Here is my part in the hop-I get to answer some questions about myself. Yay! That's always fun.
i. What am I working on?
I am currently working on my second novel, titled 'Taffy.' Set in Hawaii in 1978, I follow the same theme as in 'Seven Days Normal': redemptive love. It's been slow going, but I plan to have it completed by the end of this year and submitted by spring of next year.
Having been abandoned and betrayed, Cass Harmon escapes to the island of Oahu to make a new beginning. Promising herself she would never trust again, she finds herself thrown in a friendship with Will, aka Taffy, whose philosophy on life forces Cass to reevaluate her view of the world and herself. ii. How does my work differ from others of its genre?
If I'm going to lump my work into the genre of Christian romance, then the most noticeable difference is the gritty, real world scenarios that my writing centers around. By doing this, I hope to reach a larger audience by being relatable. Life tends to knock us down more than giving us cushy, feel good moments, as most Christian novels tend to focus on. It's in the painful, harsh, and often gut wrenching times that we learn who we are, and those of us who want to make the best of it do, but often at a big price. iii. Why do I write what I do?
If I can't pass on what I've learned, then I have no purpose, no legacy to leave. My life experiences beg to be let out in the form of stories, and even if I only reach one person with my writing, I've accomplished what I was put on this earth to do. I write to help people know what what the true purpose of love is. iv. How does your writing process work?
My writing process is void of a process, if that makes sense! I don't do outlines, nor do I even start with the end or the beginning. I just write specific scenes and then put it all together, making sure I have a plot, a conflict, and believable characters. It works for me!
http://nealabbot.wordpress.com
Neal Abbott is the author of 25-30 short stories, 4 novels, a novella, and 3 non-fiction works. Neal’s fiction deals with the struggle between what a person wants to do and what a person should do, demonstrating the battle between selfishness and sacrifice. His non-fiction work contains a pair of books that encourage and motivate the Creative Writer, and his other book in an analysis of the classic American novel The Great Gatsby. Neal enjoys reading Modern American writers of the Lost Generation, Neo-Classical European writers from the 1700s, and really enjoys Russian authors.
www.heartofwander.com
Laurel Martinez has been writing in some form or another for as long as she can remember. She has always loved to write but only recently began rediscovering that passion. Her Heart of Wander blog was born out of pure necessity – a desperate desire to get her thoughts down anywhere but her head. It has undergone many changes since it’s inception but it has remained steady in it’s heart and voice. Laurel recently began her first novel, but continues to stay true to her first love-blogging.
http://www.abernathyloveshack.org/all-you-need-is-love-blog.html
Jill Sinklier is on a mission to spread the gospel of love. Her ministry, All You Need Is Love, is located in a small west Texas town, but has made a huge impact on the community. Keeping with the theme of Christian love, Jill has completed her first non- fiction novel, 'All You Need Is Love,' which she is in the process of submitting. Her blog by the same name is a rich, informative read.
Teacher of English and Computer Studies by day, wife and mother by night and author whenever she can steal some time, Elise is the proud author of Phase Shift, The Mummy Wore Combat Boots, andThrowaway Child, available on Amazon and KoboBooks. She pens a blog about literature, popular culture and the human condition whenever the muse moves her.
Elise's fourth book, a young adult paranormal thriller entitled The Revenant is now available for pre-ordering on the Black Rose Writingpage!
