Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Ronnie Massey! Ronnie is the author of Crimson Dawn
(Darklife Saga) and the upcoming release Unbound (The Nephillim Chronicles).EJ: When did you begin writing?
Ronnie: I began writing short stories in high school. I was picked on relentlessly and wasn't one for fighting so I had to come up with a way to refocus peoples attention.
I began writing steamy short stories and giving them to my friends. Once they began passing the stories around, it was only a matter of time before people began coming to me requesting stories. I went from the girl to pick on, to the girl to get hot stories from.
EJ: What brought you to the paranormal genre?
Ronnie: I have collected comics since my father gave me my first X-Men comic when I was eight or nine. I made the jump from comics to paranormal themed novels when my mother gave me Hot Touch by Deborah Smith.
When it comes to writing, I write what I read. I like getting lost in worlds where anything is possible. I enjoy creating characters with the powers and abilities to do almost anything they want and then finding ways to make them human and relatable.
The paranormal genre is only limited by the imagination of the writer and I love that.
EJ: If you could be any paranormal or have any one supernatural talent, what would it be? Why?
Ronnie: That is such a hard question. Part of me wants to say vampire because aside from the immortality, you get enhances senses, strength and the power to manipulate minds.
The comic book lover in me has always wanted the powers of X-Men's Storm. She can fly and control the elements. If I had her abilities every day in summer would be a nice sixty five degrees. My daughters would always have a white Christmas and I would never have to stand out in the heat and water my garden again. I'd just conjure up a quick ten minute shower and be done with it.
EJ: Tell us why readers will enjoy your new release.
Ronnie: I think that any new author that decides to enter into the paranormal genre with a vampire novel, is taking a chance on being compared to you know who. For that reason I didn't want to start off with a YA title.
Crimson Dawn rides the line between urban fantasy and paranormal romance. I tried to come up with a novel that has a solid storyline and memorable characters that readers can get invested in.
Based on the feedback that I have been getting from readers, I accomplished what I set out to do. People have fallen in love with Valeria. She's smart mouthed, cocky and stubborn to fault but she's also fiercely loyal and doesn't hesitate to do what's right even if it's the hardest option. Readers get to watch Val grow a lot during the course of the novel. I've been told that C.D. has just the right amount of passion and action.
EJ: If your book(s) were being made into a movie, who would you cast for the leading roles? Why?
Ronnie: For Valeria I would cast Jurnee Smollett. She is a superb dramatic actress and I think she would pull together Val's toughness and vulnerability perfectly. Plus I would love to see Jurnee in an action role for a change.
For Irulan I think Lyndsy Fonseca because she is awesome as Alex on Nikita. Irulan is this powerful Sidhe living in the human realm so she has to keep her abilities under wraps. Alex is the ultimate assassin that tries to live a normal life until she's needed; struggling to keep the two lives separate. Lyndsy is the perfect Irulan.
For Priest I see Alex Pettyfer because he proved he could act the role of a jerk in Beastly and do action in I Am Number Four. Priest is a jerk at times but also a hero.
For Tristan Meriwether I see Bryton James who had a small stint on The Vampire Diaries as the witch Luka. Bryton has already played a paranormal being once so making the jump to a psycho vampire shouldn't be that hard. His experience from Young and the Restless should help him also because soap acting is overly dramatic and Tristan is over;y dramatic and then some.
As for the supporting characters (now that my mind is on the subject I couldn't stop casting), here is a quick run through:
Peter Facinelli as werewolf Marcus Daniels, Val's Commanding Officer.
Wentworth Miller as Val's father Hadrian Trumaine.
Zoe Saldana as Val's mother Anya.
Jesse Smollett as Val's twin Valerian.
Columbus Short as older brother Tamerlane.
Mechad Brooks as the eldest Trumaine sibling Constantine.
Logan Lerman as David.
Oded Fehr as the djin Descantes.
Kellan Lutz as Fazion, Irulan's cousin and king of the Tuatha De Danann
Crimson Dawn (Darklife Saga, #1) by Ronnie Massey.
When vampire Valeria Trumaine comes home one morning to find her father waiting for her, she knows she's about to get trouble in spades. But she never imagined it would come in the form of her ex-fiancé. Now she must confront old demons and face new possibilities as she struggles to bring the rouge vampire to justice.
After she left him, Valeria avoided Tristan like the plague, but now that he's gone rogue, she's going to have to utilize every thing she's learned as a sentinel to find him.
Finding Tristan proves to be more dangerous than anyone realized. He's changed in ways that go against nature, and has become more powerful than anyone ever imagined. Refusing to let her face the abomination that Tristan has become alone, Val's best friend and powerful Sidhe princess, Irulan joins the hunt. Valeria will find that Irulan's motives for keeping her safe aren't what she thinks. And soon she's faced with an undeniable attraction that makes her question everything she knew about herself.
Can she accomplish her task and prevent more innocent lives from being destroyed? Can she do it and not loose herself to his madness? In the middle of all the madness, can she embrace the unexpected love that fate has thrown her way?
Thank you Ronnie for joining us here today at From the Shadows!
To learn more about Ronnie Massey and her books, please visit her website.
**Evening With A Vampire Giveaway**
We are giving away an Evening With A Vampire prize pack to one lucky winner! Prize pack includes a signed copy of Crimson Dawn
by Ronnie Massey plus a vampire movie and matching poster.To enter, please leave a comment on this post including your email (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 August 6th midnight EST.
