Check out this author spotlight for Isra Sravenheart!
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!
Hello, I am Isra Sravenheart, USA Today and Amazon Best-selling Author. I write a dark fantasy fairytale series which is solely based around a witch Lady Isra but as times go on, things get very interesting. I live in the UK with 4 cats and I like to watch Netflix/ read in my spare time.
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!
Winter, spring, summer or autumn? Autumn. Cat or dog? Cats. Tea or coffee? Coffee. Morning or evening? Evening. Library or museums? Neither. Hunter or gatherer? Neither Witches or wizards? Witches. Ninjas or pirates? Neither. Mountains or beaches? Beaches.
Plotter or pantser? Plotter but also a tiny bit pantser. Pen and paper or computer/phone? Laptop. Standalone or series? Series. Book or ebook? Book. Hero or anti-hero? Anti Hero.
3. When you look for books to read, what trope or type of story will always catch your attention?
Anything about witches or a villain or someone who has been wronged that needs to avenge what has happened. I do like fairytale retellings as well.
4. What do you write? Tell us about your current projects and the latest happenings!
I write dark fantasy fairytale series and there are so far 6 books in the series, Her Blackened Soul, Her Blackened Heart, Her Blackened Rose, Her Blackened Love, Kissing Darkness, Touched by Darkness. I am currently writing Touched by Darkness. Touched by Darkness is basically following on from Kissing Darkness (my last published book) and Isra has had her memories taken away so she doesn’t remember any of what went on, however she’s caught the attention of Astrid again as she’s falling for a mortal man.
Little does she know that there’s a much greater plan at stake here however I don’t want to say anymore as it’s part of the plot.
5. What is your most recent release? Give us a short presentation, cover, and a link for where to buy it!
The most recent release was Kissing Darkness however since it is a series, it makes more sense to mention the series. I doubt many would buy book 5 in series without knowing about the rest. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07WN2T6BL
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! I used to have a lot of books as a child, Grimms, Oz books, Sabrina Teenage Witch, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Hans Christian Anderson. However I don’t really take inspiration from anyone but I do like Neil Gaiman for how dark and intense his work is.
7. What is your writing routine? If you have one, give us the run-down!
I don’t have one but I do seem to work well 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?
Just ignore the negative nancies. I had a bunch of people telling me I would never amount to anything in writing including some family members. I did it, anyway, knowing that those opinions were just that.
9. Last but not least: where can we find you? Drop those links!
Yup, I did the same for The Path of Salvation! The manuscript has been put through a round of tweaking, although it proved less work than with The Power of Conviction And we’ll see when the updated versions go live. I’ll have to get back to you on that one
But anyway, I’ve also done some writing because… I can’t not write. Something is wrong with me, I’m pretty sure I’ve hit the 60k now, a week late, but still – I’m pretty happy with it. So now, I’m gonna continue on book 6 but also read the other books
Because… You know, I’ve got so much time Ahwell, I’ll get there eventually
Check out this author spotlight for Tirza Schaefer!
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!
Tirza Schaefer is mother of three awesome children, a boy and two girls – and a very talkative cat. She always loved telling stories and as soon as she was able to, did so in writing, mostly for herself alone until she published her first book in 2015.
Besides writing sizzling hot romance novels that nevertheless don’t lack depth and ethical as well as spiritual themes, she also writes articles about archetypes like Goddesses, Gods, Power Animals and Tarot. She is an intuitive reader and spiritual healer (Usui Reiki Master & Founder of Goddess Reiki).
When she doesn’t read, write or research, she can be found giggling with her children (best way to learn) or meditating in nature. As a creative powerhouse, she is multi-passionate, so you’ll never know what she will come up with next…
You can also watch this short introductory video:
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!
Winter, spring, summer or autumn? Summer. I’m always cold at other times of the year, unless I’m having a hot flush brought on by menopause but that won’t last forever, right?
Cat or dog? Cat. I love dogs, too, but they are too much work. We have an absolutely adorable and very talkative cat called Taani who came to us from a shelter in Dubai.
Tea or coffee? Coffee for taste, herbal tea for health.
Morning or evening? I am definitely a nightowl. As a child, I used to sneak out of the house when it got dark and roman through the wood beside my parents’ house. I’ve always loved the atmosphere of the night, the peace and mystery. When I lived in London, I would go on long walks through small alleys and backstreets even in the worst parts of town. I never cared. I loved the night. I felt safer at night than by day. When I had children, I couldn’t leave the house at night anymore but when I get the chance, I still roam around at night. And hugging trees in the woods at night is special!
