Monday, June 20, 2011

Interview & Book Giveaway!

***Giveaway Closed***
But please read on through the interview.

I have the great pleasure of sharing with you an interview with an author of a book that I recently enjoyed.  I loved the ending of this book!  Well, I loved the whole book as I got to know Sevy, her main character.  I enjoyed this book so much I bought the next book the very next day!  If you would like to read my review you can HERE.  Make sure to stick around a the end and enter for the giveaway of a copy of Thief.

With great pleasure please welcome Sarah-Jane Lehoux to the blog!

M:  There are a few levels of magic that appear in this book; elves and dark elves then the different Goddesses. Could we see more of these in the future books?

SJL:  Yes, definitely. Dark elves and their culture play a huge role in SHADES OF WAR. Their matriarchal structure, politics, marriage rites, and ancestor worship are all expanded upon. I also attempted to show that their culture is not static: the dark elves of southern Axlun are very different than those in northern Axlun. It was fun to play them off each other, and it was also fun to play both these groups against the patriarchal structure of human society.


As far as all the different human gods and goddesses, I introduce a couple new ones that have a particular connection to Sevy’s life. In future books, I plan to expand upon this pantheon, as well as introduce different schools of magic. Variety is the spice of life after all.

M:  I think I was drawn to Revik in the book. Oh, I loved Jarro even though I didn’t want to fall for him like Sevy, although I did. But I liked the dynamics in Revik. There was so much more to him than met the eye as a dark elf and the ‘stories’ of the dark elves. Then his whole personality! He was not what I expected and I enjoyed his character. Will we get to see more of Revik on any journeys with Sevy? Or even in the distant future with his long life?

SJL:  Revik was never meant to be such an important character. When I first created him, he was just supposed to be another member of the gang, one who would disappear with the rest of them once Sevy parted ways with them. But he became so very important to the plot, as well as so dear to my heart, that he just sort of stole the show. Which works out quite nicely since he seems to be the favourite of many a reader.


I can definitely promise that Revik will continue to be a huge presence in Sevy’s life. And that’s all I’m gonna say on that for fear of spoiling the end of the series.

M:  You really did take these characters to their brink, then gave them something they wanted. But in the end you did what I don’t see many authors do with their characters, you made them have to pick between the bad and the worst. I love the choices made here. Was this an easy decision for you? Did you know you where going to give your characters the toughest choice of their life to make?

SJL:  I didn’t plan the choice that Sevy eventually has to make. Originally, the loss of her love was supposed to be the catalyst that drove her to the depths of depravity and the original concept was having her struggle her way back up. Having that love suddenly pop back into her life and making her choose between him and her best friend…that was something that came to me after I had already finished the first two thirds of the book.


It meant a good deal of scrambling rewrites, but it was worth it. That part of the process is what I love about writing. Sometimes you take unexpected turns, and sometimes patterns and themes form that you aren’t even aware of until the book is finished.


I do enjoy torturing my characters a great deal. Happy endings don’t seem very real to me, and I wanted these books to be as real as possible despite being set in a fantastical universe. Life is messy and I want to reflect that in everything I write. I’m a sucker for tragedy, I guess.

M:  I liked the way you divided the book into three sections. All three sections tie together and show aging and growth of the characters. Was this hard to do or did you know you wanted to show time passing and age the characters to a point, tying them together and through time?

SJL:  I wanted to show how Sevy changed over time from the beginning. She is such a complex character, I myself needed the span of time and the range of her experiences in order to understand why she does what she does. Actually dividing the book into the three sections was my editor’s idea. She thought it would help readers recognize the leaps forward in time. It was a brilliant suggestion on her part.


Just as an aside, in book 5 of the series (the last one), I do plan on revealing more of what happened in the 8 year gap between the Stray and Sweetheart sections of THIEF. Jarro fans should look forward to it.

M:  I must say these sections are done very gracefully. I know we start with the view point from Jarro in part two then Revik in part three, but somewhere very gently with out me (as the reader) picking up on it, you shift back to Sevy’s view. Very nicely done as I didn’t even realize it when it happened.

SJL:  Thank you. I enjoyed switching between characters so that the reader can get to know each of them better. I use the same technique in SHADES OF WAR and MASQUERADE, and plan to do the same in books 4 and 5 as well.

M:  What is it like trying to work with Sevy and writing her life and journeys?

