Tour and Author Interview: Betwixt

Welcome to the Betwixt Blog Tour, hosted by Xpresso Book Tours !~

Title: Betwixt [Betwixt #1]
Author: Melissa Pearl
Publication Date: November 5, 2012
Genre: Paranormal Young Adult
GoodReads

Synopsis:

Beautiful, wild-child Nicole Tepper is hit by a car and left for dead. But when she wakes the next morning, Nicole finds herself in bed without a scratch. Perhaps she was more intoxicated than usual, as her mother is giving her the silent treatment and her friends are ignoring her as well.

Things take a turn for the weird when Nicole soon discovers she is actually hovering between life and death. Her body is lying in the forest while her spirit is searching for anyone who can hear her. Unfortunately the only person who can is Dale Finnigan, the guy she publicly humiliated with a sharp-tongued insult that has left him branded.

Desperate, Nicole has no choice but to haunt Dale and convince the freaked-out senior to help her. Will he find her body before it’s too late? Or will the guy who tried to kill her with his car, beat him there and finish her off before anyone finds out?

Buy Links:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble

Title: Before [Betwixt #0.5]
Author: Melissa Pearl
Publication Date: September 17, 2013
GoodReads

Synopsis:

Dale Finnigan is a teenage rebel; he lives for parties, girls and joy riding in stolen cars. In spite of his uptight parents’ constant warnings and lectures, he continues to run wild. His crazy lifestyle is the only way he can live and feel free… Until his reckless behavior takes him down a path where there is no going back.

In this prequel to BETWIXT, find out who Dale Finnigan was before he became known as“scar-face”—the unassuming hero everyone underestimates.

WARNING: This book is intended for mature teens due to coarse language and mature content.

Buy Links:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble

Title: Beyond [Betwixt #1.5]
Author: Melissa Pearl
Publication Date: October 20, 2013

Synopsis:

Have you ever been so in love with someone, but not had the courage to tell them?

Nicole Tepper is that girl. She loves her boyfriend Dale, but fearing rejection, keeps her feelings buried deep. She can’t even let on how heartbroken she is when Dale begins applying for colleges thousands of miles away from her; never even whispering a word about how much she wishes he would stay close.

But, when Dale is rejected from Columbia University in NYC, due to a police record that follows him wherever he goes, Nicole soon discovers that love can drive her to do things she never thought possible.

There’s more than one way to say, I love you and Nicole Tepper is about to prove to Dale that she loves him beyond all common sense.

Buy Links:
Amazon

Interview:

Hey all! I am SUPER excited to introduce all of you to Melissa Pearl! If you haven’t yet read any of her books, you definitely should. Author of the Time Spirit Trilogy and The Elements Trilogy, Melissa Pearl is back with her series Betwixt.

Hey, Melissa! Welcome to Between Printed Pages, we’re so happy to have you here today~

Thank you so much for having me. It’s always a privilege to be interviewed on someone’s blog.

Before we start, could you tell us a little bit about yourself?

I am a mother to two beautiful boys – six and two – and the wife to a gorgeous middle school teacher. He works at an international school in China, so we moved from my lovely New Zealand to China just over a year ago. It’s been an experience, to say the least 😉

I write when my youngest is napping or at morning kindergarten. I love every aspect of creating a book and am a very happy camper when tucked away in my office hanging out in an alternate reality.

What was the inspiration for Betwixt? What sparked the idea to write novellas for this series?

The inspiration for Betwixt came when I watched a movie called, Invisible. It saw it years ago now and thought the premise was spectacular. I just didn’t like the way they ended it. I decided one day I’d write a story with the same premise and give it an ending I liked. I sat on it for about four years before I finally came up with something that was different enough from the movie to be original.

I never intended to write the two novellas that go with Betwixt, but I had so many readers asking for more of Dale and Nicole that I came up with these two stories to sandwich Betwixt. It was so awesome to go back into their world. I’m so glad I chose to write the novellas 🙂

What was the publishing process like for you? What advice do you have for aspiring writers and others trying to get their work published?

