Welcome Author Shawna Thomas.




Shawna, thanks so much for coming today. I’ve been reading some awesome reviews on your books. Congratulations! 

1.  When looking at your very pretty website http://www.shawnathomas.com/AUTHOR_SHAWNA_THOMAS_%3A%3A_Home.html to make sure I didn’t ask anything more stupid than usual, I see that you are an “author of fantasy and paranormal romance.” If you weren’t that, if the Muse of All Things Romantic said, No, you must change sub-genres, what would be your next choice?

  Oh that’s easy, if I couldn’t write any sub genre of fantasy, I’d write contemporary romance.

2.   Also while visiting your website I see that you have seven children. As someone who was often overwhelmed by three, I am suitably impressed. Can you tell us a little about them and how you find any writing time? 

My husband and I have a blended family: his, mine and ours. Five girls and two boys. They range from twenty-five to eight months old. The oldest is out of the house and the next oldest is eighteen and starting college. I love each of my kids but writing time is harder and harder to come by. My eighteen-year-old daughter is home during the day so she helps out and my husband takes over for an hour or so every time I ask.

3.   Do you have any hobbies you’d like to talk about? 

I love to bake. My husband calls me a Sweet Genius after the Food Network show. I frequently blog about my baking adventures. I also love to garden. Give me a flower catalogue and I’m entranced.

4.   What’s your beverage of choice? And, while we’re at it, your favorite meal you don’t have to cook.

  My go-to beverage is coffee. LOL It’s necessary part of my day. I also drink a lot of water! ANY meal I don’t have to cook is my favorite. Don’t get me wrong, I love to cook but a night off is wonderful. Thankfully, my husband loves to cook as much as I do. He makes awesome Mexican food! Still, my favorite meal is my grandpa’s baked steak and mashed potatoes. I’ve tried to make it, but I just can’t get it like he did.

5.   Do you like to travel? If so, where do you most like or want to go?

  I love to travel but I don’t get the chance very often. We recently drove fifteen hours to Utah to visit family. Our youngest was seven weeks old. She did really well, but it was tiring. We go to the beach at least once a year. We live about three hours away from the Pacific Ocean. The next place I plan to go is RT in 2014!

6.   What’s your favorite color? 

My husband and I were just talking about this. I don’t have one. It changes from day to day, but I like deep, saturated colors.

7.   Do you feel as though you were born in the right time, or is there a part of you that is certain you belonged (or will belong!) in a different era? 

Hmm. There have been times I thought I belonged in an earlier era. I love the Victorian dresses and some of the customs... as I’m thinking about it, there are many different historical and cultural things I’d like to experience, but I’m a thoroughly modern girl. I like my indoor plumbing.  I guess you could say I’d like to visit but I wouldn’t want to live there.

8.   How do you feel about the changes that are taking place in publishing? Do you think we’re going in a reader- and writer-friendly direction? 

That’s a question that isn’t easily answered in brief. Some of the changes in publishing are exciting and a few are scary. It’s easier than ever to be published because there are so many options. Because it’s easier to get published, quality is not assured and there are more books to choose from. But I think overall that creates an atmosphere that is friendlier to writers than readers.  I honestly don’t know what readers think because although I read a lot, I’m not just a reader so I look at the industry differently. I love that the industry is moving toward e-readers but I’m also a traditionalist. My long-term goal is to be published by New York.

9.   My favorite question, the one I’ve asked everyone I’ve ever interviewed—what woman, past or present, would you like to have dinner with? Tell us what you’d talk about, where you’d go, the whole thing! 

Wow. I really had to think about this one. There are so many diverse women throughout history that I’d love to meet. LOL Oprah crossed my mind too. I wouldn’t mind her recommending my books. It’s a toss up between Cleopatra and Boudicca, a Celtic warrior who withstood Rome. They are both such strong women and warriors in their own way. I’d want to find out everything. How did Cleopatra enchant two very powerful men? Was it grief or anger that caused Boudicca to challenge the overwhelming forces of Nero’s Rome? It may sound silly, but I’d bring either or both of them to my home and let my husband do the cooking.

