Author Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction
Website: Mimi Sebastian - On the dark side of love
Author's Blog: Mimi Sebastian - On the dark side of love
Twitter: @SebastianMimi
E-Mail: mimi@mimisebastian.com
Goodreads: Check Out Goodreads
Facebook: Check Out Facebook
Amazon Author Profile
Author Description:
Mimi Sebastian raised herself on books and the strange and unusual, and an unhealthy dose of comics and movies. When a career as a punk guitarist failed to materialize, she completed her degree in urban planning, spent two years in the Ivory Coast with the Peace Corps, and another three years in Brazil. By day, she debates the merits of transport oriented development, by night she writes about necromancers and pirates. She's convinced she could live off coffee, ice cream, and comic books, but is sure only one of those is good for her health. She's a member of Romance Writers of America and the Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal chapter of RWA. A transplant from the beaches of Florida, Mimi now wanders the desert in Phoenix, AZ, and attempts to balance writing with a day career, fantastic family, and household diva: her Amazon parrot.
SPOTLIGHT Questions and Answers with the Author
Congratulations on your book: The Necromancer's Redemption. What do you have on the drawing board next? Can you tell us the timeline for its release and give us a little tease?
Thanks. It feels great to have completed that trilogy. It was in many ways a learning experience. Trial by fire! I’m currently finishing the second book in my pirate historical series and hope to have it released in June. I have a few more books planned in that series. I’m also going to start another series, I’m calling it a supernatural thriller, something akin to The DaVinci Code meets voodoo, although I hate to use the term voodoo. It’s going to explore the Orisha based religion from Nigeria and its many permutations in the new world. The first book takes place in Brazil, where I spent a lot of time. My parents are Brazilian so it will be fun to write about Brazilian culture. I don’t have a teaser yet!
You do a lot of book signings, interviews, speaking and personal appearances. When and where is the next place where your readers can see you? Where can they keep up with your personal contacts online?
I’m going to be at the Payson Book Festival in Payson, Arizona July 24. All information pertaining to my writing and contacts can be found on my website. My e-mail is mimi@mimisebastian.com, and I always enjoy hearing from people.
You have great covers. They carry a theme and your brand with them. 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?
Thanks! With my publisher, I complete a book cover questionnaire and they usually try to incorporate my ideas. With my self-published pirate series, I have complete control, which is great, and I work with a talented cover artist who does a great job in making my ideas come to life on the cover. I have yet to involve readers in cover design, but love the idea and will do that in the future.
You have written a short story called The Werewolf’s Devotion. Can you tell us if they had an impact on the sales of your novels? Are shorty’s one of your styles of writing or are they created to give readers a sample of your work?
It’s hard to say if they’ve had an impact. It was a story that came to me about one of the minor characters in the Necromancer Books and I decided to make it into a booklet as a giveaway and introduce people to my writing.
You belong to the writer support group, Buildin’ the Dream. We have had several of the authors in the (Author Helping Authors) group interviewed in the Author’s Spotlight. What a great group of outstanding people. What is the main thing that you get out of this association? http://www.buildinthedream.com/
All the local authors I’ve, through the local Romance Writer’s of America chapter, and other groups have been amazing people and I’ve learned so much. Writing can be a lonely, often frustrating endeavor. My author friends are my life line at times, and we share our experiences with marketing, writing, etc.
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?
I’ve done lots of book giveaways and the jury is still out on their effectiveness. At this point, I’ve decided to only offer free books via review sites in exchange for an honest review. I’ve liked the blog hop giveaways. Those direct traffic to your site and maybe introduce you to someone who may not have heard of you. I haven’t encountered any obstacles. It’s more of finding what works to get your books out there.
Do you maintain a reader list? What are the methods you use to find your readers and create the list and the relationship? Do you use social media, forums, newsletters and/or support groups to build your list?
I have a new release e-mail list, which is still a work in progress. While I do promote the list at times, I want it to grow organically. So far, I’ve used social media linked to some kind of giveaway, like my short story, and having a signup sheet at book signings.
I like your blog. You do a great job keeping readers informed, marketing your books and giving your readers a sample of your writing. What is your primary goal? And where in the world do you find the time to create great novels, take care of the social media and maintain your blog?
