As a special reminder, today is the last day to sign up to win Book 2 in Lynsay’s Argeneau series, Love Bites
. Click here to enter and good luck. Contest ends today, eod.
. Click here to enter and good luck. Contest ends today, eod.And now...my killer interview with Lynsay Sands
Lynsay: Ok… (wracking my brain now) … well how about this. I hate being interviewed in person as my voice sounds odd to me in recordings and I hate having my picture taken. So I guess I am living up to that artistic stereotype of being extremely private and secretive… LOL.
Mina B.: I know what you mean. I’m the same way. We know you write anthologies, The Highland Series, the Argeneau series, historical and contemporary and I believe also shape shifters. I read that you can’t predict the emerging trends but can you reveal another paranormal creature that intrigues you?
Lynsay: Hmm… that’s a good question. I have always had problems writing about paranormal creatures and the reasons are: 1) because it would be very difficult for me to write about anything that wasn’t somehow scientifically plausible, even if it was a stretch; and 2) it would be pretty hard for me to write a love scene as I just find that most of these creatures are just not sexy. I mean, werewolves really just don’t do it for me. All I can think of is dogs chasing their tails, licking their butts and sniffing your crotch. Don’t get me wrong, I love dogs and wolves and think they’re wonderful creatures. I just have trouble seeing them as sexy.
Other than that, I’m afraid I have never given too much thought to the possibility of writing about a new paranormal creature so nothing is really coming to mind, sorry.
Mina B.: Have you written anything YA? If not, would you consider it?
Lynsay: I haven’t written anything for young adults yet, but I have been thinking about it since writing Immortal Hunter with Dani and her young sister Stephanie. I have been considering following Steph’s story, and the ideas for her are flying. The only thing holding me back is that I already have little time with the historicals and vamps on my plate. Not sure I could find time to add in two more books. Still … maybe in the future.
Mina B.: WOW. Lynsay Sands doing YA. You KNOW…it’s gonna be good.
Next question…We know you are a New York Times best seller among other great accomplishments. Can you tell us what award, accolade or accomplishment you haven’t won yet that would be the ultimate feather in your cap?
Lynsay: I would love to one day hit #1 on the New York Times bestsellers list. That would definitely make my day… week… ah heck, it would probably make my entire year really.
Hmm…and maybe see my stories as a movie, although I'm less sure about that one because my characters have such a life of their own in my head that I think it would be difficult to find an actor or actress to portray them well enough to match up to the book character and satisfy me.
Mina B.: I couldn’t agree with you more. However, I’d love to see Vampire Interrupted
on the big screen. It is my favorite of your Argeneau books. That, I’m sure, would be a hit…no doubt. And ironically, the woman I think would be a great leading lady – Marguerite Argeneau…yep, Angelina Jolie. I know I know but really…she’s never done a vamp movie (that I know of) and the story is a killer one.
on the big screen. It is my favorite of your Argeneau books. That, I’m sure, would be a hit…no doubt. And ironically, the woman I think would be a great leading lady – Marguerite Argeneau…yep, Angelina Jolie. I know I know but really…she’s never done a vamp movie (that I know of) and the story is a killer one. Sorry…next question. Can you discuss the process you take with your mystery writing and how your incorporate it in your novels?
Lynsay: Uhm… I don’t even know how to answer this as I don’t write mystery novels… Although I suppose I often include a mystery in my stories. Who’s trying to kill so and so, who is trying to sabotage Vincent, etc. If that’s what you mean, you’re asking a very hard question. I’m afraid I’m not one of those people who sits down and writes out a nice solid outline of the story and then writes to it. I don’t plan them ahead. The stories for me are like movies that play out in my head and I just scramble to write/type them down. A lot of the time when I start the story I haven’t a clue who’s doing what or why, I’m just running with the pack and learning as I go along.
Mina B.: OK, that’s totally fair about the mystery question. To be honest, I had to go back and think about this one. I remember I read (in this order) Bite Me If You Can
, Vampire Interrupted and strangely I got my hands on a copy of Devil of the Highlands 
(Lynsay’s Highland series – a very good book…no lie). All three had a “who done it” scenario. By the time I finished all three…I was a bona fide Lynsay Sands’s fan. Next question…What’s the fan favorite for the Argeneau Series? And if you were going to recommend one to be read, which one would that be?
