INTERVIEW: AUTHOR M.L. LACY

Today, I get to share my blog with the delightful M.L. Lacy, author of the Chrysalis series. Here’s a quick look at the cover and blurb before you duck downward to see what M.L. has to say for herself:

All families have secrets.  At 32, Bree Campbell discovers her entire life has been a secret.  A mortal born into a family of Magicals, she begins questioning everything and everyone around her.  The prophecy told at her birth speaks of a Chosen One; the last and greatest of a long line of Chosen Ones charged with saving both the Mortal and Magical worlds.  Bree must face this reality and life with her new family; a clan of vampires protecting her.  The sorceress, Esmeralda, will stop at nothing until this Chosen One is dead.  None could then oppose her and she would be free to rid the world of all mortals.  Will Bree awaken the hidden powers and find inner strength needed to save the world?

Currently available as E-Book. Paperback due for release December 2011.

So, M.L.,Chrysalis is your debut novel. What was your writing process for that? How long did it take from seedling idea to seeing it published?

I sat down and wrote what came into my head. I wrote the initial draft in 30 days. It took me another 3 months to massage it…then I sat back and thought “how can I make this different than anything that’s out there” and it took me another 3 months to polish it.

There are a lot of novels out there about vampires right now? What makes your stand out from the rest? How is it different?

I deal with clans, covens, tribes, families, and relationships that are completely different from the human realm. My vampires live in clans, my werewolves live in packs, and my witches live in covens. All my magicals live in families of one type or another, and those not living in a family, I call the homeless.

That was an interesting concept—the vampires, have gatherings on the spring and fall equinox, and if a homeless wants to join a clan, they have to petition the clan for entry. If the clan accepts the petition, then they vet the homeless individual to ensure they will “fit in” with the clan before they accept them.

My magical realm’s views on intimacy differ greatly from the human realm. They live for centuries, their family ties are strong, and they view that intimacy as a special bond.

I have traditional vampires and the ones I call non-conformists (non-coms for short). They decided to break from the true nature of vampires. They get their drink (which is what I call their liquid food) on a daily basis from the blood banks that several vampire morticians operate. They go out in the daylight. They have a day life as well as a night life.

The magical realm and the human realm in my story are here to keep the world in balance, Esmeralda is threatening that balance, and Bree has to stop her.

Cool. So, are you easily inspired?

I am if I have an interest in the subject.

Do ideas for new stories pop into your head at the slightest prompt whilst mingling with the population of the world or do you tend to sit and plot and scheme before you have a basis for a story?

I’m a daydreamer and when my mind travels, the ideas pop. I’ve so many stories that are waiting in my head to get on paper…and soooo little time. I’m currently working 2 series and I have 3 others on the back burner. I always have the beginning and ending of any story ironed out and what happens in the middle is fun…it’s life and I go with it and let it take me on my journeys. I want all my stories different. I don’t want to get into the cookie-cutter mold.

I love, love, love the cover art for Chrysalis: The Awakening. I’m a big believer of cover art being a conveyer of what’s between the covers. How closely does yours relate to the story (other than the obvious butterfly/chrysalis theme)?

Bree is emerging from the protection of her family as she learns of the prophecy that foretold her birth. She’s coming into her own, she still stumbles but she’s blossoming, as she gains her footing, and she has the courage to push forward by herself if need be. She understands that at the end of her journey, death may take her, but she is courageous in her fight to save the realms.

Blurbs so often tell folk very little about the people who walk the pages. How about you toss out five words that describe Bree.

Trusting, loving, forgiving, courageous, and young-minded.

And can the reader expect a little romance for Bree? Or would that be asking for a spoiler?

I don’t think that would be a spoiler at all. Yes, there is more than a little romance in store for her and that’s something she is going to have to come to terms with, because the magical realm’s views on intimacy differ greatly from the human realm, as I said up above. They live for centuries, and so many come into their lives. The clan hierarchy is different from anything she imagined. However…Bree is not as fortunate as everyone else in the magical realm—she is only allowed seven for her eternity. I wanted this series to be different. I didn’t one the plain and simple, but it is written in a way to make you want to live in that realm, to have that much love, and to be that loved…as well as fighting the evil-doers! Let’s not forget the evil-doers!!

Yeah, those pesky evil-doers often get in the way, eh? Okay, let’s wrap up on an easy one: Shower us in five random facts about yourself.

I was born and raised in Indiana. I love vacationing in Yellowstone; I would live there if I could. I believe in ghosts…would love to talk to one. My favorite type of dog is a Dachshund and I love to write.

