Alastair Rosie's Blog, page 4
July 20, 2014
Angel of Mercy Chapter 1 Excerpt
Some people will always love, some people never lose hope, some people never die…
CHAPTER ONE
Wednesday, January 1st, 2014
It’s been said many times that there are only two things in life we can guarantee, death and taxes and if you’re rich enough you don’t have to worry about the second thing. Death however is the great equalizer, it has no favorites and won’t wait until you’re ready. Everyone must die eventually and up until recently I believed it, but now I have come to understand that not everyone dies. Last year I believed my stepmom, Cat had died in a plane accident. Now I know the truth and in the knowing I’ve been introduced to the true nature of the Children of the Raven, but far from being monsters, I can honestly say they’re the finest people I’ve ever met.
I’ve been surrounded by them all my life. They loved and protected me and it was not for any nefarious reason, they certainly didn’t lust after my blood. They became part of my extended family of aunts, uncles and cousins simply because they were part of my stepmom’s clan and in her absence, we became their responsibility. Cat is a doctor out at Yorkhill Children’s hospital in Glasgow, she’s been doctoring and nursing for centuries now and it’s not for the reason people might think. It’s in her blood to care for sick people, it’s just who she is I guess.
When I was finally reunited with Cat I was determined to keep my silence even to dad, who still thinks she’s dead, but she has convinced me to tell my story because as she puts it, it’s time the world woke up to the fact we’re not monsters. We live and breathe the same as any other mortal, we love, ache, laugh and cry, are we not then human? I suppose at the back of it I’m scared that someone will find out and force her to vanish again, but Melanie assures me that’ll never happen again. I’ve no idea what happens to this account afterwards but Cat has promised to tell her story and I’m gonna hold her to that one. She went out and bought me a reconditioned laptop for Christmas, so now I’ve got no excuse and I feel in my heart as if I have to let it all out, the life we had before she went missing and the way it panned out later.
I was born, Samantha Ann Sullivan and for as long as I can remember I’ve been fascinated by vampires. They were very mysterious at first but later on with the movie, Interview With a Vampire, I began to develop other ideas about vampires. He would be tall, dark and handsome and most probably look like Tom Cruise although sometimes he looked like Brad Pitt. In my high school fantasies he would either sweep me off my feet in some glamorous castle or rescue me from a villain in a mist-encrusted alley. I was always the incurable romantic and yet my first meeting with a vampire was entirely different and I was unaware of her vampire nature. Oh she rescued my father and me and there was romantic love between her and dad, but I never saw any evidence of vampirism in the traditional sense. She slept in a normal bed, ate meals with us, went to work and came home to her family like any regular mom.
When my stepmom’s plane went down a part of me died, Cat was my world. In her place she left us to her friends, the Grey Ravens. Over the years I slowly came to realise her death was a mere facade. When we were reunited I learned the truth about Clan Grey Raven and her remarkable history. Some people will always love. Some people never lose hope. Some people never die…
Smashwords
Amazon.com
Amazon UK
July 19, 2014
Angel of Mercy Prologue
Some people will always love, some people never lose hope, some people never die…
This excerpt is from The Chronicles of the Grey Raven. Book One, Angel of Mercy, nnow available on Smashwords and Amazon and Amazon UK
PROLOGUE
In the beginning they were simply the Children of the Raven, the offspring of nine brothers infused with the power of the Raven Gods. In turn these Firstborn passed on this power to their followers, giving them immortality, and great strength. These nine clans formed the first clans, named after colours: red, green, blue, white, black, gold, silver, brown and purple.
In appearance and customs they were similar to mortals. However to reproduce they must infect another human with their venom and drain them to the point of death before feeding them some of their blood. Another major difference was more subtle, the inability to taste food and drink, although our appetites were the same. This last change in our physiology has long been known as the Great Curse, for while we must eat and drink, we cannot taste anything. It was the sacrifice demanded by the Raven Gods when first they came to us. Only blood can sustain our power and immortality and thus the legends of the blood drinkers began to work their way into the histories of men.
