Thursday, September 20, 2007

COMMENT on this post for a chance to win an e-copy of The Red Storm by Zinnia Hope & some bookmarks.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Zinnia Hope has been writing professionally for over 20 years. She uses several nom de plumes for her steamy work that have appeared in national men’s magazines. Z writes e-novels, some of which are available in print. Her favorite genres to write are: magic realism, paranormal suspense, horror, fantasy and the sub-genres of romance. She has written more novels than you can shake a stick at and has several more in progress.

In June of 2007, Z signed as a client with TriadaUS Literary Agency. She’s busy working on a new paranormal romance novel per her agent’s suggestions.

Z and her husband raise a house full of kids, so her home is in constant, happy chaos. She also loves raising gardens, and selling, canning, and freezing the produce. Her zany sense of humor makes people laugh, plus she adores hearing from her readers. To visit Z, check out her website www.zinniahope.com, her Z Group, where you can chat with her on a daily basis http://groups.yahoo.com/group/zinniahope, or subscribe to her monthly author newsletter http://groups.yahoo/group/zhnewsletter. Z can also be reached by email: zinnia_hope@sbcglobal.net


GOING IN-DEPTH:

Why did you become a writer? Was it a dream of yours since you were younger or did the desire to write happen later in your life?
I've been writing for as long as I can recall. I started penning stories with crayons, lol, and finally, my mother gave me an old manual typewriter. She regretted that for a while; I drove her insane with my incessant pecking on the keys.

What do you love about being an author? Is there anything you dislike?
Creating new people, new worlds is cool. One thing I detest is promotion.

How do you balance your personal and writing time?
LOL, I don't really. It's more a matter of fitting everything in when I can.

How do you write? Do your characters come to you first or the plot or the world of the story?
Most times the entire story just plops into my head as if some unseen force cracks upon a door on my skull and dumps the plot, characters, settings, and all into my brain. I'll be washing dishes or stuffing clothes into the dryer and--WHAM! Instant story and the need to write it immediately.

What genre(s) do you write? Why do you write the stories that you write?
Well, my literary agent has me writing a paranormal romance right now since I have a background in sensual and erotic romance writing; however, I love writing paranormal suspense, horror, fantasy, sci-fi, and magic realism too. Those genres allow my imagination to run wild.

What is the biggest misconception about being an author?
That one's a combo answer. Too many people think being an author is easy and instant money. Neither is true. It's a lot of grueling hard work and it takes years to starting making decent money.

Do you tend to base your characters on real people or are they totally from your imagination?
I'd say it's 50/50.

Out of all the characters that you've written, who is your favorite and why?
That would be a 50/50 answer too. Jordanne Saunders from my novel The Red Storm because that woman goes through hell in that story, and Hazel from a ms that my agent will be peddling to publishers soon.

If you were writing a script for the big screen, who would you want to act in your movie?
I'd love to see my manuscript my agent has turned into a movie. The hero, Julian, could be played by John Cena, although I don't know how he'd look with very dark hair and facial hair, lol. However, he has the physique and personality to play Julian.

What would you want readers to take away from your books?
The desire to read them again.

Do you have any advice for beginning writers in regards to writing a book?
Oh wow...to learn everything from sentence structure to grammar to punctuation, character development, etc. A good novel possesses a nice balance of everything.

What are you reading right now?
I'm re-reading one of my favorite novels called FAERIE TALE by Rayond E. Fiest. It's a wonderful novel.



ABOUT THE BOOK:

BLURB:

Through her Grandmother Arianna's example, Jordanne Saunders becomes the admiral ofThe Red Storm. Her maiden voyage is to transport top government officials for a meeting of countries, but crewmembers would just love to see Jordanne fall flat on her face. When she’s given her grandmother's journal, Jordanne learns that Arianna's demise was not an accident, and expert Delph hunter, Wesley Cofferdrake, aids her in piecing the enigma together. As the voyage progresses, disease and hysteria plague the ship, but through a strange twist of events that nearly costs Wesley his life, Jordanne discovers that Arianna’s murderer has been right under their nose the entire time!


EXCERPT:

To read an excerpt, just go to
http://www.lulu.com/browse/preview.php?fCID=838415


REVIEWS:

"An absolutely stunning book that had me on the edge of my seat throughout. I really did enjoy this story. Zinnia Hope is an amazing author!"
-- M.E Ellis

"There really is so much in The Red Storm that I could write about, it’s that rich and full. I’m in awe of Ms. Hope’s imagination. The Red Storm is one of those books where little touches make it unique from any other book I have read. A strong main plot, superb sub-plots, and a rip-roaring culmination scene that ties everything together—in my opinion, The Red Storm is quite simply a MUST READ. You won’t understand what I mean unless you read it for yourself. And I strongly suggest you do that. Stunning. Absolutely wonderful." (To read the entire review, just click HERE)
-- White Russian


The Red Storm by Zinnia Hope
ISBN: 978-0-9793-6745-8
Publisher: Lavender Isis Press
Genre: Science Fiction & Fantasy
$13.00 from Lulu.com


Purchase The Red Storm by Zinnia Hope HERE!!!