.png)
Sandra: First of all, Emily. Thanks for having me. I appreciate your hospitality and I’m looking forward to chatting with your readers. For anyone who leaves a comment and sends me an email at SandraCox1@gmail.com with Emily Bryan in the subject line I’ll put their name in a drawing for a PDF (e) copy of GROUNDED. The contest ends Friday March 19th. The winner will be announced Saturday March 20.
Emily: Great! Everyone loves a contest and a chance to win a free read. So, Sandra, tell us about GROUNDED.
.jpg)
Sandra: Thanks for asking. GROUNDED is an urban fantasy about a reclusive young woman.On the surface, Gillian Stone has it all: wealth, beauty, and the freedom to come and go as she pleases…at least from sunset to dawn. But, from dawn to dusk, she’s grounded in several hundred pounds of marble. And if that’s not bad enough, her life expectancy is preordained to be short…unless, she can find a certain genie and reverse the wish-spell.
Emily: Bummer. Guess I'll have to read the book to see how this calamity happened!What will we love about your hero/heroine?
Sandra: As far as the hero, Darth Hunter is your typical bad boy who passionately cares about the people he loves, but he’s not real big on letting it show. If you’re in a tight spot, he’s who you want in your corner.
Gillian Stone is a young woman who, through no fault of her own, has been dealt a tough hand. But she doesn’t whine or complain about it. She just deals. After being encased in marble everyday, her outlet at night is fast cars and motorcycles.
Sandra: I understand this is a story for young adults. What's the biggest challenge about writing for the YA market?
Sandra: I really enjoy writing YA. It’s a lot of fun. As far as the challenge, I think it’s letting folks know that what I write is as much YAH (young at heart) as YA. The audience I write for is from 14 to 90.
Emily: YA really does have a wide readership. (OK, everyone who's read Harry Potter or Twilight, raise your hand!) Can you tell us what's next for you, Sandra?
Sandra: Vampire Island, the first of the Hunter series was released last month. I’m currently working on the 2nd in the series.
Here's an excerpt from GROUNDED:
Be careful what you wish for.
While I’m dropping pearls of wisdom let me add, read the fine print.
Why am I wasting my time offering warnings that no one is going to listen to?
Because as humans we have this unconquerable urge to try to help others learn from our mistakes. Or in this case my great, great, great, great grandmother’s mistakes.
She came from a very poor background and consequently wanted it all, riches beyond measure, beauty. Need I say more?
Great-great-plus Grams stumbled onto a genie’s lamp and made her wish.
You don’t believe in genies?
Trust me. They’re real all right. Unfortunately, when my ancient relative made her wish she didn’t bother to listen to the genie’s warning of strings attached. This lack of foresight has a direct bearing on the first born daughter of each generation, i.e. me.
To put it mildly, my life is complicated. I am literally grounded forever.
I live on a lavish estate in the mountains of North Carolina. Between sunset and dawn, my life is my own. But during the day I’m grounded in several hundred pounds of marble. If you happen to wander by the Stone estate and peep through the fence, you’ll hear the rippling sounds of water from a lovely manmade pool surrounded by lush fragrant flowers. Beside it stands a life size statue of a young woman, with long flowing hair and classic bone structure, draped in a Greek toga a cat at her feet.
The cat is Merrick.
The young woman is me.
Author Bio: Sandra Cox is a multi-published author who writes YA, paranormal and historical romance, and metaphysical nonfiction. She lives with her husband and a menagerie of pets including an occasional foster cat. If you’d like to see the brood, visit her website at www.sandracox1.com.To Buy GROUNDED, click here!
Thanks for coming by, Sandra. Ok, everybody, be sure to leave a comment and send Sandra an email at SandraCox1@gmail.com with "Emily Bryan" in the subject line to enter her contest! If you found a genie in a bottle, what would YOU wish for (this hypothetical genie doesn't have any unpleasant strings!)?
