Cast In Blood by Christine Sutton, Lisa Lane, Jamie Johnesee: Interview

Revelations: Cast In Blood

Christine Sutton, Lisa Lane, Jaime Johnesee 

Publisher: DevilDog Press LLC

Publication Date: September 1, 2015

ASIN: B0117VK5JQ

Book Description:

An unknown force threatens Heaven and Hell, along with every soul on Earth. Three unlikely heroes join together to restore universal balance.

Will their shared adversary initiate an Apocalypse before they're able to uncover the truth, or will they rise to a calling that has, from the beginning of time, been Cast in Blood?

Available at Amazon

Author Bios

About Christine Sutton

Christine Sutton is the author of more than fifteen short stories, novellas and novels. While she tends to cross genres within horror, she is always passionate about scaring the hell out of you.

Her passion would have to be serial killer fiction, but she also loves ghosts, ghouls, demons and monsters of all types. Christine's work ranges from modern day fairy tales to demonic soul eaters to ghostly children that just want to play. Her writing has been called passionate, realistic, gritty, fun, enthralling and tons of other cool adjectives.

You, too can pick up some of Christine's work and come up with some cool adjectives of your own. It won't be hard. I promise.

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About Leigh M. Lane/Lisa Lane

Leigh M. Lane has been writing for over twenty years. She has ten published novels and dozens of published short stories--penning the majority of her speculative and literary works under Leigh M. Lane and her mainstream and urban fantasy stories under Lisa Lane. She is married to editor Thomas B. Lane, Jr. and currently resides in the hot and dusty outskirts of Sin City.

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About Jaime Johnesee

Jaime Johnesee lives in Michigan with her husband and two sons. She spent fourteen years as a zookeeper before shifting her focus to writing full time. Known for her bestselling horror comedy series, Bob the Zombie, she is also currently coauthoring the paranormal horror series, Revelations, for Devil Dog Press as well as working on her Shifters series.

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Interview 

Please welcome Cast In Blood authors Lisa Lane, Christine Sutton, and Jamie Johnesee to Diane’s Book Blog. 

What is your favorite part of the story, Revelations: Cast in Blood? 

LL: I particularly like the section in which Lucifer recalls the events that led to the "Fall." I think we found a unique way of retelling that story, one I hope will resonate well with the readers.

CS: I really love the whole book, to be honest. If I had to pick a part that I liked the most, it would probably be the breakroom scene. You’ll have to read it to see why. J

JJ: I think my favorite part would have to be the friendships that form between our main trio.

How long did it take you to write Revelations: Cast in Blood?

LL: I think the first draft took us about two months, and then the redrafting process took about a month. We each were only responsible for about 20,000 words, so it all came together relatively quickly. Still, given three creative minds had to come together to produce a cohesive piece, I think we made good time.

CS: It seemed like no time at all. We had so much fun writing the story and working together that the two months it took to write just flew by!

JJ: It was a couple months but, like Christine said, it just flew by.

If you were stranded on a desert island which of your characters do you want by your side?

JJ: I would definitely want Apollyon with me. Not just because she can teleport either. She’s kind of an all-around badass with a quick wit.

If you could be best friends with one of your characters, who would it be?

CS: I think I would be friends with Lenny. She is fun and snarky. She buckles down when the going gets tough, but she never misses an opportunity to crack a joke.

What is your favorite book that you wrote?

LL: My favorite is Finding Poe, a Gothic horror that pieces together aspects of over twenty of Poe's best stories and poems to create an original story based on the time surrounding Poe's death. The story in itself is a puzzle, the main character being far from the person she believes herself to be … only Poe knows the truth, and that truth dies with him.

CS: I am partial to my novel, Prodigal Son. It is a graphic journey told from the point of view of a budding serial killer. It is the most raw and honest thing I have written, and is definitely not for the faint of heart.

What books have most influenced your life?

LL: The books that have most influenced my life—or at least my life as a writer—are:

The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse by Louise Erdritch

Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut

A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf

The Shining and Firestarter by Stephen King

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Cat See No Evil by Shirley Russeau Murphy

As you can see, I hold no bias when it comes to genre.

How do you overcome writer’s block?

