Top Selling Authors: Get To Know Them Better

Featured Interview With S. K. Keogh

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
When I won an elementary school writing contest and a trip to a regional young writers conference, I hadn’t realized that experience was the beginning of a love affair with words. I was raised in a large family where reading was encouraged. Through my mother’s interest in history, I grew to admire such authors as Michael Shaara and Bruce Catton, a fellow Michigan writer who focused on the American Civil War. So it was no wonder that my first writing credit was a featured article in the magazine “America’s Civil War.” My particular interest in the Civil War led me into re-enacting for several years as a field musician. But my interest in history went to various eras, not just the Civil War, including the late 17th century, the era for my Jack Mallory trilogy, a time when piracy on the high seas thrived.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I’ve always been an avid reader, especially of historical fiction. I remember as far back as elementary school when one of the things I looked forward to the most were the book sales. I was a big fan of horse-related stories (and as an adult I became a horse owner and trainer). Even in elementary school, I was already writing stories, as I mentioned earlier in this interview. One of my brothers and I even wrote and drew comic books about our own original characters.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I read historical fiction mostly, though I also read other genres. My favorite author is definitely Patrick O’Brian. I have read his Aubrey/Maturin series multiple times. He inspires me the most as a writer and has had the biggest influence on my style and prose.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest novel is “The Fortune,” which is the third book in my Jack Mallory series, preceded by “The Prodigal” and “The Alliance.” Though a trilogy, each book can be read as a stand-alone. The stories follow Jack Mallory, an upstanding young man who turns pirate in order to track down the man who kidnapped his mother. What starts out as a simple tale of rescue and revenge turns into a saga filled with many colorful characters, all with their own agendas, some who will help Jack in his quest and some who will attempt to stop him, stories on both land and sea, filled with action and intrigue.

It took me several years to write the trilogy because of the amount of research I did in order to make the stories authentic, accurate, and filled with a flavor of the era in which I write.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

S. K. Keogh’s Website

S. K. Keogh Facebook Page

S. K. Keogh Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Rue

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I grew up everywhere—Minnesota, Kansas, Massachusetts, Georgia, California and finally Arizona. I sometimes even got to revisit places, in fact there were a few rounders in the Land of 10,000 Lakes (MN). I would have to say that the nomadic lifestyle was hell as a child, but looking back I can appreciate all the nuggets I was able to collect for future stories. The reason I write fiction is simply because my entire life has been crammed full of experiences that are just too amazing to be true. The characters I create all have threads pulled from real people I encountered in my travels—yes, every one.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I wrote my first manifesto at age three; a letter begging my grandfather to stop smoking; to the small pink piece of stationary, I taped two dimes and a nickel—his reward for quitting. The entreaty was successful and the power of the pen was instilled in my soul. Throughout my life I have written unceasingly; journals, poems, short stories, screenplays, and articles for newspapers and magazines. My love of ink led me to pursue a B.A. in Journalism from Pepperdine University in California. I also suffer from a slight obsession with office supplies—mostly pens and fine paper.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I love writing, but working on “My Favorite Second Chance” did come with some moments of “freak out.” Reading helps me escape from reality and relieves stress, and with a teenager running around…I need relief! Books are my best friends!

Here are my all-time favorites:

10. Steven Pressfield

9. Sara Gruen

8. Michael Chabon

7. Gregory Maguire

6. Colette

5. Clarissa Pinkola-Estes

4. Yann Martel

3. J. R. R. Tolkien

2. Marian Keyes

1. Juliet Marillier

This list would be different if you asked me tomorrow. There are always new authors joining the fray, and I know working on the third book in The Lake Effect Series will have its share of ups and downs. Read! Read! Read!

Tell us a little about your latest book?
At the time of this answer my latest book is Book 2 in The Lake Effect Series, “My Favorite Second Chance.” The story of the Hutchinson sisters is close to my heart. I have two brothers and a sister—I love them all, but my sister and I have a deep connection that deserved to be memorialized in print (or “e”). Now, just to be clear, the story is a vehicle to explore the unbreakable bonds of a sibling relationship in the face of serious family drama—but it is not “about” my sister or my family. I drew on decades of school, work and uncomfortable church-related interactions to create the characters in The Lake Effect Series.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Rue’s Website

Rue Facebook Page

Rue Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Tammy Lyons

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born in Corona California and raised in beautiful Southern California. I lived a year dangerously in Amsterdam where you can be anyone you want to be. I presently reside in Mission Viejo, California, however my heart always lies elsewhere. I live to travel. So if there is adventure to take I already have my passport stamped.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I started writing at a young age. I started writing songs with my guitar. I may not be able to carry tune but I can write a lyric or two. I always dreamed of the unimaginable that is where my stories turned from dull drum to exciting. I always use the word – really- to describe my storyline. If you think it is not possible well it is.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I love to read the unimaginable. Christopher Moore and Chuck Palahniuk have always been inspirational to me. There thoughts and imagination are always way out there. They can make the impossible possible. That is what I transpire to be able to do with my novels.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
In the novel Knock, Knock, Knocking On Heaven’s Door, members of the 27 Club – Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, and Jim Morrison – arrive in heaven. They find themselves onstage at a talk show hosted by Jesus. The three don’t know why they’re there or what’s going on. They doubt they should even be in heaven, what with the lavish lifestyles that they’ve led, which included sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll.
Eventually, their humanity is called into question. Their pasts come to haunt them, and one by one the three relive their lives on earth. Their old loves and pain are replayed before their eyes.
Jesus is toying with the artists, getting His kicks as each of the guests experience misery. Their tortured souls and losses only make them more human. Are the musicians alive or dead? Are they in heaven or hell? One by one, they question their existence and whether they will make it up the stairway to heaven.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Tammy Lyons’s Website

