Author Spotlight & Book Release ~ INSPIRED by Danielle E. Shipley

I have a special treat on the blog today. I’m sharing Danielle E. Shipley’s just released, INSPIRED

And we have a giveaway plus an interview with the author. 😉

Here’s a peek:

Inspired

by Danielle E. Shipley

Release Date: March 17, 2014

Target Reader: Adult

Keywords: Fiction

Description

For a muse like Lucianíel, one story’s end is another’s beginning.

In the wake of his author’s sudden death, Luc takes ownership of her surviving creations—four fantastical characters with tales yet to be told—saving them from unwritten lives crumbling around them and giving them a second chance at a literary future.

Luc finds that chance in the unsuspecting mind of Annabelle Iole Gray, a quirky teen with her head in the clouds, nose in a book, and imagination ripe for a brilliant muse’s inspiration.

Or so he hopes.

Neither Luc nor Annabelle, however, realize all they’ve undertaken. Even with a to-write list including accounts of a shape-shifting cat creature, gentle knight-in-training, vigilante skater girl, and a mystery boy smothering in unspoken fear, the most remarkable saga created between author and muse just may turn out to be one stranger than fiction.

Their own.

Let’s talk to Danielle about the book:

LM: How long have you been writing?

DS: Pretty much since I realized books didn’t just show up in Mommy’s hands for her to read to me – they’re made, and anyone with a grasp of words can make them! So I started grasping around age 5 or 6, and never let go.

LM: Did you always aspire to be an author?

DS: An author just for fun? Yes, always. A professional author? Not ‘til the realization in my late teens that authorhood is the only career I’ve got a heart for. So since then, I’ve followed the passion with everything I’ve got.

LM: Can you tell us what inspired you to write the story? 😉

DS: My favorite gang of muses: My characters! Most of the people I make up either don’t like me much or just don’t care, but a handful of them and I get along…well, as much as we get along with anybody. XD So I wanted to show what our crazy relationship is like, just with a little bit more of an actual plot. Trust me, no reader wants to wade through an accurate transcript of our nonsensical interactions.

LM: Who is your favorite character and why?

DS: Aw, that’s tough! Even assuming we’re narrowing it down to just the “Inspired” cast, I stand most in awe of Luc, but Wilbur’s the sweetest, while it’s so much fun to let my attitude out in Uri. If all the characters were about to fall off a mental cliff or something, though, I’d probably grab for Yves. I guess I feel the most maternal about him, since he looks like the character most desperately in need of a mother’s hug!

LM: Are you working on any new projects you’d like to share with us?

DS: April is Camp NaNoWriMo (the non-November version of National Novel Writing Month), and one of my other favorite muses (hi, Mom!) recently sparked some big plans for a book which just may involve some faces made familiar through “Inspired”. I’m excited to zoom through the first draft and see what the fictional folk do on the page!

LM: Plotter or Pantser?

DS: Plotter. Hard core. If I don’t have my 20-plus pages of chapter-by-chapter outline, I don’t feel half ready.

LM: What books are you currently reading, if any?

DS: It’s been a Book Two kind of reading scene, these days. Just finished Maggie Stiefvater’s “Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle #2)” and Rachel Bach’s “Honor’s Knight (The Paradox Trilogy #2)”; currently a few pages into A.G. Howard’s “Unhinged” (sequel to “Splintered”); and I’ve been working my way through a leisurely re-read of Stephen Lawhead’s “Scarlet (King Raven Trilogy #2)” for months, ‘cause it’s always pleasant to have a Robin Hood retelling chillin’ out in the background.

LM: Twitter or Facebook?

DS: Lately, Twitter. Technologically speaking, it tends to frustrate me less.

LM: Fantasy or Paranormal?

DS: Both! A wizard and a vampire time travel into a bar… I will read about that bar. I love a good genre-mash.

LM: Any tips you’d like to give aspiring writers hoping to be published one day?

DS: Write whatever the heck you want! Don’t be too hard on your work, but always push yourself to make it better. Don’t worry about what everybody else is writing; you do you. Know that reaching your goals may well take longer than the building of Rome, but hey, every little brick helps to keep the dream alive. And only let life make you bitter if you’re confident you can channel that vitriol into a smashing story.

LM: When you’re not writing, you are?

DS: Twitchy over the fact that I’m not writing. Working on production prep for my self-pubbed projects. Wasting time online. Squealing over BBC’s “Sherlock” with my cross-country BFF. Weeping my characters’ tears as they weather some out-of-book storm. Talking out the blues with my mom. Seriously wishing I were writing.

LM: Tea or Coffee?

DS: Tea! A friend got me hooked on a site that lets you create customs blends. I’ve got two character-inspired teas I’m drinking by the pot already, and there shall be more.

LM: Summer or Winter?

DS: Summer. I despise the cold and early darkness of winter. It kills my soul. …though it’s hoodies and tea season, so there’s that.

LM: I despise the cold too! Early bird or Night Owl?

DS: Night owl. I mean, I’d love to start my day early, but not if it means I have to consistently be in bed before midnight. Besides, my muse enjoys poking me between 1 and 2am.

LM: Favorite time to write?

DS: I like to get started first thing, otherwise distractions will push the start time back ‘til I’ve lost the morning. (I guess my brain really does see 1am as the magical genesis hour, because by the time we cross into the afternoon, my day feels half over – never mind that there are way more waking hours ahead of me than behind.) On the other hand, once I’ve started, I don’t want to stop, so the pm hours become my favorite, too. So I guess the short answer would have been “when I’m awake”. X)

Thanks so much, Danielle. 😉

Danielle is also having a GIVEAWAY!

ENTER HERE!

Danielle E. Shipley’s first novelettes told the everyday misadventures of wacky kids like herself. …Or so she thought. Unbeknownst to them all, half of her characters were actually closeted elves, dwarves, fairies, or some combination thereof. When it all came to light, Danielle did the sensible thing: Packed up and moved to Fantasy Land, where daily rent is the low, low price of her heart, soul, blood, sweat, tears, firstborn child, sanity, and words; lots of them. She’s also been known to spend short bursts of time in the real-life Chicago area with the parents who homeschooled her and the two little sisters who keep her humble. When she’s not living the highs and lows of writing young adult novels, she’s probably blogging about it.

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Twitter: @DESHIPLEY

April 11, 2014 | Categories: Author, Books, J Taylor Publishing, New Releases | Tags: Arts, Author, Blog tour INSPIRED, Danielle E. Shipley, fantasy novel, Fiction, INSPIRED, J. Taylor Publishing, New Release 2014 | 3 Comments