Website: Lisa Kessler
Author's Blog: Lisa Lair - DARK, PASSIONATE. PARANORMAL
Blog: Google +
Twitter: @LdyDisney
E-Mail: LdyDisney@aol.com
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LinkedIn: Check Out LinkedIn
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Pinterest: Check Out Pinterest
Author Description:
Lisa Kessler is an award winning author of dark paranormal fiction. Her debut novel, Night Walker, won a San Diego Book Award for Best Published Fantasy-Sci-fi-Horror as well as the Romance Through the Ages Award for Best Paranormal and Best First Book.
Her short stories have been published in print anthologies and magazines, and her vampire story, Immortal Beloved, was a finalist for a Bram Stoker award. When she's not writing, Lisa is a professional vocalist, performing with the San Diego Opera as well as other musical theater companies in San Diego. You can learn more at http://Lisa-Kessler.com
SPOTLIGHT Questions and Answers with the Author
Do you have another book coming our way? Will it be another one in the Night series? Can you tell us the timeline for its release and give us a little tease?
Yes! Night Demon will be released on March 18th... Not much longer to wait…
This book picks up about 3 weeks after Night Walker ends and Calisto & Kate from Night Walker and Kane & Rita from Night Thief are all back for Night Demon!
You have a good following on twitter. How important have your social media relationships been? Do you see a carry over to your writing success?
I love social media and I've made some super friends in the publishing business as well as amazing readers through internet connections on twitter and facebook. With book store shelves shrinking I think social media gets even more important for authors to help readers connect with your work and find it online.
You have great covers. They carry your romantic theme. How does your book cover creation process work? Do you hand over the basic theme or do you have more of a hands-on approach? Do you get your readers involved in its development?
My publisher makes my covers, and I've been very lucky! I think one of the perks of working with a smaller publisher is that you get a little more input on your covers. My self-published titles I usually solicit freelance book cover designers for their help.
You have several book trailers. (See links below.) Do you know how much impact they have had on your book's success? Tell us about the process that you used to create your trailers?
I made the trailers for Across the Veil and for Night Walker. I had fun with the process and I think they definitely help with making readers aware of your books. My Night Thief trailer has gotten lots of attention, even being featured on the USA Today site. Rachel Firasek made that trailer for me, and I'm thrilled with how it turned out. Perfect for the book too!
I'm not sure a book trailer makes a direct sale for you, but it helps with spreading the word about your work and gives readers another avenue to share your work with their friends…
In my research I see that you belong to the RWA and a San Diego Writers group. How do they help with writing, marketing and the publishing process?
RWA or Romance Writers of America is a super organization. They offer lots of classes for newer writers, as well as watch out for the interests of published authors. Through networking with RWA I met both my publisher and my agent.
Between your book writing, social media, marketing, family and all the other things that can get in your way, how do you manage your time? Do you have a set schedule or do your sort of play it by ear?
I wish I could live by a set schedule, but I really don't. My writing usually takes place late at night. I'm a Night Owl when it comes to creativity. Something about dark shadows outside my window gets me fired up to tell stories... :)
Has the advent of ebooks changed anything in your writing, your marketing and the relationship with your readers and fans?
Yes! I sell many more eBooks than print books and my 4 new release this year are all coming out in Digital first format. It seems to be a plus for everyone. The publisher isn't paying for shipping, warehousing or returns on paperbacks, the author makes a higher royalty rate, and readers can read my books on their phone, eReader or computer... Everyone wins! Plus the eBook pricing is lower too... Woot!
What has been your experience in giving your books away free? Have you been involved in any other type of giveaways and how did that work out? What was your main goal in doing this? Did you run into any obstacles?
When Night Thief came out I ran a special and put Across the Veil up for free. It screamed up the Amazon bestseller charts into the top 100 kindle free books and in a few days I gave away over 7,000 copies. Sadly it's really tough to measure how much of that led to other sales, but I hope that people who read the short story and enjoyed it will take a chance on my longer works.
You did a book tour for Night Walker. Were you happy with the results? Are you planning another tour in the near future?
Yes! Book bloggers are amazing people and nothing spreads the word about your new release like a blog tour! I've done one for every new release. They're very time consuming, but I do believe it's time well-spent! :)
Along with the tour, you did a book signing at Mysterious Galaxy bookstore in Redondo Beach. Do you plan on doing another book signing or personal appearances soon? If so, when is your next place where your readers can see you?
I love Mysterious Galaxy bookstore! They have one in San Diego and another store in Redondo beach. I've signed at both stores and they make you feel like a rock star! :) My next signing event will be at the SoCal RWA Writer's Conference! More details here...
You publish paranormal novels and short stories. Does moving from one to the other give you some breathing room like a change of pace? Any tricks you can share with us? Which do you enjoy writing the most?
It's the characters that make the writing fun for me... As the story unfolds, it's an adventure to see how they navigate the conflict and fight for a resolution. Short stories are a blast because they're faster to write than a novel. You get the rush of typing The End much sooner. You can also try something new that you might not risk on a full length novel.
