Author Spotlight: Mignon Supnet

This month, I'd like to introduce a young writer who has published a non-fiction book that will speak to your spirit.  Whether writing fiction or non-fiction, or just spending time sharpening her author skills, Mignon Supnet has found heartfelt reward in the journey.  Read on!

- Hi, Mignon!  Would you mind telling us a little bit about yourself?  Where were you born and raised?   

Hi Richelle.  Thank you for having me here.

I was born in Philippines and I did most of my growing up in Sparks, Nevada.

- How did you get your start in writing?  Was it a life-long passion or a more recently developed talent?

I’ve always enjoyed writing.  For the longest time, writing was a way I could escape, by pouring my heart into my journals. I found that for me, writing was easier than speaking.  Words would flow from pen to paper and it felt like a release. 

But… I think that as an author, my writing is still developing.  I consider myself a complete newbie and I’m finding that it’s not just about putting words together and writing whatever you want, there is a craft to writing for the masses and I’m busy learning and sharpening those skills.

- What genre and audience do you typically write for? 

My first book was non-fiction—about Spirituality.  It’s a self-account of my journey, but also a reference for other people finding themselves waking up to a new… perspective J.  

- Could you give us a list of your books and a short description? 

It’ll be a quick list J  I just have one so far.  Here it is!

Spirit 101: An Overview for Beginner Seekers into the World of New Age Spirituality

The book is an account of my experiences and what I’ve learned going through this process of ‘waking up.’ The shifts I’ve been through have been so pivotal, but also laced with a lot of frustration that I wanted to share what I’ve learned  and discovered. 

My hope for the book is to make the journey easier for someone going through the same things I did.

Where can this title be found for purchase?

Available at Amazon

- Since you’ve put your work out there for others to read and enjoy, what has been your most rewarding experience?

I got an email from a reader and she thanked me for writing the book.  She shared that she’d also lost her father and could understand and relate to everything I was talking about in the book. 

Her words were so heartfelt, and I was so deeply touched. It felt like an angel had been sent to me. It really lifted me up during a time when I was seriously questioning my abilities…  

- Who would you cite as an influence on your writing style?   Do you have a best-loved novel?

I love JK Rowling’s writing and I wish I could write like her.

 I completely fell in love with Harry Potter and his entire world.  I love how I felt I was part of everything in that story.  I wasn’t just reading it, I was experiencing everything—the sights, the smells, the awe and wonder of it all.  It had me going on many sleepless nights trying to finish ‘just one more page.’

As far as influence, I would say that my biggest influence is my best friend—NANCY BROOKS.  She’s an author as well and she’s always encouraging me about my own voice and style. She also coaches me, shows me tips, and gets me past my writing blocks by acting as my sounding board.  She’s awesome!

- Any projects planned for the near future that you can share to perk our interest?

As of now, I’m taking a step away from non-fiction writing.  However, I do have this nagging want to do an Angel book in the future, but the time isn’t quite right yet.

In the meantime, I’ve entered into fiction writing and I’m having a blast.  My mind is constantly on overtime thinking about the story I’m building and I’m loving having this other world to go to.  It is so much fun!

- I have to throw in my own curious question; do you have a favorite quote? 

Someone once told me that ‘everything we’re going through now, is only to get us prepared for our better future.’ I think about this advice/quote a lot and it has gotten me through some difficult times.

The quote is reassuring and keeps me going.

All the good, bad, and ugly that I’ve seen and experienced are the very things that will take me into my better future and I can’t wait!     

- Thanks so much for your time, Mignon, and best of luck with your writing endeavours.  Is there a way for any interested parties to keep informed about your accomplishments as an author?  Do you maintain a website or an author blog?

 Ooh, yes. Thank you for asking.  My primary site is Books, Blogs, and Bits where I like to post author interviews and other highlights. Eventually I may start to include reviews, but I just haven’t had a lot of time to read, now that I’m spending most of my free time, writing.