SJL:  She is frustrating beyond belief. Always contrary, always pushing boundaries, and behaving like a spoiled brat. And then she’ll suddenly flip flop, and be sweet and caring and gah!! She is a writer’s worst enemy, but I do love that about her.


I wanted a character with flaws. I wanted a female protagonist who didn’t follow the regular tropes of fantasy. And I have that, in spades, with Sevy. As Revik says in SHADES OF WAR, ‘If nothing else, [Sevy] always brings excitement.’

M:  Okay, a couple of fun questions for you…

M:  One question I ask in my interviews, if you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?

SJL:  I would love to go to Paris. Not to see the Eiffel Tower, but to roam through the catacombs. I’ve been obsessed with them for years.

M:  Favorite Season?

SJL:  Fall, definitely. Winter is too cold. Spring is soggy and smells like thawing dog poop, and summer is too humid. Fall is perfect. Not too hot, not too cold. No bugs. Fun holidays. Pretty colours. What more could you ask for?

M:  Favorite Color?

SJL:  As evidenced by the colour of Jarro’s eyes, royal blue.

M:  Favorite childhood fictional creature?

SJL:  Zampires. I was a big Anne Rice fan.

M:  And now as an adult, favorite fictional creature?

SJL:  Zombies. At least until someone ruins them for me by making them angst and sparkle.

M:  Favorite Word? (any word at all)

SJL:  Hmmm. That’s tough. I don’t know if you can post this or not, but I guess it would have to be “fuck” based on the amount of times I use it during the average day. It’s a catch-all and can be used no matter what my mood is.

M:  Thank you Sarah-Jane for being available to do this wonderful interview. I do wish you all the best in words and pages. Thank you!

SJL:  Thank you very much for the opportunity. I had a lot of fun. :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You can visit Sarah-Jane Lehoux on a few different places and learn more of her books
Official Website
Blog
Facebook
Twitter

Read more about Thief
On the Official Website, here where there is an excerpt, trailer, and links to reviews and other fun things.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And Sarah has been so kind as to offer a signed copy of Thief to one lucky follower!
Thank you Sarah!  I'm so glad to be able to host this giveaway as I so enjoyed this book.

Rules:

What do you need to do to enter?

+3 Comment!  Say Hello.  Any thoughts while reading the interview. We love comments!
+5 Share the Giveaway.  Tweet, blog, sidebar.  Just let others know we have this great book up here.  MUST leave link to verify.
+2 Follow My World...in words and pages with Google Friend Connect.  No need to follow to enter.  Leave me your screen name so I can verify.

Please leave a way to contact you!  In case you win I would like to tell you.

US and Canada only.
Giveaway will end:  June 30, 2011 Midnight EST

25 comments:

  1. Sarah-Jane needs to finish Masquerade soon. We need MOAR SEVY. ;-)

    Great interview!

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  2. Nice interview :)
    I like the cover for Thief. It's so ...well red and good

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  3. Great interview. My brain got stuck on thawing dog poop... lol Those fun questions made me laugh!!

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  4. I'm following you (LiteratiWannabe) and I tweeted the giveaway http://twitter.com/#!/thekidfromtexas/status/82904473038630912

    Thanks for the giveaway and interview! Sounds like a great read.

    vanessanicole21 at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete
  5. Nice interview. Would love a copy!

    colleen @ myartsite dot com

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  6. I haven't heard of this book before but it sounds good. I especially want to read it considering your enthusiasm about the ending.

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  7. I have this book, so I don't need to be entered. I loved Thief. It's a fantastic story. Which reminds me I need to get hopping and read the next one (which is waiting on my Kindle). Great interview!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hello! Great interview, these books look very cool. :)

    GFC follower :)

    http://twitter.com/#!/LiederMadchen/status/82988357218615296

    liedermadchen(at)hotmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  9. I'm commenting b/c I said I would but I don't like it when lovers are killed off. So, I think that's a brave step in this series. It's something I wouldn't think of doing and I don't think many authors do.
    Brave, very brave!

    Heather

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  10. Skyla, I'm starting to think Masquerade is immortal. It just won't die!!

    Blodeuedd, thank you. :) The cover was designed by Niki Browning. She did the one for Shades of War as well, which is green and good.

    Melissa (Books and Things, it's true! Take a big whiff next spring. You'll see what I mean. Thanks for stopping by! :)

    Literati Wannabe, good luck!

    theartgirl, thank you.

    Simcha, if you do happen to read Thief, I hope you'll enjoy it. Thanks for commenting!

