Interview & Giveaway with Silver Hollow Author Jennifer Silverwood

1. Please start by telling us a little bit about yourself. 

I’m a brunette, but people call me a redhead a lot, and I was blonde as a kid, which explains a lot. I love dark chocolate because it’s a little bitter. Went to three different colleges for different degrees I have no use for now. I work at a Learning Center, which is basically a glorified daycare with lesson plans. I had many imaginary friends growing up. I have three older brothers who were teenagers when I was a kid, so I felt like an only child. I’d love to live in a little cottage in the woods one day, far away from the real world. Someday, I’d also like a little shop where I could bake, serve tea and coffee. There would be several different rooms at this place, one with art supplies and another with books and old magazines, some place people would want to come relax and create together.

2. When did you know that you wanted to write professionally and how did you take the leap to get into the business? 

Since I was a child and knew I wanted to be just like Jo March, Anne Shirley and Emily Starr. Years later I couldn’t get a short story published on this online publishing site and came across articles about Kindle publishing. I decided it was time I guess lol.

3. Can you tell me a little bit about  your book and what inspired it?

The twins in the book are based on my besties in real life, who were in fact my neighbors growing up. I was just playing around with our future selves a couple years back and came up with those first five or so chapters. After reading it to them, they urged me for more.

4. What do you hope that readers take way with them after reading your book? 

That they’ll feel they’ve stepped into another person’s shoes and gone on a wild, zany and fun adventure, and will want to visit again in the sequel.

5. I find it interesting to know what environment authors find most productive… Do you use a pen and paper or laptop? Quiet room at home or bustling café? Basically, what gets your creative juices flowing?

I can’t handle a lot of distractions when I write, so usually it’s at home with dim lights, candles and my laptop. And music plays a huge part. I have to make the right movie score playlist for every book. Right now I’m listening to the Skyrim soundtrack a lot. It’s epic!

6. What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?

Hard to pinpoint. It’s always a bit chaffing to hear someone blatantly downing your writing, but fortunately I haven’t run into any haters. As for compliments, probably when my editor told me that I was improving. That’s something you always want to hear!

7. What book is currently on your nightstand? And who are some of your favorite authors?

“Twenty Years Later” by Alexandre Dumas, “The Message” by Eugene H. Peterson and “Among the Shadows” by L.M Montgomery.

8. What do you like to do when you're not writing?

I read a lot of books. I watch brat pack and Audrey Hepburn movies to relax, and occasionally spice it up with an 80’s cult classic or shows I grew up with in the 90’s.

9. Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?

Writing is not a solo effort like a lot of people believe, but that of a group. Surround yourself with people who have more experience than you, other authors, readers and bloggers. They’ll be willing to share what they know, especially other Indie’s. And never be afraid to ask for advice.

10. What can we expect from you next?

I’ve got the sequel to my YA sci-fi novella series in the process of being edited right now. And I’m working on a darker fairy tale series, Wylder Tales. The first in the series is a high fantasy reimagining of the Beauty and the Beast legend, called Vynasha.

11.  Do any animals share your life? Please tell us about them.

No. I’m not exactly an animal person, though I don’t have anything against them. We just grew up with outside dogs that were a little less than reliable, lol. And ducks and cows.

And now for a little bit of fun:)  This or That? 

Coffee or Tea?  Tea!

Sweet or Salty?  A combination of both, please.

Beach or Lake?  Lake with a boat, some tackle and bait, few drinks and I’m set. :)

Winter or Summer? Winter. Do y’all know how hot it gets down here?

Cats or Dogs?  Dogs. Cat’s are so snooty.

Zombies or Vampires?  Zombies for a fun watch, but I’d rather run into a Vampire any day.

Country or City? Country, so I can see the stars and breathe non-poisonous air.

Shower or Bath?  Shower. Baths take too long lol.

Morning or Evening? Evening. I’m a total night owl.

M&Ms or Skittles? Anything that encases chocolate is my choice.

Trains or Planes? Trains. I love the old school feel of them.

Comedy or Drama? Drama. I can always make myself laugh. Dramatic films always stick with me longer.