I really believe in supporting other authors and artists of all mediums and I’m honoured whenever I can feature an interview.

I also have Mignon’s Place, where I post more personal thoughts and experiences and where I like to give out free downloads whenever I can J

Here are the links:

Books, Blogs, and Bits:  http://books.iggylife.com

Mignon’s Place:  http://iggylife.com

- Is there anything else you would like to share with us?

Becoming a writer has… I can’t explain it, but it feels like, I’ve grown and come alive in ways I didn’t even realize that I needed/wanted.  I have had awesome opportunities like this interview, that I would have never had before!

If there is anyone else out there, contemplating becoming a writer, an author, or pursuing another dreams, do yourself a favour and listen to your heart. Give your dreams a chance and see what happens.   

I just want to say THANK YOU.  This has been such a great experience!

________________________________________________________

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Eena, The Curse of Wanyaka Cave

by Richelle E. Goodrich

Giveaway ends April 10, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Author Spotlight: Sonny Goten

This month, I would like to introduce a mysterious writer who has produced a number of books ranging in genre--from horror/thriller to fantasy to poetry.  Whether working on her own or in collaboration with other writers, Sonny Goten is enthusiastic about her work.  Read on!

Hi, Sonny!  Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?  Where were you born and raised?   

Ah, that’s the first question always being asked. Unfortunately, I’m writing under a pseudonym for a reason, so I apologize but I won’t reveal too much about my identity. Besides that, there is also the question of what is there that I can say that could be of interest.

I’m in my early twenties and at the moment I’m studying Social Sciences. Also, I was raised bilingual, but English was not one of the languages I grew up with, even though my books are all written in this language. No, my journey towards acquiring English was most perilous. I was, of course, taught English at school, but I mainly learned from the TV by watching lots and lots of English dubbed anime (mainly Dragonball Z) with subtitles as a child. So, you see, my first English words were not “How are you?” or “My name is so-and-so.” No, the first things I learned were more akin to “You‘re dead, Kakarot!” and “His power levels are over nine-thousand!” I can almost imagine what my teacher at school must have thought, haha!

As you can see, my life cannot be called in any way extraordinary. In fact, its mundane course might probably have been one of the main reasons why I started writing in the first place.

How did you get involved in writing?  Has it been a life-long passion or is it a more recently developed talent?

I started to write when I learned of fan fiction actually. I came across Fanfiction.net about ten years ago, read some fics, decided that I liked them and started writing my own. Since then, I have mostly pulled away from writing fan fiction, because I wished to broaden my horizon and create my own characters. My old fics can still be found on the internet somewhere, but I’d rather you didn’t look for them, because I wrote them a long time ago when I was young and my command over the English language was… well, quite frankly, atrocious does not begin to describe it.

What genre and audience do you typically write for?  Or does that vary by project?

I must confess, I do not write for an audience, I write mainly for my own pleasure. Of course, any writer who decides to publish his or her work , whether for sale or for free, seeks acknowledgement of some sort, and I am really no different in this respect. But I don’t adapt my style to suit a certain type of reader’s taste. Nor do I confine myself to a single genre. So, yes, I suppose my writings do vary by project, but it depends on my mood as well.

There is one thing that each of the books I published on Amazon and Smashwords (the two places where I put my works up for sale) have in common, however. None of them have a clearly defined HEA. The stories are ambiguous and end either tragically or ‘happy from a certain point of view’ depending on characters‘ perspective and/or reader’s interpretation.

Could you give us a list of your books and a short description of each?

A Game of Keys: This novella is a horror/thriller with certain sci-fi overtones and my very first published project. Similar to the movie ‘Saw’ my main character Connor has been locked up in a room (which is where almost the entire story takes place) and needs to find a way out. In my story, the kidnapper threatens to rape Connor if he can’t find a way out after a certain amount of time. Connor, however, does not give up easily and tries to figure out his kidnapper’s identity, but things get strange quickly from there…

Letters to an Imaginary Friend: This novella is a collection of poetry. The epistolary poems together form a dark story of three friends sliding off into the wrong direction when love and jealousy comes into the picture. The story begins when things have already gone wrong and M., one of the friends, denounces God as an imaginary friend in the first poem, hence the title of the novella.