Library or museums? Museums. I like to own the books I read. So outside of university for my studies and research, I’ve never gone to libraries. But back in London, I lived in bookstores. That was before there were ebooks, back in the 90s. Museums I love for the history they show. My favourite is the British museum. As a student I had free entry there and as I was around the corner at SOAS, I used to spend many of my lunchbreaks there between classes. It was beautiful. I used to go into the room with the Hindu statues. It was so peaceful there and not that many people were around, either. It was my safe haven at the time. I’ve always taken my children to museums when we went on holiday and also here at home in Cologne, Bonn and Berlin. I find culture and history so important and I have instilled a sense of that in my children, I think.
Hunter or gatherer? Gatherer. I’m a vegetarian with vegan ideals that I fall short of. Still working on overcoming my dairy addiction.
Witches or wizards? Witches. Girl power! I know there are male witches but usually, witches are female and powerful. I’ve always loved that.
Ninjas or pirates? Oh, that’s tough. Pirate captains are sexy (see Johnny Depp) but I’ve always dreamed of having ninja skills since I was a child because I wanted to punish the wicked that got away with it. And ninjas have always fascinated me. I read Shogun by James Clavel when I was fourteen on summer holidays in Sweden. I loved it and devoured it. I was so fascinated by the Samurai culture and their belief system, their code of honour. From there I learned a little about ninjas. I’ve always wanted to be a warrior but my mum wouldn’t allow me to learn martial arts. However, my fascination with these silent killers has remained. I am fascinated by elite warriors of any kind, really. Currently, I am watching a Turkish historical series on Netflix with subtitles and I love their way of sword fighting.
Mountains or beaches? Beaches. In the shade. I’m too white, I burn otherwise. And because I have some chronic injuries that make walking on uneven terrain difficult and painful for me, mountains are wonderful but not that easy to get around in for me. Plus, I am a Scorpio, so my love for water is in my DNA. Ocean it is!
Plotter or pantser? Pantser but I’m working on plotting a little more, too, but my characters always hijack the story and something completely unforeseen happens. Like in my book Ria where they end up in a mental hospital. I definitely didn’t plan that!
Pen and paper or computer/phone? Pen and paper are great for thoughts, ideas, affirmations and poetry. But by now I write my books and longer articles on my computer because it takes too long to type it all up again.
Standalone or series? Both. I’m more of a standalone writer but I do love series and I have a couple of projects that are series which I love. They also challenge me greatly in a personal as well as in a professional way so I love how the work on them makes me grow.
Book or ebook? Depends. Special books I like to have in print but mainly, I get ebooks. They are cheaper, easier to take on travels, don’t collect dust and take away self-space.
Hero or antihero? Not too clean-cut hero but neither too much of an antihero. A happy medium. Human but not completely broken and complexed.
3. When you look for books to read, what trope or type of story will always catch your attention?
A story needs to have feeling, action and purpose of some kind for me. Disregarding genre, that should be the deciding factors. I need to be able to feel with the characters, understand why they feel and act the way they do and be able to set it into context of their own personal history or at least clearly outlined character, and the environment they find themselves in.
4. What do you write? Tell us about your current projects and the latest happenings!
My books are mostly love stories. But they go beyond ordinary romance. There is a message, an ethical element and at times even spiritual elements. I have lately turned to writing mainly reverse harem with a slight reverse age gap. I found when reading romance novels that most were about younger women and I felt I couldn’t identify with that anymore. My college days are over and so is my own family planning.
When I searched for romance with mature women as main characters, I came across so-called milf or cougar themed books that are usually badly written and don’t have much of a storyline. It’s either seducing the son’s best friend from college or some pool boy or similar labourer seducing the bored and neglected middle-aged housewife whose husband is cheating on her, which is the usually given excuse and moral justification for the woman to do the same. I don’t find this appealing and my personal opinion is that two wrongs don’t make a right. I love steamy romance and I write it myself but you won’t find cheating and short term affairs in my books. There is always a happily ever after.
My female MCs lovers are somewhat younger and more vigorous than men her own age but they stand for themselves and meet the woman on eye level. They are neither almost-children, nor simple-minded men who have nothing to show for themselves but a good body. They have courage, heart and spirit and they are willing to take responsibility for their own lives and show the woman they love that she is adored, protected and taken care of.
Of course, there are certain issues and obstacles to overcome but they do so together and my stories will show that clear communication and consideration of the other person, as well as compassion, can lead to a happy relationship.
I have two series that I write on at the moment. One is Seals in Spain, a trilogy with the same MCs throughout, one woman and three men, and The Milf Diaries, which has different MCs in each book, however, they need to be read in order because there is an ongoing storyline for these women and their men as well. Moreover, these two series are interlaced. They Seals in Spain’s characters appear in Book 3 of the Milf Diaries, which has not yet been released.
There is one more standalone full-length novel I am working on which is called Her Badass Bikers and is another reverse harem, reverse age gap story with one woman and four men. It is a slowburn romance with quite a few twists and turns along the way but in the end, there is the happily ever after that we all love. Guaranteed.