Given enough time they might have become the dominant species on the planet for their powers far surpassed those of men but all that changed with the appearance of a tenth Firstborn, Amalthea the Grey. She came out of the Siberian wastelands prophesying the death of the nine and warning the lesser Ravens to abstain from human blood and partake of animal blood instead. Their true destiny was not as masters of men but partners she stated and I have heard those words many times prior to the civil war that devastated our people.
It began in the aftermath of Julius Caesar’s death. By then our people had spread all over the world and Amalthea had amassed a good following, many of them converts from other clans who saw the rightness of her teachings and deserted their clan chieftains. Compared to the wars of men it was no more than a series of minor skirmishes, but the results were decisively world-changing. For over a hundred years the battles raged all over Europe, Asia and Africa. Some clans aligned with the Greys and others with the Blues and in the end it was a stalemate. All the Firstborn elders died in battle apart from Amalthea and with their deaths other disciples took up the mantle. The final battle took place near Uppsala in 58 AD and saw Amalthea slay Arian, the leader of the Blues. However it was a hollow victory, for on her way back to Britannia her ship was lost at sea.
I was one of Amalthea’s first disciples and it was in Britannia that I began the search for survivors of that fateful voyage. I found none but in 60 AD I gained two new disciples, Boudica and her sister, Andraste, who came to me after the failure of the Boudican rebellion. These two unlikely converts became my staunchest disciples and a safety net in times of need. With their help I have maintained the Amalthean Doctrine, loyalty and service to each other and mortals.
Catriona was added to our numbers in 1314. Her skill as a physician earned her the title Angel of Mercy. Her story is told in part two and Samantha’s story forms part one. Sam was adopted by Cat when she married John Sullivan, but when she was discovered by the Fraternity she was forced to fake her own death. Sam’s story illustrates the relationship between vampire and human. Some say we are monsters and I have killed many vampire monsters in the last two millennia, but with the Amalthean Declaration of 1920, those predators have receded markedly. It has taken nineteen centuries for Amalthea’s dream to be written into law. However we of Clan Grey Raven were the first to live and work alongside mortals. What was once an odd doctrine now underpins the vampire relationship with humanity as a whole.
Much has changed and yet much still stays the same. I have gone from writing on clay tablets to electronic tablets and yet I think Amalthea would be pleased with what we have accomplished. In time I sense we will have to come out to the world at large, but for now we remain invisible. We live and work alongside you, and it is only if we desire to out ourselves that you’ll see us. Until then you will have to be satisfied with these two accounts.
Melanie Nolan
Grand Mistress, Clan Grey Raven.
Chicago, May 1st, 2014
When my stepmom’s plane went down a part of me died, Cat was my world. In her place she left us to her friends, the Grey Ravens. Over the years I slowly came to realise her death was a mere facade. When we were reunited I learned the truth about Clan Grey Raven and her remarkable history. Some people will always love. Some people never lose hope. Some people never die…
Smashwords
Amazon.com
Amazon UK
A Vampire Gathering Part Two
These interviews and articles are background material for The Chronicles of the Grey Raven. Book One, Angel of Mercy is now available on Smashwords and Amazon and Amazon UK
Last night I went to my first vampire Gathering and although I’ve learned that these immortal beings are far removed from the mythical vampires of page and screen I was still surprised when Cat pulled up outside the Morningside United church on the corner of Cambridge and Morningside streets. One of four churches at the intersection, it has given the area its local name, Holy Corner and is the last place I’d expect to find a lone vampire let alone a whole group.
“Churches have no fear for me,” Cat looks up at the imposing tower, “granted I don’t feel the presence of God in churches but I have no fear of church. It’s just a building dedicated to the worship of an invisible being. The idea that vampires recoil from crosses is stupid,” she thumbs the remote on her car key. “And holy water is just water that a priest prayed over. It doesn’t make it lethal to anyone although I’ve seen some pretty dirty holy water in my time.”
As it turns out we’re not in the actual church. The Morningside guild has a monthly use of a hall in the Eric Liddell Centre right next door and she glances briefly at the banner outside that celebrates the athlete immortalised in Chariots of Fire. “I saw him run once.”
She leaves me with that thought as she leads us inside, her daughter, Samantha has accompanied us as well. It was once a church but with falling church attendances even here on Holy Corner, it became a community centre.