Tammy Lyons Facebook Page

Tammy Lyons Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Emily Mims

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born, raised, and have lived all my life in San Antonio, Texas, where I taught high school science for many years before retiring to write full-time. I spend a lot of time at our lake home in the Hill Country lake community that became the basis of my fictional ‘Heaven’s Point’ in my Texas Hill Country series. I also spend a lot of time in Eastern Tennessee, which is where I plan to set another series of stories in the near future. I am married, a mom and a grandmother (Grandma Texas) and have five little dogs that keep us entertained. In addition to writing, I play five musical instruments and perform with a dulcimer band and a ukulele band.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I have been reading since I was a child. I took a course in creative writing in college and was told I had no talent and sent back to the science department. I became seriously interested in writing at about thirty, when a pitched a romance novel across the floor, declared I could do better, and was promptly dared to do so! I had a very successful run with Candlelight Ecstasy (eighteen books) but when Dell closed that line I didn’t get on with anyone else and the writing went on the shelf for many years. A few years ago I got the urge again and wrote ‘Solomon’s Choice’, my first book for Boroughs and the first in the Texas Hill Country Series.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite authors are my fellow romance authors, and romance and romantic suspense are my favorite genres. I am a voracious consumer of romances-I read five or six a week, mostly contemporaries, and will read just about anything from gritty suspense to sexy military to heart-warming small town love to shape-shifting paranormal stories. These days I read mostly on my Kindle-it’s convenient to buy the books, there is a much wider range of availability, and I don’t have to find a reading lamp!

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest releases are a trio-full length novel ‘Daughter of Valor’ and two accompanying shorts-‘Welcome Home’ and ‘After the Heartbreak’. In ‘Daughter of Valor’ wounded war hero Holly Riley has come to the lakeshore community of Heaven’s Point to recover from her injuries and build a new life for herself with her band of fellow wounded warriors. In spite of her distrust of politics, she and sexy Congressional candidate Jimmy Adamcik begin to care for one another. But Jimmy is sucked deeper and deeper into the seamy side of politics and an old enemy from Jimmy’s past targets Holly’s soldiers one by one, with Holly and Jimmy as his final targets.
The accompanying shorts involve other members of the wounded warrior group. In ‘Welcome Home’ Tommy Joe Reece comes home forever in a wheelchair, and in ‘After the Heartbreak’ Beto and Cathy must come to terms with the aftermath of a horrific attack.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Emily Mims’s Website

Emily Mims Facebook Page

Emily Mims Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Howard T. Wilson

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was raised in Europe and still live there and I do have one pet! A little white dog!

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
At the age of 8! My first book was a science fiction book.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite authors of all times are Stephen King and Agatha Christie! Favorite genre is crime and the inspiration for my writings came from the desire to fight the back against the Food Industry, by combating obesity and letting people know how they can successfully lose weight and keep it off in the long run!

Tell us a little about your latest book?
Flat Belly! How to get the flat abdomen that you always wanted!

If you struggled with weight loss before but got little results and if you truly want to have a flat and defined belly, then this book will teach you what you need to know.

As a professional sportsman and a Certified Technician in Gastronomy I always knew the importance of a balanced meal and the importance of working out and I know how much everyone wants to have a flat belly. I met a lot of people who either trained good but had bad nutrition or followed a good nutritional plan but didn’t actually knew how to work out efficiently to get a flat abdomen, and this was mostly because the internet is full of misleading information. Therefore, I decided to write this book and show you how easy it can be to get the flat abdomen that you always wanted, just by following a few simple steps and, you will also learn about all the things that you should do to see great results in a short period of time.

The following questions are the questions that you should ask yourself and if you are reading this then I’m guessing you already have are looking for a good solid advice!

• Why shouldn’t I look as good as the guys and girls that go to the beach and everyone looks at them?

• Why should I say “yes” to an average body when I could just as well be among the hot looking guys and girls after that make everyone turns their head around?

• And why shouldn’t I be able to achieve this when other guys and girls have successfully obtained a flat belly?

What makes them so special? What are the “secrets” that they possess and what did they do to get their flat belly?

I will answer to all of these questions and I will show you how you too can get rid of the belly fat, lose weight and achieve the abdomen that you always wanted!

“Flat Belly” will teach you what you need to know, the “secrets” that no one else is prepared to share with you. You will learn everything you ever needed to know to about how to get a flat belly without spending an enormous time at a gym or spending money on special supplement or foods.

This being said, I want to thank you and congratulate you again for downloading your new book and I want to say that I am confident you will achieve the results that you want and I am confident that following the information you are about to learn will get you the flat belly that you always wanted.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Featured Interview With John Mann

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born in Poland and am a Holocaust survivor. After the war my family and I immigrated to Australia. In 1959 I moved to Israel, studied and taught Hebrew, finished Architecture, married and became a proud father of three children Michael, Yael and Ariel.

