Q: DESCRIBE YOURSELF IN A FEW WORDS.

The best way to describe myself is down-to-earth, energetic, and easygoing. In most situations, I try to take things in stride and look for the silver lining. I want everyone around me to be having a good time and to feel included and though I love spending time with those I love, I enjoy a nice relaxing afternoon to myself at times also.

Q: WHAT IS SOMETHING ABOUT YOURSELF THAT VERY FEW PEOPLE KNOW, BUT WOULD BE SHOCKED TO LEARN?

Most people would be shocked to know that I have carried three surrogate babies in addition to my two sons. I was open and shared a lot about it during those pregnancies but most who know me on social media wouldn't know that about me.

Q: IF YOU COULD GO TO DINNER WITH ANY PERSON IN THE WORLD, LIVING OR DEAD, WHO WOULD IT BE? WHERE WOULD YOU GO? WHAT WOULD YOU ORDER? WHY THIS PERSON?

If I could go to dinner with anyone in the world I would want to meet Leonardo da Vinci, I would go to Rome and order perogies. I want to meet Leonardo da Vinci because he was a man who came from such humble beginnings and was a renowned genius in not only art but science, religion, and engineering. It would be so interesting to share a conversation with him. Maybe not for him though.

Q: IF YOU COULD SPEND A YEAR IN ANY LITERARY WORLD, WHICH WOULD YOU CHOOSE? WHY?

If I could spend a year in ANY literary world I would want to live in the Harry Potter World post Voldemort. I would want to be a student and study potions.

Q: HOW WOULD YOUR PROTAGONIST(S) DESCRIBE YOU? WHAT WOULD THEY THINK OF YOU? NOW’S THE TIME TO GET INTO THEIR HEADS AND LEARN ABOUT HOW THEY VIEW YOU FOR A CHANGE.

I think Mira would see me as a woman trying to do her best but who has put off making herself a priority for far too long. I think she would envy the love and comfort that I've experienced as a wife and mother throughout my life but would be proud to see that I have always been willing to make sacrifices for the ones I love and have always been resilient and willing to try just about anything once. And I'm pretty sure she would tell me to carve out the part of me that self-doubts way too often.

Q: WE’VE ALL GOT MUSICAL INSPIRATIONS. GIVE US YOUR TOP 10 WRITING SONGS. FEEL FREE TO SHARE WHAT KIND OF SCENES YOU WRITE WITH THEM AS WELL.

I can't listen to music with words while I write because it distracts me but I absolutely love writing to the Immersive Writing Sprints that Abbi Emmons posts on youtube. Many of them have a gentle arc to them that goes from cheery to dark over the course of the two hours and it's great for almost any sort of scene.

Q: WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IS YOUR INTERESTING WRITING QUIRK?

I don't know if it's interesting but I like to take a shower put on the Instrumental for Work playlist on Amazon Music and run through scenes in my head then get out and go straight to writing them. I do my best thinking in the shower.

Q: WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE BOOKS OR POEMS TO READ FOR WRITING INSPIRATION?

I don't read poetry often, though I'd be interested in trying some out. I am constantly finding inspiration in everything I read and watch. I annotate all the time and take notes while watching tv on the ways people interact with one another, how they speak, and what makes them likable characters.

Some of the recent favorites I've been enjoying are the ACOTAR and TOG series, Mistborn, and Hunger Games (my husband is listening to the audiobooks for the first time), and I am trying out some new Contemporary Romances right now as well.

Q: WHEN DID YOU WRITE YOUR FIRST STORY OR POEM? HOW OLD WERE YOU? DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT IT WAS ABOUT?

The very first thing I ever wrote was, ironically, a poem. Even though I don't read or write it anymore, when I was about seven or eight I wanted to have something to give my parents for Christmas so I wrote a poem about how the snow looked in the trees during the winter, but, I was a self-doubter even back then and I remember tearing it up and throwing it away and I ended up writing my own version of The Night Before Christmas and gave it to them.

I kept writing poetry though for a while. When I was about 9 or 10 I would write poems about nature and animals, then I'd fold them up and put them in my 'treasure chest' that I buried near the front porch.

Q: HOW DO YOU CREATE YOUR MAIN CHARACTER(S)?

I like to think of my ideas as seeds that just float into my mind and they either take root or they wither away. My idea for Born to Rule started with a dream about a metal box that I and a group of friends found on a camping trip. The box started behaving strangely and when I woke up I wanted the story to continue. Now, almost, eight years later that idea has spread around that moment in the dream and has become what I believe will be a very exciting trilogy.

Q: DESCRIBE YOUR WRITING SPACE. WHAT DOES IT TYPICALLY LOOK LIKE? HOW DOES THIS IMPACT YOUR FLOW IF YOU AREN’T IN THAT WRITING SPACE?

I transition between wanting to be in the living room around my kids, I will sit on the couch with my headphones writing, and writing outside on the back porch where it's nice a quiet. I also have recently made an office space for myself so I am working on getting better about working in a little more professional setting as well.

Q: WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IS THE MOST DIFFICULT PART OF WRITING A BOOK OR COLLECTION OF POEMS? HOW DO YOU GET OVER THOSE HURDLES?

I think the most difficult part of writing a book for me is trying not to get lost in editing my written chapters and instead continuing to write new chapters. I sometimes have to remind myself that I'm too close to a project and once it is ALL on paper then I can go back and edit, change, revise.

