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When Copper Suns Fall
Author Interview of the Month
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FEBRUARY Interview with KaSonndra Leigh
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Great interview! I don't play Xbox, but I do play a mean Guitar Hero :). You're having an amazing debut which is wonderful! Looking forward to reading your novels as they come out.
Hello beautiful ladies! Thanks so much for inviting me over to be the author of the month. February is going to be so much fun. I have giveaways, a fun scavenger hunt, prizes worth 30 bucks good toward reading gear, a cover reveal for my gothic paranormal romance Hacienda Moon going on and much much more. Sylvia and Adriana are being humble. If it wasnt for you girls taking a chance on me in those first reviews, the book may never have gotten any recognition. I will love you two forever and ever. I'm taking an entirely different route with Silver Moons (yes I have 3 books with Moon in the title...LoL). I'll keep you updated on what's happening with that. Now, the important stuff. The Xbox games! LoL I love them. They are major writers block busters. Adriana we can trade Tomb Raider tips anytime you want. LoL Sylvia I knew you'd be able to peg me. Marni I'm the Guitar Hero singing queen. Just don't put me anywhere near the drums. LoL! You all have been fun. I hope to see you all during the Dark Seraphine tour.
Big LoveYa Hugz,
KaSonndra
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When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? Okay so this is going to sound funny. Get ready. I first realized this after watching the movie called the Last Unicorn. I saw the cartoon version for the first time when I was around twelve years old. I fell in love with it. Years later, I chose it as a book to read in college, and fell in love with Peter S. Beagle’s prose. Right then, I caught the writing bug’s fever. :-D
- How long does it take you to write a book? It all depends on how complicated the storyline is and how comfortable I am with the genre. It took me almost six years to write When Copper Suns Fall. And that was only because I didn’t know my style or voice yet. On my goodreads profile where I wrote a note to readers, I told them that it was a world-wide collaboration and it was. Betas, readers, fans, friends, and even the haters helped me discover KaSonndra the author. Now, I have my system down and I can chug out 10,000 words in 2 days or less sometimes.
- How do books get published? Wow! We could be here a long time talking about this one. There are so many ways to go about getting published these days: traditional, indie, self pub. And they’re all very very different. The one area they all have in common is the book formatting. How the book gets to you, the reader is where they all differ. But the goals for whichever method you choose should be the same across all three. Create a good story, polish and edit until it gleams for your reader, and then check out the reviews.
- Where do you get your information or ideas for your books? It all depends on the book’s genre where research is concerned. I tend to surf the net for information. But next year, I have a historical novel due to be released and that one took writing to some prominent archaeologists in other countries. From all of that interaction, I tend to think of ideas on a regular basis. Our stories are extensions of ourselves. It should come across to your reader that way as well.
- When did you write your first book and how old were you? Oh man. My first book was the worst manuscript ever. I was 19 and it was a great idea. But I was nowhere near ready to debut that story. One thing I did learn from writing it though. My love of writing was for real and even though my novel was pretty sucky, I found my life’s passion.
- What do you like to do when you're not writing? When I’m not writing, I enjoy hanging out with my X-men. In case you haven’t read up on who they are, I’ll tell you they’re my two boys. And yes, both their names start with an X. I also love to garden (don’t be laughing at me over there because it’s great writer’s block therapy) and play Tomb Raider on Xbox (also great writer’s block therapy. LOL). I cannot wait until Tomb Raider: Origins hits the shelves later this year.
- What does your family think of your writing? What do most people think of careers that don’t show instant payback in black and white ink on a check? LOL But seriously though, my family is very supportive of what I do. I’ve always been one to go out on a limb, you know that person who is always doing something strange and odd. So they’ve learned to just kind of sit back and enjoy the ride.
- What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books? That some of those old boring techniques I learned in writing class actually come in pretty handy when writing a fighting scene. In fact, I learned that I write a pretty darn good fighting scene. This was something that intimidated the heck out of me. But in the world I created for Copper Suns, I knew that fight scenes were going to be necessary.
