Today I'll be interviewing, Victoria Danann, author of The Witch's Dream (The Order of the Black Swan- Book Two), a paranormal romance published with 7th House.
***ATTENTION: Victoria is having a Release Day Party on Facebook for The Witch’s Dream. There will be discounts for ebook purchases and info on how to win a gorgeous “World of Black Swan” mousepad. (seen below) ***
My Familiar Stranger (The Order of the Black Swan- Book One)
Date of Publication: April 21, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-933320-49-6
ASIN: B007V8RAKW
Number of pages: (estimated 370)
Word Count: 111,268
Purchase Links: Amazon Smashwords
BOOK TRAILER: http://www.youtube.com/embed/wIDjWBWHg2k
Book Description
Of course a girl could suffer worse problems than having gorgeous suitors. Perhaps more importantly, in the midst of an epidemic of vampire related abductions, can she stay alive long enough to choose between an honor debt, true love, or the breathlessness of single-minded passion?
My Familiar Stranger is a full length, stand alone, Paranormal Romance novel that also sets up the foundation for the Black Swan series. It is loved by fans of paranormal romance, fantasy romance, and urban fantasy.
Erotica quotient: A few steamy scenes. No menage. No BDSM.
The Witch’s Dream By Victoria Danann (The Order of the Black Swan- Book Two)
Genre: Paranormal Romance / Paranormal Adult Fantasy / Urban Fantasy
Publisher: 7th House
Date of Publication: October 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-933320-56-4
ASIN: not yet assigned
Pages: 260 (5×7 book)
Word Count: 97,000
Purchase Links: Amazon Smashwords
BOOK TRAILER: completed and will be released October 1st
Book Description
He was left behind when Elora Laiken made her choice. Now he’s had it with love, but a transplanted witch who happens to be the world’s best tracker hopes she can change his mind.
The Witch’s Dream begins with B Team on loan for temporary assignment to Black Swan headquarters in Edinburgh where they are supposed to fill in for stretched-thin resources and assist with a werewolf issue. They’ve been given permission to stop in Ireland for a few days and help Ram and Elora celebrate their handfasting at the palace in Derry.
When they reach Edinburgh, the afterglow of an elftale wedding quickly turns all business. A simple werewolf sanction becomes a diplomatic issue requiring the one thing Elora doesn’t have – finesse. A missing person report turns into a demon abduction. From New York to Ireland to Edinburgh to Siena to the Texas Hill Country to Napa Valley. From promises to rages to hunts to epiphanies.
This is a story that proves that love can find you when you’re least expecting it – even when you’re far, far from home.
Erotic quotient: A few steamy scenes. No menage. No BDSM.
Interview
VICTORIA: The Witch's Dream is the second book of a series called The Order of the Black Swan. It's a true serial in the sense that each new book picks up where the last ended. So this book was inspired by the first, My Familiar Stranger. You could say that, book by book, I'm creating a saga. Reading in order is highly recommended.
SKY: If you could spend an hour in real life with one of your characters, who would it be and why?
VICTORIA: I don't think it will come as a surprise to anyone who has read these first two books that I'm totally in love with my character, Rammel Hawking. I did an interview with him for Characterfest in which he took me to task for all I've put him through. I came away from that experience feeling like I had spent an hour with him.
SKY: Tell us a little bit about the conflict in your story.
VICTORIA: The first book left one of my heroes heartbroken and with his confidence destroyed where women are concerned. In this book he is aggressively pursued by a witch who is perfect for him, but his hurt is too new for him to let his guard down and give her a chance.
SKY: Tell us about your book cover and how it relates to your story.
VICTORIA: I do my own ads, book covers, and book trailers. I like to include elements of the story. This book begins at a handfasting in a palace in Ireland. One of the surprises in store for readers is that the gorgeous guy on the cover is not the love interest. You'll have to read it to find out who he is.
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SKY: Are you currently working on another story? If so, we’d love some details.
VICTORIA: Book Three, The Summoner's Tale, is dues to release on Valentines' Day. The cover and description are on my website in the Black Swan Series section. But I will tell you this. The first book built the world, introduced the characters, and set up the story. The second book is pure romance. In fact I have informally subtitled it "a love letter to Paranormal Romance". In a sense, it's the second act of a three act play. The third book is a fasten-your-seatbelts sort of climactic ride with some of the resolution readers are begging for.
SKY: Did you enjoy writing one scene above all the rest? If so, share.
VICTORIA: Yes, the postscript. There is a fairytale theme throughout these books in the sense that I pay homage to the importance of these stories and their archetypes on our culture and subconscious approach to fantasy - in a very Jungian way. So, naturally, I must have a happily ever after ending. The postscript is also linked very closely with the music used in the book trailer. Truthfully, readers will get the most out of watching the book trailer AFTER reading the book.
SKY: How long have you been writing? How long have you been published?