Thank you so much, M.L., for joining me today.

What about you guys? Does Chrysalis sound like your kind of read?

You can find out more about M L Lacy and her book series’ at:

website: www.mlllacy.com

Goodreads: M.L. Lacy

Facebook: M.L.Lacy (author)

Amazon: Chrysalis – The Awakening

Note from author: Chrysalis – The Awakening is now available on e-Book through Amazon, Barnes and Noble and all other on-line e-Book sites. I am excited about this saga and I hope you will travel with me as the story unfolds.

Book 2 in the series will be available June 2012.

ETHAN HOLLOWAY NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT!

Hi everyone!

Throughout the month of September, Parajunkie’s View and Dark Faerie Tales have been hosting the Supernatural Smackdown, where the most powerful supes from novels have gone head-to-head for the title.

Up today is Darkness & Light’s Ethan Holloway. You know who Ethan Holloway is, right? Sean’s brother, who all the ladies seem to have a ‘thing’ for and swoon over, despite his self-amusement and Neanderthal ‘tude.

Anyway, being Ethan he’s gonna want to WIN! Which he can’t do WITHOUT YOUR HELP!

So please, please, PLEASE head on over to Parajunkie’s View and cast your vote (for him—obviously). And whilst you’re there, you may as well read his and his opponent’s entries—because they’re fun!

Mega cheers in advance to all who play. It’s very much appreciated.

BOOK ENDINGS … BUT WHAT IF … #HEA

Every decent book (or complete series) has (or should have) closure. Resolution. A definite end with all threads tightly woven and all questions answered to a satisfactory level.

Does that mean we have to be happy with the ending, though?

Does that mean we have to accept who the MC has chosen to spend the rest of her life with?

Again, if the author has done her job well, the reader should be left content with where the MC’s life has ended up (I am only talking fiction here). The reader should not be left shaking their fist at the page and wondering what the fudge was on the writer’s mind, right?

I guess I’m pretty lucky because I’ve yet to come across a book where I’ve hated the HEA. The closest I’ve come to wondering if I’d be left placated was with Rachel Vincent’s Shifters series.

I mean … how would everything have panned out if Faythe had ended up with Jace instead of Marc? Apart from the fact it would have been one hell of an explosive ending because NO WAY would Marc have taken that lying down—though his true response would have been a pretty unpredictable one. Which was why I wondered how the heck Vincent would pull it off (because I ADORED Jace) and not leave the reader (me) heartbroken on the poor kiddos behalf.

Another example: Supposing Kelley Armstrong’s Elena Michaels had fallen for Logan instead of the hunky (though psychopathic) Clay Danvers. How VERY different a story Bitten would have turned out to be, no?

What about Karen Marie Moning’s Fever series? Would the readers have been in uproar if MacKayla Lane had succumbed and fallen for V’Lane instead of the slow structure of mutual love between her and Barrons? I guess she could have pulled it off without upsetting her entire readership with just a little tweaking to V’Lane’s character and likability. It’s not like I didn’t enjoy reading about him. He made me chuckle most of the time, so the reader (me) could have been convinced, right?

Or, how about some of the Black Dagger Brotherhood novels? I’m pretty certain there just has to be some pairings in there that the readers don’t 100% agree with. Right? I could safely say without verification that Blay so shouldn’t be with Saxton in the readers’ eyes—not when Quinn’s heart is bleeding so badly over the guy. Damn, some readers even believed that Jane so wasn’t the right female for V.

Are there any books you’ve come across and paused to wonder … but what if s/he’d taken that path instead? What would their story have been then? Or do you always believe the author has got it right?

SIX SENTENCE SUNDAY #7 #sixsunday

Good Sunday, everyone. Thank you all so much for revisiting my snippets each week–it is you guys that keeps me participating each week.

This weeks post is again from my paranormal romance novel, Darkness & Light, and is brought to you from Chapter 13–right after Jem meets Sean for the first time and he’s identified himself. Hope you enjoy.

I reached the car at a full-out sprint, almost colliding stunt-style with the side. When I retrieved the keys from my pocket, I dropped them before they could connect with the lock, scooped them up, dropped them again. With the door eventually open, I threw my pad and pen onto the back seat and braced myself at arm’s length against the outer frame.

A glance back at the restaurant showed the stranger on his feet. His face pressed so close to the glass, condensated mist should have concealed him, yet it didn’t.

“What the hell is going on?”

Cheers for stopping by. Links to the other participants can be found HERE—you should check them out—or why not sign up and join in the fun yourself?

