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Profile: Donna Galanti, Author of ‘A Human Element’
Donna Galanti writes murder and mystery as well as middle grade adventure fiction. She is an International Thriller Writers Debut Author of the paranormal suspense novel
A Human Element
, the short story collection The Dark Inside, and the forthcoming Joshua and The Lightning Road.
An avid reader as a child, Galanti grew up in a nurturing environment, immersed in books such asThe Hobbit, Little House in the Big Woods, The Island of the Blue Dolphins, My Side of The Mountain, Call of the Wild and White Fang. “My favorite author was Roald Dahl and my favorite book of his was Danny the Champion of the World,” says Galanti, whose dark imagination ran wild from the start.
From her early years in England to her later work in Hawaii as a U.S. Navy photographer, Galanti always dreamed of becoming an author. She wrote her first murder mystery screenplay at the tender age of seven. She had a career in writing for marketing and communications and ran her own resume writing service, but it wasn’t until her mother died five years ago that she began writing novels out of her grief. Eventually, that grief turned to peace, when she fully realized what it was she truly loved to do: becoming a storyteller. In addition to being a full-time author, Galanti also works part time as a freelance copywriter for an advertising agency.
“I write from the dark side with a glimpse of hope. I am drawn to writing the hero’s journey – more so the tormented hero, and tormented villain. I enjoy creating empathy for both by blurring the lines between good and evil,” states the author, whose first two books in The Element Trilogy , A Human Element and A Hidden Element (Imajin Books, August 2014) are both full of murder and mystery with a dash of steam, and both have their own tormented hero and villain. “I slay my own demons through my writing – and I highly recommend it!” she says.
A Human Element , just released by Imajin Books, is the thrilling, unrelenting page-turner story of Laura Armstrong. Her friends and family members are being murdered and, despite her unique healing powers, she can do nothing to stop it. Determined to find the killer, she follows her visions to the site of a crashed meteorite in her hometown, where she eventually unravels a terrifying secret that binds her to the killer.
The book has already garnered excellent praise from New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Maberry and international bestselling author M.J. Rose.
![Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000040_00067]](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1406771635i/10594642.jpg)
Galanti lives in an old farmhouse – sadly, with no ghosts – with many fireplaces where she often curls up to create her page-turners. Other times she works in her office overlooking the woods. Throughout the year she meets weekly with a women’s writing group at a café where they write together and share advice and their success stories.
Galanti began writing A Human Element seventeen years ago from a vision she had while driving to work one day. She wrote two chapters and shelved them for over a decade. When she finally decided to continue the story, she wrote Monday through Friday from 4:30am to 6:30am. After seven months she typed THE END.
All writers have their stronger and weaker points, and for this author, revision is her favorite process. That’s where she can make her story shine. “Knowing how important this process is has been one of my strong points,” she says. “There are many layers to a story to be found after you write that first draft, and that’s what I love to do: peel back the layers.” One area she struggled in for a long time was to slow down her writing. She can be a very fast writer, creating pages and pages of words that often would need to be trimmed down. She has since then learned to slow down her writing and craft her words with care as she writes them, so she doesn’t have to spend so much time on revision.
In an era when small presses, the good, the bad and the ugly, abound, Galanti’s experience has been nothing but positive. “My experience with Imajin Books has been amazing!” she says of her Canadian-based publisher. “Imajin Books is dedicated to working with me to help my books succeed. The owner, Cheryl Kaye Tardif, is a bestselling author in her own right.” Imajin Books was very responsive and provided in-depth editorial guidance as well as marketing plans, not to mention fantastic book cover designs. The publishing industry is notorious for being slow-moving, but in the case of The Element Trilogy, Imajin Books made the process quick and efficient.
As with many authors, Galanti finds starting a new book most challenging. The first blank page can be a scary thing, until the story takes over, propelling your main character into his new unbalanced world toward the ultimate end. However, being an author can be extremely rewarding. “When it comes to readers, there is nothing more thrilling than reading wonderful reviews about your book that you spent months, or years, creating and shaping,” she says. “It’s from that private place in your heart, where you love the most – and hurt the most – that you pour out pages to show the world. And it’s all worthwhile when you discover that others have been touched by your story, just as you were touched while you were writing it. Second, it’s rewarding to pay it forward to up-and-coming authors. There is a wonderful feeling that comes from speaking to writers about your publishing journey and sharing advice and techniques on how to find success as an author, and hope that they do.”