Cross: This is actually a collection of three very short horror stories that are also included in the updated paperback edition (January 7, 2013) of ‘Letters to an Imaginary Friend’. The main point of Cross is actually to simply convey a certain type of mood. The first story, also titled ‘Cross’, is about a girl taking revenge on her sworn enemy, who is very close to her. The second story ‘Brother Joshua’ is about a monk finding love in a most disturbing way. The third story ’Key’ is about a woman finding another world.

The Fire of Mars: This novel is a collaboration between myself and several other writers. The story actually started off as a round-robin RPG of a sorts on Fanfiction.net which I revised and edited into a novel. The novel is set in 29 AD in Jerusalem but takes great liberty with the historical facts and is peppered with fantasy elements in order to suit the supernatural side that is at play in the story. The story is about the entwined fates of an orphan girl named Hexia, a priest’s daughter called Rachel, a terrorist who calls himself Wrath, and a sex slave who’s named Mau-Iwiw when they struggle for  the power of the Fire Staff.

Where can these titles be found for purchase?

As I said before, I publish my e-books via Amazon and through Smashwords. Smashwords also distributes to other major e-book sellers, such as Barnes & Noble, Sony, Kobo, Apple iBookstore, etc. (Well, just take a look at their website to see for yourself!)

‘The Fire of Mars’ is not available at Smashwords yet, I’m still busy editing that edition in order for it to pass through the meat grinder and it will take a while.

Also, all the paperbacks are available at CreateSpace where I publish them. CreateSpace is a daughter company of Amazon, so all the paperbacks are of course also available at Amazon.

What’s been the most rewarding occurrence since you’ve put your work out there for others to read and enjoy?

Hmm… it’s the feedback from readers, really. It allows me to know whether people liked it or not, and what could perhaps have improved where. Feedback is so important to a writer, I think, because it’s the only way we can know if we did it right or not. Without feedback how can a writer learn? How can (s)he and grow? So, I enjoy the reviews and the emails I’ve gotten from my readers. Even if it’s just a one-word-comment, it’s still a form of interaction, which makes every one of them precious and worth the effort!

Who would you cite as an influence on your writing style?  Any favorite authors?  Do you have a most-loved novel?

There are many great authors and great novels out there, so it’s hard to pick The One. However, lately I’ve been really getting into a fellow self-publisher. Her penname is S. U. Pacat and she’s published two volumes from her ‘Captive Prince’ trilogy through Amazon not so long ago, her second volume ending with a major cliff hanger, so I’ve been getting really hyped up over this story again, because I’m so curious about how it will continue and how it will end!

I stumbled upon ‘Captive Prince’ when it was still a free online fic, and I really loved it. I especially loved how Pacat wrote her character called Laurent, the way the political machinations are woven into this world, and how the characters lie and speak with double meanings so easily and convincingly. Reading all the carefully crafted motives behind every character’s action  really did influence me and made me look at my own writings in a different light.

 What projects do you have planned for the near future?  Anything you can share to perk our interest?

There are plans on the table for a sequel to ‘The Fire of Mars‘ which will take place around 50 years later. Our RPG team has written out a lot of material that can be used, and I’m really enthusiastic about this story, but I‘m not in the habit of making promises, so nothing is definite until the book is published.

I have to throw in my own curious questions; Do you have a favorite quote?  Color?  Character from any book? 

Character from any book? Do you really want me to rant more about Laurent?

Color? Blue, I guess? All my jeans are blue. And Laurent’s eyes too…

Let’s not do the quotes, before my current obsession becomes too apparent here. Hahaha!

Thanks so much for your time, Sonny, and best of luck with your writing endeavours.  Is there a way for any interested parties to keep informed about your accomplishments as an author?  Do you maintain a website or blog?

