Melissa Bowersock Interview Part 2

Hello again, and welcome to the Writer's Revolution.  I am your host, the author of The Phoenix Blade, Andrew Hess.  We continue today with our interview with the author of Stone's Ghost, Melissa Bowersock.  Today we take a lighter approach to the interview as we learn more about Melissa.

I'd like to  change things up and get to know you a little better.

If you could only bring three items with you to a deserted island (non-writing items or people) what would they be and why?

Gah, non-writing??? That sounds like pure hell. Ok, if I couldn’t write, I would have to have my camera (and lots of memory cards!) and a big book of watercolor paper and a set of paints and brushes. I’d have to be able to do something creative! I guess if all else failed, I could learn to do sand sculpture.

Haha, I don’t think I could live without my computer or notebook either.  But I find your ideas to be very relaxing.  I’m not good with drawing or painting, but at least when you’re rescued from the island you’ll have a lot of amazing pictures and paintings.

The world is going to end tomorrow.  How do you live out your remaining time?

Yikes, there’s a question! With that short time, it would be simple, actually. I would sit with my husband on our patio with our dog, having a cup of coffee, watching the hummingbirds at the feeder, watching the sunset and talking about all the things we’ve done, the places we’ve been, the joys and challenges of our lives. I would want to spend my last hours feeling the immense gratitude for my life and looking forward to the next great adventure.

That’s a very beautiful way to spend your remaining time. 

Someone wants to make a movie based on your life.  Who would you pick to play you?

Sheesh, you ask tough questions! The first person that comes to mind is Sandra Bullock (regardless of the fact that she is 20 years younger than me (at least I used to have the same color hair!), just because she can be very animated and plucky. Another one that comes to mind is Meryl Streep, not because she looks like me, but because in the movie Julie and Julia, I loved her joie de vivre.

Both are incredible actresses.  I think they both do a wonderful job playing a variety of characters. 

Alive or dead, who is the one person you would want to interview and why?

I can’t pick just one! I would dearly love to sit down and chat with Einstein, Galileo, Stephen Hawking, Neil Armstrong, Neil Degrasse Tyson, Jimmy Stewart, Tom Hanks, Martin Luther, Carl Jung, Joan of Arc, Arthur Conan Doyle, Mozart, H. G. Wells, Beethoven, Jules Vern and (I’m sure) many more I can’t think of right at this moment. I am fascinated by how people compose, create, make that astonishing connection, that leap of faith, that leads them to a new reality. I would be in pure heaven if I could talk with people like that. I have often thought that I would love to have Barbara Walters’ job!

Barbara Walters really has talked to virtually everyone during her life.  And that is quite an array of artists to interview.  I think creative intellects like Beethoven, Mozart, Einstein and Galileo would be interesting to talk to today to get their opinion on the world comparatively to their time.

Okay, crystal ball time.  Where do you see yourself in 5-10 years?

Five years out, retired (from the day job, not writing), settled into a small quiet community away from crowds and traffic, writing, gardening, enjoying periodic visits to the Grand Canyon and Lake Powell and, of course, launching book after book. Ten years out, pretty much the same thing!

That sounds like a piece of paradise without an island to me.  I hope you get there.

Any questions you would like to ask me?

I notice you studied psychology in school as well as creative writing (and we share a love of Poe). I’ve found writing to be amazingly therapeutic; do you find that, as well?

I find it very therapeutic.  My first two books (Chamberof Souls and Hall of the Forgotten) were a way for me to deal with issues and people from my past and helped me learn more about who I am and what I really want out of life.  They helped me learn how to forgive and evolve beyond what hurt me back then.

Any final words for our readers?

I’d like to encourage anyone who writes to keep at it and not give up. The industry is changing weekly, daily, even hourly, and the opportunities for writers are endless and constantly evolving. The world of independent writers has shifted from competition to cooperation as we’ve found that the high tide lifts all boats. It’s a great time to be an indie.

Where can we find you?

Pretty much everywhere! I’m pretty accessible and welcome connections with readers.

Website: http://www.newmoonrising.net

Blog: http://mjb-wordlovers.blogspot.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Melissa-Bowersock-author/164670386962492?fref=ts

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MJBowersock

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/460535.Melissa_Bowersock

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=43585169&trk=tab_pro

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Bowersock/e/B002BLJON0/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/MelissaBowersock

Hope you all enjoyed this interview.  I encourage everyone to get their copy of Stone's Ghost, available now on Amazon.com:

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FStones-Ghost-A-Novel-Redemption%2Fdp%2F1484918428%2Fref%3Dtmm_pap_title_0&h=ZAQGky9RQ

Make sure to check out my other posts from the Writer's Revolution and check out where the Revolution began by picking up The Phoenix Blade; also available on Amazon.com

http://www.amazon.com/The-Phoenix-Blade-Andrew-Hess/dp/1482052733/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1375397353&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Phoenix+blade

Melissa Bowersock Interview Part 1

Hello everyone, and welcome to back to the Writer's Revolution.  I am your host, the author of The Phoenix Blade, Andrew Hess.  Today we take a closer look at Melissa Bowersock as she talks about her new book, Stone's Ghost.

