Hey there folks.

Here we are ready to kick off the start of the week again with something really special.

(Two things actually!)

Firstly, from tomorrow onwards up until the end of November, I will be participating in National Blog Posting Month and will be linking up with fellow bloggers over at Cheer Peppers – NANO POBLANO. This will mean that in addition to the regular schedule of daily Author Interviews throughout in the week, I will also be posting poetry regularly throughout the month, so you get double the fun if poetry is also your thing!

Please take the time to check out all of the fantastic websites on the Nano Poblano roster and subscribe to them if you don’t already do so – we have many artists, writers, authors, reviewers, poets, photographers and other talented people on there, so you are bound to find articles that you will enjoy that will tickle your fancy.

Cheer Peppers – 2016 Poblano Roll

And now on to the main event for tonight.

May I present to you all the very prolific, talented and award winning multi-genre author Marie Lavender, as she talks to us about her previously published works, her amazing work ethic, her latest book that hits the shelves mid-November and we also squeeze in some chat about writing advice.

Have a great evening and thanks for reading.

 

Hi there Marie, thank you spending some quality time with us today and for being our distinguished guest.

Let’s start with your books. You have now racked up twenty-two and counting, along with many awards along the way! This is a phenomenal achievement and you should be very proud of yourself, you are a prolific hero in the making. You have published these books under several pen names in the genres of historical romance, contemporary romance, romantic suspense, paranormal romance, fantasy, science fiction, mystery/thriller, literary fiction and poetry too. Do you tend to write multiple books at the same time or do you focus on one to completion and then move on to the next one? It would be fascinating to find out more about your processes and your philosophies when it comes to being a multi-genre author, so please elaborate further, we are all ears!

Wow! Thank you for your kind praise. 🙂 I guess I never intended to be a multi-genre author. I simply stumbled into it by accident. The muse has its own ideas. But to answer your question, I do a bit of both actually. I tend to find myself distracted by many different stories, and at some point, I just make myself focus on one in order to complete it. Once I’m ready to launch into that project, I work on it in my free time, either by writing the scenes or chapters left or researching different topics which tie into the project.

As for how I stay a multi-genre author, eventually I just decided not to worry about pinning stories down and I let the characters do what they’re supposed to do. Of course, I may have a general idea of what category the novel is, but I also allow the story to play out, and when it’s finished, that’s a good point to start worrying about where it should fit genre-wise. I often get surprised by how the story turns out. Last year, I actually wrote and published a children’s fantasy, something I’d never done before. That was certainly a unique experience.

You also mentioned to me that you have a new book coming out in mid-November called “Blue Vision.” It appears to be a Sci-Fi romance offering that has a potentially bleak outcome on the horizon of an antagonist hell bent on harming our lovers and the world that they hold dear. What kind of story arc can we expect from your lead protagonists Brooke Sanders and Colin Fielding, as their adventure unfolds bringing them closer together amidst the crisis that they both face?

Well, I don’t want to give too much away. Let’s just say Brooke encounters Colin in a forest in the middle of winter. He has some unique characteristics compared to other humans. Suffice it to say there’s a lot of mystery involved here and Brooke finds herself entangled in some perilous circumstances she never thought were possible.

Finally in relation to your published works, I notice that in addition to your own published books, you have contributed to several anthologies. How did these collaborations come about? Did you fancy broadening your horizons by publishing in collections with others or is this because you had stories that you were unable to incorporate under your existing pen names?

I stumbled into those as well. I became a part of this writing community, PnPAuthors, and they were running some writing contests. I began submitting some of my poetry and a couple of stories. Luckily enough, I ended up in quite a few of their anthologies, and one romantic poem, titled “Lovers Like Us”, was a featured winner and on the first page of Poets & Writers in Action. Because of that, you’ll see my name listed on the book cover. I also got involved in one more anthology by another group, so I wrote a story called Second Chance Heart for it. Unfortunately, the project fell through. On the upside, I ended up releasing it on my own in October of last year.

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

I think plotting everything out can be challenging. I don’t exactly like to box myself in, and writing as a pantster is more comfortable for me. Also, some action scenes can be difficult at times because you must ensure that it makes sense in reality. When I wrote about duels in my historical romance series, I studied up and watched a lot of YouTube videos about fencing.