 You can find me here:

http://sonnygoten.wordpress.com

https://www.facebook.com/SonnyGoten

https://twitter.com/sonnygoten (I use my twitter to rant, so not everything I post there will be about my books, nor will it all be in English.)

 Is there anything else you would like to share?

I must confess I used to be a major slash/yaoi fan, so even though it’s not something that I focus on, you may see streaks of that back into my work. Also, I’m an anime fan (the whole part in this interview dedicated to Dragonball Z might have given that one away…).

Author Spotlight: David Burton

Last month I posted an interview with Darren Worrow, self-published author from the UK -- a friendly character with a comical side .  As I stated in the introduction to his interview, I've discovered many talented and hopeful individuals traveling this road of self-publishing, all with unique tried-and-proven experiences. And these ambitious people have come together in numerous groups and forums.  What a joy it’s been to make new friends, to lend a helping hand, and to learn from them! 

Knowing how powerful word-of-mouth is for the self-published, I decided to interview a few of these authors met online. This month, I'd like to introduce a highly-productive writer who has produced a number of darker, mystery/thriller/supernatural books presently available.  

Meet, David Burton....

- Hi, David!  Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?  Where were you born and raised?   

I was born in Pittsburgh, lived in a small town about 50 miles away until I was 10. Parents divorced and we moved to Florida for 4 years then 3 different high schools, a party year at college, 2 years in Thailand courtesy of the US Army. Was a mechanic for awhile and did some travelling by motorcycle -Mexico, Alaska - then got into building boats. Built sailboats for myself and others, went sailing – Mexico, Tahiti, Hawaii, through the Panama Canal into the Caribbean.  Was a cabinetmaker in Colorado for 14 years and now I'm back in Southern Cal.

- How did you get involved in writing?  Has it been a life-long passion or is it a more recently developed talent?

In high school I had a stern, no-nonsense, brilliant English teacher. He introduced us to “Literature.” Look Homeward Angel, Winesburg, Ohio, To Kill a Mockingbird, and the like. I was interested in writing, but through youthful scatterbrainedness that one kicks themselves in the butt for once they grow up and begin to figure things out, I didn't pursue it. Some years later I remembered what I wanted and here I am.

- What genre and audience do you typically write for?  Or does that vary by project?

Supernatural (vampires lately, but adventures in Hell, also), mystery, thriller,  YA/Adult coming-of-age (Ancient Mariners)

- Could you give us a list of your books and a short description of each?  And where can these titles be found for purchase?  (Click on the image to learn more about that book.)

YOUNG ADULT/Coming-of-age

Ancient Mariners – Ancient Mariners is a dark coming-of-age novel for adults and mature young adults. Beth, 14, and her crew mate, Silas, 45, have lost their families to violence. They sail the S Pacific, seeking solace for their grief. But Death has a task for them. When Beth's best friend joins her in Australia, followed by her abusive father, Beth and Silas discover where Death's journey is leading them.

Hell Cop Series – Hell Cops are hired to go into Hell and retrieve souls sent down by Purgatorial error. Indiana Jones has nothing on Getter and Sneaker.

Hell Cop

The Golden Palace

Sneaker

Hell Cop the bundle – all of the above.

MYSTERY/THRILLER

Fear Killer - A cautionary tale, the psychological suspense novel Fear Killer is the story of a beautiful but timid young woman victimized by an abusive, adulterous husband. She surprises herself by fighting off and killing the attacker. Seeing the fear in his dying eyes, something snaps inside her. She has never made anybody afraid before. She is no longer willing to be a victim. Her need to see that fear again soon becomes an obsession, with deadly consequences for some men who come in contact with her.

Police detective Martha Newton, who befriended Emily after the first attack, investigates a series of murders that will eventually lead back to Emily.

