Mundie Moms

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Author Interview with Shadow Of The Sun author Laura Kreitzer


Today I'm so excited to have our friend, author of Shadow of the Sun (and a few other books), Laura Kreitzer, on our blog today!! Shadow of the Sun has become one of my favorite adult books. I highly recommend picking it up!


I absolutely love your unique, rich mythology of angels. What inspired you to write Shadow Of The Sun?

Some of my fans already know this, but, for those who don’t, I write fan fiction. (Yes, I still do it though I am awful about updating!) It all started with an unfinished story that I had to conclude; it literally drove me nuts. I wrote on my own until a Google search one day led me to a website where other people were doing the same thing I was. (I didn’t even know fan fiction existed until after I wrote a good 15,000 words.) I’d never cared to write in the past and truly never thought I had a creative bone in my body. I guess that wasn’t as true as I thought. My fans who read my work pushed me to write something original; they told me not to waste my time using other people’s characters and stories.


Considering this heavily, I contacted my grandma, who was an English teacher, for advice. She encouraged me to write and even gave me the idea of using angels. Now look at me! I can’t stop writing I love it so much.


How important was it for you to make your angels stand out from the rest of the angel books available to readers?

As an avid reader, I had never come across a book using the concept of angels before in a fiction-fantasy setting. I guess it has become a fad here recently, but when I was writing, the only book out that I was interested in was Fallen by Lauren Kate (and I didn’t even know it had anything to do with angels until I read it after I wrote my book). So there was no pressure to make them stand out because I didn’t have anyone to compare myself to at the time.

Now, I don’t need to stand out. My angels are different from any other out there because I created the world from scratch in my head. I didn’t research anything for Shadow of the Sun except the origin of the names I used and their meanings. Some of the names seem so simple, and I have even read a review where I was mocked for Andrew’s “modern” name. Which is funny considering how long that name has been around in history . . . :D

Hopefully I did a good job creating this world. What do you say?


I say you did a fabulous job! If you were friends with one of your characters, who would you be friends with and why?

Lucia. She hasn’t had a chance to truly stand out in the first two books, but the third she will play a much larger role. There is a wisdom about her—a strength—that just makes her a truly intriguing character. There is so much about her: how powerful she is, her death 250 years ago, and how she helps Gabriella gain the strength needed for the coming war. She’s selfless and doesn’t try to steal the spotlight; that alone attracts me to her character.


What has your writing journey been like? What advice would you give to other aspiring authors?

It has been a bumpy and hard road, but things are finally smoothing out and I finally feel like I am gaining the momentum that I’ve been struggling for. My advice for aspiring authors: keep writing and don’t let anyone tell you that you aren’t an author just because you haven’t been published. Also, keep motivated—find a support system. You can do it!


I'm anxiously awaiting the release of Soul Stalker. You able to tell us a little about what Gabriella's journey will be like in this sequel to Shadow Of The Sun?

Well . . . Soul Stalker has already been released (Sept 30, 2010). With Shadow of the Sun, it wasn’t my intention to make people believe that there was going to be a love triangle between Gabriella, Joseph, and Andrew. I’ve actually made it clear in interviews before that it isn’t part of the plan of my novels. Love triangles aren’t really my cup of tea because I’d be awful writing them. J Soul Stalker finally addresses this issue as Gabriella moves forward after her “death” by seeking out Joseph for help. We finally learn what Joseph’s role really is in her life and why they have such a strong connection. It’s not because he is in love with her—though I’m not going to tell you why because it’ll ruin the surprise in Soul Stalker.


What will readers witness in Soul Stalker? Love, destruction, secrets, battles, and ultimately Gabriella’s first Illumination. We’ll see Gabriella struggle with her powers as she literally fights her way back to her Angels. I promise a thrilling, and slightly comedic, second installment.


Abyss, book three, will be available March 31, 2011!


How did I miss it was already released!?! *runs to purchase the book* Do you treat yourself to any indulgences after your finish your books?

I take a day off. Haha. Maybe go out on the boat. I live on a lake and hardly ever get to go out because I’m always busy writing. But now that I’ve quit my day job to write full time . . . perhaps I’ll indulge a little more.

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Thank you Laura for being with us today! We really appreciate it.


If you'd like to know more about Laura's books, please visit her site here: http://laurakreitzer.com/


Just in time for Christmas, both the Shadow of the Sun and Soul Stalker novels, are available in ebook format for the Nook and Kindle. They are also both on sale ($1.99 for Shadow of the Sun and $4.99 for Soul Stalker). I'm also told that Shadow of the Sun is going to be republished before Christmas—edited and about half the price! Let me say, it's worth it!!


Phantom Universe, the first book in Laura's new series, the Summer Chronicles will be available February 15, 2011 at B&N, Books-A-Million, and Amazon! If you love reading and reviewing books, you don't want to pass this by- as right now Laura is calling for reviewers (it doesn't matter if you've just started your review blog or if you've had one for awhile). For everyone who's interested in reviewing Phantom Universe, please fill out this form here: http://bit.ly/PUForm The digital copy will be sent out January 1st, 2011.

Our Favorite Reads for 2010- 2011 Debut Release & Giveaway

We've shared our favorite books in a series, our favorite debut authors, our favorite couples, love triangles and hot scenes. Today we're sharing with you our list of highly anticipated debut releases for 2011. Some of this list we've already read and others we can't wait to read. We've also included a link to see our complete list of debut books we'll be reading at the end of the post.

2011 Debut Books we can't wait to read: (listed in order of their releases)


















* Across the Universe by Beth Revis

* Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

* Timeless by Alexandra Monir -
































* Warped by Maurissa Guibord -

* The False Princess by Eilis O'Neal -

* The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney

* A Touch Mortal by Leah Clifford-

* Whither by Lauren DeStefano

* Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton -
















* Entwined by Heather Dixon

* Wake Unto Me by Lisa Cach -

* Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton -

* Hourglass by Myra McEntire -

* Luminous by Dawn Metcalf

















* Possession by Elana Johnson -

* Falling for Hamlet by Michelle Ray

* The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab
You can see our complete list of debut releases we're looking forward to reading here:

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AND as part of our giveaways for Our Favorite Reads 2010, we are going to be giving away a copy of one of these releases! This will be for a pre-order ONLY. We will use The Book Depository, and shipping is based on the countries they ship to.

To Be ENTERED To Win You Need To-
* Be A Blog Follower
* 1 Entry per person
* Leave Us A Comment Telling Us Which 2011 Debut Book You're Looking Forward To Reading
* You Must Be 13 Yrs or Older To Enter
* This Is Open Internationally
* This Giveaway ENDS on January 15th, 2011

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