Help me welcome author, Angela Kay Austin to Musings today! She's got a new release and an interview to share with us :-) Enjoy!
Angela Kay Austin
1.
When did you know
you wanted to be a writer? What were some of your first steps toward making
your dream a reality? How would you say most of your stories are conceived?
Dreams? Research? Experience? I’ve
always expressed myself through words.
It’s been my most “organic” means of expression as long as I can
remember. My first steps were buying a
diary and writing. I wrote about everything:
first loves, teachers, friends, hopes, and dreams. My stories are a mixture of many things. News.
Daydreams. Conversations.
Eavesdropping. I try to keep my mind
open to everything around me for the possibility of a story idea. I can’t say I had any particular experience,
in the beginning. I took creative
writing and journalism classes in college, but didn’t do much with it. I didn’t decide to follow my dream of writing
until I was much older.
2.
Is there a common
thread in your books? How do your values show up in your writing? Jungian
philosophy? What do you want readers to take from your writing? I think there
are a few common threads. My books focus
on the female character. She’s usually
at a point of rebuilding, and I try to challenge what she knows in some way. I
like forcing my characters to step outside of who they are and what they
know. I hope that it makes the reader do
the same. I don’t know if they reader
will always agree with what my character decides; however, I hope that the
reader is at least intrigued.
3.
What do you look
for in a good book? In what ways would you say your books exhibit these
qualities? For me to enjoy a book, I
have to get lost in the story. And I
hope that happens when readers pick up my book.
I want readers to forget about whatever is happening in their own lives,
and I want them to hate when the story ends.
One of the best comments I can read about one of my books is…will there
be a sequel.
4.
What are some of
the best social media, marketing, and publicity tips you’ve come across? You don’t have to use every social
media. But, when you do decide to jump
in and start using social media, you have to engage others. You can't lurk and watch. That won’t do anything for you.
5.
What are some
things you know now about writing and being an author that you wish someone had
told you at the very beginning? That there is more than one way to become a
published author. And that all paths to
becoming a published author are okay to explore.
6.
What lifts your
spirits when you’re discouraged? Music.
I like to meditate with music and silence.
Sometimes movies also lift my spirits.
I watch something that will have characters doing what I’d like to be
doing J
7.
What tips can you
offer towards building and maintaining a strong support system as a writer? Don’t look for “yes” men/women. Seek out strong relationships with people who
will be honest with you about your writing.
Be careful all critique partners/groups are not equal.
Rumer Wilson married the love of her life ten years ago, has two beautiful children, and what she believes is a wonderful life to prove it. But, does anybody ever control love? Her world spirals into an unfamiliar place of uncertainty for everything she holds dear, when her husband falls in love with a woman hiding secrets.
Sebastian Ortiz has loved many women. Rumer is a means to an end. He doesn’t want to hurt her, but he needs her – for revenge on the man who hurt his sister – the sister he’s protected from harm his whole life.
Neither Rumer or Sebastian could imagine what comes next...
Bestselling author
Angela Kay Austin has expressed herself through words for as long as she can
remember. Poems became songs performed with
her cousin at every family gathering. But, eventually, short stories filled her
favorite pink diary. An infatuation with
music and theater led to years playing various instruments and small extra
roles in TV shows before giving way to a degree and career in radio and TV
production. After completing another
degree in marketing, Angela found herself combining her love for all things
creative and worked for many many years in promotions and advertising. But once again, she found herself writing,
which led to her first published work which stayed on her publisher’s bestseller
list for ten weeks. Her second release
hit the bestseller list at All Romance eBooks. She’s spoken on author panels,
and served on boards for various author groups.
When she’s not writing, you can find her reading her favorite authors,
or researching her next story idea.
Angela shares her downtime with her mixed-bred rescue terrier—Midnight,
in the beautiful southern state of Tennessee.
Contact Angela:
Twitter: @AngelaKayAustin
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