14 Oct 2014

Blog Tour: Echoes of Scotland Street by Samantha Young

As this title is book 5 in a series, below is the description for book 1, On Dublin Street.  For a full description of this book, please CLICK HERE for the Goodreads page...

Jocelyn Butler has been hiding from her past for years. But all her secrets are about to be laid bare…

Four years ago, Jocelyn left her tragic past behind in the States and started over in Scotland, burying her grief, ignoring her demons, and forging ahead without attachments. Her solitary life is working well—until she moves into a new apartment on Dublin Street where she meets a man who shakes her carefully guarded world to its core.

Braden Carmichael is used to getting what he wants, and he’s determined to get Jocelyn into his bed. Knowing how skittish she is about entering a relationship, Braden proposes an arrangement that will satisfy their intense attraction without any strings attached.

But after an intrigued Jocelyn accepts, she realizes that Braden won’t be satisfied with just mind-blowing passion. The stubborn Scotsman is intent on truly knowing her… down to the very soul.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR
(from Goodreads)

Sam
antha Young is a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author from Stirlingshire, Scotland. She's been nominated for the Goodreads Choice Award 2012 for Best Author and Best Romance for her international bestseller ON DUBLIN STREET. ON DUBLIN STREET is Samantha's first adult contemporary romance series and has sold in twenty-seven countries.

For more info on Samantha's adult fiction visit http://www.ondublinstreet.com

For info on her young adult fiction visit www.samanthayoungbooks.com

INTERVIEW



1.     If you could work with any other author, who would it be and why?

I would have loved the opportunity to work with the late Angela Carter. She was a major inspiration for me, and the most beautiful, strange, lyrical, darkly romantic, fantastical, brilliant feminist writer, and I would have loved to work with her just to get an inkling of how her mind worked. Also, I loved her twist on fairytales and have always wanted to explore my own twist on fairytales, and it would have been amazing to work with the mistress of the genre.

2.     What would be a typical working day for you? When and where do you write?

My typical working day is spending the morning running book errands i.e. post office visits to mail out books and swag. I then answer emails and social media. Break for lunch. The afternoon is spent writing. Break for dinner. And the evening is also spent writing and posting tidbits on social media. I usually write in my office at home, but if I’m feeling restless I’ll take my music, go for a long walk and write in my head, until I can get back to my office to jot it all down.


3.     What is the hardest part of the writing for you?

The hardest part, more often than not, is the beginning of a manuscript. It takes time to get to know my characters and find an easiness in the flow of the narrative. I often find I write the second half of the manuscript much faster than the first half. Equally hard are the days when writer’s block pays a visit. It happens and when it does I know the best thing for me to do is to take a step back from the book until inspiration strikes again. That can be extremely frustrating, especially when I have a deadline looming.

4.     When and why did you first start writing?

I first started writing when I was about seven or eight. My mum bought me The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis and I fell instantly in love. I wanted to replicate the feeling of wonder and possibility it gave me, and so I started writing my own stories as an outlet for this thing called an imagination that C.S. Lewis woke up in me.

5.     How did you come up with the idea for your book?

ECHOES OF SCOTLAND STREET was actually inspired by the song Words As Weapons by Birdy. I knew I was going to write Cole’s story as soon as I wrote him all grown up in FALL FROM INDIA PLACE, and so I was brainstorming in the background of writing FFIP, trying to come up with the perfect heroine for Cole. I came up with Shannon as I listened to Birdy’s song, and realised her story was a perfect counterpoint to Cole’s, and that as much as she was the heroine for him, Cole was THE hero for her.

6.     Are you a big reader? If so, what are you reading now?

I’m a massive book junkie. Before I started writing full time I would read three, four, five books a week. My writing schedule is so hectic I don’t have nearly the same time to read. It’s a good week if I finish one book. At the moment I’m lucky enough to be reading BREAKING THE RULES by Katie McGarry, which comes out in December in the US and January in the UK.

7.     Do you have any advice for other aspiring writers?

Yes, write, write and write some more. It’s the most simple, straightforward advice but it is the best advice I can give. Writing is a skill like any other—you get better with practice. I would suggest writing a few books before deciding to self-publish or submit to an agent. Or at the very least write fifty drafts of your first book!  



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