“A far more useful building,” Cat quips as we enter a meeting room, “the centre has no idea that vampires rent out the hall once a month. This group is a legally registered charity, the Alex Sutherland Foundation. The membership dues and charity drives they run go to support various charities,” she indicates a table with flyers and other paraphernalia on it.
“We’re collecting money to support Palestinians in the Occupied Territories. One of the members of the steering committee was actually approached by someone from MI5 who wanted to know where the money was going and practically threatening to shut the group down.”
She picks a leaflet up and smirks, “three days later police arrested him after a tip off about child porn on his computer and nothing more was said about their support for Palestinians. Never piss off a vampire, you may not be bitten but you could wind up in serious trouble.”
She hands me the leaflet and I’m about to reply when Jana steps into view and greets Cat and Samantha with a kiss on the cheek before turning to give me the once over.
“So, you have come to a Gathering, finally.”
“He took a bit of convincing but he’s trying to understand us,” Cat smiles.
“Then this will be interesting,” she holds out her hand, “welcome to the Morningside Gathering, we hope you enjoy your night here,” she releases my hand. Read More
When my stepmom’s plane went down a part of me died, Cat was my world. In her place she left us to her friends, the Grey Ravens. Over the years I slowly came to realise her death was a mere facade. When we were reunited I learned the truth about Clan Grey Raven and her remarkable history. Some people will always love. Some people never lose hope. Some people never die…SmashwordsAmazon.comAmazon UK
July 16, 2014
A Vampire Gathering Part One
If it was Jana who first invited me to a Vampire Gathering, it was Cat who pushed me through the doors, literally in my case. Admittedly it had been on my mind ever since I interviewed Jana in Edinburgh the other week but in spite of the fact I’ve met quite a few vampires over the last month, the idea of being surrounded by them made me a little uneasy. It felt as if I was crossing a line in the sand or in this case a line painted in the Debenhams restaurant in the St Enoch Centre. In my case it happened completely by accident when I bumped into Cat and her daughter, Samantha in Debenhams. I was minding my own business as I queued to pay my monthly bill and trying to remember if it was due today or tomorrow. For those who know me best, I’m one of those people who pays bills on the day they’re due or shortly afterwards. A sudden tugging at my sleeve turned out to be Samantha who was in town with Cat for a bit of retail therapy. When they invited me upstairs for a cup of coffee I agreed.
“You spoke to Jana,” Cat stirred her cappuccino thoughtfully.
“And?” Cat looked up at me and raised an eyebrow.
And what? The question was obvious and I admit I felt slightly embarrassed and a wee bit paranoid. Of course Jana would have spoken to Cat about me before and after the interview. Security is a given in the vampire world and I am a relative newcomer to their world. Accorded exclusive access but still kept at arm’s length for now. Jana’s offer had piqued my interest but I was still skirting around the issue until that day in Debenhams and now a woman I’ve come to trust is wanting to know my answer.
“What happens at these Gatherings,” I lower my voice conspiratorially. Read More…
July 14, 2014
A Conversation With… Marie Lavender
Despite what some people may think, writing is hard work. Going from a scene in your head to a full blown novel is a long and winding road peppered with dead ends, obstacles and the occasional breath taking scene. I’ve managed two novels in the last six months and the first was actually already written so I’m bumping the figure up slightly to make myself look better. Having said that when I looked at the list of Marie Lavender’s books I was truly in awe, a total of nineteen in the last few years. I decided to shoot a few questions her way to see how she manages to do it and still come out smiling. Her contact links and buy links are found at the end of the interview so check them out and hopefully you’ll find something to tweak your interest.
Enjoy!
Thank you Marie for agreeing to answer these questions. You’re a prolific writer with about nineteen books under your belt. How do you balance writing and marketing with your regular job?
Marie: Yeah, it’s not easy. I basically just use all of the free time I have to do what needs to be done. If I have time between calls at work to tackle some tasks, then I do that too.
You’ve written under different pen names and I’ve heard the disadvantages and advantages of this approach. Why do you use pen names and is it something you’ll keep doing?
Marie: I originally started using pen names for two reasons: 1) to distance my personal life from my writing career and 2) because I thought I might need to use pen names for different genres. I was also trying to decide on the right name.
