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Interview Author Tracey O’Hara + Giveaway
Filed in Giveaways , Interview , The Geeky Lover , Tracey O'Hara Posted on January 28, 2011 @ 7:00 am
60 comments
We are very happy to welcome author Tracey O’Hara here at Book Lovers Inc today. Death’s Sweet Embrace, book 2 in her Dark Brethren series was released this week and she is here to talk a bit about her books and what makes them into something special. Please give Tracey a warm welcome and be sure to check out the end of teh post for your chance to win a signed goodie. *g*The Geeky Lover: Tracey can you please tell us a bit about yourself?
Tracey: I’m an Aussie – i.e. born and bred in Australia where I have lived all my life. I am married with 2 sons and 3 cats and am an analyst programmer by day. I first started writing about 6 years ago – I am not one of these writers who have wanted to write from a young age – though I have been an avid reader since childhood. Hmm – that is really it for me, I am really rather boring. 🙂
The Geeky Lover: Describe a typical day of writing? Are you a planner or pantser?
Tracey: My writing day usually doesn’t start until 8pm after I have come home from work and have dinner out of the way. I am a natural night owl anyway. If I didn’t have a full time job I think I would work until 3 or 4 o’clock in the morning and sleep until 11am to noon.
I’m neither a pantser nor an extreme plotter – I sit somewhere in between, meaning I have an overarching idea of the story and about the series. I know most of the major turning points within each story before I start writing it and add to the overarching as I progress through each book.
The Geeky Lover: What do you think is the difference between a reader and a real Book Lover?
Tracey: That is an extremely tough question. I would say a reader reads the books and that is as far as it goes. They will pass the book on without a second thought and pick up the next book that catches their eye. Where as a book lover actually cares for book, be it the physical book or the eBook version. They will talk about them, get passionate about the stories and the characters, seek out other book lovers that share the same passion and discuss the books they love and ones they didn’t love. They will be able to tell you what worked for them in the story and why, and also what didn’t work for them and why. To the book lover reading a book is an experience.
The Geeky Lover: Your Dark Brethren novels are set in a really complex and unique world. Did you have the idea for the story or the world first?
Tracey: The idea for the story came first, but the world quickly eclipsed the story and became somewhat more than could be told in a single book. I am still only just scratching the surface even after writing the two books and working on the third.
The Geeky Lover: Your novels are full of political intrigue and also touch the topic of discrimination and prejudices. Why did you decide to cover all those topics with the allegory of paranormal creatures?
Tracey: Nothing makes me more upset than when people are judged for what they are. Be it sex, religion or race, it is unfair to pigeonhole someone for what they look like or what they believe. In NIGHT’S COLD KISS Antoinette has strong prejudice against not only the death-high addicted Necrodrenics (the “bad” vampires) but also supposedly “good” Aeternus. This is based
The Geeky Lover: In Death’s Sweet Embrace you focus more on the shapeshifter society of your world. Tell us a bit about how it works?
Tracey: The shapeshifters, or Animalian as I call them, are broken into 3 different races. Felians (feline or cat), Canian (canine or dog/wolf) and Ursian (Ursine or bear). Each race has their own laws and rules which they live by. This can lead of a lot of conflict between the different races. The felians are patriarchal and territorial, similar to a lion pride. An Alpha is head of the family and head of the clan. What he says goes, yet even he is constrained by laws, for the good of the pride. Canian’s are more family oriented and Ursian’s tend to be more individualist. In this book, we get a look into the complex social structure of the felians more than the other tow races.
The Geeky Lover: What can we expect of Death’s Sweet Embrace?
Tracey: DEATH’S SWEET EMBRACE is the second Dark Brethren novel. It continues on from the first with a new protagonist — Kathryn “Kitt” Jordan, a parahuman medical examiner and a snow leopard shifter (an Animalian). She has just lost her brother, the only family she’s had in the last 20 years, to a psychopathic killer and had her world turned completely upside down.
Now a sadistic killer is murdering young Animalians but cutting out their still beating hearts while they are alive. Kitt must join forces with a team lead by her brother’s closest friend to help solve this mystery. Problem is, her ex lover who she hasn’t seen for many years is also part of this team.
We also get to follow some of the characters from the first book, especially Oberon and Antoinette and are introduced to some new ones as well.
As with the first book, there is a glossary of terms in the back of the novel and is also on my website to explain some of the terms I use.
The Geeky Lover: We will meet Kitt one of the as I call them “kitty-shifter”. Her background is full of deception and loss but she’s still strong and fighting. What can you tell us about her?
