Greetings readers, bloggers, geeks, and authors. It’s my anniversary and I thought I’d interview myself and share it with you. I’ve come a long way as a writer, blogger, reviewer, and interviewer and I’d thought it would be nice to share some of the things I’ve learned and tell you a little about myself, in case you don’t already know. Today’s the day; it’s official!
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So what do I have to share today?
While I’m constantly trying to promote my shorts (40 Days and Nights of Eternal Curse, The Legend of the Boy, and Unexplained), my first novel Eternal Curse, and my blog, I realize that I can’t stop there. I’m currently working to release my second novel, a contemporary romance completely independent of my Eternal Curse Series, entitled It’s Like the Full Moon. I’m also working on the sequel to Eternal Curse and another fantasy novel independent of that series. I’m really hoping to have something else released by the end of 2014 or at least at the beginning of 2015.
So here’s who’s starring is my 2 dimensional script read of
It’s Like the Full Moon:
There are four main characters and a whole bunch of other characters that are worth mentioning, but I will stick to the main four.
The protagonist of this book is Rebecca. Rebecca has just turned thirty and is living a comfortably boring life, and will probably marry her longtime boyfriend Virgil, if he ever asks her. Luckily for her, Rebecca has friends and family who aren’t so content with the current state of her life.
Teddy is Rebecca’s handsome and fun-loving younger brother. He’s recently passed the Bar and will be graduating with a degree in business and law. Teddy has many interests outside of law and the great outdoors is just one of them.
Lisa is Rebecca’s almost perfect opposite and also her best friend in the whole world. She’s a successful business woman who travels the world, but never forgets about the people she leaves behind.
And then there’s Paul. He’s new to this trio of friend/siblings, but he’ll fit right in. A recent graduate with a degree in journalism and working as a freelance writer, Paul has his whole life ahead of him, but these three people are about to shake up his future.
What’s so special about this story that’s going to reel in the readers?
This story is simple and sweet, but also complicated…Wait, does that even make sense?
I’ve tried to pretend that I don’t care much for drama, but what I realize now is that I like certain kinds of drama. This story, It’s Like the Full Moon, will be my debut into the world of what I call “sweet drama”. This story isn’t going to pull in those readers who crave infidelity, substance abuse, black market deals, and divas behaving badly, but it does have something for a different crowd.
This is a relationship book that tells a story instead of trying to teach a lesson. There’s a character whose been let down by a negligent father. There’s a character who’s lost his/her mother at very young age. There are characters who constantly make bad romantic decisions because looks are so hard to ignore, and there’s a love triangle, but it’s not what you’d image.
I admit and proclaim from the mountain tops that this story has been inspired by the films “Moon Struck”, “How to Make an American Quilt” and “A room with a View”, but this is something else altogether different at the end of the day.
Past, present, future, is there a rhyme or reason to my writing?
I overthink things all the time. In some cases that really helps my writing process, but if I didn’t work on organization and time management, I’d never get anything done.
I’m an outliner. When I get an idea I write it down. I don’t believe in writer’s block. When I get stumped on one idea, I open up my vault of ideas and work on something else. I always eventually come back to the other thing I was stumped on.
Back to outlining; nothing that I write is spontaneous. The ideas may come to me like lightning, but the stories are developed from beginning to end through the development of outlines, timeline, and charts. I’m flexible on changes as the story develops, but I always know ahead of time, what I want the outcome to be. In the few rare instances where I don’t know the ending, I at least know every detail leading up to that point when a decision finally has to be made.
The development and writing process is a thrill, it’s everything that comes after that that becomes a chore, but I won’t bore you with all that right now.
What author(s) has most influenced my writing? Why or how?
I am influence by everything around me: blogs, movies, music, art, life. Every book I’ve ever read has left some kind of impact on my way, methods, and motives for writing. J.M. Barrie inspired me to want to create worlds and adventures when he made me fall in love with Peter Pan and Neverland, but he’s not my only inspiration. Unfortunately there are just too many to mention them all. I do however find that reading from modern, up-and-coming authors, as well as, those who are already established, is a good way to keep your skills sharp. That’s not to say that there isn’t still loads to learn from authors who’ve made their marks and have now passed on.
While everything I read is a potential learning experience, I find that when I let go and read for pleasure, I am more motivated to create and determined to be professional and accurate. Right now I’m enjoying the works of Stacey Rourke, Alex J, Cavanagh, Neil Gaiman, and George Mann.
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Okay readers, bloggers, geeks, and authors, that’s all for today…unless you have a question you’d like to ask me. 😉
Thank you for sticking with me these past two years. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for part four of this interview and hopefully enjoy some more of my insights.
This has been a
Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords
