Author Visit: ASHLYN MATHEWS

 

I'm excited to share something new with you today.  I'm interviewing Ashlyn Mathews!  She's a sister author at Crimson Romance and she's agreed to take a minute and answer some questions for us today!  She has two books, one of which, Shadow Watcher, is available now.  The other, If Only, will be available in December.  And, of course, she's busy at work on another!  (Or two!)

Hi Ashlyn!  It's great to have you with us today!

Hi Robyn, thank you for having me on your blog.  I feel special to be your first guest J.

Please make yourself comfortable.  Then, if you will, tell us three interesting things about you.

I’m actually a very boring person, so here goes. I love to watch Japanese Anime. In a past life, I was an ER/trauma nurse. I absolutely love roses, and my favorite is the Blue Girl.

What is one of your favorite quotes?

“Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise,” by Victor Hugo from Les Miserables.  This is one of my favorite quotes because when I rewrote and revised Shadow Watcher, the quote spoke to me. No matter how much our characters misbehave or give us the silent treatment, the dark moments do end and a new day begins.  BTW, this works in my non-writing life too, lol.

It's funny how our characters can come to life in our minds, isn't it - and take on certain irritating characteristics!

What  do you think is the best and worst part of being a writer?

The best part is all the stories in my head that I would love to put on paper. The worst part? Not having the time to write. I have four active young boys and a very involved husband plus a full-time job. Our weekends are filled with soccer games while week days are practices and school work.

Sounds like you are are busy lady!

Do you have a favorite resource site you can share?

I wouldn’t say a site, but my two RWA (Romance Writers of America) chapter groups, the Greater Seattle RWA and Rose City RWA’s yahoo loops, are my favorite resources. They’ve been a wealth of information. That’s how I found my current publisher, Crimson Romance!

Do you have a specific writing style or genre?

Currently I write paranormal and contemporary romance. I love to world-build and stretch my imagination with paranormals while contemporary gives me an outlet for the angst I went through during my high school years – the insecurities, wondering if I’d find the right guy, searching for who or what I wanted to be, and learning how to live and interact in the real world. That’s why the heroines in my contemporaries will be in their early twenties.

Do you write other things besides novels?

Aside from posts on my blog, no.

How did you come up with your title?

Shadow Watcher is the name of the supernatural fighters in my paranormal romance. Since this is the first book in a series, I felt the title was appropriate to introduce the series.  Each book will have a different couple searching for their happily-ever-after while the world-building from the previous book remains the same.

Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?

My message for Shadow Watcher is that greater good should prevail, even over love, when one is born to protect the weak from the strong ,while a compromise between parties can lead to a happily-ever-after.  In the end, my heroine chooses to stick with her duty to protect humans from demons for the greater good of mankind while my hero chooses to compromise. By compromising, he gets his woman (my stubborn, noble heroine), and they live happily-ever-after.

That sounds awesome!

What are your current projects?  Can you share a little of those here?

My current project is the second book in my Shadow Watcher series. It’s entitled 'Echo UnMarked' and is still in the early stages. I’ll also be starting on another contemporary novella as part of my Willowbrook (a small fictional town in Oregon) series.

Here's a strange question.  If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?

I’d make my contemporary novella, If Only, longer and with more hot sex scenes. If Only releases December 3^rd.  An excerpt is available on my blog along with a piece from 'Echo UnMarked'.

Last question.  There will be a lot of writers reading this.  Do you have any advice for them?

My advice is to never doubt yourself or let others’ doubts in you get you down. Surround yourself with people who have your best interests at heart, and if you work hard enough and seek the answers rather than waiting for the answers to come to you, then you will realize your dreams of becoming an author.


Thanks so much for stopping by, Ashlyn!  If people want more information, where should they look?

 

Feel free to stalk me at the following sites. J

Blog: www.ashlynmathews.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ashlynmathewsauthor

Twitter: @ashlynmathews

I’m also on Pinterest and Goodreads. On Pinterest, check out my Happily Ever After models. The men and women pinned are my inspiration for my characters. I also have two boards titled Fairy Tales and Fast Rides. The title says it all .

Thank you Robyn!

Have a great day, Ashlyn!  Happy writing -- and much success with all of your books! 

robyn

 

~ Ashlyn is currently hosting a contest for

FREE BOOKS on her blog! ~

** Check it out! **

 

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