Hello and welcome to our world, Aubrie Dionne. As we live in an enchanted forest and we are magical folk, let us transport you to another world for your interview today. Tell us where you would like to go and why. It could be another time or a setting that is special to you. Just say the word and we are there…….
I’ve always wanted to go to the spaceport on Tatooine, the desert planet in Star Wars. We’ll need some good bodyguards, though, because the bar can get kinda rowdy.
Now that we are sitting in your special place, we have a few impish questions to ask of you.
B – How do you carry out your background research?
I google everything from planet and star names to space terms, such as a quasar. I ask people questions like: How would a ship the size of a small city land in the ocean of another planet. Usually they look at me kinda funny, but then they give me ideas in their answers.
O – Do you ever obsess over your work?
Um…yes. I think you have to obsess to a certain extent in order to get it done. There were many nights where I sacrificed American Idol, playing spider solitaire, or sleep to get in my word count.
O – From a writing point of view, what has been your most memorable occasion?
I think getting an agent was a big one for me. When I first started writing, I had no idea what a literary agent was. After reading several blogs online, I soon figured out that it was a big deal to have one, and that certain larger publishers won’t even look at your work if you don’t.
It took querying four books at about 100 queries each to find Dawn Dowdle at Blue Ridge. Thank goodness she liked the first three chapters of Paradise 21!
K- Of all the kisses you have ever written about, which is your favourite and why?
When Aries first kisses Striker is pretty steamy. She’s never kissed a man before, and he’s trying to recover from a bad choice in love. So, it’s two people coming together from very different worlds.
I – What would you say is the most important thing to consider before starting to write a book?
If it’s your first book, it probably won’t be published, or at least not by a big publisher. You have to write many books to perfect the craft of writing, like playing an instrument, or learning a new language. The whole process takes time. Years. Maybe even a decade.
I thought I’d write one book and be the next J K Rowling. Boy was I wrong. Four books and six years later I’m finally reaching a successful point in my writing career.
M – How do you plot your male characters? Are they based on people you know or your ideal man? Do you have physical or mental pictures of your male characters?
I pictured Clive Owen for Striker, my main character. Don’t tell him, though, because I’d never be able to actually talk to him or meet him in real life. No way.
I’m a very girly girl, so writing manly characters is not my forte. I had to work at it. I watched a lot of manly shows like Rocky and Terminator to get a feel for the lack of words men use and their strange way of hiding their true feelings.
P- Do you prefer to write from the male or female point of view?
Female, of course!
F - What do you like to do for fun?
I actually turned what I like to do for fun into a career. Twice. I teach flute and write for a living, so both of my careers are fun. Sometimes they’re not, (Like when a flute student hasn’t practiced in a month, or when I’m stuck on a plot point) but at least I enjoy what I’m doing most of the time.
A – What is the most adventurous thing you have ever done?
I’m only adventurous in my head. *hides face* I actually don’t do anything adventurous. The two things that I’ve done that took the most courage were standing up in front of the orchestra to play a Mozart concerto, and sending out my books into the public.
I – What is your favourite musical instrument and why?
Well that one’s easy. I’m a professional flutist.
R – What genre of books do you like to read the most?
Science fiction and fantasy. I like to travel to other worlds. The more different than our own, the better!
Y – What is your favourite memory from your youth or childhood?
I used to play pretend outside with my sister and the boy next door, who shall remain nameless for his own benefit! We used the swing set as a space ship, and we’d act out all of the original Star Wars movies. My sister and I always fought over who’d be Princess Leia!
Follow the link to buy Paradise 21
Blurb:
Aries has lived her entire life aboard mankind’s last hope, the New Dawn, a spaceship traveling toward a planet where humanity can begin anew—a planet that won’t be reached in Aries’ lifetime. As one of the last genetically desirable women in the universe, she must marry her designated genetic match and produce the next generation for this centuries-long voyage.
But Aries has other plans.
When her desperate escape from the New Dawn strands her on a desert planet, Aries discovers the rumors about pirates—humans who escaped Earth before its demise—are true. Handsome, genetically imperfect Striker possesses the freedom Aries envies, and the two connect on a level she never thought possible. But pursued by her match from above and hunted by the planet’s native inhabitants, Aries quickly learns her freedom will come at a hefty price.
The life of the man she loves.
Thank you for the fantastic interview!!!