Darkness & Light is available at the following outlets:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

WHSmith & Waterstones

LOOKIE-LOOKIE! ELECTRONIC ‘INSTINCT’ GOODIES!

As you all know (and if you don’t: where HAVE you been?), my novella INSTINCT is due to hit E-Readers on January 1^st 2012.

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

One more time with feeling:

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Yep, in just over FOURTEEN WEEKS, readers will be able to get their hands on this tale—all of you who have read Darkness & Light and feel that you just HAVE TO know where it all started for Jem & Sean, Instinct will take you all back to the very beginning … to Sean’s very first sighting of Jem … oh, did I mention this is his PoV–just one more reason to get excited, no?

Well, here’s a few more. Just as I shared electro-goodies with you all for Into the Unknown, the time has arrived to share some for Instinct.

So how about another

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

and we shall move on.

Here’s the loot:

An Instinct banner:

Instinct bookmark (front & back images shown):

Instinct desktop wallpaper:

And that’s not all. You can find the full range of available Instinct electronic goodies RIGHT HERE!

Enjoy!

So … which of these do you fancy?

MUSIC & LYRICS—I MEAN: WRITING!

Music and writing.

Or music combined with any other task, for that matter.

This is one of those combinations that either works awesome for you … or flat-out doesn’t. You can either listen to tunes whilst pondering your next scene (or task), or what should be pleasurable to absorb sounds on par with a swarm of irritating insects when you’re trying to concentrate.

Then there’s me.

I tend to fall somewhere in the middle. Sometimes, I have days in a row where I fire up my media player (see image) as I open my Word document. Other times, I might not listen to music for days. On the occasions I do, anyone in (VERY) close proximity will hear me warbling away to Kings of Leon’s ‘Closer’, then killing The Kooks ‘Naïve’, and then my most awful rendition of Adele’s ‘Make You Feel My Love’.

That’s only three songs out of a *playlist of twenty-eight. Only three songs before my mind becomes wholly consumed by the words on the page in front of me. Three songs before I am lost in a scene. And that’s whether I’m writing, editing, or proofreading—it’s ALWAYS the same number of songs.

I can most probably list most of the other songs I have on my play list. But the moment the tunnel vision kicks in and the deep state of zombification stakes claim, I no longer hear them.

So … what about you? To music … or not to music? What’s on your playlist?

*My playlist:

KoL, Closer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XatzX6WQ2ec

The Kooks, Naïve: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkaMiaRLgvY&ob=av2e

Adele, Make you feel …: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fnn9JlqqTE4

Tom Jones, Burning down …: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYuFIrSLD84

KoL, Cold Desert: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWkYu-hYTZs

Pink, I Don’t Believe You: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26EP0ght2kI&ob=av3e

Black Eyed Peas, I Got a Feeling: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tiPAvmy3eA

David Gray, This Year’s Love: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gNDUZZduKE

Tom Jones, Sex Bomb: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KUJE2xs-RE

Adele, Chasing Pavements: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwTMyjTNBM8

Alanis Morisette, Ironic: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jne9t8sHpUc&ob=av2e

David Gray, You’re the World: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDstr09NJ5U

The Kooks, Seaside: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8OLb1DK9HY

KoL, Revelry: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sA85wMC16A

Alanis Morissette, You Learn: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ci5j9yQ-528

Adele, Someone Like You: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AW9C3-qWug

Tom Jones, Kiss: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aq3Vx28wG7Y

Johhny Cash, Folson Prison Blues: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tr0Vt7E7U7w&ob=av2n

The Hoosiers, Worried About Ray: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61GrbjeNc1E&ob=av2e

Tom Jones: Baby, it’s Cold …: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PceqPkTdYgA

KoL, Sex on Fire: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUAmgkDqxTk

David Gray, Be Mine: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feE9OQoEzqA

Suzanne Vega, Luka: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0m9EWNDq9hw

Alanis Morissette, Head Over Feet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKnz3kAwRu8

KoL, Use Somebody: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRgFeZa_I48

And Tom Jones/Robbie, Full Monty Medley: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXsBGPorTIY wraps it up nicely.

Cheers, everyone.

And whilst I have you here, if you haven’t already, don’t forget to snatch your FREE copy of my short story, Fated Encounter:

HERE for Ebooks or HERE for Kindle.

 

 

 

 

Darkness & Light is available at the following outlets:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

WHSmith & Waterstones

SIX SENTENCE SUNDAY #6 #sixsunday

Wheeee! Yet another week of 6 Sentence Sunday. Thank you so much to all those who keep coming back.