Since then, I have come to the conclusion that I would like to merge them all back under one pen name: Marie Lavender. I do plan to re-release them that way. Now, if I were to branch out into an entirely different genre than romance, (like erotica or mystery/thriller), then having a pen name specifically for that wouldn’t be bad.
When I was in college I was told to write what you know. Do you agree with this mantra or should writers launch out into uncharted waters and write what they don’t yet know?
Marie: I think if we squeeze ourselves into that kind of mindset, there wouldn’t be much creativity. You can write what you know to a point. Yes, of course, we naturally glean information from anything we read or anything we do. So, in a sense, we are writing “what we know”. However, you can’t know everything. You will always come across something that needs further explanation or detail. I never write just what I know. For example, let’s look at Perfect Game, one of my books published under Erica Sutherhome. It is a romantic suspense set in Kenya. Did I know anything about Kenya going into it? Not really. I had to do the research to fill in those blanks. And with Upon Your Honor, I had to learn a lot about clipper ships and the ports the characters visited in order to make the book more accurate. I think it’s exciting to do the research required for a book. If we just wrote what we knew, how would we know to use our imaginations to the fullest extent?
Who are your favourite characters in Upon Your Honor?
Marie: Chloe Waverly and Gabriel Hill, of course! They are the main characters.
What fictional or real life people inspired the characters in Upon Your Honor?
Marie: Most of my characters are not based on anyone in real life. However, Gabriel is a man of honor and I may have gleaned certain characteristics from my fiancé. He is such a gentleman; I have never met anyone more honorable than him.
If you could bring the ship, La Voyageur to life and had your own personal time machine, who would you bring back to the twenty first century as your crew members?
Marie: LOL. I think it would be great fun to have Grant and Fara as well as Chloe and Gabriel along. I might even choose Eric and Grant’s first mate George. Perhaps even Lina could come along. Samson, of course, would be invited because you need a fiddler to keep everyone entertained. In any case, I’d love to meet them all in person. You get so close to all of these characters during the writing of a story, and they become like family. So, it would be wonderful to see them in real life.
If you were approached by a major studio to make a movie based on Upon Your Honor and let’s pretend they actually let you choose the cast, who would play your characters?
Marie: Okay, let me think for a moment. I’ve definitely pictured the cast with the first book, Upon Your Return, but the second book plays like a film in my head as well. Of course, I always imagined Gerard Butler for Captain Grant Hill and possibly Amy Adams or Isla Fisher to play Fara. Gabriel, the main male character in Upon Your Honor, has that trademark red hair so I might go with Simon Woods (his hair was red when he played Mr. Bingley in “Pride and Prejudice”). As for Chloe, I always pictured Julianne Hough for her.
What are you writing now?
Marie: I have two projects. I am finishing up edits on a paranormal romance novella about a woman who stumbles into the world of vampires. In the process, she learns a lot more about herself than she ever imagined. The novella is titled Second Nature and it is with beta readers now. The other project is Upon Your Love, the sequel to Upon Your Honor. It will be the third and final book in the Heiresses in Love series. Upon Your Love is about a spirited young woman who agrees to help a man in a matchmaking scheme to get their mutual friends together. She doesn’t count on falling for him. But, then a dangerous menace threatens to harm all of them and her gentleman jumps in to save his friends. Adrienne, however, is not your typical Victorian woman so she takes matters into her own hands. This does, of course, complicate things because her gentleman has his own ideas about a woman’s “place”. It makes for an interesting story.
What are your hobbies and interests?
Marie: I love writing, of course. I love reading books. I love buying new books and adding them to my collection. I hope to have a large room full of books someday! I am also a compulsive shopper so keep me away from a credit card. LOL. I enjoy cooking and trying out new recipes. I also enjoy watching films and television, but I am highly selective about what I watch. The shows I follow are Bones, Grimm, Doctor Who, Castle, as well as a few others. For films, I enjoy watching romantic comedies and some action and sci-fi movies. Other activities? I go on walks with my fiancé often, and I love miniature golf!
Who are your favourite writers and singers?