Tracey: Kitt had her innocence violently ripped away at a young age, married her best friend to protect herself and his secret, fell in love with a member of an opposing tribe, got pregnant to him, lost her husband to a vicious killer —and in her grief—gave up the children she produced with the only male she ever felt passion, even love, for. Then she was forced out of the only life she’d ever known the first time she stood up for herself to face the alien existence of the human world. Not only did she survive these things, she achieved an inner strength. That is who Kitt Jordan is too me.
The Geeky Lover: Which 4 characteristics should a perfect hero have in your opinion? And do you think Raven fits this description?
Tracey: Ohh – good question.
1.Attractive – now I don’t mean they have to be god’s gift, thought that does help, they have to be attractive to the heroine of the story, both physically and emotionally.
2.I like my heroes to be a little dangerous. One that can kill as quick as kiss – I don’t mean kill the heroine of course, I mean someone who will kill for the heroine without a second thought.
3.A man who respects the heroine for who she is, but can’t be a walk over either.
4.He must have flaws as well as heroic traits. You can’t have the perfect man; they are just not realistic or believable or are just plain boring. Honestly – how many of us lust after the nice guy. I like a bit of bad in my heroes.
The Geeky Lover: Will we meet Antoinette and Christian again In Death’s Sweet Embrace?
Tracey: Yes – Antoinette especially, she has quite a big side story going on which will continue into series. Christian makes a small appearance, because he is continuing his work from the last book. I’m not going to say much more than that, except they are as hot and heavy as ever.
The Geeky Lover: Will there be more books in this series?
Tracey: I’m currently working on the third book in the series. This will show yet another aspect of the Dark Brethren world.
The Geeky Lover: Will there be a story featuring the mer-people? I would really like to learn more about them.
Tracey: Unfortunately not, however I would like to do a book on the mer-people – I have a definite story idea for them. Think environmental terrorists. That is all I am saying.
The Geeky Lover: Anything else we should keep our eyes open for?
Tracey: Like with Night’s Cold Kiss and Dante Rising, I want to put out a little prequel read. I was hoping to do it before the release, however I have been busy with book 3. Hopefully I will have it finished not long after the release.
The Geeky Lover: Now the ‘mean’ questions:
Can you tell us 3 reasons why people should read your books?
Tracey: Wow that is an extremely hard question.
1.I have tried to give the Dark Brethren world dark grittiness in which my characters play, fight and survive in.
2.There is a mystery/thriller thread through the story with a bit of romance and horror thrown in for good measure.
3.I have tried to keep the reader on their toes, trying to guess what comes next.
The Geeky Lover: Can you summarize your book (and/or series) for us twitter style (140 characters or less)?
Tracey:
Shapeshifting Romeo and Juliet meets Silence of the Lambs
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Giveaway
Tracey is offering a signed copy of Death’s Sweet Embrace to ONE lucky commenter
All you have to do is ask Tracey a question or leave a meaningful comment about the interview.
(You can read our full giveaway policy here)
Please leave us a way to contact you.
(Email in blogger profile or twitter name – no way to contact you – no entry).
This giveaway is open worldwide!
Giveaway ends on Saturday February 12th
and we will announce the winner on Sunday.
Good luck!
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I agree that heroes are better when they are flawed. Nobody's perfect!
rickimc[at]aol[dot]com
yes Ricki – got to have somthing that need fixing – and a broken hero is usually the most intersting.
Hi Tracey one question? I hadn't read this series before and was wondering can you read them as stand alones or should they be read in order.
I love a hero that has flaws, I rather read about one that has nics in his armor than one that is perfect.
vampiremistress2010(at)gmail(dot)com
I find her thoughts on the differences of readers and book lovers interesting – personally I'd call myself the latter, but honestly, with that many books taking up so much space, now I am mostly reading and giving away/selling old books. Still a book lover at heart though!
danaan at gmx dot at
Shapeshifting Romeo and Juliet? Does that mean the main characters are so horny their brains stop functioning and they get people (including themselves) killed for no good reason?
cass at feministdracona dot net
BLHmistress – I did write them to be stand alone and you can read that way. But if you read from the begining I guews you have a bigger picture.
You said you didn't want to be a writer from an early age, so what makes you want to write? Did something catch your attention or maybe a great story just popped into your mind?
it must be pretty hard to have 2 works…and two completely different ones!
Anyway I loved the interview! There's alaways some good titles that I don't seem to notice and I'm adding yours!
aliasgirl at libero dot it
Giving a shout out to my release day bud ::WAVE:: The Dark Brethren look delicious and I can't wait to dig into mine!
