Book Showcase: "Siren Snow" by Victoria Barrow

A siren in the snow.

Dreams of a beautiful demon.

A horde of shadow spawn at her heels.

Lucilla Sinclair is the fiery-haired Witch-Warden for Washington state. She has spent her most recent years in the snow covered fishing town of Redhaven, a small tourist attraction right near the coast of Anacortes. Magickal mischief in the cold, quiet state is slow for the most part, but when a freak winter storm lands a half-transformed Siren on her front porch, Lucy’s life becomes increasingly strange. Her dreams are suddenly assaulted with visions of a beautiful demon man, and her waking hours are spent warding off a cadre of mysterious shadow creatures.

With the help of her raven familiar and her tall, dark-skinned elemental guardian, Lucy must trek through the snows of Canada in a race against time. Her mission: to find the one person with enough knowledge of forbidden black magick to fix the broken Siren Melusine before her seven days on land are up.

This is gonna be a rough week.

Find Siren Snow at Amazon.
***Siren Snow ebook is currently priced at 2.99 for March.

Follow Victoria on Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter, and her blog.

Check out the Siren Snow book trailers here and here. Also Siren Snow inspirations here.

Shooting the Shit with Indie Author Victoria Barrow

Victoria Barrow is a new indie writer who recently published Siren Snow, the first book in the Redhaven Saga series. Victoria recently talked about her writing and inspiration.  Let’s learn more about Victoria as a person…

 

Favorite food and drink

Orange Chicken. I could eat that stuff forever. With some fried rice. Mmmm. Drink? Orange soda, perhaps? I like oranges, apparently.

Favorite books
This is always a hard one. I have a bunch of them, but if I had to pick just one to read for the rest of forever, it might be The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I've never had a book make me laugh before. Baring that, I'll gobble up anything modern-fantasy. I used to read a TON of Laurell K. Hamilton, but her later books have kind of turned me off. Need to find a new series, I guess.

Favorite music

My musical tastes are varied. I like everything from Bach to Maroon 5. (Though I really love Maroon 5.) My favorite song in the world is How To Save a Life by the Fray. I've been listening to a lot of The Moon and the Nightspirit and Two Steps From Hell lately, though.

Favorite movies

I'm a sucker for horror movies. The first Paranormal Activity creeped the crap out of me, and my favorite movie to date is Dawn of the Dead (the new one... more gore, bwahahaha.)

Favorite TV Shows

I'm totally obsessed with The Following right now, and I tune in every Sunday for the Walking Dead. Beyond that, I really enjoy Grey's Anatomy and Glee. I was hooked on Emily Owens M.D. for a while, but then they cancelled it, and I was so sad! I also really love Big Bang Theory. I would have Sheldon Cooper's smart little babies. (Sorry Kev!)

Best memory from childhood

My family and I took a roadtrip when I was in middle school to Florida, and we went to Disneyworld. It was probably the best thing ever. (Who doesn't love Disney? :D)

Best memory from adulthood

Probably the day/night my boyfriend proposed to me. (Which was actually December 8th of last year, so fairly recent.) It was super romantic, and in a garden at Disneyland. (See? See? Disney is magical...)

Life of the party or stand back and observe?

I like to observe. I'm kind of a wall flower. Plus, it's fun to people watch.

What makes you rage?

Allergies. I hate sneezing and itchiness. Also, hiccups. For whatever reason, I get really pissed off when I have hiccups and they won't go away. Go figure, eh?

What makes you giggle?

My fiance. He's goofy, and even when I get mad at him, he makes me laugh. (Damn you, Kev!)

Find Siren Snow at Amazon.
***Siren Snow ebook is currently priced at 2.99 for March.

Follow Victoria on Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter, and her blog.


Check out the Siren Snow book trailers here and here. Also Siren Snow inspirations here.

Interview with Indie Author Victoria Barrow

Victoria Barrow is a new indie writer who recently published Siren Snow, the first book in the Redhaven Saga series. Let’s learn more about Victoria and her inspiration...