Galanti is currently working on the idea for the third and final book in The Element Trilogy called, A Healing Element, and gearing up to release book 2, A Hidden Element, on August 28th. A native of upstate New York, the author now lives in Southeastern Pennsylvania with her family in an old farmhouse. It has lots of writing nooks, fireplaces, and stink bugs, but she’s still wishing for a castle—preferably with ghosts.
Connect with the author on Facebook , Twitter and her Blog.
This profile was originally published in Blogcritics.
An avid reader as a child, Galanti grew up in a nurturing environment, immersed in books such asThe Hobbit, Little House in the Big Woods, The Island of the Blue Dolphins, My Side of The Mountain, Call of the Wild and White Fang. “My favorite author was Roald Dahl and my favorite book of his was Danny the Champion of the World,” says Galanti, whose dark imagination ran wild from the start.From her early years in England to her later work in Hawaii as a U.S. Navy photographer, Galanti always dreamed of becoming an author. She wrote her first murder mystery screenplay at the tender age of seven. She had a career in writing for marketing and communications and ran her own resume writing service, but it wasn’t until her mother died five years ago that she began writing novels out of her grief. Eventually, that grief turned to peace, when she fully realized what it was she truly loved to do: becoming a storyteller. In addition to being a full-time author, Galanti also works part time as a freelance copywriter for an advertising agency.
“I write from the dark side with a glimpse of hope. I am drawn to writing the hero’s journey – more so the tormented hero, and tormented villain. I enjoy creating empathy for both by blurring the lines between good and evil,” states the author, whose first two books in The Element Trilogy , A Human Element and A Hidden Element (Imajin Books, August 2014) are both full of murder and mystery with a dash of steam, and both have their own tormented hero and villain. “I slay my own demons through my writing – and I highly recommend it!” she says.
A Human Element , just released by Imajin Books, is the thrilling, unrelenting page-turner story of Laura Armstrong. Her friends and family members are being murdered and, despite her unique healing powers, she can do nothing to stop it. Determined to find the killer, she follows her visions to the site of a crashed meteorite in her hometown, where she eventually unravels a terrifying secret that binds her to the killer.
The book has already garnered excellent praise from New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Maberry and international bestselling author M.J. Rose.
![Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000040_00067]](http://blogcritics.org/wp-content/uploads/bcimages/2014/07/A-Human-Element-Book-1-Front.jpg)
Galanti lives in an old farmhouse – sadly, with no ghosts – with many fireplaces where she often curls up to create her page-turners. Other times she works in her office overlooking the woods. Throughout the year she meets weekly with a women’s writing group at a café where they write together and share advice and their success stories.“When I am creating a new book I love to sit outdoors overlooking the woods with a pen and notebook and handwrite my ideas. My thoughts are slowed down this way as my brain connects to pen in hand, and it opens my mind up to brainstorm,” says the author, describing her creative process. “There is nothing more freeing creatively to journal story ideas and throw all sorts of ‘what if?’ questions out there to find the kernel of a good story you want to pursue. Then I create character worksheets and type up a ten page synopsis of the book. I do all this before I write that first word of the story. And I always create a title first! It’s what drives my inspiration for the story.”
Galanti began writing A Human Element seventeen years ago from a vision she had while driving to work one day. She wrote two chapters and shelved them for over a decade. When she finally decided to continue the story, she wrote Monday through Friday from 4:30am to 6:30am. After seven months she typed THE END.
All writers have their stronger and weaker points, and for this author, revision is her favorite process. That’s where she can make her story shine. “Knowing how important this process is has been one of my strong points,” she says. “There are many layers to a story to be found after you write that first draft, and that’s what I love to do: peel back the layers.” One area she struggled in for a long time was to slow down her writing. She can be a very fast writer, creating pages and pages of words that often would need to be trimmed down. She has since then learned to slow down her writing and craft her words with care as she writes them, so she doesn’t have to spend so much time on revision.
In an era when small presses, the good, the bad and the ugly, abound, Galanti’s experience has been nothing but positive. “My experience with Imajin Books has been amazing!” she says of her Canadian-based publisher. “Imajin Books is dedicated to working with me to help my books succeed. The owner, Cheryl Kaye Tardif, is a bestselling author in her own right.” Imajin Books was very responsive and provided in-depth editorial guidance as well as marketing plans, not to mention fantastic book cover designs. The publishing industry is notorious for being slow-moving, but in the case of The Element Trilogy, Imajin Books made the process quick and efficient.
