Hello there friends.

It’s time to celebrate the last weekend before Halloween with a bang.

Today in the Author Interview series, I chat to Readers’ Favorite 2016 Book Award Contest winner and supernatural fantasy author A.M. Manay about her enthralling books, as she conjures up a vivid world full of vivacity and she also kindly shares some tips on what helps motivate her to write.

Thanks for reading and have a fantastic weekend folks.

 

Hi there A.M. – thank you for joining us to talk about your writing advice and your supernatural books.

Let’s start with your novels in the “November Snow” series. Your books contain magic and supernatural creatures aplenty, with lashings of violence, betrayal, first loves and perilous fantasy. Please tell us more about the world that you have created, what the protagonists and antagonists desire from this enchanted realm and what sort of shocks, scares and adventures we are going to discover beneath the mysterious covers of your books?

The main protagonist is November, a young psychic who knows she is destined to die an early and violent death. She is pulled into the world of vampires, fairies, and werewolves and drafted into a brewing civil war of sorts within the vampire and fairy kingdom. All she really wants, deep down, is to be able to live an honest life with people who love her for her true self, and to be able to harness her abilities in a way that makes the world a better place.

In the supernatural world she enters, King Ilyn stands on one side of the conflict along with William, his son. Ilyn is trying to save a throne he doesn’t even really seem to want anymore. The family’s ruthless black sheep, Luka, stands on the other side. He wants to possess November nearly as much as he wants to rule the world.

November is the weapon and the woman everyone wants, but she is not interested in being anyone’s pawn. Over the course of the books, November faces love, danger, betrayal, and enormous transitions in her life and abilities. She finds that people, both good and bad, are more complex than they first appear. She also finds that saving innocent lives can come at a high personal price.

If your novels were to be made into movies, who would you cast in the lead roles?

Hmm. I think James Spader would make a perfect Luka. He has the charming sociopath thing down pat. I imagine Richard Armitage as Ilyn. Michael Fassbender would make an interesting William.

Chloe Bennet would be good for Zinnia, November’s fairy best friend.

November is the hardest to cast in my mind. Maybe Chloe Grace Moretz would work. I think she could embody November’s combination of strength and frailty, compassion and defiance.

What do you find the most difficult thing about writing? And what do you find the easiest?

The hardest thing is the marketing process. I don’t know that I find any of it particularly easy, other than the mechanics. Wrestling with the ideas is the most enjoyable part, but it isn’t always easy. It’s lovely when you get into a flow and crank out a few thousand words without realizing it’s happening.

Who are some of the authors in general that inspire you?

I love Hilary Mantel. She is a master of storytelling through dialogue, and of humanizing people who do terrible things.

J.K. Rowling is inspiring in her life story. I think any Mom who writes while her kid’s asleep can see a little of herself in Rowling.

What sort of research do you do to write your books?

I write fantasy, so I can get away with a fair bit of laziness in the research department. I do some historical research online, and virtual location scouting, though I try to set most scenes in places that I know. I sometimes research names as well.

Why do you write? What inspired you to become a writer?

I started writing for fun. I used to write stories as a kid, but when I started She Dies at the End, it had been years since I had written fiction. I was bored and lonely at home with a toddler, and I had an active imagination. I came up with the character of November, and it just blossomed from there.

What keeps you motivated during creative slumps? How do you deal with Writers Block?

I’ll write out of order, or about something else entirely, when I get stuck on my primary project. Sometimes I’ll work on a graphic design idea. That usually seems to get the juices flowing. If I’m really lost, I’ll take a good week of just thinking and no writing until I have a breakthrough.

You have access to a time machine. What advice would you give your younger self?

I would tell her to just go for it. Don’t be so held back by practical considerations, or fear of rejection. I would advise her to put herself out there.

How do you spend your free time when you are not writing?

I enjoy yoga, music, reading, and movies.

Tell us more about your upcoming projects. Are you working on anything specific or have plans in the pipeline?

I’m working on the third and final installment of the November Snow Series, and I’m in the planning stages for a young adult epic fantasy novel.

Finally, are there any nuggets of wisdom that you can impart to other aspiring writers?

I would tell them to make friends with other writers. You need a posse in this business.

And that’s a wrap!

Thanks so much for having me!

Bio:-

In addition to her work as an indie author of paranormal fantasy, A.M. Manay is a former inner-city chemistry teacher, a singer, a yoga enthusiast, a Clerk of Session in the Presbyterian Church (USA), and a mother through domestic open adoption. She has a passion for increasing diversity in popular culture and for strong heroines who stand up for themselves, make their own decisions, and don’t depend on romance as their reason for being.