Q: How long have you been writing and when did you decide to indie publish? What was the biggest hurdle in going it alone?

A: I've been writing all my life, but only started to take it seriously in high school. It wasn't until December of 2012 that I decided to pursue self publishing. I'd never written anything with intent to publish because I was dreading the years and years of rejection letters from publishers. When I found Michael Hicks' blog, and read about his self publishing journey, it was the kick in the butt I needed to get started. I realized I didn't need anything but myself and some elbow grease to get published. It's March of 2013 now, and I just recieved the physical copy of my first book in the mail yesterday. So, I'd say it was a good choice. The hardest part so far has been promotion. I've written my book and it's pretty, but it's hard to tell the world about it if you don't have a big name publisher behind you screaming it from the rooftops. Though, I did have a lot of love and support from my best friend Maegan Provan, and our good author pal Tricia Drammeh.

Q: You recently published Siren Snow. Can you explain the idea behind the Redhaven Saga series? Where did the inspiration come from?

A: The idea for the Redhaven Saga came from reading a lot of Jim Butcher and Laurell K. Hamilton at the same time. I'd loved the idea of "magic stuff out in the open in modern day" kind of set-up, and I started thinking about what kind of person I'd be most interested in reading. I don't know, I just wanted to write a book about a Witch. Witches are cool.

Q: How many books do you envision in the series?

A: I've mapped out the series, and it looks like it's going to be a 7 parter. (Maybe 8... #7 might just be really long since itll be the finale.)

Q: What drew you to paranormal fiction as a genre? Do you plan to branch out to other genres as your career progresses?

A: I LOVE paranormal fiction. It combines the modern drama of this world (romance (not that thats exclusive to modern fiction), school, texting, parents, driving, blah blah blah) with the whimsy and bad-ass-ness of magic, the paranormal, and high fantasy. It's all my favorite things squished together. However, I would eventually like to tackle my post-apocalyptic series. It's an idea that's been stewing for a while, but was shelved when I started work on the Redhaven Saga. I kind of want to try my hand at horror some day. I'd love the scare the shit out of someone.

Q: Lucilla Sinclair is your main character. Can you tell us more about Lucy?

A: Lucy's a Witch-Warden for the state of Washington. She's basically getting paid minimum wage to protect people who don't like her from things that don't like them. She's kind of irritated about the whole thing, and really just wants to be left alone to her little shop, but then the world starts bugging her, and she's gotta do stuff. Semi-reluctantly.

Q: Does Lucy have a love interest? If so, can you tell us more about him?

A: Well, she lives with Mishal, who's her elemental guardian, and there is a little bit of heat between them, but I have big plans for Lucy. Which may or may not include Mishal.

Q: How do you come up with the names for your characters?

A: Well, Lucilla Sinclair came from an RP character I had on World of Warcraft. (Yeah... I'm -that- kind of nerd.) Really, I just thought the name was pretty. Mishal is her fire elemental and guardian, and I came about this name through a lot of searching. I wanted the guardian's name to be unique, and didn't think I could settle on something like "Michael". "Mishal" is actually of arabic origin, and means "torch" or "beacon", which I think fits perfectly.

Q: Chicken or the egg question. Do you create a character and build around him/her? Or do you imagine a concept and create characters which fit the idea?

A: Depends on the original spark. Sometimes I'll get inspired for a scenario or set-up, and build characters into them that fit. Sometimes I think, "Oh, that'd make a cool character" and build around them.

Q: How do you avoid writing a Mary Sue or Marty Stu when most writers can’t help falling desperately in love with their creations?

A: I punch my characters in the face. I be mean to them, I give them something I don't like, some annoying tick or flaw and something. Lucy ended up really whiny in the first draft, and I disliked her so much I re-wrote a lot of the ending. I still love my Lucy, but it's not quite fanatical enough that she's becoming Mary Sinclair in book #2.

