Spotlight Author with Gabi Stevens

Hope everyone enjoyed their Easter. Mine was fabulous! I have Gabi Stevens visiting us again here today to tell us all about the book that she has hitting the shelves as we speak! Welcome back Gabi. Tell us about your title, AS YOU WISH that is being released today.

Imagine being part of a family where everyone has a special ability except you? That’s the set up for my latest release, AS YOU WISH. Born in a magical family Regina Scott has no powers of her own. She was content to live out her life as a Groundling until she discovers that she is next in line to be a fairy godmother. Needless to say, her life becomes complicated. In the space of a few days, she has to deal with a bad guy, a curse, an all too enthusiastic mother and a new love interest.

It’s a story about looking past appearances and finding the true heart of both people and an issue. Doing the right thing is never easy, and Reggie faces many challenges before her happy ending.

What inspired you to create this three book series?

I love the Grimm Brothers’ Fairy tales. I studied them in college, in, and in German. When I knew I wanted to write a paranormal romance, I looked beyond the vampire and werewolf stories and wanted something different. Magic has always been a subject I’ve loved to read about, so witches and wizards was a natural progression. But I still wanted something more unusual. Viola. The fairy godmother.

I also like having villains in my stories and planning out a three book series with the same villain sounded challenging. Could I sustain a story arc for three books, yet still fulfill the requirements of the happy ending? AS YOU WISH is its own romance, yet the second part of a greater story. It absolutely stands alone, but also flows and continues from THE WISH LIST and continues with WISHFUL THINKING next year.


Can you tell us what you are working on now?

WISHFUL THINKING, book three, is already finished and turned in. I have a couple of proposals out with my agent, both paranormals, and many, many ideas for other books that I’m getting ready to think out (No, I don’t plot, I think).


Often time’s writers describe writing a love scene like being an intruder in something so very personal. Do you feel this way and how do you get through the dreaded love scene?

If the love scene is intrusive, than it doesn’t belong. There are so many varying degrees of heat in romance today that no author should feel forced to include more than she is comfortable with. Discomfort shows. That’s why you don’t write one if it doesn’t flow from the story. Sex for sex’s sake is pornography, not a love story.

If you had to pick a favorite character that you have created or one that you wish you had created who would it be and why?

I have two very special characters in AS YOU WISH. Tommy and Joy are Arcani, bakers, and have special needs. Tommy has Down syndrome and Joy is...well, Joy is just Joy. Reggie, the newest fairy godmother and the heroine of the novel, has set up a bakery for her friends and works beside them, taking care of the business aspects because she doesn’t bake. Tommy and Joy are very capable and talents bakers. And yes, they are realistic. I should know. My daughter was the inspiration for Joy. Give her the rules and instruct her, and my daughter can do most things. Oh, she requires supervision for her daily life, but she’s fiercely independent—heck she’s a typical teenager in more ways than not—but she makes her own lunches for school, cooks some, and makes all the brownies for the family. In AS YOU WISH, Reggie truly regards Tommy and Joy as her friends—friends who need perhaps a little more care, but friends first. In honor of Tommy and Joy—and my daughter—I have pledged ten percent from my royalties from AS YOU WISH to Best Buddies International, a group that strives to overcome the prejudices and loneliness that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities face. If you want to find out more about Best Buddies™, please visit them at www.bestbuddies.org.

Give us a glimpse into your writer’s life.

What life? I work a day job and try to get as much done in the evenings and on the weekends that I can.

What does your family think of your job?

My husband is completely supportive of me. He always has been. Even when I hadn’t yet sold and when I wasn’t making money, he always encouraged me to go to conferences, take the time to write, do what I needed to do. It helped that he’s a computer fiend and was more than willing to get me computer equipment too. The kids love that I write and am following my dreams. They’ve told me that they have made many important decisions in their lives based on that knowledge. I’m thrilled I could actually be an object of admiration to them. At least sometimes.

What’s one thing that you know now that you wished you knew when you started your journey as a writer?

That getting published doesn’t mean you’ve “made it.” There are always roadblocks, from not getting another contract, to personal issues, to lines folding, to the big questions in publishing right now (the role of e-books, self-publishing, etc.). So much is uncertain always. The only thing you can control is your writing.


