Shauna: I love that a story you wrote for your son awakened your muse! What was the story about?
D.K.: We were living in Germany at the time and there was this place called Siebengeniege (7 hills, it is where the Grim brothers came up or found the snow White and the seven dwarfs story). Two kids, a boy and a girl were out exploring in the woods of that area and tumbled into a secret portal or just deep in the woods, I don’t remember, and they came upon a community of animals that have the characteristics of humans, and they were all at war with each other. The three main ones where the Cat, Dogs, and Mice (all were written with German spelling) if I remember correctly they (the kids) were friends with the dogs, and eventually the kids helped all three communities become friends and live in harmony, but first lots of fighting and mayhem. Lol.
Shauna: That sounds amazing!!! Not your genre, though!
D.K.: No, it was fun creating, but I didn’t get the same enjoyment from it as I do with romance.
Shauna: You’re a fan of romance, as well as a writer of it:who are some of your favorite romance authors?
D.K: Christina Lauren, Colleen Hoover, and Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Shauna: What makes them your top 3?
D.K. SEP was the one who made me fall in love with romance stories, before her, I read thrillers, mysteries, American literature. Then I stumbled across her at the library. She made me laugh so much and fall in love with all her characters. After I devoured all her books, I needed more and began reading those, if you love this book, you’ll love lists, finding more contemporary romance authors.
Christina Lauren writes the funniest books and offers up lots of steam, which is a perfect combination, in my opinion. They’ve written a few stories outside of contemporary romance, and those are spectacular as well, those two know how to create fantastic characters.
Colleen Hoover writes books that make me feel everything. She has a way of writing emotions that isn’t over the top but pulls me in and places me in the shoes of her characters like no other author.
Shauna: I feel your passion in these words! OK, last one: What do you like to paint?
D.K.: Scenery and abstract.
Shauna: Thank you for taking the time to do this! I loved getting to know you!
D.K.: Thank you for interviewing me. It was fun.
Standard Tweep Tattler Questions:
Where do you live?
Michigan
What is the first thing you remember writing?
The first piece of fiction I recall writing was a kid’s fantasy story for my son as a birthday present. This was about eight years ago. While I enjoyed creating something special for him, I wasn’t excited about the writing, didn’t get lost in the story. It wasn’t until I wrote what I loved to read (romance) that I had the spark, that addiction to writing.
Why do you write?
For the spark, that rush of creating. I love seeing the characters in my mind come alive on the page.
Have you published any of your work? Yes. Fairy Tale Lies was released on June 3rd. The next book in the Opposite Attract series (there are 4 but are stand-alones), is due out in the fall.
What are you currently writing? I’m doing different levels of editing for books two and three. For book four, I am starting to develop more of the characters (both main characters are in other books but are secondary).
Are you currently querying? No, all my focus is on writing and marketing the Opposites Attract Series.
Finish this sentence (three lines or less): IT WAS A DARK AND STORMY NIGHT… As danger and delight raced through her veins, keeping pace with the wind and rain, as she took in his volatile and sinful smile.
Which activities do you like to participate in, in the Twitter writing community(VSS365, etc.)? I adore VSS365. There is also a new one, VSSPoem that I really like. I also try out romance writing prompts such as LilLuvStory, SeduceMeSunday, CarnalVerse Romancewritinglines (I’m not sure If I have the prompt name right for that last one.)
Do you have any formal training/education for writing? I do have a bachelors, and I minored in English writing
Do the people in your life know that you write? Yes. Even before I was a published author, most of my family and friends knew. I was determined to share my books with the world, so I figured the more who knew, the more I’d hold myself accountable and not give up.
Although at times, it was (and still is) frustrating because they didn’t understand the process and how long everything takes, from editing to publishing.
Tell me about the people in your life. Family? Pets? I have a wonderful and supportive family.
We tend to travel a lot, so we’ve never had many pets. We have a cat and two birds.(My family prefers to stay out of social media so excuse the scarceness of my answer)
Where do you wish your writing to take you?
I’d like my writing to sustain me enough to become my career. Allowing me to focus on it 100%.
What did you expect when you joined the Twitter writing community? Did it turn outas expected?
I stumbled upon the Twitter writing community. Publishers and agents all said writers need to have a social media platform, so I signed up onto Twitter. For a while, it sat lonely and empty as I figured out what to do with it. One day while scrolling, I saw a prompt story, I clicked on the hashtag and started reading more. I love them and decided to try my own. I commented on peoples work, and others did on mine. We started chatting and meeting more people in the writing community. I think the person that first reached out to me was @Craytusjones. Not only is the man super talented but is a gift to the writing community.
Where do you write? Depends on the week and what I have planned, though most of the time I write at my kitchen or dining room table. I like to be where there are windows.
How much time do you dedicate to writing, weekly? Lately, quite a bit of my time is dedicated to writing. Probably thirty hours or more, depending on what is due.
Do you have other talents? I am decent at drawing and painting, but I am slow.
CHOOSE ONE:
A. I do not mind when other writers ask for advice.
B. I’d rather keep to myself!
A
You can also check out Shauna by going to her website or checking out her Twitter
DK Marie 