Ah. Well the inspiration was basically due to a fellow author. She said she found it helpful to use a scene from the story as a cover. So I gave that a try and a lot of people liked it. I was also given the advice that simple is better. Originally I was going with a bit of a blackberry theme. You can see the previous cover ideas in my gallery on my site at http://www.shesanauthor.com. One of the covers I was told looked like a book of poetry and the other like a cookbook. Ha ha!
I really loved in the book how your supporting characters played critical roles in the life of the book as well. I loved Anjaline and Gabriel but do you think you would do any spinoffs with any of the supporting characters in the book?
Oh absolutely. I actually already have two more books planned for after the 'trilogy' of Anjaline and Gabriel. Evelyn gets her own story and so does Leah. In age order. And actually Damian gets his own story too. Hoping to have that out by February 2013 as a stand alone yet part of the saga. I'm calling it Runaway: Damian's Story. I want to get more in depth with all the supporting characters and I think my next few books will do that.
Actually, I never intended for Damian to have his own book, but I had so many readers begging to find out what happens to him and I got inspired. It will be my first action romance. ;) Emphasis on the action with a teeny bit of romance. :)
I hope to do adult romance someday. And actually, I have a couple sci-fi (adult) books on the back burner too. I like to think I don't have to be hemmed in by any one genre.
Hmm. Well, it's a bit of a toss up I guess. Of course I love Anjaline and Gabriel and wouldn't mind meeting Gabriel in real life. I have to say though, my favourite character is Robin. He's just a fun character who knows how to flirt while careful of boundaries. He's also cute which doesn't hurt anything. He's a very loyal friend and seems to genuinely care about the relationship between Anjaline and Gabriel. Even though he's initially attracted to Anjaline and could probably get her to fall for him in a heartbeat, he chooses instead to try talking some sense into Gabriel. That's the kind of friend you can depend on and trust to be alone with your girlfriend or boyfriend. Robin is just one amazing guy.
Honestly, when I first wrote Anjaline and Gabriel's story, I was writing for me. I had no intention of publishing when I first wrote it. It was basically therapy. My daughter was just over 9 months at the time and sleeping large chunks in the day so I would spend those times writing. So at first there was no real 'message'. I guess if I had to think about what message I want Gabriel and Anjaline to portray, it would be twofold. First, if you really care about someone, don't keep it bottled up. Yes, admitting your feelings for someone if you don't know how they feel about you can be pretty scary. But if you don't ask or tell the other person how you feel, you'll always live in regret. Secondly, I think they demonstrate how you can have strong feelings for a member of the opposite sex and yet never cross the moral lines. I had a reader point out that they spend a lot of time alone. And yet they never go beyond kissing, and when things get too hot to handle, one or both of them back off. So it is possible to overcome temptation and stay pure until marriage despite hormones. :)
I like to see writers venture into other genre's. It can be a hard one at times, especially when your interests or writing fits a certain genre, however, it's always possible :)
Does a lot of your inspiration for your books come from real life experiences either personal or just heard about or does it come strictly from your imagination or creativity?
I think so too Salwa. I actually have a bit of scattered brain at times and I think moving into different genres and 'testing them out' will help me kind of harness my thoughts and ideas. If nothing else it will give me a couple more titles to my name...though I fully intend to use pen names for my different genres so I don't confuse my audience. :)
Wow Crystal. That's one of those multiple answer questions. I'll try to break down what I mean. Some of the book is definitely based off personal, real life experience. For instance, though there is no Hope Valley, the tiny village you can only get to by boat that I based it off of does in fact exist. A lot of the places mentioned in the book are real places, with their names changed. I have loosely based all my characters off people I knew at the time, which I think helped to flesh them out. I used the original people as a bit of a base and kind of worked up from there. As for the scenes in the book, many, many were strictly imagination, though they were still researched to make sure the details were correct. One example is the Festival of Fruit and Flowers in Quito. Real festival at the time of year I mention. So it's a combination of all of the above I guess. A wise person once told me, 'write what you know'. I think my first novel is a result of taking that person's advice.
Hi Sam! Welcome! Yes. I believe one of my writer friends suggested that. And it does indeed make sense. Even using a pen name for the genre I'm writing in now. For instance, Amy McGuire is based off my own first name and my grandmother's maiden name. Author Nora Roberts writes Sci Fi under the name J.D. Robb. I think a lot of famous authors do it, and yeah. It really does make sense.
Hey! I write my Christian Crime Drama Romance under Samantha Fury And my normal romance under Samantha Lovern. I like keeping the first name the same, it really helps to simplify things.
Crystal: As long as everything goes well with the release of Worlds Apart (book two of The Hope Valley Saga and the sequel to The Heart's Discovery) I'm hoping to have Runaway: Damian's Story out by Valentine's Day 2013.
Sam: I haven't chosen them yet. I have played around with a couple for my sci fi genre but nothing has stuck yet. When I hit upon it though and when the first sci fi novel comes out, I will be sure to let all my fans know it's me. :)
Thanks! I've written a sci fi to me the hard part is the edit. Do you have more issues with writing the novel or is the other parts irritate you more. Cover, editing and such.
K.R.: I was actually inspired by an old friend. We were talking about our time together when we were children and lived in 'Hope Valley' which is the cover name for an actual place in British Columbia that you could only get to by boat at the time. He suggested that I write down a few of our 'adventures' and before I knew it, there was a whole story. As I wrote, the characters started to come to me, demanding I write them in. And soon Evelyn and Leah were practically shouting at me that their story needed to be told too. So they will get their own books later in the saga. Stubborn muses. ~L~
As for being on your blog, I would love to! And whenever is most convenient for you. My email is shesanauthor@gmail.com. Email me and we can discuss the details.
Also, to anyone else, I am always eager to be on a blog with a different audience than my own. And I love interviews, guest posts or anything really.
I do want to encourage anyone who has read the book to post a review on the sites the book is sold. Amy would you list all the areas reviews can be posted.
K.R.: Using the same pen name for different genres confuses audiences. For example, Nora Roberts writes romance but J.D. Robb writes sci fi thrillers. If I picked up a book by Nora Roberts that was sci fi thriller I would be quite confused. So it keeps the audiences from either being really confused or even disappointed if they had been looking forward to your current book and it wasn't what they expected.
Hey sorry I gotta run phone, mom. Good luck with your novels Amy. I like two pen names one for my Christian Genre's and one for my non Christian Genres. It's more about not offending folks than anything.
Thanks for reminding me Crystal. You can leave a review at the following links: Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/146706 Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/The-Hearts-Discovery-Valley-Volume/dp/1475265115/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1348189221&sr=8-3&keywords=the+heart%27s+discovery Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13553523-the-heart-s-discovery My site: http://www.shesanauthor.com/apps/testimonials/
Thanks for claryfing about the pen names and such. And I'll try my best to get you on my Blog soon. I'm afraid, though, that I've been a bit.....*cringe*.......lazy about my Blog. I need to work on it some more. And I'll email you the questions I usually ask anyone.
This has been a great discussion but have to go and feed the family. Amy you are an amazing writer with many more stories to share with this world which so desperately needs the positive influence of authors such as yourself. I absolutely loved THE HEART'S DISCOVERY and await many more of your novels to come
Thanks Crystal! This is a wonderful forum and I'm having a blast. Everyone, I'll be on here for awhile longer, so if you have any questions, feel free to post.
Hmm. If there aren't any more questions at this time, I will probably sign off. If anyone still had a question, feel free to post it and I will reply as soon as possible.
One more minute for any last minute questions before I head out. Remember, any questions you didn't have tonight can be posted tomorrow and I'll get to them.