Ms. Van Dyken has offered the first five commenters get a free e-copy of THE ELITE. Make sure you leave your name and email address so we can get in contact with you!
First and foremost, please tell us a little bit about
yourself. I love to read and write. I always tease that I'm a reader first writer
second ;) I enjoy pumpkin spice americanos, have been happily married to my
husband for four years and am 28 years old.
You tend to write various types of genres. What's your
favorite to write and why? What are you most comfortable to write and
why? That’s such a
hard question! I love writing New Adult because I love the emotion and angst
tied into that genre, but historical will always have a special place in my
heart ;)
Are you a plotter or a pantser? TOTAL panster! I never know where
the story is going to go. I think it makes it more exciting that way.
What is your writing routine? I usually get up around 7am answer
emails, do interviews or radio show interviews, then around 8 or 9 start
writing and don’t stop until around 4. I try to write all day every day, but
usually take Sundays off to give my brain a rest.
Where do you find your inspiration? Everywhere. I love dialogue. For
me, that’s where the story begins, it’s in a funny one liner I overhear someone
say, or a conversation I have with one of my best friends.
THE BET is not your typical
pretend-we're-engaged-fall-in-love storyline. How did you come up with
the plotline? I actually started writing the book based on a conversation I'd had with
one of my friends. Believe it or not, I had a goldfish I left behind during
Christmas break, she flushed him down the toilet so he wouldn’t die and we were
laughing about it when I got the idea for the story. Everything else just kind
of followed, having my real Grandma as inspiration also helped.
What is EAGLE ELITE COLLEGE? What does it teach you,
and why would anyone want to go there? Eagle Elite is a prestigious university located in
the heart of Chicago. Only people with lots of money or great importance go
there. The whole idea behind this school is that if you go graduate from it,
you can get a job anywhere.
Without giving too much away, what secrets do the Elect
hide, and why are there so many rules about them? The Eagle Elite reminds me of a
secret society. Everyone thinks they want to be in on it, but once you find out
the truth you're trapped for life. The people pulling the strings at Eagle
Elite are not ones you want to make enemies of.
THE UGLY DUCKLING DEBUTANTE is a unique twist on a classic
fairytale. Why did the concept come from? I LOVE fairytales and wanted to
write a Cinderella type story for my first regency. It's easy to write about
insecurities b/c as a woman I know what it’s like to feel like the outcast, we
all do, so it was a really interesting story to write.
What type of relationship is your favorite to explore and
develop? I LOVE
writing about heroes who are broken or heroes who need a woman to come into
their lives, giving them a reason to want to fight for the greater good.
WHISPERED MUSIC sounds like a cross between BEAUTY AND THE
BEAST and PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. How much research did you have to do on
the fairytale, Russia, and music while simultaneously keeping your story new
and fresh? It totally is!! I love music, and have a music background. I wanted to be
able to write a story about it without making it like a typical regency where
the hero is some lord fallen on hard times who turns to his music for strength.
I wanted the music to have a magical feel. In this story Dominique see's
everything in music, even the way people walk or talk. His scars remind him of
his past and of why he is considered a Beast. It's probably one of my favorite
historical stories I've ever written.
How did you choose the fairytales to write for in your
LONDON FAIRYTALE series? I Googled! ;) I went through and looked up all the fairy tales and
picked. Of course, I chose my favorites but a lot of people don't realize how
dark and depressing most Fairy Tales are. We always see the Disney versions on
TV but Grimm's Fairy Tales are slightly horrifying, so I tend to lean towards
the more Disney type of story.
You write a lot of New Adult. What about that genre
draws you to it? I love the angst and emotional turmoil. It's so interesting to write and
I feel like I can put a lot of emotion into the characters. With NA you don’t
really have any rules, the possibilities are endless.
What type of person is your ideal heroine when you're
both reading and writing? What type of person is your ideal
hero when you're both reading and writing? Are they the
same? Why or why not? My ideal hero is someone who, despite having all the
cards stacked against him, still comes out on top. I like to write the broken
hero who doesn't even realize he still has strength left inside of him. I like
to write strong male leads, the type that would die for the ones they love. As
far as a heroine, I get so tired of weak female characters. I try to make my
female leads equally strong but with visible chinks in their armor. For many of
my regency stories this usually has to do with the girl being trapped into
marriage or told what she can and cannot do by her family.
What have you learned about the publishing process? It doesn't get easier the more you
write. If anything, it gets harder. The publishing process is extremely fun,
but at the same time, it's constant work.
Would you recommend advertisements or did you market your
books through a different venue? I advertise through Facebook, Goodreads, etc. But my
main suggestion for advertisement is word of mouth.
How involved are you in terms of editing/book cover/release
date/marketing process? When I self-publish and when I’m traditionally published, I'm involved
every step of the way. As far as release dates, my publisher decides that for
me ;) And I work around their schedule for my self published series.
Are you working on anything now? I’m currently working on the third
book in The Bet series, The Gamble, as well as Entice, the third book in the
Eagle Elite series.
Any upcoming releases? The Wager just released and Elect is up
for pre-order ;)
@RachVD
Facebook: Rachel Van Dyken Author
If you want to do a giveaway to
commenters I can do that too! I'd be willing to give away five e-copies of
Elite ;) Let me know!
Ahhhh.... I love Rachel shes an amwxinf author. Loved this interview. I am so excited for more Bet Series. Hope Grandma is in the 3rd book as well. Shes funny. Yayy
ReplyDeleteAshley Burke
ashleyandshane197@gmail.com