Elisabeth Naughton interview + giveaway

One of our favorite authors is on the blog today Elisabeth Naughton and I for one am super excited to have her here. Both Angela and I have read her books and loved every page of them.

TBRG: Who has been the biggest influence on your writing?
EN: Thanks so much for having me here during the Tempted blog tour!

Gosh, you throw out the hard questions right at the start! Okay, the biggest influence on my writing is probably my critique partner, author Joan Swan. Joan and I have been CPs for over 5 years and I trust her implicitly with every aspect of my writing—from brainstorming, to character development, to advice about plot and even promo. Joan always, ALWAYS sees things I don’t in my books, and she’s a genius at pushing me to make every story better than the last.

TBRG: What is the one thing your readers would be the most surprised to know about you?
EN: Probably that I don’t read a lot of paranormals and didn’t before I started writing them. I began my writing career writing (and reading) romantic suspense (and still do), so when I started writing paranormals, I had no idea if I was doing it right or not. These days I still don’t read a ton of paranormals (especially when writing) so I’m not influenced by other authors’ ideas. But I love reading them when I’m working on something else. I think it’s important to see what others’ in your genre are doing.

TBRG: Where is the one place you have always wanted to go, a place on your bucket list?
EN: Crete. Haven’t gotten there yet but I will. Someday soon!

TBRG: Who are some of your go to authors, and what are you reading right now?
EN: Right now I’m reading Cover Me by Catherine Mann. I also have Tawna Fenske’s Making Waves on my nightstand. My comfort reads include older books by Judith McNaught, Elizabeth Lowell and Susan Elizabeth Phillips.

TBRG: If you weren’t writing and keeping us in books (thanks for that by the way), what would you be doing?
EN: Hmm…that’s a tough question! I love a good party so I might be doing some form of party planning or even interior design (another hobby of mine…since I don’t have a white wall in my house and my husband has told me there’s nothing left to decorate, I’d likely be doing that for others.)

TBRG: Who is on your playlist when you are writing?
EN: The EG books tend to be dark and violent and to get into the mindset of my guys, I’ve got a lot of Breaking Benjamin, Linkin Park, Staind and Skillet on my ipod. But I’m also fairly eclectic in my listening habits so I also have Emmy Rossum, Kenny Chesney, even a little Enya mixed in. When I’m actually WRITING though, I can’t listen to anything with words so I gravitate toward film scores. Gladiator, Lord of the Rings, Spirit and Transformers tend to be my favs.

TBRG: What is your guilty pleasure?
EN: Champagne. I love a good mimosa in the morning. But I save those for special occasions.

TBRG: Where do your ideas/characters come from?
EN: My characters live inside my head. I know character long before plot, and let the stories grow organically from there. At times I feel like I have multiple personalities, but that goes hand in hand with the writing career (at least for me!) at times.

TBRG: Are you a planner or a fly by the seat author?
EN: A little of both. My critique partner calls it “plotting into the mist”. I can see about 3 chapters ahead in every book. Often I can see the ending, but not the path to get there. Figuring it all out is the fun part of writing to me.

TBRG: How did you come up with this series?

EN: I have loved Greek mythology from the time I was a kid. I love reading about the different stories, the tragedies, the romances, the lies and betrayals. I mean, today’s soap operas can’t even compare to the ancient myths! When I was researching Stolen Fury—my debut book—I spent a lot of time studying different myths as there was a Greek artifact in that book that all the major players were searching for. Midway through that research I knew I wanted to write a series linked to that mythology, and I had a really cool idea about this otherworldly warrior who has to find a human woman who will complete a prophecy to save his world but who will die in the process. The problem? I was writing romantic suspense at the time and I wasn’t quite sure how to make that awesome idea work.

