Today I want to welcome Leslie Soule, here to visit and let us have a peek at her new book, Fallenwood. I noticed in the excerpt that there are dragons involved (well at least one) and everyone knows how I feel about dragons *love them* But enough about me, on with the show...er...interview. And remember, Leslie is giving a $25 Barnes & Noble GC to one lucky commenter on the tour-it could easily be one of you!! Now, for a bit about our guest of the day, Leslie Soule.
Leslie Soule lives in Sacramento, California. Fallenwood is her first fantasy novel. She has received her B.A. in English from Sacramento State University and is currently working on her Master’s degree in English at National University.
Website: www.lesliesoule.com
price: $4.99
number of pages: 194
genre: fantasy
publisher: Decadent Publishing
release date: March 2011
buy links: http://www.decadentpublishing.com/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=26&products_id=226
What is the best thing about being a writer? The worst?
The best thing about being a writer is meeting other writers and realizing you’re not the only one with the “writer’s disease” that makes you crazy! The worst part is facing a lot of rejection and also facing negative critiques of your work.
What is your method of breaking through writer’s block?
The best remedy I’ve found is to sit down at a café, order something I like, and then play with the Sixth Sense cards from The Writer’s Toolbox. Basically, you choose a card and start writing about the random item on the card, then you connect it to what’s on the second, and write about that, and the same thing with the third. It seems to work wonders for clearing my writer’s blockages.
Do you bring your own life experiences to your writing? Your own personality? If so how?
Well, I incorporate all the things I like, into my writing. I like martial arts, so I wrote about a character who’s a martial artist. I love cats, so I had to have one of those in there too. The list is truly endless.
What inspired you to write your current release?
Fallenwood was influenced by the intense pain I felt when my stepfather passed away. It led me to feel like Hamlet, seeing the great beauty and potential in the world, while also wondering why things happen the way they do.
What fuels you as an author to continue to write?
I feel like I’ve got this compulsion to write, and I’m sure a lot of other writers probably feel the same way. It’s like I just have to do it.
Plotter or Pantser? Why?
I love to plot. Maybe it’s from playing too many RPG games or something. I don’t know.
Can you tell us a bit about what book(s) you have coming out next and what you’re working on now?
Well, at the moment, I’m writing the sequel to Fallenwood. Ash is going to go to each of the two realms in this one, and some new enemies will emerge.
The Person
When you get a chance to read, what books do you love to read?Well, I’m still working through a big TBR stack of books from the RT convention last April. I love to read all sorts of genres, really.
What bores you as a reader?
I get bored if a book moves too slowly and doesn’t engage me – if the characters are too bland or if there aren’t any characters I like.
What is your favorite food and what is your guilty pleasure food?
My favorite food is sushi. I LOVE sushi! As for a guilty pleasure food, anything chocolate.
If you could go anywhere on a vacation where would you go?
Hmm…I would go to Great Britain, to see the places where J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis hung out, and to see the ruins of Glastonbury Tor.
Do you have a secret talent?
Yes – I have an uncanny ability to find lost things, and I’ve had this “talent” since I was very little, even finding things people don’t know they’re looking for!
What do you think is romantic? What does the word Romance mean to you?
I’m a romantic at heart, but have become cynical about love, so maybe I’m not the right person to ask. I’ll give it a shot, though. I think romance is when you make a connection with someone on more than just a physical level. I think sitting by the ocean and watching the waves is romantic, but I think anything can be romantic as long as it’s something personal. For example, if I wanted to spar with foam swords really badly and my sweetie bought us foam swords and was ready to fight, just because I wanted to do it, personally I think that would be terribly romantic. *sigh*
Random Questions:
Aliens have landed on the planet. What are the three things you would tell them that are great about this planet?
We have sushi, and jazz music, and chocolate! You have come to the right place, my friends. J
If you could create your own drink what would go in it and what would you call it?
Oooh, I like this question. Well, one day I mixed black cherry soda with Captain Morgan Tattoo, and made a drink I like to call Black Tattoo Cherry. The only thing I’d change is to add a real maraschino cherry in there. Voila! You’re welcome. J
You have been locked in a mall and told you can get anything you want and when they open in the morning you won’t have to pay a single cent. What stores would you hit? Better question how would you haul away all your loot?
I would hire a team of scholar ninjas from the martial arts studio I go to (I know a few who would probably be up for helping me) and we would raid the book store, maybe I’d stop in to Hot Topic for the t-shirts, grab a Cinnabon for each of us, and there we go!
Lightning Round
Chocolate or vanilla?
Definitely chocolate.
Wine or beer? If wine, red or white?
I like both wine and beer. For wine, I definitely prefer reds.
You’ve been given the honor of naming a planet, what would you name it?
Oh that’s awesome. I would call it Terra Illumina (the proper name of the Fallenwood realm), in honor of Fallenwood.
If you were in a rock band what would the name of your band be? What would your rocker name be?
I would name my rock band after my job, I think, so it would be Mail Room Madness and I would want one of those one-name rocker names, so it would be Toner, like the kind you put in copy machines. Ha ha ha.
Does music play a role in your writing? Do you write in silence or have music on? Playlist or random?
Usually I write in silence, but lately I’ve been listening to music when I write certain scenes. I listen to random music on Slacker radio while I work.
Food! Favorites to eat in and out? Have a favorite (easy!) recipe you can share with us? Chocolate? White, milk or dark? The food you can never say no to, even when you should?
I’m not fancy when it comes to eating out – I love Taco Bell and Del Taco. Of course, I love sushi. As for an easy recipe, I’ve got a great one. You take a tub of cool whip and two containers of yogurt, whatever flavor you like, mix it all up and put it in a graham cracker crust, and then freeze it. Once it freezes, you’ve got this summer-time pie dessert thing that’s absolutely delicious!
As for chocolate, I love both milk and dark chocolate, but not so much white chocolate. The food I can never say no to is rocky road ice cream. Yum!
Television. Do you watch TV? Sitcoms, dramas, reality? A little of all three? None? Some?
I really don’t watch TV at all, but I’ve caught a few episodes of The Big Bang Theory and I love it!!!
Thanks for having me here today! If anyone would like to enter to win a $25 gift card to Barnes & Noble, please leave a comment, along with your name and e-mail address. Best of luck!
Fallenwood
Fallenwood—a land where magic is the life force, dragons are sages, and wizards good and evil battle for supremacy. When 23-year-old Ash is thrust into the middle of Fallenwood’s power struggles, she is also forced to face her own inner battles. Life on Earth was hard enough on Ash, who is locked in grief for her stepfather. Now, the fate of Fallenwood rests on her shoulders. She must destroy the Great Crystal—the catalyst for all the land’s magic. As the kingdoms prepare for war, Ash must look inside to find the power to save the world, and herself.
And now a very brief excerpt from Leslie's Fallenwood.
The dragon’s eyes glowed, for a flickering moment, with white light.
“Ash,” the dragon continued, “Welcome to Terra Illumina…or as it is more commonly known, Fallenwood.” Then a fierce roaring laugh erupted from the stone, as though the dragon thought the new name a joke. “A dark, difficult, dangerous path lies before you, Ash Kensington.”
Ash’s heart grew heavy. In truth, she knew that she was destined to some terrible, dark fate. For so long, her life was filled with sadness and doubt, and one horrible thing after another. What else can I hope for?
“But Ash, you must not lose hope. Our world needs you..."
I told you there was a dragon.
I want to thank Leslie Soule for stopping in, and if you want to have a chance at the $25 B & N gift card, be sure to comment and leave your email address.
