novels will look and read like a novel from one of the big publishing houses.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite authors vary some from year to year, but Ludlum, when he was alive and writing, Clancy, when he was alive, and some of Patterson’s earlier books. I also like books in other genre’s and one of my favorite authors outside of my genre is Elizabeth Berg.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest novel, The Death of Innocence, is the story of a normal boy growing up in a small town who witnesses the brutal murder of his parents. Bye, bye normal life. Hello to a life from hell! Only eleven at the time of the murders, Johnny Vegas makes a vow, known only to him, at their grave site. One day he would find this man and set things straight.

Fifteen years later-he is patient if nothing else-he’s working on that plan and getting closer to finding the murderer. Until he has a chance encounter with Jennifer Ashton, a gorgeous blond, who just happens to be an Investigative Reporter working on a blockbuster story for a national news magazine. What kind of story you ask? She’s trying to track down a vigilante style killer who’s crossing the country killing really bad guys. Ring a bell? All hell breaks loose when these two get together and…You’ll see.

It took me about eight months to write the Death of Innocence, and another twelve months to get it edited, select the book cover design, and make the revisions my editor suggested, or more like demanded. I’m sure you will enjoy the story and more importantly, the writing.

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Featured Interview With Stef Smulders

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I am a Dutchman who moved to Italy in 2008 with husband and dog to start a B&B Villa I Due Padroni (www.duepadroni.it) in the unknown but beautiful Oltrepò Pavese wine region, south of Milan. My first book tells in fact about our emigration adventures, hilarious and horrendous as these were.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
Late, very late. I started a bit when I was 40 but really began once I had moved to Italy. What we experienced here just had to be written down!

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I love fiction, novels as well as short stories, with psychologically developed round characters, e.g. Alice Munro, Ian McEwan, Coetzee, Chabon etc. Humor as well, but that is a difficult genre! Tim Parks’ novels about living in Italy inspired me to write my own stories.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My book is about our adventures in buying and reconstructing the house, obtaining a tax number and a bank account, registering at the commune and at the national health service, importing our car and a range of other things that lead to a myriad of bureaucratic troubles. These problems were always resolved in a truly Italian fashion, leading to raised Dutch eyebrows and hilarious scenes.
As a reader you will encounter a range of characteristic Italians, from sympathetic to villainous, from moving to shameless. Real Italians of flesh and blood, sometimes cliché, sometimes surprisingly original.
But always worth encountering.

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Featured Interview With Dr. Bella Bleicher and Esq.Lavi Sigman

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
We -Dr. Bella Bleicher and Esq. Lavi Sigman, wrote the book together as well as many other books. We believe in empowering children by helping them to acquire, develop, and practice their inner strengths with the aid of simple stories and creative tools.
We truly believe that it is important for parents to facilitate the development of virtues and inner strengths in their children.

We are lecturers, consultants and mentors in the fields of motivation, entrepreneurship and creativity for leading international firms.

In addition, we have joined forces to develop a training method named “Powerful 22- Elevate Your Strengths in life and Business”. This method, used with both adults and children, focuses on the development of motivation and self-management with the help of our inner strengths. These skills can help anyone anywhere to reach their fullest potential.

A bit more about us, if we may add:
Dr.Bella Bleicher is a coach, trainer, consultant, and facilitator for entrepreneurs in various fields of management. She holds a Ph.d degree in Business Management as well as degreess degree in education and an MBA from the University of Derby, United Kingdom.

Dr.Bella is co-founder and co-owner of “Think like a Zebra”, an international training method that fosters creative thinking in the workplace. This method is being used in various countries in Europe, Asia and America. It is also being used successfully in educational settings for children and youth.

Bella is co-authored the book “Wolves, Fairies and Business People” which shares practical techniques for increasing self-management and motivation.

Bella is also co-founder and co-owner of “”Powerful 22- Elevate Your Strengths in life and Business” (with Lavi Sigman) a training method which helps trainees develop their inner strengths by using the abilities and talents that everyone already has.