As with many authors, Galanti finds starting a new book most challenging. The first blank page can be a scary thing, until the story takes over, propelling your main character into his new unbalanced world toward the ultimate end. However, being an author can be extremely rewarding. “When it comes to readers, there is nothing more thrilling than reading wonderful reviews about your book that you spent months, or years, creating and shaping,” she says. “It’s from that private place in your heart, where you love the most – and hurt the most – that you pour out pages to show the world. And it’s all worthwhile when you discover that others have been touched by your story, just as you were touched while you were writing it. Second, it’s rewarding to pay it forward to up-and-coming authors. There is a wonderful feeling that comes from speaking to writers about your publishing journey and sharing advice and techniques on how to find success as an author, and hope that they do.”
Galanti is currently working on the idea for the third and final book in The Element Trilogy called, A Healing Element, and gearing up to release book 2, A Hidden Element, on August 28th. A native of upstate New York, the author now lives in Southeastern Pennsylvania with her family in an old farmhouse. It has lots of writing nooks, fireplaces, and stink bugs, but she’s still wishing for a castle—preferably with ghosts.
Connect with the author on Facebook , Twitter and her Blog.
This profile was originally published in Blogcritics.
'5 Questions with Donna Galanti,' Author of A Hidden Element, book 2 in the Element Trilogy
Donna Galanti writes murder and mystery with a dash of steam as well as middle grade adventure fiction. She is the author of books 1 and 2 in the paranormal suspense Element Trilogy, A Human Element andA Hidden Element, the short story collection The Dark Inside, and Joshua and The Lightning Road (Books 1 and 2, 2015). She’s lived from England as a child, to Hawaii as a U.S. Navy photographer. She now lives in Pennsylvania with her family in an old farmhouse. It has lots of writing nooks, fireplaces, and stink bugs, but she’s still wishing for a castle again—preferably with ghosts.Website: www.ElementTrilogy.com
Blog: http://www.elementtrilogy.com/blog/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/DonnaGalanti
Facebook: www.facebook.com/DonnaGalantiAuthor
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5767306.Donna_Galanti
Q: What’s inside the mind of a suspense author?
A: Never ending dialogue. Scenes of evil doers and people in peril. Tormented villains getting revenge, and then their comeuppance. Steamy lovers in a survival showdown. Yep, it’s generally dark in there full of murder, mystery, and mayhem! Then add a dash of hope and humanity alongside a love for creating psychopathic melee and you’ve got a brew for one wild ride.
Q: Tell us why readers should buy A Hidden Element.
A: I believe the book contains universal elements that people can relate to; abandonment, loss, redemption, acceptance, grief, and yearning for something you can never have. I write from the dark side with a glimpse of hope and am drawn to writing the tormented hero’s journey–and tormented villain’s. I enjoy creating empathy for both by blurring the lines between good and evil. And I especially enjoy using the paranormal elements of mind control to shake the foundation of my character’s world. If you enjoy murder and mystery with a dash of steam you’ll enjoy A Hidden Element.
Q: What makes a good paranormal suspense novel?
A: As a subgenre of suspense, a well-crafted paranormal suspense novel (for me) can include elements that range beyond scientific explanation and blend other genres together such as fantasy, horror, and science fiction. The fantastic thing about writing paranormal is that there are so many avenues of paranormal to write about including psychic powers (my favorite!) or ghosts, time travel, or vampires.
Q: What is a regular writing day like for you?
A: It begins with the alarm clock usually buzzing at 4:30am. The dark morning hours are my best time to do creative writing on a new book when my mind is uncluttered. Afternoons are best left for revisions, research, and promotion. When I am creating a new book I love to sit outdoors overlooking the woods with a pen and notebook and handwrite my ideas. My thoughts are slowed down this way as my brain connects to pen in hand, and it opens my mind up to brainstorm. There is nothing more freeing creatively to journal new characters and story ideas and throw all sorts of “what if?” questions out there to find the kernel of a good story you want to pursue.
Q: What do you find most rewarding about being an author?
A: Two things. First, when it comes to readers, there is nothing more thrilling than reading wonderful reviews about your book that you spent months, or years, creating and shaping. It’s from that private place in your heart, where you love the most – and hurt the most – that you pour out pages to show the world. And it’s all worthwhile when you discover that others have been touched by your story, just as you were touched while you were writing it. Second, it’s rewarding to pay it forward to up-and-coming authors. There is a wonderful feeling that comes from speaking to writers about your publishing journey and sharing advice and techniques on how to find success as an author, and hope that they do.
ABOUT A HIDDEN ELEMENT:
Evil lurks within…
When Caleb Madroc is used against his will as part of his father’s plan to breed a secret community and infiltrate society with their unique powers, he vows to save his oppressed people and the two children kept from him. Seven years later, Laura and Ben Fieldstone’s son is abducted, and they are forced to trust a madman’s son who puts his life on the line to save them all. The enemy’s desire to own them—or destroy them—leads to a survival showdown. Laura and Ben must risk everything to defeat a new nemesis that wants to rule the world with their son, and Caleb may be their only hope—if he survives. But must he sacrifice what he most desires to do so?
