D.B. REYNOLDS-Interview and Giveaway with the Author

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TRC:  Hi D.B. and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the release of LUCAS –the latest novel in your Vampires in America series.

We would like to start with some background information.  Would you please tell us something about yourself?

D.B.  Thanks for inviting me to the Cafe. Something about myself … I’m married, no children. My darling husband (DH) and I live near Los Angeles, in one of those flammable canyons you always hear about on the news. I love books and movies, travel and writing.

TRC:  Would you please tell us what the initials D.B. stand for in your name?

D.B.  D. B. Reynolds is my pen name. The initials represent family names, and are my way of paying homage to some important people in my life.

TRC:  Many authors begin their love of writing at an early age.  What was the catalyst that sparked your interest in writing?

D.B.  I’ve been a reader all my life, and always dreamed of being able to write the kind of books I enjoyed reading, to be able to tell stories that would draw people in the way the stories I loved did for me. I wrote on and off since high school. But then at a critical juncture in my life, I met a woman who’d been an acquiring editor for several of the big Sci-Fi houses. She read a couple of my short stories, and told me I really could write. It was her encouragement that motivated me to give it a serious try.

TRC:  Please list the top 5 things you would like to accomplish in the next 10 years.

D.B.  Not necessarily in order …
Write the last two books of the current Vampires in America story arc, and start a new one!
Publish my new Urban Fantasy series (while still writing my Vampires in America, of course.)
Travel somewhere I’ve never been, with my DH, naturally.
Read lots of amazing books.
Clean out my closets.

TRC:  Would you please give us a run down on the premise of the VAMPIRES IN AMERICA series?

D.B.  The books revolve around the Vampire Lords who rule all the vampires of North America, which is divided into eight territories, one to each Vampire Lord. The Vampire Lords are extremely formidable, with the literal power of life and death over the vampires they rule. They can kill with a thought, but they’re usually not that kind, preferring to get up close and personal when dealing death. My vampires are patterned after the classic vampire. They’re aggressive, territorial and violent. They embrace the power their vampirism gives them and relish the drinking of blood from the vein. There is no soul-searching, no self-hating. And when it comes to their mates, they’re extremely possessive and protective. Each book in the series arc introduces a Vampire Lord and the human woman who will be his mate, or in Sophia’s case, the man who will be hers. The books are also full of action and adventure, with a mystery or a crime to be solved, a wrong to be avenged.

TRC:  BETRAYED is your August 2012 e-novella in the same series.  Would you please tell us something about the premise?

ORDER LINK: Amazon

D.B.:  BETRAYED was the first Cyn & Raphael e-novella. Many of my readers wanted more of Cyn and Raphael, the first two characters introduced in the series. But they’re very dominant personalities—especially Raphael, who is probably the most powerful Vampire Lord in existence—and when the two of them are in a book, they tend to overshadow everyone else. So, I’m writing the Cyn & Raphael e-novellas to let readers keep up with their story, while still introducing the new lords and their mates in the books. In BETRAYED, someone sends an assassin after Raphael, and Cyn is determined to find out and kill whoever it was. Of course, the last thing Raphael wants is to put Cyn in the line of fire, so he and his people pursue their own hunt, while trying to keep Cyn out of it, even if it means betraying the trust she has in him.

TRC:  LUCAS is the latest release (October 2012) in your Vampires in American series.  Would you please tell us something about the premise?

ORDER LINKS: Barnes and Noble / Amazon/ The Book Depository

D.B.:  Lucas Donlon is a Vampire Lord. Charming and irreverent to his friends and lovers, he enjoys everything about his life as a vampire. When hostilities with his neighboring Vampire Lord come to a head, war is imminent, and Lucas will prove to be every bit as lethal as he is charming. But then we meet FBI Special Agent Kathryn Hunter, who is about to step into it and complicate Lucas’s life. Her baby brother has gone missing under circumstances that suggest a vampire is involved, and she will do anything to find him, even if it means going against both her FBI bosses and Lucas. Waging war against their enemies and each other, Lucas and Kathryn will risk everything to keep the most deadly vampire war in hundreds of years from engulfing every vampire, and human, in North America.

TRC:  How many books do you have planned for the series?

D.B.:  My current contract is for eight books, and four Cyn & Raphael e-novellas. But my publisher has already expressed an interest in carrying the series beyond the original eight books, with a new story arc.

TRC:  If you could virtually cast the Vampires in America using models and actors with whom would you cast the main characters in the series?

D.B.:  I get asked this a lot, and it’s really difficult. When I’m writing, I have a very specific image of my characters in my head, but it usually doesn’t relate to anyone in the real world. My vampires are all really big, intense guys, so casting looks-wise would be difficult enough, but to get that intensity, you’d need people who could act.

TRC:  If you could change anything about the series what would it be and why?

D.B. : Honestly, there’s nothing. I love every one of my guys, and have been very happy with the final manuscripts. Well, except for Rajmund—his story came in much longer than my publisher expected, and I had to do some serious cutting, but I was able to post a couple of the cut scenes on my blog. On the other hand, I would love it if I could someday get a new set of covers with original cover art. I’d love to see an artist’s version of my Vampire Lords.

TRC:  How do you handle the stress and anxiety of writer’s block?

D.B.:  Knock on wood, I’ve never experienced true writer’s block. There are times when the story doesn’t flow as smoothly as I’d like, but in those cases, I put in a place holder and skip to another scene. And when I go back, the stubborn scene is always there in my head. Generally, I find the best cure for writer’s block is writing. Once I lose myself in the narrative, the words always come.

TRC:  Who or what has been the biggest influence in your personal life? Professional life?

D.B.:  The biggest influence in my personal and professional life was my mother, who really encouraged my education and reading. She died before my first book was released, but I know she’d be proud. On a strictly personal note, I have a large and supportive family, and my wonderful husband who’s the most brilliant person I’ve ever known—and I’ve met some brilliant people.

TRC:  On what are you currently working?

D.B.:  I’m currently working on the first book of a new Urban Fantasy series. It doesn’t have vampires, but it does have werewolves, demons and human/demon hybrids. I’m also working on the outline for the next Vampires novella and book, and I’ll be starting those in late January.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food – Chocolate, that’s a food, right? Or maybe potatoes.

Favorite Dessert – It’s not dessert if it’s not chocolate.

Favorite TV Show – I have a few, but I really enjoy Criminal Minds, Supernatural, and Grimm.

Favorite Movie – Terminator (the first one)

Last Movie You Saw – Skyfall. Daniel Craig is a fantastic Bond. Easily the best since Connery.

Dark or Milk Chocolate – Dark

Do You Have Any Pets? – No

TRC:  Thank you D.B. for answering our questions.  We wish you all the best in your writing career.  And you made a wonderful choice for the image of LUCAS on your latest cover-Francis J. Cura.

D.B Reynolds is offering WINNER’S CHOICE of any ONE book in her VAMPIRES IN AMERICA series to one lucky member at The Reading Cafe.

1.  You must be a member at The Reading Cafe.  If you are not a member, please register using the log-in at the top of the page or by using one of the social log-ins.

2.  If you are using Twitter or Facebook etc, please post your email address, along with your comment, as Twitter and FB etc do not allow for email addresses

3.  Giveaway is OPEN internationally

4.  Giveaway runs December 17-20, 2012