Lynsay: The odd thing is every book seems to be a favorite with different people. Some prefer Single White Vampire, some A Bite to Remember, some Renegade Hunter and so on. The one thing I have noticed is that they often say the first one they read of the series is usually their favorite and since I pick up new readers with each book that means each book is a favorite to a lot of people.
As for recommending one, A Quick Bite is the start of the series and a good place to begin, but my favorites are Single White Vampire, Bite Me If You Can and The Accidental Vampire. They are my favs for funny. Marguerite’s story (Vampire, Interrupted) and Armand’s (Born to Bite) are my favs for content.
Mina B.: Whatever series/book…do you ever have an incessant character that rings in your head to this very day?
Lynsay: Anyone who’s read a few of my Argeneaus could guess this… Lucian of course! His hard exterior and soft center makes him a favorite for most people. He is always popping up into my head and hence then into my stories.
Mina B.: I love that answer. Lucian is the man.
Next… I do a monthly segment on my blog called Creepy Classics where I review a classic mystic or paranormal novel. In June, I reviewed Robert Louis Stephenson’s Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. In July, Gaston Leroux’s The Phantom of the Opera. What is your favorite Creepy Classic & why?
Lynsay: I probably shouldn’t admit this, but the only classics I’ve read were The Scarlet Letter and several Shakespeare stories, and that was because I was forced to in school. I didn’t enjoy Scarlet Letter. I was confusing it in my mind with the Scarlet Pimpernel when I picked it, expected humor and action and got the most depressing non-light read I’ve ever read and so stayed away from classics forever after. I have never read Stoker’s work, or Stephenson’s or even Shelly. So the closest I can give you to a classic is Dean Koontz Tick Tock. I love Dean Koontz, but this was one of his best. It was a funny horror, which I really enjoyed. I usually don’t remember titles but this one I remember some twenty years later, which says something.
Mina B.: What is one aspect about writing that you absolutely love?
Lynsay: Doing the actual writing is what I love. Everything else (multiple edits, promo, etc) I could easily leave behind if I had the choice. That being said, there are aspects of the ‘other stuff’ I do enjoy, but I work a very full week to keep up with it all and I would really just prefer to keep pumping out the stories. . . or maybe even just a little time off.
Mina B.: Can you tell the readers something new about your upcoming release, Born to Bite?
Lynsay: Born To Bite is Armand’s story. It resolves the matter of how his wives died, and also clears up the matter of Nicholas and what happened the night he was found with a dead mortal. Unfortunately, I couldn’t explain what happened at the end of Nicholas’s story, The Renegade Hunter, without giving away all of Armand’s story so had to leave his story just saying he was innocent. This will explain what happened that night.
I actually wrote and finished Armand’s story exactly a month after Nicholas’s and was hoping they would be published back to back like Vampires are Forever and Vampire, Interrupted were. However, it didn’t happen that way and they held the story a whole year! I really want to apologize to all my readers for that. Had I realized that would happen, I would have skipped those two stories. . . let’ or done them differently.
Hmmm, I guess none of that is new though. It seems like I’ve been repeating that last bit for months. Let me see . . . something new . . . Justin Bricker and Anders make an appearance in BTB and help out, and a lot of the family gathers together at the end as they arrive at the Hunter house to explain Nicholas’s innocence and all they’ve learned.
Gees, I don’t want to say anymore and give stuff away.
Mina B.: Thank you so much for your time, Lynsay.
Born to Bite 
releases August 31st. Don’t miss out on what promises to be a great read in a phenomenal vampire series, The Argeneaus. For more information about Born to Bite, read and excerpt on Lynsay’s website.
releases August 31st. Don’t miss out on what promises to be a great read in a phenomenal vampire series, The Argeneaus. For more information about Born to Bite, read and excerpt on Lynsay’s website. Mina B.
No comments:
Post a Comment