    J.A. Saare, thanks very much. I hope you'll enjoy Shades of War.

    Lieder Madchen, good luck!

    BURIED IN BOOKS, the best part of being a writer is torturing your characters. And what better way to torture them than to take away the thing they want most in the world. Thanks for commenting!

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  11. Skyla Dawn - he he. Thank you for stopping! :) And I need to get to Shades of War so I'm ready for Masquerade. :)

    Blodeuedd - Oh, I thought of you with this book. I think you just might enjoy it. :) As we have talked of our enjoyment in books. ;D

    Melissa (Books&Things) - Thank you! :) And yes, got stuck on the thawing dog poop too. lol. You can tell we who has dogs. ;D

    Literatie Wannabe - Thank you! So glad to have you by.

    The Art Girl - Hi! And thank you. Glad you stopped by. :)

    Simcha - Oh, I have my way with endings that aren't... um, I don't want to give to much away. ;D But I do hope you get a chance to give the book a try.

    Jaime - Hi. :) Thank you for stopping by! Loved this book too. And glad to hear I'm not the only one needing to get to Shades of War. :) Just got it in the mail, so now I need to get to it. :)

    Lieder Madchen - Thank you. And thank you for stopping by. :)

    Buried in Books - Yes, many authors don't do it, and many readers may not be to up on it too as we love the endings. But I think that's what I loved so much about this ending, it's different and unique. I give major kudos to Sarah for doing it. Thank you kindly for stopping by! I really do appreciate it. :)

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  12. Sarah-Jane - Thank you so much for the great interview. :) And letting me host the giveaway for you as well. :)

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  13. What an interesting book! I love elves and I haven't found a good book recently that had them in it, so I'm very much looking forward to reading this book! Thanks for the great giveaway:)

    GFC follower: Julie Witt

    I tweeted: http://twitter.com/#!/jwitt33/status/83353491778715648

    jwitt33 at live dot com

    ReplyDelete
  14. Oh sure, Melissa, force me to add another book (series!) to my TBR with a great interview. Sheesh woman, what you do to my wallet! < wink >

    +3 comment
    +5 retweet (really, I did! But I can't figure out hoe to get a link from the durn iPhone!)
    +2 GFC friend

    rissatoo (@gmail.com, just in case I win...hope, hope, hope!)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Great interview! It sounds like Thief is full of great characters. I must admit I share Sarah-Jane's sentiments about her favourite word; it's full of multi purpose goodness :-p

    my tweet status can be found here
    and email addy everexpandinglibraryATgmailDOTcom

    You know me, I follow here, Twitter, FB, gmail, Wii...ooh, i sound like a stalker, LOL. Thanks for the contest and sharing this book.

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  16. Great interview! And I know you have great taste in fantasy, Mel. So I'm sure I will like the book. Thanks for the giveaway!

    Of course, you know I'm a loyal follower.

    tweeted: http://twitter.com/#!/truebookaddict/status/83992461390782464

    truebookaddictATgmailDOTcom

    ReplyDelete
  17. Sounds great :) Please count me in

    Tweeted:
    http://twitter.com/#!/QuixoticWeetzie/status/85566370259021824

    I follow via GFC: quixoticdreamer

    quixoticdreamer(at)hotmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  18. AWESOME interview adding this book to my TBR Pile
    tweeted giveaway
    http://twitter.com/#!/amdase/status/85720601246957568


    LOVE THE COVER !!!!!!

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  19. Great interview-cant wait to read the book!

    laurie1993@verizon.net

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  20. I follow you on GFC-laurie1993

    laurie1993@verizon.net

    ReplyDelete
  21. Tweeted the giveaway
    http://twitter.com/FrugalWahms/status/85944375477141504

    laurie1993@verizon.net

    ReplyDelete
  22. Would love to win! Thanks so much!

    mybookishways[at]yahoo[dot]com

    ReplyDelete
  23. Hi!
    What a great interview!Thank you.
    The book cover just asks for the book to be read ASAP =)

    tatiana_lwg(at) yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  24. Thank you once again, Melissa, for hosting this interview and giveaway.

    And thank you to everyone who commented! If any of you do happen to read THIEF, I hope you will enjoy it. :)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Hi Sarah-Jane. Thank you again for the great interview and the chance to host the giveaway for you. It was a fun time. :) And I've posted the winner, so as soon as I hear from her I'll send her information to you. Thank you!

    And hope everyone enjoys the great book as much as I did!

    ReplyDelete

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