Although born in Poland, I was raised, educated, discovered freedom and my inalienable rights when we moved to Australia when I was nine.

Now I live In an Old Age Home, typically euphemized as a “retirement home” or “golden age” home.

Do you have any pets? My wife, children and an irritating cat!
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? At the age of 8 – after the war – when I was given my first book!

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
When I first fell in love and wrote pretentious poetry to my inamorata!

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
The first three that come to mind are: Charles Dickens, John Steinbeck, Ayn Rand, but many others! My favorite genre to read are books involved with the idiosyncrasies, characteristics, weaknesses and strengths that typify human beings! Who inspires my writings? My fascinating journey through life!

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My book “Enter& delete” is about Saul Poliakov who is caught in an unsalvageable marriage that is slowly dragging him, his wife Fay, and their daughter into a morass of depression and self-doubt. His obsession with Nataly, the only woman he truly ever loved and whose sudden and inexplicable disappearance in the past still haunts him, lies at the root of his problems. The novel that Saul is writing lays unfinished as he realizes his work, his marriage, his life cannot move on until he solves the mystery of Nataly’s vanishing. So he sets out in earnest to find her. Somehow Saul knows that he is at least partially responsible for her disappearance.
Saul’s best friend, David, exploits Saul’s marital failure to pursue and hopefully implement his own romantic plans with Fay. He has always loved and desired her, but his friendship with Saul, until now, has prevented him from following through with his feelings. He encourages Saul in his quest for his own less-than-honorable intentions. As the mystery of Nataly’s disappearance is steadily uncovered, it has extreme repercussions on both Saul and David’s life, resulting in their rude awakening and an unforeseeable and staggering end.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Featured Interview With Deanna Kahler

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I’m a midwest girl at heart and enjoy spending time around water and trees. I was born and raised in the Detroit area, and that is also where I make my home today. I’m the proud mother of a 9-year-old daughter and recently adopted a kitten. In my spare time, I enjoy dancing, walking, visiting parks and spending time with my family.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I always loved how books could take me to another time or place. I began reading at age 5 and started writing stories and poems at age 8. As a young child, I received three Young Author awards for my short stories and poem. Some of my favorite books as a child were: “Little Women,” the Nancy Drew mysteries and “Little House on the Prairie.”

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite authors are Mary Higgins Clark, Piers Anthony and Dr. Wayne W. Dyer. I’ve also recently taken a great interest in books about the afterlife. I am inspired by nature and the desire to make a difference in the lives of others.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
Sara’s Soul dives deep into the emotions and troubles of a college-age psychic. Disturbing visions haunt her and drive her to the brink of suicide. But then she meets a mysterious man with a totally different world view who wants to help—if she’ll let him.

Sara represents the dark, sad parts of life and the affect they have on a person. Chip is that ray of hope we all long for during our lowest points. Together, they illustrate what it means to be human and the ability love has to transform us.

Readers who enjoy paranormal romance novels or stories about the afterlife and spirit communication will want to read this book.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Deanna Kahler’s Website

Deanna Kahler Facebook Page

Deanna Kahler Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Claire Plaisted

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was brought up in Sandbach, Cheshire, England. I very old town which goes back to the Doomsday book. As a teenager I moved to Colwyn Bay, North Wales, spreading my wings with great success, much to the surprise of many people. I loved living by the seaside, it was wonderful. While I lived here I saved for a trip to New Zealand. A place I had always wanted to go and where I have cousins. It was here I met my future husband. I migrated to Palmerston North, New Zealand and married my man. We have had four children, though lost our youngest as a baby due to complications.

Today we live in the beautiful area of Rotorua, full of lakes, forests and cultural diversity, I couldn’t be happier.

I have been researching family trees for 13 or so years now, today I research and format the stories for others for those special occasions – like family reunions.

I have two cats, who don’t like each other much. Both are adopted, one from the SPCA. Sylvia is grey and white and i tend to call her Sylvia Fat Cat. The other cat Matilda was inherited from my mother in law. I call her Tilly Flat Cat – that is how different they are.

It was because of my Family History Research that I fell into writing…

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I discovered books for enjoyment at the age of 12. They were books like the Famous Five, by Enid Blyton, Biggles by C W Johns and of course the best Narnia Stories by C S Lewis. Loved them all, though another special favourite is The Valley of Song by Elizabeth Goudge.

In 2012 I was sitting at my desk where I had been doing some research for a book. The book was for an 80th birthday, and data gathering was really slow. With nothing much to do I opened a word document and started to write. Three chapters later I sent to two friends in the UK who said….WOW we ant more, don’t forget the sex scenes.

Sex scenes – I gulped, you can’t be serious ladies. Well yes they were. So yes after much blushing and embarrassment I added scenes to keep them happy. The story is called ‘Mystery at Crosswick Manor’ and is set in Regency Gloucester and London – this work is still unpublished, due to the fact extra research is needed to get it correct for the time period.

Since that time I have written an adult series based in New York at ‘Garrett Investigation Bureau’ (GIB) The series starts with Malachy’s Unit. There are five books so far. I also have two short stories one Fantasy Erotic and a Children’s Book which was written to prove I could write books without adult content. Yeah I stopped blushing eventually. All my books can be found on Kindle and Smashwords, as well as seven being in print.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
C S Lewis is my favourite children’s author, due to the fact the Narnia stories are for children of all ages. Yes I still read them. I also like Clive Cussler for his historical content in his adventure stories. I like a good thriller too some authors I have read are J D Robb, Linda Fairstein and Karin Slaughter.