I think with a series, if one book, say the second or third, sounds interesting, it's nice to read them in order to get a richer picture. I, however, have picked up a couple of series midway and haven't had a problem with it, so either way works. –Jaime Rush
thanks so much for a fantastic interview – I've heard great things about your series and can't wait to see for myself…
I already love the covers – did you have a say in choosing them?
wish you all the best, Ina
After reading the interview, it makes the book honestly that much better. Yes I've read it and I would love to have a physical copy because it's a book I could read over and over! It was truly amazing!
Great interview! I'm ashamed to say I have the first one but haven't read it yet! I'll have to dig it out of my mountain of a TBR pile this weekend and read it 🙂
smaccall @ comcast.net
Hello Tracey! Great Interview =)
I definitely fit your real book lover definition, whatever book I'm reading, my friends always hear all about it lol
Please count me in on the giveaway, I snatched a review copy on NetGalley, but I really wanna have a physical copy. It's so much better!
Thank you!
TyngaUF(a)gmail.com
Great interview. I am definitely looking forward to starting this series. It looks so good.
iqb99@yahoo.com
Great interview hon. I loved Tracy's answers, she was on point with the way I feel about books especially the hero bit. Not having a hero or heroine who doesn't have flaws and I mean real flaws not having low self esteem. I also am a book lover. I could ramble about books all day. I know people that would read a book, but not remember one solitary thing about it. Book lovers get lost in a book and that is the way it should be. Thank you for the interview, it was a great read.
drharleyquinn87 (at) gmail (dot) com
I have not read her book yet. I am intrigued by the way she separated the shifters. I want to read more about the Felian, Canian, and Ursian races.
kissinoak at frontier dot com
LOVED the twitter blurb. Creative. 🙂 I really want to read these books!
books (dot) things (at) yahoo (dot) com
ohh your three reasons why we should read this series were truly inspiring, they really made me want to read these books asap! Thank you for coming on and telling us about your great reads. I cannot wait.
terilhack at gmail dot com
Sorry people – Australian time difference here – let me get some coffee and sit down to answer you all.
Reading Mind – I was researching my family history and I thought it would be really awesome to write it down. I started to learn the craft of writing and I was hooked – then the idea for the first DArk Brethren novel came to mind and I haven not looked back. 🙂
Birgit – I think a book lover does give away books – in fact I found a lot of book lovers want to share them around and get more people reading them. but they hang out for the next great book, the next great series, want to know all aobut them etc. But hey, it is a tough questions. 🙂
Tina – *waves back* Great to see you stop by. Hive five sista
have to run a couple of errands – will be back soon.
* Waves * Hey Tracey. You totally won my interest at Bittenbybooks enough so to order Death's Sweet Embrace. However then it entered my mind that it's book two.
I'll remedy that eventually, the next time my hubby lets me loose on book order. Is it okay to read it first then Night's Cold Kiss
Plus, I was so thrilled to see you like the same music as I do. Inkubus Sukkubus (Candia's voice is awesome), Within Temptation (they have a new album coming out soon) and Nightwish (Which do you like Tarja or Annette? I actually like both. I even love Tarja's solo stuff)
Raonaid (at) gmail (dot) com
I love a story that keeps me on my toes trying to guess what happens next – it's no fun when you know what's going to happen before you read it.
I'm looking forward to starting the Dark Brethren series. I've had them on my wish list, but haven't had a chance to pick any of the books up yet.
Barbed1951(at)aol(dot)com
Shape shifting Romeo and Juliet meets Silence of the Lambs!? For real!? That may be the best plug I have heard. Hmmmm… unless you added vamps *winks*
Nah, shape shifting Shakespearean murdering psychopaths work too!
robin [at] intensewhisper [dot] com
Ina – I was asked what I thought should go on the cover, including. But the cover artist is just so awesome – he comes up with great covers.
TIOBAAT – 🙂 I am so glad you liked it enough to read twice – good luck with winning. 🙂
Sarah – I have lots of book that I want to read but are still sitting on my shelf – some years old. Life's like that.
Tynga,
Yes – you are definately a book lover – I saw the video of your shelves :). Will see you on your blog in a couple of days. 🙂
Thanks Danielle, hope you enjoy.
Offbeat 🙂 – yes – real book lovers treat books and charaters long friends and talk aobut them as is if they were real people. I love sharing that passion. 🙂
Estella – I have a glossary of terms on my website. http://www.traceyohara.com – check it out if you want to learn more.
Melissa – thanks for the comment – and who knows – you might win one 🙂
Teril – I am glad you found them inspiring – I had such a hard time with coming up with them. 🙂
Raonaid – I remember you from the other day. I feel, and I may be wrong, that you could read them out of order for the story to make sense, definately would be after you have read Night's Cold Kiss.