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

I have many favorite authors, but I tend to be heavily inspired by authors who aren’t afraid to go against genre expectations. They tell it like it is for a character instead of toeing the line. They take risks, and it’s often rewarding. A few specific author names I can give you are Nora Roberts, Linda Lee Williams and Kris Tualla. I respect what they’ve done with their fiction, and I hope I can always be so courageous in my own writing.

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

Well, I do a lot of online research. But I’m picky about my sources. I want them to be legitimate. Sometimes I do research at the library, or buy a book related to the topic at hand. I research specific cities where the story is located, and I find points of interest which relate to the tale. If I’m writing a historical novel, I want it to be as authentic to the time period as possible, so I research all aspects of the experience – speech patterns, entertainment, historical events, fashion – anything that will flesh out the picture playing out on the page. I even try to find journal or diary entries from that year or surrounding years in which people talked about life then. I really try to capture the way it was.

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

I guess I was always obsessed with the written word. I would comb through bookshelves anywhere I saw them. I was fascinated by all the stories I found. But, always, ever since I was a child, tales were playing out in my head. It just made sense to write them down whenever I could, to create a clean slate for an all new bunch of wild stories.

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

I really just try to give myself a break. But you’re your own worst critic, right? I just try to keep my mind off the project at hand, take a rest, and if the story calls to me again, I’ll get back into it. It also doesn’t hurt to use writing exercises or work on a different story entirely.

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

Oh my God…please be patient! This virtue will save you over and over again.

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

I read a lot, or I spend quality time with my fiancé. We hang out and watch movies. I enjoy cooking meals too. And I’m kind of a shopping freak, so keeping credit cards away from me is probably a good idea. LOL.

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

It seems like I always have something planned. I have a historical romance/family saga, Upon Your Love, which is also book three of the Heiresses in Love Series, and that novel is currently with the editor at my publisher. So, I hope to see that out sometime in early 2017. And right now, I’m doing my author edits of a contemporary romance/romantic drama collection titled Directions of the Heart. It should be ready for beta readers soon! Early next year, I hope to finish up a paranormal thriller collection called Awakening. Additionally, I plan on finishing Blood Instincts, a paranormal romance/urban fantasy and book two of the Blood at First Sight Series. I’m currently 72,000 words into it. So…yep, I have a lot going on!

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

Sure. What I often suggest is persistence and perseverance. Don’t be afraid to try something new. Don’t be afraid to go after your dreams with a full heart. And never, ever give up. Only you’ll be disappointed if you quit, and do you really want all those naysayers to win? Write, not for money or fame, but because you can’t imagine doing anything else for the rest of your life. I know you can do it, and I wish you a ton of success!

And that’s a wrap! Thank you for allowing us to spend time with you Marie, we can’t wait to delve more into the worlds of your books 🙂

Bio:-

Bestselling multi-genre author of “UPON YOUR RETURN” and 21 other books. March 2016 Empress of the Universe title – winner of the “Broken Heart” themed contest and the “I Love You” themed contest on Poetry Universe. “SECOND CHANCE HEART” and “A LITTLE MAGICK” placed in the TOP 10 on the 2015 P&E Readers’ Poll. Nominated in the TRR Readers’ Choice Awards for Winter 2015. Poetry winner of the 2015 PnPAuthors Contest. The Versatile Blogger Award for 2015. Honorable Mention in the 2014 BTS Red Carpet Book Awards. Finalist and Runner-up in the 2014 MARSocial’s Author of the Year Competition. Honorable mention in the January 2014 Reader’s Choice Award. Liebster Blogger Award for 2013 and 2014. Top 10 Authors on AuthorsDB.com. Winner of the Great One Liners Contest on the Directory of Published Authors.

Marie Lavender lives in the Midwest with her family and three cats. She has been writing for over twenty years. She has more works in progress than she can count on two hands. Since 2010, Marie has published 22 books in the genres of historical romance, contemporary romance, romantic suspense, paranormal romance, fantasy, mystery/thriller, literary fiction and poetry. She has also contributed to several anthologies. Her current series are The Heiresses in Love Series, The Magick Series, The Code of Endhivar Series and The Blood at First Sight Series.