Trailer for Seals in Spain
Trailer for The Milf Diaries series:
Trailer for Izzy, Book 1 of the Milf Diaries
5. What is your most recent release? Give us a short presentation, cover, and a link for where to buy it!
My two latest publications are standalone novellas, one was a shifter Christmas story, A Beary Little Christmas, and the other a recently published summer romance, A Little Slice of Heaven. Both have a constellation of one woman and two men. Of course, lots of other things are happening as well. The first has a witch and karmic twins that need to lift an evil curse and the latter deals with a contract killer from the Russian mafia.
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!
I can see a picture online by chance when searching stock photos or it can be something on social media and I think of an entire story to go with it. When I travel, I usually write my first poem while drinking a coffee and waiting for my train or plane. I can get an idea from a line or character in a book or a movie or a real life person can inspire me to incorporate some character traits of theirs into a character in my stories. Real life experiences also influence and colour my writings at times. It all depends.
7. What is your writing routine? If you have one, give us the run-down!
I open a document, give it a working title and start typing. That’s usually how it goes. Along the way, I will write down more details about my characters and the story outline as it unfolds. I found that planning everything from the beginning doesn’t work for me so well because my character always come to life and exercising their free will, as any ordinary person would do, they usually stir the story in a completely different direction than I had initially planned.
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?
Believe in yourself, research more and find resources to help you become a better writer. Find like-minded people and don’t be afraid to ask for help. Learn as much as you can and don’t stop. Don’t hide your light. You have a gift and the people it is meant for will find you and be touched and moved by your words.
9. Last but not least: where can we find you? Drop those links!
Yeah, you know, lately I’ve been very busy with A LOT of things. I’ve been tweaking my books, writing more on book 6, promoting a sale and upcoming releases, doing cover reveals and all sorts of fun stuff. Want to join me?! Then hit me up on Instagram or better yet – sign up for my newsletter (pst! you get free ebooks!)!!
Check out this author spotlight for Shauna Richmond!
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!
I’m Shauna. I’m an Irish indie author. I took some time out of work after I suffered a breakdown back in 2016 and writing became a form of therapy for me. I’ve been writing ever since. I live with my husband, son and our two dogs. The main genre I write is Fantasy but I have started to dip into other genres.
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!
Winter, spring, summer or autumn? Autumn Cat or dog? Dog Tea or coffee? Coffee Morning or evening? Evening Library or museums? Museums Hunter or gatherer? Gatherer Witches or wizards? Witches Ninjas or pirates? Pirates Mountains or beaches? Mountains Plotter or pantser? Pantser Pen and paper or computer/phone? Computer Standalone or series? Series Book or ebook? Physical book Hero or anti-hero? Anti-hero
3. When you look for books to read, what trope or type of story will always catch your attention?
Fantasy books generally catch my attention more so than any other. I do love any books with dark/ twisted humour and unusual stories. I hate reading the same story again and again, I look for something unique.
4. What do you write? Tell us about your current projects and the latest happenings!
I mainly write fantasy. At the moment I have five projects I’m working on two are for two fantasy series I already have out. Two more are contemporary romance and the last book is about my dealings with autism as a mother whose child is on the spectrum. I think this is a topic that needs to be addressed as so many people still don’t understand what autism actually is.
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 is Highland Reaper, it is book two in my Olden Chronicles series. For anyone familiar with the series the book continues on from Shattered Steel, Tristan and Catherine’s relationship is out for the world to see and they soon find out that someone has put a substantial price on their heads. The pair, along with their friends need to find a way to survive and figure out who paid to have them killed.
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 inspiration varies with every book. For my Raghnall series, I was heavily influenced my Vikings (the show) and Game of Thrones. For my Olden Chronicles series I was influenced by The witcher series and the Throne of Glass series. My WIP contemporary romance is influenced by the flat share and the dark humour in C.J Skuse’s Sweetpea series.
7. What is your writing routine? If you have one, give us the run-down!
I’ve little to no routine. Having a child on the spectrum means the days can get away from me. I write when I get the chance which is mostly in the two and a half hour window I get when my son is in school. If he decides to nap I’ll write when I’m not busy doing housework.
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?
Read more. I was not a massive reader before I became an author and it shows in my earlier work. There are only so many ways you can describe a movement or a certain scene without having a frame of reference to learn from. Also, I think that it is important to see what works for the bigger names as in is it their plot, narrative or characters that readers are drawn to and why?
We have so much to learn from our peers and not just the bigger household names but other indie authors too. I have a collection of some fantastic indie authors that I adore and I love how we can all get the same bullet points for a story and come up with something vastly different. For my younger self, my current self and for anyone aspiring to be an author or wanting to improve your skills, you have to read. You can’t do your job right if you don’t.
9. Last but not least: where can we find you? Drop those links!
I’m mainly always on Instagram above anything else. I’m easy to find there on @shauna.richmond
So, what have I been up to instead of hitting my word count goal this month?
