Alexis: Today we have author of twisted fairytale romance, Jessica Aspen. Be sure to leave a comment for your chance to win her giveaway!
Jessica: Hi
Alexis! Thanks for letting me guest on your blog and talk about Prince
by Blood and Bone. I had fun answering your questions and I’m excited
to be giving away an e-copy of book one, The Dark Huntsman, A Fantasy Romance of the
Black Court.
Alexis: That
sounds great! So when did you know you wanted to be a writer?
Jessica:
When I was very small I remember finding out that people actually wrote the
books that I loved my mother reading to me. It was a revelation, and I
instantly added author to my list of career choices that before had been mommy
and artist. I’ve managed to achieve both mommy and author but sadly, my
artistic endeavors will never earn career status.
Alexis: But
writing is an art, so technically you have already achieved both :-) What made you chose your title for this
latest release?
Jessica:
This is the second book in the Tales of the Black Court series of twisted
fantasy romance, so I had a real challenge thinking up a title. In the first
book, The Dark Huntsman, Logan’s uncles are talking about the evil
queen and one of them says, “She’ll ride him, Angus. Ride him ‘til he’s tied to
her by blood and bone.” I knew that the queen had cursed her own son, Kian, and
the idea of a curse that permeated a person to the bone stayed with me. When
your own mother turns you into a monster, it’s horrible, but despite the
overwhelming rage of Kian’s beast he’s a prince to his very marrow. Hence, Prince
by Blood and Bone, the title to my version of Beauty and the Beast.
Alexis: I
love that. Which authors inspire(d) you?
Jessica: To
write this book? Well, I’d have to say all the fairy tales I’ve ever read, especially
George McDonald’s classics and the yellow, red and blue books of fairy tales.
Jim Butcher’s urban fae series, The Dresden Files, and Laurel K.
Hamilton’s Merry Gentry series both got me thinking about modern life and the
fae. But as for which authors inspire me in general, I read far and wide from
Jane Austin’s romances to JF Penn’s dark thrillers.
Alexis: That
is quote a spread of writers. Everyone has their own writing process…how they
come up with ideas, how they name their characters, how they choose the
setting. Can you describe your writing process?
Jessica:
Each book has been a little different. While The Dark Huntsman wasn’t
my first book published, it was the first book I finished. It was a seat-of-the-pants
novel. It took a few years and lots of edits to iron out all the learning
curves, and since then I’ve learned the value of at least a skeleton plot when
writing a long novel. But I still don’t really know or understand my characters
until I’m in the middle of writing them.
Most authors do this the other way
around, they use character sheets, interview their characters, and know
everything about everyone before they start writing. I know where my plot is
going. I know the ending and the fairy tale I’m structuring the story around. I
know all the big events, or at least I think I know them, sometimes they change
during the writing. But my characters only truly reveal their hearts when I’m
in the middle of writing their big scenes, the heartbreaks and they successes
tell me why they are feeling and reacting the way they do, so I can’t do a
complete character work-up until after the rough draft has been written.
As for names, for this series I’ve
been depending heavily on traditional Celtic names for my fae characters.
Prince Kian’s name comes from the Irish story of Cian, but I was worried about
the tendency of readers to pronounce the C as an S, so I changed it to a K. The
legendary Cian is reputed to have shifted into a boar as a means of escape, so
it worked naturally that my Prince Kian’s Gift would be shapeshifting. Though
the legends inspire me and infuse my writing in a myriad of ways you won’t find
many similarities in my story to the Irish legends, but you will find many
similarities to the classic tale, Beauty and the Beast.
Alexis: I
have to admit, that is my favorite fairy tale. What are you working on now?
Jessica: I’m
writing book three of The Tales of the Black Court, Broken
Mirror. This book completes the cycle of the three MacElvy witches who
fall afoul of the Black Queen and find romance with enemy fae. While I plan to
write more books in this series of twisted fairy tales and more about the Black
Court, I also plan to keep the series arcing in trilogies so the book after Broken
Mirror will be book four in The Tales of the Black Court, but
will also start a new trilogy arc.
In the meantime, I just released a
new venture this week, a contemporary ghost story called Ghosts of Christmas Past.
It’s a short, spooky Christmas story, nothing like my twisted fairy tales but
writing fantasy can get very involved. Sometimes it’s nice to step into the
modern world. Of course, then I’m refreshed and ready to tackle the next one,
so on to Broken Mirror!
Alexis: Check out the
blurb for Prince by Blood and Bone!
Prince
by Blood and Bone
A
Fantasy Romance of the Black Court
A rebellious prince, a
reluctant witch, and a mysterious prophecy
twisted together in a
tale of Beauty and the Beast
Trapped in an
underground palace Prince Kian must remain a beast, or give in to the queen’s
plan to strip him of his powers. But Kian refuses to submit to his mother's
evil plan and is determined to escape both his prison and his curse—even if it
means dabbling in witch's magic.
On the run for most of
her life, Bryanna MacElvy has never learned to use her healing Gift. When she’s
pulled by Kian’s spell into his prison, the prince sees the golden witch as his
salvation. Refusing to let her, or to accept she is incapable of curing him,
Kian offers her a terrible bargain—heal him, or give up her freedom forever.
Their lives entwined by
fate, the prince must learn to love a human and Bryanna must learn to trust
herself—or risk losing their freedom, his powers, and their passion, to the
evil of the Black Queen.
Dare to enter Jessica
Aspen’s world of steamy, fantasy romance in book two of her fairy tale trilogy:
Tales of the Black Court
Purchase
Links:
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About Jessica
Jessica Aspen has always wanted to
be spirited away to a world inhabited by elves, were-wolves and sexy men who
walk on the dark side of the knife. Luckily, she’s able to explore her fantasy
side and delve into new worlds by writing paranormal romance. She loves
indulging in dark chocolate, reading eclectic novels, and dreaming of ocean vacations,
but instead spends most of her time, writing, walking the dog, and hiking in
the Colorado Rockies. You can find out more information and read about
Jessica’s paranormal romances at http://JessicaAspen.com
To
sign up for Jessica Aspen’s new release email please go to: http://eepurl.com/zs4Sj
To learn
more about Jessica visit her here:
Website: http://jessicaaspen.com
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/JessicaAspen
Pinterest:
http://pinterest.com/jessicaaspen/
Join the Jessica Aspen mailing list! Get the scoop on new releases, sales, plus the chance to
win ARCs and participate in special giveaways. When I send you an email,
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Alexis: Don’t forget for a
chance to win an ecopy of the first in this series, The Dark Huntsman, be
sure to leave a comment. Good luck!
HI Alexis! Thanks again for the interview. Love the blog!
ReplyDeleteThank you. It's great having you. I love what you do with fairy tales :-)
DeleteThanks Alexis, twisting them up is so much fun!
ReplyDeleteLooks interesting
ReplyDeletebn100candg at hotmail dot com