Q+A with Virgil Allen Moore (Demon Vampire)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Virgil Allen Moore.  Virgil is the author of Demon Vampire.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Virgil:  At ten I came up with the idea for a story in elementary school. My initial attempt at the writing was so impressive, the teacher gave me high marks. Unfortunately, I didn't finish the project, which would normally result in a failing grade. However, I was able to land a solid A- considering the shear innovation of my narrative. As a ten year old, I saw great inspiration in this. My career as a writer was cemented in that fact.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Virgil:   There was a time when I read Anne Rice and thought her vision of vampires were near perfect. Later on in life, I had the misfortune to read a book that betrayed my feelings as a reader in that genre. I spent two very spirited weeks ranting to my friends about my experience with that book. One day they told me that I should just write a more comprehensive and intertwining collective of a novel. Their words rang deeply, leading to the inception of my current beauty, Demon Vampire.

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

Virgil:  Immortality has always been a fascination for me. Not that of a vampire, but true, legendary immortality is my aim. The ability to live complete and everlasting in order to accomplish all of my whims, dreams, and desires is priceless to me. The thoughts of all I could do with that amount of time are wondrous in my mind.

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

Virgil:  Demon Vampire is a poetic novel that builds to a climax that is so fulfilling to a reader, it sets a standard for story complexity that is well felt in the end. It is a book for those who enjoy a large, slow paced novel filled with imagery that paints the mind in hues of tempting color, while releasing a narrative that lingers after the book is completed. Demon Vampire asks that perfect question: If you had to choose power, grace, and immortality at the cost of your soul, would you? What if the choice was easier than you think? Small, incremental segments of strength for a few childhood memories? The ability to accomplish your dreams, your desires, for the corners of your mind you don't often use? What if you could have everything you ever wanted and the only price would be the things that make you who you are? What would you do? Faced with a grave choice of morality, what would you choose?

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

Virgil:   I've thought about that a lot over the past two years. The only roles that I've been able to select to date would be Gary Oldman, and Rachel McAdams. One of the elder vampires of the story, Fear, would lend well to Oldman's talents as an actor. His dark portrayal in many movies is a perfect representation of that character's propensity for violence and terror. McAdams would play the main character's mother, Lucretia. I believe although she has not played any truly evil and sadistic roles in her career, she would love the character's ability to be utterly base in her primal needs and expectations of the world. As for the rest of the cast, I haven't found any really fit to what I have written. The story is so complex and interweaved, the acting involved would need to be by relatively unknown people. Allowing them to express the full depths of the book in all its crimson sanguination.

Demon Vampire by Virgil Allen Moore

Demon Vampire asks the question, if given the choice to have power, grace, and immortality at the cost of your soul, what would you do? What if the choice was easier than you think? Small incremental segments of you childhood for a boost in strength? The ability to protect your loved ones for the corners of your mind that you don't often use? Regeneration for the traits that make you who you are? If faced with a grave decision of morality, what would you choose?


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

To learn more about Virgil Allen Moore and his books, please visit his website.

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.


**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

Q+A with Jefferson Smith (Strange Places)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Jefferson Smith.  Jefferson is the author of Strange Places.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Jefferson:   I first received critical acclaim for a recurring fantasy adventure serial I wrote throughout the sixth grade. My teacher and principal both loved it. I submitted my first story to the short-fiction market while in the tenth grade, thus securing my first official rejection. But to be honest, I started writing at about the same time I learned to print and I've been doing it ever since. My career as a special effects and animation consultant in Hollywood got in the way for a couple of decades, but I finally found my way back to telling my OWN stories about seven years ago.

As a long time explorer of the arts (writing, painting, animation, composing, etc.) I went back to school to do an unusual PhD program: I studied creativity theory for a doctorate in Computer Science, developing a technique for making humans more creative when they use multimedia software tools. As part of that research, I wrote a musical score for a strange world, and then I wrote a novel to go with it. The result is Strange Places, my first published work of fiction, which is also the first installment of a series called Finding Tayna. I'm now hard at work on the second book, due out at the end of this year, and the musical soundtrack CD will be out this spring. Meanwhile, I write regularly about these strangely intersecting topics (writing tips, software tools for writers, and creativity theory) on my blog: The Creativity Hacker.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Jefferson:   Believe it or not, like all good science geeks, I started out as a stubborn sci-fi nut. But over the years, I came to realize that what fascinated me most about those stories wasn't the actual fictional science part - it was the fabulous mental landscapes and imaginative story worlds that those authors were creating. More recently, as I've watched the acceleration of technology and its rapid proliferation throughout society, I've come to realize that science fiction, as I know it, is dead. Who needs fantastical predictions about the future of science when your nearest Best Buy or even Wal-Mart will have new eye-popping techno widgetry available tomorrow afternoon? We've become jaded to new technology, and the sciences have become so specialized that the only people capable of projecting those topics more than 5 minutes into the future are the specialist researchers themselves, who are usually horrible story tellers.

If you examine most of what science fiction is now doing, it's really just fantasy, dressed up in technological battle gear. I guess what I'm saying is that I didn't exactly come to fantasy consciously so much as I was brought here and abandoned by science fiction. But now that I'm here, I realize that I have always been here and science fiction was just an illusion from my youth.

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

Jefferson:  No question. I would want to be able to see into the souls of others and find the one thing to say that would make them fall down laughing. Not only would this be a fabulous power for a writer like myself to have (since I work hard to make my writing funny as well as thought provoking and fantastical) but it would actually be a great super power, too. No evil genius can fight you if they're too busy clutching their sides, gasping for breath, and rolling around on the floor in hysterics. Better yet, nobody can stay mad at a person who can make them laugh, so I'd be converting all the bad guys into friends every time we clashed, and it's just a short walk between making them friends and turning them into good guys. So yeah, that would be my power of choice.

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

Jefferson:  Imagine that you had lived your entire life in a gloomy orphanage run by cruel nuns only to discover in your teen years that you might not even be an orphan at all. You'd freak, right? "You mean I've been washing your laundry and scrubbing your floors all this time, and somewhere I might have parents who actually love me? I am so out of here!"