Tell us a little about yourself.

I have been a writer forever.  I’m one of those people who can’t not write.  However, I decided long ago I wanted to keep writing as the fun and passionate vocation that it is, so I have always had a day job to pay the bills; allowing me to write whatever, whenever I want without pressure.  Currently I work for the National Observatory and I’m on a team that is building a large telescope in the Chilean Andes.  I live in Arizona with my husband and an Airedale terrier, and I’m also a certified hypnotherapist.  Nothing like a little variety!

That’s an impressive job.  I agree that is a variety of credits to your name.  With so much going on, what inspired you to write?  What type of genre do you write?

I write in multiple genres; whatever story gets stuck in my head and needs to bleed out through my fingers onto the paper.  I’ve got 10 novels and they range from action/adventure to romance to fantasy to spiritual to satire.  I’ve also written one non-fiction, the biography of my aunt who was an Army nurse and prisoner-of-war during WWII.  Like I said; variety.  But I found early on that traditional publishers did not see this sort of versatility as an asset.  After my first two books (historical romance) were published by a NY house, I thought I had an “in” in the business, but when I switched to a different genre, I was thrown to the back of the line like a newbie.  Luckily, with the huge changes in the industry and self-publishing, we authors no longer have to grovel at the feet of the gate-keepers and hope and pray they like our work.

You would think they would look at versatility as an asset for a writer.  I think it’s great that you didn’t let that setback deter you from what you love to do. 

Now as I understand it, you have a new book out.  Tell us about it.

My new book, Stone’s Ghost, is a modern ghost story about love and loss and friendship, mistakes and consequences and redemption.

Sounds intriguing.  Tell us about the main character, what makes them unique and what makes them tick.

Matthew Stone is the main (living) character. He’s a very successful small business owner with a gorgeous girlfriend and a bright future, but he has a distinct moody side to him. If you’ve ever heard Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s version of the Christmas song, What Child is This, there is a refrain that clearly describes Matt: Holding on, holding off, holding out, holding in. That’s my guy. When he encounters a female ghost and they become friends, he finds all his stoic defenses crumbling and he is forced to re-examine his beliefs, his relationships and the real value of life.

Sounds like a great read.  What inspired you to write this book?

I got the idea one evening when I was watching Arizona Highways on TV. They did a story on the London Bridge in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, and how it’s said that some ghosts came with the bridge when it was brought, stone by stone, from England and rebuilt over the Colorado River. I actually envisioned the story being more about the ghost’s disorientation at finding herself in the desert southwest, but I wasn’t very far into it before Matt’s barely-contained paradoxes became the main story. I love it when stories insist on writing themselves, even when it’s not exactly what I had in mind when I started.

That’s happened to me too.  I wrote a book with one intention and it took on a life of its own.  I think that’s when a book really take on a life of its own and becomes more than just a story.

Now tell us a bit about your other books.  Were they self-published or traditionally published?

My first five books were traditionally-published, the first two by the NY house and the next three by small presses. By that time, my first two books had gone out of print and the rights reverted back to me, so I began to investigate self-publishing options just to keep them viable. I published them with my original titles through iUniverse, then discovered Create Space, Amazon’s self-publishing company, and have used them ever since. Self-publishing is a lot of work, as all aspects of the process fall to the author or a paid contractor—editing, formatting, cover design, marketing, etc.—but I find having total control to be hugely satisfying.  Never again do I have to wonder what the title of my book will be, or how it will be marketed. Now when I publish a book, it is exactly as I have imagined it.

I have used both self-publishing options in the past and agree the self-publishing route is better for the author to have complete control, but have a serious drawback of having all of the editing, marketing, etc. fall on them as well.

So tell us about the other books or blogs have you written?

