Crossroads Blog Tour Day 3: Joy Preble

It's day 3 of The Crossroads Blog Tour! If you're not familiar with how the tour works, you can check out my kick off post here, and then be sure to visit The Crossroads Tour main page for a full list of participating authors and bloggers as well as details on prizes, giveaways, and collecting the mystery clues!

I'd like to extend a big welcome to Joy Preble who's popping in today to answer some questions!




Did your Russian heritage inspire Dreaming Anastasia, or have you always had an interest in Russian folklore?

I have always had an interest in Russian history. The use of Russian folklore in this series did come from that. My grandmother’s tales of Russia were always wildly dramatic and horrifically sad – on the same grand scale that you find in say, a Tolstoy novel. She was a fabulously unhappy person – which I don’t find depressing, just fascinating. (for a long time I thought everyone’s grandmother slugged down shots and whiskey and took a shocking number of pills, but I later discovered that this was not the case)

Is it difficult to switch character voices in the same story, or do you find the transition from one character’s mind to the next fairly easy?

If I’m writing every day, it’s rarely a problem. But if I have to take a break for one reason or another, I do sometimes have to spend time re-reading the character I’m about to write to make sure I nail the voice and I’m not giving Anne’s verbal tics to Ethan or vice versa. Usually if I slip up, btw, that’s what happens; Ethan starts sounding more like Anne and I have to fix it. Anne NEVER sounds like Ethan.

Of the three characters, did you relate to one more than the others?

I relate to all all them in certain ways – Ethan’s desperate need for a second chance to get things right; Anne’s humor and love for her family… but Tess probably is the closest to the real inner me – she’s snarkier than the others and she calls it like she sees it. I always find myself giving her the best lines…

Favorite paranormal entity or mythological creature (i.e. vampire, werewolf, faery, witch, etc.)?

Well, I was a vampire fan for a very long time, but now it’s witches. And of course, evil Russian mermaids. Disney’s Ariel wouldn’t stand a chance against a rusalka!

Any teaser, hint, or fun fact you can provide about Haunted? How many books in the series?

I hope to be able to do three books, but that’s going to be up to my readers and to Sourcebooks! As for HAUNTED, here’s a blurb:

Anne Michaelson’s world turned upside down last year when handsome, blue-eyed and temporarily immortal Russian Ethan Kozninsky showed up. Now six months later, Anne still has powers she doesn’t fully understand. She’s still dreaming about Baba Yaga’s forest. And she’s definitely still got feelings for Ethan, even though she’s got a new boyfriend—the very normal and very sweet lifeguard Ben Logan. But things are about to get even more complicated. There’s a wicked Russian folklore mermaid stalking Anne. With her heart torn between Ben and Ethan, Anne’s search for the rusalka’s identity reveals deep and startling secrets -- including the true source of Anne’s powers. As the romance heats up, so does the danger. Will Anne’s powers be enough to help the rusalka get what she wants? Or will the longings of her own heart get in the way?

A huge thanks to Joy for taking the time to answer my questions! The second book in the Dreaming Anastasia series, Haunted, releases February 1st, 2011 so be sure and add it to your list. For more information on Joy and her books, you can find her here:

Website
Blog
Twitter