Check out this author spotlight for I. Velez!
You can find all her links furthest down the page, and don’t forget to check out her books!
1. Hi! Welcome to my humble blog of all things bookish! I would like for us to start by getting to know you. Give us a short bio, please!
Born and raised in the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico, I spent most of my youth daydreaming about becoming a vampire or having dinosaurs as pets. However, it wasn’t until I found out about Wattpad that those daydreams became stories to be shared with the world.
Most of my stories are paranormal and fantasy romances with hot guys and bad-mouthed chicks that have some connection with my island paradise but I have ventured into other genres like: horror and chick lit. All those writing experiments are only available in my Wattpad profile for the moment. My favorite genre will always be romance, though. Those who have read my online works know I like to add erotic scenes to my romances to spice the stories a bit.
In my free time I like to draw and paint, it’s my relaxation therapy.
Also, I’m an animal lover. Cats, horses and dolphins are my favorites so don’t be surprised if you find one of those in my books.
2. To get to know you just a little bit better, I’d like to ask you some this or that questions. Answer 5 (or more!) of these and explain why you chose this or that, or maybe an entirely different alternative!
Tea or coffee?
Coffee. I can’t stand any kind of tea but the coffee is my drug. It helps me write though I must confess it doesn’t do anything for me if I’m sleepy. I guess living in an island where visitors are greeted with coffee made me develop a resistance to caffeine.
Library or museums?
I’m a museum girl. Libraries are cool because of the countless books but I can get that in a book shop. On the other hand, museums have always held a mystery to me. I guess it’s the mystery of the past and I just love the ancient past.
Plotter or pantser?
I’m a plantser, the in-between option. I note down all the worldbuilding, a loose plot and the main couple in a trusty notebook before sitting before the computer to type away. The story comes alive while I write.
Standalone or series?
Currently I’m preferring standalones but I’m no stranger to reading entire series. However, when the series can be read as standalones, like my own, those are truly my favorites.
Book or ebook?
Book. I may be considered old school but a digital book never beats a paper one. There’s no loading time to wait nor a complicated method to write notes, you just pick it up and enjoy it right away. Plus, the aroma as you pass the pages help you be transported into the story.
3. When you look for books to read, what trope or type of story will always catch your attention?
Enemies to Lovers, Insta-Love, Second Chance Romance, Time travel Romance, Forbidden Love and Soul Mates. But among all those my true guilty pleasure is Forbidden Love. Those stories always shake me deep in my heart and soul.
4. What do you write? Tell us about your current projects and the latest happenings!
I write steamy Paranormal and Fantasy Romance. Up until now, the paranormal romance has been reserved to my English-speaking audience while the Fantasy Romance is for my Spanish-speaking audience, but that will likely change in the future. I’m also thinking to delve into Sci-fi Romance once I finish my Fantasy Romance trilogy.
My current project is the novella 1.5 of the Last Days series, which is about demons, gods, angels and the apocalypse. These books will be paranormal romances standalones in the same universe and written in English.
Now that you have an understanding of my series, I can talk to you about the half-way finished novella. It’s titled Angel of my Dark Heart and it’s a second-chance romance set during a mob war between the Italians and Yakuza of New York. As the third-in-command in the Italian Mafia, Marcus Di’nardo will need to fight mutated Yakuza members, who plan to eradicate the Italians and purify the city from their demonic control, while trying to reconquest the girlfriend he abandoned in the past. And since we are talking about Marcus, Vergil’s BFF, there will be some funny awkward scenes thrown about.
Regarding my latest happenings, I published a Spanish anthology on June 18 and later on July updated Tied to Darkness, book 1 in the Last Days series, so all of you could read the new and improved second edition. Also, on August 27 I was interviewed by a fellow Puerto Rican, who owns a bookish business.
5. What is your most recent release? Give us a short presentation, cover, and a link for where to buy it!
My most recent release was an anthology in Spanish, but for the purpose of this feature, I’ll share with you my paranormal romance in English, Tied to Darkness. Which, btw, was edited and updated on July, so it counts as a recent release, lol.
Tied to Darkness is a paranormal romance filled with steamy sex scenes, Greek mythology and a little bit of Indiana Jones. You can expect to find Christian angels and demons plus an assortment of Greek gods and monsters to go around. Lucifer, Uriel, Thanatos, harpies and even Empusas can be found between the pages of my baby.
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The end of days is approaching and the key to accelerating humanity’s demise is hidden among the humans themselves…
Mina has one goal: the worldwide acceptance that angels and demons truly exist. But fate has something new for her, something bigger… which revolves around the forced marriage to a hot and dangerous man.
Vergil isn’t what he appears, neither a billionaire businessman nor human, he lives to serve Lilith, the queen of Hell. However, an arranged marriage will change his life completely and leave him in charge of the most sought after creature in the entire universe: the Chosen One.
6. What real-life inspiration do you draw from, and what are your primary fictional sources of inspiration (books, authors, films, music, etc.)? Name a few!
My biggest sources of inspiration are my top 2 favorite authors: Sherrilyn Kenyon and Gena Showalter. Also, all the vampire films I have seen in my life like Dracula, Dracula Untold, Interview with the Vampire and even Blade.
7. What is your writing routine? If you have one, give us the run-down!
I usually sit down to write 3 hours every day. The first one and a half hour is normally between 1 pm to 3 pm, then I take one hour to rest before tackling the last one and a half hour. I do it this way so my neck and upper back don’t feel so much strain. Whenever I write longer, my back makes me suffer for it at night.
8. If you could go back and give yourself one piece of advice as you started out on the path to becoming an author, what would it be?
Stop buying books for yourself and save that money to pay the editor. Lol, editors are a necessary inversion when publishing a book in a language you haven’t mastered. So, yes, even if you need to make some sacrifices to get your book professionally edited, it’s totally worth it.
9. Last but not least: where can we find you? Drop those links!
Social links
Fb: https://www.facebook.com/IVelezArtandBooks/?ref=bookmarks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/vamplover_nei17?s=07
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ivelezauthor/
