Rachel Firasek Interview and Giveaway!

                                         

Please make a warm welcome to the one and only Rachel Firasek! Today we are going to be pimping Rachel’s newest release, The Last Rising and having a quick Q and A with her to learn a little more about this awesome author.



A little Snippet about this Author:

Rachel currently resides in the heart of Central Texas with her husband and three children. She's an active member in the Romance Writers of America, belonging to the Heart of Texas, FF&P, and YA chapters. You'll also find her surfing the Savvy Authors site daily.

An office manager by day, and an urban fantasy/paranormal romance author by night, you'll never find her far from her beloved stories. Find more about Rachel on her website : http://www.rachelfirasek.com/

Interview

Elenas Questions for Rachel...

I now understand why authors put so much time into writing one novel. Their goal is "perfection" Is there really such thing?

Funny you should ask this... No, there will never be a perfect novel because to whose perfection would you be writing too? Here are my guidelines for perfection: Try to fulfil every promise I've created, try to keep my characters consistent--even if they're moody, try to keep a plot twisting and always give the unexpected. Oh, and polish as much as I possibly can. Perfect? Never. The best I can write? Hopefully every time I'll get better than my best.

There will always be readers who like or dislike a novel. So while you have reader’s thoughts in mind. What is your goal?

I want my theme to come across. In The Last Rising, my theme is forgiveness. I want the reader to understand that it's okay to forgive yourself even over some really bad things you've done. And, of course to entertain. I want to know that a reader couldn't put the book down. Loved it. Want the next one. Those are the qualities I reach for.

And why do you spend countless hours with a numb tush and a hungry tired body sitting in front of your computer writing your buns off?

Sometimes I ask myself this very same question. :O But, the real answer is that this is the one thing I do that is totally for me and I don't have to share it with anyone else. Totally selfish, but as a mother, wife, sister, daughter, etc... I'm constantly giving a piece of myself to someone. But, this... this is mine.

When writing love and heart wrenching scenes, whether it's on both the hero and heroine, do you feel for your characters just like us readers do? While reading "The Last Rising" I cried my eyes out like a baby! Now C'mon spill the beans, is the box of tissue your new BFF? Hehehe....

There were moments that my heart caught, but because I'm on this end, I can step away. I'll tell you. The part of the book that really got me, was the first scene. When he asks her about her child. At that point, I thought: How am I going to get through this book? I have children. I have a son. The thought of not seeing him each and every day breaks my heart and I instantly knew that Ice was my hero. She's strong enough to continue on, even if she did rage against her people for a bit. I like that she's flawed. I love that she didn't handle his death well. But, before I give more spoilers away. Yes, I cried. Several times. The scene between Grey and Turner at the end really dug into me.

Sams Questions for Rachel...

The Last Rising was such a great novella! I often read novellas and feel like their very rushed and cut short in areas to make things fit. You seemed to mystify me, because I felt nothing was cut short and it was honestly like you fit a full length novel in to just over 100 pages. What’s the secret to making sure you get all the important stuff into a novella without cutting out all the good bits to short?

The Plot. The secret to writing a full novella is the plot. Keep it simple. There can only be one really big climax. Sure there are a bunch of things that lead up to it, but still there can only be one big moment. Other than that, I don't know. I write really short. Getting a full length novel out of me is like trying to steal a banana from a monkey. You guys read Piper's Fury and that book was only about 78K. I'm not quite sure what the real "secret" is, it's just how I roll. LOL

Ice is an awesome heroine. She could fit in here at our awesome blog. But what I want to know is, how do you come up with these characters and their bio’s? For instance, Ice – did you think of her name then make her eye colour glacier blue or was it the heroine had Glacier blue eyes and the name stemmed from there?

I totally create a person and their mood in my head first. Names are last. In fact I'm playing with a new story now, and the heroine is still nameless. But, I know her entire story. Ice came to me broken. When I was researching the story of Isis and Osiris, I was so touched by their heartache. So, when I began thinking about Isis in present day, Ice was born. The hair and eye color came after the woman and her name, but I knew her before I named her. If that makes any sense.

I read that you have a full time job by day and then write by night. How on earth do you manage to juggle all this and still have time for family and friends?

HAHAHA, this is the question everyone asks. LOL. On Friday, I sent my hubs a huge basket of candies to his job with a thank you card attached. I bribe him with beer and candy, lol. He's seriously the only way I'm still functioning right now. I get up two hours before I need to--when everyone is still in zombie mode and I write. Then when I get home, I'm lucky to have a hubby that prefers to cook over eating my forgotten burnt dinners. At about 7:00 pm each night I dig in. Now, that doesn't mean that I won't have serious interruptions throughout the night.
Oh, and he usually takes the kids everywhere with him to give me time to write. Seriously the best husband ever. I love him more each and every day. In October we will celebrate our 15th year together and I have to think of a really good gift for him. Maybe you guys have some ideas. ;)

Rhondas Questions for Rachel...

