Interview
What are four things you can't live without? Friends, coffee, nature, and love.
What is your favorite television show? Right now it’s The Witcher. I’m excited for season 3, which is coming out soon. Some of my other favorites are Charmed, Supernatural, and Vampire Diaries.
Where do you get your inspiration, information, and idea for books? Everywhere. It might be something someone says, a building that looks out of place, news stories, an interesting person, or a place I’ve been. For instance, the idea for Challenging Destiny (one of my young-adult paranormal romance/thrillers) came to me when I saw a church in the middle of nowhere. It didn’t look very welcoming. The ideas behind Friends to the End were from a combination of news stories and a haunted road not far from me.
Do you write full-time or around another job? If you have a full time job, does it ever play into your writing? I write around another job. I like to say that by day I’m a network technician, and by night a writer, but really I do my best writing early in the morning or on weekends. My day job and writing are very different, but I like it that way.
What books or authors have most influenced your writing? This is a hard question because there isn’t just one. When I had first started writing, I had wanted to have short chapters in multiple points of view because I liked how James Patterson wrote, and I had sped through reading each Alex Cross book as it came out. But I wasn’t nearly as good at this writing style as James Patterson. After that, I focused on what I liked or didn’t like in the books I read. I keep these things in mind as I write, so I think it is safe to say great stories by many wonderful authors influenced my writing.
What is your favorite writing snack and/or drink? Coffee or wine, depending on the time of day, with cookies (preferably freshly baked chocolate chip cookies) or baked Cheetos.
What was your hardest scene to write and why? There is a scene in Friends to the End when we find out what happened to Zach’s best friend and how this affected Zach. Because the idea for what had happened came from true stories, my heart broke right along with Zach’s.
What is a significant way your book has changed since the first draft? In the initial drafts, Jeremy (Zach’s best friend from the city) didn’t make as many appearances in the book. My editor suggested I include more, and I’m so glad it did.
Aside from writing, what is one thing you do for fun? I enjoy being outside, so strolls through the arboretum, botanical gardens, or along the lake are some of my favorite things to do.
What exciting projects do you have coming up next? My second middle-grade novel Atticus Everheart, Fifth Grade Tutor…and monster hunter? is in the works! My editor and I are diligently working on edits. I anticipate the book to release in the fall. Visit my website or signup for my newsletter (https://cheriecolyer.com/mailing-list/) for updates.
Thanks for having me on your blog!
About the Book
Genre: Middle-Grade Action Adventure
Twelve-year-old Zach is convinced he'll never be happy without his best friend Jeremy by his side. But both of their lives changed with a bang five months ago, and as far as Zach's concerned, it's his fault Jeremy will never see his twelfth birthday.
When Zach moves with his family to a Chicago suburb, he quickly becomes friends with a group of thrill-seeking kids trying to find a disappearing haunted house. But Zach's not worried. He doesn't believe in ghosts, so he follows them into a wild, dangerous encounter that becomes a battle to decide what's real and what's not.
Check out Friends to the End on Amazon!
Excerpt
We stopped a few yards from the cemetery, our mouths hanging open and our eyes wide.
“Please tell me you see that,” I whispered.
“If you mean the white lights floating above the ground,” Josh said, “we see it.”
“They’re orbs,” Morgan corrected, as if knowing the proper name for the glowing spheres made it okay to see them.
“Orbs?” Josh asked.
“Spirits of the dead,” I replied, remembering what Morgan had told me.
Dom scooted his bike closer. “Maybe we should ask them if they’ve seen the house.”
“Seriously?” Morgan asked.
“Yeah.”
Morgan shook her head, causing her ponytail to swing from side to side. “Oh, no! I learned my lesson the last time we were here. I’m not stepping one foot off the shoulder of the road.”
“Your right foot is in the grass,” Dom said, shining his flashlight on her sneaker.
Morgan scowled and repositioned herself to have both feet on concrete.
Three iridescent orbs floated over headstones. I thought about the movies that warned people to stay away from the light. Maybe they weren’t warning us about a bright beam of light, but instead small glowing balls. Maybe if one of them touched you, the spirit would take over your body. Maybe they were waiting for someone to be stupid enough to come closer. I suddenly wondered if I’d met anyone who’d been possessed by a spirit and immediately thought of Olivia and her strange habits.
Then I told myself I was being ridiculous.
Or was I? Think about it. How would anyone know if a ghost hitched a ride with the person in front of him or her?
About the Author
C.L. Colyer found her love for writing in first grade when her class was sent to the library and asked to find a book for their first book report. While she doesn’t still have this book report, she’s very proud to say she got an A on it. Her favorite thing about the book was that it had no words. That’s right, not one! That gave her the freedom to interpret the pictures in any way she wanted and write her own story.
This sparked her love for writing essays. It wasn’t until she was an adult that she sat down and penned her first novel. This story has a special place in her heart because it’s the story that helped her discover her passion for writing. She has since written several books, many of which may never see the light of day, but all of which helped her learn to combine her passion for writing with her fascination with all things mythical. You’ll find examples of this in her novels.
She lives in Illinois with her family.
Keep in Touch:
Website: https://cheriecolyer.com/children/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Cherie-Colyer-author-250631921629169
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CherieColyer
Instagram: www.instagram.com/cherie_colyer/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21748654.C_L_Colyer
Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/C-L-Colyer/e/B09C6JPT3X/
Bookbub author page: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/cherie-colyer
Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteOf course! It was my pleasure :)
DeleteThanks so much for hosting!
ReplyDeleteOf course! It was my pleasure :) Thank you for taking the time to answer all of my interview questions.
DeleteI so enjoyed reading the excerpt!
ReplyDeleteThe excerpt is awesome. Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog today Sherry :)
DeleteSo glad you enjoyed it!
DeleteThis sounds like a great story!
ReplyDeleteI think so too! Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog Ilona :)
DeleteGreat interview and excerpt, Friends to the End sounds like a great book to share with my granddaughter! Thanks for sharing it with me and have an awesome weekend!
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