How much time do you have? I’ve got 2 historical (western) romances, The Rare Breed and Superstition Gold. These were my first two books and were originally published by the NY house, albeit under different titles (Love’s Savage Destiny and Love’s Savage Embrace). I always swore I would write another one and call it Love’s Savage Armpit.  I’ve got 2 contemporary romances, Remember Me and Lightning Strikes. My fantasy, similar to Lord of the Rings, is The Blue Crystal. I’ve got 2 action/adventure novels, The Appaloosa Connection and Queen’s Gold. I’ve got a spiritual novel called Goddess Rising, and a satire on romance novels called The Pits of Passion, which I never thought anyone would publish. It lampoons every cliché of the genre in outlandish fashion, so I always warn people this is not your mother’s romance novel. The biography of my aunt, Marcia Gates: Angel of Bataan, was my last before Stone’s Ghost. My blog is at http://mjb-wordlovers.blogspot.com .

Wow, that’s a lot to have written and quite impressive.  You really do like variety.

Let’s change pace a little bit.  Who is your greatest writing inspiration?

I had an English teacher in high school, Miss Okimoto, who was the first to encourage and support my writing. My classmates probably hated me because she would usually read my papers aloud as examples of well-written work, but she was the first to actually recognize my ability. Beyond that, I find exceptional authors to be hugely inspiring. If I’m in a funk and having trouble writing, all I have to do is read John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany or Rita Mae Brown’s Six of One and I am all fired up again. Inspired writing begets inspired writing.

I couldn’t agree more.  There are certain writers or books out there that give you that spark that reignites the creative fire.

That's all the time we have for today.  Tune in tomorrow for part 2 of our interview with Melissa Bowersock.  Make sure to pickup your copy of Stone's Ghost; now available on Amazon.com

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FStones-Ghost-A-Novel-Redemption%2Fdp%2F1484918428%2Fref%3Dtmm_pap_title_0&h=YAQF_zo6z

Melissa Bowersock

Hello, and welcome back to the Writer's Revolution.  I am your host, the author of The Phoenix Blade, Andrew Hess.  Today we continue learning more about Melissa Bowersock and her latest book Stone's Ghost.  Yesterday, we took a look at this amazing author.  Today, Melissa is sharing a chapter of her book.

Chapter 1

The Javalina Cantina had still not quite hit fever pitch when Matt pushed through the door and walked out into the heat that shimmered up from the asphalt parking lot. He wasn’t sure which was worse: the stale, dead air inside the bar or the stifling heat outside. While midnight was only minutes away, the asphalt still held a store of heat from the day that it released consistently throughout the night. The high humidity of the summer rainy season kept the air thick and cloying, making him feel almost as if he were trying to breathe through a wet towel over his face. There was no getting around the fact that July in Lake Havasu, Arizona, was just plain ugly.

Not that his customers cared. Owner of a water sports shop, Matt Stone did a brisk business this time of year with Sea-Doo and Waverunner rentals, bathing suit sales and all other things wet and fun. While older folks, “snow birds,” flew north for the summer back to Michigan or Washington, the younger generation more than made up for the lack by invading Lake Havasu with plenty of money and beer coolers in hand. As long as California did not slide off into the ocean, Matt couldn’t help but make money.

“Hey,” Simon called, bursting through the door behind him. “You’re not going, are you?” Simon Alvarez was one of Matt’s employees, shorter and stockier and full of energy. Simon spent a good part of his workday checking out the tourists on the personal watercraft, making sure they could function out in the water without killing themselves or losing the craft. His hours in the Arizona sun just turned his normally brown skin even darker. He and Matt occasionally ended a night at the bar, decompressing from the business of the day.

“I haven’t decided yet,” Matt said. He’d stepped outside to clear his head of the smoke, the noise, the smells, but heading home was sounding more appealing as the moments went by. He was a little tired of all the commotion inside.

“It’s still early,” Simon said. “Come on back in and have another beer.” Simon’s words were only slightly slurred; he was obviously not quite parboiled yet.

“Tomorrow’s Saturday,” Matt reminded him. “We open at seven. I’d like to get a little sleep before then.”

“Seven?” Simon groaned. “Oh, shit, this is Friday, isn’t it? Damn.”

“You go back in if you want, but I will see you at seven,” Matt suggested heavily, his ice blue eyes as cool as shadowed snow.

Simon mulled over his choices. Younger than Matt by several years, he was not that far removed from the college crowd they served; finally the lure of one more beer won out. “I’ll be there,” he said. “But in the meantime ...” Smiling crookedly, he disappeared back into the depths of the bar.

Matt just shook his head. He felt old. At thirty he was no senior citizen, but sometimes the demands on his life weighed him down. The store, his mother, Carrie … How did he end up being Mr. Responsible? He used to be more like Simon, more willing to close down a bar than walk away from one. He glanced back at the cantina, hearing the music and laughter inside. Truth be told, he didn’t even want to go back in, so it wasn’t as if he were denying himself. Tonight he just felt … tired.

