Wednesday 13 April 2011

Author Interview - Charlotte Blackwell

I am so excited, this is my first proper interview with an author for my blog. *squeal*

I would love to introduce you to new upcoming author Charlotte Blackwell. It has been a joy communicating with Charlotte and I hope to get you all as excited about her book as I am.

 Immortal Embrace is her new book which is currently going through the publishing process with Vamptasy Publishing and should be with us soon. Can I just say I love that cover, it's beautiful.

So lets get to introducing this awesome new book and author:



1) Hi Charlotte, can you tell us a little bit about yourself? 
Hi Becky. Well let's see. I am a proud mother of three, two girls and one boy and married to my soul mate. I home school my eldest daughter and am constantly driving kids to activities of some sort. I was a nurse until I was expecting my youngest, now with three kids and a hubby that works away from home, scheduling became too difficult. So I retired, so to speak. I try to write when ever I can find a few spare minutes, but it usually happens in the middle of the night, when everyone else is asleep.

2) What was your favourite book as a child?
That is a tough one, the funny thing is as a child I really disliked reading. I wanted to be outside playing, not sitting in my room. Whereas now it is the complete opposite. I did enjoy the story of 'Heidi' it was probably my favorite.

3) When did you first decide you wanted to be a writer?
I always enjoyed writing, I have poems and letters I wrote from middle school still. I look back at them and laugh, they were really bad. I think writing has always been away for me to releases my emotions in  a positive way. It was only in 2009 I actually decided to do something with my writing.

4) What three words would best describe you?
Positive, Happy, Fulfilled

5) If you could meet any character from any book who would it be and why?
Hmmmm, I think I would like to meet ...Gryfinndor for Harry Potter, he is one heck of a wizard, or Anne Rice's Lestat, he could teach me a thing or two about Vampire's. 

6) Can you give us a brief synopsis of your book?
Sophia Pierce is a Vampire and is devastated when her Vampire brother kills his mortal girlfriend and runs away. She has major trust issue, not only of other people, but herself too. Her and her siblings are sent back to high school to ensure the newest member of their family can assimilate with the general population. They are able to do so because of a magickal stones given to them by a powerful witch. 

Sophia meets the popular quarterback, Nathanial and soon realizes they are soul mates, but has fears lingering from her brothers accident. A young Witch discovers Sophia secret and they soon become friends. Through everything Sophia begins to release her inhibitions and open her heart, only to have it all threaten by a rogue Vampire cult. Now She must fight to protect everything she has come to love more than ever before. 

Immortal Embrace is a romantic tale of young love, friendship, the meaning of family and a girl who finds herself when she thought it was all lost.

7) Where did the idea come from, was it something you thought of long before you wrote it, or did it spring on you one day and take control?
Well I have always loved tales of young love and Vampires, when books like Twilight and Vampire Diaries came out, I thought why not do my own. I actually wrote it just for my Teenage daughter and myself, but it has turned into so much more.

8) Where do you do most of your writing?
I am usually locked in my bedroom. My room is my sanctuary, and the perfect place to hide from everything.

9) How many books will there be in the series?
Well I am working on book two now, and book three is already done. I plan for at least four and a companion book of shadows, but there could be more if the characters keep things moving forward. We get to watch them grow up and go through many ups and downs, including some deaths and other surprises. 

10) Your book covers the subject of Immortality, if you were given the option to live forever, would you take it?
Well I love my life, but I don't think I would want to live it forever. To have to pay bills and watch the destruction around us for eternity I think would be more than anyone could handle. So I would say no, I am very happy being a mortal. Maybe I can come back in another life and try it again though.

11) If you did choose Immortality and were able to live forever, how would you fill your time?
I am a firm believer in life long learning, so I think I would have a lot to learn. Law and Politics have always interested me, so I would have plenty of time to learn about it.

12) Your main character sounds sure of true love and soul mates, do you believe there is someone out there for everyone? And is love made to last?
I do, I have found mine. I believe you can love more than one person in life, but I also believe that those around us are meant for us. My husband, my children and some close friends are all part of my soul, therefore they are my soul mates. It is a wonderful feeling when you surround yourself with people who make you happy and I think that is what a soul mate is.

13) If you were given a choice would you rather face a witch, a vampire or a shape shifter in battle, and how would you defeat them?
I think I would face a shape shifter. and I think I would go for the good old reliable gun. I'm kinda a chicken in scary situations, so I would want to get it over with fast. Vampires are too hard to kill, Witches (at least my version of them) are good and only fight evil, so if they were fighting me I would be the bad guy. 

14) Have you got any advice for writers just starting out?
First and foremost you have to write for you and for your love of the craft. Make sure you read lots and write lots, practice does make perfect. Once you are sure this is what you want, never give up. Theres going to be bad reviews, comparisons you don't want and people who laugh at you, cause there is no money in writing. I think it is important to follow your dreams, whether it be to write, dance, sing, be come a doctor or work for NASA no one can tell you not to have those dreams and if you follow them, you will always win and find happiness.

15) If you could go back to any time, where would you go and why?
I think I would go back to The renaissance period 1300 - 1500 Italy, there was so much rich history from this time period and I would love to have experienced it first hand.

16) Is there anything else you would like us to know?
Well I hope you all enjoy Immortal Embrace, and thank you for having me.

I think you will agree Charlotte sounds lovely and very down to earth and her book sounds very exciting. Can't wait to read it, I will post a review as soon as I have, and will try to keep you all updated with the book's progress.

You can also follow Charlotte's blog, the link is at the top but I will put it here as well in case you missed it. :D

A Big Thank you to Charlotte, thanks for visiting my blog and letting me interview you. I wish you every success with your book.


5 comments:

Nina B. said...

Yay congratulations on your first interview!!! You did great!

And thanks for answering the quiz on my blog, your score wasn't that bad. I also did guesses but mostly I remember them from my visits in bookstores - which is quite often!

Brush Up On Your Reading

Jim said...

Wow - some great questions and answers there! Becky, congrats on your first real interview - I know how excited I was when I got mine! - and Charlotte, I'll definitely keep an eye out for the book, sounds very cool!

Anonymous said...

I am a writer who has knows Charlotte since we both starting writing, we have given each other encouragement and I have enjoyed watching Charlotte grow and see her stories unfold and I am lucky enough to be publishing my work with the same publishers as her. I have read a bit of the rise in a few different edits and can say that it is going to be well worth reading.

Joshuah Buckle

Charlotte Blackwell said...

Becky, Thanks so much for a great interview...it was a first for both of us. So thank you for going so easy on me ;)

barmybex said...

thanks very much to all of you.

Charlotte, it was a pleasure. :D