Author Interview and Book Giveaway: The Summer That Melted Everything by Tiffany McDaniel

About the book:

Blurb: Fielding Bliss has never forgotten the summer of 1984: the year a heat wave scorched Breathed, Ohio. The year he became friends with the devil.

Sal seems to appear out of nowhere - a bruised and tattered thirteen-year-old boy claiming to be the devil himself answering an invitation. Fielding Bliss, the son of a local prosecutor, brings him home where he's welcomed into the Bliss family, assuming he's a runaway from a nearby farm town.

When word spreads that the devil has come to Breathed, not everyone is happy to welcome this self-proclaimed fallen angel. Murmurs follow him and tensions rise, along with the temperatures as an unbearable heat wave rolls into town right along with him. As strange accidents start to occur, riled by the feverish heat, some in the town start to believe that Sal is exactly who he claims to be. While the Bliss family wrestles with their own personal demons, a fanatic drives the town to the brink of a catastrophe that will change this sleepy Ohio backwater forever.

About the author

Tiffany McDaniel is an Ohio native whose writing is inspired by the rolling hills and buckeye woods of the land she knows. She is also a poet, playwright, screenwriter, and artist. The Summer that Melted Everything is her debut novel. 

Interview:

First of all, I absolutely adore the author. She has been one of the warmest persons I have been fortunate to come across through my years of blogging. And she has written a book that makes it to the list of the most creative ones for 2016, so there's that too.
What I especially like about the book is that it such a bold plot, and to think that it is a debut!

I have never done this before in any interview, but I would like to thank her right away for giving me this opportunity to firstly, read her book, and now to interview her.
And while, I am at it, may I tell you I am also in love with her artwork, especially 'And so we burn'. It's on her website!!!

(Oh, and she also clicked a book photo, may I boast, exclusively for me? Scroll a little further to have a look at it)
Here we go with my questions:


Kritika: Let's begin with the most obvious, cliched question: When did you decide you'll be a writer? Was it a conscious choice?

Tiffany: I never decided to be a writer.  Writing is the earliest thing I remember doing without being told to do so.  As a kid I would pick up that crayon and just scribble what was in my head.  As so many authors will say, I was just driven to write by that internal gear.  In the elements that make me, there’s that something that drives me toward story.  I want to read story.  Create story.  Live with story.  I’m lost without writing.  It’s my compass home.   

Kritika: One thing about writing you absolutely love?
Tiffany: Falling in love with the characters.

Kritika: One thing about writing you kind of hate?
Tiffany: Trying to get a foot in the publishing door.  I wrote my first novel when I was eighteen.  I wouldn’t get a publishing contract until I was twenty-nine.  It was eleven years of rejection and fear I’d never be published.  This is the narrative so many authors have.  The road to publication can be heart-breaking and discouraging.  That’s what I’ve hated.  

Kritika:   How is the publishing process like for a debut author?

Tiffany: I will say one of the surprising things about the publishing process is how long it takes to move a book through the publishing house.  On average it takes about two years.  Waiting seems to be a major theme of the process.  You’re always waiting for someone to read.  Waiting for someone to review.  Waiting for the pass pages, the galleys, the publishing date itself.  Waiting is a major part of the process and to a debut author especially it seems like waiting is all there is. 

Kritika: When did you decide you write this book?
Tiffany: I was twenty-eight when I wrote the novel.  It was one of those Ohio summers that was so hot I just felt like I was melting.  All of myself just giving up to the heat and melting to a puddle on the green summer grass.  And thus the title was born, which means so was the book itself.

Kritika: Why did you write around the theme of devil?
Tiffany: I didn’t set out to write about the devil.  I always start writing a new novel with two things.  The title and the first line.  These two things lead the rest of the story.  So while I never set out to write about the devil, the first line determined I would.  I never outline or plan the story out beforehand.  I like for the story to evolve as I write it.  I always say I’m surprised myself how the story turns out.  I meet the characters and themes as I go along.  In this case, I met the devil page by page…

Kritika: What was it like to sketch the character of the devil?
 Tiffany: The devil is a character that is interesting to develop because the devil is universal.  Every culture has their version of the devil.  What I didn’t want was the stereotypical devil of red-flesh, horns, cloven feet, and forked tongue.  We’ve already had that version of the devil.  I wanted to explore the devil within ourselves.

Kritika: Did you jot down the plot first, or did you keep writing as it came? What part did planning play in this insidious plot?
Tiffany: I never jot the plot down beforehand.  To me writing an idea down can cause that idea to rot and lose its essence.  Planning for me isn’t the key to my stories.  If you plan too much you can domesticate the story and I like to preserve the wild life because in that wild, spinning chaos, you can learn so much more about the story and characters.

