Monday, September 23, 2013

Meet Author Andrea Buginsky

Welcome fans! So glad you could make by this week.  Now through next Sunday midnight we are featuring an interview with. . .


Author Andrea Buginsky

WEBSITE OR BLOG ADDRESS: http://www.andreabuginsky.com/


 TWITTER HANDLE: @andreabuginsky

Let's get started. . .


So you thought you’d be a writer – how’s that workin’ out for ya?

Pretty good! I now have four books published. I love creating the stories and the characters, world-building, and coming up with new story ideas. I have also enjoyed watching my writing improve over the years.
  
Let’s say you’re thinking about going on once in a life time vacation…how exciting! What are some of the places you’d consider, and what would you do while you’re there?

Oh, there are so many places I’d love to visit! I want to buy or rent a camper and travel all over the U.S. I’d love to go to Europe. My top vacation destination is Hawaii.

The phone just rang – it’s a movie deal for your book! Holy cow – they’ve left it up to you as to where you want them to film on location, and who will play the starring role…we can’t stand the suspense. Where and who is it?


Wow! A movie…I never imagined – oh, this is just make believe, for now. I’d love to shoot the film somewhere on the coast of England, where there are lots of trees and mountains, and the ocean is right there, so that it looks like the location in my book. The starring role belongs to Vanessa Marano from “Switched at Birth.” She would make a great Elena!

What book or books are you currently working on? Can we expect a new release soon?

I’m currently working on the second book in the New Avalon series. I plan to release it next year.

Time for dinner! No, no, no, we’re not cooking – we’re going out. So…where’s your favorite place to throw down some good food with friends and family? And even more so, what do you recommend from the menu?

Red Lobster! I love seafood. The best time to go is during Shrimp Fest, when you can get all the shrimp you want! My favorite meal from there is the shrimp pasta. Pasta and shrimp all-in-one. Yummy! When do we leave?



Time for adventure! Your friends are heading out to go skydiving for the first time…are you going to join them or suggest a different adventure? If you go skydiving please elaborate, or if you suggest something else what would your favorite adventure be?

 Oh, I would love to go skydiving! Unfortunately, do to medical issues, I’m not allowed to L I think I would go with them to watch and get what I can out of it, even if it’s just the plane ride and the chance to watch them all jump. For an alternative adventure, I’d love to go SCUBA diving.

Forget about make-believe super powers…we’ll never have them – bummer, I know right? But good news…TRUE super powers come in different forms such as a great attitude, a wonderful personality, loving kindness, and other cool traits like those. Who’s the one super hero in your life, and what is their TRUE super power?

My mom. She is one of the strongest people I know. Growing up with heart disease was tough on me, but now that I’m an adult, I can see it from my parents point of view. I can’t imagine sitting there with your child all those years, dealing with everything that’s involved with a heart problem. As much as I hated what I went through, I’ve always said I wouldn’t have wanted to be the one on the other side of the fence. My entire family was there, of course, and I have my wonderful  husband now, too. But mom was my rock. She was there with me through everything, and got me through some very tough times.

Do you prefer writing the good guy’s dialogue or the villain’s? Give us an example of your amazing talent…give us a line of dialogue from your favorite good guy or villain.

I prefer to write my hero’s dialogue. I cringe when I write the villain’s.

Elena: “I’m trying so hard to grasp all of this. I feel like everything’s been thrown at me at once. I need time to  process it all. Some of it just doesn’t seem fair… I never asked for this. But, I have to admit, most of it sounds pretty cool.”

The family wants to go camping. Are you going to join them or stay behind? If you stay behind what are you going to do? Are you going to go shopping and to the spa? Read a book? Sleep in a hammock? Please tell us…we’re curious and want to know just what you’re thinking about doing.

I am going camping! I love it. I love sleeping in the tent in the outdoors, enjoying the fresh air, cooking over the fire, and looking up at the brilliant night sky. It’s amazing how different it looks without the lights of the city to block it.

Creativity. Where does yours come from? This is something writers are asked about much of the time.  Would you be so kind as to elaborate on where you get your ideas and what sparks your creativity?

I honestly don’t know. I love to read, and watch television and movies, so I guess it comes from being exposed to a lot of different stories. My ideas tend to come to me from out of the blue, although sometimes a certain book, movie, or TV episode will spark an idea. Then, I just have to grab on to that idea and run with it.

Love and romance, paranormal, epic fantasy, sci-fi, mystery, thriller, drama, and the list goes on. Where do your books fall as far as genre and reading audience?

I write YA fantasy. My books tend to have a bit of romance to them sometimes, but they mostly have the magical aspects of fantasy.

What are your favorite genres of books to read, and what are your favorite genres of books to write?