Blurb for Blue Vision (Marie’s latest book to be released November 15, 2016)

“Brooke Sanders just wants to get away from her life for awhile. A remote cabin in Montana fits the bill. She doesn’t expect to encounter a mysterious stranger with unusual blue eyes, or events that cannot be explained…

Colin Fielding is on a mission – scout a planet and return home to Endhivar. Simple really. What he doesn’t anticipate is that fate has a pretty twisted sense of humor. Suddenly, this human calls to him, every part of him, like the call of a true mate, and he can’t deny the connection as he gets closer to her.

Little do they know, someone is out to do them harm, as well as the world Brooke holds so dear. Can they stop what’s coming before it’s too late? Or will the universe lose a perfect gem?”

You can connect with Marie on the following Social Media channels:-

Amazon Author Page:- Marie Lavender – Amazon Author Page
Blog:- I Love Romance Blog – Marie Lavender
Facebook:- Author Marie Lavender (FB)
Goodreads:- Marie Lavender (Goodreads Author)
Google Plus:- Marie Lavender Author (Google Plus)
LinkedIn:- Marie Lavender – Author (LinkedIn)
Twitter:- Marie Lavender – Author (Twitter)
Website:- Marie Lavender – Multi-Genre Author – Exploring worlds one page at a time…
YouTube:- Marie Lavender – Author (YouTube channel)

You can buy her books here:-

Buy Marie Lavender’s books in Canada

Buy Marie Lavender’s books in the UK/Europe

Buy Marie Lavender’s books in the US/Rest of the World

Still want more? Well, Marie is very generous with the amount of quality books that she is putting out in the world. For more articles relating to the theme of ‘Generous’ then click on the links below:-

