Can you tell readers a little bit about
yourself and what inspired to write in this particular genre?
I’m actually a
very boring person, all I ever do is write and play #DanceMom to my daughter
(Don’t believe everything you see on television). I’ve always been sort of dark
and twisty, so as a writer, the paranormal is just a natural fit. I honestly
believe that there is more to the world than what science recognizes.
What inspired you to write this
book?
I was actually
inspired by My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding. I watched a few episodes and became
fascinated by the Irish Traveller culture. I did some research into it and then
into some Irish legends and before I knew it, I had the outline for Once.
Please tell us about your latest
release.
Once is about a
young woman named Harmony Jacobson that falls in love with an Irish Traveller
named Kieran, that is part of an ancient, almost immortal, tribe called the
Tuatha de Danann. Of course, being almost immortal, you know Kieran and his family have made some enemies.
What is your favorite scene from the
book? Could you share a little bit of it, without spoilers of course?
There is a scene
between Harmony and Kieran at a pond where she talks about how you never see
butterflies anymore and how she misses them. He makes a few appear and it’s the
first time that he reveals his abilities, but to me it was just the gesture of
doing something just to make her smile that really stuck out to me.
“It
was,” I said. “Have you ever noticed you never see butterflies that much
anymore? I miss them.”
Oh
God... That was a stupid thing to say...
Kieran
pulled at my hand to stop me just as we reached the edge of the trees.
“Is
something wrong?” I asked as I turned around.
“No,”
Kieran said as he took my other hand as well and then tilted his head back and
closed his eyes. “Just wait.”
Suddenly,
into the air rose a cloud of orange and black butterflies. They fluttered all
around us, landed on my arms and shoulders.
I
looked at him amazed, “How did you do that?”
Kieran
stepped forward and brought his lips down on mine in a feathery soft kiss. When
I opened my eyes, the butterflies were gone.
“Magic,”
he whispered and backed away.
Did you find anything really
interesting while researching this or another book?
For this book, I
researched the Irish Traveller culture as much as possible, but they are a very
secretive culture. The one thing that I could find LOTS of information on was
the Dale Farm land dispute. I was horrified by the comments that people would
leave about how “the only good traveller, is a dead traveller”, bomb the whole
place and be done with it, and why didn’t they just move into homes like
“normal people”. The amount of hate
really shocked me. It was like looking
back in time to the way my Native American ancestors were treated and from that
point on, I knew that even though my book was fiction, I wanted to touch on
that.
With the book being part of a
series, are there any character or story arcs, that readers jumping in somewhere
other than the first book, need to be aware of? Can these books be read as
stand alones?
Just like with my
Spiritus series, my goal is that the reader could start anywhere, but in
Spiritus series the concept was ghosts and reincarnation, this time it’s a
little more complicated than that. It’s
hard to get so much back information into each book without it sounding like a
recap.
Do you have any weird writing quirks
or rituals?
The strangest writing ritual I have is that I write
everything out in spiral notebooks first, then I use a talk to text program to
get it into Word, and then I do my first edit. I don’t know why, but I can’t
make the thoughts flow as easily if I just type it directly into the computer.
There is something about pen to paper that just works for me. I guess another
odd thing would be that I write “out of order”. I may write the ending first,
then the beginning, and then the middle.
Other than writing, what are some of
your interests, hobbies or passions in life?
I of course love
to read, but I’m also into flower gardening (so nerdy, I know), and I LOVE old
movies. Yes, I’m that odd person under fifty that can quote long passages from
Vivien Leigh movies and can name all of Elizabeth Taylor’s husbands. My biggest
passion though has to be spending time with my daughter. Since my husband’s
death a few years ago, she has become the center of my world and I love getting
to watch her grow up and develop into her own little person.
What was the last amazing book you
read?
I really enjoyed
Flutter by Melissa Andrea. I read it during a dance convention. I had random
time in between taking my daughter back forth to class and bringing her food.
It was a great story and easy to dive right back into no matter how many times
I had to stop and start.
