Friday, May 13, 2011

Interview with Book Love Blog


Book Love Blog is pleased to be interviewing Courtney Conant, author of The Blood Moon of Winter.

Book Love Blog: What would you like to tell my readers about your book?
Courtney Conant: It’s a paranormal fantasy with a romantic side. It’s written with all adult readers in mind, not just men or women, but both.  It verges on being acceptable for YA readers, but for one chapter, it would be.

BLB: The Blood Moon of Winter has such unique paranormal elements. What was your inspiration?
CC: My mind and my characters were my inspiration. I didn’t plan or plot anything. I sat down and started writing and let the words flow. I refused to allow myself to think about what I was putting on the pages. If I thought too hard while working, I would lose where the story was going. When that happened, I would have to stop and do something else for awhile. I’d go back to the book with an open mind and just pick back up where I left off and lose myself in the story. I let the characters write themselves.

BLB: I love a girl that enjoys a good cup of coffee and a book. Is Lilyana based on you or someone you know?
CC: I didn’t realize until after I had written Lily up that she is loosely based on me. The only real difference between our personalities is that I love to watch anime in my spare time too, not just read…


BLB: The Blood Moon of Winter left with such a cliffhanger. I am assuming there will be a sequel?
CC: I’m currently working on the sequel, Beyond the Known Horizon, right now along with a short story that will be coming out in the next couple of months (still untitled). Book Two picks up right where Book One left off. In the sequel, the reader gets to follow both Lily AND Jason, not just Lily anymore.

BLB: I’m sure you get asked this all the time, but what made you decide to self-publish your novel and go the indie route?
CC:
I was told my many agents and a couple of publishers that the concept of my novel was great and that they would love to take it on but that it was too short for the genre’s standards. I attempted to make it longer and to have it fit into what they deemed necessary. Each attempt messed with how I wanted to story to be. No matter what I tried, I didn’t like the results.

After several attempts, I decided that it wasn’t worth it. If I did what they wanted me to, I wouldn’t be happy with how it turned out. That’s when I chose to just go it alone and publish it myself. I’m so glad that I did because I got what I wanted, being published, and I’m happy with the story as well.

Read the entire interview here.