Saturday, February 2, 2013

Interview with author Diana Nixon


This is my interview of author Diana Nixon on DAY 2 of her Blog Tour Event lasting from the 1st of February to the 25th. It is in honor of the release of From Scratch, book 2.5 of the Love Lines series. Follow this page to the bottom for all of Diana Nixon's links and my to see my Review of From Scratch.


Day 2. An Interview

Tell us a little about yourself.

I was born in Minsk, Belarus, where I still live together with my husband, my little daughter and our cat:) I write fantasy novels for young adults. Before becoming a writer I was working as a lawyer, signing contracts and reading Civil Codes. I can’t but admit that signing books is much more pleasurable:) At the moment I’m working on my Love Lines series, three books of which have already been published. Apart from writing I like reading! And I’m a huge fan of fantasy:) I read all the most popular fantasy series from Harry Potter to Twilight. Too bad I don’t have much time to read now:) But every time I get a chance to read, I try to spend it with a good book in my hands. As every other woman I like shopping. I’m very communicative person and even when I don’t have an opportunity to see my friends, I try not to forget about them:) Christmas is my favorite time of the year, though I hate winter and adore summer. I like chocolate sweets and ice-cream with fruits; strawberry and tea with milk:) I hate mean people and liars and I admire honesty and bravery. What else?.. I play the piano and though I forgot most of the songs I used to know before, I still enjoy playing. I speak several foreign languages, including Polish, Spanish and English. The last one is about to become my second native language:) I used to write my books in Russian, but later I realized that it was much easier and faster to write them in English. Well, I guess that’s all I can tell about myself in a few sentences:)

When in life did you decide to start writing?

Just a few months ago I remembered about my first book, written about ten years ago. It was my childish variant of some of those Brazilian soap operas everyone liked watching so much:) So I guess my writing talent had been sleeping peacefully somewhere at the background of my mind for years, until one day I wrote my Love Lines novel, that was my first published book.

What influenced you specifically in writing the Love Lines Series?
 The love I feel myself, I guess:) When someone asks me if there are events in my book based on my own life, I always say that my books are works of fiction and the only real thing about them is love.

Between all your wonderful characters was there any that started out completely different from the way they ended up in your final draft?
Yes. Alexis Wilde. She wasn’t supposed to be that bad:) But when it came to creating villains I thought it would be unexpected if I tuned her into one of the enemies. I wasn’t planning to involve Evan in all the events of the story but as it turned out I just couldn’t stop myself from writing more about him. Some of the characters were missing in the first draft, but later I included them into the story.

And how many drafts did you go through before fully finishing you’re first book?
Almost everything was written in the first draft that was ready in 30 days! I can’t believe I managed to write LL in such a short period of time, lol. Just some small details were added and changed while editing the text.

 Is there any character that reflects anyone, or is modeled a little after, people you know?
No. I always say that it’s better not to piss me off or I will turn you into another villain of my book:) Just kidding, of course:) I don’t copy people I know:) Yes, I do take some features of their character or appearance. But none of my characters has a prototype in real life. 

Out of all of the voices (Eileen, Evan, Christian, etc.…) in your head is there a favorite?
I like all of them! Eileen is reasonable and responsible. Amanda makes me smile. Evan is very funny and smart. His comments are my favorite:) And Christian’s always charming and gallant. The sound of his voice will melt every girl’s heart:)

When you are writing do you need silence or is there something in the background?
I like writing in silence:) I listen to music before getting to work on my books. Especially when I need some inspiration to create specific scenes.

What is the first thing you do after you have finished working on a project? How do you celebrate?
I take a deep breath, smile, clap my hands and make a cup of tea to drink it watching a movie or reading a book:) I can’t stay long without writing, so usually after finishing one book I get straight to the next one. Two weeks of Christmas holidays were pure torture for me, lol

Do you ever get overwhelmed or frustrated? How do you handle it and what advice would you give others who are just starting out in this line of work?
I call it “a bad day”:) If I can’t write or it doesn’t go the way it was supposed to, I leave it for tomorrow:) Because I know that when I’m in a bad mood, frustrated and don’t have inspiration, the words will never be good enough to be included into the manuscript.

You have written two books in the Love Lines Series, how many more do you have plotted out for the future? And what details can you give us now about you’re latest work?
There will be three more books in the Love Lines series. My latest book it’s actually a short story named From Scratch. It’s also a part of the LL series. It shows the beginning of Evan’s and Tara’s romance. And I can give you a short teaser :

I knew that arguing with Eileen was a lost cause. She never gave up, and I always wondered how Christian managed to control her, because sometimes it seemed that he was the only person able to stop whatever craziness crossed her pretty head. Of course, I shouldn’t have been afraid of any physical punishment but I knew that my refusal would upset Eileen. And I didn’t like it when she was upset. Besides, the idea of a centenary silent war that I was sure was coming along with my 'no' wasn’t thrilling. She was my friend after all, and losing her because of some nonsense wasn’t an option.

Favorites:
What is your favorite gift at Dever at the moment? Or one you’d wish to possess?
It’s a hard question. I would say it’s magic, but other gifts are valuable too. So I think I would choose a little of each of them:)

Who is your favorite male character?
Evan!!!:)

Who is your favorite female character?
I like both Eileen and Amanda:)

What has been your favorite scene to write thus far in each of Love Lines books?
Love Lines: the scene of Eileen’s and Christian’s first kiss and the performances of the Festival of Arts.
Songs of the wind: every scene was great. I think:) So it’s hard to choose only one. But I enjoyed working on Evan’s memories.
From Scratch: the first meeting of Evan and Tara:)

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The first two books in the Love Lines Series
To learn more about Diana Nixon or to buy her works:
Amazon
Love Lines Ebook or Paperback
Songs of the wind Ebook or Paperback
From Scratch Ebook or Paperback


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My Review of From Scratch:


I LOVED this work! Diana Nixon has written another wonderful tale, full of love and loss staring her character Evan. Finally we get to see a little into what happened between him and the love of his life. the book is written with Evan reading and reliving his favorite and more painful memories from his journal/diary entries, which he has decided is time to get rid of and move on.

After reading this wonderful addition to the Love Lines Series (a side/background story) I am looking forward to reading the next book to see how Evan's future turns out. I recommend this for everyone. Even people who have never read another Love Lines book. 

I have a feeling that until her next book comes out Evan will be keeping me company many more times. :)

Brenda Franklin, author of the paranormal romance Pulse trilogy. You can find me on Facebook and Twitter when I'm not writing. :)