Well, that's exactly what happens for Tayna, my razor witted maybe-orphan. But leaving that orphanage proves to be just the beginning of her troubles. Not only does she know nothing about the world outside the walls, but she quickly learns that her family (if they really exist) are not even in our world at all, but in another, mythological world - one she'd never even heard of before that day. So how is she supposed to find them there?

So you've got this funny but lonely teen, searching for where she belongs, and kicking butt along the way. If she only knew how much her fans loved her, she probably wouldn't be so miserable, but then again, I wouldn't have a book, either. (Note to self: don't tell Tayna how many people out here love her. It would get weird.)

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

Jefferson:   I think Ellen Page would have made a great Tayna five years ago, but she's probably too old now to play a believable teen, so I'd want to use someone new and unknown. There are so many great young actresses out there and I really like working with people who are just getting started in their arts careers.

Peter Dinklage would be fabulous for my villain, the creepy Lord Angiron.

I wish I could have put Heath Ledger in to play the quirky and mysterious Duck Man. He has so many sides to him. I mean, who else could play a guy who wanders around town in hip-waders and a pink trench coat, saying inappropriate things to children in one minute, but who seems to have your back and acts like a trusted but quirky ally in the next? Since I can't have Heath, I think my second choice might be Jason Segal.

The real question, in my mind, is who would play Abeni - the mountain-muscled, dark-skinned Djin adventurer with the kettle-drum laugh? I can't think of a single actor I have ever scene on film who would be right for the part, so I'm going to make one up. Take Arnold Schwarzenegger's body, stuff him inside Denzel Washington for looks and charm, and then cram Woopie Goldberg down inside that skin to handle the comedy and the laughing. Yeah, that would be sweet. I shall call him Denzoopie Schwarzenberg.

Strange Places (Finding Tayna #1) by Jefferson Smith

Raised as a modern-day kitchen slave in an orphanage run by child-loathing nuns, and now stalked by disturbing strangers, thirteen year old Tayna gambles everything on a desperate journey of self-discovery that will lead her to the far corners of two strange and unfamiliar worlds: one filled with shopping malls and televisions, the other with Brownies, Djin and magic.


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

To learn more about Jefferson Smith and his books, please visit his website.

Q+A with Lynda Hilburn (The Vampire Shrink)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Lynda Hilburn.  Lynda is the author of The Vampire Shrink.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Lynda:  I started writing nonfiction as a teenager: journals, high school and college newspapers, then later academic articles and papers. I wrote a newspaper column in my local paper for 5 years called The Psychic Counselor. I didn't start writing fiction until 2004, when I decided to try my hand at writing a vampire book, since I was such a rabid fan. Since then, I've written and published 3 novels, 1 novella and 6 short stories.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Lynda:  In addition to being a fan of the supernatural and paranormal (vampires especially), I also explored the metaphysical and occult. Talking to dead relatives was a normal occurrence in my family, so my invisible friends were my companions throughout childhood. Later I studied the tarot and utilized my intuitive/psychic abilities, all of which caused me to be slightly odd, according to the "normal" world. Combining all my interests as a writer has been a no-brainer.

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

Lynda:  Like my vampires, I would be able to travel via thought. They can move through time and space by intending to do so. That would be incredibly awesome. There would be no end to the places I could visit, the people I could meet and the experiences I could have.

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

Lynda:  I hope readers will enjoy sharing Dr. Kismet Knight's transformation from skeptical psychologist to believer in the paranormal. Finding herself enmeshed in the vampire underworld causes her to question everything she thought she knew. Her relationships with master vampire Devereux and FBI profiler Alan Stevens create problems in her personal and professional life and my readers have divided into the Devereux camp and the Alan camp. Readers also tell me they like sharing Kismet's thoughts about her psychotherapy clients -- human and vampire.

The Vampire Shrink (Kismet Knight, Ph.D., Vampire Psychologist #1) by Lynda Hilburn

A sizzlingly sexy urban fantasy sure to feed the hunger of ravenous, vampire-loving fans. Kismet Knight, a brainy Denver-based psychologist with a stalled career and a nonexistent love life, is about to have her world rocked. Not only does her newest patient, Midnight, long to become a vampire, but the teenager insists that a coven of the undead hangs out at a local goth club. The always-rational Kismet dismisses Midnight's claims as the delusions of an attention-starved girl--until bodies start turning up drained of blood and the hottest self-proclaimed vampire ever to walk the face of the earth enters her office.  What's real? What's not? As inexplicable events and romantic opportunities pile up, along with the corpses, Kismet finds herself in a whirlwind of passion, mystery, and danger. But this tough and funny heroine--who doesn't do damsel in distress--is about to turn the vampire-meets-girl convention on its head.


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

To learn more about Lynda Hilburn and her books, please visit her website.

Q+A with Ashlynne Laynne (The Progeny)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Ashlynne Laynne.  Ashlynne is the author of The Progeny.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Ashlynne:   From the time I was eight and placed third in an oratorical contest, I was hooked. I was mostly a poet and songwriter before October of 2010- this is when I really got serious about my craft and honing it. I hope to place a piece of my original poetry in each of my novels. The selection, Blessed Eternity, appears in the epilogue of The Progeny and was written three years ago (and before writing novels ever crossed my mind). How's that for destiny?

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Ashlynne:   I've always loved horror movies and I must admit I have a soft spot in my heart for vampires. Besides, have you seen how gorgeous they've gotten in the last fifteen years? What girl could resist them?

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

Ashlynne:   I'd definitely be a vampire. They have the whole mind control charm thing and eternal life. Imagine the things a vampire could experience in an existence. What's a little blood consumption to live multiple lifetimes?

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

Ashlynne:   The Progeny has something for everyone. Sci-fi enthusiasts will be wild for Ascher's back story and origins. Lovers of action will like the fight scenes and adventure elements. Romantics will swoon over the tender love story and forbidden love plot weaved in. Vampire lovers will love the vampire story while lovers of witch stories will love Shauna's story. There were just infinite possibilities for such a wicked couple and I've enjoyed exploring them all.