Marie: Some of my favorite authors are Catherine Coulter, Nora Roberts, J.R. Ward, P.C. Cast, Chloe Neill, Kerrelyn Sparks, Tessa Dare, Emma Wildes, Kris Tualla and others.
As for music, I love OneRepublic, Owl City, Paramore, Fireflight, Sarah McLachlan, Natalia Kills, Sara Bareilles, Colbie Callat, The Corrs… the list goes on. What I listen to generally depends on my mood.
What advice would you give to writers trying to balance writing time with social media networking and general marketing?
Marie: It is impossible to do everything. Check your notifications on social media daily and do some retweeting as well as your own tweet or two. Post on Facebook and Google+ as well. But, try not to get too wrapped up in it or you’ll just get distracted and get nothing done. When I am heavily focused on a writing project, I try to focus on that as much as possible. I will do the social media as well, but not as heavily. I do it more often when I have an interview or a guest post going on. The best thing to do is to keep a schedule of what is happening or upcoming so you know what days you need to do more promotion. As for general marketing, that is an ongoing process as well. Read articles about how to get your work noticed and send out book review requests to official reviewers whenever you can. Try to do blogging on a schedule as well, once to a few times a week. And don’t forget: promote those posts! You never know when a reader will stumble across your blog and then get interested in your work.
If you’re trying to write between all of this, my advice is to have a schedule and stick to it as much as possible. For example, “Between the hours of 2:00-4:00 p.m., I am going to write.” Or, maybe you can’t write because you need to research. Whatever helps. But, you have to spend some time on it or you’re not going to feel that you’ve made any progress. Try to work on your writing project every day in some capacity, whether it’s writing, editing or researching.
Don‘t overdo it, however. There are going to be days where you need to take a break from everything. Sometimes pretending technology doesn’t exist for awhile really helps. If I need to unwind, I will go read a book for a few hours. I have to be firm with myself at times and step away from the computer or my phone. It is tempting to be on it all the time because you feel you have to, but that’s just not possible. And you get burnt out. Always try to get back to the thing that drives you – the writing. If you don’t love writing, then why are doing it? Sometimes after I have stepped away, that gives me a surge of energy and I even start to get more ideas.
What advice do you have for writers in general?
Marie: Don’t ever give up. If you’re really in this because you love writing, you owe it to yourself to try, to keep pushing forward. The only person who will regret the fact that you quit is you.
Where would you like to be in five years time?
Marie: Well, of course, I’d like to have more books out! I hope to have re-released all of my other books under Marie Lavender as well. Perhaps by then, I’ll be well into The Witches of Moonhaven series, another series I have planned. On a more personal note, I hope to be married with a child by then.
Describe your desk.
Marie: Cluttered! LOL. It is full of notes for current works in progress and well as a stack of reference books. I do have the usual suspects, though, like pens, paper and a stapler as well as paperclips. I also use post-it notes a lot to remind myself of what needs to be done. If I didn’t have that, I couldn’t get anything done. LOL. When I am working on a specific project, I try to keep a detailed outline of the book nearby so that I know what I need to do next, whether it’s working on a specific chapter or researching a particular topic.
Website Blogs:
http://www.marielavender.webs.com/
http://marielavenderbooks.blogspot.com/
http://iloveromanceblog.wordpress.com/
http://marielavender.blogspot.com/
Purchase Links:
Universal Amazon: Upon Your Honor at Amazon
Upon your Honor at Barnes and Noble
Upon Your Honor at Smashwords
Upon your Honor at Solstice Publishing
WordPress I Love Romance
Marie’s Author Page on Facebook
Upon Your Return on Facebook
Magick Moonlight on Facebook
Writing in the Modern Age on Facebook
http://bookgoodies.com/a/B00JTKTODG
http://bookgoodies.com/a/B00IRKN5P2
http://bookgoodies.com/a/B00I0D9LQ8
A Conversation With... Marie Lavender
Going from a scene in your head to a full blown novel is a long and winding road peppered with dead ends, obstacles and the occasional breath taking scene. I’ve managed two novels in the last six months and the first was actually already written so I’m bumping the figure up slightly to make myself look better. Having said that when I looked at the list of Marie Lavender’s books I was truly in awe, a total of nineteen in the last few years. I decided to shoot a few questions her way to see how she manages to do it and still come out smiling. Her contact links and buy links are found at the end of the interview so check them out and hopefully you’ll find something to tweak your interest.
