Blog Tour Stop-Guest Post on Behind a Million and One Pages

Today, I would like to thank Behind a Million and One Pages for hosting me on their blog as part of my virtual book tour. Be sure to stop by their site through this link and check out an excerpt from First Visions, a giveaway for a free ebook copy and an interview given by me. Leave a comment there or at one of my other posts on the tour for a chance to win a $30 Amazon gift card and autographed copy of my book. Rules of the contest are here. The following is the interview portion of the guest post:


1. Where have we seen you before? (previous projects/works)
I’ve done a massive amount of freelance writing work over the past five years. The majority of my articles have focused on health, fashion, food and travel (kind of a broad spectrum). A few notable publications I’ve appeared in include USA Today, Food Loves Beer magazine, Step in Style magazine and Livestrong.com.  I began writing fiction in my early teens (stories filled with plenty of angst and cringe-worthy lines) and just recently returned to it.

2. What goes through your mind after your novel has been on sale for the first week?
I was a complete head case after that first week First Visions went on sale. I just kept wondering: will people like it? Although my friends and family were fans of the book, I understood they were bias. These characters are so close to my heart which made it difficult for me to share them with the world. My next thought, of course, was will people actually buy my novel?

3. What inspired you to write this novel?
My beloved grandmother who raised me passed away last year. After collecting my things from her house, I came across the huge piles of writing I used to do as a teen. Life kind of gets in the way of things you love and her passing made me realize that you never know what’s going to happen and to pursue your dreams even if the timing isn’t perfect. One of the stories I had started was about a psychic who helps find a missing child and I decided to expand off of that.

4. What do you think about when getting/seeing negative reviews?
It sucks, no one can deny that, but at least there’s a conversation being had over your novel. Think about the best-selling book right now Fifty Shades of Grey. On Amazon.com, it has close to 1,200 one-star reviews! Everyone’s tastes are different and I’m not that self-deluded to think my novel is going to be the top of everyone’s list of favorite books.

The Writers I Want to Be Like When I Grow Up-28-Day Blog Challenge

This is the third day of the 28-Day Blog Challenge for Authors (learn more about participating here) and the prompt is:

Who are the writers you most admire? Who are your writing mentors?

There are so many great writers that I admire. I try to read as much as possible and I think reading so many different genres and authors really help me as an author. I can get inspired as much out of a piece of classic literature as a trashy romance novel. I’ve also realized that opening up myself to indie writers and not only purchasing books from mainstream publishers has really turned me on to some amazing talents in the business. Here are a few writers whose careers I wouldn't mind having.

Addison Moore

Have you read the Celestra series from Addison Moore? If not, you’re missing out on a truly amazing indie talent. She self-publishes the series and it has some of the funniest lines I’ve read in YA paranormal fiction. I love how much humor she injects into so many of the scenes, even when the characters are facing perilous situations.

Suzanne Collins

In the way that Stephenie Meyer is responsible for bringing on the vampire craze in YA fiction, Collins inspired a slew of dystopian young adult novels. Although I’m fan of several other authors who have written dystopian themed series (Lauren Oliver, Ally Condie and Lauren DeStefano) I think no one does it better than Collins.

EL James

Okay, I’m not exactly a fan of the erotica author’s Fifty Shades of Grey, but I do think that a number one author who got her start writing fan fiction is admirable. I know a lot of authors have been hating on her and saying she’s made her success off of stealing someone else’s hard work, but I think that’s an unfair characterization. Anastasia and Christian are barely recognizable as Edward and Bella. There are so many works out there much more derivative in my opinion. 

Getting Mad Writing Skills-28-Day Blog Challenge

Today is Day Two of the 28-Day Blog Challenge for Authors (learn more about participating here) and the prompt is:

What kinds of classes, programs, or workshops have you taken to hone your skill as a writer? What sorts of exercises did/do you use to improve your craft? Have you ever taught a writing class or workshop?


As I've talked about before, most of my writing experience involves magazine and web articles. I graduated college with a Bachelor's degree in English and took a few journalism classes including magazine writing and desktop publishing. The formal style of writing I learned in my college courses may have helped with my freelance writing assignments, but it has a tendency to get away with my works of fiction. I'm trying to loosen up my writing and have a more relaxed and natural style.

