An Interview with Elise Marion

The Reading Cafe is happy to welcome Elise Marion as our guest today.

Elise is here to talk to us about her books, as well as telling us a bit about herself.

Let’s meet Elise.

Hi Elise.  Thank you for taking the time to answer some questions today. We are always looking forward to reading about the author behind the book.

TRC: Will you please tell us about yourself?

Elise: Thank you so much for having me today! I’m just a girl from a small town who loves books and the written word. I’m a young mother of 2 and Army wife who spends her time at home balancing the housework and mom work with writer work.

TRC: Have you always been interested in writing?

Elise: I think that it definitely began as a love for reading. I was that kid on the playground sitting in the sandbox with their nose in a book. After a while, the flair for storytelling came out and I’ve been writing since I was 12. Throughout high school I discovered romance…although I had to hide them from my disapproving parents…and penned a bunch of very cheesy stories back in those days. I’m still at it, although hopefully with a lot less ‘cheese’.

TRC: Is there anything (in general) you find particularly challenging about writing?

Elise: I think the difficult part, at least for me, is those moments when things just aren’t flowing. Call it writer’s block if you want, but there are just times when I have to walk away from the computer and take a personal day. There are days when everything that comes off of my keyboard is crap and I have to wipe a whole chapter clean and start over. The good thing about this, is that a writer can learn a lot in these moments. By going back and fixing our mistakes or reworking  bad scene, even when we’re emotionally attached to it, we can grow and become better. It also takes a lot to walk away from a project long enough to get some perspective if its needed. Critique partners are also a big help. Criticism is definitely needed. A writer just can’t stay inside their little bubble and revel in how great they think they are. At the end of the day it’s not about how great you think you are, but how great others think your work is. Trust me, the ego shows if not properly checked.

TRC: What is your writing process?  Do you like to write at specific times, in a special place?

Elise: I don’t have the leisure of a writing process. With a houseful of kids, dogs, and a rowdy husband, I have to do what I can. My favorite time of day is naptime because both my kids are asleep and the house is quiet. I do a lot of late night writing too, but if I need to get work done, I have no problem with writing in the midst of the chaos. I have learned how to tune it out when necessary.

TRC: What was your first novel that you published, and can you please describe your reactions when you saw your first book published?

Elise: My first book was ‘The Third Son’, the Historical/Fantasy that started the series we’re discussing today. That book is my baby. I worked on that book for over a year, even picking it back up when a thumb drive wiped out the first half of the book after months of writing. That was a pretty crushing defeat, but I didn’t stop. I wrote that book and couldn’t wait to publish it. My mistake was in getting my hopes too high, I think. The big house publishers are out to make money, and are more interested in moving ‘units’ then getting behind unique stories. If they can’t find a ‘market’ or fit your book into a ‘genre’ then they aren’t going to take the chance that they could lose money on you. And in this economy, they are taking even fewer risks. I have a feeling that if I had made this book a regency and turned my Prince into a Duke, I could have got it sold. But I stuck with what I had created because I believed in it, even though it got me about a year’s worth of rejection letters from agents and publishers.

Fast forward to June 2011 when I received a Kindle at my baby shower. I downloaded so many independently published books that it got me curious about how one got into the business of publishing themselves. Needless to say, after researching and weeks of preparation I got that baby on Amazon. Let me tell you, it’s a heady feeling. That moment when I did an Amazon search for my name and that book popped up brought me to tears. It’s been a roller coaster ride ever since, with me writing full time at home and working to carve out a name for myself in this industry. I’ve never been happier.

TRC: The Lady Knight of Barony is a set of three novellas, which is part of the Kings of Cardenas series. We understand Gypsy Rose will be the next book in this series.  How many books do you plan in this series, and how did you come up with the idea for this series?

Elise: ‘The Third Son’ was written as a standalone. I had intended to move on to something else when it was finished, but then the secondary characters started to talk to me. They wanted their stories told! What followed was The Second Son, The Lady Knights of Barony, and now, hopefully by the end of this year, Gypsy Rose. I plan to go up to 6 books, telling the story of each major secondary character introduced in the first book.