I like a story which lets you escape, so it doesn’t matter what genre it is as long as I can get absorbed into it.

The pixie/muse on my shoulder! I have no real idea what inspires me to write. My fingers and characters seem to take over most of the time and can be quite demanding, I first wrote due to boredom and enjoyment. Today I write because fans want more and have enjoyed the read, so I try and give them what they want.

My books can twist and turn in the most unusual places, they are generally fast paced and quite visual. A bit like watching a movie in your mind, so I’ve been told.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
“Mascosta’s Dreamgirl,” is my latest book and is now available online in eBook and Print.

Hilton Mascosta is a graphic artist and agent for Garrett Investigation Bureau (GIB). He is a loner and one tough guy, doesn’t like women, in fact he doesn’t overly like people. When he does have contact he is a gentleman to the ladies, he does care, sometimes too deeply. He can work in a team, though prefers to be left to his art.

Hilton is close to 6 foot tall with dark hair and fab abs. The story starts with Hilton hearing a woman scream, from there on in it get complex, terror in New York, assassins on the rampage, a mad doctor and a woman he finally doesn’t seem to be able to resist. Trouble is the woman isn’t who she thinks she is. Will love win out?

I am a prolific writer, I can’t be sure how long it took to write due to the fact I have had other projects on the go at the same time. This is book five which I started probably September last year. Books six and seven are in progress. Book six was started for NaNoWriMo Month and I wrote 50,000 words in 13 days. It still isn’t finished though. So you see it is quite difficult to gauge a time length. Mascosta’s Dreamgirl is about 100,000 words with lots of explosions in it.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Claire Plaisted’s Website

Claire Plaisted Facebook Page

Claire Plaisted Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Meirav Oz

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
My name is Meirav Oz, I’m a published Author, Screen Writer, a world-wide Speaker and an Owner of a Talent Recruitment Agency for Advertising, with over a decade of managerial experience in Israel’s leading international Advertising agencies.

Today I live In Tel Aviv but, I was born and raised in small town in Israel called Kfar–Saba.

I was a curious little girl with a vast inner world. I remember my childhood surrounded by books, I’ve spent most of my childhood in the corridors of the community library.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I started writing when I was about nine. Actually my first book called: “Sweet Dreams” was published when I was twelve. It was a children’s book written by a child. An allocation of thirty (must admit-childish and naïve) poems I wrote when I was about nine or ten years old.

Years after I grew up to be a senior executive in the tough advertising industry. I always had a passion for creative people. My background in writing helped me in my career, but I neglected writing for years. After a few years in the advertising business I came back to it and started writing an anonymous column in an Israeli Advertising magazine.

The writing was my gateway from the hectic crazy world of advertising. I wrote about myself and my life and no one knew I was the one behind this character. After a year the magazine went out of business and I found myself continuing writing this fictional personal diary and understood I’m writing a novel.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My sources of inspiration is very wide – it could be from Israeli authors such as David Grossman, Eshkol Nevo, or Amos Oz (no family relation..), but also from contemporary journalism writing or even TV series. For example I can defiantly say that Lena Dunham is a creator that makes me want to write…

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest novel called “One Wrong Move” – It started from my column and turned to a Novel depicting the behind-the-scenes of the advertising world. It was first published in Israel and was an immediate success. Now it’s translated to English. The plot is based on my personal story and my former career. It goes like this:

When Karnie, a 28 year-old redhead Account Executive who starts to work in a big Advertising agency in Tel Aviv, she feels she has made it. And why wouldn’t she? The agency is super chic, the people are fascinating, the accounts are desirable and the campaigns are trend setting.

Her co-workers at the agency are a colorful bunch of characters, to whom she refers by their nicknames: Dolce & Gabbana, the hottest girls in the account executive department; Senior Blonde, her bitchy account supervisor; C.D, the godless sassy creative director; Killer Lady, the intimidating producer; Big Boss, the ambitious CEO, and Ben-Ben, the witty copy writer and her best friend.

In no time, Karnie becomes addicted to her job and can’t point where her work ends and her life begins.

Not that things on the personal front seem too bright either: Her relationship with her family is tense and alienated; and she soon gets carried away into a tumultuous love affair with a frustrated artist she meets on a photo shoot.

The reader follows Karnie as she struggles to balance her professional and personal life, fearing that it would only take one wrong move for her entire world to collapse.

With its contemporary, witty, sharp and rhythmic tone, this novel will make you laugh, sympathize, and even realize something about the struggle of a generation to find its identity through a demanding career.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Meirav Oz’s Website

Meirav Oz Facebook Page

Featured Interview With Amelia Allen

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Let’s see, I was born in Torrance, CA and moved to Fort Collins, CO about 8 years ago now. I was 15 at the time, so that’s where a lot of dreaming took place…which led to the birth of my first real novel, My Own Private Hollywood. It was around that time when I saw 17 Again in theaters and decided Zac Efron was tolerable. (High School Musical. Just, no.) And wouldn’t mind if he happened to come to the town I lived in. And meet me. And we hung out. And lived happily ever after.

But I digress.