I did take one creative writing course during my senior year. We were given weekly prompts along with being asked to share a short story for peer review. The course was taught by an adjunct who published a book that I read, but hated. He was an okay teacher, but was more into chewing the fat than offering up much helpful advice. This  class was my first time sharing any fictional writing with strangers, so obviously I was racked with anxiety for weeks before my critique. The short story I created was called Misconception and it involved a woman who lost a baby after she found out her husband was cheating on her. Most of the feedback I received was helpful and for the most part, positive. At the time, I was upset when someone said it had a Lifetime movie ending, but looking back I now realize it was pretty accurate.

I haven't taken a workshop yet, but I have been looking into a few. I live in Jersey which makes New York and Philadelphia based workshops pretty accessible. Unfortunately with the two adorable maniacs I'm raising, I have to use more online options to improve my craft. I usually can type in free writing exercises into Google and find a tremendous number of blogs that provide examples. Free writing has been a huge help when I've gotten stuck during certain scenes in my story.

I'm interested to see what other authors participating in the challenge have done. Since I'm a newbie to novel writing it would be great to hear about tools that they've used to improve.

My Childhood Writings-28-Day Blog Challenge

I'm participating in the 28-Day Blog Challenge for Authors and this is our first prompt. The challenge is intended to bring other writers together to share our stories. If you're interested in the challenge, here's a link to their website so you can learn more.

Describe your earliest memory of writing. How did your writing habit/process/career develop?

My earliest memory of creating stories was in elementary school. During fifth grade, I created this series of thrillers. The plots involved this killer who stalked people in the woods (thinking my inspiration was Friday the 13th). The funny thing about the stories was the killer and then later his cousin had the most non-threatening ridiculous names (Mac Aroni and Spud Ghettio).

I had a rough childhood growing up and we didn’t have any money. No money meant clothes from layaway at Kmart, crackers for dinner many nights and a phone that was turned off more than it was turned on. This made it difficult to really have any friends, especially during that awkward middle school phase. My cousin Dana and I would get together and write these stories about the amazing lives we wished we had. I was always beautiful in the stories with a boyfriend who looked like Matt Damon (we were really into the movie School Ties at the time lol) and had a rich family.

My beloved grandmother who raised me at times when my parents couldn’t recently passed away. A large amount of my belongings were at her house and this included many of the stories I had written in middle school and high school. Although most of the plots and dialogue was cringe-worthy (sample lines: “They went to the Orange Pit for lunch, a diner that looked just like the one on 90210.” “Their lips met for the first time. ‘I guess this means you’re my boyfriend now,’ she told him. ‘Definitely,’ he agreed.), I did find a few diamonds in the rough. One of the stories involved a psychic trying to find a lost child and that became my inspiration behind my novel First Visions.

I didn’t write fiction for years and years, so I really have my grandmother to thank for leading me down this path. If I hadn’t found those old stories, I would have never rediscovered my creative outlet (I work as a freelance writer and it becomes difficult at times to become inspired after writing about hemorrhoid treatments).

Thanks for letting me share my story and I can’t wait to read other authors who are participating in the 28 Day Challenge.

End of May Book Reviews-Existence, Predestined and Providence

Busy week! Besides the launch of my blog tour with accompanying contest (get details here) I also had my first Kindle Nation Daily sponsorship today. An excerpt of First Visions was mailed to opted in subscribers. Once the promotions are all said and done, I'll post my thoughts on the pros and cons of each. Here are the books I read this past week and my thoughts on each.

Providence by Jamie McGuire-Although I consider myself a new adult author, something McGuire is also known for being, I couldn’t get into her popular Beautiful Disaster novel. I found Travis way too unlikable and couldn’t get past his extreme assholeness. This made me a little skeptical over whether I’d enjoy Providence. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. I get the readers who make the Twilight comparisons, but I think there was much more suspense in this book. The college-age characters were realistically drawn and McGuire didn’t get logged down in complicated mythology about the angels and demons. Jared was a little too tortured for my taste, but I think that’s because I always prefer the underdog love interest who doesn’t have a chance in hell of getting the girl (poor Ryan). I give the book four out of five stars.

Existence by Abbi Glines-This book equally had me on the edge of my seat and infuriated me. I must have really gotten into it though because I stayed up late to finish reading it and started the sequel right away. To start, my major dislikes were the NAMES and the lack of character development. Dank and Pagan? Really? Also, I was surprised over how quickly Dank fell in love with her and risked his existence when they seemed to have very few meaningful interactions at the start of the book. Plus, Pagan’s treatment of Leif seemed kind of crappy until the surprised ending kind of made it tolerable. Despite these couple of things, Dank and Pagan were definitely intriguing characters and there were a lot of twists and turns that made it a real page-turner. Four out of five stars.