Sighing, he walked to his car and lowered his tall, lean frame into the sleek sedan’s front seat. Turning the key, he remembered when the low, throaty rumble of the V-8 soothed him like nothing else. Not tonight. He pulled out of the deserted parking lot and headed for the London Bridge and home.

The London Bridge, he decided as he drove up the approach, had to be the ultimate in kitsch. Leave it to an American to bring the storied stone bridge from England and plop it down over a spit of river in the southwest desert. Before that, Lake Havasu City was nothing but a trailer park beside the Colorado River; now it was known everywhere because it had THE BRIDGE. The aged span sported Union Jacks and ornate lamp posts at intervals, objects more at home with bone-chilling fog than the hot desert air that bleached out the colors and faded the metal. It was the ultimate incongruity—

Suddenly a dark form, blacker than the night sky and human-shaped, appeared directly in front of his car. He had no time to jam on the brakes or swerve, although he did both, but before the car could respond he had barreled directly over or through the thing standing in the road. Immediately hauling the sedan over to the side of the road, he set the brake and popped the car into neutral. Without even checking for traffic, he scrambled from the car and ran back to see what he had hit. He just prayed to God it wasn’t dead.

Heart pounding, he searched the dark roadway. It was empty. No trace of anything wet on the pavement that might have been blood, not even a stain. Even his frantic braking had not left a mark. He glanced further down the road to see if a truck or a bus had preceded him, perhaps belching exhaust or smoke, but there were no other moving vehicles anywhere. He considered a low-hanging cloud but knew no cloud ever looked like that, black and almost solid. He scanned the lanes in both directions, searched the sidewalks on both sides. Nothing. He even glanced over the sides of the bridge, noting that the ripples in the water below reflected only the normal flow of the river, nothing like what he would expect if something had fallen or jumped from the bridge. There was no evidence that there had been anything there at all.

Breathing deeply, still shaking, he shook his head as if to clear it. He wasn’t that loaded. He hadn’t even finished his second beer. How could he have imagined something so real? He hadn’t been nodding off; he wasn’t sleepy before and certainly was not now. There was no reason for him to see something that wasn’t there. He looked again westward down the roadway toward the island; nothing there at all, not even a leaf moved in the heavy air. It just didn’t make any sense.

He walked uneasily back to the car and examined it. The front was unmarred and shiny, as clean as the day he washed it last week. There were no dents, no bits of fur or fabric caught in the grille. He remembered the fleeting sense of the dark shape coming at the windshield but when he examined it, there were no scratches, no marks. There was nothing to indicate he had encountered anything at all.

“This is nuts,” he said to himself. Wiping his face with a still shaking hand, he pushed the shock of thick black hair off his forehead. His reaction, the way he felt, was completely at odds with the fact that there was nothing there. Obviously there was no reason to stay, no reason to search anymore, yet he felt leaving would be irresponsible somehow. He had an uneasy sense of incompletion, yet … what was there for him to do?

“There’s nothing here,” he said out loud. His own voice ringing in the emptiness of the night irritated him. “Screw it,” he said finally and got back into the car. Checking his mirrors, looking around in all directions, he slid the gearshift into first and pulled slowly away from the curb. Gaining speed gradually, he continued to monitor his rear view mirror as he drove on across the bridge.

He saw nothing else all the rest of the way home.

Pickup your copy of Stone's Ghost today; now available on Amazon.com

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FStones-Ghost-A-Novel-Redemption%2Fdp%2F1484918428%2Fref%3Dtmm_pap_title_0&h=RAQHVvodS

Make sure to tune in tomorrow to find learn more about Stone's Ghost.

Week 2 Preview: Melissa Bowersock

Welcome everyone to week 2 of this exciting summer series.  I am your host, the author of The Phoenix Blade, Andrew Hess.  Before I bring up our next guest, I want to announce that due to the overwhelming responses, I am extending the series passed September and am booked through October.  I look forward to bringing everyone a some amazing writers with incredible stories to tell.

Now for our featured guest.

Melissa Bowersock is an eclectic award winning writer; who has written ten novels and one non-fiction novel and has been both traditionally published and self-published.  Her styles of writing have varied from contemporary, western, fantasy, romance, action/adventure, spiritual, satire, and biography.  Melissa is passionate about her writing which is shown through her words.  Her latest novel, Stone's Ghost, was recently released with an incredible launch party last Friday; focused on ghost pictures, stories, contests, and so much more.

Here is a brief sneak peak into Stone's Ghost which is available now on Amazon.com.