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

Ashlynne:  I wrote The Progeny with a picture of the fantastic actor, Thomas Dekker, staring at me everyday, for inspiration. I just love him, so it's no wonder that I wrote Ascher in his likeness. I think he is so ridiculously talented and he isn't hard on the eyes either. He would be the only choice for Ascher, in my opinion. For Shauna, Zoe Kravitz would be an awesome representation for her. Besides her beauty, she has an intensity that definitely comes through on screen.

The Progeny by Ashlynne Laynne

“No fate other than the one I choose.” The timeless creed, and tattoo, bore by the Rousseau’s— a vampire clan with the purest bloodline of any vampire family. Out of this clandestine group came one who was different, yet the same: Ascher - a half-bloodling— half- human, half vampire.

Ascher questions the purpose for his existence and which world he truly belongs to: the human world or the vampire world. Two months from sealing to Ursula— a prearranged union to a woman he abhors — he’s at his wit’s end. He knows if he calls off the sealing, the Romanian clan will strike with deadly force, but he cannot see eternity with a cold empty shell of a woman like Ursula.

Just when he thought life was complicated enough, he meets Shauna— a beautiful, bi-racial human wiccan — and immediately develops an unshakable attraction to her. She makes him feel alive and vital despite his origins and Ascher makes a decision that turns his immortal world upside down.


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

To learn more about Ashlynne Lane and her books, please visit her website.

Q+A with Suzanne Johnson + Royal Street Giveaway

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Suzanne Johnson.  Suzanne is author of Royal Street.

Keep reading for a chance to win a signed copy of Royal Street by Suzanne Johnson.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Suzanne:   I've been writing for years as a journalist, but only began writing fiction in 2008, at first as a way to exorcise my demons of being in New Orleans for Hurricane Katrina. Then I got the writing "bug"!

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Suzanne:  I grew up reading Stephen King and Anne Rice, so it was a natural. I've always thought paranormal was the perfect blend of the speculative and the emotional aspects of fiction.

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

Suzanne:   Hmm...teleporting would be awesome. No planes, no long drives, no airport security. All good!

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

Suzanne:  I hope they enjoy it on a couple of levels. It's a story of wizards and voodoo and undead pirates set in New Orleans, which is one of the world's most interesting cities. It has a lot of humor in it, but the humor's tempered with sadness because it's also about Hurricane Katrina and what life was like in the city afterward. So I hope readers will have fun with it, but also will have an emotional connection to it.

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

Suzanne:   My lead character, DJ, is a wizard, and I've always envisioned her as looking sort of like actress Emilie de Ravin. I thought artist Cliff Nielsen, who did the book cover, captured DJ really well. She's pretty but she doesn't look artificial. Very real and down to earth. No leather or bustiers for this girl. As for her partner, Alex...I'm still doing auditions for that role! For the pirate Jean Lafitte, I think Giles Marini would do very, very nicely. Mais oui!

Royal Street (Sentinels of New Orleans #1) by Suzanne Johnson.

As the junior wizard sentinel for New Orleans, Drusilla Jaco's job involves a lot more potion-mixing and pixie-retrieval than sniffing out supernatural bad guys like rogue vampires and lethal were-creatures. DJ's boss and mentor, Gerald St. Simon, is the wizard tasked with protecting the city from anyone or anything that might slip over from the preternatural beyond.
Then Hurricane Katrina hammers New Orleans' fragile levees, unleashing more than just dangerous flood waters.

While winds howled and Lake Pontchartrain surged, the borders between the modern city and the Otherworld crumbled. Now, the undead and the restless are roaming the Big Easy, and a serial killer with ties to voodoo is murdering the soldiers sent to help the city recover.
To make it worse, Gerry has gone missing, the wizards' Elders have assigned a grenade-toting assassin as DJ's new partner, and undead pirate Jean Lafitte wants to make her walk his plank. The search for Gerry and for the serial killer turns personal when DJ learns the hard way that loyalty requires sacrifice, allies come from the unlikeliest places, and duty mixed with love creates one bitter gumbo.


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

To learn more about Suzanne Johnson and her books, please visit her website.

**Royal Street Book Giveaway**

We are giving away two *signed* copies of Royal Street by Suzanne Johnson.

To enter, leave a comment on this post (please include your email address so we may contact you if you win).  This giveaway is INTERNATIONAL.  Giveaway ends April 12, 2012 midnight EST.

Q+A with Ruth Warburton (A Witch in Winter)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Ruth Warburton.  Ruth is author of A Witch in Winter.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Ruth:   I think I started writing stories pretty much as soon as I could write - the first proper story with a beginning, middle and end that I can remember was written when I was about seven. But even when I wasn't writing, I was telling stories. My sister and I had a long-running saga about a girls' school which we used to relate to each other on boring car journeys. It went on for years.

My written stories started off as a couple of paragraphs in my school books or bashed out finger by finger on my mum's typewriter. They just got longer and longer, and one day I found I was writing proper book-length manuscripts.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Ruth:   I've always really loved stories about magic and witchcraft - two of my favourite writers, growing up, were Diana Wynne Jones and Ursula K Le Guin who both write beautifully about witches and wizards. They definitely influenced the magic in this book. I also loved Alice Hoffman's novels, in particular Practical Magic. The idea of combining heady magical powers with everyday problems is fascinating.

But somehow I never wrote about it myself - my stories were always realistic. Then the kernel of this story popped into my head pretty much fully formed - a girl who casts a spell on a boy she fancies, and then can't take it off. It kind of wrote itself from there.

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

Ruth:   It would be incredibly convenient to be able to fly. Just think of all the possibilities - not to mention the saving in commuting time! But I think in reality huge powers would bring more problems than they'd solve, so perhaps my life is complicated enough already.

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

Ruth:  Well it's got magic, gorgeous boys, a feisty "solve-my-own-problems" heroine, and lots of heart-ache. Is that enough?

