BIO: Janice Seagraves grew up with a deep love of
science fiction and adventure stories. Always the consummate artist, she traded
in her paint brush for a laptop to write breathless life-affirming novels
that celebrate enduring love.
Q: How did you celebrate
publishing your first book?
A: My husband took me out to
dinner. He still does everything that I publish a book.
Q:
What’s your writing schedule like? Do you strive for a certain amount of words
each day?
A:
I answer emails in the morning and I write in the evening, until late into the
night. If the story is hot and I’m making great progress, I like to get in a
thousand words per day, but many times I don’t make that.
Q:
What is the most important thing you do for your career now, as compared to
when you first started writing?
A: I
hired, a promotion company to handle some of my promotions.
Q:
How much of yourself is hidden in the characters in the book?
A:
Most of my characters are level headed, so I guess that makes me too. LOL
In
Windswept Shores, my heroine is a basket weaver. I learned basket weaving in HS
and used that experience. In Matrix Crystal Hunters, I used a trip to the desert
with my family when I was in sixth grade. We rock hunted along the Colorado River
that flows through Arizona and Nevada. My heroine, Maya’s parents have a store
called the Rock Hound.
Q: Of
all your characters, who’s your favorite, and why?
A:
I have no favorites. I love all my children equally.
Q:
If you could change something about your first book, what would it be?
A:
After Windswept Shores rights were returned to me, I went through my first book
and changed a few things to make it tougher on my characters and put back a
missing scene. Then I self-published it.
Q: How do you choose names
for your characters?
A: I have Character Naming
Sourcebook that I look through for names.
Q: Covers. Ever get one you
wish you could change?
A: So far, I’ve been lucky. I
loved my first cover on Windswept Shores. I bought the photo with the same
couple from fotolia and used it when I self-published, but without the second
filter. My second book which I also self-published, I found a great looking man
for the cover that looked just like my hero.
Q: Give one advice tip to an
aspiring author.
A: This is a hard business.
It’s not for the weak. Never give up. Stay stubborn and stay strong. Read a lot
and write a lot. Take a lot of workshops that help you in the areas you’re weak
in. And find yourself a good critique group. They’ll spot things in your manuscript
that you’ll miss. There are a lot of critique groups to choose from, online and
those that meet in person. Find one you’re comfortable with.
Q: How
many stories are swirling around in your head? Do you keep a mental list, a
computer file, or a spiral notebook filled with the ideas?
A:
Oh, I have too many to count. I have starts of stories on my computer files. My
contracted Alien Heart series has twelve books, and I just have to finish
writing them.
Fun Stuff:
Q:
What is your favorite holiday and why?
A:
Christmas, because I don’t have to work as hard as I do for Thanksgiving and it’s
a fun family day.
Q:
What are two things people might be surprised to know about you?
A:
I have a learning problem that gave me problems in school, but I still graduated in time with my class. I might be slightly dyslexic.
Q:
As a child, what did you
want to be when you grew up?
A:
An artist.
Q:
Favorite food.
A: Oh geez, I have so many. I like sushi,
shrimp, fresh (just caught that morning) sea food, a well done barbecued steak
and I like my hot dogs burnt.
Q: Favorite drink.
A: Tea. Hot tea when it’s cold and cold tea
when it’s hot.
Q: Hot summer days or chilly winter
nights?
A: I’m actually more of a fall type
person and the colors look good on me too.
Q: What is the top thing on your bucket
list?
A: A trip to the UK. I want to walk along
the streets of Seagrave England, where my family got their name.
Q:
If you could have a super power, what would it be?
A:
The power to heal people. I’ve lost too many family members and friends to
cancer. A young writer friend is going through her third treatment for cancer.
Each time the cancer pops up in a different place.
Tell us where to find you:
Website: http://janiceseagraves.org/
Publisher’s page:
Blog: http://ladyjanice.blogspot.com/
You can find Matrix Crystal Hunters at Amazon:
US, Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FJ10W26
US, Trade paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Matrix-Crystal-Hunters-Janice-Seagraves/dp/1492709751/ref=tmm_pap_title_0
UK, Trade paperback: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Matrix-Crystal-Hunters-Janice-Seagraves/dp/1492709751/ref=pd_rhf_se_p_t_1_KKW6
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Please leave a comment for the tee-shirt (size XL) giveaway but...we only ship to US and Canadian addresses only.
Janice, I like the fall, too. It was nice to get to know you better.
ReplyDeleteGreat interview Janice! I loved your superpower idea! :)
ReplyDeleteShared!
Great interview, Janice! Love the cover:)
ReplyDeleteNice interview...I need a promo company if you don't mind sharing...
ReplyDeleteNice to get to know you better, Janice. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Sandy,
ReplyDeleteThank you. :)
Hi Nicole,
Thank you. :)
Hi Paris,
Thank you, I made it myself.
Hi Jean,
Thank you. Sure, I don't mind, Sensuous Promotions. They're very reasonable and have several promo packages to choose from.
Hi Rose,
Thank you. :)
Janice~
Nice to get to know you, Janice. I like your comment to an aspiring author, "Stay stubborn and stay strong." Great advice!
ReplyDeleteBobbye
Wonderful getting to know you better Janice. I'm sorry about your young friend. One of my former teaching partners is dealing with her second bout of cancer. She's a young mom and I worry but she is strong at heart.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your info Janice. Instead of my having ADDI feel ike that's more like dyselixa. Planning of asking a pscyh about that. Gr interview kiddo.
ReplyDeleteGr8 interview Janice. I always wonder where last names come from
ReplyDeleteI loved your interview Janice. It's nice to learn a little more about a friend. And I am jealous about you your Promotions help. I am going to look into them for myself.
ReplyDeleteLynda
Great interview Janice. All the best.
ReplyDeleteNice interview, Janice. Good advice to aspiring writers. I hope you get to take that trip to the UK.
ReplyDeleteHi Bobbye,
ReplyDeleteThank you.
Hi Melissa,
Thank you. They do have many more ways to save people from cancer than they used to. I just hope it's enough to save our friends.
Hi Jerry,
Thank you. They know more than they used to. Mine learning disability wasn't pinned down, but I believe it might be dyslexia, but a mild form. My daughter has the full blown version. There are a lot of conditions that mimic each other, I hope you find your answers.
Hi Lynda,
I hope you do. They have very reasonable prices on packages, one should fit your budget.
Hi Firetulip,
Thank you.
Hi Cara,
Thank you. That trip is on my bucket list. :)
Janice~
It was an excellent interview, so much more interesting than most author interviews you see on the Internet.
ReplyDeleteI understand the challenges a learning disability presents. I have (undiagnosed) Asberger's Sydrome. My cousin's son has full blown Autism. When I was young, Asberger's and Autism were still conditions that science hadn't identified.
Hi Carolyn,
ReplyDeleteThose are just labels that people put on others.
I mentioned my learning disability, so aspiring writers will know that you can do anything you set your mind to.
Janice~
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteJanice, thanks for being honest about the learning thing. I too have a learning disability and never believed I could be a writer. Now, I just published my first book and have already started on the next. It's nice to see there are others I can look up to.
ReplyDelete