Uncaged welcomes Anya Mora Welcome to Uncaged! On May 6th, your latest book, Secrets Mothers Keep will release. Can you tell readers more about this book? So thrilled to be here. Secrets Mothers Keep explores mother-son relationships, how far you would go to protect the ones you love, and the cost that it might carry. You’ve contributed a couple books to a series, A Liars Island Suspense series in which several authors have also written books for. How did this series come about and can you tell readers more about how the books all connect? Liars Island is a fun, inter-connected series of novella length thrillers. I came up with the idea for the series with author Hayley Ford. We designed an island community and invited authors to join us in writing the world. It has been wonderful to connect with contributing authors and bring readers this edge-ofyour-seat series. The books feature island landmarks and returning characters crop up throughout the series. The stories are all stand-alone, but it becomes more fun the more of them read! What is the most difficult scene for you to write? What is the easiest? I could write dialogue all day – for me the challenge is the high action scenes. Since I mostly write first person, present tense, I dive pretty deep in the main character’s head, and enjoy that aspect of writing. What are you looking forward to doing when the pandemic is over that you haven’t been able to do? Post-pandemic I am looking forward to leisurely browsing a bookstore, probably with a London Fog in a to-go cup, and a lunch date on the horizon. What was the first book that made you laugh and/or cry?
As an adult, I remember crying during the novel White Oleander. It was heartbreaking, the motherdaughter relationship in that novel. What are some things you like to do to relax when you aren’t writing or working? I love to practice yoga. I never have been much into exercise, but when looking for a way to lower my stress levels, I turned to a local yoga studio. I always say I’ve never loved something so much that I was so bad at! But I am learning! I also love to travel. Preferably to a location with a beach. If you could have one all-year season, which would it be and why? Summer. I live in the often-rainy Pacific Northwest. I live for the sunny months! How many hours a day do you write? On average, how long does it take to write a full novel? I write full time and usually work on my stories from 8-4pm. I take about six weeks to draft a novel, but most often they have lived in my head for a lot longer! I have a little travel trailer I renovated in my back yard and am lucky enough to carry my morning coffee to my little office and get to work! Do you prefer ebooks, audiobooks or physical books? Are you reading anything now? I think it would be an even split. I was gifted a Kindle Oasis this past Christmas and love reading late into the night on that, on my side. But when I am running errands or taking walks, I turn on an audio book. Any other time, I have paperback. I can’t resist them. I am currently reading What Comes After by JoAnne Tompkins. I was compelled to purchase it after reading that the male main character was a Quaker. I am often drawn to religious aspects in novels. Issue 58 | May 2021 |
63