I have been published for just over two years now and it’s been really challenging, but SO satisfying. I am still learning new things all the time about marketing and business. It’s the one aspect of writing I don’t love – the marketing, but it’s a necessity and as I figure out what works, I’m starting to enjoy it more.

My advice to anyone trying to get published is to first make sure you have a quality product to sell. I did an online writing course for two years, which helped my writing immensley. I have also read many books on good writing practice. It took me about 5 years to write something worthy of publishing. I use editors and criqituers to help make my work shine and I would never publish anything without having multiple eyes look over it first.

If you want to be treated like a professional in the writing world then you have to act like one. Build up a good name for yourself. It can take some time, but I have decided that a slow and steady build up of my career is a good way to go. I feel like I’m really establishing myself as a trustworthy author.

As an aspiring writer, I often find myself with too many ideas and get sidetracked by them when I’m in the middle of a WIP. How do you stay on track with your WIPs when new ideas come knocking at your door?

I have that happen to me all the time. It’s usually about half way through the first draft and my brain decides to play with totally unrelated storylines. I just jot all those ideas down in a document. As soon as I’ve noted my ideas down, I can put it out of my head and focus on my current WIP. This document that I speak of has over 90 story ideas I have yet to write. I know I won’t get to all of them, new ones keep coming and taking the place of the old ones, but there are a few gems in there that I’m determined to write eventually 🙂

What’s next for you? Any new projects on the table?

Yes – I have two projects that I’m currently working on. Both will be published by Evatopia Press, which is something I’ve never done before. I’m really enjoying collaborating on these projects.

The first is The Masks Series. A four book series about a girl who is given the ability to read people’s emotions. She can see things that others cannot and it opens her up to a world of secrets she’s not prepared for.

The second is a two books series – I Know Lucy and Set Me Free. This is the story of a guy who falls in love with the mysterious new girl at school, only to work out that she’s not who she appears to be. He so badly wants to trust this girl, but how can he do that when he keeps finding out things about her past that prove she’s a lying thief?

For all the readers out there, could you name a few books for us that you’ve read and absolutely loved?

So many!!! I’ll just name a few otherwise we’ll be here all day 🙂

I’ve always liked a variety so I’ll just list the first few that pop into my head.

I’ve just discovered Anna Cruise who has fast become one of my favorite NA atuhors. I’ve loved all her books. Maverick was the first of hers I read and I think that’s still my favourite.

I also love Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles and just the other day I finished Wild Cards, which was brilliant as well.

The Hunting Lila books by Sarah Alderson

The Mark of the Lion Trilogy by Francine Rivers (I’ve read those so many times now)

And I’ll make this my last… The Chesapeake Bay Series by Nora Roberts

Apart from writing, reading, and being awesome, what do you do in your free time? Any unusual hobbies?

I love to sing and I’m a member of an adult choir at my husband’s school. I love to play the piano. I’m a total movie freak so watching those always makes me happy. I also love to cross stitch – not the little ones, but the massive ones that take months to do and look like paintings when they’re up on the wall. I like to do that while I’m watching TV. I find it really relaxing and therapeutic.

And of course I love hanging out with my three fellas 😉

Who are your top 3 favourite authors (dead or alive) and why?

Oooo – another tough question…

Francine Rivers, because she knows how to write stories that can make me cry.

Dee Henderson, because she knows how to combine action, suspense and emotion really well.

Anna Cruise, because her books are so easy to read and totally enthralling. I find them really hard to put down.

What about your top 3 musicians/bands/groups and why?

Only 3? Too hard 😀 LOL.

Casting Crowns – I have every one of their albums and I love them. The messages in their songs really speak to my heart and they have a really great sound as well.

I love movie soundtracks – both instrumental and singing. I have a lot of albums from movies – Pitch Perfect has been my latest purchase that I’ve listened to endlessly.