Last week, I introduced you to a Chapter 8 scene from my paranormal romance novel, Darkness & Light, where ‘something strange’ appeared to be happening to Jem’s body—whilst at the local department store. This week’s offering is a continuation of that scene. In fact, it’s Peter’s—Jem’s husband—response to her ‘unusual behaviour’, just after she asks the question: Did I do anything?

Hope you enjoy.

I cringed, waiting for him to tell me I’d pranced about the store with howls flying freely. In front of Saturday shoppers? Too much to bear.

“What do you mean, Jem, did you do anything?” The basket swung in an arc with his gesturing arm. “You bloody fell on your knees, closed your eyes, and sniffed the f*****g air like a bloodhound.”

Peter: Such a nice fellow.

Cheers for stopping by. Links to the other participants can be found HERE—you should check them out—or why not sign up and join in the fun yourself?

Darkness & Light is available at the following outlets:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

WHSmith & Waterstones

GIVEAWAY BLOG HOP! WIN DARKNESS & LIGHT GOODIES!

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED! THANK YOU TO ALL WHO PARTICIPATED.

AND THE WINNER IS ….

SATIN SUE (COMMENT #17 (as chosen by Random.org)

Congratulations, Sue!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you recall, I announced on 9^th September my intention to participate in the giveaway blog hop as hosted by Bitten by Paranormal Romance.

Well, the time has arrived for your chance to grab some loot.

And not just any old loot, but Darkness & Light loot.

What do you mean: Get on with it already?

Jeez, okay.

I guess the 1^st most important thing y’all want to know is: WHAT DO WE WIN?

Well … ONE lucky winner will receive one of each of the following:

1)       One E-copy of my paranormal romance novel, Darkness & Light, in either Kindle or EPUB format.

Here’s the blurb, so’s y’all know what it’s about:

Jem Stonehouse, a housewife with a neurotic husband bent on keeping her in line, dreams about werewolves in, what she believes, is a bid to escape boredom.
Sean Holloway is a werewolf, living a charade within the human race, whose mind drifts to a bond he shares with a woman he hasn’t met–at least, not in this lifetime.
Apart, the two are safe but live unfulfilled lives.
Together, they’ll become prey to rival packs just as they have been for hundreds of years.
When their worlds collide, and not for the first time, instinct takes over. Dreams become reality. Futures are uncertain. To keep history from repeating itself, Sean must teach Jem about his heritage, convince her of her role, and win her love.
Can Jem accept her destiny before it’s too late, or is her inner wolf buried too deep to save her future with Sean?

2)       One Darkness & Light poster, signed by me with a personalised message to the winner (this sucker is BEAUTIFULLY SHINY!!!!).

3)       One signed Darkness & Light bookmark.

4)       And one bar of Cadbury Dairy Milk Bliss to nibble on whilst reading their copy of Darkness & Light.

SO … what’s the 2^nd most important thing y’all need to know?

That’s right!

HOW DO WE WIN?

To be eligible for entry into the giveaway, all you have to do is:

a)       Subscribe to my blog. ‘Tis easy-peasy. Just head up my sidebar (over yonder–>>) until you reach: SUBSCRIBE TO MY BLOG ONLY.

b)       Leave a comment below telling me your thoughts on werewolves in novels.

That’s it! Told ya it was easy.

And if you fancy your chances at winning even more goodies then why not stop on by at the other participating blogs where there are some great prizes up for grabs. You can find them all HERE!

GOOD LUCK, EVERYONE!

Please read the T&C below:

• As stated, winner must follow my blog AND leave a comment to be eligible for entry–they must also be 18 years of age or older.
• Winner will be chosen using random.org.
• I will notify the winner within 24 hours of the closing date (which is midnight 18th September).
• Once notified, winner will have 72 hours to accept the prize, or another winner will be chosen.
• Once the winner has accepted their prize, it will be announced here in this post.
• Prizes are as stated–no [cash] alternatives will be offered.

Darkness & Light is available at the following outlets:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

WHSmith & Waterstones

BOOK SERIES: FEVER #fever

This is my first post for my new monthly blog on successful book series’ and what makes them so special. If you care enough to understand why I decided to start this monthly post, you can find out here. If you don’t care but are still mildly interested in what I have to say, then please continue.

First series up for my scrutiny is:

FEVER by KAREN MARIE MONING

This is one of those that if you’d asked me what I thought at the beginning of the series, I’d have most likely made a sound along the lines of: Meh.

