Hi Danielle and
welcome to A Passion for Romance !
o
Can
you tell us a little about yourself?
I always
find this one of the most difficult questions of all. Who am I? Like a lot of
people I struggle talking about myself. When I’m not writing, I’m spending time
with my family or decorating cakes. I love being creative in a totally
different media.
o
When
did you start writing and were you always interested in being a published
author?
I have
always written in some form from a very early age. I wrote little stories as a
kid in school, then wrote poetry as a teenager to deal with all that angsty
teenager stuff. From as early as I can remember I had wanted to be a published
author. But the task had always seemed too great. I didn’t know where to start
or how to write a novel. It wasn’t until I made some friends who were authors
who helped to guide me in how to write and prepare a manuscript that I thought
my lifelong dream may just become a reality.
o
What
do you think is or has been the hardest part of getting published?
For me? It
would have to be self doubt. One of the things that always held me back was my negative inner dialogue. Nothing was ever
good enough so to actually submit my writing to a publisher was probably one of
the most terrifying things I’ve ever had to do. Even now, I close my eyes and
cringe when someone tells me they are reading my books!
o
What
inspires you to write?
I don’t know
that I’m inspired to write, more compelled to. Having an overactive imagination
I’ve always got stories, characters, ideas running around and around in my
head. The only way to make the voices stop is to write their story. I also find
it incredibly therapeutic. Having suffered anxiety for a long time, it gives me
relief and a way to express myself in a non-threatening environment.
o
Do
you plot out your stories or just wing it?
Both. I try
to have an idea where the story is going and how it is going to end, but as to
how my characters get there, well, I don’t generally know that until they tell
me!
o
What
drew you to writing YA ? Would you or
have you tried any different genre?
Maybe one
day I’ll try something different, but for now, I love the genre. I think having
issues in my teen years with bullying and fitting in, it is a way to create a
different outcome (after a few ups and downs of course). I also struggle with growing up myself, so writing
this genre keeps me young at heart. Lastly, I want to inspire young adults to
write themselves. I get so excited to hear from my readers who are wanting to write
and always love speaking with them about how they can achieve their writing
goals.
o
Do
you have a favorite scene in this book?
If so, could you share an excerpt with us?
One of my
favourite scenes is where Cora is discovering her power and experimenting late
one night when Nate discovers her. It shows not only Cora’s vulnerability but
Nate’s unwavering faith in her no matter the situation.
“Shh.” Cora
opened her eyes and squinted, focusing all her attention on the air above her
hands. The shimmering glow had returned. Her veins darkened, resembling roads
on a map. A wisp of silver smoke curled upward, forming a small cloud, swirling
an inch above the cup. Tiny crystals had formed at the base of the mug and
blossomed over the entire cup leaving it coated in a thin icy white film. I
shook my head and blinked. Cora took her fingers away from the cup and shoved
her hands back into the relative safety of her lap.
Cora nodded toward the object on the table, giving me
the okay. I reached out and touched it. It clinked and steam no longer rose
from its contents. I wrapped my fingers around the outside and picked it up.
The freezing cold shocked me and the mug fell from my hands and onto the table
with a loud clunk. The coffee had frozen into a solid block. I tapped the
surface. Yep, coffee popsicle.
“How did you do that?” I picked it up again and looked
at it from every angle. Cora put her hands on the table and shrugged.
“I’ve no idea.”
“Does this have anything to do with the dreams you’ve
been having?” The memory of Cora sitting on the floor, clutching her arm came
back to me. She claimed it had been a dream. I wasn’t convinced.
“I don’t know.” Cora looked away but I didn’t miss the
pink flush rise in her cheeks.
I leaned toward her, picking up her hands between my own
and breathed warm air into them. They were frozen.
“What’s going on, Cora? Talk to me.” I pleaded. She
lifted her head but didn’t speak. “Cora, this is me. Do you seriously think
that little of me? That I would judge you?”
The muscles in her jaw tightened and she flinched. “No,
that’s not… No. Ugh.” She diverted her gaze to a drop of spilled coffee on the
table. I cupped her chin in my hand and turned her face toward mine, making
sure she couldn’t look away.
“Cora. I’ve just watched you take iced coffee to a whole
new level, and while the notion of instant iced beverages excites me I think
there is perhaps something a little bit deeper going on.”
The tightness in Cora’s face eased and she released her
bottom lip from between her teeth and it went from white to a kissable rose
pink. I couldn’t resist and brought my lips to hers but got a mouthful of hair
instead.
“Don’t.” I turned her head back to face me. This time
when I kissed her, she didn’t pull away. “Tell me.”