Kritika: The world wants to know: Why the name Autopsy? Why!
 Tiffany: World, I will tell you.  I always say the characters know their names before I do.  It’s my job as the author to pick up the hints the characters are leaving for me.  The more you develop a character, the more hints there are.  One day I had seen the word autopsy.  It’s as simple as that.  I looked up the definition to learn the word’s origin and knew that this was Autopsy’s name.  This was his truth.  I saw that much for myself…

Kritika: Tell us something about yourself as a person? Any quirk? Any secrets?
Tiffany: Writing is really the most interesting thing about me.  I wish I could tell you something exciting like I wrestle alligators or swim with sharks, but aside from writing, I’m pretty quiet and boring
Kritika: (to herself) Ah she is anything but boring.
Tiffany: Thanks again for doing this interview.


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Author Interview And Book Giveaway: Hire Train Monitor Motivate By David J Waldron

About the author

David J. Waldron is a passionate student and practitioner of organization, team, and individual career effectiveness in the transformational workplace. He is the author of the new book, Hire Train Monitor Motivate (Country View) published May 31, 2016 and now available on Amazon Books and in the Kindle Store.He is also author of The Ten Domains of Effective Goal Setting (Country View: 2016) and A Great Place to Learn & Earn (Country View: 2015).

David is an award winning contributing writer to Seeking Alpha; and frequent contributor to Career Education Review, HR.com, and Pulse. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business studies from Stockton University and completed The Practice of Management Program at Brown University. David lives with his wife, Suzan, outside Providence, Rhode Island USA.

Find the author here: 

About the book:

Title: Hire Train Monitor Motivate By David J Waldron

Paperback, First Edition, 86 pages
Published May 31st 2016 by Country View

Rating: 4.5/5

Blurb: The transformational workplace of the twenty-first century is front and center. Are you ready to navigate its twists and turns toward reaching your career goals and dreams? In Hire Train Monitor Motivate, author and veteran organizational leader, David J. Waldron, offers powerful, yet simple techniques that can dramatically improve your organization, team, or individual career achievements in today’s hyper-competitive local and global marketplaces.

This practical book will teach you how to master the art of workplace effectiveness by first making a lasting commitment to placing people first, whether a customer, recruit, staff member, or coworker. Then hire, or get hired for an optimistic mindset; train, or be trained for delivering quality products and services; monitor, or allow monitoring for regulatory compliance; and motivate, or stay motivated for enduring performance.

As a practitioner more so than an academic, Waldron, presents unpretentious, everyday workplace rules that when implemented, or followed, can transform your organization, team, or individual career to one of lasting distinction. Master the proven techniques for playing the game the right way and learn how to practice leadership or teamwork by inclusion toward making your workplace a great place to learn, earn, and grow.

Hire Train Monitor Motivate guides the reader toward recognizing his or her essential role in today’s transformational workplace. A work environment—whether for-profit, nonprofit, or in the public service—that requires an understanding and buy-in to the Millennial Model, the cultural transition of the now predominant generation that, according to Waldron, is fast becoming the new standard in organizational behavior, group dynamics, and individual effectiveness. This horizontal hierarchical model will likely drive the influential organizations, teams, and careers of the twenty-first century as the vertical hierarchy of the Baby Boomer generation did in the twentieth century.

Waldron guides the reader in embracing crucial areas of the modern workplace. Join him as he explores the emerging dominance of the expert economy; the importance of lifelong learning and perpetual career development; and how to be an active participant—as opposed to the spectator—on the precipice of reinventing compensation and worker equality. Plus, why accepting the significance of work/life balance will remain necessary to sustainable career success.

Whether an owner, donor, leader, manager, supervisor, or staff member, make a commitment to your essential role in the transformational workplace. Read Hire Train Monitor Motivate, today, and make your workplace a great place tomorrow. Your organization, team, and career are counting on you.

Interview:

Kritika: How is the publishing process like for a non-fiction? 

David: I have only written non-fiction since I wrote a two act play in 9th grade English that my teacher adored and encouraged me to write more. So I can’t compare but what I enjoy about non-fiction is I get to write what I know. It is a culmination of life’s experiences. The publishing process is simple (but certainly not easy): plan, research, write, edit, format, publish, and market.