Be the first to know about the release of the upcoming sequel as well as bonus material about your favorite characters by connecting with A.M. on the following Social Media channels:-

Sign up for her fan email list:- November’s News
Amazon Author Page:- A. M. Manay – Amazon Author Page
Blog/Website:- The Blog & Website of Author A.M. Manay
Facebook:- A.M. Manay – Author (FB)
Goodreads:- A. M. Manay (Goodreads Author)
Instagram:- A. M. Manay – Author (Instagram)
Twitter:- @ammanay (Twitter)

You can buy her books here:-

Buy A. M. Manay’s books in Canada

Buy A. M. Manay’s books in the UK/Europe

Buy A. M. Manay’s books in the US/Rest of the World

Still want more? Well, A.M. Manay’s books are all about how things are not how they appear on the surface. Both her good and evil characters are more complex than they first seem to be. For more articles on the theme of ‘Surface’ then check out the links below:-

1. shame – To the little Southern girl on the beach: Part two
2. Surface: A Game of Thrones’ Coming Up for Air – Shelby’s Starlit Crossing
3. Surface – An incorrigible optimist
4. Below the Skin of Assumption: Inside the Vein of Depth and Discovery – Lance Price Blog 2016
5. Differences between Simple and Complex Musicals – Meg’s Magical Musings
6. Dialy Prompts August 2016 – My Garden Biodiversity
7. I need to get something off my chest… – When I thought I was fat
8. What’s In A Story? – Looking Beyond the Surface – Making the Right Media Choices
9. As I See Things – The Mother River
10. My Mixed Blog – Surface Survey
11. artifiswords – SURFACE
12. Uplifting Stories – Laminate Surface
13. burntbreakfast – Day 16-27:My Complicated Muse
14. Light Motifs – Skimming the Surface
15. Fluffy Pool – Perfect
16. poemcollision – Surface
17. Narutomath96 – An obsessed mind
18. dinamicdynasty – Surface
19. Why a woman might vote for Trump – trailingthoughtsblog
20. Site Title – Surface Testing
21. Sacrificial Chain Breaker – WORD JUMBLE
22. Silence – World Through My Eyes
23. Axis of Action – Random Trailer #1: The Surface
24. Surface-Tension – StrangeLander2015
25. The Masks that we Wear – Dreamer’s Paradise
26. Confession: Racism Below the Surface – Sisters of Christ
27. Spread Too Thin – Think Outside The Toaster
28. Surface – KangaWithoutRoo
29. HISCOLUMN – Surface
30. How to find a Husband! – The Constantly Puzzled Mind
31. Lisa’s Journal Blog – Surface- Education and Technology
32. even love. – lemonadeletter
33. surface – know my heart
34. Melolontha by the River – A crack in the surface
35. Giggles & Tales – The Daily Prompt – Surface!
36. Frank Prem – angling the big deep
37. Trapdoor – 3LineTales – Fantasy Raconteur
38. A Momma’s View – Just Like Titanic
39. Look Beneath The Surface – Vaishnavi
40. tuckedintoacorner – surface (400)
41. helen meikle’s scribblefest – Daily prompt: Embracing the multiple options for treating your hairy legs
42. Ticket in Romania…#1 – iamioana
43. Writcrit – What we see!
44. Success Inspirers’ World – Caste your net deep
45. Calm on the Surface? – A lot from Lydia
46. Surfacing Life’s Undertow – atrangizindagieksafar
47. Below the Surface – Onto My Next 40 Years
48. Purposive Writer – Behind The Smile
49. The Hidden Chalkboard (The HC) – What Lies Beneath: Normality, Hate, and Faith
50. Anybody there…? – Ms Skyfall
51. Annette’s place – Daily prompt/surface/8/11/2016
52. copdtravails – Surface – it’s expensive
53. Lakeland Musings by Irwin – Just Scratching the Surface
54. The Daily Post-Surface – juantetcts
55. Haunting Me – Mac’s World
56. inspiration in progress – Surface Love
57. on top (20160811) – Words and Feathers
58. Pandemonium – Doodles and Scribbles
59. The Mask Behind The Mask – CrossGear
60. Cryptic Clandestine – I’m Unfortunate
61. Baby Gates Down – The Good Mother Myth
62. Success Inspirers’ World – Smooth but dangerous
63. Vivid Dreamer – Climbing for the Crown
64. lenarasmussen.com – Surface – Painting the surface and textures of rocks and barnacles from Vancouver Island, BC
65. Surface we see, beneath we don’t know. – Karuchan
66. Tunnel Vision – Joycelyn Alise
67. Lost Property Repository – Snowflake episode 12
68. Le Drake Noir – Triple in the mountains