Title:  Silver Hollow
Author:  Jennifer Silverwood

Reading Level: Young Adult/New Adult
Genre: Paranormal Romance/ Fantasy/Chick-lit

Release Date: November 9th 2012

Find the book: Goodreads   | Amazon    | Barnes & Noble 

Amie Wentworth writes paranormal romances, not because she is looking for a degree in ectoplasm, but because she’s got bills to pay. Ever since her parents’ car crash, she has been led a reclusive life and trusted books more than people. Not even a letter from her long-lost uncle, begging her to visit, gives Amie incentive for anything other than ire – until she is stabbed in an alley and brought back to life by a mysterious stranger.

After crossing the Atlantic to her father’s homeland, Amie is dragged into the very sort of tale she is used to selling. Silver Hollow is a place of ancient traditions and supernatural dangers, where everything is the opposite of what it seems and few escape sane.

To make matters worse, the man who saved her life keeps turning up and her would-be-murderer is still at large.

But when she comes face to face with the ugly truth, will she too be sucked into her father’s madness? Or will she discover that madness is just another name for honesty?

 

The windows Amie passed on her mad dash back to her rooms betrayed the first glimpse of dawn. How her bare feet managed to take her back without getting splinters from the fallen wood beams or getting lost, she didn’t have time to dissect. Amie darted past the shadows, relieved when the West Wing was nearly behind her.

Home stretch, Wentworth! You’re almost there and you didn’t even last a week in track.

She grinned, touching the end of the feather sticking out of her robe pocket. This was her biggest mystery and most intriguing find. She wondered if any of the books Henry had put in her bookcase could shed some light.

Amie squinted and gasped when the distant candle light winked out of existence. The corner shadows literally moved to stand in front of her, blocking her vision. Confused and more than a little freaked out, Amie decided to just plunge through the gap. It had to be a trick of the eyes. She’d been awake most of the night, after all.

When she impacted the shadow, she realized too late it was hard as a brick wall. Within seconds she was flipped onto her back, the breath knocked out of her and the candelabra pooling wax onto the floor beside her head. She was too frightened to shout, flashbacks of the night she was attacked penetrating her mind. So she flinched when the shadows shifted and drew into her candle’s light to reveal the impression of a face.

Amie threw up her hands and scrambled backwards when the shadow reached to touch her. “Don’t come any closer! Get away from me!” she hissed, afraid to scream and wake the house. A part of her was still convinced this was a figment of her troubled imagination. Shutting her eyes, she willed the spirit to flee, then froze in terror when it spoke.

“Forgive me for startling you. I only intended to be certain ye were real, flying about the castle in yer nightdress as if ye had all the golems of the world at your back.”

“Your voice…” she whispered, blinked up at the source of the deeply masculine voice. “I feel like I’ve heard that before.” When he chuckled at her words she frowned, so he explained.

“I’ve been told a great many things by maidens far uglier and others with only a reflection of your true beauty, but never this. Tell me,” he said after a tense pause, where she focused on the reflection of her candle’s flames dancing in his black orbs, “what reason should a blood-filled woman have in the West Wing this night, lest she be a wight?” He was mocking her yet her curiosity won over her frustration.

“What’s a wight?” she asked and could have sworn his eyes shifted colors, from black to red to silver and then brilliant blue.

“A walking specter, milady, doomed to haunt its resting place forever.”

“I’m not a wight,” she said. For a long moment he said nothing, only peered intensely over her, until she felt the blackness would swallow her whole.

“Then neither am I, Jessamiene Wenderdowne,” he whispered, drawing back into the darkness. Amie’s heart was pounding, her blood racing. He shouldn’t have been able to leave so quickly. There were no other rooms past hers, no alcoves she had uncovered, or hidden passages to escape into. Yet as soon as his whisper was nothing more than a memory and his face had left her candle’s glow, she knew she was truly alone.

Jennifer Silverwood was raised deep in the heart of Texas and has been spinning yarns a mile high since childhood. In her spare time she reads and writes and tries to sustain her wanderlust, whether it's the Carpathian Mountains in Transylvania, the highlands of Ecuador or a road trip to the next town.

After attending three different universities without managing to square a degree, she decided to the next logical thing; become a writer. Always on the lookout for her next adventure, in print or reality, she dreams of one day proving to the masses that everything really is better in Texas.

She is the author of the Heaven's Edge series and Silver Hollow. 

Connect with the Author:  Website | Blog   | Twitter   | Facebook  

10 e-books (International) and 10 print copies (US ONLY)

a Rafflecopter giveaway