Kritika: What is it about writing a non-fiction that people do not know? 
David: Fiction certainly dominates the overall book market, but non-fiction plays an essential role in assuring that our personal and professional lives are balanced between reality and entertainment. I think both genres are necessary for a rich reading experience.

Kritika: What challenges does a non-fiction writer face? 
David: Publishers prefer lots of pages and words to justify book prices. Most non-fiction books I read (and enjoy) are about 250-400 pages but I typically can highlight the key concepts down to about 100 pages. The other 150-300 pages are mostly filler to satisfy publishers and reference material to satisfy academia. I write what I know with no filler (I think) and limited reference material which is why my books are all around 100 pages.

Kritika: One thing about writing you absolutely love? 
David: Creating something from mind to screen, then to paper or online, and sharing it with the world for better or worse.

Kritika: One thing about writing you kind of hate? 
David: The process is very time consuming. A month as writer seems to go much quicker than a month as an education executive (my former career).

Kritika: How would you describe your relationship with deadlines? 
David: Assigned deadlines are non-negotiable – so you just meet them. Self-imposed deadlines are the most challenging as they are negotiable and therefore can lead to unintended procrastination.

Kritika: When did you decide you write this book? 
David: My first book, A Great Place to Learn & Earn was a memoir of my career in post-secondary education. Hire Train Monitor Motivate is based on the workplace concepts and principles of the original book but is targeted to all careers and industries.

Kritika: What was the trigger for you to write a book dealing with HR topics? 
David: Thirty plus years as a leader, manager, supervisor and staff member in the workplace. I combined my professional experience with my passion for writing into a new career as a non-fiction author. HR topics are varied and controversial which makes them fun to write about. I am a frequent contributing writer to HR.com: the Human Resources Social Network (free, registration required.)

Kritika: What was it like to assimilate all HR wisdom in one concise book? 
David: Some authors prefer to separate related concepts into several books. For example, I could have written perhaps three books on Hire Train Monitor Motivate: one about hiring, one on training, and one on motivating. But I have several books in the works as part of the Books for Main Street℠ series at my publisher, Country View. Therefore, I decided to put all these HR concepts into one book and still keep it at a readable at 100 pages. I like to think of the book as more of a handbook for career motivated millennials.

Kritika: How do you plan for a non-fiction like this, do you write the broad headlines and then work on it, or do you gather all the pointers and then club them together? 
David: Great question, Kritika! I start with a working title which will often change as the book is written. For example, Hire Train Monitor Motivate was originally titled, Make Your Workplace a Great Place, which ended up as a chapter title. I then outline the book based on notes and research of the principles and concepts. Then organize the outline into a table of contents and begin writing. And writing. And writing. I will skip around and write a chapter or section based on what is flowing from my mind on that particular day. It is kind of like making a movie, where scenes are shot from a storyboard but rarely in order of the script. The editing process then puts the scenes together in sequence. The same with a non-fiction book as it is ultimately edited into a hopefully seamless and orderly flow. Like fiction, repetitiveness is common in non-fiction to insure the reader is given ample opportunity to grasp the concept (or plot development in fiction) so the transition to the next concept (or plot twist) is seamless.

Kritika: Are you currently working on another non-fiction book? 
David: I am currently writing the next book in my series, “Books for Main Street℠,” about personal investing, an adult life-long passion of mine. The working title (which I think will stick) is Value Investing for Main Street. It is a primer on how to invest with limited capital, lower costs, and less risk than the titans of Wall Street. The book is based on my article series of the same title on Seeking Alpha, the most read online investment platform on the web.


Nothing elates me more than the fact that there's more wisdom coming from this person in his next books!
Thank you so much for an amazing interview!

For a limited time, the eBook edition of Hire Train Monitor Motivate is being offered in a free promotion on Kindle, iBooks, Nook, Kobo, Inktera, and Smashwords. 

He is also generous so as to give away a paperback copy of his book, and the giveaway is open worldwide. All you have to do is follow the instructions on the rafflecopter below.
This giveaway is being run by the blog SO Many Books, SO Little Time in collaboration with the author, and has no affiliation to any other entity.

It is open for a week, so do not wait and participate right away!
The only condition is to have an amazon deliverable address!

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Author Spotlight and Interview: Prachi Garg, Author of Superwomen

I love reading non-fiction, especially the kind that inspires me into action and celebrates the lives and efforts of people doing legendary work.

Which partly explains why I loved reading the book Superwomen. (Check out my review here)

Today, the mind behind the book joins us for a conversation.

Kritika: We begin with the question every writer is asked: what made you write this book, what was the trigger, the motivation?

