Writing Panel 4! A little publicity.

I have picked my four of my favorite authors/writers. They are going to be talking about their writing process.  This is my last week of this and I'm kind of sad. I had a lot of fun... I may have to do this again soon. 

Carrie Butler: Carrie daydreamed her way through college—until they thrust a marketing degree into her hands, slapped a summa cum laude seal on the corner, and booted her out into a less-than-stellar job market. Instead of panicking at the prospect of unemployment, she used her Midwestern logic to steer into the skid and point her life in the direction she really wanted to go: writing out those daydreams.

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Komal Lewis: Komal Lewis is a full-time author who lives in Sydney, Australia with her husband, and one too many cats and dogs. She is overly enthusiastic about video games, comic books, Spiderman, Byronic heroes, baking, reptiles and pretty shoes.

Komal is currently working on her debut novel, WITH ME, a YA Contemporary Romance about a girl who will do anything to become popular, and the rocker boy-next-door.

Joe Lantz: Joe works as a substitute teacher for Ripley Central School in WNY while he works on his YA novel and waits for a permanent position as an English Language Arts teacher. He had the great fortune of being Michelle’s student teacher and the even greater fortune of developing an enduring friendship with her, which includes time spent writing in a local library.  He is an avid reader and writer. He also enjoys collecting and reading comic books and graphic novels. He can also be found on  blog – the one Michelle encouraged me to start – Avid Reading, Constant Writing.

Bonnie Rae: Bonnie spent her early childhood in the sunny state of California. At the time, she was an only child with a very large imagination. Thanks to her Grandmother, the love of reading books started at a very young age. Every walk to the grocery store meant an ice cream cone and a new Little Golden Book. Through books, Bonnie learned you could be transported into other worlds. The addiction was instant. At age eleven, her grandparents gave her E.B. White's Charlotte's Web for her birthday. Even though she was completely grossed out when it came to spiders (and still is), Charlotte's Web fascinated her. A spider that was able to weave words and befriend a pig? Bonnie then realized not only could books provide imaginary worlds, they confirmed anything was possible. She might have only been eleven, but she knew writing was what she wanted to do. She started her first set of novels at the age of sixteen and has been writing ever since. Bonnie currently lives in California with her wonderful husband and two very spoiled cats.

It’s the final countdown! Wait – no, that’s a song. It’s time to wrap it up – wait – as writer’s it’s never done. Crap. OK How about some personal information and free publicity for my writer friends? OK? OK.

Tell us about your current manuscript or published masterpiece. Nothing like a little publicity.

Carrie: Title: Strength

Series: Mark of Nexus – Book 1

Publisher: Sapphire Star Publishing   
Category: New Adult (NA)
Genre: Paranormal Romance (PNR)
Release Date: March 07, 2013

When college student Rena Collins finds herself nose-to-chest with the campus outcast, she’s stunned. Wallace Blake is everything she’s ever wanted in a man—except he can’t touch her. His uncontrollable strength, a so-called gift from his bloodline, makes every interaction dangerous. And with a secret, supernatural war brewing among his kind, there’s no time to work it out. To keep Wallace in her life, Rena will have to risk a whole lot more than her heart.

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Komal: IMPOSSIBLE is a Young Adult Contemporary Romance. It’s a story about Ashton and Luca, who grew up next door, and being best friends as children, they grew up disliking each other. When Ashton’s reputation goes downhill, she will do anything to become popular again. Even if that means having to pretend that her and Luca are a couple to get everyone’s attention.

Look for IMPOSSIBLE is out now! on Amazon and Smashwords!

Joe: The manuscript I am currently working on is about genetically engineered teenagers with super-abilities on the run with two of the scientists/parents that worked to create them. The teens are running from Helix, a secret agency that was once part of America’s scientific research defense against Nazi Germany and the former Soviet Union during the Cold War. The super-teens are searching for a hidden, and thought failed, project that could bring the now rogue Helix and its leader, The Director, down. Along the way, there is fun, adventure, intrigue and, yes, romance.

