An interview with Andrew C. Branham, author of ‘Anything for Amelia

I love first-hand accounts, and its what normally draws me to non-fiction. The fact that this is ‘feel-good’ doesn’t seem to fit with what the blurb says about your difficulties! Why did you decide to write the book?

I believe the ‘feel good’ was referring to the end result which was Amelia being adopted by DJ and I. I agree with you, however, that those
may not be the best choices of words. Our adoption process lasted 206 days. How do I know that exact number? Because every day was the most stressful day of my life. Because of the stress, I needed to find some way to vent. For me, writing at the end of each day was therapeutic and allowed the stress to escape my bo
dy. I never intended to write a book until, one day, I started reading through the journal and thought, “Wow, this is not only an interesting story, but we can help so many other people with their adoptions.”  The topics in the book are very touchy. The ‘dark side’ of adoption has honestly never been discussed. I wanted people to know the full truth behind adoption in the hopes they fewer people would be taken advantage of. Also, seeing how badly Sandi treated her own kids, we wanted to do something to help all the foster care children in the United States. To do that, I am donating 20% of my profits from the book to the U.S. foster care system. 

Andrew, you’re officially the author of this novel. How did DJ feel about the project?

DJ refuses to read the book because we both suffer from a form of PTSD as a result of our 206 day journey. For me, writing was an outlet but for DJ, he cannot bring himself to relive the events again. To him, reading the book would bring back memories that he does not want to relive in any way. He is proud of me for writing the book and is hopeful that it will help other adoptive couples to be more prepared. The other families that adopted from “Sandi” are also unable to bring themselves to read it.  

There’s always another novel in the pipeline to write if the author writes fiction… Do you have another novel waiting to come out?

Funny you should ask that.  My second book is done and it is actually a fiction novel. It is currently being edited for a release next summer. It is an apocalyptic story of a family’s struggle to survive in a world where the Earth has been exhausted of 95% of the fresh water. Many people have asked me to write a sequel to, Anything for Amelia. I will not rule that out, but thankfully we do not have much of a story to tell. Our life is pretty normal now and we are just happy being Dads. As it stands right now, a sequel would be very boring.

Do you have a dedicated writing space? How does it meet your writing needs?

During the adoption it was the hotel room every night. I would come back so stressed out and so angry that I would type for hours and not even realize how long I had been working. Now, I try to write outside. If I am out in nature, my writing is at its best. We own 40 acres of woods so it is very easy for me to get outside to write.

I can’t wait to get stuck in reading the book. I can’t imagine what the shenanigans that Sandi does might be, but I dread finding out. Should I be worried?

Honestly, even reading the book will not even bring you close to the intentional torture that Sandi put us through every single day for 206 days. The best writer in the world would struggle to put into words what she did to us. If anything the book is very understated. The only other people in the world that can relate to our experience are the other two families that adopted from her. She was just as bad to them as she was us (maybe worse).

As a gay woman, this book was one I never would have passed up. While my partner and I haven’t looked into adoption seriously, its something we might do eventually. Do you think anything about the system will improve?

It is our hope that this book will bring some of the issues to the forefront. 99% of the adoption laws are in place to protect the birth mother. While I agree that these laws are necessary, there are simply far too many loopholes. They need to be fixed and I hope our story gets enough attention so that the word gets out. Otherwise, nothing will change. Many have suggested that it should be a Lifetime movie. My agent is looking into that as we speak. If that were to happen, I think the laws would have to be fixed due to the publicity. If nothing else, there needs to be a dollar limit on how much money a birth mother could get (a cap).  I hope the system improves and I really hope you two adopt.  Having a child is the best gift you will ever receive. 

I feel like many of the questions I want to ask now will be answered when I read the book, when it finally gets to Australia. Do you think that it’s going to be relevant to me despite being in another country?

Absolutely. I have had so many adoptive parents email me from all over the world. While they did not have extreme experiences like we did, we have had many tell us about the abuse of the system. No matter where you live, there are always both good and bad people. 

Do you have a preference for ebook or paperback format? This is for both your own reading and your novels.

I have a Kindle but I much prefer paper books. I feel the reader connects much more with the book in the paper format but that is just an opinion. 

Social media is becoming a big thing. How does managing media outlets come into marketing your brand and your book?

Social media is pretty much paramount to the success of any book now. I find it difficult to keep up because writing is not my day job. To be successful, most authors will have to have a huge social media presence on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, blogs, and even Tumblr.  Social media allows you to really connect with your readers. I answer every email I receive and I always intend to that.