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

Ruth:   Blimey, this is TOUGH. Um... well, Anna, in my head, looks a little bit like a younger Zooey Deschanel. Only Anna is 17 of course, and Zooey is a bit older. But I think she manages to look a portray characters who are a bit vulnerable and a bit kick-ass at the same time, which is Anna to a tee.

Seth is really hard. Maybe something like a younger, scruffier Tom Welling or Ashton Kutcher? He's an essentially good person who can snap and lose it if he's pushed too far, and I think they could both portray that.

A Witch in Winter (Winter Trilogy #1) by Ruth Warburton.

Anna Winterson doesn't know she's a witch and would probably mock you for believing in magic, but after moving to the small town of Winter with her father, she learns more than she ever wanted to about power. When Anna meets Seth, she is smitten, but when she enchants him to love her, she unwittingly amplifies a deadly conflict between two witch clans and splits her own heart in two. She wants to love Seth, to let him love her – but if it is her magic that's controlling his passion, then she is as monstrous as the witch clan who are trying to use her amazing powers for their own gain.

Although a perfect fit for the paranormal romance genre, A WITCH IN WINTER avoids fangs, excessive body hair and submissive female leads, and tells the heart-wrenching story of a couple meant to be together, but being forced apart. Seth is utterly irresistible and Anna is an empowered, proactive young woman with unimaginable magic inside her. This is fast-paced, sensuous writing with believable incantations inspired by Warburton's research into witchcraft legend and old English.


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

To learn more about Ruth Warburton and her books, please visit her website.

Q+A with Deborah Coates + Wide Open Giveaway

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Deborah Coates.  Deborah is author of What Makes a River and Wide Open.

Keep reading for a chance to win a print copy of Wide Open by Deborah Coates.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Deborah:   I didn't do much writing at all until after grad school and initially I concentrated on short stories.  I wanted to try lots of different things and short stories were made for that.  I wrote a mystery novel, set that aside because I didn't know how to fix it, had some more success with short stories and finally got the idea for WIDE OPEN a little over four years ago.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Deborah:  I love books with a strong sense of place and interesting complex characters.  Writing about the paranormal lets me ground my stories in the contemporary world with characters who have recognizable life experiences, but then take all that and add a paranormal twist.  What would people really do if our world had ghosts or sorcerers or ancient gods?  I think the stronger and more solid the grounding, the more impact the paranormal elements have.  I'm still working on how to do that, how different elements affect different characters and where particular stories lead.  It's fun!

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

Deborah:  No contest.  Immortality.  Not only would I love the chance to read all the books and learn all the things, but to watch the world and the people in it grow and change, would be extraordinary.  The long-term accumulation of wealth thing wouldn't be too shabby either.

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

Deborah:  What I hope is that readers will be drawn to the setting--western South Dakota on the prairie--and the characters.  Hallie is sharp-edged and brave and a little bit reckless (ha!).  Boyd is thoughtful and steadfast and at least as brave as Hallie.  I write for character much of the time and I hope readers fall in love with these characters in this place and want to come along for the ride.

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

Deborah:   Oh, wow.  I have clear pictures in my head of all of the characters, but I know that good actors can become their roles in pretty amazing ways so I'm not sure I can point to someone and say--that one, that person, looks just like Hallie or Boyd or Hallie's dad.  I'd love to see actors cast who are the same age as my characters because so often actors age down for roles and then we picture people in their teens and twenties as looking older than they really are.  But honestly, I'd love to see WIDE OPEN made into a movie.  I'd love to see what they do with it, how it looks, and even what they change.  Maybe it would be awful, but the flip side is--it could be amazing!

Wide Open by Deborah Coates

When Sergeant Hallie Michaels comes back to South Dakota from Afghanistan on ten days' compassionate leave, her sister Dell's ghost is waiting at the airport to greet her.

The sheriff says that Dell's death was suicide, but Hallie doesn't believe it. Something happened or Dell's ghost wouldn't still be hanging around. Friends and family, mourning Dell's loss, think Hallie's letting her grief interfere with her judgment. 

The one person who seems willing to listen is the deputy sheriff, Boyd Davies, who shows up everywhere and helps when he doesn't have to. 

As Hallie asks more questions, she attracts new ghosts, women who disappeared without a trace.  Soon, someone's trying to beat her up, burn down her father's ranch, and stop her investigation.

Hallie's going to need Boyd, her friends, and all the ghosts she can find to defeat an enemy who has an unimaginable ancient power at his command.



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

To learn more about Deborah Coates and her books, please visit her website.

**Wide Open Book Giveaway**

We are giving away a copy of Wide Open by Deborah Coates to one lucky winner!

To enter, please leave a comment on this post and include your email address (so we may contact you if you win).  This giveaway is open to US mailing addresses only.  Giveaway ends March 29th midnight EST.

Q+A with Wendy Higgins (Sweet Evil)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Wendy Higgins!  Wendy is the author of Sweet Evil.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Wendy:  I began writing stories in Kindergarten. Reading and writing were my hobbies growing up, though there wasn’t a whole lot of YA when I was a teen. Neither of my parents were big readers, so they probably thought I was a bit of a strange recluse child, but they both encouraged my writing.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Wendy:  I honestly don’t know! Prior to Sweet Evil I wrote contemporary stories, chiclit and stuff like that. The whole paranormal thing came out of nowhere, and it was actually very difficult for me. I kept forgetting about my MC’s abilities, and I had to add a lot of detail during revisions.

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

Wendy:  Oooh, fun…I would have healing powers like Lissa from Vampire Academy, only without all the crazy side-effects. I have several people I love who are sick with rare diseases and they live with daily discomfort. One is my sister-in-law. I’d love to take that pain from her.

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

Wendy:  Oh, gosh, let me see. I’m hoping readers will enjoy the romantic tension with the hott drummer, Kaidan Rowe, and feel a bond akin to friendship with the MC, Anna.

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

Wendy:  Probably Ben Barnes for Kaidan - I’d love a ‘real’ English guy for his role, but he’s got to have some killer blue eyes. For Anna it needs to be an innocent little blonde, like Spencer Locke a few years ago.

Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins

What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences? This is life for sons and daughters of fallen angels in Sweet Evil.

Anna, a tender-hearted southern girl, was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but it isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage, and her will-power is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.

A cross-country trip forces Anna and Kai to face the reality that hope and love are not options for their kind. When it's time for Anna to confront her demons, will she choose to embrace her halo or her horns?

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

To learn more about Wendy Higgins and her books, please visit her website.

Air Novella: Exclusive Excerpt + Book Giveaway

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author J.D. Richard!  J.D. is sharing an exclusive excerpt from her novella Air and giving away the choice of one large-print paperback or one PDF of Air to two lucky winners.

Air by J.D. Richard

Prepare to feast your mind on the death defying, thrilling, and unexpected! Smarty and Speedy are two boys in the wrong place at the wrong time. They become the unwitting executors of a supernatural artisan's estate. Consequently, the two must flee in terror for their lives from a threat that is set upon them—which they cannot see or touch. Three years later Essie, a runaway, balks at inheriting her cousin's three-year-old son. She is sure that the way to deliverance from her drifter existence lies in attending the prestigious Mann University. Yet, the seemingly ordinary child, with an aura in the magic rings around his neck, and his insightful German shepherd protector defy that logic.

Air Excerpt - Exclusive for From The Shadows

. . . She was about to lower the car seat and interrupt the baby's play for transfer.  Then she stopped mid-task.

The new vision in front of Juliana altered her present reality.  As it started, she recognized the painting that was hanging on the stone wall in front of her.  Its presence identified the exact location of the scene that she was viewing.
    
Welcome visitors that walked from the entryway and foyer into the living room of her house always mistook the work as masterfully, singular, modern art.  Indeed it was.  The painting was Juliana’s own oil on canvas rendering of air and energy licking one another into flames.
    
For simplicity, she told everyone that asked that the work was simply one interpretation of what she had envisioned a person seeing from within the majesty of her husband’s forge.
   
Juliana’s mind parted the perspective.  She went from being her own eyes as an onlooker in her vision to having a tasteless, soundless, odorless, and numb side view.  With such limitation, she knew that she was seeing herself in the future.
    
Her future self sat in anticipation when two male intruders entered the living room by the front door.  They had the same gait and build of the once passed-out, robed figures from the cavern.  A corner of Juliana’s mind recalled Gifre’s mention of sending them for her.
    
Her future self stood to back away from the invaders.  One of them, with blond hair and dark eyebrows, quickly advanced forward to grab her by the neck.  He had her pinned against the fireplace, still strangling her.

The baby’s curious stare materialized before Juliana's lowered eyes, signaling her mind’s return to her present reality.  The last cycle of the mobile tune stopped in mid-play.  The car seat had fallen from her hand the short distance to the hardwood floor. . . .

Thank you J.D. for joining us here today at From the Shadows!

To learn more about J.D. Richard and her books, please visit her website.

**Air Novella Giveaway**

We are giving away winner's choice of one large-print paperback or one PDF of Air by J.D. Richard to each of two contest winners.

To enter, please comment on this post including your email address so we may contact you if you win.  You do not have to follow or subscribe to From the Shadows to enter.  This giveaway is international (ebook copies) with the choice of paperback copies open to the US, UK, and Canada.  Giveaway ends February 23rd midnight EST.

Q+A with Angela Corbett (Eternal Starling)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Angela Corbett!  Angela is the author of Eternal Starling.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Angela:  I started writing poetry when I was eight. I wrote poetry and short stories until I took a journalism class in high school and fell in love with writing the news. I worked as a journalist in high school and college, but after college I realized how much I’d missed writing fiction and started working on novels again. I got the idea for Eternal Starling in 2008, wrote it in 3 months, then spent a year revising and a year querying before I was offered a three-book deal with Pendrell Publishing.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Angela:  I love reading paranormal and fantasy novels because the world provides a different type of escapism for me than contemporary novels. When I want to escape and get completely lost in another world, I read and write paranormal.

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

Angela:  Well, I’d like to be immortal like a vampire, but wouldn’t be a fan of drinking blood. I like paranormal characters that have other talents as well, like Mercy Thompson. Not only can she shift into a coyote, she also has amazing martial arts skills and she’s smart and funny.

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

Angela:  The Emblem of Eternity trilogy is about true love and soul mates, but even more than that, it’s a story about who Evie is, and how her choices will affect herself and the people in her life. I wanted to write a story about love that transcends time, and I wanted it to be different from other books I’d read, so I came up with a mythology of my own. People who like love triangles, lots of romance, and strong heroines will enjoy Eternal Starling.

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

Angela:  Evie-Amanda Crew. She looks a lot like Evie in my head, and I think she would do a great job showing Evie’s blunt, sarcastic personality. Alex-Dave Giuntoli. Alex is intense and loyal. I think Dave Giuntoli would play Alex well. Emil-Jonathon Groff. I think he’d do a good job showing the combination of Emil’s sexy, flirty nature, and his mysteriousness.

Eternal Starling (Emblem of Eternity #1)

A love so strong, even eternity can’t separate them.

Evie Starling has lived a relatively uneventful life hanging out with friends, gossiping about boys, and driving her 1966 Mustang. All of that changes when she moves to Gunnison, Colorado, to start college and meets two mysterious men.

For centuries, Alex Night and Emil Stone have yearned for Evie—but they each have their own reasons for wanting to be with her. When both men claim to be her soul mate and tell her about an unbelievable past, Evie learns that she’s not the person she thought she was. Soon, Evie finds herself in the middle of an age-old battle between the Amaranthine Society—the soul protectors, and the Daevos Resistance—the soul destroyers. With a past she doesn’t understand, and a future rife with danger, Evie has to decide who she can trust. But Alex and Emil aren’t the only ones who want Evie, and her soul is about to become the rope in an eternal tug-of-war.


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

To learn more about Angela Corbett and her books, please visit her website.

