Interview: Author EM Ervin

Meet EM Ervin

Biography:
EM Ervin is a voracious consumer of fantasy and science-fiction literature, gamer, prankster, and all-around geek-girl. When not writing, she enjoys time-traveling through Victorian-era steampunk London and thumb-wrestling super-villains.  She currently resides in Missouri with her 3 children:  one son, one dog, and the feline who rules them all.

Cover of Book:

Book blurb:
Jo is your average, everyday seventeen year old girl.

Wait, no she’s not.  Not by a longshot.

She is a girl with a secret.  Possessed of powers no one would believe even if they knew that she had them.  The ability to create illusions at a thought is a dangerous weapon in the most responsible of hands, and Jo’s aren’t exactly squeaky clean.

Ever the trouble magnet, Jo is accustomed to finding more than her fair share of problems – most of which she brings on herself.   The rebellious daughter of  a senator and a diplomat, she has a rap sheet and has been kicked out of nearly every prestigious private school on the Eastern Seaboard.

This time, she’s vowed to make an actual effort. Not to fit in – that’d be impossible – but to just not get kicked out.

Of course, this would be the school that turns out to be the favorite hunting grounds of a homicidal ghost.

What could possibly happen?
 
Buy links:
Amazon - http://amzn.com/B00T8XNTOO
Twitter –  @madcapwriter
Facebook - https://m.facebook.com/emervin.madcapwriter 
Personal Site – www.emervin.com

Interview:
1. What inspires your writing? So much inspires me.  All the books I have ever read, history, mythology, TV, movies, music, gaming, day to day life.  I take all the bits of myself, everything I have absorbed, enjoyed, loved along with the bad – the pain, the frustration, anger – and wrap it together.  Emotions – real emotions – make the story more real. I take it all, and channel it into my writing.

2. Have you always wanted to be an author?  Yes!! I started writing when I was in elementary school, and just kept on doing it.  As I got older, had my son, writing fell to the wayside, but I still always loved it. Recently, I decided, ‘No. I am doing this. This has always been my dream.’ So here I am now!

3. Who are your favorite authors? There are so many.  Jim Butcher, Neil Gaiman, Patrcia Briggs, Kelly Armstrong, Kim Harrison, Terry Brooks, Anne Rice,  Dave Duncan. There are so many more, too. I love reading.

4. What would you say to someone who is just starting out as a writer?  “Never give up, never surrender!” But really, don’t ever stop. Don’t listen to the nay-sayers, don’t listen to your own doubts. Just push through it all and stick with it. Yes, you may need to do other things to get buy – heaven knows we all have day jobs – but do not forget your passion, do not forget your love. Be sure to always do that one thing that makes you truly happy.

5. Do you ever put any part of yourself in you characters? I think everyone does.  Even if it is some small part of you, there’s a little bit of you in every character you write – not just the main character. Every villain, every supporting cast, every person your character passes on the street. To breathe life into them, there must be a small spark of humanity. You give that part of yourself to each of them.

6. How old where you when your first book was published? I just celebrated the 10th anniversary of my 28th birthday! And Wake Up Call is my first published book.

7. How many books have you written? What are their titles? Just the one so far is completed – Wake Up Call, Book 1 of the Nasaru Chronicles.  I already have a pretty big chunk into Book 2 and expect it to be out late summer 2015.

8. Do you have any more books coming out? What are their titles? Absolutely! I plan on writing a great deal more with the Nasaru, but I don’t have any titles as of yet. Book 2 will be out in July/August.

9.  What do you hope readers take from your books? I hope they have as much fun reading the book as I did writing it. Laugh, love, and enjoy.

10. What do you do to get ready to write? I listen to music – I have a whole playlist that makes me think of Jo. Admittedly, it’s a lot of K-Pop. It’s all fast-beat, and I don’t get distracted by the lyrics (which happens when I listen to English songs and try to write – doesn’t ever work well). For Jo, the K-Pop fits so much better, especially if you know what the words mean. I settle into a dark room, just me and my laptop, blast my music, and start writing whatever scenes had been teasing in my brain for the day.

11. Do you ever get writers block? What helps you get past it? Again, everyone does!! For me, it varies.  Sometimes, I listen to my music, play through the scenes in my head. I have a dear friend I use as a sounding board as well. He just sits and listens as I start to babble. I can usually talk my way around it.  There are other times when I skip to a new scene, and just have to put together, how to get from point A to point D or F. I take a basic a route, enough to get it out of my head, then when the book is done, I can go back and clean up those sections. If this doesn’t work, I distract myself in other ways. I go for a drive, playing my Jo playlist, I run errands. It will come. Be patient with yourself.

12. What is your favorite type of book to read? Does that type influence your books? I love urban fantasies, and that is what this is. But it’s more than that. I prefer fiction as a whole, anything with heart. Mysteries, super heroes, super powers, anti-heroes, all of those things that I enjoy so much, I wrap up into this.

Tell us about your new novella/novel: 

Wake Up Call is the kick off book for my series – the Nasaru Chronicles.  It’s a coming of age story about a girl who has powers no one could possibly believe were real.  She has her fair share of problems – the flaws are what make the person, after all.  Through the course of Book 1, she finds she is not alone – there are others with there with their own unique set of gifts as well. It’s not just that there are others like her out there, however.  Jo suddenly finds her world is so much bigger, so much more complicated than even she had thought before. It’s a bit of a Wake Up Call…

Fun Facts:
1.   Favorite food – I thoroughly enjoy food. Can’t really say just one
2.   Favorite color – Blue (in many, varied shades)
3.   Favorite sweet treat – Cupcakes!!
4.   Favorite mixed drink – Amaretto Sours
5.   Favorite thing to shop for - … books?
6.   Lucky number – 13
7.   Favorite book – Can’t even begin…
8.   Favorite movie – So many of them! Princess Bride, Equilibrium, V for Vendetta
9.   Favorite song – Just one??
10. Favorite sport – Umm… martial arts/fencing. Don’t really do the “sports” thing overall. Prefer playing to watching.

What is something everyone should know about you?  I have an unhealthy fascination with ladybugs…