Finally, it looks like you are just getting into answering interview questions. Although I might not have the space here to ask you a lot more questions, is there something you wish I had asked? Or conversely, something you wish I hadn’t asked?

I wish more people would ask me how I feel about not being able to save Sandi’s three kids. I feel a tremendous amount of guilt for not being able to save them despite trying. As far as I know, they are still living in squalor, they are still being abused, and they are still not receiving an education. Even worse, they are still not being loved.  I promised myself and those children that I would help them and I failed. I tried many times to get CPS to get involved but Sandi found a way to even manipulate them. I still have nightmares and dreams about those three precious kids. I am not giving up on helping them but I feel my options are very limited. I also feel very bad for Doug and the life he has lived.

Sharing is Caring 🙂

Twitter

Pinterest

Tumblr

Linkedin

Facebook

Google

Stumbleupon

Reddit

An interview with Norma Jennings, writer of ‘Passenger from Greece’ 

1. Can you tell us a little bit about the storyline for Passenger from Greece?

A classic tale of love, lust, and criminal behavior, Passenger from Greece tells the story of Olivia Reid, a feisty, resourceful international flight attendant who falls in love with a handsome Greek olive oil tycoon. Olivia gets caught up in a seductive affair that spans the Caribbean, New York City, Crete, and ocean voyages on a yacht called The Adonis.

2. The book opens with a movie-worthy crash. What did you base these opening scenes on?

I was a flight attendant, and some of my dear colleagues were involved in a plane crash (a mere scheduling conflict kept me off that flight). I went back to them and asked them for descriptions of feelings, thoughts, and misery of crashing into a swamp, which really happened. They described the terror of first experiencing an aircraft crash, followed by the horror of being trapped in a swamp until rescue. So, when I set up a story about international romance and mystery, I thought, what would be more captivating than to introduce the characters to each other in such an intense and terrifying situation?

3. International drug trafficking is central to the plot. What compelled you to write about this topic?

I had finished writing my first novel, Daughter of the Caribbean, and I was looking for another great story. I read about the Caribbean drug trafficking issues affecting my beloved Jamaica, where my family has an old sugarcane plantation called Twickenham. The headline-grabbing issues made me think about my next novel, which I wanted to be an international mystery. I also like to explore cultural issues and personal relationships about families and love, so I created a conflict that would impact two families in two different countries, each located in different parts of the world.

4. The book addresses family relationships, infidelity, and mother/father influences. Why did you weave in these themes?

Motivations. I wanted to create flawed characters whose motives and desires were rooted in their familial relationships: a daughter’s desire to please her mother, a son’s desire to please his mother, and a grandmother betrayed by her spouse. I asked myself: What lessons could be learned? What understandings reached? How could I write relatable situations that would draw in readers? Based on the core foundation of any person’s experience, one always comes back to his/her family beliefs, morals, and values.

5. How are drug trafficking and cultural issues central to the plotlines and themes in your novels?

The illicit drug trade is affecting my native homeland, Jamaica. I wanted to also dispel prejudice and ideas about Jamaicans and other Caribbean islanders. My books always deal with cultural differences though depictions of my own childhood experiences growing up at Twickenham with my grandmother, Sedith, who’s featured in both of my books. She was our family’s matriarch and had a tremendous influence on her children and grandchildren. I brought the stories she told and the lessons I learned in my own life to the pages of Passenger from Greece.

6. Are you working on a new novel and, if so, what can you tell us about it?

I’ve made good progress on a third book, which is an action-packed historical fiction novel about the brutal colonization of Jamaica by the British, and the barbaric guerilla warfare staged by the Maroons (runaway slaves) against the planters. Raw sexual moments between planter and mulatto slave mistresses, and a sizzling romance between a rescued concubine and a young guerilla chief are weaved into the novel, as it chronicles how ferocious and unrelenting resistance by Maroon men and women led to the abolition of slavery on the island, and ultimately to the country’s independence.

Sharing is Caring 🙂

Twitter

Pinterest

Tumblr

Linkedin

Facebook

Google

Stumbleupon

Reddit

                                     An Interview with Ryan R. Reilly, author of ‘A Deep Dark Pit of Despair’

I haven’t read your novel. But you’re going to be promoting a comic! Why would I want to read that instead? From your other published novels, are there some that I should absolutely read?

Actually, I’m making a fully animated cartoon! It’s based on the first chapter of the book, and was originally supposed to be part of my pre-release marketing. Sadly, I bit off a bit more than I can chew with this one! I’ve made some short cartoons in the past, but the Pirate in Theory cartoon is practically feature-length by comparison. If all goes according to plan (that can happen, right?), the animated short will be out by the end of November.

As far as other published novels go, A Deep Dark Pit of Despair is it. I’m hoping to follow my debut up quite soon with another finished book I have, as well as a sequel that I’m still working on.

I both love and hate novels that don’t leave a discrete ending for the reader. Have you ever felt the need to write sequels for specific novels?

I kind of agree with you. I used to have a “rule” that I would not read any book in a series that was not finished yet, because I didn’t want to have to wait for the next installment to come out. That code lasted until 2004 when I picked up the second book of Mercedes Lackey & James Mallory’s Obsidian Trilogy, and waiting quite impatiently for the third book to come out! Now I’m doing it again with Patrick Rothfuss’ series. I’m afraid I don’t ever learn!

As for myself, I committed to writing a standalone book several years ago, and I think I’ll try to give that one another go at getting it out into the world. Honestly, though, I love series, and hope to have my own sequel finished by the middle of next year.

There’s always another novel in the pipeline to write… Tell me about it! Does it have even a working title?

There are two, actually! I feel I have to finish the next PiT book while this one has any momentum. It’s called Out of the Pit, Into the Fire, and it builds on the events of Book 1 and takes our characters into foreign territory, as well as expands on the magic system that was introduced in the first book. In addition to that, I started a zombie/vampire story just before the bottom seemingly dropped out for both genres, but I still hold out hope for my tale. It’s called Afterdead and unlike my fantasy ventures, it focuses on real locations in Chicago and the surrounding area. Hopefully I’m not too late with this one!

Some advice other writers have given is that your first novel is best sitting in a drawer for a while, because then you feel stronger about chopping up ‘your baby’. Do you still have a copy of your first novel? Whether this was published or unpublished, I need to know!

I actually still have all the notebooks I wrote my first several stories in! So many unfinished works clutter various spots in my house, and I refuse to ever toss them out. Some might call me a pack rat, but I say I’m simply nostalgic.

My first finished novel was to be the first of a trilogy (here we go with another series!) called The One Warrior Saga. This first installment was titled the Warrior’s Heart, and I lost the first draft to a hard drive crash! I was devastated. Fortunately, the whole thing was printed, and I was blown away by the fact that my scanner could actually convert the pages into Word documents. This was 2002; I felt like I stumbled onto secret government tech for an episode of CSI! (The turn of the century was a simpler time)

Do you have a dedicated writing space? Do you have colourful post-it notes on the walls? How does it meet your writing needs?

I have a cluttered desk that can barely be seen beneath a pile of post-its, notecards, printed stacks, and CD-Rs! To anyone else, it’s an absolute mess; to me, it’s home.

What is your writing process? Have you ever thought about changing it? Other authors I have interviewed talk about having an outline – post-it notes in an office, or writing in paper journals. Is there something like that in your writing technique? Or is it all digital for you?

I used to always have a notebook handy to jot down whatever came to me, but now it’s either whatever scrap of paper I can get my hands on, or simply the memo app on my phone. My process when I sit down to write, however, hasn’t really changed for years. I sit at my computer, turn on a fairly mellow playlist, turn off all the lights except one small desk lamp, and then I spend the first twenty minutes or so just messing around on the internet (read: killing time on Facebook). My fingers are typing, my tea is steeping / coffee is cooling / beer is sadly getting a bit warm, and I slowly come to this relaxed place where I can start writing and simply lose myself for hours. This process used to always take place in the middle of the night when I could really get rid of all distractions, but now I have to be an adult and go to work in the morning, so the time I carve out to write has changed.

Do you have a preference for ebook or paperback format? This is for both your own reading and your novels.

I only joined the modern age two years ago when I got a Nook reader as a gift, and though I’ve got a few books on there, I just prefer having the real deal in my hands. Even with my own book, yes, it is available in digital format, but I had to make sure that it could be acquired in paperback as well. I’m that way with music, too; I’d rather have the physical CD with the booklet and artwork than just an album download. Old soul, perhaps.

Social media is becoming a big thing. How does managing media outlets come into marketing your brand and your books?

It means I better get serious about Twitter! I’ve had an account for years that I barely use, but that’s starting to change. I think social media makes it easier for independent artists—whether it be writers, musicians, filmmakers, you name it—to get their work in front of people. Do most of us even know how to use it? I don’t think so, but the interfaces are making it easier to bridge that gap. I ran a Facebook ad for a couple days just to test it out, and the data that you get back from that is incredible! I’ll definitely be ramping up my presence on social media.

Sharing is Caring 🙂

Twitter

Pinterest

Tumblr

Linkedin

Facebook

Google

Stumbleupon

Reddit