1. GENEROUS – THE BACKBONES – Rainbow
2. Ignite Me – jessicasblog45
3. Generous – Blessed Moments -n- Memories
4. shame – A Southern wedding: part 1
5. The War Eagles Air Museum: A museum of aviation – Settle in El Paso
6. life is great despite its troubles – Give me what I need
7. Travel Much? – Make your own Pumpkin Spice
8. Light Motifs – Fairly Generous Portions
9. We Need Direction! – Sunken Thought
10. Giggles & Tales – The Daily Prompt – Generous!
11. Michel Montecrossa Blog – Featured Art: ‘Bright Earth Born’ – painting & text by Michel Montecrossa
12. Crapload of Words – Just Don’t
13. LadyLebz – WHY THE MOON SHINES AT NIGHT
14. Generous: Successful People – Shelby’s Starlit Crossing
15. What is it to be Generous? – Inner Light
16. artifiswords – GENEROUS
17. New Bike Day. – Stranger than Fiction.
18. The Fifteenth Concession – Not An Attention Whore
19. Generous? – Pippakin Talks Cats, Dogs, Teeth and Claws
20. I Was Nominated (and Accept) – Making Sense of Complications
21. Speak Now Storyteller – The Girl and the Lion
22. Twisted Roads of Madness – Day 135 – Daily Prompt – Generous – 50 Word Story Expanded
23. Purposive Writer – Grateful for the Space
24. When we give back… – The Mystic Crunchflakes
25. Diary Theo Herbots // Dagboek Theo Herbots – Theo Herbots TV
26. She gave and gave – ilinias
27. One cutting parcel – Don’t hold your breath
28. Too what? – writemebad
29. Samantha Linda – Me: “And I give you…
30. Lost Property Repository – Roll over Roll over
31. Annette’s place – Daily prompt/generous/9/23/2016
32. Teach As Generously As You Learn – NeatSuites
33. Stutter-Stepping Heart – Generous to a Fault?
34. Success Inspirers’ World – Good to be generous
35. a bliss of birds – one day, each moment, every second
36. Eden of Knowledge – Be a generous teacher
37. Common Pursuit – Karim
38. Success Inspirers’ World – A generous heart
39. @ChrisBrownOnAir – The Research Behind Generosity:by Stewardship Team on July 13, 2016 money
40. Generous beauty fill your soul – Serendipitous Web Life
41. Fluffy Pool – Rich Old Bones
42. We’re all going on a summer holiday! – Just me and us blog
43. For Much Deliberation – Generous…
44. We Have A Lot Of Stuff – A Little Piece of My Mind
45. Generous – Vermont Book Works
46. witchlike – Return to the Underworld
47. Twisted Roads of Madness – Day 135 – Daily Prompt – Generous – 50 Word Story
48. Generous – calliemm
49. My Simple Blog – Generous
50. Splendippity – Batter up!
51. 83 Unsung Heroes – Spare A Little Change?
52. The Generosity of Entropy – Sands Stars
53. Michael J. Fite – How Can Being Generous With Your Encouraging Words Can Impact Others?
54. Free Fiction MOOC – English Lit Geek
55. “Ultra-lite” Backpacking – ThruHikeR
56. The Daily Post – Progressing into Solitude – Jump To Generous
57. What does Generous mean to you? – Cooking with the DeGroffs
58. Writing and Works – Pieces Of Me
59. The Question of Awards – April’s Perspective
60. Autism in Our Nest – The Most Generous Gift: Time
61. The Practice Pit – Generous
62. manvsloneliness – Day 80: The Man and the Predicament of Giving; ‘Generous’
63. Afscheid van een dierbare – Theo Herbots TV
64. Mr. Generous – Caillen James –Author
65. By Reason Of Sanity – Generous
66. A Joy To Write – Generous
67. Generous Artists – writingboxblog
68. The Sleeping Reading Beauty – Without Expecting Anything In Return
69. The Hole dug by Wells Fargo Bank – The Mono-Economy of the New Millennium
70. Expectation (A poem about ‘generosity’) – THE COFFEE CHRONICLE BLOG
71. Life with Jess – Be Willing
72. Be Generous – emotionsoflife2016
73. Love is Kindness – Occasional Dreams
74. Frozen heart – Awordseeker
75. The Generous Tree – Writcrit
76. Letters From Then – Generous With What We Cannot See
77. Generous – Postcard from a Pigeon
78. Generous – genusrosa
79. For You – A lot from Lydia
80. erhynireh – A Captured Heart
81. Zombie Flamingos – It’s the (second) most wonderful time of the year!!
82. DinamicDynasty – Generous
83. The Gad About Town – A Generous Dose of Hate
84. Ellen de Generous?? ⋆ Obsolete Childhood
85. Marc Townsend Author – Being Generous to Your Fellow Man (especially authors)
86. Generosity..The Grace of Life!! – zeny’s.words
87. Autumn’s Embrace, A Poem – Sumyanna Writes
88. Beyond The Garden – #GirlFriday: Why I love being a Woman
89. GENEROUS – THE BACKBONES – Wandering Soul
90. Le Drake Noir – As the yolk of an egg
91. Insach – Generous
92. Being Generous – Sasha’s Writings
93. The Good Karma – Tales & Trails
94. Generous – aYoKa
95. Generous – Covert Novelist
96. strange(r) – NAMASTE.
