Author Interview: Anna Zabo

Exquisite Quills Welcomes Anna Zabo

EQ: Welcome to EQ! Tell us a little bit about yourself!

Anna: Hi! I’m Anna Zabo. I’ve written an m/m paranormal romance novel and an m/m paranormal romance short for Loose Id. I also write m/f sometimes. I adore all things fantasy and science fiction (and write in those genres under a different name) but I’ve recently branched into contemporary romance. Mergers and Acquisitions will be published in August Berkley InterMix.

I live in Pittsburgh, PA, which is far less boring than it sounds. Pittsburgh’s a great city with a mix of cultures, but it’s also very friendly and very green. Well, at least in the summer. Right now, like nearly everywhere else in the northeast this winter, it’s white.

By day, I write user manuals and other technical documents for a very large company and by night, I type away on my laptop. I have two cats and far too many orchids.

EQ: What made you want to become a writer?

Anna: I think it was the combination of the realization that people were interested in the silly stories in my head coupled with the desire to give back to the world. Reading books was one of the solaces of my youth. No matter how bad things got, no matter how anyone else treated me, I could always escape into a book. And there I found the people I wanted to be like: brave, truthful, loving, kind, strong. I high school, when I discovered that I had a knack for writing and that people—friends and non-friends—liked what I wrote... that made me take a right hand turn straight into writing. I had planned on going into the sciences, but I didn’t have nearly the passion for that that I did for stories. I might be able to become like my heroes, the authors who kept me up into the wee hours of the night? That. I wanted to be that.

I still want to be that! Every day, I work toward that goal.

EQ: Describe how you came up with the plot of your novel.

Anna: Close Quarter started as a dream. I was the sidekick to a vampire-hunting fae and we were on this cruise ship to hunt then down. In the dream I was male.(this happens to me a lot) and my job—more or less—was to chat up the vampires and get them all interested in my lovely, tasty neck. The whole dream was way more swashbuckling than Close Quarter turned out to be mostly because there’s no conflict if your hero just wins hands down. In Close Quarter, the vampires got a lot darker, the fae less campy and the sidekick vanished.

But that dream was the seed. Fae vampire hunter with a sword on a cruise ship. I just had to work out why he was there and throw a lot of obstacles in his way. Oh, and a very confused, grieving sculptor who becomes much much more than a sidekick.

EQ: What is something nobody would guess about you?

Anna: I actually enjoy technical writing. I’ve been one for nearly twenty years and I don’t mind the work at all. You kind of have to love something to stick with it...and I love figuring out how to do things and solve problems. And then I get to teach other folks how to do it. Love that.

It’s very different than the creative writing, but I suppose it fills the part of me that is still science and technology-oriented. Plus, I get great ideas for characters by meeting many different people and working near downtown Pittsburgh surrounds me with the colors and vibrancy of city life. So, the day job even helps the writing.

It’s probably not a coincidence that my first contemporary is an office romance. Heh.

EQ: Tell us a little bit about your most recent release.

Anna: My most recent release was Slow Waltz, a Close Quarter short story. While it can be read independently, it does follow after the events in Close Quarter.  Rhys and Silas finally have a few days of peace and quiet before their transatlantic cruise docs in New York. They’re no longer running for their lives.

Now Rhys has time to think about the fact he’s fallen in love with a man who isn’t even human. He’s not sure love at first sight can last, especially when your lover is fae. Sure, the sex is fantastic, but that’s not enough to hang the rest of your potentially immortal life upon.

Find Anna here:

You can find me at www.annazabo.com

And if you’re interested in my SF/F-writing alter ego, she’s at www.annlaurelkopchik.com

I tweet as @amergina, where I am a single, unified person. Most of the time.

Slow Waltz is available as an ebook from Loose Id: http://www.loose-id.com/slow-waltz.html

Close Quarter is available (in ebook and print) from the following:

Loose Id: http://www.loose-id.com/close-quarter.html

All Romance Ebooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-closequarter-997909-139.html

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Close-Quarter-ebook/dp/B00A70QRFU/

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/close-quarter-anna-zabo/1113901638

Mergers and Acquisitions is up for preorder on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Mergers-Acquisitions-Anna-Zabo-ebook/dp/B00IDD9VEM/

Check out these titles by Anna Zabo

Close Quarter

Slow Waltz

Mergers and Acquisitions (Summer/Fall 2014)

The Genesis of a Book - Passion's Sacred Dance by Juli D. Revezzo

Genesis of a novel by Juli D. Revezzo

What is your history? We know our birthdates and what we’ve accomplished throughout our lives. We know our friends, our mothers and fathers’ stories, maybe our grandparents, but what of the legacy they might leave behind when they’re gone? This was, in essence, the genesis of my latest paranormal romance novel, PASSION’S SACRED DANCE: The question of what becomes of one’s legacy, life to life. How could a woman who lived hundreds of years ago have any influence on today’s world?

One can look into the genealogy of their family for clues about the past. You can trace down your lineage via the Internet these days for a small fee, in some cases. But sometimes a language barrier exists. Worse are the errors in historical records—if they exist at all. Historical records only go so far back.

This was a huge problem for my heroine Stacy Macken. A historian by nature she has the tools to follow her family lineage down through the ages, but she’s from a line of people—the Celts—who weren’t interested in writing very much down. Most all of what we know about them comes secondhand from the Romans and Greeks (who wanted to eradicate them and so, demonized them) or from monks who may or may not have ever had any real contact with them (and/or might’ve wanted to demonize them as nasty evil pagans). So one must bow to the reality that the recording of historical events, if not downright non-existent in some eras, can be faulty. Even novelists can’t get past this barrier often.