Q+A with Joseph Nassise + Eyes to See Giveaway

Please welcome today's paranormal author Joseph Nassise!  Joseph is the author of the Templar Chronicles (Heretic, A Scream of Angels, A Tear in the Sky), Riverwatch, American Horror, More Than Life Itself, Shades of Reality, and the Jeremiah Hunt series, including EYES TO SEE.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Joseph:  I started writing my junior year in college.  I wrote my first book, Riverwatch, long hand on legal pads just to prove to myself I could do it and then let it sit in a shoebox for eleven years before my wife convinced me to do something with it.  When Pocket Books bought the mass market paperback rights shortly thereafter, I decided to give writing a more concerted effort and I’ve been.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Joseph:  I’ve always been a genre reader, mainly science fiction, fantasy and horror, so when it came time to try my hand at writing I simply gravitated toward what I knew.  I was reading a lot of horror at the time and so my first novel happened to be a horror novel.  The success of that book, including nominations for both the International Horror Guild Award and the Bram Stoker Award, made me realize that I have some affinity for works involving the supernatural and paranormal.

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

Joseph:  This was a tough one, but in the end I think I’d like to be a human dowsing rod, able to find whatever was missing simply by following some innate sense that tells me where to look.  It’s the kind of thing that’s unlikely to dominate your life and it wouldn’t prevent you from having normal relationships with the people that surround you, the way other powers like seeing the future or being able to sense thoughts would.

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

Joseph:  EYES TO SEE is the story of Jeremiah Hunt, a man who has given up everything, including his sight, in order to discover what has happened to his daughter, Elizabeth, who disappeared from their home five years before.  Jeremiah is a difficult character, but an interesting one and his ability to see the spectral world around him, and communicate with the ghosts that inhabit it, make him very different from the usual urban fantasy fare.

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

Joseph:  Jeremiah Hunt –  Jeremy Renner, Elizabeth Clearwater – Blake Lively, Dmitri Karpov – Oleg Taktarov, The Fetch – Andy Serkis, The Preacher – Lance Henriksen.

Eyes to See (Jeremiah Hunt #1)

In an urban fantasy that charts daring new territory in the field, Jeremiah Hunt has been broken by a malevolent force that has taken his young daughter and everything else of value in his life: his marriage, his career, his reputation. Desperate to reclaim what he has lost, Hunt finally turns to the supernatural for justice.

Abandoning all hope for a normal life, he enters the world of ghosts and even more dangerous entities from beyond the grave. Sacrificing his normal sight so that he can see the souls of the dead and the powers that stalk his worst nightmares, Hunt embarks upon a strange new career—a pariah among the living; a scourge among the dead; doomed to walk between the light of day and the deepest darkness beyond night.

His love for his departed daughter sustains him when all is most hopeless, but Hunt is cursed by something more evil than he can possibly imagine. As he descends into the maelstrom of his terrifying quest, he discovers that even his deepest fears are but prelude to yet darker deeds by a powerful entity from beyond the grave…that will not let him go until it has used him for its own nefarious purposes. 

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

To learn more about Joseph Nassise and his books, please visit his website. 

**Eyes to See Giveaway**

We are giving away a copy of Eyes to See by Joseph Nassise to one lucky winner!

To enter, please leave a comment on this post and include your email address so we may contact you if you win.  You do not have to be a follower to enter (though I always appreciate a follow!).  This giveaway is to US mailing addresses only.  Giveaway ends January 19th midnight EST.

This giveaway has ended.  Thank you to all who entered.

Don't miss Joseph's guest post The Road to Redemption here at From the Shadows.

Paranormal Guest Author: Amber Argyle (Witch Song)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Amber Argyle!  Amber is the author of Witch Song.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Amber:  I've been inventing stories for as long as I can remember. I didn't actually start writing them down until junior high. I couldn't seem to write during high school or college--too much reading and writing for classes. I didn't have anything left over for being creative.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Amber:  The first time I read an YA epic fantasy, I was hooked. That week, I started writing. I've never looked back.

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

Amber:  I'd like to fly. Wouldn't that be soooo cool. I'd never be stuck in traffic again.

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

Amber:  So far, readers have loved Witch Song because it's so different from everything out there. The medium for the Witch's magic is singing. Their magic changes the seasons, instantly grows and controls plants.

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

Amber:  I really have no idea. Anyone have any ideas?

Witch Song by Amber Argyle.

The world is changing. Once, Witch Song controlled everything from the winds to the shifting of the seasons--but not anymore. All the Witches are gone, taken captive by a traitor. All but Brusenna. As the echo of their songs fade, the traitor grows stronger. Now she is coming for Brusenna. Her guardian has sworn to protect her, but even he can't stop the Dark Witch. Somehow, Brusenna has to succeed where every other Witch has failed. Find the traitor. Fight her. Defeat her. Because if Brusenna doesn't, there won't be anything left to save.


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

To learn more about Amber Argyle and her books, please visit her website.

Paranormal Guest Author: Suzy Turner + December Moon Giveaway

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Suzy Turner!  Suzy, author of Raven and December Moon, has prepared a special guest post for our readers.

By the Light of the Silvery Moon

Howling deep into the night by the light of a bright, white, full moon. You can almost see him sitting there, his head tilted back as he makes that high pitched sound that sends shivers down your spine. Yes, I'm talking about the elusive werewolf.

If they all looked as gorgeous as Jacob Black, then we wouldn't be at all afraid would we? I know, I know, I'm far too old to be attracted to Jacob (at 35, I'm almost old enough to be his mother!) but it's impossible not to be. He is a fine figure of a man (or a wolf, rather) though, isn't he?! I'll stop talking about Jacob now, this is a post about werewolves after all.

I think I was first introduced to the idea of werewolves back in the 80s when I saw a really silly film with Michael J Fox called Teen Wolf. It obviously planted a seed in my mind because since then I've rather enjoyed reading about them in books or watching werewolf stories on screen. An American Werewolf in London is another, albeit, rather more gory version that I enjoyed as a child (admittedly, I have seen it since and found it disappointing). So, come back to present day and what kind of werewolf flicks / books, are all the rage? Twilight obviously comes up trumps but have you seen The Lost Girl? There is a rather gorgeous character called Dyson (played by Kristen Holden-Ried) who plays the smouldering werewolf to fabulous effect. Being Human is another featuring a werewolf, a ghost and a vampire all living under the same roof.