Enjoy!
Thank you Marie for agreeing to answer these questions. You’re a prolific writer with about nineteen books under your belt. How do you balance writing and marketing with your regular job?
Marie: Yeah, it’s not easy. I basically just use all of the free time I have to do what needs to be done. If I have time between calls at work to tackle some tasks, then I do that too.
You’ve written under different pen names and I’ve heard the disadvantages and advantages of this approach. Why do you use pen names and is it something you’ll keep doing?
Marie: I originally started using pen names for two reasons: 1) to distance my personal life from my writing career and 2) because I thought I might need to use pen names for different genres. I was also trying to decide on the right name.
Since then, I have come to the conclusion that I would like to merge them all back under one pen name: Marie Lavender. I do plan to re-release them that way. Now, if I were to branch out into an entirely different genre than romance, (like erotica or mystery/thriller), then having a pen name specifically for that wouldn’t be bad.
When I was in college I was told to write what you know. Do you agree with this mantra or should writers launch out into uncharted waters and write what they don’t yet know?
Marie: I think if we squeeze ourselves into that kind of mindset, there wouldn’t be much creativity. You can write what you know to a point. Yes, of course, we naturally glean information from anything we read or anything we do. So, in a sense, we are writing “what we know”. However, you can’t know everything. You will always come across something that needs further explanation or detail. I never write just what I know. For example, let’s look at Perfect Game, one of my books published under Erica Sutherhome. It is a romantic suspense set in Kenya. Did I know anything about Kenya going into it? Not really. I had to do the research to fill in those blanks. And with Upon Your Honor, I had to learn a lot about clipper ships and the ports the characters visited in order to make the book more accurate. I think it’s exciting to do the research required for a book. If we just wrote what we knew, how would we know to use our imaginations to the fullest extent?
Who are your favourite characters in Upon Your Honor?
Marie: Chloe Waverly and Gabriel Hill, of course! They are the main characters.
What fictional or real life people inspired the characters in Upon Your Honor?
Marie: Most of my characters are not based on anyone in real life. However, Gabriel is a man of honor and I may have gleaned certain characteristics from my fiancé. He is such a gentleman; I have never met anyone more honorable than him.
If you could bring the ship, La Voyageur to life and had your own personal time machine, who would you bring back to the twenty first century as your crew members?
Marie: LOL. I think it would be great fun to have Grant and Fara as well as Chloe and Gabriel along. I might even choose Eric and Grant’s first mate George. Perhaps even Lina could come along. Samson, of course, would be invited because you need a fiddler to keep everyone entertained. In any case, I’d love to meet them all in person. You get so close to all of these characters during the writing of a story, and they become like family. So, it would be wonderful to see them in real life.
If you were approached by a major studio to make a movie based on Upon Your Honor and let’s pretend they actually let you choose the cast, who would play your characters?
Marie: Okay, let me think for a moment. I’ve definitely pictured the cast with the first book, Upon Your Return, but the second book plays like a film in my head as well. Of course, I always imagined Gerard Butler for Captain Grant Hill and possibly Amy Adams or Isla Fisher to play Fara. Gabriel, the main male character in Upon Your Honor, has that trademark red hair so I might go with Simon Woods (his hair was red when he played Mr. Bingley in “Pride and Prejudice”). As for Chloe, I always pictured Julianne Hough for her.
What are you writing now?
Marie: I have two projects. I am finished up edits on a paranormal romance novella about a woman who stumbles into the world of vampires. In the process, she learns a lot more about herself than she ever imagined. The novella is titled Second Nature and it is with beta readers now. The other project is Upon Your Love, the sequel to Upon Your Honor. It will be the third and final book in the Heiresses in Love series. Upon Your Love is about a spirited young woman who agrees to help a man in a matchmaking scheme to get their mutual friends together. She doesn’t count on falling for him. But, then a dangerous menace threatens to harm all of them and her gentleman jumps in to save his friends. Adrienne, however, is not your typical Victorian woman so she takes matters into her own hands. This does, of course, complicate things because her gentleman has his own ideas about a woman’s “place”. It makes for an interesting story.