LL: Most of the time, I'll give myself a writing prompt based on whatever scene I'm writing, and I'll give myself a 1000-word minimum to address that prompt. Having an outline, at least for the longer works, helps to keep me on track. Even when I'm having difficulty figuring out how I'm going to get from Point A to Point B, I can use those outline plot points as the basis for writing prompts. Sometimes it still feels like I'm squeezing blood out of a turnip, and sometimes I still need to step away from the work for a couple of days for added perspective, but it helps.

CS: I stop. I put down the writing and do something totally unrelated. I paint or sculpt or watch television until I get my inspiration back. It usually happens within an hour or so.

JJ: I write something else like a blog post or a retelling of my day’s events. Sometimes I will just write whatever comes into my head even if it’s nonsensical.

Can you share a little of your current work with us?

CS: Absolutely! Here is a sample of the first chapter:

LENNY WALKED OUT THE back door, two large, black garbage bags in her hands, into the alleyway behind the Children of Light church and the adjacent soup kitchen. She struggled to raise the dumpster lid and hoist the trash up and over. After nearly showering herself with empty peanut butter and jelly jars, she finally negotiated the refuse into its rightful place.

"Ha, garbage! Suck it! I win again!" Lenny raised her arms in a victory stance.

She turned to go back to the kitchen when she heard a rustling noise coming from behind the dumpster. She lowered her outstretched arms and stopped imagining the crowd going wild over her big win against the trash bags, moving instead to seek out the source of the noise.

"Here, kitty, kitty," she called out, assuming it was a stray rummaging for dinner.

Lenny jumped back with a scream when she saw the massive creature crouching behind the big, metal container.

A single, solid black eye glared back at her. The eye almost took her attention away from what looked like a mouth full of sharp teeth that were framed by canines no less than two inches long.

In a flourish, the dumpster lurched forward, causing her to sidestep to avoid being hit. With her natural grace, the sidestep turned into a side fall, and she tumbled to the ground, skinning her knee and the palms of her hands. She scrambled forward, feeling a fear that was normally reserved for fleeing dark bathrooms or looking out a window at night and knowing a monster will be looking back at you. She felt two hands grab her ankles and pull her back, but she was too scared to look behind her at the owner of those hands. Without warning, the thing pounced, straddling her body, but not crushing her.

She braced herself for the end.

This is how I die, she thought. Crushed by a garbage monster. Great.

The creature placed what felt like a claw in the center of her back. Instead of attacking, it leaned its head down to hers and took a deep whiff. As she closed her eyes tight and waited for the pain, the thing jumped up and disappeared down the alley.

What the fuck was that?

Whatever it was, it was big.

Lenny scrambled to her feet and ran inside, trembling and fighting tears. While she was not exactly unaware of strange and unusual things, never in her wildest nightmares would she have imagined something so monstrous. Not that she was complaining … but why had it left her alone? She wondered if she smelled bad to monsters, like how she hated the smell of certain foods.

I'm like Brussels sprouts to monsters. I can live with that.

What book are you reading now?

CS: I just finished Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King

What do you prefer paperback, hardcover, or ebooks? 

JJ: I used to love paperbacks but I’m finding myself preferring ebooks more and more because I can take hundreds of books with me on my phone and that means I always have something to read with me.

Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?

JJ: I want to thank you so much for supporting me and reading my work. It means so much to me that you folks take the time out of your lives just to read something I wrote. It’s always a pleasure getting emails and reviews from people. I really appreciate you guys, so, thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Let Me In by Christine Sutton: Interview

Let Me In

Burkheart Witch Saga, Book 2

Christine Sutton

Genre: Urban paranormal fantasy

Publisher: DevilDog Press, LLC

Date of Publication: November 15, 2014

ISBN:

ASIN: B00PPJJ34K

Number of pages: 138

Book Description:

Kayla has returned home to find that the fairy tale continues. She finds out some facts about her family history that may be her ultimate undoing.

With the help of a coven of witches, Kayla is tasked with defeating vampires, werewolves and evil witches that threaten to destroy her happiness and her very life!

Will she get her happily ever after, or will she fall victim to the evil that courses through her veins?

This novella will take you through a whirlwind as you join Kayla on another fairy tale adventure. Previously published as Kayla Enchanted.

Available at   Amazon   BN   iTunes   Smashwords

Excerpt

He laughed, watching the little pigs scramble to clean up the message he had left. He didn't really believe in playing with his food, but this was so much fun!

He could tell that the bitch was terrified, and he loved it. Pigs tasted so much better when they were afraid.

