Interview with Susan Hanniford Crowley
Thanks for stopping by to talk a little about your writing! Let's jump right in. When did you begin writing and why?
Susan:
I was eight. My teacher wanted us to keep a journal. I wrote
about the squirrels in my backyard. I continued keeping journals, dream
journals, and from there writing. In the 7th grade, my spy thriller
was passed around by my classmates. The teachers were baffled. They’d never had
a writer in their classes before.
Fire off five words to describe your book EverNight.
Susan:
Lost. Murder. Identity. Responsibility. Love.
Give us an out of context quote from your book to warm our
hearts.
Quote from EverNight:
*
Maeve sighed
and Mike hugged her.
Kissing her
once more he said, “Go to sleep, my sweet Maeve.”
He turned to
face the door.
She hugged him
tight. “I love you, Mike, you know that right?”
“Yes. I love
you too, no matter what happens.”
“What does
that mean?”
He turned
around and faced her again. “You have my heart no matter what happens to us in
the strange world.”
She kissed
him. He kissed back.
“I missed
you,” he said.
“I missed you
too, but I really don’t need you guarding me anymore.”
“You mean
because of your super powers.”
“That and
because I figured something out about this world,”
she said.
“What’s that?”
*
Name one song or artist that gets you fired up.
Susan:
Paint it Black by the Rolling Stones. I love that the character Wednesday
plays it on her cello. I think the song really awakens the paranormalist in
me.
How do you find readers in today's market?
Susan:
Before the pandemic, I found readers at conventions. Now, I find them on
Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. I plan on returning to some venues with
readings and book signings.
Do you come up with the hook first, or do you create characters first and then dig
through until you find a hook?
Susan:
I write the book and then find the hook.
How do you create your characters?
Susan:
I dream all my books. The novels come out of my dream
journals. Sometimes I know their names and sometimes I don’t get their names
until later.
What are you currently reading?
Susan:
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Any advice for newly sparking writers in three sentences or
less.
Susan:
Write every single day, even if it’s in your dream journal,
a poem, a thought in a pretty notebook, or a sketch with some words beneath
it. Write every single day and the
writing will become like breathing.
If you had to write your memoir in five words, what would
you write?
Susan:
Secret! Smiles! Dreams! Living! Love!
How often does your muse distract you from day-to-day
minutiae?
Susan:
All the time. I have to schedule time to fulfill day-to-day
minutiae. I keep a pen and little notebook in my purse for writing when I’m out
keeping appointments.
Can you briefly describe your writing process for us?
Susan:
I sleep. I dream. I write it down in the morning. Sometimes
it’s urgent and I’m writing it down in the middle of the night. It can take a
month or a year of dreams. I do research to fill in things I don’t understand
from the dream. I self-edit a ton before I send it to my editor.
What do readers have to look forward to in the future from
you?
Susan:
A 2nd dragon book for that series. A 3rd
book in the Young Supernaturals of New York. I will be returning to the very
steaming Arnhem Knights of New York series with a new book.
Evernight
Do you love sweet romance? Vampires?
Werewolves? Dragons? Faeries? Shapeshifters?
Bravery? Danger? Love?
Maya Angelou said, “The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned.”
*A year ago in a dark alleyway in Manhattan, twenty-four homeless people were murdered by a
savage vampire and his apprentice.
Sixteen-year-old Maeve had been living in a cardboard box in that alley. Her only thoughts back then
were how to find food and stay warm. She was not there when they came.
Now, she stands in a cold rain, alone in the night mourning her lost friends. Though Maeve lives with
her boyfriend’s parents and attends a private school, she is troubled and longs to have parents and a
home of her own.
Last Christmas, sixteen-year-old Mike met Maeve in front of a store window with an animated ballet
display of The Nutcracker. He was entranced by her red hair and green eyes. When she ran off after
he invited her for hot cocoa, Mike tried to follow.
Instead of finding Maeve, he was murdered by the savage vampire. Later, he woke up in the morgue
with memories of her weeping for him. He didn’t know what to do. He was a vampire now. Mike did
the only thing he could do. Find Maeve.
Now, Mike is heartbroken. Maeve wants to move out of his family’s home. What if she moves on and
away from him?
According to Max Vander Meer, Vampire King of New York, there is something evil in the wind.
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Maeve’s
Friends
Once, everything in her life was hard to do, then
everything changed. Maeve washed her face in the sink of the girls’ lavatory in
school. This room was pink with elegant features and smelled like roses, so
completely different from the girls’ rooms in the public schools she used to
sneak into. Going to the Downing Institute for Learning was a dream. Maeve
never thought going to school could be this much fun.
“Hey, BFF.” Coriandra claimed the sink and mirror beside
her. She reapplied her lip gloss. Shaking slightly, her silver dragonfly-like
wings shivered.
Maeve laughed. “You’re always showing off your wings.”
“Don’t you know it!” Cori laughed too. “I love tormenting
that vampire boy Dallas with them. I can see it in his eyes whenever I make my
wings visible. He gets all excited.”
“Bad Cori!” Liz entered the restroom.
Cori rolled her eyes. “Werewolves can hear everything.
It’s those big ears of theirs.”
