Brain to Books Blog Tour
Fast Fact
Author: Elizabeth Davies
Genre: Paranormal romance
Books:
State of Grace from the Resurrection Series
Amazing Grace
Sanctifying Grace
The Spirit Guide
The Medium Path
Bio
Elizabeth Davies was born and raised in South Wales more years ago than she cares to remember. She lived in England for nearly two decades but returned to her roots when she felt the mountains of her youth calling to her, and hiking in her beloved Brecon Beacons is now one of the joys in her life. When she is not working as a full time secretary, Elizabeth loves spending time with her family, hates doing necessary chores, and tries to fit in writing whenever she can. She has published several books: the Resurrection trilogy, beginning with “State of Grace”, continuing with “Amazing Grace”, and ending with “Sanctifying Grace”, “The Spirit Guide and most recently – The Medium Path. She is currently working on another paranormal romance set in Wales. She is also seriously addicted to chocolate.
Blurb
Grace has a terminal brain tumour and will die in the next few months. Roman has an addiction to blood, and could possibly live forever. Grace is twenty-seven years old. When they meet in the twelfth century Roman is several hundred years old.
And Grace has another problem – she’s from his future and neither of them believe it.
Interview with Elizabeth
- Tell us a little about yourself. (How did you get started writing? What do you do when you’re not writing?
Like nearly every author I read a lot. I devour books like a child eats sweets. But I didn’t even consider writing until I read Twilight. I enjoyed the series, I wanted my own vampire. So I made one up.
I work full time and have a family, so I fit in writing when I can.
- Is this your first book?
State of Grace was my first book, and I have written another four, with two more in the pipeline and more ideas that I can handle. I think I’ll be busy for a while!
- What genre do you enjoy writing the most and what is this book about?
I’ve only published paranormal romances, but I have plans for novels that are more general women’s fiction.
State of Grace is about a woman with a terminal brain tumour who is unpredictably projected into the past, where she discovers vampires do exist.
- How did you come up with the title of your book or series?
Grace is the name of the protagonist, and she was in a bit of a state – so it seemed apt.
- Tell us a little bit about your cover art. Who designed it? Why did you go with that particular image/artwork?
I did the cover – and not particularly well. Having no money to spend on a cover designer, and not being able to source a pre-made that effectively linked the three books, I decided to have a go myself.
- If you could cast your characters in the Hollywood adaptation of your book, who would play your characters?
That’s a hard one to answer. I actually have no idea.
- When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I’m not sure that I do consider myself a writer. I don’t make a living out of it, and I suppose I still think of myself as dabbling. I’m quite shy about it, and most people who know me personally don’t know that I’m an author.
- What does your writing process look like?
I start off with a premise, a beginning and an end (and often a title), with no idea how I get from one to the other. I’m definitely a punster. I have tried plotting but the minute I start typing the plot goes out of the window and the characters decide what’s going to happen for themselves. I write early in the morning before I go to work when I’ve got the house to myself, and I sit curled in an armchair with my pjs on and a laptop balanced on my knee – I don’t think I’d know what to do if I had an office…
- Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Doing exactly the same thing but hopefully be better at it. I don’t envisage earning enough to be able to give up my job, so I’ll still be fitting the writing in when I can.
- What writing advice do you have for other aspiring authors??
Keep writing, and don’t spend so much time marketing and promoting that all your energy goes into that and not your writing.
- Do you read your reviews? Do you respond to them, good or bad? Do you have any advice on how to deal with the bad?
Yes I do, read them, though not as much obsessively as I used to. I will go weeks or even months now without looking at how State of Grace, my first novel, is doing. I do check far more often with my latest book, though.
Less than favourable reviews are heartbreaking, especially when you think they may be unjustified. But as an author you have to let them go and I never respond to a review unless I’ve specifically asked that reader to review my book. Then I thank them for their time regardless of the review they write – it’s only polite, and it’s not their fault if they didn’t like my work.
- What is the most difficult thing about being an author?
Apart from the bad reviews??
Seriously, I find promoting and marketing to be the hardest and least favourite part of being an author. Sometimes I’m tempted to not do it, and just concentrate on writing, but I know I can’t do that!
- What can readers who enjoy your book do to help make it successful?
The best thing they can do is to leave review, and if they have a blog or are on Twitter, then they can mention it, and help spread the word.