I am a very eclectic music lover. I listen to basically everything and find joy in all of it – from 80s rock ballads, to punk rock, to classical, to swing, to Broadway musicals, to funk, to pop, to heavy metal. I love it all. Music is good for my soul. So as you can imagine, picking three is super hard, but the name that’s popping into my head right now (probably because I was listening to her just yesterday) is Ella Fitzgerald. Her voice is like melted chocolate. I love it.

Last, but not least, what is your favourite word?

Haha! I’ve never been asked that before. What an excellent question!!!

Let me think…

Man – this is hard! There are so many words I love.

Let me settle for SPORADICALLY. I learnt that word when I watched the movie Clueless years ago and I remember loving the sound of it. I immediately added it to my vocabularly 🙂

I also love a good SQUEE when necessary 😉

Thank you so much, Melissa Pearl, for taking the time to answer our questions! Super excited to read the new novellas!

Thank you again for having me. Your questions were so brilliant and I had such fun answering them. I really hope you enjoy the novellas.

About the Author:

Melissa Pearl was born in Auckland, New Zealand, but has spent much of her life abroad, living in countries such as Jordan, Cyprus and Pakistan… not to mention a nine month road trip around North America with her husband. “Best. Year. Ever!!” She now lives in China with her husband and two sons. She is a trained elementary teacher, but writing is her passion. Since becoming a full time mother she has had the opportunity to pursue this dream and her debut novel hit the internet in November 2011. Since then she has produced four more books and has a YA fantasy trilogy coming out this year. Unknown and Unseen (The Elements Trilogy) out now!

“I am passionate about writing. It stirs a fire in my soul that I never knew I had. I want to be the best writer I can possibly be and transport my readers into another world where they can laugh, cry and fall in love.”.

Author Links:
Blog
GoodReads
Twitter

Giveaway:

We’ve got two giveaways for you ~ The first is a tour wide giveaway! Open internationally, enter to win a paperback copy of ALL THREE Betwixt books (i.e. Betwixt, Before, and Beyond) and/or a $25 Visa Gift Card!

Enter Here !

The first giveaway ends on date listed on the rafflecopter.

The second giveaway is for an ebook copy of the Betwixt Omnibus (all three books again, but ebook version). Open internationally, all you have to do is tweet about the tour, the interview, and/or the giveaway, linking them back here! Then, paste the link in the comments below with your email ~

The second giveaway ends December 20, 2013. The winner will be emailed shortly after midnight.

This is what you win !

Tour Schedule:

December 9th
–Buried Under Books >> Review Omnibus (Betwixt + Novellas)
–Mostly Reviews >> Review Omnibus (Betwixt + Novellas)
–Reading and Writing Urban Fantasy, Paranormal, and Romance >> Guest Post
–Pink Polka Dot Book Blog >> Review Omnibus (Betwixt + Novellas)
–Between Printed Pages >> Interview

December 10th
–The Busy Bibliophile >> Review of Bewixt
–Literary Meanderings >> Review of Bewixt
–Mom With A Kindle >> Guest Post
–Reader Rising >> Review Omnibus (Betwixt + Novellas)

December 11th
–Library of a Book Witch >> Review of Bewixt
–We Do Write  >> Interview
–Pieces of Whimsy >> Review of Bewixt + Excerpt

December 12th
–What’s Beyond Forks? >> Review of Betwixt + Top 10 List
–Sassy Book Lovers >> Excerpt
–Book Sniffers Anonymous >> Review of Bewixt
–Contagious Reads  >> Review Omnibus (Betwixt + Novellas)
–Laurie’s Thoughts and Reviews >> Interview

December 13th
–New Adult Addiction >> Review Omnibus (Betwixt + Novellas)
–Krista’s Dust Jacket >> Review Omnibus (Betwixt + Novellas)
–Word to Dreams >> Review of Bewixt
–Panda Reads  >> Review of Bewixt + Excerpt
–I ♥ Bookie Nookie Reviews >> Review of Betwixt + Top 10 List