Q: Do you use anything to inspire you while you’re writing? Music, visual aids, etc? Also have you found ideas come to you more freely in particular places or at certain times of the day?

A: I made a pinterest board while I was writing the first book. It helped a lot and the board ended up with some pretty neat stuff that kept me writing. I also found theatrical type music helps me a lot. I listened to The Moon and the Nightspirit for probably the first 13 chapters or so. After that it was the Assassin's Creed soundtrack and Two Steps From Hell. I find that if I listen to think with no words but a lot of feeling, it helps me set the mood. And my ideas/inspiration come sporatically. I think the best day of writing I had, I wrote 7k words, and it was rainy and cold outside and I had the windows open and some fuzzy socks on. Maybe it was socks.

Q: When an idea hits you, do you start writing immediately or plot it out first?

A: I write it down. I get random ideas usually when I get in bed and try to go to sleep, so I end up emailing myslf the idea or writing it down. I keep all my little "seeds" in seperate word files in a folder, so I can just pick one and work on it later. If it's an idea relevant to the series I'm working on, I'll add it to my prewrite/brainstorm document. THEN I plot it out a little. Kind of a messy process, but it works.

Q: When you read less than fawning reviews, how do you know when to use the critique to improve your future writing and when do you chalk up the criticism as different strokes for different folks?

A: I haven't gotten a bad review yet, but since I know they're an inevitability, I'll be okay. I will look for specifics and anything I can use to better the rest of my books. I chalk it up to taste, etc when it's just "I didn't like this book". That's okay, not everyone will. I'll mostly try to weed through them to find useful critique.

Q: I’ve read criticism from particular bloggers (Fangs for the Fantasy being one) about the lack of people of color and different sexual orientations in fantasy. Do you take this lack of diversity into consideration when creating plots and characters?

A: Not really. My characters end up being who they end up being. Mishal is black, but that's not because I designed him that way. That's just who he ended up being.

Q: Do word counts mean anything to you? Do you find your books top out at around the same lengths?

A: Word count is something I watch out for, yeah. I shoot for around 70k-80k words, but in the end the story gets told in however long it takes to get told. If it goes too fast, I'll slow it down. If it's too fluffed out, I'll shave the fluff off.

Q: How big a deal is writer’s block for you and how do you shake it off?

A: I can't tell you how many times I've lamented about writer's block. I procrastinated an extra two weeks before starting book #2. I couldn't get the beginning to sound right in my head, but eventually I did start. I find it works best if you just write, even with writer's block. It may come out crappy, but it'll let you see what needs to be fixed. And that's what first drafts are for anyway. You can always go back and paint over the crappy parts.

Q: What books did you enjoy most in 2012?

A: Well, I read Tricia Drammeh's The Claiming Words and totally loved it. I also read the entire Hunger Games trilogy in like, a week, and even though it's for a younger mindset, I read most of the Maximum Ride novels. I started reading the Song of Ice and Fire, but I haven't finished it yet. We moved houses in July, and it's still off somewhere. (Or maybe I borrowed it... I can't remember. It's on my 'to-finish' list.)

Q: What trends do you hope die in 2013? Are there any you hope take off?

A: Vanity publishers annoy me. Really, the big ones do too. Viva La Indie! Besides that, I hope the 50 Shades knock offs fade away. So many grey covers. I've been noticing a lot of mermaid/siren books, and I think 'witches' may start becoming a sun genre too. I'd love to see more modern-mermaid fiction.

Q: What are you plans for 2013 as an indie writer?

A: By this time next year I'm hoping to have books #2 through #5 done and out. Maybe more. Beyond that, a lot of promoting and picking the brains of other authors. It's going to be an ambitious year; the flood gates are open.

Find Siren Snow at Amazon: Kindle and Print versions.
***Siren Snow ebook is currently priced at 2.99 for March.

Follow Victoria on Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter, and her blog.

Check out the Siren Snow book trailers here and here. Also Siren Snow inspirations here.