Barbara – that is what I try to do with my books – keep people guessing.
"Shapeshifting Romeo and Juliet meets Silence of the Lambs" great response. As an Australian I am always thrilled to find Australian authors. Best success!!
marypres@gmail.com
I'm always up for a good shapeshifter story – those are my favorite paranormals. It's good to know that they don't have to be read in order.
So it sounds like these are the first books you've written. Do you think that you will stay in UF or are you feeling the urge to write in a different genre?
jen at delux dot com
Thanks for the post and giveaway! Will definitely check this series out. I like the shapeshifter society aspect where the social structures between the different Animalian races are so different; makes good contrast and conflict.
chibipooh(at)gmail(dot)com
I like flawed heroes as well because then they tend to be more relatable. We're not perfect, why should our characters be?
Tracey, how many books do you have planned for the series? What are you contracted for? How many book ideas do you have in your head?
jessbess2505[at]yahoo[dot]com
I agree heroes are better when they are not perfect. When they have a past. It makes them very interesting. Please enter me in contest. Tore923@aol.com
Wow, just read over my paragraph and realized I forgot some words LOL. I was saying having characters with no flaws would be ridiculous and boring and would make it hard for the audience to like or care about them. Don't ask me how all that slipped, LOL
@Tracy O'Hara – Exactly. When you love the characters it is like they are real people. Makes it easy to chat about them. I never understood how someone can read a book and not find something passionate about it. Maybe they just haven't found their genre.
I didn't read any of Tracy's books yet, but they are definitely in my TBR 🙂 I hope that someday Tracy writes a book about mer-people and things like pollution of oceans. It would be good for people start to think in consequences for their acts or what can happen with the world.
sweet.sayumi@yahoo.com.br
These sound interesting. I'll look them up now 🙂 Love the covers!
l agree about the characteristics which a hero should have, too perfect ruins a character l think!
booksforcompany @ gmail.com
I'd like to know if Tracey actually gets to pick the artwork for her book covers, they area awesome
concreteredhead007 @ gmail
Lori
I haven't read Tracey's book yet, but they sound great! I like my heroes to have small flaws or need a little fixing, because it makes them more human, even if they are a shifter!
meredithfl at gmail dot com
Great interview. Loved the twitter summary. That should be a tagline!
bacchus76 at myself dot com
I do agree about the book lovers. I am one, that will talk about books alot. I do notice that people are beginning to ask my opinions and advice on which books to read. I would love to read your books, they sound really good.
twoofakind12@yahoo.com
Great interview!!! I love the answer you give about the difference between a reader and a real Book Lover. I hope to be a real Book Lover.
Thanks you!
artgiote@gmail.com
Hey Tracy!! I have your first book and I haven't read it yet but It's my next book! I cannot wait and I have heard wonderful things about it!
my question for you is do you have any special quirks when your writing? any special music or food you have to have?
Great interview!
kristen_babygurl@hotmail.com
great interview really gave me a good insight into the novels:) The different races of shifters reminds me a bit of Sherrilyn kenyons dark hunter series which i found really awesome, so i am definately intrigued:) I like when the hero/heroine has flaws it makes them more human/ realistic and we get to watch them grow.
holz_twilight@msn.com
I really like your reasons for why people should read your books. I like that you keep your readers guessing what happens next, and mystery/thriller scenes are great in books anyway.
juliecookies(at)gmail.com
I haven't read this series yet, but of course, looks fantastic. A great interview, really enjoyed it. No one is perfect, not even heroes, we all have some flaws:)
Judy
magnolias_1[at]msn[dot]com
Hi Tracey, what is your hobby besides writing?
aikychien at yahoo dot com
I completely agree with the 4 characteristics you gave the hero but I would like him to have a bit of humor too then it would be perfect:-)
forceofstars(at)yahoo(dot)dk
Hi Tracey,
These books sound fab – straight onto my TBR pile.
I was wondering which you find harder – starting a book or finishing one? Do you always have an end point in mind? 🙂
Mel
notanotherbookblog(at)hotmai(dot)co(dot)uk
Nobody is perfect..even the heros can be flawed
GFC follower
vidishamun[at]gmail[dot]com
I see your book everywhere, Tracey! 🙂 I can't wait to read it =) Thanks for the post, and of course for the giveaway =)
I am a book lover and read every day. Love how complex this Dark Brethern world is without any easy answers to be found. I am glad to know the world continues into a third book and beyond.
linze_e at hotmail.com