PRAISE FOR A HIDDEN ELEMENT:
"Chilling and dark…a twisty journey into another world." —J.T. Ellison, New York Times bestselling author of When Shadows Fall
"Fascinating…a haunting story…"—Rebecca Cantrell, New York Times bestselling author of The World Beneath
"Will keep you up long past your bedtime...a pulse-pounding read."—Allan Leverone, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Final Vector
BUY THE ELEMENT TRILOGY BOOKS:
Purchase Book 2 in the Element Trilogy, A Hidden Element: http://amzn.to/1p1YD1o
Purchase Book 1 in the Element Trilogy, A Human Element: http://amzn.to/1mNcyCO
ON SALE NOW FOR JUST $.99cents!
Meet Author Team Rosemary & Larry Mild
Rosemary and Larry coauthor the popular Paco & Molly Mysteries and the Dan & Rivka Sherman Mysteries—and most recently, Unto the Third Generation, A Novella of the Future. They call Honolulu home, where they cherish time with their children and grandchildren. The Milds are members of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and Hawaii Fiction Writers. Find out more about their books on their website.
The local paper was full of hurricane news
and we thought Hurricane Iniki would make a great start for this sequel to Cry
Ohana. It was then a matter of drawing a plot from the next generation of Cry
Ohana characters. The orphaned boy came out of a later discussion.
2. Are any of
the characters in HONOLULU HEAT based on people you know?
No one character in this series is intended
as anyone we know; however, all our characters are composites of people we’ve met. We feel the plot dictates
the roles we cast in our stories—whatever is needed.
3. Why do you
think Hawaii makes such a great setting for a mystery novel?
There is a fascination and a number of
dreams associated with these islands, situated in the most isolated place on
earth in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Palm trees, pineapples, and hula
dancers add to them. The population mix, their diverse cultures, and rich legends
provide grist for mystery’s mill.
Noah Wong is an adopted Hawaiian teen, who
after a troublesome—yet loving— upbringing,
finds himself teetering on both
sides of the law. He is complex, idealistic, lovable, and devoted.
5. HONOLULU HEAT is an exciting and suspenseful
tale. What is your secret to keeping readers in suspense?
We keep shuttling between
counter-characters with diverse points-of-view and goals. We reinforce our
suspense with sensory atmospheres, threatening and destabilizing environments
that amplify anxiety and fear, play on human frailties, and employ elements
that promote time and space competitions with harm to the loser.
6a . Do you know
how a book is going to end before you start writing?
In general we know where the book is
going, but upon further thoughts and developments, it sometimes comes as a
complete and mostly welcome surprise.
6b . What is your process?
Once we have talked out the plot seed.
Larry, being the more devious of the two, writes a ten- to fifteen-page
statement of work and uses it as a guide to writing the entire first draft.
Then Rosemary takes it through a second draft with much discussion between drafts.
7. Which do you
enjoy more—creating the plots or developing the characters? Why?
Devious Larry is more plot oriented and
Rosemary is more detail and people oriented, so Larry casts the skeletal
characters and scenes, while Rosemary puts all the fine touches on everything.
She is the one who provides color and personality. Mostly, we respect each
others decisions.
8. Do you have a title in mind before you start
writing, or does the title come later?
Honolulu is situated between the Pacific
Ocean and the Koolau Mountains, so we started with the working title, Between
the Mountains and the Great Sea. But, as time went on, and the book
grew, we felt that it wasn’t strong enough. We wanted HONOLULU in the
title and eventually added the word HEAT, so we came to HONOLULU
HEAT, Between the Mountains and the Great Sea.
9. Do you have
other books in the works? What is next
in the queue?
All kinds of great stuff!
We’re working on two collections of short stories; a collection of Rosemary’s
personal essays; Larry’s autobiography; and a textbook on writing the mystery
novel. We just haven’t decided which is next, but each of these projects has
made significant progress so far.
One of our story collections
is a series called “Copper and Goldie,” set in Honolulu. Mysterical-E,
the wonderful quarterly on-line mystery magazine, has already published eight,
with four more coming. “Copper” is Sam Nahoe, a disabled former HPD detective
who took a bullet in his spine in the line of duty. He drives a Checker Cab,
now has his private investigator’s license, and works with a partner who has
gorgeous russet-blond hair—a golden retriever!
