As part of this weeks author spotlight, I was delighted to have Bethany Adams agree to take part in our author interview. I reviewed Soulbound a while back and loved it, so am really glad to have this opportunity to find out more about Bethany and her books in this interview!
Q. For those that are new to Bethany Adams, can you tell us a bit about your books
Bethany: It’s pretty much a given that my books will contain magic. My current series is a fantasy romance blend, though I’d say it’s a bit heavier on the fantasy. But even when I try to write something contemporary, magic creeps in. :) The Return of the Elves series features my favorite thing ever. You’ll never guess this, but it’s...elves. Hehe
Q: At what point in your life did you know you wanted to be a writer?
Bethany: Very early on. I started making up little stories as soon as I knew enough words to write them. I think I was in middle school when I tried to write my first book. It was baaaaad. LOL. I didn’t even know that “I” needed to be capitalized, and I didn’t get anywhere close to finishing it. But even though I’ve been writing for all this time, it took me until my 30s to get to a place where I was ready to publish.
Q: Do you need peace and quiet to write or do you have a playlist to keep you going? If you do would you share it with us?
Bethany: Most of the time, I listen to music. Peace and quiet isn’t something I get often, since I have small children, so I don’t expect it. I’ve always been inspired by music, though. Favorite artists on my playlist? Evanescence, Red, Sara Bareilles, Amy Petty, Sarah McLachlan, Disturbed...it’s pretty eclectic. One of my favorite songs to listen to with Soulbound was “Of These Chains” by Red.
Q: Are your characters always a complete work of fiction or is there an element of someone you know to start the idea rolling?
Bethany: My main characters are always a complete work of fiction, and 99% of secondary characters are, too. This goes back to my high school writing days. I started a story with characters based off of friends, and everyone wanted a say in what happened. It got tedious, so I decided not to do that again. Nope. And if you’re curious about that 1%...those aren’t usually people I know. For instance, there’s a scene in Book 2 where Kai is in another town on a mission, and he finds a murdered couple. They are directly based on an encounter I had in a restaurant when my youngest was a baby. So tick me off enough and I might kill you off in a future book?
Q: What are your experiences of being an Indie Author, do you find that social media is a help or a distraction to your writing?
Bethany: So far, I love being an Indie Author! I think social media can be both help and distraction. I love connecting with friends and fans (especially friendly fans, heh), and it’s a great tool to share my work with others. But I do have to stop myself from checking social media when I should be working.
Q: What are you currently working on or is it a secret!?
Bethany: Well, I should be getting edits back on Book 2, Sundered, any day now. In the meantime, I’m working on a short story that takes place between books 2 and 3. Then I’ll be diving into the third book.
Q: The Elven world in Soulbound is so intricately woven, including the language, how do you go about creating a whole new world like that?
Bethany: In an odd way, it’s sort of organic. It all starts with the scenes that flash into my head, which tend to be character driven. I almost never come up with the world first. As the story unfolds for me, the world does, too. After the first draft is complete, I might ponder certain aspects and see if I can richen them. Now when it comes to language, I do stop in the first draft to put thought into that. I almost went into Linguistics in college, and languages fascinate me. For example, I set up the Moranaian language as a verb, subject, object language with limited case markers. I also had to decide how to do their alphabet, etc. Maybe someday I’ll write a guide to their language. Someday. :)
Q: If you could be any character you have written who would you choose?
Bethany: Probably Arlyn. I mean, I wouldn’t want to lose my mom or family, but I’d love to find a portal to Moranaia. If one exists, I don’t know how to find it, though. Alas.
Q: What are you currently reading?
Bethany: I’m between books right now since I’m on a tight deadline, but next on my list is Angeli by Jody Wallace. Then probably the newest Lynsay Sands.
Q: Fictional Dinner Party - give me 5 fictional characters or authors who you would have as dinner companions
Bethany: Ohhh, only 5? Aerin from The Hero and the Crown. Elspeth, Darkwind, and Vanyel from Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar series. Number 5, hmm….maybe Mercedes Lackey herself. I suppose you can guess who my favorite author is. Hehe
Thank you so much for taking part Bethany, I now know not to get on your bad side ;) or perhaps I do to get a mention in a book! Can't wait for Sundered!
