Saturday, October 20, 2007

COMMENT on this post for a chance to win a copy of Wings of Love by Dayna Hart.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Staunchly telling her parents at the age of three that she was going to be a writer when she grew up, Dayna Hart has taken some time to achieve her goal. Sidetracked by real life, distracted by good-looking men and failing miserably at a succession of ‘real job’s, she’s finally come back to the dreams of her childhood.

Her stories reflect this; full of the whimsy of her childhood, when fairies lurked in the garden, if only she could see from the corner of her eye. Still distracted by good-looking men, they often make their way into her stories, which is the best place for them, as she is happily married to one good looking man, and raising three future good-looking men of her own.

Find out more at www.daynahart.com


INTERVIEW:

Why did you become a writer?
I've been writing since I was little...but one day I realised I hadn't actually written anything in ages. I asked myself "Can I be a writer without writing?" And the rather obvious answer was "no." So, I started writing and reading about writing like I hadn't been doing it all my life.

Was it a dream of yours since you were younger or did the desire to write happen later in your life?
I was 3 the first time I said "I'm going to be a writer when I grow up." I've never wanted to do anything else :)

What do you love about being an author?
Everything lol. I love researching fairy lore (for the Curtain Torn Series) and history (for historical fantasies in progress). I love the fact I can study whatever catches my interest, and stop studying it once I feel I know 'enough'. I love being able to promo in my PJs :)

Is there anything you dislike?
Deadlines sometimes suck. And edits can be humbling. But they make me feel more like a Real Writer, so I can't say they're all bad.

How do you balance your personal and writing time?
heh. I'll let you know if I ever manage it ;) For the most part, I just notice when I've not done enough with my kids, or on my house.

How do you write? Do your characters come to you first or the plot or the world of the story?
Usually I start with a scene...something which falls, fully formed into my head, and I need to fit the story around it.

I'm a 'plantser'. Part plotter, part 'seat of the pants' writer. I tend to have a few plot-points I know the story has to hit, but I let the characters take their own way there. Sometimes I hit a plotpoint only to realise I don't know what the next one should be. So a few games of Spider Solitaire later, I'll have asked myself enough questions to move forward.

What genre(s) do you write? Why do you write the stories that you write?
Mostly I write fantasy, which are the stories I grew up reading. I used to look for fairies in my back yard (and still sometimes do.) I read a lot of romantic suspense, and those elements seem to have worked their way into my fantasy books as well, as I give my characters some sort of 'mystery' to solve. I've started a few straight rom-susp, but fantasy is just so much fun to write it's hard to give the rom-susp the time they need.

What is the biggest misconception about being an author?
I'm rich. lol Or that writing isn't any work at all. I just sit down, type up a story, and off it goes. I wish!

Do you tend to base your characters on real people or are they totally from your imagination?
Mostly they're just imaginary...however, I'll often find they have traits from someone I know (or from myself). Dumb things often...like I rake my hand through my hair when I'm frustrated, so a lot of my characters do, too.

Out of all the characters that you've written, who is your favorite and why?
Ack! I can't answer that lol It's like asking which is my favorite kid! Honestly, I love different things about each of them. Claire is the most like me. Dell is the hottest! Lael was the most interesting... lol No, I have no answer to this :)

If you were writing a script for the big screen, who would you want to act in your movie?
Oh! Cameron Mathison would make a yummy hot Dell!
( www.cameronmathison.net). Eric Szmada (Greg on CSI) would be good, too. Drew Barrymore would make a good Claire, but so would Clare Danes...

What would you want readers to take away from your books?
Hrm. A sense that there's more to the world than we can see...and maybe a feeling of hopefulness...

Do you have any advice for beginning writers in regards to writing a book?
Write! Write as much as you can, as often as you can, and write stories you like to write. Don't worry about the mechanics, because you can learn those. And write down every idea you have so you can pull them out later.

What are you reading right now?
I tend to read a few books at a time. Which one just depends on where I am. I have one book downstairs, another upstairs, and ebooks on my laptop and IPAQ. So, currently I have:
Lisa Kleypas's Sugar Daddy
Robin Hobb's Fool's Errand
In ebook I'm reading:
Linda Winfree's Truth and Consequences


ABOUT THE BOOK:

BLURB:

Aimée not only grew up without her father, she doesn’t even know his name. The mere mention of him is enough to send her mother into hysterics. Or at least it was, until her mother discovered pharmaceutical mood-enhancement and paralyzed her face with botulism toxins. Her mother has become the poster-woman for calm.

Until Aimée starts seeing fairies.


EXCERPT:

Fear and fury spiralled through her like a tornado. “Where are you?” she said through gritted teeth, her voice taut with spite. She stood and turned in a slow circle to survey the room.

“I’m right here,” the Voice answered, still soft but with a ruffled note to it. He was getting ruffled? He could at least see her!

“Keep talking,” Aimée said, her eyes narrowed, her arms crossed over her chest.

“Well, um. I’m not really quite sure what to say. There once was a man from Nantucket—“ the Voice stopped. “Well, that’s hardly appropriate.”

Then her eyes landed on him. “Oh,” she said, and nothing more for a long moment while she drank him in. He was stunning—a well-built man with ivory white skin. He stood about the same height as her, though his shoulders were broad, which made him seem shorter. Dressed like any of a million Goths in black pants with silver zippers, and a ripped black shirt, he didn’t look anything like anyone else she’d ever seen. His Goth uniform was complete with piercings in his ears, eyebrow, nose—she thought she might have seen the glint of a barbell-piercing in his tongue. Despite the fact it was a clone-Goth look, it didn’t look like a uniform he wore for kicks. The darkness suited him. That might have had something to do with his wings. They were the colour of shadows and torn at their edges, like a moth’s. Despite their ragged edges, they looked as though they’d be soft to touch. “What are you,” she whispered.

He sniffed. “I’m a faery.”

Aimée felt her forehead scrunch as she looked at him in disbelief, and heard the sarcasm in her tone. “Cadence was a faery too, but she was only about the size of my thumb.”

Lael shrugged, his feathers ruffling with the movement. “Would you prefer me small?” Aimée blinked, and suddenly there was nothing but an ordinary moth floating in the air where he’d been. For a long moment she stared. Then she began to wonder if she’d imagined him. “If you’re real, please come back.” The moth flitted into the darkness of the room.

She sank into the chair and pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes. No. She refused to go insane. Just say no. Laughter bubbled on her lips, but she refused to let it go. Laughing for no reason was a definite sign you were going insane. Of course, seeing people who didn’t exist wasn’t a sign of mental health, either, but she’d ignore that for the time being. The laughter escaped in a short burst that sounded more like a sob. Tears leaked from her eyes. Fear lanced through her like a pain. Maybe this is the big secret about dad. He went insane, and she didn’t tell me because she was afraid it was genetic. More tears followed the first rush, dropping onto her shirt like a gentle rain.


Wings of Love by Dayna Hart
Publisher: Forbidden Publications
Release Date: February 2007
Genre: Holiday/Fantasy
$3.99 from Amazon.com


Purchase Wings of Love by Dayna Hart HERE!!!