What are your hobbies and interests?
Marie: I love writing, of course. I love reading books. I love buying new books and adding them to my collection. I hope to have a large room full of books someday! I am also a compulsive shopper so keep me away from a credit card. LOL. I enjoy cooking and trying out new recipes. I also enjoy watching films and television, but I am highly selective about what I watch. The shows I follow are Bones, Grimm, Doctor Who, Castle, as well as a few others. For films, I enjoy watching romantic comedies and some action and sci-fi movies. Other activities? I go on walks with my fiancé often, and I love miniature golf!
Who are your favourite writers and singers?
Marie: Some of my favorite authors are Catherine Coulter, Nora Roberts, J.R. Ward, P.C. Cast, Chloe Neill, Kerrelyn Sparks, Tessa Dare, Emma Wildes, Kris Tualla and others.
As for music, I love OneRepublic, Owl City, Paramore, Fireflight, Sarah McLachlan, Natalia Kills, Sara Bareilles, Colbie Callat, The Corrs... the list goes on. What I listen to generally depends on my mood.
What advice would you give to writers trying to balance writing time with social media networking and general marketing?
Marie: It is impossible to do everything. Check your notifications on social media daily and do some retweeting as well as your own tweet or two. Post on Facebook and Google+ as well. But, try not to get too wrapped up in it or you’ll just get distracted and get nothing done. When I am heavily focused on a writing project, I try to focus on that as much as possible. I will do the social media as well, but not as heavily. I do it more often when I have an interview or a guest post going on. The best thing to do is to keep a schedule of what is happening or upcoming so you know what days you need to do more promotion. As for general marketing, that is an ongoing process as well. Read articles about how to get your work noticed and send out book review requests to official reviewers whenever you can. Try to do blogging on a schedule as well, once to a few times a week. And don’t forget: promote those posts! You never know when a reader will stumble across your blog and then get interested in your work.
If you’re trying to write between all of this, my advice is to have a schedule and stick to it as much as possible. For example, “Between the hours of 2:00-4:00 p.m., I am going to write.” Or, maybe you can’t write because you need to research. Whatever helps. But, you have to spend some time on it or you’re not going to feel that you’ve made any progress. Try to work on your writing project every day in some capacity, whether it’s writing, editing or researching.
Don‘t overdo it, however. There are going to be days where you need to take a break from everything. Sometimes pretending technology doesn’t exist for awhile really helps. If I need to unwind, I will go read a book for a few hours. I have to be firm with myself at times and step away from the computer or my phone. It is tempting to be on it all the time because you feel you have to, but that’s just not possible. And you get burnt out. Always try to get back to the thing that drives you – the writing. If you don’t love writing, then why are doing it? Sometimes after I have stepped away, that gives me a surge of energy and I even start to get more ideas.
What advice do you have for writers in general?
Marie: Don’t ever give up. If you’re really in this because you love writing, you owe it to yourself to try, to keep pushing forward. The only person who will regret the fact that you quit is you.
Where would you like to be in five years time?
Marie: Well, of course, I’d like to have more books out! I hope to have re-released all of my other books under Marie Lavender as well. Perhaps by then, I’ll be well into The Witches of Moonhaven series, another series I have planned. On a more personal note, I hope to be married with a child by then.
Describe your desk.
Marie: Cluttered! LOL. It is full of notes for current works in progress and well as a stack of reference books. I do have the usual suspects, though, like pens, paper and a stapler as well as paperclips. I also use post-it notes a lot to remind myself of what needs to be done. If I didn’t have that, I couldn’t get anything done. LOL. When I am working on a specific project, I try to keep a detailed outline of the book nearby so that I know what I need to do next, whether it’s working on a specific chapter or researching a particular topic.