I have one pet so far, who is more so referred to as my baby: a kitten named Celia, who, just last Saturday, turned one. She is my perfect little purr-ball and she is now a little chunk from all the Kitten Chow but she is the prettiest little thing you will ever lay eyes on.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
At a really young age my mom would take me to the PV library every week, which I remember had super cool porcelain pumas or panthers or whatever four-legged catlike creatures, to get a ton of picture books and read them to me every night, so she taught me that I could pretend anything I wanted to when I was just a small unlearned grasshopper—which, I liked, because I was a very shy little girl who wanted to do and be anything I wanted but was too scared.

Writing, for me, started not long after that, actually, I co-wrote and illustrated small stories with a fellow classmate when I was in elementary school about a dalmatian named Dot and a calico cat named Cali.

They were just as bland as they sound.

But middle school was when it really developed into something more and I had seen the movie The Princess and the Goblin and was immediately obsessed (dat song tho) and had to write my own version because I was already a hopeless romantic and had to see more love. And that’s when I’d become a writer.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Oh that’s an easy one: Meg Cabot, Helen Fielding, Lemony Snicket, and then of course there’s Dr. Seuss, Roald Dahl, and Shel Silverstein. But that goes without saying. They are all incredible talents that have each inspired my works in one way or another.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My Own Private Hollywood is recently published in paperback, hardcover, and eBook, is available so far on Lulu.com, and I must say is quite amazing. Like Morgan Freeman amazing.

Mm. Yes, that’s it. It’s the Morgan Freeman of books.

Like I mentioned earlier, it was a product of my 15 year old dreaming in Fort Collins and it goes a little something like this: Mona Benjamin is your average girl—until she meets the runaway celebrity heartthrob Dmitri Dante. Now she can be not-so-average, the girlfriend of the most beautiful man on earth, and live happily ever after, right? Well, there’s just one thing: She hates him. But then of course it’s a romance because the greatest thing you’ll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return (Moulin Rouge, I know, best love movie in all the land) so they fall in love and do lovely things and have a lovely time doing them.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Amelia Allen’s Website

Amelia Allen Facebook Page

Featured Interview With R.B. O’Brien

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I grew up outside of Boston, Massachusetts and earned an English literature degree and teach now. I haven’t gone too far from home. I love New England. Having traveled extensively. I always come back. Home is home.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
Early on! I was the geek in the family, hiding books from my friends and cousins, who didn’t think reading was cool. I was fascinated with Hardy Boy Mysteries. Stephen King horror. But when I hit puberty, I always ventured to the darker side of reading. By college, I had acquired quite of few taboo books: Henry Miller, Pauline Reage, Anais Nin, Anne Rice, and Lolita has forever stuck with me. I have always written, but I got serious about it about three years ago, when summers off afforded me the time. I have hundreds of unfinished manuscripts, quite literally.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Of course I have to give hats off to EL James. I think she inspired many of us to see that our deeper, darkest fantasies aren’t all that deep and dark, and that it was time to let go and let it out. We are too uptight in America. Right now, I love the work of C.D. Reiss, Pepper Winters and the darker themes of Claire Thompson. I did like some of Sylvia Day’s earlier work in the series. Believe it or not, I am a huge fan of Shakespeare. I see the dark and erotic in every one of his works. He’s a genius. I also love Heathcliff and Wuthering Heights and George Elliot’s The Mill on the Floss is right up there. My favorite classic is Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
Temptation Natalie’s Edge 1 is the first book in a series of three that seemed to write itself. I’d get up in the morning, and the characters would speak through my finger tips on the keyboard, and when I was done, I didn’t even know the story they told until I read it.

It follows the relationship between former ballet dancer and now boutique owner, Natalie Smith, and passionate environmentalist, Michael L. Black. Natalie’s temptation is too great as she quickly descends into love and lust with this controlling, damaged, strikingly gorgeous man, who has trust issues and insecurities. He likes to dominate and tease her, and she learns to like it, need it, crave it, even as it causes her pain. Slowly, Michael, who didn’t think he was capable of love, begins to change. And while Michael has a dark side full of trust issues and insecurities, he has a tender, sweet, and kind side as well that Natalie hopes to nurture.

Their relationship is a highly charged, emotional one. Michael has a past that he keeps secret of his time abroad in Iceland. And Natalie has her own secrets she keeps. Through games and bondage, Michael learns Natalie’s body, her sensitivities, patiently, cruelly and lovingly at once, to render her vulnerable, at times helpless, and nothing less than dripping with need. And Natalie begrudgingly must admit she likes it. She likes the way it makes her feel, even if it goes against the feminist she thought she was. Her quick emotional surrender becomes a love that almost hurts, as she wonders what Michael feels for her. Will Michael ever be able to return the love she feels? Or is he too damaged?