 

But, writing a story that’s fantasy in nature—paranormal, if you will—the solution is easily found.  Shades from the Otherworld can leave clues everywhere. Even the mighty Shakespeare knew that. So I had no trouble using that age-old trope to help out Stacy.  The Celts had an idea that the dead aren’t gone, the doors to the Otherworld swing wide all the time. And for her, that’s when her ancestors come to help her understand that answers are out there. Sometimes, one just needs a hand and in her case, it comes from a sexy warrior out to save her world from what she finds in those dusty old records.

History. Ain’t it great?;)

Blurb

 

Battling mounting debt, Stacy Macken is determined not to lose her historic art gallery. When Aaron Fielding appears and offers to help, she fights to keep the attraction sizzling between them from clouding her judgment. He may be her savior in disguise--but can she trust him?

Aaron intrigues her with tales of the Tuatha dé Danann, sworn warriors who protect humanity from the monsters seeking their destruction. If Aaron can prove what he claims, she would give up anything to help--even the gallery he claims is sacred ground. But with her property set to stage the next epic battle, she needs answers. An old family diary will confirm the ancient legend is true, if only they can find it in time.

If the battle is lost, the enemy will take control of Earth for the next five hundred years. Stacy and Aaron's budding love might only complicate things.

 

About Juli D. Revezzo:

Juli D. Revezzo has long been in love with writing, a love built by devouring everything from the Arthurian legends, to the works of Michael Moorcock, and the classics and has a soft spot for classic the “Goths” of the 19th century. Her short fiction has been published in Dark Things II: Cat Crimes, The Scribing Ibis, Eternal Haunted Summer, Twisted Dreams Magazine and Luna Station Quarterly. She also has an article and book review or two out there. But her heart lies in the storytelling. She is a member of Independent Authors Network and Magic Appreciation Tour. Passion’s Sacred Dance is her first romance novel.

 

Passion's Sacred Dance, From Faery Rose and The Wild Rose Press, is available now at

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Passions-Sacred-Dance-Harshad-Wars-ebook/dp/B00E4WOBWI

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/passions-sacred-dance-juli-d-revezzo/1117518183?ean=2940148871422

 

All Romance Ebooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-passion039ssacreddance-1351775-143.html

 

 

Bookstrand: http://www.bookstrand.com/passions-sacred-dance

 

 

Itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/passions-sacred-dance/id733605817?mt=11

 

 

Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/passion-s-sacred-dance

 

 

And The Wild Rose Press: http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=1064

 

 

You can find out more about Juli at her homepage: http://julidrevezzo.com/

 

 

Blog: http://julidrevezzo.com/blog

 

 

Like her on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/JD-Revezzo/233193150037011

 

 

Follow her on Author’s Den http://www.authorsden.com/visit/author.asp?AuthorID=167318

 

 

Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/111476709039805267272/posts

 

 

On Good Reads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5782712.Juli_D_Revezzo

 

 

Shelfari: http://www.shelfari.com/authors/a1002694572/Juli-D-Revezzo/

 

 

On twitter: @julidrevezzo

 

 

First Kiss Wednesday

It's  First Kiss Wednesday!

 
Kisses are the mainstay of romance writing.  No matter how sweet or spicy our stories are, they usually involve at least a kiss or two.  And the first kiss is especially lovely - that first, soft touch of lips - or perhaps the kiss is fierce and hungry.  Maybe the characters murmur words of love or words of teasing while discovering the texture and taste of each other.  Maybe the only sounds they can emit are gentle, timorous moans or deep, throaty groans.

Okay, now that we've set the premise, here's what you can do for First Kiss Wednesdays.  In the comment box, give us a maximum of 300 words of the first kiss of a published work or a work-in-progress and one link to your website or blog or Amazon Author Page. 

Read and luxuriate in the glories of the first kiss...

Oh, and lips only...  ;-)

Tickle Us Tuesday

In comments, and in 300 words or less, give us a snippet from your novel that will bring a smile, incite a giggle, or make us laugh out loud. Don't forget your buy link and website/blog link. Have fun!

Share you're participation with a ready-to-go tweet!

Come see my snippet on Exquisite Quills' Tickle Us Tuesday! http://exquisitequills.blogspot.com/ #AuthorRT #Romance #EQuills

Wash Line Monday

Our Monday meme shines a light on apparel. From Regency to Steampunk, and everything in between, we dress our characters to reflect the story we want to tell.

In comments, and in 300 words or less, give us a snippet from your novel that describes what your heroes, heroines, or bit players are wearing. Don't forget your buy link and website/blog link. Have fun!

 Share that you're participating with our
ready-to-go tweet!

Come see my snippet on Exquisite Quills' Wash Line Monday! http://exquisitequills.blogspot.com/ #AuthorRT #Romance #EQuills

Set the Scene in Six Sentences Sunday - Share the Six!

One of the finest aspects of fiction writing is the ability to set the scene.  Characters act and react, but they don't do so in a vacuum.  In their world, they meet, fall in love, solve problems, sometimes horrendous problems.  Maybe it's a small town, maybe the big city, the green, humid jungle, dust-dry desert, a mountainous region.  On the sea.  Under the sea.  In space! 

Setting the scene sets up the unexpected. It's also done by using character dialogue to paint a picture of loveliness, danger, evil, trepidation, excitement, awe...

Give us six sentences that set the scene.  Set the Scene in Six Sentences - Sunday is a new opportunity on the Exquisite Quills Blog to tout your talent.  How have you set the scene or the lead-up in your books?  How have you put the reader into the life of your characters?

Every Sunday, the blog will be open to six-sentence scene-setting.  Just post your six sentences, your name, and one link in the comment box.  We can't wait to read you!

Pass the word!  Open to all!