One Spring Break is book three in the Wimberley University Series, but it’s a stand-alone book. You don’t have to read the first two to be able to dive into this one. This novel is a light-hearted, fluffy, contemporary new adult romance about two people falling in love while searching for a lost pet.
If you used a graphic designer/publisher’s designer, how involved were you during the creative process for your cover?
I’m a huge fan of https://thebookcoverdesigner.com/. If you’re looking for a professional cover with different price points, this is a great site to visit. Wading through all the content can be daunting, but I’ve purchased several covers from different artists on the site and have never been disappointed. Most of the artists are even willing to tweak things like hair color or fonts for free. I have worked with graphic designers as well, but I find it much more convenient and less expensive to purchase ready-made covers.
Do you belong to a critique group? Have they helped improve your writing?
Major shout out to Critique Circle. https://new.critiquecircle.com/landing It doesn’t matter if you’re an experienced author or a novice, this is the place to hone your craft. I can’t even begin to tell you how much I’ve learned by submitting my stories to this site, from grammar to story structure. If you’ve never visited this site, it works on a point system. You critique other writers’ chapters or short stories and earn points that you then use to post your own stories for critique. I have made life-long friends on that site and without it, I’d never have had the courage to self-publish my stories.
What is your writing process? Do you listen to music or do you like silence?
Complete silence! I can’t write unless my office is tomb-still. Any noise can break me out of my creative headspace, so I’m even known to wear earplugs if the kids are being loud.
Did you hire an editor to review your manuscript before publishing?
Red Adept Editing and Joy Editing are both my go-to editors. They are professional and affordable, and I can’t say enough good things about them. They’ll make sure your manuscript is up to industry standards before you send them out into the world. No worries about embarrassing typos or incorrect grammar.
What have you’ve learned during your self-publishing journey?
Not every book you write is going to be a five-star masterpiece and that’s okay. Some readers are going to adore your books, others are going to dislike them, and that’s okay too. Listen to your criticizers and take their feedback to heart to improve your future books, but don’t let their comments dishearten you. Almost every best-selling author has a few duds in their backlist. It takes a thick skin to be an author, but keep writing and, above all, have fun!
What advice would you give a new author just entering into the self-publishing arena?
Keep writing new books. A lot of authors write a book, release it, and sit back and wait for readers to flock to their debut. Sometimes it happens, but so many books are getting released every day, it’s easy to get lost in the crowd. You can set yourself apart by writing more books. The more novels under your name, the higher your chance of discoverability by readers. Once you have a few books in circulation, it’s easier to build a loyal readership and engage with your audience. Don’t give up if your first book doesn’t take off, just keep writing.
Besides writing, do you have any other passions?
I’m a perfumist. I have an organ of about a thousand aroma molecules and naturals, and I can spend weeks formulating new perfumes just for fun. I also love making all-natural Victorian perfume recreations. Nineteenth century women smelled much different than modern women!
Some fun facts about you, which do you prefer – dogs or cats? Cats. Chocolate or vanilla? Chocolate. Coffee or Tea? Coffee. Talk or Text? Talk. Day or Night? Day (I love night but I’m most productive during the day.)
What’s next for you?
I’m delving into Kindle Vella. Depth of Field is a macabre young adult contemporary romance that I’m submitting to the new amazon serialized story platform. It’s a fluffy novel about a high school girl working at a family-owned mortuary. I’m also submitting an urban fantasy, A Summoner in London, that revolves around a perfumist who can also summon jinn (genies.) Unfortunately for her, the jinn want to kill her. Hop on over to Kindle Vella and take a peek.
https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/product/B09NS2HKQS/episodeList
https://www.amazon.com/kindle-vella/product/B09NL999B8/episodeList
One Spring Break
Sophie Stevens
Publication date: January 10th 2022
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance
Flat-ass. Chubby cheeks. Whore.
Pre-med student, Rosie Magee, has been called every slur imaginable by her obnoxious roommate, a foul-tempered fellow who drops food on the floor and poops wherever he pleases. If the insult thrower didn’t have scarlet feathers and a beak capable of shearing fingers, she’d happily kick him out. But her roommate, a macaw named Baby, belongs to her snotty sister Maria, and according to their mother, if the siblings want room and board, they’re stuck together until graduation. After scrimping and saving, Rosie has finally tucked away enough money to escape from her boyfriend-stealing sister and her evil, yellow-eyed minion for one spring break.
Wholesome. Good guy. Boy next door.
Engineering student, Erik Snider, never believed good guys finish last until his girlfriend has a one-night-stand with a local thespian, Tulsa Lester. She wants to reconcile, but Erik can’t forgive a betrayal so deep. When he learns she’s moved on while he’s still mourning their relationship, his roommate hatches a plan for revenge—ask out the prettiest girl on campus, Maria Magee, and take her to the spring formal his ex will be attending. Though not the vengeful type, Erik is desperate enough to agree in hopes a date with a gorgeous girl will help him heal, but pretty girls have agendas of their own. If he wants an evening with Maria, he’ll have to take care of her demanding macaw for one spring break.
When Baby escapes Erik’s care, Rosie ditches her vacation to help him find her sister’s macaw. As they fight off parrot hungry hawks and navigate trees with flimsy branches, they form a bond that might just verge on love. But nothing comes easily for Rosie. With a man-stealing sister who lives to torment her, and a best friend Tulsa who tore apart Erik’s relationship, happily-ever-after will be anything but smooth sailing.
One spring break brought them together.
An insolent bird…
A hateful sister…
A best friend with secrets…
Will tear them apart.
Author Bio:
Author of contemporary romance, young adult and urban fantasy.
Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter
GIVEAWAY!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Hosted by:
A perfumery, that is so cool. I would love to see what scents you come up with!
ReplyDeleteNice cover. It sounds like a really interesting book. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThank you Debra and David for hosting my book tour! Happy reading everyone.
ReplyDeleteThanks for being on the tour! :)
ReplyDeleteI love the cover and synopsis, this is a must read for me. Thank you for sharing your interview and book details and for offering a giveaway
ReplyDelete