Thank you for returning to Micole Writes Romance. Tells us again where we can find out more about you and your books.

You can visit me at www.GabiStevens.com, read my blog at www.GabiStevens.blogspot.com, find me at Facebook and at Twitter.

Thanks so much for having me here, Micole. I truly enjoyed my time.

Spotlight Author with Gabi Stevens

Welcome back! This week I am spotlighting Gabi Stevens. Her latest release THE WISH LIST can be found from Tor Books in May 2010. So Gabi, tell us a little bit about THE WISH LIST.

When Kristin Montgomery discovers her three aunts are actually fairy godmothers, her orderly world disappears like magic. No, not like magic; it is magic. Not only does she have to deal with burgeoning powers, she also uncovers a threat to the balance of the Arcani and Groundling worlds. Only by trusting her heart and her instincts can she keep herself and the ones she loves out of danger. THE WISH LIST is a lighter paranormal set in San Diego.

What do Gabi Stevens fans have to look forward to in 2010?

First, I will be at RomCon in Denver in July, and then I will be at the RWA National Conference in Nashville later in July. I have an essay in a book on GLEE in the fall, and then next year, April 2011, book two in the Time of Transition series, SPELLBOUND, comes out. It continues the story started in THE WISH LIST.

You write both Paranormal and Historical romance, two very different genres. How do you juggle them both? And do you find it hard to switch from one genre to the other when starting a new book?

I have always had many, many stories running around in my head (Still do). My two favorites genres in romance are paranormal and historical. The feel of the two genres can be very different, and for whatever reason, I don’t find it hard to separate the two. Now, add in the day job, being a mom, and everyday life…that’s the real juggling act.

What is the hardest part about your job?

Matching the vision in my head with the words on the paper is by far the hardest part for me. One thing I believe is important for writers to accept is that the words will never convey your story with one hundred percent accuracy. That doesn’t mean we don’t try, but a writer can get caught up in making things perfect and never finish anything or be so disappointed in a story she will never submit it. I sometimes spend hours trying to express just the right emotion or finding just the right word.

How long was your road to publication?

My first published book was the first book I ever wrote, but (and this is a big but--I should insert a joke here, but I think they’ve all been made) seven years elapsed between finishing the first book and publication. I made so many errors in that first book, but I liked the story. Essentially it was rewritten, not just revised, three times.

What steps did you take to make your dreams come true?

I made writing a priority in my life. My children, even when they were small, knew I was a writer. I took the time to write. I didn’t always have a spotless house, nor was every meal home-cooked, but I did carve out time for writing and took it seriously. I joined writers’ groups and made it a goal to be published.

What’s one thing that you know now that you wished you knew when you started your journey as a writer?

The writing road is not smooth. Many, many heartaches exist along the way and sometimes you have to be stronger than you believe you can be.

Do you have any advice or writing secrets for aspiring authors?

Read. Write. Then do both some more. And never, never give up. My first agent told me three things can make an author successful: talent, luck and persistence. An author only needs two of those three things, but one must be persistence.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

In five years I hope to be releasing at least two books a year, possibly three. I would love to write in both paranormal and historical. But I definitely see myself writing (did you read my answer about never giving up?). Oh, and traveling more. Fodder for books, doncha know?

What are you reading right now? If nothing at the moment then what do you like to read when you have time?

I am always reading. I consider myself a reading addict. There have been times when I had nothing to read in the house, so I turned to my husband’s engineering journals. In addition, I teach literature to eighth graders. So at this moment I’m reading Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury, just finished Jodi Thomas’s Texas Princess, currently reading Leanna Renee Hieber’s The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker, and I have Sense and Sensibility and Sea Serpents lined up next.

Thanks Gabi for stopping by Micole Writes Romance. It’s been great having you here. You can find Gabi Steven’s books at www.GabiStevens.com or at Borders.com, Amazon.com or at a bookstore near you.

I hope you enjoyed this installment of Micole Writes Romance. If you have any questions or comments please make sure to leave them for us. We love to hear from you!!!! see you next time!!!

Hugs

Micole