Did you choose your genre or did it
choose you?
I write young adult paranormal fantasy and
science fiction, with a splash of romance. I feel that the genre chose me. When
I began writing fiction again in 2007, I began writing with an adult
protagonist. But it just wasn’t working. When I changed the character to a
teenager, it all clicked.
I’ve been interested in science, magic and
the paranormal since I was a kid. So the stories that come to me tend to be a
mixture of these things.
Did you enjoy language arts in
school? Did you have a teacher that particularly encouraged you to write?
When I was in school, it was called
‘English’! LOL. And yes, I always enjoyed the subject. I wrote stories, poetry,
plays and journaled as far back as I can remember. I won some awards for
fiction in elementary and high school, but I didn’t have a teacher encourage me
to write. And when I got to college, I pretty much stopped writing and didn’t
take it up again for about 20 years. Maybe if a teacher had encouraged me, I
may not have stopped. But when I began writing again, I wrote purely for the
pleasure of the experience of writing.
It’s five o’clock somewhere…Let’s
have a drink! What cocktail best describes you and why?
A spicy Bloody Mary! I’ve got red hair, I’m
more salty than sweet, and I’ve got a fiery temperament!
On my desk I have a rhino that my
husband gave me to remind me I’m rhino-tough, as you have to be in the
business. Is there anything you have that you use to remind you of that?
I have several things on my desk that serve
as totems. One is a beautiful winged faerie on horseback. I got her
specifically as a totem for the Akasha Chronicles series. She reminds me to let
go my conscious, lawyerly brain and dig deep into my imagination where magic
and mystery reside.
I was supposed
to ready Moby Dick – twice. Once in high school, once in college. I never got
through it. (Don’t tell my teachers – I used Cliff Notes to write my papers!) I’m
not sure why I hated that book so much, but I just could not get myself to read
it. Wuthering Heights? Yes. Some dude
chasing a whale all over the seven seas? No.
You have a million dollars that you
must donate to one charitable organization. Which one would you choose and why?
That’s a hard question – so many worthy
causes. But if I had to choose one and only one, it would probably be a small
organization called Animals Asia.
This organization works in China and other Asian countries to rescue the moon
bear from unspeakable torture. They educate the public about the illegal “bile
farms”, and they provide much-needed medical care, rehabilitation and a
lifetime of care for the rescued bears.
Do you have one of those pesky day
jobs, or are you a full-time writer? If you do have another career what do you
do and do you enjoy it?
I do have a day job. I’m a divorce attorney.
But about five years ago, I shifted my practice to mediation only, so I no
longer duke it out in court for clients.
I used to hate my job, but when I figured out
that I liked being a neutral better than I liked being an advocate for just one
party, life got a lot better! Now I like my ‘day’ job. I get to help people end
their married life in a cooperative and peaceful way, rather than an
adversarial and nasty way. And I work for myself so I’m able to schedule my day
job work around my writing. Life is good :-D
Due to the world we live in, most
editors will tell a romance writer they have the moral obligation to protect
their characters from scary life altering things, thereby being obligated to
the reader. What are your thoughts on this? Do you protect your characters and
how?
Hmm, well I’m not a romance writer, so I
can’t speak specifically to that issue. But I can’t imagine, as a writer, not writing ‘scary life altering
things’. As both a reader and a writer, I want
characters to face scary things! I don’t mean rape, incest, torture or
brutality. I don’t want to read or think about stuff like that, so I won’t
write it. But if a character never faces ‘life altering things’, how does the
character ever grow and change?
Wine or beer?
Wine
Satin or cotton?
Cotton, though I’d prefer silk ;-)
Fries or tots?
Fries. And to make them really over the top,
I like to dip them in garlic aioli!
Cake or pie?
Pie
Candle light or pitch dark?
Candle light. Everyone looks better in the
glow of candles.
Two years ago, Emily’s journey began. She learned the ancient magic of
her Celtic ancestors,and became a modern Celtic Priestess. The golden torc,
forged by faerie hands, is still wound around her arm, fused to her soul. She
was entrusted with powerful magic – secret knowledge.
But even a Priestess can feel desire – temptation – and the quest for
love. Will passion entice
Emily to use her sacred magic in a forbidden way? Can new love take root in a world of
nightmares? And will her friendships survive Emily’s Trial?
The Journey Continues . . .
Excerpt:
The Apocalypse didn't start with four horsemen, harbingers
of the horror to come. It didn't start with a plague, or pestilence, or even
zombies rising from the dead.
It came slowly, and without warning. It crept up on people
in the shadows, no more than a vague darkness that spread like an unseen
cancer.
And it wasn't set into action by a divine hand. A teenage
girl was the catalyst for the End Times.
I should know. I'm the one that started it.
I didn't plan to. I didn't want to start the End Times, and
I'm not evil.
Madame Wong taught me to tell the truth, and so here it is.
I'm the one responsible for the Apocalypse. And this is the story of how I
unwittingly unlocked the door to the darkness; of how a Priestess of the Order
of Brighid, entrusted with powerful magic that was supposed to be used for the
benefit of all humankind, unleashed a force that would destroy it instead.
Paperback:
CreateSpace:
http://bit.ly/UJuq9M
Amazon:
http://amzn.to/QscryF
Barnes
& Noble: http://bit.ly/RdAscm
Powell’s:
http://bit.ly/R4hBS9
E-Book:
Smashwords*:
http://bit.ly/UJuq9M
*At
Smashwords you can download the version of your choice – for Kindle, Nook,
iTunes, Kobo, Sony, PDF, etc.
Amazon
for Kindle: http://amzn.to/R58yyW
Apple
iBookstore: http://bit.ly/UWeGeg
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/emilys-trial-natalie-wright/1112990363?ean=2940044978607And it all began with desire.
Natalie is
the author of The Akasha Chronicles, a young adult fantasy trilogy. When not
writing, blogging, Facebooking, Tweeting, Wattpadding or eating chocolate,
Natalie nurtures her young daughter, feeds her dog too many treats, and can’t
resist watching Ancient Aliens, no matter how absurd the show becomes.
Natalie
enjoys travel, good wine, and excellent food shared with family and friends.
She was raised an Ohio farm girl, now lives in the desert Southwest, and dreams
of living in a high rise in a big city.
“Books are my
friends, ideas my passion.”
Natalie
enjoys chatting with readers, so stop by and say hi:
Twitter:
@NatalieWright_
Natalie will award an autographed
copy of "Emily's House", a handmade Celtic-inspired armlet, similar
to one worn by Emily in the books and book swag to one randomly drawn commenter
(US only -- an eBook of "Emily's House" will be substituted as the
prize for an international winner). The tour dates can be found here:
Thank you for hosting today.
ReplyDeleteThank you for having me as a guest today :-D
ReplyDeleteNice interview and video.
ReplyDeletebn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)com
Thank you bn100 for stopping by and commenting :-) And good luck in the contest
Delete