- How many books have you written? Which is your favorite? I’ve written 5 complete books. Even though I debuted with When Copper Suns Fall, my favorite one is the historical novel due to be released next year.
- Do you have any suggestions to help me become a better writer? If so, what are they? Yes! Read. Read. Read. Write. Write. Read. Review. Review. Read. Write. I’m not kidding. Follow the percentages in this formula and you’ll see what I mean. Writing is a subjective business. If you want to survive in it, then you must know what makes your voice unique. It took me a very long time to find that voice. But by following the formula above I eventually got it right. And you will too. :-D
- Do you hear from your readers much? What kinds of things do they say? I hear from my readers all the time. The more the book is exposed, the more tweets, facebook msgs, and emails I’m starting to receive. I love it. It feels so wicked good when someone writes to say they stayed up all night reading my book. And when it’s a blogger or industry professional that says these things, it’s even more wondrous.
- Do you like to create books for adults? I sure do. I have a specific target audience that I’ve met since I debuted Copper Suns. And many of them are adults even though my novel is for young adults. Hacienda Moon, my paranormal suspense novel (well there’s kind of a bit of fantasy in there too, big grin) and part of a new series about a psychic who recently lost her child was written for the new adult and up group. There’s a gap in that range and I look forward to seeing how readers enjoy this one. I had tons of fun writing it and my betas tell me that it shows.
- What do you think makes a good story? Plot, theme, dramatic conflict, characters, and voice to mix it all together. Those are the elements that make up good writing which leads to a great story.
- As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up? I always knew I wanted to go to UNC in Chapel Hill (Go Heels! :-D) and that I wanted to write. I majored in journalism before I switched over to Radio, T.V., and Motion Pictures.
- -For an aspiring writer what do you feel are certain do's and donts for getting their material published. Hmm. This is a subjective question. But I can tell you the one mistake that so many people continue to make. They either send out an incomplete manuscript or a first or second draft. Both of those are HUGE mistakes and can have you get rejected right away.
- What do you consider invaluable resources for an aspiring writer? Your local library, your family (you’ll need their support when writer’s block and de-enthusiasm hits) the Internet (for building your platform—and yes, this applies to fiction writers too) and a ton of determination.
-Why did you choose to write about Angels set in a dystopian society? What was the attraction? When I sat down and began writing When Copper Suns Fall, the story was a standard in your face, super-high fantasy. It came complete with blue creatures, unicorns, princes, and all that. Chela’s name was Cara and Faris had a name that has been overused lately. I wasn’t trying to be fad girl or the Lady Gaga of the writing world. But rather, I was trying to write the story I always wanted to read. One that came to life when my oldest son asked me: “what if angels that looked like people lived in a dystopian society?” The seeds were planted, the lights in my muse’s apartment lit up. The challenge was on. I asked myself: “how do I stick to an urban setting with fantastical elements, but bring my love of dystopia into play?”
-What are you working on now? I’m actually working on polishing up a ghost/love story for adults called Hacienda Moon. It’s the story of a police psychic turned writer (I know, the writer telling stories about writers’ thing). She has just lost her daughter, so she moves into an old plantation house located in eastern North Carolina in hopes of making a fresh start. Turns out not everything and everyone in that small town is what they seem to be at first glance, anyway. The story is based on one of the North Carolina coastline’s many intriguing ghost stories. And then there’s the sequel to When Copper Suns Fall. It’s called When Silver Moons Rise. Watch for the cover reveal in February, 2012!
-How are you reacting to what people are saying about your book? I’m spending blocks of time responding to my readers and fans. I set aside at least an hour or two a day to interact with other writers on the social spots. What’s really amazing to me is how many people enter my giveaways. I have days when sales spike and days when they’re so-so. But the word is out and people are really enjoying Chela and Faris’s story. Two of my very first and very best reviews came from this group. And it’s like you set off the domino effect of people who were suddenly interested in learning more about this dystopian fantasy thing. I thank you so much. **wipes a tear and says good night**