Weeell… Since I’m in the process of wrapping up The Light of Darkness, I felt it was a good idea to read through my series. I’m basically refreshing my memory of what I’ve said and done to make sure I don’t leave any plot thread hanging.
While doing this, I’ve made some tweaks and minor changes. Now, it’s no changes to the story as such, so any fan of the series can remain calm! But I’ve split some chapters and sharpened the writing style to match my later books, as I’ve learnt a helluva lot since I wrote The Power of Conviction. Not sure when the updated version will go live, but I’ll give a shoutout once it’s done
Anyway, it’s taken a lot of my time as of late, so that’s why book 6 is on the back burner, and why I’ve still not proofread book 5. I’m taking them in order now Currently working on The Path of Salvation, which will receive the same treatment
Check out this author spotlight for Stefanie Nici!
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!
Hello! My name is Stefanie Nici and I have been writing since childhood. While other kids dreamed about becoming a movie star, a fireman, etc. I longed to become a writer (and yes, sometimes a movie star too). The dream became a real-life possibility once I learned about self–publishing, as that left me with no excuses anymore.
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!
Winter, spring, summer or autumn? While I enjoy all the seasons for different reasons, I love the breezy, sometimes chilly, sweater weather of Autumn. For me, there is a stir of magic in the air as the leaves begin to change color, the amazing autumn equinox takes place, and it is Halloween season. Anyone can dress up in costume if they like, listen to scary stories, and everything is pumpkin flavored!
Cat or dog? I love the beauty and independence of cats, but a dog will play catch.
Tea or coffee? Coffee in the morning, tea after that.
Morning or evening? Lately I have been an early bird. So early, it is still dark outside.
Library or museums? A library for the books, a museum for the art and culture.
Mountains or beaches? I live in New York, so I have access to both. Hudson Valley has beautiful mountain views along the Hudson River. Your imagination can really run wild wondering what lies within them. Then we have the hazy, lazy beach days on Long Island to get some sun and read a book. It feels like being on vacation.
Plotter or pantser? Panster. I fly by the seat of my pants!
Pen and paper or computer/phone? It took a while to get comfortable understanding writing wasn’t just pen and paper, so now my laptop and phone are my new best friends.
Standalone or series? Standalone for books. Series for television. I look forward to the brilliant writing that connects episodes together, along with watching the actors play those returning characters with troublesome lives.
Book or ebook? There is nothing like the feel of a book in hand, shopping for them, and bringing them home to place on the shelf. Some covers give inspiration, they can also make me feel happy, sad, or simply look like art.
Hero or anti-hero? Depending on the character – anti-hero.
3. When you look for books to read, what trope or type of story will always catch your attention?
Second chances with love, family, or with themselves are my favorites.
4. What do you write? Tell us about your current projects and the latest happenings!
I write Contemporary Women’s Fiction, stories about the trouble life can throw our way. While that genre may sound like it is for women readers only, I am thrilled to see reviews from male readers as well.
5. What is your most recent release? Give us a short presentation, cover, and a link for where to buy it!
My second book, The Smoke Tree: Broken Branches is a follow up to my first book, The Smoke Tree. I wrote it as a stand-alone for those who may not have read the first book yet. It tells the story of Tora, who is now estranged from her husband and on the road to happiness. But her road is bumpy and filled with detours. She may never get to her desired destination.
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!
Real life inspiration for me goes back to when I was an only child. My mother was always reading so we always had books and magazines to keep me busy. I watched a lot of television which may seem mindless, but for me it was the opposite. It taught me the science and patterns of storytelling from a visual standpoint. I plan to create a television series or movie one day. I also must credit my dolls – as funny as that may seem. I feel they played the biggest part in exercising my imagination. I would create scenes, plot, and dialogue off the top of my head. My primary source of inspiration now is that I read to get into writing mode; I watch television for visual stimulation; and music, while I use that less, can evoke the emotion that may be needed for a scene I am writing.
7. What is your writing routine? If you have one, give us the run-down!
Time-wise, I am on a new routine. I get up at 5 a.m. have coffee, catch up with social media and then begin my writing. When I need a break, I make breakfast, do some exercise, clean, while keeping the story and the characters in my mind.
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?
The one piece of advice I would give is this: Don’t just dream about becoming an author, make it happen!
9. Last but not least: where can we find you? Drop those links!
Yup, I did the same for The Path of Salvation! 
The manuscript has been put through a round of tweaking, although it proved less work than with The Power of Conviction 
And we’ll see when the updated versions go live. I’ll have to get back to you on that one 
I’ve hit the 60k now, a week late, but still – I’m pretty happy with it. So now, I’m gonna continue on book 6 but also read the other books 
Currently working on The Path of Salvation, which will receive the same treatment 