Mapping the Glades - Harrison Park is an ex-DEA agent and now a successful writer who has lived in virtual seclusion on the edge of the Everglades for three years since the suspicious death of his wife. Trouble arrives with his step-son, Pauly, who Harrison believes was involved in his wife's death. With Pauly is his girlfriend who has stolen money from a California gangster, Raul Geoshay. Geoshay desperately needs that money back.

VAMPIRES

Blood Justice - About to die during a failed attempt to kill one of the men responsible for her daughter’s death, Justine Kroft is saved by Simone Gireaux, a 350 year old vampire. In order to avenge her daughter's murder Justine persuades Simone to change her into a vampire. They join forces to find and kill the self-anointed Vampire Master involved in her daughter’s death. Ultimately, Justine must choose between having her daughter back or the life of a mortal detective whose love for her has put his life on the block.

        

An Accidental Vampire series – Three stories (more to come) that follow 350 year-old Simone Gireaux (from Blood Justice) as she survives and prospers through history.

An Accidental Vampire

New Blood

Young Blood

All these titles are available as e-books from Amazon, Smashwords, B&N, KOBO and iTunes. Blood Justice is available in print from Amazon and any bookstore.  Or from me if you want an autographed copy. On my website http://dcburtonwriting.wordpress.com all the covers are on the right. Click on the ones your interested in and you'll go to a page with all the links and the first pages.

My occasional What If? Blog is at http://davidburtonwriting.wordpress.com

- What’s been the most rewarding occurrence since you’ve put your work out there for others to read and enjoy?

 Having three books published, by someone else, was a thrill each time. My first book, Manmade for Murder, was picked for an anthology by the Detective Book Club. That was double cool. And the occasional rave review by someone I don't know is always nice.

- Who would you cite as an influence on your writing style?  Any favorite authors?  Do you have a most-loved novel?

I don't know about style. I read a bit of everything and sometimes feel I'm still searching for my own style. Don't know if I have a favorite author. If I'm reading a good book, then that author is my favorite. The same with novels, though Terry Brooks' Running With Demons trilogy, there's actually three trilogies, always come to mind.  They definitely got me interested in Urban Fantasy.

- What projects do you have planned for the near future?  Anything you can share to perk our interest?

How much space do you have? Right now I'm about to finish the second draft of the sequel to my novel Blood Justice. I'm also trying to work on getting Hell Cop ready to submit to Createspace for a print edition. Once I get that all figured out then I want to put out a print edition of all my novels. I'm also updating my first published mystery Manmade for Murder. Another mystery, Passion Street, is ready to publish when I get the time.  Somewhere in there I want to do another An Accidental Vampire story. Is that enough?

- I have to throw in my own curious questions; Do you have a favorite quote?  Color?  Character from any book?

I'm not good with quotes so the only one I can give you is from a screenplay I wrote where one witch tells another, “There's always someone more powerful out there.” So don't get cocky.

Seawater Blue

Characters??? Lisbeth Salander from Girl with the Dragon Tattoo comes to mind. Dave Robichaux  from James Lee Burke's books is another.  My favorite that I've written is Beth from Ancient Mariners. I hope to do more with her in the future.

- Thanks so much for your time, David, and best of luck with your writing endeavours.  Is there a way for any interested parties to keep informed about your accomplishments as an author?  Do you maintain a website or blog?

I'm not good at updating, though I have vowed to be better at it. Sometimes there are long stretches when there isn't much to say. My website needs a bit more organization, and I have a Facebook author page, somewhere, but it drives me nuts trying to get it to do what I want it to do. If there are any experts out there who would like to volunteer to put me out of my Facebook misery, let me know.  Getting something done on Goodreads also makes me tear out what little hair I have left.

I occasionally put some tidbit in my blog, but that's way overdue for a new post.

website-- http://dcburtonwriting.wordpress.com

Blog--  http://davidburtonwriting.wordpress.com

- Is there anything else you would like to share?

I've written six feature length screenplays, all, unfortunately, sitting in a drawer waiting to become books. If anybody out there is interested in reading or producing one, let me know.

