Today I welcome Bree Cariad to the blog to answer a few questions
for Interview³.
Bree Cariad Author Interview³
1) Tell us 3 fun facts about your writing history
I started writing sweet romance because I had signed up to do a ‘write a novel in a month’ and my muse went crazy and started writing something I haven’t read since I was like 10.
My characters often surprise me – Jonathon Neiland certainly did.
Blank pages scare me – I’ll doodle all over the corners, usually in a code I created in college, to get the muse going.
2) Describe your writing style in 3 words
Fast, start-to-finish, intense
3) Name 3 of your literary influences
*blinks*
AA Milne (no, I’m serious)
William Shakespeare (I was like the only student in my sophomore class in high school who was excited we got to read Macbeth)
God (okay, that one’s a joke, but seriously – the Bible is the best-selling book ever… though I’ll admit, I’m not the type to put one plague, let alone tons, into one book – that seems like overkill~)
I’m thinking I should have warned you I have a twisted sense of humour.
4) Share your 3 favourite books
Oh, that hurts. To break down my favourite books into just three! All the rest of the books will beat me up. Hmm. Just three.
The Complete Works of Shakespeare – My copy is worn out & falling apart
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – Wizards, dragons, and good vs evil says YAY to me
Twilight series (guilty pleasure though I HATE the last book) – Can I still say it’s one of my favourites when I think all three of the main characters belonged alone? I’ll admit I think Aro (the bad guy) is the best vampire in the book. If we could just stop them from sparkling…
5) What are your 3 essential writing tools?
Keyboard? Check.
Essential oil in the diffuser? Check.
Cranberry juice? CHECK!
6) Where are your 3 favourite places to write?
Okay, I’ve got 2 physical places I write, so I’ll have to come up with a 3rd.
1: My office. I have my desk, my computer, and my muse when it’s not off drinking in Cancun. I’m also surrounded by real bookshelves with real books. Ebooks are all fine and good, but give me paper :)
2: My favourite stuffy armchair – though that requires pen and paper, which is too slow anymore. Though sometimes I just have to do it.
3: If I had my druthers? In an office open to the beach where I can type and when I need inspiration, turn my head and stare off into the water.
7) Name 3 items on your writing wish list
Have one of my books turned into a best-selling movie
Have an assistant who does all the ‘other’ stuff so I can write, write, write.
I would love to do a historical at some point – especially about the Etruscans – but that requires a dedication to research that has to be so fine-tuned it would drive me nuts. I enjoy some research, but to get that deep into the culture? I’d be reading for months and months.
8) What are your top 3 tips for aspiring writers?
1. Make Mistakes and be happy about it – they’re handy and a great way to learn.
2. NEVER throw away stuff you cut out. Keep it in a file somewhere, you might be able to use it in another book
3. A flop is not the end of the world… just the beginning of a new idea.
9) Tell us 3 of your writing plans for the year ahead
I’m working on figuring out which novel to write for next year’s release. Continuation of current series? A new book that’s been pinging at the back of my head?
Creating a graphic novel – which is a huge goal and I have no idea how close I’ll get to it.
Curing the world’s stupidity – because I totally believe in realistic goals *grins*
10) Tell us about your latest release
Light in the Dark Night was a bit of a surprise for me. It was one of those books that stepped up and bit me on the butt. A little over a year ago, that horrible club shooting occurred in Orlando and Dreamspinner Press asked for submissions of short stories for anthologies where the money would then go to help the victims.
A story idea came to me of a gay religious man who is trying to get a shelter for LGBT youth up and running. (Where I live, the number of LGBT youth who are homeless is astronomical and makes me sad.)
I wrote it down in a matter of a few hours. And then it kept growing… and growing... and growing. What started out as a non-romance story about everyday miracles became a romance novel using a subject I don’t write a lot about. I usually write sweet, but not inspirational romance, but in this case, Reverend Jonathon Neiland led the charge on this thing. His friend Court Brecker evened it out until I suddenly had a full novel I fell in love with – even if it does make me tear up at times.
It’s a mixture of G4Y and inspirational romance. Is there drama? Yes. Is there sex? No. This is a clean M/M Inspirational Romance. I hope you’ll give it a try.
Bree Cariad
Heat Rating: 1
Age range: 16+
MM/Contemporary/Inspirational Romance
Reverend Jonathon Neiland gets his wish a decade in the making and finally the Paul D. Regelo Center for LGBT Youth is up and running. He knows things will never be easy, but then he never expects them to be. All he asks is that the Lord be on his side while he takes care of his kids.
Court Brecker has been through his own brand of hell and strives every day to be the best he can be, but he never expects to find a runaway on the streets, nor to take him to Jonathon’s center. Never one to get in too deep with anyone or anything, to his surprise he finds himself enjoying his time both with Aiden and Jonathon. They develop a deep friendship and for the first time in his life, he has someone to rely on who also relies on him.
While Brecker tries to understand the new feelings he’s battling, Jonathon runs into more and more stress, especially when Aiden is removed from the shelter forcefully. He’s never doubted that the Lord has a plan for them and when they are attacked from without and everything seems dark, He opens the door to show them the light.
Bree has written xys entire life. Xe identifies as non-normative, multi-gender and believes in love in all forms and that happily ever afters come in many ways. Whether in a romance or a non-romance, in xys stories, love conquers all.
Also, while Bree prefers the xe, xem, xys, xemself set of pronouns, xe’s not sussed about it. Call xem xe, he, she, or they. Xe won’t mind.
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