A few months ago I read my first book centered entirely around werewolves. It was called Blood and Chocolate and I have to say, it left me a little disappointed. Although the story was excellent, I found the main character irritating, especially the way she kept referring to people as boy or girl. She was supposed to be 16 yet came across as much older than her years. But the werewolf aspect was fantastic.

In December Moon, as in Raven, there is one main werewolf. His name is Zoltan and he is your stereotypical wolf man. He's a tough guy who wants nothing more than a good fight. Having said that, Zoltan is a big softy at heart, especially when it comes to his girlfriend, Tabitha, who just happens to be a changeling... with the ability to change into a mountain lion.

If I've tempted your taste-buds, why not check out December Moon. I'm sure you won't be disappointed!

December Moon (The Raven Saga #3) by Suzy Turner

On her 15th birthday, December Moon discovers she is the descendant of a family of witches, kept in the dark her entire life in an effort to protect her. But when Lilly, her best friend, finds herself in danger from one of the world's most evil vampires, December will do everything in her power to stop him. December Moon is a fantasy novel for children and young adults set in BC, Canada.


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

To learn more about Suzy Turner and her books, please visit her website or check out E.J.'s interview of Suzy here at From the Shadows.

**December Moon International Giveaway**

We are giving away two copies, one paperback and one ebook, of December Moon (The Raven Saga #2) by Suzy Turner.

To enter, please leave a message on this post including your email address (so we may contact you if you win).  You do not have to be a follower to enter (though I always appreciate a follow!).  This giveaway is INTERNATIONAL.  Giveaway ends October 1st midnight EST.

Paranormal Guest Author: Shayne Leighton (Of Light and Darkness)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Shayne Leighton!  Shayne is the author of Of Light and Darkness.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Shayne:  I've always loved to write, and actually began writing short stories back in grade school. I remember this one short story in particular that I wrote in the fourth grade about what it would be like to live inside a bubble! That's still one of my favorites. (LOL) But I only began seriously writing pretty recently. "Of Light and Darkness" is my debut novel, and the first full length novel I've ever written. I began writing that one in high school when I was sixteen. It took about four years to get it completed and published and I'm really excited to share this story with everyone!

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Shayne:  Again, I've always loved magic and fantasy for as far back as I can remember. Fairy tales were always my favorite. My favorite Disney movie was a film called "Hocus Pocus" starring Bette Midler, about three witches. Halloween has always been my favorite holiday. So I was automatically attracted to the paranormal genre! And you can never go wrong with vampires...they are always sexy! ;) The first vampire I ever fell in love with was Lestat from Anne Rice's "Interview with the Vampire". Great movie and a fantastic book!

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

Shayne:  This was an awesome question! It really got me thinking. My initial reaction was...Vampire! Definitely a vampire because they are just too deliciously bad. But after thinking about it more, I wanted to come up with a more interesting answer. I think I'd love to be a siren. I get to seduce sailors all day, I get to have a beautiful singing voice, and most importantly...I get fins! Sounds fun to me!

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

Shayne:  I am definitely aware that bookshelves are absolutely saturated right now with vampire stories. But one thing I must emphasize, is this story is much different than the others. There are so many other fantastic creatures and characters woven in, and if I do say so myself, "Of Light and Darkness" is much darker and more dangerous. I think fans of other paranormal series will really find something they love within this book, but also discover something brand new as well. Plus, it takes place in Prague - which is a city you don't normally hear about much! :-)

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

Shayne:  It's interesting you should ask this, because currently "Of Light and Darkness" is in development to be made into a film. My background is primarily in screenplay writing and filmmaking, so this just seemed like a natural next step to take with it. Currently we have Michael Welch from "The Twilight Saga" cast for the role of Aiden in the film and Cassie Scerbo from ABC Family's "Make It Or Break It" is slated for the role of Sarah. If you want to keep up with more casting announcements, check our facebook fan page! :-)

Of Light and Darkness: The Vampire's Daughter (Of Light and Darkness #1) by Shayne Leighton

When one human stands before an army of impossible obstacles, the likelihood of overcoming them in this coming-of-age modern fairytale may result in war between light and darkness.

Abandoned as an infant in Prague, naive and strong-willed Charlotte Ruzikova was raised by one of the last Vampires left alive. As a human, she knows no other home than the one nestled deep in the woods of Eastern Europe, where Witches drew spells of enchantment, Phasers threw tea parties, and Elves are the closest in kin. Charlotte has lived her life in the dark with her Guardian, content to having him to herself and reveling in his attention, until she's realizes she wants more...

Resident medical doctor and Vampire, Valek Ruzik fears the day his ward would come of age and blossom into a fine woman, and he is forced to confront his own motives as time is of the essence once his past catches up to him, and their lives become endangered...

As genocide and war threatens their secret society, the dictator in power is ready to wipe out Valek's race, but Charlotte will not allow that to happen. Fighting for the only one she's ever loved and truly believed in, she will do whatever it takes to save their love...before the sun comes up and light takes over.


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

To learn more about Shayne Leighton and her books, please visit her website.

Paranormal Guest Author: Kathryn Leigh Scott + Dark Passages Giveaway

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Kathryn Leigh Scott!  Kathryn, known for her role as the bride of vampire Barnabas Colllins in Dark Shadows, is the author of Dark Passages.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Kathryn:  I started writing when I was about 7 years old, and wrote a story about a little girl named Pixie who walks into the woods on the edge of her family's farm and comes across the ruins of a cottage. It becomes her secret dollhouse, which she loves to play in because  a good witch appears who gives her dolls the ability to speak. I actually lived on a farm with a derelict cottage in the woods at the end of a meadow. My parents forbid us to play in the woods for fear we would get lost, and made sure we didn't disobey by telling us a wicked witch lived there. I desperately wanted a dollhouse and I guess my imagination took it from there!