Author Spotlight: Darren Worrow

Choosing to jump into the wide world of self-publishing is a major leap, one that initially might make a novice feel as if he/she stepped into a mucky lake of quicksand, fated to drown with eyes wide open. Like most things, the steps to writing-publishing-basking in the rays of sweet success sound easy enough in theory. But shifting from theorization (sweet daydreams) to practice (grim reality) unveils just how many steps/options/choices/roadblocks exist for an author’s consideration and handling - all supposedly meant to help get that ‘one-book-among-thousands’ in the hands of numerous readers. The challenge can feel slightly (gruelingly) overwhelming. Did someone just grumble *hell*?

Well, fortunately, this path is not uncharted.

In fact, I’ve discovered a delightful perk to this journey. There happen to be many talented and hopeful individuals traveling the same road, all with unique tried-and-proven experiences in self-publishing. And these ambitious people have come together in numerous groups and forums for the sole purpose of sharing what has worked for them while gaining new ideas and feedback from those who’ve taken diverse forks in the road. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the many kind authors who’ve shared ways to publish and advertise books. I’ve done my best to share in return the things I’ve found useful. What a joy it’s been to make new friends, to lend a helping hand to the self-published, and to learn!

Knowing how powerful word-of-mouth is for the self-published author, I’ve decided to interview a few of the authors I’ve been privileged to meet online. I can say truthfully that even though we range diversely in our preferred book genres, these are some amazing people! I hope that you find their stories as interesting as I have.

*******

I met Darren Worrow when invited to join a Goodreads.com writers forum entitled, ‘Kindle Marketing – Book Grow’.  I discovered right off that he was a friendly and comical character.  Darren has a number of self-published books available including:

The Perminator The Hex Factor

SaffronThe Hargreaves Code

That Night, This Night

All of these books can be found on Goodreads.com.

In his own words, here’s a little history about Darren….

“I started out with a dream of being a cartoonist. I guess at the time the big Peanuts and Garfield popularity was on and I dreamt of moving to America and syndicating a strip; oh how naïve I was! I gradually found the small press and began self-publishing my own comic/zine. It was the mid-1990s and I was a 20 something stuck in the youth culture of rave music. I partied every night away and therefore my cartoons reflected heavy on the psychedelic experience.

“Comics are a strange hybrid between art and literature and as I progressed I came to realize that I was swaying more over to the writing side. The other major contributing factor for the switch was I got married and had children, my life was longer psychedelic and also I had no time in which to draw. This is when I began writing a few comics for others to draw and when the kids were born I had to leave it at that for the time being.

“When I bought a kindle and realized I could self-publish on it I was back off on a new mission of writing humorous eBooks. This was last year, 2012 and it felt like a natural progression and oh, how I missed the love of self-publishing my thoughts. So I got to work, always wanting to try writing a novel I had begun some years ago.

“I wrote a quick book to test the water; a parody of the Da Vinci Code, The Hargreaves Code, is probably my best seller. Given the thought that if Dan Brown can make the masses believe what he did then how ludicrous could I make a conspiracy theory believable? I call it a half-baked parody, being that although it relies heavy on mocking the Dan Brown book it also has its own concept and narrative.

“Since then I have finished the satirical book I was writing prior to finding KPD, "This Night That Night," and from there I have released a quick book of nonsensical poems, a horror satire
surrounding the X-Factor TV show called "The Hex factor," and an outright crazy parody of the Terminator movie, "The Perminator." My latest book is a dark thriller, "Saffron," in which I try for the first time to break away from the humor market. It should be noted that all my books are aimed at adult market and do contain adult themes - I like it this way but also would love to write children's books. I may well give that a go under a different name.

“My self-publishing experience in both books and comics means I am always networking and supporting others works, I believe that this is very important in self-marketing and, well it’s good to make friends with likeminded tendencies! Therefore I write interviews and articles for Self Publisher Magazine.  And that is all about me!”

You can learn more about Darren Worrow and his books by visiting his website at www.darrenworrow.webs.com