Saturday, December 5, 2015

Ever wanted to discuss writing with a debut novelist? Meet Janine Carbone, author of Wildflower…

Welcome to an Interview with Author, Janine Carbone… 

      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.

 
SJ: Fascinating, Janine, and you should be so very proud of your daughter. Where did you get your inspiration and ideas for Wildflower?

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.

 
SJ: What do you love most about being a writer? Least?

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.

 
SJ: If you could give just one piece of important writing advice to an aspiring writer, what would it be?

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.

 
SJ: What is a favorite book you enjoyed reading and would recommend without hesitation? Why?

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.

 
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: 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

                                                       Kobo: http://tinyurl.com/qhb9yuo                                                     

     For more about Janine and her writing, remember to check out her website at:

                                                      www.authorjaninecarbone.com 

    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 

                                                   Goodreads: http://tinyurl.com/mbb5b3n 

   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

          Twitter: https://twitter.com/sjfrancis419

                   Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/pages/SJ-Francis/480058115420325

My Writing Blog: http://sjfranciswriter.blogspot.com

                             A Book Review 4 U: http://abookreview4u.blogspot.com
 

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 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.

2 comments:

  1. Hello S.J. Francis. It is so neat how you promote other authors. I think this is a book that both my teenage daughter and I can enjoy. I loved this interview with this new author! Thanks for hosting another author. It helps readers find new authors to read when another hosts them!
    Merry Christmas and a happy new year to you both!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hello again, Annyce!
    It is so nice to hear from you again. Janine and I greatly appreciate you taking the time to visit us and leave a comment!
    Hope you had a safe and enjoyable holiday season!
    Thanks so much!
    Cheers!
    S.J. Francis

    ReplyDelete