Prachi: I always wanted to write since my childhood. You may say writing was in my genes, but where I was always stuck was, what to write. As I started my start-up www.ghoomophiro.com , I faced a few challenges, and this is where I thought of speaking to a few lovely ladies, and then I decided to pen down the stories of these superwomen, so that this could be inspiration for all. And this is how Superwomen was created.

Kritika: How did you go about writing the book? What was the research like? 

Prachi: First I chose my subjects, which were entrepreneurial women, who started their ventures between the ages of 25 to 30 years. Then I researched about such women, spoke to them, took their consent for interaction, interacted with them, wrote their stories and finally got it verified with them. I am highly thankful to each one of them and the publisher for the final product.

Kritika: What role does your interaction with the entrepreneurs play?

Prachi: I think the entire book is based on their interaction, hence it played an important role. However, during these interactions, I myself learnt a lot and how to come out of challenges.

Kritika: Being an entrepreneur yourself and having studied a lot of them, any advice you'd like to dole out to the aspiring ones?

Prachi: My only advise is "Don't get disheartened by small hiccups and don't listen to the people who don't matter, as you can't make everyone happy. It is your life, live it the way you want." 

Kritika: What is the process of writing your first book like?

Prachi: It is a long process. Especially for a debut author, finding a publisher who can trust your idea is very tedious. It might take lot of time, then multiple rounds of editing require a lot of patience. But yes, the final results are indeed worth the wait and beyond.

Kritika: You talk about the trials of being a debut author, any advice to authors in the process of penning down their first novel?

Prachi: Debut authors should trust their ideas and shouldn't get disappointed at rejections. Instead they should work on the feedback and multiple rounds of peer reviews. This helps to hone the whole manuscripts.

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Author Spotlight and Interview: Amita Trasi (+ Giveaway)

If you've read The Color of Our sky, you'll probably understand the truth in the words that describe the book as a haunting projection of the reality with an inexplicable charm!

Check out my review of the book here.

Today the person who etched those star-crossed characters, and creator of the soul-shattering plot joins us to share her experiences of writing the masterpiece.

Social media:

        

Interview

Kritika: Congratulations on the book, it is indeed one of the most soul-stirring books I've read. How did you decide that you will touch upon this taboo issue in your book?

Amita: Thank you! I am glad you found it to be a good read. When I set out to write this novel, I wanted write about the friendship between two girls—Tara who has a privileged upbringing like many girls in India’s cities and Mukta, a poor village girl who doesn’t really land the luck of the draw. Initially, I hadn’t imagined that Mukta would be born in a family of temple prostitutes. But as I started to write, the characters took on a life of their own and it took me to places that I honestly didn’t think I would ever research or write about.

I always knew that there were women in India, especially in the poorer sections of society, who were exploited and coerced into the human trafficking trade. There are so many girls like Mukta who are sacrificed at the altar of Devdasi traditions that still torment some villages in India (even though there is a law against it.) This, I think, is common knowledge for anyone coming from India but Mukta took me to a place in my own heart that I never thought existed.

Kritika: What came first- the idea of the plot or the desire to write?

Amita: I didn’t really have an idea of the plot when I began. I knew I wanted to write about two girls. So I started writing from their birth in different caste systems (in a village vs. a city) and I wrote detailed scenes with them growing up and retaining their friendship for three decades. The characters actually took me to where the story is now. I wrote more than 300 pages just to get to know my characters and the plot. Once I knew my characters well enough, and knew the story I wanted to tell, I got rid of more than half the writing, and worked through many drafts to start the novel at critical points in each character’s life. 

Kritika: How has the process of writing been for you? Share your struggles as you went about writing the brutalities that the characters suffered!

Amita: I think the most challenging part of writing this novel was writing the difficult scenes. It was challenging stepping into the shoes of a woman who endures so much and still retains her spirit. There were moments I went days without writing those scenes because it was too painful. But eventually, the only way to get through them was to write it. That’s the only way I could be true to my characters.

Another part that proved to be difficult was the research. There were so many brutalities /horrors I discovered during my research. I don’t think I’ve covered even one fourth of those in my novel—it would be too difficult to digest. I try to be as sensitive as possible with the more difficult scenes and use language to cushion the blow because it is a topic that must be heard.  So this novel has been an emotional ride. Writing about pain is one of the most difficult things to do and I hope I have done it some justice

Kritika: You've mentioned that Mukta's character has been inspired. Are the other characters inspired too? What kind of research has been monumental in the making of this poignant story?