- How important are names to you in your books? Do you choose the names based on liking the way it sounds or the meaning? Do you have any name choosing resources you recommend?
I spend an inordinate amount of time thinking of suitable names for the main characters. But reactions to names are very subjective, and what I might think reflects the essence of a character other people may have a different reaction. I don’t research the meaning, necessarily, though I might look it up later, just out of curiosity. Also many of my characters are people who really lived, and I’m stuck with their names. For instance, in my current manuscript, which features Joan, daughter of King John, there is a woman called Clemence, who is Joan’s mother. Someone did say this is a man’s name – which it is – but that was her real name, so I’m not going to take it away from her.
15 What is your best marketing tip?
I found I’ve had the best response from book recommendation sites, rather than Facebook or Twitter, but there are still many things I haven’t tried yet to generate interest in my work, so marketing is an on-going process.
16 What are you working on now?
Another paranormal romance set in 13th century Britain. I do love history! It’s about a witch’s familiar, and hopefully isn’t as cutesy as it sounds. I’m aiming to publish in time for Hallowe’en.
17 What can we expect from you in the future?
I’ve got another paranormal romance or two up my sleeve, and I also have a few ideas for general woman’s
Interview with Grace:
You’re an intelligent woman – how come you didn’t realise straight away Roman is a vampire?
Seriously, would you? What’s reasonable in fiction, isn’t so reasonable in real life. If you read an article in a newspaper saying that some guy drinks blood, etc, your first thought would be that this guy is a nutter. Plus I was never into the supernatural stuff. I preferred science fiction, so my first instinct was to blame it on the tumour. Science. Fact. Not made-up stuff.
Yeah, about that. How did you feel when you were diagnosed?
At the time my diagnosis was more unreal than the vampire situation. It still is. I’m twenty-seven, for goodness sake! I can’t possibly be dying. And I feel so well – apart from the headaches.
Have you made any plans – you know, um, for the end?
Yes. No. Sort of. I’m selling the flat in London, tying up all the loose ends. I suppose I should be thankful I’ve got the time to do that, and the time to say goodbye to my family.
How are they dealing with it?
Not well, but I don’t think it’s sunk in yet. Hell – I’m not sure I believe it either! Sometimes Roman is more real to me than my tumour. I don’t want to talk about my family, it upsets me too much.
Okay, I understand. Tell me about Roman. What’s he like? Deep down.
He’s a vampire. That’s what he’s like. He’s not human – not really. Vampires are complex creatures, much more than the media usually gives them credit for. Yes, they are driven by their need for blood, but that’s only the same as the way humans are driven by their need for air and food. They don’t just lie around waiting for their next meal, the same way people don’t. They have lives to live – unimaginable lives.
What did you think when you first saw him?
That I was dreaming. For a long time I thought it was all in my head. I still do, if I’m honest. I know things I shouldn’t know, but I compare this to people waking from comas and being able to speak a foreign language. Things like that happen, right? So perhaps it’s happening to me. That’s a far more believable story than time-travel and vampires.
Well, when you put it like that…
Of course I’m putting it down to the havoc the tumour is wreaking in my brain. God knows what nerves it’s pressing on, and what electrical impulses it’s disrupting.
I’ve been wanting to ask you – what’s with the naked thing?
Arrrg, I was hoping you wouldn’t bring that up. I have no idea. It must be a subliminal fear of appearing naked in public, or something. It’s really annoying. I’m never naked in any other dreams.
Doesn’t that tell you there might be more to this whole situation? And there’s the fact that if you are injured in the past you bring that injury with you to the present day.
I can’t answer that. Psychosomatic, maybe? Like stigmata? The brain is a complex organ and science knows only a fraction of what it is capable of.
You made some, shall we say, reckless decisions whist at the castle.
I’m dreaming. It’s not real. How can they be reckless?
You came back injured. I’d call that reckless.
Okay – you dream you’re killing your mother-in-law. Do you honestly believe your dream is going to follow you when you wake up? No, of course you don’t. I didn’t either. I didn’t think anything was REAL. So it didn’t matter what I did when I was dreaming.
Yet the first couple of times you time-travelled you brought back injuries…?
Yes, I did. And I can’t explain them, and I tried to pretend they weren’t there. I was in denial.
It seems you may still be in denial.
Perhaps I am. I think if this was happening to you, you wouldn’t believe it either.
You’re probably right… Do you think it’ll happen again?
Who knows, but I hope so…