So the short answer is I love anything paranormal, regardless of the length. :)
Explain to us how short flash fiction classes work? How can authors get involved?
Going along with a short story model, are readers able to follow along with the process and maybe give the authors some feedback?
I teach flash fiction classes online and in person and the magic of them is in sharing the stories. I can give writer's feedback and with a shorter story it's easier for them to pinpoint their story arc and determine where they could twist the conflict just a notch to make the story so much better. Usually the classes are conducted on an email forum with homework writing assignments every week…
Author's Book List
Night Demon
Deep within the Yucatan jungle, a demon has awakened...
Gretchen Finch’s job would be much easier if she weren’t alone in the jungle with a brilliant recluse whose every glance sets her on fire. But the more she focuses on her work, the closer she gets to unlocking the mysteries of a terrible creature—the Night Demon—that threatens the world as she knows it. Though her scientific mind tells her it’s impossible, she’s beginning to believe the ancient Mayan tales as the sinister jungle comes alive around her.
Lukas Smith has spent hundreds of years searching for answers to his immortal Night Walker nature. As a series of ancient glyphs become clear, he’s about to find out more than he’d ever hoped, but the more he learns, the more his fate intertwines with the Night Demon, and the harder it becomes to hide his immortal secret from the beautiful, intelligent Gretchen.
Together, they must find a way to stop the inexplicable violence and mass destruction surging across the earth before the Night Demon destroys more than just mankind.
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Order the Book From: Amazon
- Barnes and Noble
Night Thief
- A Night Series NovellaNominated for Best Novella of 2012 by Grave Tells Book Reviews
After the fall of the Mayan civilization, Kane, an immortal Night Walker, has taken refuge in France for over 800 years. The modern world holds little interest for him until the night he meets the Golden Thief and is robbed of much more than his pocket watch.
Marguerite Rousseau is living a double life. By day she is the assistant to an eccentric French artist, Antoine Berjon, and by night she dons elegant evening gowns to woo French dignitaries before lifting their wallets.
Sparks ignite when Kane captures the thief, but Marguerite harbors a dark secret that could ruin them both.
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Book Trailer: Night Thief
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Order the Book From: Amazon
- Barnes and Noble
Night Walker
- The Night SeriesHe gave up his soul for a second chance to love her...
Two and a half centuries ago, Calisto Terana lost everything when a zealous priest murdered the woman he loved. Now, desperate for another chance to love her, he wants redemption for the mistake that cost her life.
She's haunted by dreams of her own death...
After catching her fiance with another woman, Kate Bradley returns to San Diego to clear her head. The last thing she needs is romance, but after meeting Calisto she's drawn to him in ways she doesn't understand.
They've waited in the shadows for centuries...
Calisto has no doubt Kate is the reincarnation of his lost love, but the Fraternidad Del Fuego Santo has a new watcher with dark ambitions of his own. As old enemies reemerge and a new threat arises, the betrayal that enslaved Calisto to the night might destroy the only woman he's ever loved again.
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Book Trailer: Night Walker
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Order the Book From: Amazon
- Barnes and Noble
Forgotten Treasures: 25 Short Fiction Tales
25 Short Fiction Tales
Spooky tales told while huddled around a campfire. Memories of "the good old days" shared by grandparents. Alien invasions by flashlight, under the covers, after bedtime.
Short stories are like Forgotten Treasures you find in a trunk in the attic, just waiting to be discovered. Inside this book lurks a Christmas loving demon, a pirate ghost who becomes flesh only one night a year, and an ancient Egyptian god who longs to be a god of rock-n-roll. These tales, and many more, are anxious for you to open the cover and dust them off.
Table of Contents:
Afraid of the Dark
The Curse of Hamelin
Invaded
Outbreak
Hunted
Forgotten Treasures
The Diva
My Prison
The Chariot Race
Demons and More
A Demon on the Drums
Internet Dating Secrets
The Bet
Sci-Fi Tales
Going Home
Desert Storm
Invaders
Fantasy
The Aviator
In the Dead of Winter
Unemployed Muses Anonymous
Love and Loss
Last Dance
Stranded
The Mission
Halloween
A Pirate's Treasure
1530 Archibald Street
The Caretaker
Christmas
The Third King
The Business Trip
The Demon's Christmas
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Order the Book From: Amazon
- Barnes and Noble
Across the Veil
Princess Talia from Summerland has been hiding across the veil in the human world for the past five years.
Starring in a hit television show as human actress, Natalie Thurmont, her charmed new life is shattered when the past comes knocking on her door.
"Across the Veil" won Romance in the Backseat book review's Paranormal Fight Club short story contest.
Short Fiction (6,000 words)
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Book Trailer: Across the Veil
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Order the Book From: Amazon
- Barnes and Noble
- Smashwords
Author Recommended by: HBSystems Publications
Publisher of ebooks, writing industry blogger and the sponsor of the following blogs:
eBook Author’s Corner and Mystery Reader’s Circle
Check out the index of other Spotlight authors. Spotlight Index.
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