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

R.B. O’Brien’s Website

R.B. O’Brien Facebook Page

R.B. O’Brien Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Andrew G. Swapp

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born and raised in a little town in Southern Utah surrounded by National Parks and natural beauty. Kanab, Utah is at the heart of adventure so growing up was just that, one great adventure! I moved to Emery County my senior year of High school and yes I found great adventure there as well. I joined the U.S. Army as senior because I wanted to jump out of airplanes like John Wayne in The Green Berets, SCUBA dive like Jaques Cousteau, and I wanted to see the big ditch that Teddy Roosevelt dug in Panama. In my first year in the Army I accomplished all of my big goals. I loved the jungles of Panama and the undersea life. I often have dreamed of retiring there, one of the worlds best kept dive secrets. My military career brought me back to Panama in less than desirable conditions where I met several of General Manuel Noriega’s soldiers who would sporaticly defend the evil dictator with occasional sniper fire or drive by spraying of erratic 7.62. This event was just one of the adventures the military life brought, but in 1996 my medical retirement paved the way for a brand new adventure in eduction. I became a High School shop teacher. For last fifteen years I have been teaching the next generation of engineers, builders, welders, cabinet makers, and wind technicians. I have found adventure on a small 40 acre farm with my trusty mule Melagro and several other animals. My family has found an adventurous growing up and learning in the Milford Utah area, but recent events have forced a move and we are off to another adventure to parts unknown.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I am sorry! I never was fascinated with books! I was so bored with reading that I could hardly sit still for even a good adventure. History class came alive when the teacher would talk about Teddy Roosevelt. My mother would put me to bed as a child with an adventure in the form of a book. I grew up not realizing that I loved books. I was a poor reader until medical conditions made it so that the military was no longer my career. I went back to school and the college offered a reading course. I signed up and wow I found adventures again! Now that I have been an educator for fifteen years I have decided to run in a little different direction. I have felt the pressure to seek a new adventure and writing books is just one of those adventures. I have authored only two books at this point and I know that with experience and practice my writing will only get better, but one thing you can count on is finding adventure in every chapter. I hope to make books and reading a huge part of my life from this point on.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Basically unknown authors are the ones for me. The histories and autobiographical stories are fascinating. The lessons learned and analogies to life are so important. I am enthralled with good stories of good people who have given service to their fellow man.
Jay A. Parry and Andrew M. Allison have hit a home run with The Real George Washington. I love our founding fathers and the passion that they must have had for freedom.
In my days as a river guide on the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon I was a connoisseur of Edward abby books, but one in particular was the Monkey Wrench Gang. I dreamed of a free running river unencumbered by cement dams, but realizing that the dam prolonged the river running season brought me back to reality. I did have uncles who worked for the National Park Service and lived next to Edward Abby and affectionately called him “Shabby Abby!” They said as a Park Ranger you would think he would have the knowledge of an iron and bath soap! I was amazed at their comments of this environmental hero. I guess everyone shines in somethings and not in others.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
The Education Animal is my latest book. I love analogies, so the education animal is how I view education, it is an animal. An animal can be very wild, out of control and even vicious at times, or they can be very tame and seek the companionship of mankind. I have found that so often the animals on my farm reflect the time that I spend with them. We depend greatly on animals even in this modern age we depend on then for food, fiber, and friendship. I include some personal history and great learning experiences or adventures that have shaped my life and values. Education is so basic to our freedom and this is expressed within the chapters of The Education Animal.
If you love adventures and you love to feel something deep inside, then you will love this book. I take you from boyhood to manhood, from fun carefree to deeply meaningful and pain filled experiences that shape your views and even turn them inside out. I write about parenting, teaching, and making life an adventure for any age and especially for your children, all stated in analogies. If you think you will read The Education Animal for an educational type of read, think again, it will make you laugh, it will put on the edge of your seat, and it will make you cry, but mostly I hope it will allow you to feel the importance of education its many forms.
The book has been born out of some frustration with how education is headed this day in age and out of desire to educate students to be creative, intelligent, safe, and well grounded at the same time. The direction we have been heading is taking freedoms away in leaps and bounds. It has taken a life time of experiences to build this book, but only a few months to write it down and make flow.
Thank you for reading thus far. I hope you will take the time to sit down and read this small book and please leave me comments. I will be learning the rest of my life, by all means if I strike a cord with you let me know – educate me!

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Andrew G. Swapp’s Website

Andrew G. Swapp Facebook Page

Featured Interview With Don C Harris

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I grew up in Melbourne, Florida. I spend much of my life (23 years) traveling the United States with my wife in a converted motor bus. I now live in Pie Town, New Mexico (USA). I have 6 adult children and 5 cats.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
Mostly what inspires me to write is when I receive unique revelation from God, not necessarily, to record publish or sell – but to allow that revelation to inspire others to seek the revelation for themselves.
It was the influence of friends and loved ones who encouraged me to write after reading my journals or written/recorded personal devotions that started me on the path of writing books.
I began writing my first book in 2000.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
The first book I read as a child was the Bible. Although I don’t hold a reckless view of infallibility of inerrancy of the Bible – I feel that it is a valuable record of the exemplars of faith. My appreciation of the Bible is not demonstrated by the liturgical adjectives that I use to describe it, but by the fact that I live by it.
Jesus said about His words what can be said by no other, “My words are Spirit and they are Life.” I believe Him. Some of the authors who inspire me – Abraham, Jeremiah, David, Job, John and Paul; but when you get the red letters (the words of Jesus) right, it ALL makes sense.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
Revelations On Manna introduces or re-introduces secrets that have been hidden since the foundation of the world. An obvious, yet novel concept is applied in this succinct and powerful work – utilizing the Scriptural definitions of words to identify the Christianity of the Bible.
The result is the revealing of the Word of God in a way that was known to Abraham, Jeremiah, David, John and Paul, but is not understood by most modern Christian theologians.
If you want the standard fare this book will not interest or please you. On the other hand, if you are weary of the average religious pacifiers you might find the key you have been seeking ALL your life. This book was written over the course of one year.
Revelations On Manna reveals the incredible plan designed by the Father God for communication and relationship. If you love truth, this slightly different perspective will surprise and delight you.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Don C Harris’s Website