“Powerful 22- Elevate your Strengths in Life and Business” training method provides the trainees practical useful set of tools with which they can reveal, map and elevate their 22 key inner strengths such an the strengths of influence, initiative, change, sharing, , kindness, discovery, joy, love and the strength of co-operation.

She is also co-founder and co-owner (with Lavi Sigman) The Book Series “Elevate Your Child’s Strengths” which empowers children and helps them to develop a core set of strengths such as kindness, forgivenesscooperation, and gratitude.

This book series encourages children to develop their inner strengths by using the abilities and talents they already possess. Our goal is to help children fulfill their potential with joy and enthusiasm, and what better way than by distributing a colorful series of whimsical adventures that children will enjoy, while simultaneously learning important life lessons and developing key social skills?

Esq. Lavi Sigman is a writer, a lecturer, an organizational and strategic consultant, and a lawyer specializing in technology and innovation. Lavi serves as an executive director, exective partner and as a facilitator for firms and start-up companies in the field of health and medicine.

He has a substantive academic background in psychology, organizational consultation, law and technological entrepreneurship.

As a business trainer and a lecturer Lavi regularly leads workshops about strategic management, innovation, psychology and motivation.

He is a co-founder and co-author of “Powerful 22- Elevate Your Strengths in life and Business”​ psychological and business management training method and book, along with Dr. Bella Bleicher.

This training method is being learned in courses, lectures and workshops for the private and corporate sector and is spread, taught and gains recommendations from professors, psychologists, trainers , educational experts and entrepreneurs locally and in Europe.

This training method focuses on practical techniques for increasing innovation and productivity, enhancing motivation and improving business management. The method helps trainees to reveal their specific inner strengths and to map and develop them practically.

The method is the result of years of interdisciplinary research and field work mapping and refining the success factors of individuals and firms around the world in modern history.

Lavi also co-author (with Dr. Bella Bleicher) the Book Series “Elevate Your Child’s Strengths” which empowers children and helps them to develop a core set of strengths such as collaboration, kindness and gratitude.
This book series encourages children to develop their inner strengths by using the abilities and talents they already possess.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
Dr. Bella Bleicher : I started writing when I was about 6 or 7 years old. I enjoyed using words as a powerful tool to inspire others to use their imagination and become free and limitless. .

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Dr. Bella Bleicher : I enjoyed reading the books of Daniel Gilbert, Tony Robbins and Richard Bandler. They inspired me since they developed highly effective self improvemnet tools which empower readers in a very efficient way.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
The plot of the story “Grand-Kitty and the Search for New York” centers around Grand-Kitty, a kind old man who has opened his house to countless numbers of stray cats.

Among Grand-Kitty’s numerous pets are his three very favorite cats, the City Kitties: New York, Paris, and Amsterdam. When friendly, smart, loving New York doesn’t return to Grand-Kitty’s house for lunch one day, the old man and the other two City Kitties begin to worry.

Together, they set out on a quest to find New York. Where can she be? It isn’t like her at all not to come home! While conducting their search, Grand-Kitty, Paris, and Amsterdam meet a little girl named Faith and her two brothers, Alex and William. The three helpful children are determined to join Grand-Kitty on his search for the lost New York. Thanks to these neighborhood children, who understand the importance of lending a helping hand, the group soon finds New York—only to discover that she’s stuck up high in a tree at the park and can’t get down!

Even seeing her beloved owner Grand-Kitty can’t coax poor New York out of the tree. Faith, Alex, and William have plenty of clever ideas of their own to rescue New York, and the children’s mother even joins in on the effort. But no such luck! Even when a policeman and firefighter show up, it seems nothing can be done for New York! Will she be stuck up in that tree forever?

We included at the end of the book are three kid-friendly activities that build on the fun and themes inherent in the story. Help your child create a cardboard television, act out scenes from the story, and learn how much fun teamwork and cooperation really can be!

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