97. Making it write – The worm has turned
98. A Quest Of You – Life Confusions
99. If a Small Child Can Understand, Then So Can You – Odds and Ends
100. I fear – Leaking Ink
101. Daily Post Prompt: Generous – The Happy Wordcrafter
102. There Are More Poets than Stars in the Firmament – take-out menu 15 minutes or less
103. Her generous smiles! – Reflections!!
104. Generous – disue
105. Give me what I need – life is great
106. The happy Quitter! – A Generous Waste of Time
107. Path of Kindness – Meg’s Magical Musings
108. Thinking generously – Caving Writing
109. Life Touches You Like That – atrangizindagieksafar
110. 3 Day quote challenge: Day 3 – Rhea Khaira
111. White-Collar Purgatory – Introducing…the Coworker
112. Something – indisputably inconclusive
113. wordsareallihavesite – Daily Prompt:Generous
114. Daily Prompt – Generous – Wild Crazy Beautiful Life
115. Generous – citySonnet
116. Blank – indisputably inconclusive
117. kStan(ly) kSays – everything he had he gave
118. Mainline_Matter – Sodium Generous
119. Possession – NOOKS&CRANNIES
120. speaking up for myself – Hear my Prayer
121. lifelessons – a blog by Judy Dykstra-Brown – Time Is Generous in its Offerings, but Has its Limits.
122. Enough for Heaven? – A Mile In My Shoes
123. The Night I Was a Dishcloth – Sascha Darlington’s Microcosm Explored
124. Words On A Pole – Generosity Killed The Cat
125. Your GENE(s) are quite (a)ROUS(ing) – Insidious Temptation
126. Honeycrisp – I’m a Writer, Yes, I Am!
127. MY ENDURING BONES – Always Welcomed Here
128. THE ICONOPHILE – Now that the Summer is over…
129. Generous Harvest – Lillith’s Landing
130. charlottesville winter – Her Call
131. Martha L Shaw – MONEY CANNOT BUY . . .
132. charlesewaugh – Generous Nature
133. Generous – Random Thoughts and Musings
134. 8 Traits of Toxic People – SUCCESS STRATEGIES
135. Your Nibbled News (c) 2016 YNN – Generous supply of bottles dwindled
136. debooWORKS – Helping Hands
137. Generosity in Germany – bananas in heaven
138. the generous proposal – Love it Now
139. Full-Time – Live On
140. BE GENEROUS – breathingpark
141. Relive – Life at 17
142. Generous – Daily Prompt – ladyleemanila
143. People Vs. Land – Second Time Blogger
144. Think About It – The Mask
145. cahla’s tawkin’ – Generous
146. This Most Generous Season – My Second Act, Scene One
147. Be generous, to yourself – Grounded in Fantasy
148. Suddenly Single in Marin – Marin County vs San Francisco: a tale of two car washes
149. The More We Give, the More We Receive – Why Blog? – Create to Discover New Ideas & New Creations – Jacki Kellum
150. A Good Heart Loves Too Much. – LIVING AND LEARNING
151. Turn That Radio Up – Forgiveness
152. Colds and Running – Sneakers on Pavement
153. Booknvolume – Open Heart- Open Mind – #Generosity #Kindness #Compassion in #Poetry
154. Kate Murray – Generous
155. Selfish Sam – Just Writing!
156. Awl and Scribe – Generous
157. Generous Nature Gone Wrong – Writer’s Blog
158. Duchess Xenon’s – Too Much is Lethal
159. Generosity you said! – lovelyricism
160. Michel Montecrossa Blog – Featured Art: ‘Generous Freedom’ – painting by Michel Montecrossa
161. The Cat Chronicles – Daily Feline Prompt: The Generous Feline
162. Generous Girl – Toastmaster Contest – 3rd Place – passiondesignerblog
163. Lost Property Repository – Hey aren’t you?
164. kristinakoti – How do I schedule?
165. Haiku: Generous Moon – whippetwisdom.com
166. Chronicles of an Anglo Swiss – Generous – not any more
167. 79 days before – Painted in words
168. Devil Doll Musings – Say Anything
169. The Cliffhanger Chronicle – Fulsomely summed
170. We have been too generous over our lives. – susiesopinions
171. Relax – A rose by any other name..
172. Five beach destinations that get me jazzed – art of being fabulous
173. She does not know. – T.A. Hoyt
174. I wrote a book. Now what? – I’m just me
175. Boring Bug – What is a mirror reflection? What does it say?
176. thelonerose – Generous
177. for art lovers – Generous
178. Stick with me! – Elaine’s Bloggers Paradise
179. Remembrance – Bits of Poems
180. Generous – grandmotherexperience
181. More Than Enough – Pete Gardner Psalms
182. Travel Much? – Lenin’s Arctic View
183. domestic diva – A Magic like No Other
184. vacation time – Justus Creek
185. ….on pets and prisoners….. – daily prompt: generous
186. Frank Prem – The MS Society Sparrow
187. Autumnal Equinox: The Piano and The Sixpence! – Chronicles of an Orange-Haired Woman!
188. A Vibrant Palette – Understanding people
189. The Wandering Poet – A LOT of bubble tea
190. Gomke – Khayal
191. Lantern Words – So Generous