Welcome to an
Interview with Author, Janine Carbone…
Janine at the Awards Ceremony.
SJ: Fascinating, Janine, and you should be so very proud of
your daughter. Where did you get your inspiration and ideas for Wildflower?
SJ: What do you love most about being a writer? Least?
SJ: If you could give just one piece of important writing
advice to an aspiring writer, what would it be?
SJ: What is a favorite book you enjoyed reading and would
recommend without hesitation? Why?
SJ: In closing, and without giving too much away, do you
have any more projects in the immediate future? We’d love to hear about it.
Janine Carbone, Author.
And now
for some legal stuff: Copyright 2015 by S.J. Francis. Opinions expressed here
are solely those of the author, S. J. Francis and the guest author and are
meant to entertain, inform and enlighten, and intend to offend no one.
Hello one and
all! How are you today? I'm back and hope everyone is doing well and happy!
It’s so great to be with all of you again. Welcome back to my writing blog page
where I try to share whatever I think may interest you. Today I interview
another fellow author. With me this time is Janine Carbone, as she discusses writing
and her current book Wildflower. Wildflower
is an award winning novel chosen as an Honorable
Mention-Young Adult – General in the 2015 Reader’s Favorite Awards.
Janine at the Awards Ceremony.
Janine Carbone,
a Philadelphia native, put her BA in psychology to good use with the creation
of her first New Adult novel, Wildflower. Carbone mixed elements of mystery,
romance, and suspense, to create an edgy and intense debut novel peering into
the darker side of mental health.
Carbone grew up in a world full of books and knew she wanted
to be a writer since an early age. She spends most nights dreaming up new
plots, while mornings you can find her with a pen and pad in hand, twisting and
weaving words to inspire surprise and delight in her readers.
With a love of cooking and traveling overseas, she can be
found in the kitchen experimenting with unusual ingredients, or trekking across
grounds unknown. However, she does enjoy spending every moment she can with her
family.
Welcome Janine
and thanks so much for joining us here. Shall we begin to learn more about you,
your writing and your debut novel, Wildflower?
SJ: Wildflower is your debut novel and we’d like to know
more. Can you tell us a little bit of how the idea for it came about?
Janine: After graduating from College, I was so relieved to
have all the academic pressures disappear, but then I was faced with a new
challenge…what to do with all the free time. I spent some time reflecting on
the things I truly enjoyed, but never got a chance to do with a full schedule.
Of course I found writing at the top of the list. I started writing creatively
when I found a free moment just for fun. When the pages started to accumulate I
thought to myself, this just might make a good book. The psychological elements
of Wildflower sprouted from the information I was able to hold onto from hours
and hours of abnormal and personality psychology lectures. The University
setting of the book took form from my experiences living on a college campus,
which brought the idea of Wildflower to life.
SJ: With mixed
elements of mystery, romance, and suspense, that created an edgy and intense
debut novel peering into the darker side of mental health, was it difficult for
you to write Wildflower?
Janine: I didn’t take the usual approach when writing
Wildflower, what I now view as the easier approach. Many writers are diligent
with outlining and getting a clear idea of the story from beginning to end.
Instead, I went in blind, making it that much more challenging, but also
exciting. Writing and thinking while having the story take shape right before
your eyes can be thrilling. Not knowing the direction the story would take
almost made me feel like the characters were leading the way and I didn’t
premeditate their every move.
SJ: What made you become an author? You grew up with books
and knew you’d be a writer from an early age. But what made you take the first
step?
Janine: Writing is as simple as putting a few letters
together to make a word, combining those words to make a sentence, and
stringing the sentences into one big paragraph. Once I figured out the
simplicity of writing, I was unstoppable. But what truly pushed me on the path
to becoming a published author was reading the work of my daughter. I was
inspired by her creativity. She is now 13 and has a published a book as well.
We’ve been inspiring each other ever since.
Janine: I loved studying behavior and psychology in college,
pushing me to explore the many sides of mental health in my book. I tried to
give a struggle to each character. Faith encountered issues with depression and
anxiety, while Jason’s dealt with alcoholism. Lets not forget the psychotic
breaks my characters go through during the course of the story.
Janine: I love the idea of bringing my own made up reality
to life. Watching my characters take form on the page was exciting. Creating
the setting and putting their world into place was amazing.
What frustrates me the most is when I want to write so bad I
feel it’s a need and no longer a want, but I just can’t find enough time to fit
it in every day.
Janine: Never, ever, ever give up! Even if you just write a
few sentences, it’s a start. Soon enough the sentences will accumulate into
pages and pages of work. Your work that would never been there had you not
written the first sentence.
Janine: There are so many books that I absolutely love that
I couldn’t pick out just one! I am active on goodreads.com and share my
feelings about many books I have read.
Janine: I have been working on my second novel for quite
sometime now, looking to get it out on the shelves in the near future. I took
an unexpected turn into the fantasy realm and with the way the story is coming
together, I’m so glad I did.
Janine Carbone, Author.
It all sounds fascinating, Janine and I’m wishing you great
success. Thank you for allowing use to take some time out of your busy schedule
and interview you about your writing and your novel, Wildflower. Keep writing.
Check out my book review for Wildflower it at my sister
blog: http://abookreview4u.blogspot.com/2015/04/wildflower-by-janine-carbone-4-out-of-5.html)
Keep reading, readers and take note you may purchase a copy of
Wildflower from many on-line retailers including Amazon, Barnes
& Noble, Kobo, and other well-known distributors of books.
But before we go, it wouldn’t be fair if we
didn’t share the synopsis for Wildflower:
Faith desperately tries to hold on and fit into the mold of
the "typical" college student, but her life quickly spirals out of
control when visions of a dark past consume her. When these repressed memories
begin to resurface, she relives the devastation of dealing with abandonment,
betrayal and death. Faith soon realizes she never did escape the dangers of her
past, her battles are real and present. With a sadistic stalker prowling the
campus while she painfully struggles to hold on to her newfound romance, Faith
finds herself fighting to survive all over again.
Interested? Then here’s
an excerpt from Wildflower. Read on and enjoy:
"I waited in
my room, barricading myself in. There was no knock or pounding at the door.
There was no one calling out my name or offering any explanations. There was
always a point when things got to be too much. A stick could only be bent so
far before it actually broke. That night, I was the stick that was forced to
endure more than it should have to. I had seen more than what any young girl—or
any person, for that matter—should ever have to see."
Fascinated like I
was? Want to read more? Here’s the purchase links for your convenience:
Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/pc6s7cs
Barnes & Noble: http://tinyurl.com/occgmxw
For more about Janine and her writing,
remember to check out her website at:
Or feel free to connect with her at one of
her social media links:
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jp_Carbone
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/authorjaninecarbone
That’s
it for this time. Thank you all for visiting with us. Until next month, every
one please stay safe. Smile. Be happy. Show compassion. Be nice to others. Put
a little love into your heart. Please speak up for those without a voice,
whether it be a dog, cat, elephant or monkey.
One person, one voice can make a difference. Read a book. Review it.
Share it. Pass it along.
Regards,
S. J. Francis
Advocate for the underdog, and cat, et al.
In my debut novel, Shattered Lies:
"It's All About Family."
Available now from Black Opal Books and on-line retailers and indie
booksellers.
“Some secrets should remain
that way….”
My Black Opal Books Author Page:
My web page: http://www.sjfranciswriter.com
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https://twitter.com/sjfrancis419
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