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Kathryn:  I originally wrote DARK PASSAGES as a coming of age story set in the 1960s. When I finished the novel, I was reading a portion aloud to my husband when it occurred to me, "What if . . . . Meg Harrison was a real vampire?" I made some notes and rewrote the book. Thinking back, it was a natural choice and felt entirely organic to the story. Now I can't imagine the story without those elements. I know it also has much to do with being steeped in Dark Shadows lore and having originated the role of Josette duPres, the doomed fiance of vampire Barnabas Collins. The series is now celebrating its 45th anniversary and is still very much a part of my life.

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

Kathryn:  Mind reading! I've thought of the downsides, but they don't stack up against the terrific advantage of knowing what someone else is thinking. Communicating with the dead is also appealing, providing one has a choice on who is called up. I'm not sure I would say no to acquiring any sort of special gift —who wouldn't want to fly or have superhuman strength?

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

Kathryn:  If I may say so, I think the very fact that the characters and story were fully formed before the paranormal elements were included give the novel more dimension. It's also a very personal story for me, although it is anything but a "memoir." I draw on what I know and remember, of course, and I believe readers familiar with my nonfiction books about Dark Shadows will enjoy my wild imaginings of what "might've, could've" taken place.

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

Kathryn:  Carey Mulligan is the first to come to mind to play Meg Harrison. Young Bella Heathcote, who plays Josette DuPres in the new Warner Bros film of Dark Shadows, would also be a good choice. 

Dark Passages by Kathryn Leigh Scott

Dark Passages is a coming-of-age story encapsulating the romance and innocence of JFK’s Camelot era and the tumultuous "dark passages" of Meg Harrison, a vampire raised by her mother to resist the temptation of human blood. Meg arrives in New York determined not to use her vampiric gifts to fulfill her dream of becoming an actress. She joins the cast of the cult hit Dark Passages, only to face her nemesis, a beautiful 300-year-old witch bent on destroying her. Their rivalry leads to a final confrontation as the telekinetic vampire and spell-weaving sorceress engage in a spectacular battle for supremacy. It takes all of Meg’s wit and tenacity to defeat the witch and win the affections of a handsome young mortal with a secret life of his own. In the end, Meg realizes that the powers she always denied within herself are not a curse, but a blessing.


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

To learn more about Kathryn Leigh Scott and her books, please visit her website.

**Dark Passages Giveaway**

We are giving away a paperback copy of Dark Passages by Kathryn Leigh Scott to one lucky winner!

To enter, please leave a comment on this post including your email address (so we may contact you if you win).  You do not have to be a follower to enter (though I always appreciate a follow!).  This giveaway is to US mailing addresses only.  Giveaway ends September 23rd midnight EST.

Paranormal Guest Author: Allyson James (Stormwalker Series)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Allyson James!  Allyson is the author of the Mortal series, Tales of Shareem series, Dragon series, and the Stormwalker series including Stormwalker, Firewalker, and Shadow Walker.

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Allyson:  I started writing stories when I was about eight years old. I'd already read all the Laura Ingalls Wilder books and had started on Little Women and Anne of Green Gables. I realized that these novels were make-believe written down, and I was very good at make believe. So I started writing down stuff I made up. I also knew that people wrote books for a living, and the books went to libraries and bookstores. I couldn't imagine a better job.

I didn't start writing seriously for publication until many years later. I tried "real" jobs, but I always came back to writing. One day I said, "Why not?" and I started writing and submitting. It took about six years after that, off and on, to finally sell my first novel (which I did in 2002).

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Allyson:  I grew up reading fantasy. I'd read the Lord of the Rings series by the time I was twelve, plus I loved C.S. Lewis's Narnia series. I went from there to fantasy writers such as Terry Brooks, Barbara Hambly, and David Eddings. I've always loved high fantasy and quest fantasy.

I originally wanted to be a fantasy writer, but when I started writing for publication, that market was hard to break into (or so I thought). Plus I always wanted to add romance to my stories, and at the time, romance was a no-no in fantasy (at least, not as much romance as I wanted to include).

So, I decided to be a romance author. I loved historicals (paranormals weren't yet a big thing), so wrote those. I still love historicals and still write them, but as soon as the paranormal romance market really opened up (moving beyond vampire romances), I took it as a green light to write all those stories I'd been saving up.

I kind of had to cajole my editors into letting me write paranormal, because I was doing pretty well at historical, and they didn't want me to stop. But I convinced them, and it's going well! I still write historical, though. Love that too.

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

Allyson:  I think shape shifting would be cool. I'd love to have animal senses and be much stronger and faster than I am now (sitting and writing isn't good for your figure). Plus with shifting back and forth, you can take full advantage of your human skills as well as your animal skills. Best of both worlds. And maybe then I'd understand what my cats are constantly meowing at me about.

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

Allyson:  Shadow Walker (Book 3 of the Stormwalker series) has plenty of action plus plenty of heartbreaking romance. Janet Begay, a Navajo Stormwalker, has to face the possibility that her boyfriend, Mick (dragon-shifter) might be lost to her forever, and that she will have to lose everything she has and everything she is to save him. Throw in some humor with Coyote, the trickster shape shifter, dragons who either want to help Mick or kill him, and a drag-queen magic mirror, for a fast-paced tale of magic, action, and drama.

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

Allyson:  Good question. I'm bad at knowing who is who in Hollywood, or who would be right for my books. So if readers have their own ideas about Mick and Janet from the Stormwalker series (or Liam and Sean Morrissey from the Shifter series I write as Jennifer Ashley), have at it. :-)

Shadow Walker (Stormwalker #3) by Allyson James.

Stormwalker Janet Begay returns home only to have the ground collapse beneath her-literally. After tumbling two hundred feet underground, Janet is rescued by her dragon boyfriend, Mick. But something dark touches Mick while in the sinkhole, and Janet might lose him forever unless she recruites the most unlikely of allies to stop the growing shadow.


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

To learn more about Allyson James and her books, please visit her website.