“I don’t know where to start.”
“Try the beginning.” I squeezed her hand.
After a minute of silence she finally spoke. “At first,
I couldn’t control it. Stuff would just, you know, happen. If I was upset or
angry. Now I can make things change on purpose.” She blew out the breath she
had been holding as if she’d just confessed to grand theft auto.
“See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” I couldn’t let her
see my amazement at what she’d done. She was clearly having a hard enough time
dealing with this as it was.
“I just don’t understand why you didn’t think you could
talk to me about it.” Cora avoided making eye contact with me, instead,
scratching at her cuticles.
“Is there something wrong with me?”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
“There is absolutely, positively nothing wrong with you.” She could grow
another head and I’d still think she was the most beautiful person I’d ever
seen. “Granted, some answers would be nice, but I have no doubt that you are
now, and will always be, perfect.”
o
Do
you have any other stories in the works?
I’ve always
got stories in the works. I’m currently writing Book 3 in the Erlanis
Chronicles, which continues the story of Nate and Cora but the focus shifts and
things go in an unexpected direction. I’m also writing a novel called “Let Her
Go” which is a ghost love story based in Japanese mythology.
o
How
does your family feel about your writing?
My family
are very proud of me. There are times when they wonder why I put myself through
the stress (and there are stressful times, it’s not all high fives and hours
peacefully in front of a computer), and it probably took until my first book
was published for them to see how serious I was. (I’d spent years saying I was
going to do this and going to that… but never following through with anything.
It had become a running joke. But now
they take my writing very seriously and can see how passionate and dedicated I
am to creating my stories.
o
When
you aren’t writing, what do you do for fun?
When I’m not
writing, I’m decorating cakes. There is nothing like modeling something out of
nothing and creating beautiful works of art. Kind of like creating a book, only
in 3D.
I also love
taking my girls to the Monarto Open Plains Zoo near where we live and seeing
the rhinoceros.
***
OF BLOOD & Snow
(Erlanis
Chronicles, 2)
by
Danielle Belwater
Paranormal/Suspense/Romance/Teen
Evernight
Teen Publishing/63K
Blood is thicker than water, or so
the story goes…
As
fast as Cora can run, there is no escaping the blood that ties her to an
ancient, evil past.
Amongst the
bitter cold and driving snow, Nate must find a way to protect the love of his
life, before the darkness falls and Cora is lost to him forever.
14+ due to adult situations
Excerpt:
Why? Why did
I need to go home? Other than for shelter, no one needed me there. Nate was all
I had left. He was my reason for breathing and now the sole reason I got up
every morning. The thought of harm coming to Nate made my heart hammer in my
chest even harder. I jammed my hands deep into my coat pockets and focused on
letting oxygen flow into my lungs.
In a single
moment of clarity, I knew. I mean, I knew I loved Nate; that was without
question. But if I didn’t have him in my life, it would be nothing but vacuous
space.
I brushed
snow off the fallen tree trunk and sat down. My thinking tree. Nate and I came
here often to sit and talk, read, or watch the day simply pass us by. I piled
up handful after handful of snow, heaping them on top of each other until a
small avalanche rolled off the log and into a heap on the ground.
You are
the key.
I leapt off
the log landing two feet together, crushing the peak of snow beneath my shoes.
“Who’s
there?” I shoved my fists into my hips and squared my shoulders. If there was
someone there, they didn’t know who they were messing with.
The rustling
of leaves came from above and a sprinkling of disturbed snow flittered down in
front of my face. The flapping of beating wings and the call of a solitary bird
echoed overhead. I caught sight of white feathers tipped with black before they
disappeared above the trees and out of sight.
“Is anyone
there?” I called out again, but I had a feeling I wouldn’t get a response.
The softness
of the voice rolled around my head as I lingered amongst the tall trees on my
way back home.
I am the
key. The answer is within my blood. What did that mean?
About the Author:
Danielle Belwater adores the concept
of true love and that everyone has their Prince Charming or Snow White out
there somewhere, even if they have to fight demons, ghosts, and wizards to find
it.
Danielle
has been having a love affair with words since she was young and in primary
school, writing some rather imaginative tales. This love has followed her into
adulthood.
She lives
in rural South Australia with her husband, young daughters and way too many
animals to mention. She spends most of her time dreaming up characters,
stories, ghostly tales, and watching Firefly re-runs. She also cooks
the odd meal for her family to avoid them looking like skeletons at official
author functions!
Danielle
is passionate about reading and her interests include pretty much anything with
words from rolling four volume epics to the daily newspaper.
Giveaway:
$20 Amazon Gift Card
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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