Where is your favorite place to
read? Do you have a cozy corner or special reading spot?
I live out in the
middle of the woods and I love to sit out on the back porch and read. My second
favorite place to read would have to be in bed.
What can readers expect next from
you?
I’m currently
working on Far Away, the second book in the Gypsy Fairy Tale series. I’m also
in the research phase of another book centered around a pair of witches with a
rather unexpected bond that goes back centuries. I definitely very excited
about the upcoming year!
Where can readers find you on the
web?
Would you like to leave readers with
a little teaser or excerpt from the book?
I
locked the back door and then went to the counter and opened the register. I
thumbed through the receipts and placed them under the drawer. It all seemed in
order, nothing that couldn’t wait until morning. I grabbed my keys as another
rumble of thunder came and shook the very walls.
A
loud bang made me jump and drop everything.
What
the hell was that?
My
heart was pounding as I stood in the center of the room. I waited, listening
and trembling, until I heard the sound again.
This
time it was more of a slamming sound. I looked around straining my ears until I
heard it again, and looked up where it sounded like it came from to see the
upper window had come unlatched.
Of
course...
I
sighed, drop my keys on the counter, and went back into the store room. I was
dead tired, tripping over boxes and bumping into barrels as I pulled the ladder
out from the back corner.
Every
muscle in my body ached as I dragged it out to the front room and under the
window. I climbed up, only to realize that it was too short to reach the latch.
Why
can’t anything ever just be easy?
I
was too tired to go out back into the barn and search in the dark for a taller
ladder. Stupidly, I climbed the remaining two rungs and balanced on the very
top.
Stretching
up on my toes and wobbling, I reached for the latch and grasped it as the bell
on the front door rattled.
There
was no time to think, but yet it all seemed to happen in slow motion. I heard
the ladder crash to the floor, I felt my stomach rise up to my throat as I
fell, and then I stopped, cradled in a blur of black that smelled of clover.
There
was a low murmur of a voice I did not recognize in my ear, speaking words I did
not understand. I wiggled free of the strangers grasp, wobbling on my feet as I
tried to stand.
Looking
up, I was staring face-to-face with that younger man from the parade. He was
breathtaking to see up close with full lips and overpowering emerald eyes. I
swallowed a few times, trying to remember how to even form words.
“I’m
sorry,” I somehow managed to mumble as I backed away.
He
cocked one dark eyebrow and pulled those pouty lips into a smirk.
“You
are apologizing for falling then?”
His
voice was enchanting. There was a beautiful Irish lilt to it, but also
something else, something hypnotic and mesmerizing that made it difficult to
think clearly.
“I
um... I guess so.” I stammered, almost tripping over myself to get behind the
counter and put some distance between us.
He
moved closer, his steps graceful and light as a feather.
“Are
you afraid of me for some reason?”
“Of
course not,” I said with a nervous giggle, hating the sound of my own voice.
“But why are you here?”
“Ah,
so it is like that is it?”
I
could feel the heat coming to my face, “No, I just mean, it’s so late in the
storm coming in...”
“Horse and mule feed.”
“What?”
He
smiled; it was a quick flash of white teeth in his tanned face.
“I’m
here for horse and mule feed,” he repeated. “Preferably with molasses.”
“Seriously?”
“You
sell feed, do you not?”
“Of
course.”
He
raised his eyebrow again, “Don’t tell me you’re closed.”
“Yes,
but it’s fine.” I said, fidgeting from one foot to the other. “Well, what I
mean is that it’s the least I can do.”
He
kept looking at me with those amazing green eyes and amused expression.
I
pointed to the bags stacked in the corner, “Just go ahead and take what you
need.”
“I
can’t do that Miss," he said with a shake of his head. “I can’t be taking
what I haven’t paid for.”
I
didn’t know how to react to his quick change in mood. It was almost like I had
offended him or something, but something about it had me wondering how fast the
police could get here.
“I’m
sorry,” I said quickly and opened up the receipt book. “How many bags do you
need?”
“Just
two.”