VICTORIA: It's my opinion that, if you watch closely, children will show you who they are by the time they are eight-years-old. At that age, I could be found either singing /playing a musical instrument, designing evening gowns, or writing my version of Bobbsey Twins novels.
I did design evening wear for Pendragon for several years and was copied by the biggest name designers. I still see my designs in movies sometimes. I'm a utility player in a Classic Rock band which means I play keys, rhythm guitar, and sing back ups/some leads.
The answer to your question is in two parts. In a sense I started writing at eight. I showed a PNR manuscript to my spouse in my early twenties and, after hearing his comments, didn't write again for several decades. I didn't understand at the time that he is the exact opposite of my audience. He is not allowed to come anywhere near my writing now. My first book was Indie published the end of April and became an Amazon Best Seller within six weeks.
SKY: What genre/genres do you prefer to write? Are there other genres you’d like to write in the future?
VICTORIA: Paranormal Romance. Old enough to know not to say never, but I have no interest in anything else at this time.
SKY: Thanks for joining me, Victoria. Wishing you much success!
Excerpt from The Witch’s Dream
He seemed to have been born knowing things, like math for instance. His mind would grab on to a concept on first presentation and then, while his classmates struggled, he would be looking around for something to do. That something usually ended up being disruption.
Storm was loved by his parents, but school faculty was another story. He had a reputation with the teachers for instigating pandemonium in the classroom. He was the triple threat: smart, bored, and a natural leader. It wasn’t that he was a class clown, nothing so obvious or exaggerated. He just quietly went about doing whatever the hell he pleased and ignoring objections. In short, no one in his life to that point had given him adequate reason to believe that anarchy was not the best policy.
Peers wanted to be like him. If that wasn’t possible, they would settle for doing whatever he was doing. So Storm’s experience of the public school system was time spent in the hallway, the principal’s office, or in trouble at home with his parents agonizing over what to do.
At one point they thought sports might be the answer. He had an extra helping of athletic talent and one of those bodies that would have said yes to any physical demand. Unfortunately he never saw the point. To him sports represented an endless, mindless, repetition with some arbitrarily established goal that made no sense when he broke it down and it turned out to be… well, boring. Put it all together and he was a public school educator’s nightmare. He was also a textbook ideal candidate for Black Swan.
One day he was sent to the Vice Principal’s office under protest claiming that, for once, he wasn’t doing anything wrong. He sat down in his usual chair to wait for the usual carpet ride, but, instead, the door opened to reveal too many people crowded into a smallish room. That included the V.P., Storm’s parents and a tall, serious-looking guy with a piercing gaze and an unmistakable air of authority. Storm sat up straight and had only one thought. Uh oh.
The stranger wore slacks, highly polished loafers, and a sports coat. He guessed the man was old, thirty-five maybe, but he looked hard all over like one of those athletes who can’t repeat enough Iron Man triathlons to please themselves.
Engel Storm’s father worked for the Randolph Moldavni vineyards as head winemaker. The work was personally fulfilling and he wasn’t chained to a desk in a cubicle, but it didn’t cut a path to either greatness or riches. His mother worked part time as library receptionist at the local branch of the University of California. Between the two they made enough to take care of three kids in solid middle class fashion. They could eat steak, but not every day. They had good health insurance with the vineyard. They could take a summer vacation if they drove and stayed in motels. It was an upbringing no child should complain about, but most do anyhow.
Storm’s background hadn’t afforded an education on the finer points of better men’s’ clothing, but even to an untrained eye there was a vague sense that the stranger’s style was expensive.
“Have a seat, son.” Vice Principal Rodgers motioned to an ugly metal chair with green leatherette seat and back. Storm noticed that there was a small tear in the seat that showed a little white stuffing. His mind was racing, partially occupied with the fact that Rodgers had called him “son”. He decided that meant he was in even bigger trouble than he thought, but, on the other hand, his parents looked serious, but not mad. The tall guy leaned against an old book case and looked really, really out of place against the backdrop of venetian blinds that were partly bent and a room that needed repainting.
Mr. Rodgers, better known to the student body as “Tums” as it was said his tummy entered a room five minutes before the rest of him, sat down with a plop that forced air out of the vinyl cushion seat. Another boy his age might have had to suppress a snicker, but Storm sometimes seemed more like an adult than a kid.
Author Bio
For the past thirteen years, Victoria has illustrated and authored Seasons of the Witch calendars and planners.
Though works of fiction are a departure for her, she has had this series simmering on the back burner of her mind for years. In addition to authoring and illustrating Seasons of the Witch, she plays rock music and manages one of Houston's premier R&B/Variety/Pop bands.
This series will include some of my actual experience in the paranormal with fictionalized anecdotes from my journals during the years when I was a practicing "metaphysician", but most of the material is fantasy.
Visit Victoria's Website ~ Blog ~ Facebook ~ Goodreads
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