Don C Harris Facebook Page

Don C Harris Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Renee Marski

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I grew up in central FL raised by my dad who is a history teacher and my mom, who works for county office. I joined the Navy out of high school and served four years. I met my husband while in the Navy and we are currently stationed in Texas. I have two dogs, a husky and a lab, and a foster pitbull.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I have been writing since I can remember. My third grade teacher took one of my stories and “published” it for me by binding it with cardboard to make a hard copy. The first story I remember being really serious about was my Hercules fan fiction based on the TV show at the time starring Kevin Sorbo. Reading has always been something I loved and I read anything I can get my hands on.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite genre is sci-fy. My favorite authors are J.R. Tolkein and Rick Riordian. I also enjoy Mary Higgins Clark. I love reading mysteries as well.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book is a murder mystery about a high school senior who moves to a new town and discovers a tragic event that has been haunting it for the last four years. Coming from a family of police officers, she decides to try to solve the case herself, while dealing with school, boys, and a sister who won’t communicate.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Renee Marski Facebook Page

Featured Interview With John Rachel

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I like to speak in the third person, as if I am introducing myself at a huge book convention, full of adoring fans . . .

John Rachel has a B. A. in Philosophy, has traveled extensively, is a songwriter and music producer, and a bipolar humanist. He has spent his life trying to resolve the intrinsic clash between the metaphysical purity of Buddhism and the overwhelming appeal of narcissism. Prompted by the trauma of graduating high school and having to leave his beloved city of Detroit to attend college, the development his social skills and world view was arrested at age 18. This affliction figures prominently in all of his creative work.

In his own words: “I write trivial garbage to clutter the world with nonsense, but do it with penitent irony and great reverence for literary tradition.”

He is author of eight novels, four of which are coming out in 2014 and 2015. He has also had over 30 short stories, 7 poems, and numerous political articles published in both print and online magazines. Currently in development is a new novel set in Japan, another in Africa, and a creative non-fiction work, allegedly an account of his extensive travels, but more likely the product of the voices in his head which have plagued him since puberty.

Author Rachel has been traveling through and living in over twenty-six countries since leaving America August of 2006. He is now somewhat rooted in a small traditional farming village in Japan near Osaka, where he proudly tends his small but promising vegetable garden.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
While I was an infant in an orphanage in Ypsilanti, Michigan, the nuns used to play catch with the New Testament. One of them missed and the heavy, leather-bound book landed in my bassinet. Actually, it hit me in the stomach and I upchucked the formula I had been fed only minutes before. This was my first contact with a book and it inspired my obsessive reading ever since, though I admit most books now still give me a stomach ache.

I dabbled in writing for many years, mostly bouncing checks and leaving the phone #s of people I disliked on bathroom walls. As a songwriter from my early twenties, I penned both music and lyrics to over a hundred songs, many of which are now used at Guantanamo Base in Cuba as part of their ongoing program of psychological torture.

I wrote a crossword puzzle in 1977.

Finally, I started writing novels in 2008. It has been a phenomenal and rewarding journey since.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite authors include but are not limited to: Tom Robbins, Kurt Vonnegut, John Irving, Stanislaw Lem, Studs Terkel, E. L. Doctorow, Jerzy Kosinski, Ken Kesey, Sinclair Lewis, Ralph Ellison, Bertrand Russell, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Noam Chomsky, Naomi Klein, Chris Hedges, Howard Zinn, Thomas Kuhn, Aldous Huxley, Neil Postman, and Jared Diamond.

I am inspired by the man who appears in my toast every morning, who has been giving me stock tips and lottery numbers since a bad acid trip in 1972.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
“The Man Who Loved Too Much” is a trilogy. Book One was published November 9, 2014. Book Two is coming out in March 2015, Book Three July 2015.

Book One . . .

Poor Billy Green! When he was just turning four, his father tried to throw him in the trash. He was a smart kid but that just seemed to create enemies. His mom did everything to protect him. But this was Detroit, armpit of the wasteland! Catholic school didn’t help much, except the time he got his first kiss from an atheist nun. Home life was dismal. Was his father capable of anything but drinking beer and farting? And what was with that neighbor who made puppets and tried to molest Billy? Golly! Detroit was sucking the life out of him. At such a young age. Then adolescence swirled around him. Like water in a toilet bowl. High school was a B movie. Only without a plot. So finally he did something about it. Billy ran away … to college. Cornell University. That was a good move for sure! He studied hard, lost his virginity, met the love of his life. Things were definitely looking up! What could possibly go wrong?

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

John Rachel’s Website

John Rachel Facebook Page

John Rachel Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Julie Arduini

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I’m a contemporary romance author that has a passion to encourage readers to find freedom through surrender. I believe that has to start with me, so I invite everyone to join me as we “surrender the good, the bad, and—maybe one day—the chocolate.” I use Upstate NY settings in my work as I spent most of my life there. I now live in Poland, Ohio, outside of Youngstown.