Amita: Most of research for Mukta’s storyline has been through NGO’s working in India. I follow their work actively and most of Mukta’s experiences are borrowed (and dramatized) from women who have been enslaved in brothels in India. The description in my book about the way the NGO’s work in India is also quite realistic. Many characters that Mukta talks to in the brothel are mirrored on real life people.

As for Tara, a lot of her experiences are mine—especially the friendship scenes with Mukta (that mirrors my friendship with the daughter of a servant, Shakuntala) and more specifically the scene where the children find a dead infant on the construction grounds (which is a terrifying memory.)

Kritika: What publishing lessons have you learnt along the way? Share some insights with our readers!

Amita: Patience and perseverance is the key! I think getting a good developmental editor to look through your book and point out the plot holes and suggest improvement is a must before you even think about sending it out. A writer also needs to be open minded to look at his own work critically. In my case, my editor—Vrinda Condillac— really helped revamp the storyline and made me re-look at my characters and their motives. I am grateful to her.

Kritika: What do we have in the pipeline?

Amita: I am going to release a few short stories soon! I am also experimenting on working on two books in different genres simultaneously.

Kritika:  A random question: would you like the book to be adapted to a movie?

Amita: Sure. Why not?! One can dream, it just may become reality one day! 

Thanks Amita, for the wonderful interview!

Links to buy the book:

Amazon | ibooks | Kobo | Barnes & Noble | Google Play

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Yes, the Giveaway is over, and the winner is *drumroll* Arathy!

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Author Spotlight and Interview: Olivier Lafont

About the author

Read my review of Warrior (4.5/5) here


Interview:

Kritika: Congratulations on the book. Warrior is a mythological fiction. This genre is still in its infancy stage in India. What made you venture into this genre specifically for a debut novel?

Olivier: The first incarnation of ‘Warrior’ was actually a feature film script I wrote more than a dozen years ago, before I moved to Mumbai, so the story has existed since then. I have read and written in the genres of fantasy and science fiction for a long time before, so writing ‘Warrior’ was a natural development. I originally wanted to create an Indian film that would be on the same scale as big Hollywood special effects blockbusters of the time like ‘The Matrix’ and ‘Lord of the Rings’. 

Kritika: What came first: the plot or the urge to write? Was writing always the plan, & the idea was what you were waiting for? 

Olivier: The urge to write is, for me, overarching and fairly constant, so that would come first. I wanted to write from a very young age, around the same time that ideas for stories started coming to me.

Kritika: How has your experience on getting published been till now? Any insights you'd like to share with our readers?

 Olivier: The experience has been straightforward, and of course seeing my book in print was fun and satisfying.

Kritika: Saam, the protagonist of the novel has endeared himself as a demigod. Although he is divine, his fallibility appeals to the reader. Was there any point in the story that you struggled etching Saam? 

 Olivier: I don’t recall having any trouble creating the character of Saam. Once I knew who he was and what it was he had to go through it just developed quite naturally.

Kritika: Writing fiction requires imagination. Add a slice of mythology to it, and we have fiction and fact intersecting at another level altogether. How difficult was the process of laying down the plot? Do you have some work process/pattern?

 Olivier: I was particularly careful about the intersection of fact and fiction, mainly because I wanted the reader to be able to believe that this could and would happen. The structuring of the many elements happened organically and with a fair degree of ease, actually. In this respect it wasn’t difficult, and I don’t have a particular process I follow. Generally I have a sense of the story and the main characters and I know the broad strokes of where it’s all going, but I leave it somewhat open-ended to allow space for invention.

Kritika: We have no doubt you went under the skin of the characters to make them who they are.  Was there any character you especially love or relate to? 

Olivier:  I really love the character of Saam, my hero. I wanted to create an epic, classic hero, someone who is powerful but struggles with his identity, with his life, for me that made for a compelling and relatable character.

Kritika: What do we have in the pipeline? More from the same genre?

Olivier:  There should be more coming in perhaps several genres, but for now I’m busy with a new film script I’ve written, for the first time with myself as the main character. I’m actually looking for a producer to partner with on it. The film is a really fun comedy, and could be an Indian film or an international one, so the producer could also be Indian or international.

Kritika: Any special moment from the time you were writing the book that you'd like to share? 

Olivier:  Actually every moment of the book was a special moment for me, since I was enacting it in my mind throughout. The thrill of the fights, the fun of the adventure, the threat of danger… all these were moments I felt and experienced intensely, and I hope my readers will as well.

Find the author here: 

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Quotes from the book:

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Source of the review copy: Freebase Studio (Gina Lafont)

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