Website Blogs:
http://www.marielavender.webs.com/
http://marielavenderbooks.blogspot.com/
http://iloveromanceblog.wordpress.com/
http://marielavender.blogspot.com/
Purchase Links:
Universal Amazon: Upon Your Honor at Amazon
Upon your Honor at Barnes and Noble
Upon Your Honor at Smashwords
Create Space
Upon your Honor at Solstice Publishing
Wordpress I Love Romance
Marie Lavender on Facebook
Marie's Author Page on Facebook
Upon Your Return on Facebook
Magick Moonlight on Facebook
Upon Your Honor on Facebook
Writing in the Modern Age on Facebook
Marie Lavender on Twitter
Marie Lavender on Google+
Marie Lavender on Linkedin
Marie Lavender on Goodreads
Marie Lavender on AuthorsDB
Marie Lavender on Amazon
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July 10, 2014
The Raven Queens Unplugged
These interviews and articles are background material for The Chronicles of the Grey Raven. Book One, Angel of Mercy is now available on Smashwords and Amazon and Amazon UK
The last time my wife and I went to a concert it was when Bryan Adams played the O2 Arena. It was a memorable concert and my wife’s comment on the way back home, “we used to do a lot of music festivals,” had me searching online for other concerts. Nevertheless although I found a few good choices, the prices were out of reach and I had to content myself with the memory of thousands of people singing along to Please Forgive Me. It’s a memory I’ve kept to myself and hence I can say it’s pure coincidence that the fifth song The Raven Queens played out at Wolfcraig last week was Please Forgive Me.
To have been talking about The Raven Queens the other day and be sitting down with a mixed audience of vampires and humans was not so much coincidence as the result of a hurried conversation after my interview with Anna. Little did I suspect that Anna’s sister, Boudica or Hannah as she is called these days, had arrived in Edinburgh and was meeting with various vampire elders prior to Elizabeth McIvor’s arrival in Britain. The first I had any inkling something was in the wind was when Cat dropped into our house on the Thursday night, ostensibly to check that my wife was okay about her vampirism. My wife has only just met her first vampire, officially that is, and Cat was just doing a routine visit.
“We’re having a get together at Wolfcraig,” she sipped the coffee, “we can’t get all of the Raven Queens together but at least four of them, including myself will be there to put on an unplugged concert for the guests. Perhaps you’d like to come for the night, Sian can put you both in a room and seeing as you’re married… to each other… you can even share the same bed,” she smiled crookedly.
Read More…
When my stepmom’s plane went down a part of me died, Cat was my world. In her place she left us to her friends, the Grey Ravens. Over the years I slowly came to realise her death was a mere facade. When we were reunited I learned the truth about Clan Grey Raven and her remarkable history. Some people will always love. Some people never lose hope. Some people never die…SmashwordsAmazon.comAmazon UK
July 8, 2014
Anna King – Forever Young
These interviews and articles are background material for The Chronicles of the Grey Raven. Book One, Angel of Mercy is now available on Smashwords and Amazon and Amazon UK
For someone who’s held in such high regard in the vampire world when one first meets Anna King there is a moment of disconnect where you try to match the reputation with her physical looks. She’s about five foot five, of slim build and looks to be in her mid twenties although she was reputedly turned when she was only nineteen years old. When I first laid eyes on her at the Hilton Grosvenor in Glasgow’s West End she was sitting in her hotel room with a Bluetooth headset on her head. A smartphone and tablet lay on the coffee table in front of her and she was flicking through images while she spoke a language I’d never heard before although it sounded somewhat like Welsh with a touch of Gaelic.
“It’s Icenian,” Cat whispers in my ear, “her native tongue.”
Read More…
July 6, 2014
The Raven Queens – Rockin’ The Vampire World
Before I started mixing with vampires I’d always assumed them to be sombre types who slept in coffins and smiling was something they did after they’d fed on a human but nothing could be further from the truth. I’ve discovered they’re actually the complete opposite and when Cat loaned me a DVD of her old band, The Raven Queens I was blown away. I’ve been told the lead singer is Boudica and the bass guitarist is her sister, Andraste. Cat plays the keyboards and also sings. I caught up with Cat in between shifts at Yorkhill to talk more about the band.
I was impressed with the DVD, how come we’ve never heard of them before?
Cat: Oh well that’s kind of obvious. It’s a vampire band.
Read More…
July 5, 2014
Smashwords – Interview with Alastair Rosie
http://www.smashwords.com/interview/alastairfk13
My twenty questions on Smashwords. I would like to thank myself for being such a willing interviewee! It’s been fun asking myself questions.