69. Cage Dunn: Writer and Author – The Last Thought
70. Autism in Our Nest – Lost and Found! Autism Speech
71. What lies beneath? – Long walks and dark chocolate
72. eladybug52 – On the Surface
73. Surface – Inner Whispers
74. plagiarism memes surface Dronexit#24 – a nerd’s confession: when-iam-68
75. Surface – whatamberthinks
76. Under the Surface of Better – Mrs. Completely
77. Ouch!! My back hurts!! – Surface – Light and Texture!
78. Connections – Natural Admiration
79. On the Surface – Pippakin Talks Cats, Dogs, Teeth and Claws
80. Water of Rain – Silent Dance
81. manvsloneliness – Day 41 Supplemental: The Man and the Daily Prompt; ‘Surface’
82. On the surface of things – My Dilemma’s – All About Change
83. The Marriage Mistake – The Untold Want
84. The Mess (Part 1: Too much mess!) – Making Sense of Complications
85. A Fascinating and Beautiful Surface – Living, Learning and Letting Go
86. Chris Writes – My Childhood Stranger
87. B_ up to date – But – there’s always a but
88. Hidden – Pete Gardner Psalms
89. Things You Can’t Judge By the Surface – Sascha Darlington’s Microcosm Explored
90. Singular Fiction – Beneath the Surface
91. Cliche Characters – thepathtocreativity
92. an open letter to the one who made me stronger – parthvikumar
93. The Girl With Sparkles In Her Eyes >_< – Don’t Cry Over Spilled Wine
94. Mainline_Matter – Crispy Soft Flaky Surface
95. The Surface Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story – Martha’s Daily Writing
96. Shell Games – Scratching the Surface of Video Games and Social Commentary
97. theblackwallblog – Mount Holly, Vermont- Final The History
98. April’s Perspective – A Glimps Behind the Smiles
99. thelonerose – Parents
100. Surface – Covert Novelist
101. Surface – Awordseeker
102. multiplemyelomaandme – On the surface
103. Justus Books – Nature’s Bargain
104. frankgalatas – Surface
105. Surface versus Fear – Nomadic Adventurer
106. How To Exist – A Short Conversation
107. The Surface Serves a Purpose – Sneakers on Pavement
108. lifelessons – a blog by Judy Dykstra-Brown – Surfaces
109. Scratch The Surface – Edwina’s Episodes
110. hoosiersunshine13 – Training for the Olympics
111. Don’t Do the Smart(Logical) Thing – Creating K.I.N.G.S
112. Surface – Mrs Reckless Writes
113. The Onion – I Will Fight Site
114. prompt: surface – of Waterproof Bracelets and a Pink Satin Skirt
115. La Tour Abolie – And she never touched the hoover in her life!
116. On The Surface – A mile in my shoes
117. Love is Destruction – Caillen James –Author
118. Surface – Leaking Ink
119. Insach – Surface.
120. Veneer – Ayoka
121. Letting Go. – TheTattooedBookGeek
122. I’d Like to Travel But I Want to know More of Different Places Than What Lies on the Surface – Jacki Kellum
123. Suddenly Single… Minded – But, he looked so good on his dating profile
124. A trillion wonderful things … – escapingperfection
125. Painting Surfaces – minor art master
126. Gloaming – Bolognese’s Blog
127. Zombie Flamingos – The last Kitten Thursday of my vacation…sigh…
128. Woodstock for Economists August 2016 – The Mono-Economy of the New Millennium
129. I-read – Deepened Surface of Love
130. Jibber Jabber with Sue – Demand More Than “Fine”
131. Life in a Few Words – Unmasked
132. A rich, true surface. – ujaascraft
133. 7 Things I Love About The Cursed Child – Fantasy Raconteur
134. He lies beneath the surface – eddaz
135. Barryjack’s Place – To be an onion
136. The Masks of Life – Some More Fiction
137. Surface Smiles – Un-communicated Lightning
138. Common Pursuit – Appreciate the Surface
139. sparksfromacombustiblemind – Surface
140. The Well-Informed Namer – Searching for Nallely
141. Get Beauty Below the Surface – Jerome Danner
142. Flowers and Breezes – Surface
143. somawrites – Behind the mask
144. Beneath the Surface – Single Mom In Dallas
145. kStan(ly) kSays – surface tension
146. Drowning – Jane Dougherty Writes
147. UNSTOPPABLE RESURFACE – thepunkpenblog
148. How To Lose Friends – Who I Was
149. Diving Beneath the Surface – Lilly’s View
150. 83 Unsung Heroes – The Patchwork Road Surface
151. Keep a tidy desktop – Geek Ergo Sum
152. Once Upon Your Prime – Making Public Apologies (Digging Deeper!)
153. SERENDIPITY – THE SURFACE REPORT: TODAY WE ARE SHALLOW