I love to read YA fantasy and romance novels. I love to write YA fantasy.

Time to go to the movies! Out of all the ones you’ve seen, what’s your fav? And be sure to tell us why in case we haven’t seen it and would like to check it out.

Dirty Dancing! I was 12 when I saw it, and fell instantly in love with it and Patrick Swayze. I think what drew me to it was seeing how much these two characters from such different worlds found each other and fell in love. They also took risks for one another. There was such chemistry between them! And I love the music and dancing.

Social media has become a part of being an author. What are your 3 best tips of the trade for upcoming authors when it comes to building their social media platform?

Set up a website or blog before you even start writing your book. Make sure you post to your blog a few times a week. The idea is to introduce yourself to readers as a person. Once they get to know you, you can tell them you’re writing a book. When you release the book, they’ll be ready to check it out! I also think a Facebook and Twitter account are a must to keep up with all of the social media frenzy. Post things to your page that interest you to draw in more followers.

For the first time in your writing career someone recognizes you as their favorite author, in public. Would you panic? Smile and bask in the moment? Blush and walk away? Invite them for coffee and cupcakes? Scream? Run? Faint?

Oh, wow… I would be so thrilled! I would grin from ear-to-ear and definitely bask in the moment. I’d spend as much time talking to them as I could.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it! You rush to grab the special edition only to find the headline describes your life from day 1 till now. Don’t leave us hanging…what is the headline?

Local Author Overcomes Health Issues, Blossoms into Brilliant Writer

How much time do you devote to writing? Daily – weekly – monthly – whenever the urge strikes?

Whenever the urge strikes. I try to set up a daily schedule, but don’t always have the inclination to work on my current story. I do a lot of marketing, which I’m still learning how to do. I also stay active on my social media sites, mostly Facebook and Twitter, and keep my blog up-to-date.

Did you ever study writing? Feel free to elaborate – we’d love to hear about your education.

Yes, I have a B.A. in Mass Communications – Journalism.

What kind of animals, birds, or fish do you like best? Do you have any pets - how many do you have – and what are their names?

I love dogs! I have two of my own, and they are my babies. Wickett is a Peek-a-Poo and Max is a Shih Tzu.

If you could personally thank one person, or several (living or not) for giving you the strength, determination, and perseverance to continue in your writing who would you thank?

My family. Everyone has been very supportive of my writing career from day one. It was my sister who first suggested it as a career for me, and I’m so grateful to her for that.

Who is your favorite character that you have created? Tell us about him or her and why you are so fond of them.

Elena, perhaps because she is the newest. But the one trait my main characters have in common is they are the unlikely heroine. I like this role because it’s how I see myself. I was never very popular in school. I had my friends and my own interests, but I never felt like I was in the spotlight like some of the other kids. Elena is the shy, quiet girl that nobody sees in the hall, unless it’s to make fun of her. I love her “I’m not going to let it bother me” attitude, and the underlying hurt feelings you know she’s experiencing from it. She just needs a little push to discover her inner heroine and become a strong, independent person.
  
What is your favorite make-believe place you’ve ever created in a story? Is it a town? A hide-out? A futuristic city? The possibilities are endless! Please tell us all about your fav as we’d all love to escape with you!

My favorite is Phantasma, the world I created for my first series, The Chosen. I developed a whole new world that has a feel of the dark ages with a lot of fantasy mixed in. There are areas that are green and beautiful, areas that are dark and scary, and in the middle is a kingdom with a beautiful castle that brings the world together.

If you could choose where you wanted to live on a fantasy world would you choose living in the tree tops, living on the water, living under the water, living beneath the trees underground, or living on a sky ship? Perhaps you have your own idea of the perfect fantasy dwelling. Be sure to fill us in on what and why.

Under the sea, definitely! I love the water. I wish I could be a mermaid and live there. I’d want to be one that had legs out of the water, though, so I could come to the shore and lie on the sand. But I would love to live in the sea surrounded by the beautiful scenery and wildlife that lives there.

SPEED ROUND!
Soup or stew?

Soup

Chocolate or vanilla?

Chocolate!

Dogs or cats?

Dogs

Horses or cows?

Horses

Insects or reptiles?

Reptiles, but only certain ones. No snakes!

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How do you deal with rejection when you submit an MS?

I get a little upset at first, mostly disappointed, but then I shake it off and rethink where to send the piece to next.

As an author we all know we get those “stink-o” reviews that come through now and again. How do you handle a bad review when it hits?

The same as a rejection. Upset and disappointed at first. Then, I shake it off. Not everyone is going to like my books, and if someone has the desire to write a bad review, well, who am I to stop them. And hey, they read the book, right? Who knows, maybe they’ll give my future work a try and like it.