“Okay,”
I said and went back to writing out his order, anything to give me something to
do so that I wouldn’t have to look at him.
He
moved closer, shadowing the counter.
“My
name is Kieran,” he said in his musical voice. “Just in case you were curious.”
I
didn’t look up, I couldn’t, my hands were trembling and I knew my cheeks were
flaming. It would only be worse if I looked up.
Is
he actually flirting with me?
He
rested his elbows on the counter, close enough that I could smell the rich
clover smell again.
“And
what would your name be?” He asked, almost teasing me.
“Harmony,”
I answered in a shaky voice. “Harmony Jacobson.”
“Well,
don’t we have a pair of unusual names?”
I
didn’t answer him. To save myself the embarrassment, I pretended that writing
out his receipt took all of my concentration.
“I’m
just making polite conversation here,” he teased. “You don’t have to be so
embarrassed.”
When
I looked up, he was staring at me with those intense green eyes. I couldn’t
speak, all that I could do was take his money and hand him his receipt.
He
went over to the corner and picked up the two bags of feed as if they weighed
nothing, hoisting both up on one shoulder. Stopping at the door, he looked back
and gave me one last dazzling smile.
“I
shall be seeing you, Harmony Jacobson.”
I
remained behind the counter after he left; my heart was beating so fast I was
afraid to move from that spot.
Did
that really just happen?
After
what seemed like a long while, my pulse finally stopped thundering in my ears.
I was able to let go of the counter edge and walk out to the fallen ladder in
the center of the room.
I
dragged it back into the storeroom and leaned it against the wall, knowing that
it was not where it originally was, but not really caring. My earlier
exhaustion was now completely mind numbing. All that I wanted to do was get to
bed.
I
picked up my keys, switched off the lights and stepped outside. As I locked the
door, I could hear the music drifting over from across the street. Even though
the rest of the town was dark and quiet, the camp at the fairgrounds was alive
with lights and activity.
It
was like an entirely different world, brought right here to our tiny little
town.
Once
Gypsy Fairy Tale Book One
Dana Michelle Burnett
Beautiful. Secretive. Magical. You envy their freedom, but you are distrustful of their ways. A strange carnival has come to Corydon, Indiana and the Irish Travellers have captured the small town's attention--but it's Harmony who's attracted theirs.
Harmony sees the Travellers everywhere and just like everyone else in town she's curious. But once she meets the mysterious and captivating Kieran, Harmony's life takes an exciting and chilling turn.
Up until now, Harmony never believed that fairy tales or myths were real, but Kieran and his family belong to an ancient tribe called the Tuatha de Dannan and someone else has discovered their secret.
An ancient battle is about to begin again, and now no one is safe, especially Harmony. Can Kieran resist the urge to be with her or will his feelings put her in the crossfire?
About the Author:
Dana Michelle
Burnett spent most of her life writing short stories and sharing them with
family and friends. Over the years, her work was published in
numerous commercial and literary magazines including Just
Labs, Mindprints: A Literary Journal, Foliate Oak, and many
more. Her short story John Lennon and the Chicken Holocaust
was include in The Best of Foliate Oak 2006.
Dana Michelle's Spiritus Series introduced the idea of a ghostly romance and became a Kindle bestselling series. She's an avid reader of anything dark and romantic. Dana Michelle lives in Southern Indiana with her dancing diva daughter and an assortment of pets.
Dana Michelle's Spiritus Series introduced the idea of a ghostly romance and became a Kindle bestselling series. She's an avid reader of anything dark and romantic. Dana Michelle lives in Southern Indiana with her dancing diva daughter and an assortment of pets.
Giveaway is an ecopy of Once
and a Gypsy Inspired bookmark bookthong
3 comments:
Sounds like a fascinating series. I agree with you about pen and paper, there is something about ink flowing on the page that revs up the ideas flowing in the mind.
Nice cover and teaser
bn100candg at hotmail dot com
I have never heard of My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding. I shall have to look for it. Thanks for sharing.
debby236 at gmail dot com
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