I NEED to mention Piper's fury here, because she's freakin Awesome and I want everyone to know about her as well. She is such a fun, amazing character to read, (one of my all time favorites) and she really wriggled her way into my heart. I understand there will only be 2 books for Piper. *heavy sigh* Do you really think her story can be wrapped up in just 2 books???

I'm still debating this. I have the story finished, but I have to revise. You are going to love it. I think it's better than the first. Piper opens up a big can of whoop-a&&. lol. But, I do know that there are at least two more romances budding in the second book that would make great spin-offs. So, possibly we'll see her for a while yet. So, don't fret. I love her too. In fact, she's quite interruptive when I'm working on other projects. ;)

Rachel, you write fabulous heroines. Was there a particular inspiration for Ice, and what was the inspiration for her story?

Thank you! Of course, Isis had her own back-story, so that part was easy, but when I brought Isis into Ice I had planned on the story being an erotica. But as I wrote her crawling around the cockpit like a lust starved demon, I realized that wasn't who she was. I seriously re-wrote that first chapter like 10 times.

Okay, you're going to laugh at me, but I'm like the most overprotective mother ever. I've had dreams throughout my life that have come true. Call it premonition, ESP, whatever, but it has happened. When my son was in the womb, I dreamt of him running through our field with a stick in his hand and falling on it. He lost an eye. Horrible dream. Woke up sweating, crying, hurting. When he was born, I had it again and again. In my dream he was always about four. So, poor kid was never allowed to pick up a stick outside. Maybe I prevented it. My point is that I created Ice and the story on that dream. What would happen if you could step in and save someone that should be saved. Should be whole.

In Ice's case, she's saving a soul, not an eye, but you know what I'm getting at. She's protective of her people, her children. In Isis world, she was the mother to all. So, even though Ice fights this, she can't get over the protective instincts she has. There's my inspiration. I hope I answered the question. I think I went the long way to get to the answer. lol

Five Question Quickie....

Best book ever read?

I give a new book with every interview, lol.
The Darkest Hunger by Julianna Stone, is one of my top five right now.

Favorite place to write?
In my office. I'm surrounded by windows. When I get too far into myself, I just open a window and there is the world.

What are you wearing right now?
A very ugly nightie. It's 7:43 am. I guess some would call it a moo-moo. lol.

An interesting fact about yourself?
I'm 5'1" and chunky. So, you'll notice most of my heroine's have been stunted. This is the only angle I've ever seen the world from. lol.

Favorite food?

Cheesecake.

Thanks so much for taking the time to join us, and we just cannot wait for the release in the Phoenix’s series.

The Last Rising ( Curse of the Phoenixs book 1)

Author: Rachel Firasek
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Length: Novella – 102 pages
Launch Date: September 2011

After paying two millennia’s penance to Osiris, world-weary Phoenix Ice has had enough. Saving souls without any hope for her own redemption isn’t how she imagined spending eternity. Fed up, she decides her next death will be her last. But when she sacrifices her own life for a sexy Texan in a catastrophic plane crash, she has no idea the consequences will be so great…or that she’ll end up back in his life for her next assignment.

Now that Turner Alcott has survived the worst, finding a wife and mother for his son matters more than ever before. When the mysterious Ice comes into his life, Turner knows she’s the one—but love is the last thing Ice wants. If he wants to win her heart, Turner must teach Ice how to forgive herself, and prove that love is the ultimate sacrifice.

Curse of the Phoenix( Curse of the Phoenixs book 2)

Author: Rachel Firasek
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Length: Novella
Launch Date: November 2011

For three hundred years, Arabella’s life has been one meaningless death after another. In a cruel twist of fate, Osiris gifts the phoenix her mortality and long-gone voodoo magic with a warning that she must save her next soul within a week without using magic, or she’ll lose her power forever.

Ex-soldier Greyson Meadows desperately wants to be freed from the nightmares and guilt that haunt him. Confronted by a waif of a woman who forces him to face the truth about his past, he runs fast and hard, fighting the need to prove himself worthy despite his perceived failures.

When Ari becomes the target of her own magical blunder, the weak will find strength and the strong will fall. One will have to give up everything so the other can have peace, but will love’s magic withstand the loss?

Books 2 and 3 are coming November 2011 and January 2012!

Doesnt everyone just love that little picture above? I know I sure do!

To win an Ecopy of  

'The Last Rising'

  

all you have to do, is fill out the form below and HEY PRESTO!

GOOD LUCK!