While the bitch pig, the pussy pig, and the little pig in a blanket slept in their bed, he had ripped that rabbit's head off with his bare hands. As he smeared the blood all over the sidewalk to leave them a message, he hadn't been able to stop himself from taking a long drink from its mutilated little body. It tasted so good that he had almost marched into the house and ate all three of them right then.

Self-control had won out. He had simply left the message, knocked over the sad little straw hut and sat in the bushes to watch them scamper around. They had rushed in when they found the message and locked up the house as if that would do any damn good at all.

He had to admit that he had not liked the look on the woman's face. As she had walked into the house, there was a look that appeared to be defiance as she scanned the yard for danger.

He would rip that smug look off along with her lips, nose and eyes. He hadn't realized that the whole time watching them, he had been digging his now extended claws into his own thigh. The blood had partially soaked through his denim jeans and began to drip onto the well-manicured grass. He released the grip on his leg and wiped his hands on the dry part of his jeans.

He knew it would heal completely before nightfall. The mixture that his blood contained was great for self-healing, and even better for speed and strength. There would be no stopping him this time. Even that little witch's magic wouldn't do the trick. He had a few 'tricks' of his own to show her. Wouldn't that little pig be surprised?

Author Bio

Christine Sutton is the author of more than fifteen short stories, novellas and novels. While she tends to cross genres within horror, she is always passionate about scaring the hell out of you.

Her passion would have to be serial killer fiction, but she also loves ghosts, ghouls, demons and monsters of all types. Christine's work ranges from modern day fairy tales to demonic soul eaters to ghostly children that just want to play. Her writing has been called passionate, realistic, gritty, fun, enthralling and tons of other cool adjectives.

You, too can pick up some of Christine's work and come up with some cool adjectives of your own. It won't be hard. I promise.

Facebook     Twitter     Website

Interview 

Please welcome Let Me In author Christine Sutton to Diane’s Book Blog. 

How long did it take you to write Let Me In?

It actually took me a few weeks to write. I am relatively quick at writing, but I had so much fun with this one that it just poured out. I loved piecing together the story and adding the fairy tale elements while doing my best to build a story around a strong female lead. I found myself cooking dinner and suddenly having Aha! moments. I couldn’t wait to write down what was going to happen next. I hope my excitement translates in the story. I had an absolute blast writing it! 

If you could be best friends with one of your characters, who would it be?

It would most definitely be Kayla Burkheart. She is strong and assertive, but at the same time friendly and fun. She has a great sense of humor and can kick some serious butt when necessary. She is also kind and caring, and has a fierce love for her family. Oh, and she has magic…which is a great trait in a best friend!


What is your favorite book that you wrote?

I try not to publish anything that I do not really like. I write paranormal stories, like Let Me In and the entire Burkheart Witch Saga, but I also write books that have more of a horror theme. They are all different facets of me, and picking a favorite is quite difficult. I would have to say that this series is one of my absolute favorites, as well as my book titled Killers. That was my first “real” published work, and I still think it is one of my best.


How do you overcome writer’s block?

I stop trying so hard. I do not sit for hours in front of my screen, willing myself to write. I stop and bake, or take a walk, or watch a movie. I do something that is not in any way related to writing. I find that within an hour or so I am usually brimming with ideas and a desire to sit back down and right. Sometimes it does take a day or so, but (knock on wood) it always comes back to me.


What book are you reading now?

I am currently partaking in a fantastic book by Stephen King called Mr. Mercedes. I must say, I am loving it. 


What do you prefer paperback, hardcover, or ebooks? 

Being the age I currently am, I remember a time when there was no such thing as a cell phone, a microwave, or even a VCR! So, even though I’m not really that old at forty, ebooks are still a relatively new phenomena. I love the feel and smell of a hardcover book. I love feeling the weight of an eight-hundred page book in my hands. But, that being said, I am head over heels in love with my Kindle. I love that I am able to carry a thousand books with me by slipping something that weighs less than a pound into my bag. I’ll never stop collecting and reading books, but I would be lost without my e-reader!


Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?  

I really want my readers to know how grateful I am that they have taken time out of their lives to read my books. I know that sometimes it is a difficult thing to find a block of time to just relax and read. If someone uses the little bit of time they do have to read something that I wrote, they are all right by me! It comes down to a great big THANK YOU to my fans, past, present and future. You have my gratitude, respect and love.