Author Julie Fugate US Times Best-Selling author Apryl Baker
Author Kristin Van Risseghem
Reader’s Life Magazine
Contents
3. Editor’s Note 6-11. Apryl Baker 12-16. Julie Fugate 18-25. Kristin Van Risseghem 26-27. Writing Prompts
Editor’s Note Reader’s Life Magazine is proud to present our Supernatural/Paranormal issue. This issue is filled with ghosts, witches and supernatural love.
Apryl Baker So who am I? Well, I'm the crazy girl with an imagination that never shuts up. I LOVE scary movies. My friends laughs at me when I scare myself watching them and tells me to stop watching them, but who doesn't love to get scared? I grew up in a small town nestled in the southern mountains of West Virginia where I spent days roaming around in the woods, climbing trees, and causing general mayhem. Nights I would stay up reading Nancy Drew by flashlight under the covers until my parents yelled at me to go to sleep. Growing up in a small town, I learned a lot of values and morals, I also learned parents have spies everywhere and there's always someone to tell your mama you were seen kissing a particular boy on a particular day just a little too long. So when you get grounded, what is there left to do? Read! My Aunt Jo gave me my first real romance novel.
It was a romance titled "Lord Margrave's Deception." I remember it fondly. But I also learned I had a deep and abiding love of mysteries and anything paranormal. As I grew up, I started to write just that and would entertain my friends with stories featuring them as main characters. Now, I live Huntersville, NC and a small town in WV where I entertain my niece and nephew and watch the cats get teased by the birds and laugh myself silly when they swoop down and then dive back up just out of reach. The cats start yelling something fierce...lol. My books are published with Limitless Publishing, LLC, a small publisher who I love. I love books, I love writing books, and I love entertaining people with my silly stories.
Apryl Baker has been writing since she was young. She has been writing something for as long as she can remember, a journal, a short story or a novel. When asked why she writes in the paranormal genre she said “I grew up on horror movies. I loved anything to do with the supernatural. It was only natural that I took my love of the horror and paranormal genre and incorporated it into my work. Always write what you know and I know horror When asked why she began writing she said it was because it makes her happy. “Words are my gift God gave me” She says, she says that “when you figure out what your gift is, there isn’t anything else
that makes you happy. Writing makes me happy and if I can entertain even one person, then I’ve done something special.” She is the author of many books and series’ one of which is “Ghost Files” “The series centers around a young girl, Mattie Hathaway, who went into foster care when she was five. Her life changed the day her mother tried to murder her. When she woke up in the hospital, she discovered she could see ghosts as well as had to deal with what her mother did. The books take us through Mattie’s journey of accepting who she is, learning to trust other people, and accepting love.
Add in a bunch of scary ghosts and a few murders here and there and you have not only a horror series, but teenage drama and mystery”. She was inspired to write the first novel in the “Ghost files” Series while she was doing her dishes, the curtain fluttered the AC wasn’t blowing and the windows were down and she had the thought “It’s a ghost” She laughed at herself but then thought “What if it were a ghost?” and she began to write. The Foster care systrem is a huge part of her series and she showcases the rougher part of it “ I got the opportunity to know a few foster kids and the ones I knew, they didn’t have that happy foster home.
At least not until the last home they were in. It took me months to get them to talk to me and what I learned broke my heart. Yes, there are so many wonderful homes there, but the bad ones outnumber those three to one. I wanted people to see the bad side, to become aware and say no, this isn’t acceptable. Mattie is a compilation of the pain, the hurt, and the strength those kids have. It’s why this series is so near to my heart.” There will be more two more novels in the series and one novella which is deticated to the character Silas.
When asked how reader’s have reacted to the series Miss Baker said “My Ghost Files readers are absolutely amazing. They support the books in so many ways and are never quiet in their support of it, especially my Wattpad fans. I’ve received numerous emails and messages from fans who have identified with Mattie or Officer Dan. One teen told me they wanted to be a cop because of Officer Dan and another told me Mattie gave her the courage to believe in herself, to love herself. It was a foster child who told me this and that is why I write.
