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Friday, March 22, 2013

Aaron and Patricia Live from Ashley's Blog


I'd like to welcome to my blog Patricia and Aaron, fellow XoXo Publishing Authors! They are going to talk about their little gems and entice you to want to learn more.



1. First off why did you become a writer?

Aaron: It was quite the accident for me. My wife got me into a role playing group, and I hadn't written anything creative since high school. I found I really enjoyed creating characters and writing their stories. Then I saw a call for submissions for an anthology one day. I took a role play that Patricia and I had done, edited it, and submitted it and it was accepted!

Pat: I had an art teacher give us an assignment in high school. We were to write a descriptive narrative of a painting we would like to paint. After reading my paper she called me aside and told me my talent didn't lie with painting {truthfully I had no talent} but in the telling of the story behind the painting. 

 2. What does your wife think of your writing?

Aaron: My wife Wendy is very supportive. I believe it helps that I have a very hard rule about not letting my writing interfere with the kids' activities or our life in general. That's a good thing. It does make me a very slow writer compared to many others I know though. Patricia and I have been working on the story for the novel we are working on for nearly two years.

Pat: ~Giggles~ No wife....but his tells me I have talent, does that count?

 3. Have you thought about writing a solo novel or do you prefer the team writing?

Aaron: I really enjoy the collaboration of having another person to write against and with. It helps to have someone to bounce ideas off of, and honestly I think it makes us both better.

Pat: I wrote poetry as a younger woman. Nothing published mostly for my own amusement. But no First off I never dreamed of publishing anything I had ever written *squinting my eyes at my partner, then grinning* but this one *nodding at Aaron* he was the one who sneaked this in on me. 

 4. What inspires you to write?

Aaron: Similar to my collaboration comment above, my writing partners inspire me to write. All of them, in their own way. Other things do as well, maybe something I see, a picture, an idea, a song. There are some pages in particular on Facebook that I go to in particular when I need a jump start in the form of a visual image.

Pat: You’re not going to believe me but I have the ability to remember my dreams and Trish speaks to me a lot through my dreams. That and in the shower she screams at me in the shower or on my long car commutes into the city where I work ... she will demand I turn the radio off and listen to her babble.

 5. Do you have a special place to write in your home?

Aaron: Not really. I write on the couch, at the Tae Kwon Do studio, at Starbuck's, wherever I get a chance. I have to take the time where I can.

Pat: I took a car garage a few years ago and transformed it into a spare room, the rest of my home has dark wood paneling this room I had dry walled and I painted it a sunflower yellow. There I have my kitchen table and my computer set up facing a window where I can write and keep watch on my neighborhood.

6. How did you come up with the idea for your short story 'Tears of the Mermaid'?

Aaron: I would like Patricia to answer this one :)

Pat: *This gets him another glare* Well it actually all started when a member of our role playing group created a group page "Otherworlds: Pirates". Now there were two things as a child I was sure I was going be when I grew up; one was a pirate the other a cowboy. *Can we say tomboy* So for a Mermaid this was just tailor made for me and it gave me wings to fly....

7. Are the characters Rudy and Trish based off of the authors?

Aaron: Rudy is my character, and I think there is a lot of me in him. There are several incarnations of him in various settings and times. He was the first character I ever "created". Loyal, honest, compassionate, strong-willed, and always putting others ahead of himself, even though he's been through hard times. He's what I want to be, in a sense.

Pat: I am Trish and she is me there really is no separation of the two. I am the only landlocked Mermaid you will ever meet.

8. How long did it take you to write the first and second short stories? 

Pat: *Bows and grins* I'll let Aaron answer this one...all though I will say that we started writing together 2010. He does all the writing an editing. Truly I am just the side kick he does all the heavy lifting.

Aaron:  She never gives herself enough credit.  We started the Pirates version of Rudy and Trish in 2011.  Those two short stories are part of a much larger narrative that has taken us nearly two years to complete.  But the stories themselves in their current format took about a day or two to edit from their draft form.

9. Which is your favorite of the two short stories?

Aaron: Wow ... I love them both, but I think my favorite of the two is "Tears", because it Rudy's fight for Trish, the willingness to put it all on the line because he loves her more than he loves his own life. "I would rather die with you than live without you."

Pat: I have to say I agree with Aaron, not that both stories aren't dear to my heart, "Tears" means the most to me personally because this was done out of love and the pure fun of it. Not to be published nor even have anyone else ever read it. When we started this story I had no idea where it would take us but I was on the journey of a life time.

10. Aren't you making it into a novel? How is that coming along?

Aaron: The story is complete, and we are about 30,000 words into the manuscript. I've had to pause because my computer crashed, but I should have it back this week. Right now it is looking like it is around a 100,000 word story. And this is hopefully the first in a series, and I believe it is a unique concept for a series. But I don't want to give all that away right now.

Pat: Aaron is the idea man I have the habit of calling him "Butch", if you have ever seen Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid you will know what I'm referring to.

11. What's in the future for you?

Aaron: For me, I want to turn the Realmwalker Prophecy (which is the series name for Rudy and Trish's series) into a long-running series of novels. I already have ideas for eight or nine books. I have another collaboration with Dawn Treadway called "Children of Sheol: Dark Dreams". This is a paranormal romance between a demon and an empathic human. It's a finished manuscript looking for a home. Got a few other ideas bouncing around, but as I said above, I'm a slow writer. These ideas could represent years of writing. Which is okay with me.

Pat: Like I said and have all ways said I'm just the side kick to his genius. As long as he wants to keep me around I'll be happy to write with him. I really never expected our story to be picked up much less published so every day is a gift, a treasure I hold close to my heart.

Aaron:  *Shaking my head*  And as I said before, she is too modest.  None of this would have worked without her.

Fire Round:

Chocolate or Vanilla Aaron: Vanilla   Pat: Vanilla
Favorite Color Aaron: Blue  Pat: Red
Morning Noon or Night  Aaron: Night   Pat: Night
Weekdays or Weekends Aaron: Weekends  Pat: Yes
Favorite Holiday Aaron:  Thanksgiving.  What?  I like food.  Pat: Hands down. Halloween
Favorite Vacation Spot Aaron: Just about anywhere    Pat: The beach ANY beach.
Favorite Sport Aaron:  Football, hockey, and soccer   Pat: Watching the UK Wild Cats
Favorite Saying Aaron:  Sometimes you have to go through something to realize why you did it.  Pat: Where are we and why are we in this handbasket?

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Rudy and Trish are the main characters in our two published short stories in the "Evernight: Romance in a World of Darkness" anthologies.  You can get to know them as well as get 23 other great stories!  Here's where you can find them:

Evernight Volume 1:   Amazon       XoXo          ARe

Evernight Volume 2:   Amazon       XoXo          ARe


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