Predestined by Abbi Glines-This is one of the rare incidences where I actually like the sequel better than the first book. I really enjoyed the alternating point of views and it was captivating to get inside Dank’s head. I think it made him more likable, especially since at times he comes off as a jealous jerk. The love scenes were great and it was another suspenseful novel. I would give it four and a half stars out of five. The only reason I’m taking away 1/2 a star is because the ending was kind of ho-hum. The conflict was resolved very quickly and the twist at the end was sort of predictable.

My Writing Inspirations-Blog Tour Stop on Book Lovin' Mamas

Today, I stopped by the fabulous blog Book Lovin' Mamas to talk about writing inspiration, share an excerpt from First Visions and also hold a contest for a free e-copy of the book. Be sure to stop by to check out the entire post and enter the giveaway. Leave a comment to enter a chance for a $30 Amazon gift card. Contest details are here.

Getting in the Mood to Create: My Writing Inspirations

The topic of writing inspiration is really interesting for me to think about. I find inspiration in so many things, it almost seems impossible to narrow it down to a select few. The funny thing is the things that help me create my stories have a huge divide. I can just as easily find inspiration in a marathon of Supernatural on the CW as equally as a trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Old Writings

Were you as angsty as I was during your teen years? Besides being dirt poor, I was socially awkward with a penchant for playing the trombone. To say the least, my dance card was far from full. Instead of a social life, I filled notebook after notebook of dreadfully melodramatic stories of characters with the lives I coveted. They were beautiful, rich and had amazing love lives. After my beloved grandmother passed away last year, I retrieved my writings from her home. Although most of the work was crap, I did find a few storylines worth developing. A book of my favorite poems as a teen was also in the collection and helped me tap back into that creativity of my youth.

Getting Away From It All

I LOVE my husband and sons with all of my heart. However, temper tantrums and diaper duty doesn’t lend well to creative inspiration. Going for a solo drive or having a chance to people watch can really give me a chance to work on current stories or find new characters or plot points to fit into future writings. Taking the boys for walks can really help with my inspiration as well. As they play, I can let my mind wander.

Books/TV Shows/Movies

I’m big on escapist shows, movies and books. Even the reality TV shows I watch are not really steeped in reality (The Bachelorette? You get to live in a mansion and travel the world while 20 gorgeous guys vie for your hand in marriage. I would guess not too many people have this kind of life). Watching these crazy scenarios play out on screen or on the page helps me get my mind in the place it needs to be to write about paranormal things. Although I definitely watch and read a lot of paranormal stuff, I try to vary genres and also enjoy romantic comedies, thrillers and real-life mysteries.

Music and art are definitely major inspirations as well and I love to spend the day writing after a trip to the museum or attending a concert. Although I could probably write a novel on the topic, these are the most significant. It’s exceedingly important to identify the things that inspire you since this can be such a huge help in overcoming writer’s block. 

Today's Interview on Warrior Princess Romance Writer

Hey everyone! Today on my blog tour I made a stop at the Warrior Princess Romance Writer blog to give an interview. Don't forget to leave a comment to enter my giveaway for an Amazon gift card and autographed book. Read this for further details. Here's an excerpt from today's post:

What was the hardest part of writing your book?

When I wrote my first draft of First Visions, I cranked it out in record time. The story just flowed so well and I ended up putting in some late nights just to get certain scenes out of my head. What became difficult was the editing and rewriting that had to be done. You grow attached to certain parts of your novel and it’s hard to hit the delete button and get rid of scenes, even if they’re not working. Sharing my novel was also hard for me. I’m somewhat of a private person and there’s nothing more personal to me than my writings. I have very opinionated family members and I knew if they thought it was complete crap, they’d have no problem telling me.

What other careers have you had?

For the past five years, I’ve done primarily freelance writing for various online and offline publications. Most of my articles have focused on health, fitness, travel and food. Although a few of the topics have been pretty dry to write about, I’ve learned a lot through all of my article research. Before freelance writing, I worked for a travel agency and a doctor’s office.

What else would you like readers to know about you or your work?

I’m a wife and mom of two boys under the age of five. My life is completely crazy, but I finally realized it’s so important to have a creative outlet. It’s not easy to make time to write my novels between taking care of my sons and doing my freelance writing projects, but I carve out time each day. I’ve been so much happier now and I’m thrilled to share these characters that mean so much to me with readers. Although I deal with paranormal aspects in my book, I’ve tried to keep Kate as accessible and real as possible.

To read the rest of the interview and leave a comment: click here.