To be able to move someone, to give them hope. Books can be fun reads, but when our words impact someone’ s life, that is the best thing in the world.” She is currently working on a vampire novel called “The Woods” and is also working on a paranormal romance called Hybrid it is in a colletion of stories centered in the world of Othala. She is also working on her second “ Bloodlines Legacy series titled Necromancer” And is revising “Ghost Files” volume 4
Baker is also the author of the “Coven” Series. “The Coven series is my witch series. It’s my personal favorite, even if it’s my least selling series. I love my world of witches. I can do all sorts of crazy things there. It’s based around witchcraft and not Wicca. Wicca is a religion, and in my world of witches, they don’t need deities. Only the magic in the world around them. True magic is neither black nor white, but a culmination of the two. I have fun with that statement in my books. Seeing how far I can push my characters before they cross a line and can’t come back from it.”
“I was driving home from work and I passed this little community called New Salem while listening to Theory of A Dead Man’s Not Meant To Be. An image of this girl popped up in my head. She was sitting by a gravestone and I thought to myself, why is she sitting there? When I got home, I scribbled a note on a Post-It and stuck it up on the wall. I kept getting ideas and putting them on the wall. Before long, I had an outline of a story in a wall of pink, blue, orange and yellow.” She says that there are mixed reviews on her coven series, but it is her favorite series she has written.
Apryl Baker also has advice for young writers. “Don’t ever let anyone tell you no. Keep writing, keep reading, and just focus. If you are meant to be a writer, you’ll wake up thinking about it, you’ll think about it all day, and you’ll go to bed thinking of it. That is the earmark of a writer. Remember to read. You can’t get better at what you do if you don’t read a wide variety of genres. I read everything from biographies to romance, to horror, to science fiction. A good book can be found in any genre. Just don’t give up on yourself. Believe in yourself even when no one else does.”
You can also catch Apryl Bakers new novel “Touch me not.”
Tara’s Heart: Miranda’s face popped into her mind, and then Zach. The gun wavered. If she accepted her destiny in this family, there would be no turning back. She’d lose the only friends she’d ever had.
Julie Fugate JULIE FUGATE writes young adult fiction where danger, suspense, romance and God collide. Her nicknames include Jay, Juju, Jules, Lizzie and Julio. A tomboy and girly-girl all wrapped into one. Growing up she would spend one hundred percent of her meager allowance on books. You could find her in the library, the porch swing, or in her room reading and listening to music. She fights off two German Shepherds and a snarky Maltese who try to take over her keyboard when she's writing.
Additional Bio: I currently work as a paralegal in Southern Indiana where I help handle injury and death cases from investigation to conclusion. I have worked with kids/teens in my local church for over twenty years teaching Sunday School and then ran our Children’s Church program. I also volunteered as a CASA (court appointed special advocate) where I was the voice of abused and neglected kids and teens in court for over three years.
Julie Fugate began writing since she was a child. She would tell her sisters tall-tales, she would write adventures about her pets. While young her father would hand write stories for her to read-she still has them. In 2013 she joined ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers). “The ACFW is a wonderful organization that helped me take my writing to the next level which free classes, critique groups, local groups, and a yearly conference.” In 2013 Fugate took part in the NaNoWriMo challenge. It challenges writers of all levels to write 50.000 words in a month.
“I'd already written a few contemporary stories but wanted to start a new project. I picked the most fun story concept that had been rattling around in my head. All the angel books I'd read at that time had very little Biblical Realism to them and kept God out of the picture completely. I wanted to write about teens, angels, and human-angel hybrids where God was involved.
Where it's clear everyone has choices no matter their backgrounds or circumstances. Out of that, Kings of Renown Betrayal was born. “ “It's told from three points of views. Inara (pictured on the cover) lives with her father and has no idea she's believed to have a trace of human-angel DNA left over from a time when these hybrids/monsters almost took over the earth. Her father is hiding them from an evil organization run by fallen angels who search for a way to create new hybrids/monsters to take over the world. Leo who has been taken in by Inara's family is suspected to also have this trace DNA.
