Friday, April 27, 2012

Q+A with Suze Reese + ExtraNormal Tour Giveaway

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Suze Reese.  Suze is the author of ExtraNormal.

Keep reading to learn more about the ExtraNormal book tour, and win prizes.  Grand Prize includes an ExtraNormal book bag stuffed with a Kindle, signed copy of ExtraNormal by Suze Reese, EN t-shirt, 5 signed EN bookmarks, and $20 Amazon Gift Card!

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Suze:
  I'm pretty sure I was taking notes in the womb. "Mom was crying again today. She says she's tired of being bloated, whatever that is." I got great grades in school, not because I was smart, but because I could pretty much write my way through anything. I was in my early twenties when I decided to try writing a novel. It took about 5 years and kind of stunk. It had good elements, but I hadn't learned about story structure, which is an entirely different skill set from writing.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Suze: 
That's one of my favorite questions. It was a college science class. Science was something I avoided like the plague. But eventually they informed me that I would not graduate without at least one science credit. So I picked the most interesting-sounding one I could find: Evolution. And while the professor went on about the evolutional changes on our world, I daydreamed about a world that started out just like ours but evolved differently. By the end ExtraNormal was born. I did get an A in the class, so I guess I didn't daydream too much.

EJ:  If you could be any paranormal or have any one supernatural talent, what would it be? Why?

Suze: 
Well, this talent probably isn't cool enough to make it into a paranormal book, but if I were forced to pick just one I'd have to grab the house-cleaning nose twitch from Bewitched. (If you could see the room I'm sitting in you'd tell me to go for it.)

EJ:  Tell us why readers will enjoy your new release.

Suze:
  I've been told it's unique from what's out there right now. It's a fairly complex story and yet doesn't take itself too seriously. There is what I hope a good balance of intrigue, romance, action, and humor. It takes a look at humans from an outsider's perspective, which I think gives readers a lot to consider.There are so many things we take for granted that Mira is just discovering--our food, our technology, our social situations. I've been told over and over that it sticks with the reader. They think about it when they put it down. In fact, yesterday I had lunch with a close friend who had just read an ARC of ExtraNormal. In fact we were meeting so I could pick it up from her. And mid-way through lunch she says, "I've just got to tell you. Three or our times during our chat I've had the thought that I need to tell you about this amazing book I just read. And then I go 'Oh that's right, she wrote it.'" Plus Jesse is very hot.

EJ:  If your book(s) were being made into a movie, who would you cast for the leading roles? Why?

Suze: 
I didn't want to have a set image as I developed my characters, so I've tried not to "type cast" them. But my son tells me that Mira as she's depicted on my cover looks like Selena Gomez. And while I think she's a versatile actress, she's a little too short for my Mira. I think I'd have to pick Jessica Alba. She has the right look, has Mira's hint of sophistication, and as a bonus has had some sci-fi and paranormal roles. For Jesse I'm thinking Zac Efron. He'd have to dye his hair, but his eyes and smile are perfect. Orlando Bloom is my hands-down pick for Everett, who is supposed be the embodiment of the perfect male specimen. And maybe that's just my opinion of Orlando, but there you go. He is a little old to play a 17-year-old. In fact probably all of them are. But we're talking fantasy casting here, so I'll let Hollywood worry about the age problem.






















ExtraNormal (ExtraNormal #1) by Suze Reese

Mira Johns is pretty much like any other teenage girl. Except that she knows how to harness electro-magnetic energy to communicate without words. And she's really, really far from home. Her assignment as an emissary to Earth sounds fairly simple: blend in, observe, and stay away from the planet’s primitive males. But after she finds one mysterious boy too irresistible for stupid rules, she realizes the real reason she's supposed to keep her distance: mates from her world can die if separated. But a series of serious accidents make it clear that someone wants to force her return. Mira decides her only hope is to uncover the truth to why she, the most mediocre of candidates, was actually chosen for this assignment—before the agency discovers her secret and sends her back home.


Thank you Suze for joining us here today at From the Shadows!

To learn more about Suze Reese and her books, please visit her website.

Suze Reese
**ExtraNormal Book Tour Giveaway**

Author Suze Reese is on tour for her new release ExtraNormal and giving away some fab bookish prizes.  Grand Prize includes an ExtraNormal book bag stuffed with a Kindle, signed copy of ExtraNormal by Suze Reese, EN t-shirt, 5 signed EN bookmarks, and $20 Amazon Gift Card.  Additional prizes include $15 Amazon Gift Card, two EN t-shirts, and autographed EN bookmark sets.

To enter, please use the Rafflecopter form below.  This giveaway is to US mailing addresses only.  Giveaway ends May 4, 2012.  Please note that this is a book tour giveaway.  Winners will not be selected by From the Shadows.  Visit the ExtraNormal tour page for more info.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

18 comments:

  1. I love the sound of this book. Any chance of an ebook giveaway for us international followers?

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    Replies
    1. I'll ask Suze. Perhaps she may be willing to join us here at From the Shadows in the future for an additional giveaway. :)

      If she were to return, do you have any requests? (ie, character interview, book excerpt, guest blog)

      Thanks!

      xx,
      E.J.

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    2. Hi Sarah and E.J. - Just stopped by to see how things are going. Yes, and yes. I'd be happy to come do a giveaway in the future, just let me know. I hate to exclude international readers. An eBook giveaway is a great idea!

      Thanks so much for participating in the blog tour. I'm a big fan of yours E.J. =)

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    3. Yay! Thank you Suze, that is fabulous news. :)

      xx,
      E.J.

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  2. Great giveaway and lots of ways to get chances to win. Good luck to those with the fortitude to do 'em all - I'll stop where I am and hope I'm the lucky one anyway :-)

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  3. I've always been a big fan of the "what if?" novel. I grew up reading, Heinlein, Asimov, Clark, Doc Smith etc. When, as an adult I found the new paranormal fantasy genre I jumped right in and my library has grown by over 1000 books since. I'd love to win this book and start a new bookshelf.

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  4. Ha, I am in college and I think I am surviving because I am writing myself out of stuff...XD

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  5. Great interview. Also wish I could clean a room with a wiggle of my nose. :)

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  6. That would be one of the best talents to have, the ability to clean a room with a twitch of your nose.
    I could get a job as a maid and make a ton of money, LOL

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  7. Great interview! I think I could use the nose twitch too!

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  8. This book sounds awesome! I love what brought you to the paranormal genre - I've never been a fan of science either. Thanks for the giveaway!!

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  9. Suze,
    This sounds like a great book! I'd love to have Samantha's powers from Bewitched too. lol
    Thanks for the contest/giveaway!

    Lea Ellen {night owl in IL}
    borg_66@hotmail.com

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  10. I love the cover, plus it sounds like a good read!! :)

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    Replies
    1. Isn't the cover AMAZING? I love the way the mist flows around the model and flowers.

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  11. Fantastic interview! I hate science, but love science fiction. I think I'm just glad someone else did the research.

    Nose-twitch cleaning! I'm going to steal that answer!

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  12. Very enjoyable interview.

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  13. Thanks for the invite. I enjoyed the interview.

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  14. Loved the Q&A. Would be cool if it was actually made into a movie with Jessica Alba!

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