Q: WHEN PLANNING A NEW PIECE OF WRITING, BE IT A BOOK, A CHAPTER, OR A POEM, WHAT KIND OF QUESTIONS DO YOU ASK YOURSELF? WHAT KIND OF QUESTIONS DO YOU ASK YOUR CHARACTERS?

This is a good question too.

I ask myself:

Chapter:
What is the point of this chapter?
Does conversation feel natural?
Do the character's actions/feelings/choices reflect their personality?

Book:
What is the character's starting tone/position and how do I want it to change throughout the book?
Does it have quality Character, plot, and romance arcs

Q: HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED WRITER’S BLOCK? IF SO, HOW DO YOU HANDLE IT?

I have not had writer's block on this project yet, thank goodness. Writer’s block for me is a lackluster feeling that I get when I think about a project. As I mentioned before some projects just wither away but Born to Rule has lived in my head for a solid seven months and I am always so excited to work on it. I might get stuck on a chapter for a week or two but I try to just write anyways or I'll edit a previous chapter until I know what I want to come next.

Q: WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE LITERARY TROPES?

Chosen one, one bed, slow burn, enemies to lovers, grumpy sunshine, unexpected journey. I have so many.

Q: WHAT MAKES A GOOD STORY?

Characters 100%. If you don't have characters that your readers are interested in then it doesn't matter what situation you put them in or what journey they are embarking on, the reader won't care. They have to be invested in the person they are following.

Q: WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE PART OF BEING A WRITER?

My favorite thing about being a writer is simply taking something entirely from my own imagination and making it real so that I can share it with others who might also enjoy it. We are the only beings on the planet that can do that and I think that's pretty significant.

Q: SOMEONE COMES TO YOU AND SAYS “DO YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS TO HELP ME BECOME A BETTER WRITER?” WHAT IS YOUR RESPONSE?

Read your books and watch your movies in an entirely different way. Disect the story, the characters, and their relationships as you watch and ask yourself why you enjoy the books/games/movies that you do. Then write like no one is watching. You write an awful lot of terrible stuff before you write a lot of good stuff.

Q: WHAT IS ONE OF THE MOST SURPRISING THINGS YOU LEARNED IN CREATING YOUR BOOKS?

That indie books have become such a huge presence in the literary community since I've been writing, that authors from any background are basically on an even playing field now, and that the work can speak for itself rather than a trad. publishing company making the decision on what the market wants/needs.

Q: HOW IMPORTANT ARE BOOK REVIEWS? HOW DO YOU THINK THEY WILL AFFECT YOU?

Book reviews are an invaluable tool for authors. It is so important to have a solid novel that people feel compelled to write those reviews so that others can find your work and know what to expect from you as an author based on your reader's feedback.

Q: WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO WHEN YOU’RE NOT WRITING?

When I am not writing I enjoy being outside. I love camping, hiking, and fishing. I always have a book with me in one form or another and I will never pass up on a campfire. I also have a household full of plants that I love to care for. I play video games, collect Pokemon cards, and watch anime. I'm an eclectic personality.

Q: WHAT DOES YOUR FAMILY THINK ABOUT YOUR WRITING? HOW SUPPORTIVE ARE THEY?

I have two sons and a husband who are very supportive of my writing without it being a hands-on approach. My husband has read chapter one and that was about it but he supports me by doing a lot of the cooking and dishes and sometimes the bedtime routine to give me some extra hours of writing, and while he doesn't let me ramble to him about my book he will be happy to listen to it when it comes out on Audiobook which is why that is something that is a very important goal for me to reach someday.

Q: AS A CHILD, WHAT DID YOU WANT TO DO WHEN YOU GREW UP?

I always knew I wanted to write books someday, but I also knew that I wanted to be a mom most of all. I am blessed to say that while my boys were young, my husband's military career afforded us the kind of lifestyle that allowed me to be home with them for quite some time. It may not be the most spectacular dream for a child, but I like to think I had an old soul and knew what was important even then.

Now that they are nine and thirteen, I still spend as much time with them as I can but I also have time to focus on my dream of becoming a best-selling author someday.

Q: IF YOU’VE SHARED YOUR WRITING WITH OTHERS, WHAT HAS THE FEEDBACK BEEN SO FAR? IF YOU HAVEN’T, WHAT DO YOU HOPE IT WILL BE?

I have shared my work on Born to Rule so far with two friends who I trusted to be brutally honest, both have had helpful insights and overwhelmingly positive things to say. I also have shared my story with the alpha reader/ chapter swap group that I created on discord which consists for nine other authors and readers who have also had positive things to say, and who helped me with my POV crisis when I missed a few chapters that I'd forgotten to edit.

Q: WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR IN PUTTING YOUR WRITING OUT INTO THE WORLD?

My biggest fear is that my characters will fall flat and that people will dislike the book so much that I won't see a point in continuing with the story into book two.

Q: WHAT IS A MESSAGE YOU WANT TO SHARE WITH THE WORLD?

The message I want to share with the world is, we are not meant to all be the same, and if we welcomed each other's differences instead of rejecting them, the world would be better for it.

Q: ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT TO SHARE? GO FOR IT!

I just want to say thank you again to Spellbound Publishing for taking a chance on this wild idea I have cooking in my brain and making me feel so at home. Teddy and Taylor you both are incredible souls and I am your biggest cheerleader.