154. The Cat Chronicles – Daily Feline Prompt: Feline surfacing
155. Above & Beyond… – The Mistful Mind
156. Sargasso Sea – cirque de la nuit
157. (Pink & Blue) Musings – pins & ashes
158. A Portrait – themanbehindtheglass
159. look beneath the surface ⋆ Obsolete Childhood
160. wordsareallihavesite – Surface
161. Michael J. Fite – Will You Go Beneath Your Surface To Find Your Answers?
162. Chronicles of an Anglo Swiss – Staying on the surface
163. Your Nibbled News (c) 2016 YNN – Scratching surface on sidewalk repair
164. Surface – regina
165. Think About It – Below the Surface
166. Just A Simple Country Girl – Surface
167. 20 Reasons Success Eludes Some – SUCCESS STRATEGIES
168. He Did – A Short Conversation
169. MyPolkaConcession – What is beneath?
170. rhymeagination – TRANSPARENT, YET OPAQUE
171. Beneath the Surface – Emotional Spaces
172. Look below the Surface of athletic performance… Michael Phelps – Cooking with the DeGroff’s
173. A Monologue of the Heart. – When Rains Come…
174. Below The Surface – Odyssey In Atlantis
175. On the Surface – Failures – 1secondthoughts
176. Arousal – indisputably inconclusive
177. On The Surface – A Thomas Point of View
178. lifeafterbefore – Under the surface.
179. Random Brain Musings – Excited Utterances
180. Writer Sanctuary – Separating the Ghostwriter from the Author
181. Awl and Scribe – Surface
182. Her Surface – Modestly E
183. new2writing – It is the Beautiful Bird which gets Caged
184. theempathyqueen – What Lies Within Us
185. A New Leaf – whippetwisdom.com
186. HarlemATL Inner City Blues – Old Cliques
187. Surface – Image & Word
188. Surface as Smooth as Glass – Food, Wine & Spirit Guru
189. If You Haven’t Noticed – Crusty Monkeys
190. Portraits, Mirrors, Reflections – Sydney David
191. Lost Property Repository – A muscial Interlude for Surface
192. A Vibrant Palette – The surface
193. Le Happyone – The Singapore education system’s myth of safety
194. Water so Pure – mySestina
195. Polyprotic Amory – Surfacing
196. MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO – Surface
197. The Evening Artist – Board Breaking
198. Turn That Radio Up – Too Little Too Late
199. Splash – writemebad
200. Drowning – indisputably inconclusive
201. Beneath the surface – yasminmay
202. The Poetry Channel – An Act of Kindness
203. Success Inspirers’ World – Once She Knew Me
204. Fears – The Corporate Fawn
205. Justus Books – Don’t You Want to Surface?
206. Growing Toward the Sun – #Throwback Thursday: You Seemed So Perfect On Paper, But Then We Had Date #2
207. Mary 2.0 – Below the Surface of Water
208. 5 Strategies to Keep You Writing When Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t! – DarkfictionComa
209. Interface – indisputably inconclusive
210. theblackwallblog – Once She Knew Me
211. SURFACE – Cognitive Reflection
212. Buoyant – Wordsmith
213. Hot White Snow – Layers of Life
214. A Dreamer Finds His Way By Moonlight But Sees Dawn Too Soon – Jacki Kellum
215. domestic diva – An open letter to her husband by a busy mum
216. A word on surface – ioanaazoica
217. Blushing leaves – zorazebic
218. Devil Doll Musings – Who Are You
219. the15thday – to my left, the inner fat man. to my right…
220. The Future – andrewhalteromniblog
221. kStan(ly) kSays – picture-perfect selfie shots
222. The Surface Story – rupalislale
223. The Daily Post – Progressing into Solitude – Surface Gangster
224. Lost Property Repository – Big Bear epsiode 12
225. Breathing in other people’s skins… – Chronicles of an Orange-Haired Woman!
226. Soms kunnen leuke video’s ook motiverend zijn. Bekijk deze // Sometimes fun videos be motivating. watch this – Wie is Theo Herbots ? // Who is Theo Herbots?
227. SURFACE – My QuotesVilla
228. Under the Sea – Just Writing!
229. Riddle – Bits of Poems
230. fibijeeves – Scratches on the Surface
231. Passion through Poetry – Surfaced
232. ….on pets and prisoners….. – daily prompt: surface
233. The Dark Night – Sithu’s
234. The Wandering Poet – Patterns across the surface
235. NAMASTE. – Applying to US Universities as an Indian Student.
236. Glorious! voice coaching – Earthfast – a poem by A. S. J. Tessimond
237. Lantern Words – Never To Surface