 If you could cure something in this world, what would it be?

Too many to choose from… From a strictly personal point of view, heart disease.

What are your pet peeves – you know those little things that just drive you nuts?

Being interrupted when I’m reading, writing, or watching TV.

Listening to someone talk around and around a subject, rather than get to the point.

People with bad attitudes. There’s no need for it.

What is your favorite cake? Are you an icing freak?

White cake with chocolate frosting, but no, not too much frosting. And sprinkles!

Of all the professions in this world you opted to be a writer. What brought you to it?

I was heading into my last semester at junior college when I realized the field I planned to go into was not a good match for me. Suddenly, I had to decide what I was going to be when I grew up. My sister said, “You love to write. Why not do that?” And the rest is history.

Do you create and design your own book covers?

No. I’m all thumbs when it comes to that kind of creativity.
  
As a self-published author do you recommend having your novels professionally edited? Please give us some cool thoughts of why you chose the answer you did.

It depends on what you mean by “professionally.” If you can afford a “professional” editor, then I suppose so. But if you can’t, find someone you trust who knows a lot about words, writing and the English language to edit your books for you. I definitely recommend having someone edit them for you.
  
As a self-published author do you think that the ebook phenomenon helps or hinders your sales? Please let us know why you chose the answer you chose.

I think they help. It’s very easy to shop around Amazon and find a book you are interested in, then just hit the “buy” link. With the way the world works today, online shopping is definitely the way to go.
  
Do you find it annoying that people spend hundreds of dollars on ereading devices, yet complain about spending 99 cents and/or demand ebooks for free? Share your thoughts – don’t worry, we all know we can’t please all of the people all of the time, but we can always please some of the people some of the time. J

LOL Absolutely! Why pay so much for the device if you are not willing to spend the few dollars an eBook costs? Yes, less expensive or free books are great, but when you are shopping for the books you want, why complain about the $2.99 price tag? I love it!
  
To ebook or not to ebook – that is the question. What’s your take?

All of my books are eBooks, so…

If you could spend a day with an author, who would it be? And of course we’ve got to know why.

J.K. Rowling. I would love to meet her and talk to her about books and writing.

Where can we find your book(s)?

On Amazon and my website. 


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RE-CAP of JLBC Upcoming Events and Publications:






Plans are being made to present a Business After Hours in conjunction with Lakeside Inn in beautiful downtown Mt. Dora, FL on September 26, 2013 from 5:00p - 7:00p. There will be tours, book readings, and mini presentations regarding how Lakeside Inn and JLB Creatives are working together for the community.





The JLBC Executive Team is also gearing up for the St. Augustine Florida Heritage Book Festival fast approaching September 28, 2013. They will have an exhibit promoting Authors in the Park Events, JLB Creatives publications, and the executive team's novels, and more! If you're going to be at the festival be sure to look us up and say hello.








October 5, 2013 2:00p - 5:00p JLB Creatives unleashes the next Authors in the Park Event: BOOKTOBERFEST! A unique, interactive event showcasing nearly 20 authors. It will be taking place at the Lakeside Inn in Mt. Dora, FL CLICK HERE for details on the Authors in the Park upcoming event where the authors will be dressed as characters from their own novels, and guests are encouraged to pick one of the participating author's characters and come in costume to be entered into the contest.




And as if that's not enough - JLB Creatives is nearing the release of their next publication...Volume 2 in the Hidden Earth Series! Planet Land - The Adventures of Cub and Nash is slated to debut at BOOKTOBERFEST! We are currently taking pre-orders through October 1, 2013. To save $5 plus get a FREE necklace with every pre-ordered autographed print copy of Planet Land, and read an excerpt from the new novel, CLICK HERE  

Join the Hidden Earth Series News Letter to keep up to date on all the new releases and news. It's the easiest form on the web! We only ask for 2 things...your first name and your email address. To sign up and read our privacy statement  CLICK HERE







In addtion to Planet Land, be sure to look for the JLB Creatives publication that has just released - The Tinfoil Girl by 10 year old author, Olivia Miller. A wonderful fantasy story about a young girl made of tinfoil who experiences many things in her walk through life. Some happy, some scary - this 34 page book will keep you glued to the pages not only with its story, but also it's amazing illustrations modeled after Olivia's own, real tinfoil girl figurine. Look for it on Amazon! CLICK HERE 




We certainly hope you enjoyed this week - be sure to share the JLB Creatives Blog with your friends and family so they too, can keep up with all the wonderful news and artists we present each week. 

Until next time - stay casual, live life to the fullest, and have a piece of chocolate for me!

Your blog host,
Author Janet Beasley


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JLB Creatives Editor Dar Bagby (L) and JLB Creatives CEO Janet Beasley (R)