Not the worst I’ve read. Definitely not the best either.

However, this is also one of those that reading only one of the five books in the series would be totally unacceptable—because all five books are the story in its entirety … and my opinion definitely changed by the end.

This starts off in Darkfever with MacKayla Lane, a not very relatable airhead-type character from the Deep South (no, I’m not stereotyping—simply stating my thoughts on a fictional character) who ends up in Dublin, Ireland, in a bid to unravel the mystery behind her (recently) murdered sister.

During most of Darkfever, I thought Mac spent waaaaaaaay too much time thinking and over-thinking and over-over-thinking, to the point I wondered what would be lost if the thoughts were somewhat hacked away to the bare minimum and at least a third of the book lobbed off.

Now? Man, as much as I hate to admit it, those thoughts need to stay.

Mac is such a HUGE philosopher and as her thoughts veer throughout the series from shallow to deep they become such an imperative part of the storytelling that it simply would not be the same tale with them gone.

If you asked me to summarise what the series is about, and I gave you the complete rundown, it would take more than a singular blog post.

Though if asked at the drop of a hat I’d probably spurt out with: fae, seelie & unseelie, a battle for power or a battle between good & evil depending how you look at it, myth, folklore, saving the world, treachery, betrayal, self-discovery, self-acceptance, loyalty, and the most convoluted kind of love. <<That is why describing the entire series would take forever—because whilst so much of this storyline is genius simplified to its most basic core, it is also so intricately woven that the finished design is nothing short of complicated beauty.

By the end of Darkfever, I didn’t particularly want to read on (but my Goodreads Cheerleaders ensured I did).

By the end of Bloodfever, I still didn’t particularly care for the main character (and again, my Goodreads Pushers … well … pushed me).

By the end of Faefever, trust me, Karen Marie Moning most certainly had my attention and left me on such a cliff-hanger I carried on and read the ‘Note to Reader’ in refusal to accept I’d reached the end.

Dreamfever I think was the one I read the fastest and this is where every reader of the series who has so far failed to understand the appeal of Barrons suddenly ‘Gets it’.

If for NO other reason, you should read this series for HIM: Jericho Z Barrons—whose appeal and potential for awesomeness I spotted from the first moment he stepped onto my page! Trust me: This … dude (?) is so not your typical hero. He could be a bad good guy. He could be a good bad guy. Whatever you want to categorise him as, just know that he rocks!

Then there is Shadowfever. The grand finale. Where everything that has had the reader scratching their heads and speculating finally becomes so clear. This one requires a different pacing to the others. Yes, the first couple in the series aren’t exactly written at a fast pace, but this one is different in that the pacing is there … but if you fly through too fast there’s a chance you’ll miss the scenery beyond the windows of your mind.

You need to slow yourself down to absorb it all.

You need take your time to appreciate the unveiling of everything that has (if you’re anything like me) eluded the reader until the big reveal smacks you upside the head with it.

And that’s the beauty of this final book: You want to take it all in like a Grow-your-own-SpongeBob does water.

If you’re interested in hearing my thoughts on each individual book and seeing how my mind has been changed as I’ve worked my way through the series, each book link will take you directly to my (Goodreads) reviews.

I’ve purposefully declined to outright describe the occurrences of the novels because I have a personal hate for spoilers, but I hope my waffling has been in some way helpful to you or will help you decide whether or not this sounds like a series you might consider reading.

My rating for this series:

Maybe you’ve read it already, have it on your TBR pile, or have heard lots about it but don’t know if it’s for you. Either way, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

LOOKIE-LOOKIE! ELECTRONIC INTO THE UNKNOWN GOODIES!

As you all know (and if you don’t: where HAVE you been?), my short story Marked is due to hit E-Readers on December 1^st as part of the Into the Unknown anthology.

Yep, in just over TEN WEEKS, readers will be able to get their hands on a small collection of stories—all of you who have read Darkness & Light and feel January is way too long to wait another dose of the Holloway’s, Marked should be just the right length and definitely sweet enough to appease the withdrawal symptoms of lack-of-Sean.

Especially as Marked is told from the PoV of Sean Holloway himself.

What? Now I’ve told you that 1^st December seems way too far away?

Well, how about I placate you with a couple of Into the Unknown goodies?

Like an Into the Unknown banner:

No?

Um … well, how about … an Into the Unknown bookmark (back & front images shown):

Or Into the Unknown desktop wallpaper:

And that’s not all. You can find the full range of available Into the Unknown electronic goodies RIGHT HERE!

Enjoy!

So … which of these do you fancy?