Liz looked into the mirror over the third sink. “They
don’t look big to me. Are they big, Maeve?”
“Not at all. She’s just kidding you, Liz. But really you
should not tease Dallas, Cori.”
“She’s not really teasing him, Maeve. Every time someone
mentions his name, her heart beats like a hummingbird’s.”
“Really?”
Coriandra blushed. “I really like Dallas. What’s not to
like about the boy! I’m into soft brown hair with green eyes. I like his laugh
and his strong shoulders.”
Maeve and Liz laughed.
“I think you’re falling for him,” Maeve said.
A bell rang.
“Time for class. We’ll continue this deep discussion on
the philosophy of Dallas later.”
Liz giggled as she opened the door. Dallas was just
outside the door. Vampires also have the gift of hearing everything. By the
looks of his grin, he’d heard it all.
“So you like me, Cori?” His smile broadened, fangs
showing.
Coriandra blushed. “Maybe.” Her wings fluttered.
“I was thinking maybe you and I could see a movie on
Saturday.” He reached out to touch her wings.
Maeve didn’t have to own super hearing to know Cori’s
heart was beating like a hummingbird’s.
“Maybe.”
Dallas walked straight at her. In seconds, her back was
against the wall as he leaned against her. Then he kissed her. “Only maybe?”
“I have to ask my dad.” Her voice came out raspy and sultry.
He bit his lower lip. His eyes were half-closed. “Okay.
Will you tell me tomorrow?”
She sighed.
Maeve and Liz giggled to see their friend so messed up by
love.
Dallas eased away a little so she could breathe. “So
tomorrow.” He leaned in to whisper in her ear.
“There will be no public displays of affection,” Director
Downing said. None of them heard the tapping of her stiletto heels arriving.
The two immediately distanced themselves.
“Hey, Dallas. Your fangs are showing!” Maeve said.
Freaked, he covered his mouth with his hand and ran into
the boys’ restroom.
Tall and dark-haired, Director Downing stood prim and
elegant in a blue suit with pencil skirt. Maeve had never met a principal that
looked gorgeous yet business-like at the same time. She was a source of mystery
the kids wondered about.
“Ladies, you’re late for class. The bell rang minutes
ago.”
They ran as a group.
“Ladies, no running in the hall.”
They slowed their pace.
Maeve asked, “Cori, what did Dallas whisper to you?”
“He said, ‘I dream about you every night.’”
The three best friends giggled. A human. A faerie. A
werewolf.
*
Mike and Maeve
The
separating wall of the limo lowered. “At this point,” Vincent said, “King Max
instructed me to inform the tangle of overheated teenagers in the backseat,
that we will be arriving at your school in three minutes. You may want to take
that time to fix makeup and straighten your clothes. Including your tie, Mr.
Harris.”
“Thank
you, Vincent.”
“Anything
for you, Princess Maeve.”
Maeve
laughed, sitting up and straightening her gown. She fixed her lipstick.
“Max
talked to me about sex,” Mike said.
“What?
Oh, my God!” She turned bright red.
“He
said he expected promises to be kept.”
“I
said when we’re eighteen.”
“He
said when you marry.”
“I
said we plan on marrying when we’re eighteen.”
“He
said maybe not. She may want to go to college first.”
Hi, I am Susan Hanniford Crowley, a science fiction, fantasy, and paranormal romance and now young adult author specializing in vampires and rare supernaturals. I am an active member of SFWA, RWA (PAN), CTRWA, and Broad Universe. I founded Nights of Passion Blog, which I share with five other authors. I am also an Associate Editor for Space and Time Magazine. I am a wife, mother, and grandmother.
My newest novels are EverNight, EverWarm (my YA vampire adventure romances) and Lady Fallon's Dragons (my YA dragon adventure). All three have sweet romances in them and begin new series. The dragon book has tons of dragons.
My steamier romance novels are as follows:
The Vampire with a Blanket of Stars, Arnhem Knights of New York, is set in Romania. This tale of two lovers begins just prior to WWII and spans to the present day.
Vampire King of New York is about the Viking turned modern-day CEO who bragged in front of the Norse Goddess Freya. Now King Max must find the woman who can heal his heart or be forever encased in ice.
In the Vampires in Manhattan series, When Love Survives, The Stormy Love Life of Laura Cordelais, A Vampire for Christmas, and Vampire in the Basement are all available on Kindle. The Stormy Love Life of Laura Cordelais is on Kindle and Paperback.
My steamy steampunk in alternate Victorian England is Mrs. Bright's Tea Room and in Kindle ebook. My sexy Greek mythology Poseidon's Catch is a Kindle ebook too!
As for me, I have been researching vampires for over 30 years. I love collecting dragons. Remember when collecting a dragon, always wear oven mitts. Lol. I have two cats. I am writing my next novel. I can be found at Nights of Passion blog http://nightsofpassion.
My Facebook page is Susan Hanniford Crowley, Author. My profile page is Susan Hanniford Crowley. On Instagram, I am susan.hanniford.crowley
Genre of books: I write in both YA/sweet paranormal adventure romance and more mature/steamy paranormal adventure romance. For those that aren't sure, steamy books have sex and sweet do not.
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