Bonnie: I just published my first paranormal YA on Amazon this past April called Nether Bound. Here is the blurb:

Seventeen year old Ava Walker has everything a girl could ask for. She’s captain of the cheer squad, has tons of friends, and could easily have any guy she wants. Being popular is easy.

Lying about her entire life, on the other hand, isn’t.

Since she was little, Ava has had a connection with the dearly departed. She knows seeing dead people is abnormal, but they never try to communicate, so she does her best to turn a blind eye. The older she gets, the worse her visions become. With more and more ghosts showing up, her secret is on the verge of driving her mad.

The only person Ava ever trusted is her best friend, Devon. Only, she hasn’t really talked to him in years and lately he hasn’t been acting like himself.

To make things worse, her evil stepfather, Mark, is hitting the bottle harder and harder. Ava hates the alcoholic psycho her mother married a few years ago. To him, beating women is a sport. Lately, the beatings are getting worse. Ava fears it won’t be long before her mother is among the ghosts invading her life.

She wishes Mark would just die. When he suddenly does, her life changes forever.

Just when she thinks her family is safe, Mark shows back up.

Not all ghosts are silent, and dear old Daddy wants some serious revenge.

Be careful what you wish for …

My MC really has her life flipped upside down in this first book. She's already had to grow up to fast because of "family issues", but the events in this book find her making very difficult decisions about her life, and the lives of everyone she loves, all in order to save the one thing that matters most to her. Her family. She finds out who and what she really is and has a hard time embracing the truth about how she came to be. Not to mention the two totally hot guys vying for her attention. I couldn't not have a little love triangle going on.  =)

The second book in the trilogy: Nether Soul will be published on Amazon Oct. 30^th 2012. I'd give you the blurb, but if you haven't read the first book yet, it would give too much away.

Can you pick one or two writers who have influenced you and think would benefit other writers?

Carrie: Gena Showalter is my favorite paranormal romance author. She writes complex, driven, supernaturally-charged love stories. Yum!

Komal: Richelle Mead writes the most amazing stories. I think she is a fabulous writer, and her plot twists leave me with my mouth hanging open.

What are your greatest movie inspirations?

Carrie: I always want to write after something heart-wrenching. It doesn’t matter what genre it is. Maybe I’ve just watched Serenity (science fiction), and I’m struggling to detach myself from the emotions of the film. My brain translates those feelings to whatever project I’m working on. Tragedy for my romance? A heated battle for my paranormal? It’s interesting how things affect and inspire us.

Komal: I love the Notebook! Romantic movies aren’t always my thing, but my best friend made me watch it one day, and towards the end I had something in my eye—I wasn’t crying, I swear!

I have a weird mix of favourite movies. Titanic, Silence of the Lambs, My Best Friend’s Wedding, original three Star Wars films, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?, recent Batman films, good remakes of Marvel comics, and Sleepy Hollow. There are so many more!

Joe: Greatest movie inspiration at the moment would be Superman, The Movie followed by other super-hero films. If you read my blurb about my novel, you’ll understand why those films would be inspiring.

What are some of your favorite writing blogs that you think make the writing world a better place?

Carrie:  The Bookshelf Muse, Alex J. Cavanaugh, and Melissa Maygrove’s Grammar Police Files!

Komal: You can’t beat the classics. Wuthering Heights, Cat’s Cradle and Anna Karenina are my long standing favourites. Also, I do love my Austen.

Current favourites are Easy by Tammara Webber, and The Vincent Boys by Abbi Glines.

What are some of your current (or long standing) favorite reads?

Carrie: What a difficult question! I’ll go with two of my favorite non-sappy romance reads: The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter and Nothing But Trouble by Rachel Gibson. Brooding, heavily-guarded heroes? Yes, please!

Joe: Not the easiest of questions to answer. For current favorite reads, I’d have to go with the entire Tigers’ Curse series by Colleen Houck and Dearly, Departed and Dearly, Beloved by Lia Habel. For long standing – because I can’t just answer one part of the question – I would have to include on the list, the short list that is, The Mortal Instruments and Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare, The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, and The Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer.