1) To kick off this interview, can you tell me a little about yourselves?
Sasha – I’m a mom to four great kids, a wife to my high school sweetheart, and a big time fan of romance and happily ever afters. I grew up in a house chalk full of story-tellers so I guess becoming a storyteller was fate. :)
Anna – I’m a mining engineer by day, a writer the rest of the time and a huge lover of novellas and short stories. I’m also a mom to a very active toddler and married to the man of my dreams. We currently call Africa home.
Stacy—as of two years ago I was totally dedicated to my career as a figure skating coach! I’m still dedicated, but only on a part-time basis. :P Much to my amazement, my writing career has taken off kind of like a runaway horse, so I’m doing my best to hold on for the ride (and I can’t wait to see where it takes me!).
2) What made you want to get into writing?
Sasha – Honestly, I just loved the stories I was writing for me so much that I wanted to share and connect with other readers.
Anna – I was a reader first. A voracious, read-anything-I could-get-my-hands-on reader. I was inspired by my favorite authors to try my hand at writing my own stories.
Stacy—I’ve always been into writing! When I was a competitive skater I’d have long stretches in between events, so I began writing to pass the time. I wrote my first 300-page novel when I was fourteen. :)
3) To Sasha - I had the privilege of reading and reviewing your book Medusa: A Love Story and found it fascinating. What was your idea behind that novel?
Thanks Dan. Your review is one I’ve printed and have tacked on my wall to keep me from giving up now and then. I’ve always loved Greek Mythology – always – but sensed Medusa’s tale had more to it. Then I had a very vivid dream, the scene where the hero is running through a field looking up… I woke feeling so sad, hopeful, determined… The rest of the story came very easily – you could say I was a little possessed.
4) So tell us a little more about A Galatic Holiday. What’s it about?
Sasha – well Carina Press put out a special submission call for a SciFi Holiday anthology. I’d never written for a submission call before, but thought the concept was too fun not to try… so I wrote it. All three of our stories have the same SciFi Holiday theme, but different (and awesome) tales.
Anna – A GALACTIC HOLIDAY is three sci-fi romance novellas that feature the holidays. But it’s more than romance under the mistletoe! There’s action, awesome sci-fi worlds, high-tech gadgets and plenty of adventure.
Stacy—If you can imagine a mash-up between any feel-good Christmas movie and Star Trek or Blade Runner, you’ve got A GALACTIC HOLIDAY. All three of these stories have oodles of sci-fi magic and holiday cheer to satisfy lovers of both themes. ^_^
5) How did the idea come about?
Sasha – for me, Riley (the heroine) came first. She was a complete departure from any heroine I’d ever written, which was fun. I used the old, make things bad –now make things worse tool to put her and Leo (hero) through the ringer. I loved the story that emerged.
Anna – when I saw the call for stories featuring science fiction and the holidays, I was intrigued by the combination. I decided to explode the winter holiday of Yule and instantly envisioned an ice planet called Perma. After that came Brinn and her rival intergalactic trade negotiator, Savan Bardan.
Stacy—The main characters of HOW THE GLITCH SAVED CHRISTMAS, Reina and Edison, are pushy; they’ve been nagging at me for a couple of years, at least. When Carina Press asked for sci-fi submissions with a holiday theme, these two pushy personalities insisted this would be the perfect place for their debut, so I really had no choice. I had to tell their story. :P
6) When is it out?
December 3! YAY!
7) Who would you say are your writing heroes?
Sasha - Oh so many… and because I read all the time, I discover new authors I adore. I love Stephanie Dray, Suzanna Kearsley, Diana Gabaldon, George Orwell, etc
Anna – In the romance world, Nora Roberts and Nalini Singh. In the action-adventure world, Wilbur Smith and Matthew Reilly.
Stacy—oh, wow, there are so many! Stephen King is the first one who comes to mind, along with Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. But I also love the fresh voices of Seth Grahame-Smith (Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter) and Lilith Saintcrow (Dante Valentine novels), and romance writers such as Shannon Stacey and Bella Andre. My #1 writing hero, though, will always be JK Rowling. Always. (:)Professor Snape quote *sniffle*)
8) For any aspiring writers out there, what advice would you give to them?
Sasha – Never give up. Write the story in your heart and keep at it. It will never be easy, but it wouldn’t be half as rewarding if it was. And Good Luck!
Anna – Just write. Sit down and write, write, write – no excuses. Make it a habit.
Stacy—write every day. Even if it’s just a paragraph or two, and even if it’s terrible. Don’t talk about it. Do it.
Chilling Out in the Future
Did you know that television accounts for largest share of most people’s leisure time? On average, people watch 2.5 to 4 hours of television per day! It is by far the most popular way to chill out.
Ever wondered how we’ll chill out in the future? Will we still watch a lot of television? See what the characters in A GALACTIC HOLIDAY do to relax:
Sasha: There’s not much down time on Galileo Station, everyone has a job to do to keep the place running. But when they are chilling out, they’re normally converging in the cafeteria, enjoying a meal and conversation, together.
Since the heroine (Riley) has lived a primarily isolated existence, down-time doesn’t compute for her. Her idea of relation: fixing things. She’s kind of neurotic that way, tinkering and tweaking things until they’re at their peak performance. I guess it’s kind of a survival thing too. Leo (the hero) is a bit more laid back. He enjoys laughing and hanging out – and slowly helps Riley warm up to the idea. :)
Stacy: In HOW THE GLITCH SAVED CHRISTMAS, surfing the ‘net goes at the speed of thought if you have neurolinks wired directly into your wetware, like the hero Edison Wicke. But even for those who don’t (like my heroine, Reina Vedette) multi-media goggles are all the rage and are nearly as fast as neurolinks.
But for Reina, what free downtime she has isn’t wasted vegging out on the web. She has a need for speed, and she gets that on her slick bike, a frictionless Maglev cycle powered by hydrogen cells. Though some critics say that people who ride these “death traps” are only quicker in finding their deaths, for Reina that’s all part of the fun.
Anna: WINTER FUSION is set on the ice world of Perma. The heroine, Brinn and her fellow Permas are used to ice and snow…actually, they revel in it. So no surprise that chilling out for them is quite literal!
Permans love to ski, sled, snow-skate and ice fish. Family is important to them, so these activities are family affairs. And when they need to warm up, relaxing centers around family get-togethers with lots of food and singing.
In contrast, the hero of the story, Savan is from Rendar—a high-tech, energy-dependent world. Everything they own and do consumes energy. They are constantly on their Syncs (future versions of a tablet), indulging their latest passions or catching a VelocityBall game. So yes, they watch a lot of futuristic television.
Needless to say, the heroine Brinn has her work cut out for her teaching Savan how to appreciate Perman life (-:
So if you’re looking for a different way to chill out these holidays, why not do it sci-fi style?
A GALACTIC HOLIDAY – Carina Press | Amazon | B&N | All Romance
Anna Hackett – Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads
Stacy Gail – Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads
Sasha Summers – Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads
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Thanks for joining me on my blog today, girls! Don't forget to get involved in the prize pack that they current have going on. Link is below! Get your entries in!
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PANDRAGON
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UPCOMING BLOG TOURS:
- 5th December - Interview with Sasha Summers
- 7th December - Guest Post
- 8th December - Author Spotlight