I’m married with two children. I’m also a step-mom to two adult children and a son-in-law who live in Wisconsin.

I’m also “mom” to furry babies Pepper (senior Lhasa,) Bonita (senior Lhasa,) Gary (senior cat,) and Tucker (one year old Chow Lab.)

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I wasn’t even school age. My mom recalls that I’d hang on every word during stories and memorize them so I could pretend I was reading. Before I started school I took sheets of paper and scribbled on them, telling people they were my stories.

The first time I felt like there was something to my writing was in middle school. I was asked to write a poem for Martin Luther King, Jr. day and I wrote one in twenty minutes. The teachers were shocked at not only how fast I wrote it, but the emotions it evoked.

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 Susan May Warren, Rachel Hauck, Kristin Billerbeck, Karen Kingsbury. They definitely inspire me. I enjoy contemporary romance and suspense the best. Outside those genres I love reading Bob Sorge and Steven James.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
The Love Boat Bachelor is a collaborative effort from some of the authors at Write Integrity Press. Brent Teague was a character in 2014’s bestseller, A Dozen Apologies, who was not chosen by readers as the hero. Jerusha Agen wondered what a book would look like if we took brokenhearted Brent and placed him on a two week Caribbean Cruise. The result is The Love Boat Bachelor. Brent is a pastor questioning everything, including his vocation, after Mara Adkins breaks his heart twice. His sister and best friend encourage him to serve as chaplain on a cruise. What they don’t tell him is the cruise is love themed. Everyone is either in love or desperate to find it. Each author wrote a chapter featuring a port of call and a heroine. Readers voted on the heroine to give Brent his happy ending. The book is available through Kindle starting on February 14th.

I also have my own first contemporary romance available, Entrusted. This is an Adirondack romance where Youngstown born Jenna Anderson leaves everything and everyone she knows for a job in the Adirondack Mountains. She produces a lot of change for grocer Ben Regan, a man broken by loss and change. He’s bent on keeping the senior center closed, the very place Jenna’s risked everything to make things work.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Julie Arduini’s Website

Julie Arduini Facebook Page

Julie Arduini Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Armineh Helen Ohanian

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Armineh lives in Westhampton NY and is American from Armenian descent. She is the author of 4 published books and another one in the works. Armineh has lived a very interesting life in the four corners of the world. Her exciting life experiences are projected in her books. For reference, in “Nine Years to Freedom,” you will experience what life was like in Iran after Khomeini brought about the Islamic regime which has impacted all of us today. In her second book, “The Apple Tree Blossoms in the Fall,” the reader will experience life with Armineh, as a non-Muslim growing up in a very strict Islamic city in Iran. Her writing is fast paced and very enlightening. Armineh has three witty and adorable cats who are her writing companions and have traveled the world with her.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I have four published books, and another two coming out soon. I began my writing career as early as the age of fourteen. At fifteen I was already a published author. I was born in Iran from Armenian origin. I began life thinking I would become a musician, but turned out to be an author, and I love it!

My motto in life is that nothing is impossible. Indeed, once you set your mind on accomplishing a task, you should never give up until you achieve your purpose. I also believe in miracles, as seem in my book, “The Apple Tree Blossoms in the Fall” – which is evident from the title of the book. In my novels, I like to share with the reader my international experiences, as well as include characteristics of different cultures.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite author is Jeannette Walls and John Steinbeck.

My favorite genre to read is any type of fiction and political subjects.

Louisa May Alcott inspired my writing because as a young writer she sent her stories to a publisher anonymously; and I did the same when I was 14 and it worked for me. I became a published author at the age of 15.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
I am in the process of publishing my latest book called: ” Looking for Georges Bizet on Planet Heaven”.

What inspired me to write this book was my love for Opera Carmen, composed by the above eighteenth-century French composer. When Bizet performed Carmen for the first time in Paris, the next day critics destroyed his work in the Parisian newspapers. The musician died heart-broken at the early age of thirty-six. Ironically, immediately after his death, Georges Bizet became popular and loved for his Carmen Opera. I have always wondered how Bizet would feel if he were to find out about his post mortem fame.

Buy the book on Amazon.

Connect with the Author on their Websites and Social media profiles

Armineh Helen Ohanian’s Website

Armineh Helen Ohanian Facebook Page

Armineh Helen Ohanian Twitter Account

Featured Interview With Daphna Slonim

Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born and raised in Israel. I came to Los Angeles in 1980, after I became Board Certified Psychiatrist. I came to visit a friend for a month, found my spiritual teacher and here I am.

I grew up with dogs in my crib and always had dogs till the last one died a couple of years ago. Now I am traveling a lot so feel it is unfair to adopt another best friend.

At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I always loved to read. I have spent hours reading since I learned to read at age 6.

I only started to write non-fiction books a few years ago. At that time I felt I should share my unique techniques with millions of people who have subconscious sabotage and fail to achieve their goals but do not need professional help.

Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I love to read good novels, spiritual books and mystery/suspense books preferably with lawyers and courtroom drama. My favorite books ever are The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky and Autobiography of A Yogi by Yogananda.

Tell us a little about your latest book?
This is a “do it yourself” manual, explaining how to use Energy Muscle Testing to find the sub-conscious blocks you have to happiness and to achieve your goals and outlining my unique techniques on how to quickly and easily remove them, hopefully forever…

Buy the book on Amazon.