17 comments:
Congrats Sandra!! Your book sounds wonderful. My first YA will be out in Jan. or Feb. of 2010. I hope you hit big.
CC
Congrats to Sandra! When writing a YA, did you research any specific resources for guidelines, such as how much or how little sexual referance could go into a YA, what was appropriate as far as language, ect. I am assuming there is a fine line for young people?
Hi Sandra,
Congrats on Grounded. It sounds like a very interesting story./ I enjoyed your post.Happy St. Patty's Day.
Carol L.
Lucky4750@aol.com
I'm afraid I'd have to do more research to write a YA than I do for my historicals! I have such a negative coolness quotient, I don't think I could get into the head of a teen. Unless of course, she was a total nerd.
Congratulations on the release. I do love books with animals, especially cats. :-) I can't think of something to wish for that wouldn't sound completely corny (like world peace or no more disease or an end to poverty). I think if I wished for money, it would change my life in a way I don't want. And I'm happy with my relationships and family. Maybe I would wish for a 6-foot grand piano, if I could have a room in my house with just that instrument in it. But that's two wishes... :-)
Sandra, sounds like a very interesting plot!
Emily: you can and have made geeks very cool, in Vexing the Viscount :).
If I had a genie around (and assuming 'big' wishes like world peace and good health for everyone I love were out), I'd wish for a research grant for a couple of years. They're so hard to come by, but I'd love to be able to do a job I love (redundant, but true).
Thank you, Christie, and back at ya. Keep me posted on your upcoming YA.
Jane, Good question! I basically treat YA like a sweet romance.
Thanks, Carol!
Emily, I think your readers would rate you high on the Richter scale of coolness and low on the nerd scale:)
Rebecca Lynn, I'm a cat person too. And a grand piano is an awesome wish.
Nynke--"A job I love." That's a great wish and a smart one. While it's tempting to say I'd wish for a world cruise with my DH, I'd still want to write every day. Having meaningful work that engages a person is what keeps us going.
I could wish for less stress associated with their jobs for everyone. (Though a writer's stress is generally due to lack of planning or procrastination or spending too long on a bad premise or . . . well, it's a very long list, but it's all generally self-inflicted.)
Thanks for the kind words, everybody, but according to the kids I know, when they were passing out "cool," I was in the wrong line. I'm pop-culture stupid, irritated by fashion (probably because it requires frequent shopping) and freely admit to musical snobbery. The sad thing is . . . I was like this when I was a teenager too.
But if part of writing for the YA market means being able to tap into that sense of being on the outside looking in, maybe it's something I should try.
Congratulations, Sandra. I love the story premise, and I'm dying to find out how it turns out.
Thanks, Sandy:)
Hey Christie,
I just took a closer look at your last name. We were RT neighbors at the book signing last year!
What a great premise! My girls were immediately interested in it. Reminded them of the swan princess stories.
If a magic genie could make my house stay clean, every day, that would work for me. :)
Grounded sounds great.
I would ask the genie for a long, happy, healthy life (Gillian took my first answer!)
Hey Gillian, I'm still waiting for the cleaning fairies and they don't show up either. Good luck with that cleaning, genie:) Though since you have the heroine's first name, you may get lucky:)
Kaisquared: Long, happy, healthy life would be wonderful...and would probably include the cleaning genie:)
Congrats. I look forward to reading it. Wishing you well!
Lonnie
If I found a genie in a bottle, I would ask for a long, healthy, happy life for my family and friends. Financial security is part of that, but no wish for untold millions. I look at the number of big lottery winners, and few make wise decisions about how they let that money change their lives. A few have done a lot of good with it. I'll admit I wouldn't mind having a limitless supply of money. I think of the foundations that could be set up, the help for worthy non-profits that could be given and the traveling we could do. I would hope I would get it right if I ever did win. Of course, first I have to buy a ticket - or find a genie in a lamp.
Post a Comment