It all started with a prince, the hero of The Third Son. In my mind I got this vision of a man who is unbelievably gorgeous, rich, and has everything, but in his heart, nothing. It isn’t until he meets a Gypsy girl that his life begins to mean something, and by that time a plot against the royal family threatens to wreck his life as he knows it. Around these two, I created a fictional kingdom with a decadent, European feel. This world came alive to me and I wasn’t ready to leave it. So I continued the story through the eyes of others and it became bigger than I ever thought it would. I never thought it would lead to a 6 book series.

TRC: Would you please tell us the premise behind The Lady Knights of Barony?

Elise: Anybody who has read ‘The Second Son’, book 2 in the series, was introduced to the lady’s regiment. The kingdom of Barony was at war, those loyal to the crown versus the rebels wanting to overthrow the government. For their part in winning that war, four women were knighted for their bravery—the very first females of the realm to hold the titles. Their land is at peace and they are settling into their lives, still together as a unit.

Trouble comes when a rash of kidnappings spreads out over the kingdom. When their captain is taken, the ladies are fighting for their lives, their sisterhood, and individually, for love. Each of these strong-willed women will learn that following your heart does not make you weak. Quite the opposite, as it takes great strength to truly love someone.

What I loved most about writing this book, is the multicultural characters. I did a lot of research on women warriors of the past and based the African and Japanese characters on the Dahomey Amazons and Japanese onna bugeisha (female equivalent of the samurai), respectively. The rich cultural flavor added into this book gripped me and I tried to pour as much as I learned into it as I could. I wanted people to know where these women came from, to see true feminine strength in them. It was definitely the most challenging, but also the most fun, aspect of writing this book.

TRC: You have written in many genres.. Historical,Paramormal, Contemporary and Erotic Romance.  Do you have a preference between them?  Which of these genres do you find most difficult to write?

Elise: Historical is definitely my first love. It is always my first genre of choice when buying books. There is just something that appeals to me about a world where women were ladies and men were gentlemen. The opulence of nobility and royalty is of particular interest to me, as you will find when you read the Kings of Cardenas series.

I do write a little bit of everything, as I am a person who is very eclectic and I love variety.

TRC: What are you currently working on?

Elise: I am working on the last book in my Paranormal series, ‘Angels Among Us’. That particular series is a trilogy of novels about love between angels and humans.

I am also working on ‘Gypsy Rose’, the next book in the Kings of Cardenas series.

I like to work on more than one project at a time to keep things interesting. I can typically write a novella at the same time as a novel if I alternate between the two. It all depends on my mood at the time.

TRC: Many authors bounce ideas with family and friends.  With whom do you bounce ideas?

Elise: I am very fortunate to have a group of very talented authors as friends. There are three in particular that I work with a lot. We send each other our books and do critiques, we beta-read each other’s work, we gripe about bad reviews and laugh over the funny things we see online. It’s important to have these kinds of people around, I think. Every writer should have at least one confidant. We help each other to grow, keep each other at the top of our game. There is no competition there, even though we write in the same genres. It’s all love and support.

TRC: What books, authors or people in your life have influenced your writing?

Elise: I think I have been heavily influenced by the Historical greats: Johanna Lindsey, Virginia Henley, Julia Quinn, Julie Garwood, just to name a few. As far as books go, I don’t think they influence so much as they inspire.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food: Italian

Favorite Dessert: My aunt’s peach cobbler

Favorite Author: Julia Quinn

Favorite Novel: The Color Purple by Alice Walker

Favorite Movie: Chicago

Favorite TV Show: Grey’s Anatomy

Milk or Dark Chocolate: Dark, of course!

Thank you Elise, for answering our questions. The Reading Café wishes you the best of luck with The Lady Knights of Barony, as well as your upcoming books.