Then one day I was perusing blogs, and an author asked what type of paranormal creatures readers would like to read more of. Someone suggested the heroes from Greek mythology and suddenly…everything clicked. The idea for the Eternal Guardians hit me and made perfect sense. So I wrote the book, sent it to my agent, and it eventually became MARKED, book one in the Eternal Guardians Series.

TBRG: I for one am glad that everything clicked for you… I love this series and the book covers are very eye catching.

TBRG: Tell us about this new book?

EN: Tempted is the third book in the Eternal Guardians series but if you’re new to the series you don’t have to read the other two to figure out what’s going on. The Eternal Guardians are seven warriors descended from the seven greatest heroes in all of Ancient Greece. They were slated—by Zeus—to protect the mortal realm from one vengeful goddess intent on annihilation. Tempted is Demetrius’s book. He’s a descendent of Jason, the famed hero who gathered the Argonauts on the Argos and sailed in search of the Golden Fleece. During that voyage, Jason fell in love with a sorceress—Medea—and Demetrius can trace his roots back to both. In Tempted, the princess of Argolea is kidnapped and Demetrius is sent to save her. But he’s not what everyone thinks he is and things do not go as planned. There’s witchcraft, daemons, mythological monsters, deadly secrets and a smokin’ hot romance in this book. A little of something for everyone!

TBRG: What do you want us to know about Demetrius and Isa?
EN: They both go through significant character changes in this book. Neither is what readers expect when they start the book, and they’re different people when it ends. Watching them each transform—and those barriers they’ve each built around themselves so long crumble—is one of my favorite things about the book.

TBRG: If you had to describe Demetrius and Isa using 3-5 adjectives what would they be?
EN: Demetrius – dark, brooding, alpha, loyal and secretive. Isadora – petite, timid, unappreciated, compassionate and fierce.

TBRG: If I send you a box of Jean Phillipe chocolate covered strawberries will you PLEASE tell us whose story you are working on right now? Angela thinks it is Orpheous, and I’m hoping for Nick.
EN: LOL…I can always be bribed!

Book four is Orpheus’s book. Though Orpheus technically isn’t one of the Eternal Guardians, he plays a big role in Tempted and his book—Enraptured—picks up where Tempted left off. Don’t worry though, I have plans for Nick and his book is going to be really good.

TBRG: DH ordered the strawberries and they will soon be on their way to you! 

*** Time for the fun part, we have 2 copies of Tempted to give away, just tell us what Myth, Hero, Legend you love to see in books. Contest rules apply, you need follow us on twitter, like us on FB, then go and follow Elisabeth on twitter and like her on FB. Contest open to US and Canada only.***

TEMPTED BY ELISABETH NAUGHTON – IN STORES SEPTEMBER 2011

DEMETRIUS—He’s the hulking, brooding warrior even his fellow Guardians avoid. Too dark. Too damaged. And given his heritage, he knows it’s best to keep everyone at arm’s length.

Isadora is missing. The words pound through his head like a frantic drumbeat. For her own protection, Demetrius did all he could to avoid the fragile princess, his soul mate. And now she’s gone—kidnapped. To get her back, he’ll have to go to the black place in his soul he’s always shunned.

As daemons ravage the human realm and his loyalty to the Guardians is put to the ultimate test, Demetrius realizes that Isadora is stronger than anyone thought.

And finally letting her into his heart may be the only way to save them both.

 

A former junior high science teacher, Elisabeth Naughton traded in her red pen and test-tube set for a laptop and research books. She now writes sexy romantic adventure and paranormal novels full-time from her home in western Oregon, where she lives with her husband and three children. Her work has been nominated for numerous awards, including the prestigious RITA Awards of Romance Writers of America, the Australian Romance Reader Awards, the Golden Leaf, and the Golden Heart. When not writing, Elisabeth can be found running, hanging out at the ball park, or dreaming up new and exciting adventures. Visit her at www.elisabethnaughton.com to learn more about her and her books. Her next book in the Eternal Guardians series, Enraptured, will be in stores in April 2012.

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