Tara who's recently discovered her biological father and is being groomed to join the fallen. As they discover their true natures, a plot for revenge against Inara's father will force all of them to make a choice as they fight for their lives. Join the fallen angels or God. “ Miss Fugate went through a small traditional publisher called “Clean Reads” “ I'd been giving consideration to each of my options when I'd joined an online party to pitch books to publishers. Clean Reads asked to read the whole thing then offered me a contract.”
Fugate has already written a prequel using characters that will show up later in the series and has more storylines in mind. Fugate would like to be a hybrid author(selfpublished and traditionally published) I'm staying in the young adult genre right now, but my other projects of mine involve more mystery and suspense. My writing tagline: Inspirational Fiction. Dark Circumstances. Real Hope is also a tagline for my heart because those teen years are tough and life can be unfair in so many ways.
I hope readers will take away from any of my writing, the simple truth, that despite the problems, hurt and pain this world can dish out there is also a lot of good including hope in a living Savior-Jesus Christ. Fugate does her own marketing and her niece was the model for her cover.
Kristin Van Risseghem Kristin D. Van Risseghem grew up in a small town along the Mississippi River with her parents and older sister. Currently, Kristin lives in Minnesota with her husband and two Calico cats. She also loves attending book clubs, going shopping, and hanging out with friends. She has come to realize that she absolutely has an addiction to purses and shoes. They are her weakness and probably has way too many of both. In the summer months, Kristin can usually be found lounging on her boat, drinking an ice cold something. Being an avid reader of YA and Women's Literature stories,
she still finds time to read a ton of books in-between writing. And in the winter months, her main goal is to stay warm from the Minnesota cold! Kristin's books are published by Kasian Publishing. The first book in the series entitled: The Guardian, a Sword, & Stilettos has won the 2015 New Apple Award in the Fantasy category.
1. How long have you been writing? KDV: I started writing in February 2012. I remember because February is my birthday month. 2. What inspired you to begin writing? KDV: I wrote a few things in high school and college, but never thought I’d make a career of writing. My cousin, who is also a young adult author, asked me to read a story she wrote. At that time, I didn’t know she was writing novels. But I think she knew I liked to read so I gave it a whirl. I didn’t know at the time what it was called (I was her beta reader). Then one of her friends 3. Where did the idea for the Enlighten Series come from?
KDV: February of 2012, I dreamed the opening scene in The Guardian, a Sword, & Stilettos. In fact, I dreamed it for three consecutive nights. I knew a brown-haired girl was being chased through a warehouse. Each night the scene developed a little more. I eventually found out that she wasn’t alone in the warehouse; a protector was with her (a guardian). On the fourth night, I dreamed of the tattoo symbol some of the characters had. By the fifth night, I started typing out the story … and three weeks later, I had the first draft. I wrote at night into the wee hours of the morning, go to work, and do it all over again. The story just flowed from beginning to end.
Someone asked me about “three” being a theme after I told them I wrote The Guardian in three weeks, three nights dreaming of the opening scene, the tattoo symbol has three points. All that got me thinking – the power of three. 4. When you first began writing The Guardian, a Sword & Stilettos did you know you were going to publish it? KDV: No. I didn’t know anything about publishing. In fact, I didn’t know anything about writing either. I had to learn all the ins and outs of writing, sentence structure, the lingo and the mountain of information that’s needed after the final draft is written.
5. Where did the idea for Zoe and Kieran’s characters come from? KDV: Zoe. She was harder to develop. I asked a lot of teens to figure out what’s different from my teen years and how it is for them today. In fact, I had three teenagers beta read it (there’s the three again). I see myself in all of my characters, but I pull some of my own characteristics to create each. Kieran’s name actually was one I picked out to name a child, if I had one. He’s bossy (a bit like me) and always has to be in control; take charge kind of guy. 6. Tell me a little bit about your journey to publishing your series.
KDV: Like many people, I thought I wanted to do the traditional publishing route. Which means I’d get an agent, and they would pitch the book to publishers. After many (many!) rejections, I decided to query directly to publishers. I ended up being offered three contracts. I had to decide which to go with. After thought and chatting with a publishing attorney, I signed one. But it wasn’t meant to be. We parted ways and I decided I would self-publish. Of course that meant that I had to learn about publishing. And everything is now history. I wouldn’t go back and do anything differently. I love being self-published. I love the control. I love that I’m the final say(and the only say) about my books, the formats, and publishing avenues.
7. How has the feedback been for your books? KDV: Getting reviews is really hard. It’s the biggest hurdle so far. Asking people to read my book is easy. It’s getting them to write an honest review of the story … that’s what hard. I think people are scared that they will sound silly. But a review doesn’t have to be complicated. It can be simple as: “I loved the book!” or “I hated the book”. The reader took the time to read it, so why not take a few more minutes to write a few words about it? I don’t read any of the reviews … ever! Why? Well, I wrote the book for me and I’m sharing it with others. While I would love that everyone thinks it’s the best story out there, I know that some won’t. And I’m fine with it.
As an author, you have to have the nerves of steel. There are many rejections along the way that you’ll have to endure. I’m sure that some people love it and some hate it. What I do love is when I’m peddling (selling my books someplace) and then I get fan emails and/or letters telling me how great the story is and what happens next. I’ve had a few super fans (good) stalk me to my peddling events, just so that they could tell me to my face how excited they were to read and they just cannot wait for the next book. 8. Can you tell me about the series? KDV: The Enlighten Series is a trilogy. I always knew it would be. In fact, before I queried (fancyword for cover letter),
I made myself write the second book so I could have that in the bank. After I wrote The Guardian, one character kinda took over (Sidelle) so she got her own novella. When I was still with the publisher, they planned on a doing an anthology (a collection of stories written by separate authors, but about the same topic). And that’s how The Prince, a Betrayal, & a Kiss, An Enlighten Series Short Story came about. Then I figured I’d write a second novella, which is scheduled to release in November 2016. So ultimately, I’ll have three main books in the series and three supporting stories. I love young adult books so I knew that I wanted the main character to be a teenager. Thus, Zoe is seventeen and
she has to save the world from Armageddon. 9. What can readers expect from the 2nd novel in your series? KDV: The Guardian takes place over a week’s time. The Passage, a Dance, &; a Little White Dress continues Zoe’s journey. She travels to the wolf packs’ land to gather allies so she’s ready to battle the Devil if he gets out of his cage in Hell. And oh, the cage doors open the day Zoe turns eighteen in a few months. Some new characters are introduced, some of the supporting characters become more involved, but the four main characters from The Guardian are back helping Zoe with finding herself
and realize her full potential. 10. How have the characters changed since the first novel? KDV: I hope that as you read the main series, you can feel each grow and evolve. On face value you may not think that they are, so you do have to read between the lines, pay attention to the little details of the story because that’s where it all lays. No one changes overnight, and neither do the characters. Some are a bit stuck in their ways, while others get snarky (Sidelle) and take over. 11. What other projects are you working on? KDV: I am still neck deep in the Enlighten Series.
I’ve finished the second novella and I still have to write the third and final book in the series. I’m working on audio versions for all of the books. The Prince and The Masquerade will be released first; summer 2016. I have a fantastic voice actor and actress doing them!!! After that, I may figure out hardcover versions. Amazon Links: The Guardian, a Sword, &; Stilettos: http://www.amazon. com/Guardian-SwordStilettos-
Enlighten-Bookebook/dp/B00VGUZ9C C The Passage, a Dance, &; a Little White Dress: http://www.amazon. com/Passage-DanceLittleWhite-Enlightenebook/dp/B01AOVFSO C The Masquerade, an Altar, & a Fairy: http://www.amazon. com/Masquerade-AltarFairyEnlighten-Novellaebook/dp/B00YPWD9S O The Price, a Betrayal, & a Kiss: http: //www.amazon. com/Prince-BetrayalKiss-Enlighten- Shortebook/dp/B016C1YBW8
Prompts Writing prompts are a fun way to exercise your writing abilities. Reader’s Life Magazine has come up with a few prompts you can choose from. Pick a prompt, write a short story in ten minutes and then edit it for ten.
A Coven Vampire’s love House with a poltergeist Dead-men Walking.
Picture Prompts Choose a picture or pictures and write a story from it. Write for ten minutes and then edit for ten,