10.   You’re doing a blog tour, aren’t you? Where can we find you? 

Yes I am! I am all over the place. The best thing to do is to visit my website for an updated schedule. There will be various prizes, including a lovely pendant necklace in honor of Ilydearta (Sara’s necklace in Journey of Awakening) Any comment on any of the blogs I visit from now until March 4th—including this one—enters you to win the necklace. The more you comment, the better your chances! I’m also giving away some Starbucks gift cards, a heart pendant in honor of Valentines Day, herbal tea, and a copy of Altered Destiny (one of the few paperback copies) along the way.

I love prizes! Here are the customary links to make finding Shawna easy. 

Barnes and Noble http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/journey-of-awakening-shawna-thomas/1114057583?ean=9781426895074

Amazon  http://www.amazon.com/Journey-Awakening-Triune-Stones-ebook/dp/B00APEYBEC/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1357347408&sr=1-1

Carina Press http://ebooks.carinapress.com/714E415E-827E-460A-AE04-60432D2F03BE/10/134/en/ContentDetails.htm?ID=33CADB06-EA93-4FA0-BBB7-7840D6719D14

Visit her on her website, blog, twitter or Facebook. 
http://authorshawnathomas.blogspot.com/   https://twitter.com/authorSThomas https://www.facebook.com/ShawnaLThomas5

Blurb: After her grandfather's death, Sara inherits an ancient pendant and a near-impossible quest—master the mysterious pendant's source of magic. Driven to do so, she must find the other two stones of power, long considered lost, while preventing an unknown enemy from finding her first.

Unprepared and alone, she travels to where the keepers of the stones, the Siobani, were last seen. Along the way she meets Tobar, leader of the nomadic Heleini tribe. As Sara wrestles with feelings for this intriguing man, she is also invigorated with her grandfather's passion to find the ancient Siobani race.

After a rival tribe kidnaps Tobar's son and heir, Sara must harness the stone's healing magic to unite the tribes and save the boy. But as the dark power stalking her gains ground, will she continue on her quest to reach the Siobani or risk everything to save the warring tribes from eliminating each other?


Excerpt: She followed Jith’s gaze. The golden sand rose away from the water’s touch, forming a hill that protected their little house and its gardens from the worst of the ocean’s fury. A shadow of melancholy tempered her excitement. She would miss the island. It was the only home she could remember. But she knew every tree, had followed or made every path through the dense interior forests. Each waterway, every animal’s den had long since been mapped. She was a warrior of Shi’ia, trained by one of the greatest commanders of all time, Willam of Ardal, and now she was full-grown. An adult by anyone’s standards. An island hideaway was not the place for her. She was ready. Ready for change, ready to use the skills her grandfather had taught her, ready to begin her life. She placed a hand on her chest and traced the hard contours of her pendant. Ready to discover the world outside their little island.

Comments

  1. Thanks for being here today, Shawna. We're so happy to have you.

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    1. Thank you for having me, Liz!

      It was a fun interview!

      I have to confess, I don't have an updated blog schedule on my website. A nasty cold and the Super Bowl waylaid all my weekend plans. But it's coming soon!

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  2. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us readers Shawna. And congrats on your book.

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  3. I must say WOW!!! Journey of Awakening is my kind of book. I blame it on years and years of watching the History channel and archeological digs. I am so fascinated by the past and all the secrets we don't know! I can't wait to read Journey of Awakening. I pre-ordered it! So exciting :)

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    1. Thank you, Niecey. I love all things history too! And yes, the History channel sucks me in every time. I really hope you enjoy Journey of Awakening.

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  4. Seven kids??? And you find time to write? I bow before you!

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  5. LOL No bowing necessary. I simply gave up on sleep. Just kidding. Kind of. It's true though... you find time for something you love to do even if it means not doing other things. Like dishes and laundry. ; )

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  6. Hi Shawna. Loved you excerpt! I'm a lover of all things paranormal. Good luck with your book. Happy sales!

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    1. Thank you, Shawn!~ LOL That is what my father wanted to name me. My mom put the a on it. ; )

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  7. Great interview. Enjoyed the excerpt, too.

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  8. I want to attend your dinner with Cleopatra and Boudicca - that will be SOME conversation! Fun interview!

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    1. You're more than welcome, Veronica! I'm sure you could add to the conversation tremendously. : )

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  9. And ladies, thank you, you've all been entered in the give-away for the necklace and pendant! Good luck!

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