The small hairs on the back of his neck stood up, as if light fingers hovered just above them. Instantly alert, he forced himself to stand still even though he would have liked to jerk upright and look about the bridge. Controlling even his quick, shallow breathing, he kept his head still but focused on the periphery of his sight. He felt more than saw it, but thought there was something standing to his right. Something dark. Slowly, slowly, he turned his head.

That shape. Smaller, shorter than the woman who had just passed, this person was almost petite, or at least he thought she would be under the heavy black clothes. She stood—floated—just scant feet away, hovering near the balustrade with a tension that suggested to Matt she would vanish at the slightest move. At the same moment that he realized he could actually see the bridge behind her—see through her—he also noticed the almost wild light in her eyes. Eyes that were looking directly at him.

Melissa Bowersock Author Page
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Melissa-Bowersock-author/164670386962492?fref=ts

Stone's Ghost on Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/Stones-Ghost-ebook/dp/B00DVPPD30/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1375116948&sr=1-2&keywords=Stone%27s+ghost

Join us tomorrow for a more in depth look at Melissa Bowersock and her new book Stone's Ghost.  Check out Stone's Ghost on Amazon.com along with some of Melissa's other books.  I've already picked up a few.  I encourage you to do the same.  

Anthony Charles Interview Part3-Acting

And we are back with Part 3 of our interview with Anthony Charles.  I am your host, the author of The Phoenix Blade, Andrew Hess.  Fridays are always going to be bittersweet for me.  Fridays are when we conclude our interviews, but that means I get to bring on another exciting guest on Monday.  But for now, I bring you the conclusion of my interview with Anthony Charles.

Anthony Charles Interview Part 3-Acting

How did you transition from musician and podcaster to actor?

Well originally I was a musician in my teens and transitioned into acting during college.  I figured that the recording skills I picked up through music and the knowledge of performance with actor could merge into a descent show host. 

What kind of classes and training have you gone through to become an actor?

I went through a performing arts program not unlike the bulk of them out there.  It was pretty much standard theater, acting, history, classes with performances capping off the years studies. 

What were some of your earliest acting gigs?

They were all various theater roles in which I was a guy that wore a top hat.

Tell me about your first role?

My first acting gig was in pre-school where I dawned a top hat and cape.  I was the master of ceremonies and all the students were different animals.  I remember being so gung ho about being the lead in the play. 

Out of all the acting gigs that you had, take me through your most interesting and memorable one.

One of the most memorable moments I’ve ever had as an actor has to be when I played a character called Brundibar in a play by the same name.  The play was originally performed in WWII to the red cross by children in the Jewish internment camps.  The aim of the play was to convince the world that the camps were innocuous instead of the death camps that we know today.  The character Brundibar was supposed to represent Hitler and his domination of Europe.  Most of the cast did not survive the Nazi death camps, but I met one of the original cast members that did. 

I had turned the character into a very external malevolent character that still drew the attention and adoration of the townspeople.  I was getting into character backstage before a performance when the director came around introducing this woman to the cast.  When she looked at me, our eyes locked and without knowing anything about me, the look on her face brought her back to those camps.  I felt such sympathy and loss in that moment.  I still carry that moment with me. 

Past, Present, Future: If you could play any character from (books, movies, TV, or music) who would it be and why?

Batman. Without a doubt. I would love to tell a very human side of Bruce Wayne’s story and what drives him to become the Dark Knight. 

What would your dream role be (action star, villain, super hero, drama, horror, etc) and why?

I would like to try my hand at comedy.  I feel like I have a real knack for it, but a lot of the projects that I get seen for are dramatic in nature.  A good comedic role would be a lot of fun for me. 

Okay, crystal ball time.  Where do you see yourself in 5-10 years?

Ah man, I really hate looking into the future because there’s so much to consider and worry about.  Ideally I’d be making a comfortable living as an artist.  I also want to keep having fun and going on adventures with other artists creating new things. 

Time to sound a bit creepy.  Where can people find you/follow you/or find out more about you?

That’s not creepy at all. Creepy would be something like, “So where can people watch a live webcam feed of you sleeping?”  I would say that www.anthonycharlespodcast.com would be the best bet.  You’ll find all the social networking sites on there, my blog, and episodes of my podcast.  If there was any one place to go for more content, that’d be it. 

Any last words?

Yes, I have no idea what I am doing. I am just making this whole thing up as I go along. 

Try not to succumb to the forces of entropy.  We are all temporary beings in this construct, and the fact that we exist at all is infinitely fascinating.  We are made of the same materials that form the cosmos, and the radiance of eternity dwells within us all.  So don’t waste that precious gift working some stupid job that you can’t stand. 

Join us Monday as I preview our next guest Melissa Bowersock, Stone's Ghost