That’s a good question. Often, it feels like I’m just trying to keep the sinking ship afloat. I’m not a regular blogger and have a hard time finding things to blog about. I don’t want to post for the sake of posting. I mostly use my blog as a way to communicate about my books, promote other authors (spotlights and interviews), and topics of interest to me. I wrote episode reviews/recaps for the Black Sails TV show and they generated a lot of traffic. Where do I find the time? I don’t know. I probably don’t get enough sleep.
What is your method of getting reviews for your novels? Do you seek professional reviews, use social media or do you rely on your reading audience to supply them?
A little bit of all three. I belong to a couple of review sites where readers can request to read your book and provide an honest review. Mostly, I try to let reviews happen organically.
This year’s Tucson Festival of Books was a great event, enjoyed by thousands. A Book festival is a unique selling situation. How did you prepare for the festival? Did it meet your goals? If you had to do something different next year, what would that be?
It always is a great event. It’s exhausting, but worth it. The first year I attended, I didn’t know what to expect and it far exceeded anything I would have thought. For me, it’s not just about selling books, but about the people you meet, attendees and other authors. I met some great people this year. For next year, I hope to have more books! Thanks for having me on your blog. These were great questions and I enjoyed answering them!
Author's Book List
The Necromancer's Redemption
- The Necromancer Series Book 3Between hell and a hard place . . .
Before he died, necromancer Ruby Montagne’s demon grandfather passed her his Death Essence—his power. And that would be good . . . if she had a clue how to use it. Unfortunately, the impending destruction of both of her worlds demands she figures it out—fast. She’s got to stop an invasion of zombies from the bowels of hell. She has help from Xavier, the demon she’s nicknamed the Big Bad. But while Xavier does teach her to control her new power, he’s just setting her up for trouble. Bad trouble. Still, he’s better than the demon High Inquisitor, who’s obsessed with trying to kill her.
Ruby’s got even more trouble. She wants to regain the trust of her sometimes-lover, sometimes-adversary, Ewan—a demon warrior who’s six-feet-plus of chiseled muscle and coiled sexuality. It’d be a lot easier if her beloved friend, Lysander, a powerful vampire, wouldn’t keep trying to lure her into bed.
In order to defeat the zombies she must find—and learn how to use—an ancient artifact that will keep the veil between the worlds from shattering. But there’s a cost—the artifact feeds on souls. If she masters the artifact’s power, she’ll save both the human and demon worlds. But there’s not much time . . . and the artifact is hungry. Will she forfeit her soul before she’s able to fix the veil?
Mimi Sebastian raised herself on books, an unhealthy dose of comics, and movies. When a career as a punk guitarist failed to materialize, she completed her degree in urban planning. By day, she debates the merits of transport oriented development. By night she writes about necromancers and pirates.
Order the Book From: Amazon
- Barnes and Noble
The Necromancer's Betrayal
- The Necromancer Series Book 2Her powers have been hobbled. Her enemies are growing stronger.
Old loves challenge her. And her worst betrayer may be herself.
Necromancer Ruby Montagne is battling for her life in the realm of demons. Unfairly branded for the death of a fellow necromancer, she’s got to prove her innocence without the full use of her magic. And the real culprit is still on the loose.
While someone is stalking her friends among the witches, Ruby searches for answers inside the dark intrigues of both the demon and necromancer worlds. Ruby must confront this new, sinister threat while reconciling her feelings for her former lover, a demon warrior. Only it’s difficult . . . because a sexy vampire is making it clear that he’d like to be more than just friends.
The competition for Ruby’s trust heats up as the enemy pushes her toward a dark side that could threaten the entire realm. Yet what can Ruby do when she’s not even sure what she is? With the fabric separating the realms at stake, she must decide whom to trust. But will the ultimate betrayal be her own?
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- Barnes and Noble
- KOBO
Devil's Island
- Sea Rover's Passion Book 1Captain Boone Wilder leads a cadre of powerful and notorious pirates that rule the West Indies. He’s survived the cutthroat’s life, bearing the scars to prove it. Fearless, he seeks only the freedom of the seas and an enemy he’s hunted with a vengeance for years. When Boone waylays a fat merchant vessel bound for Port Royal, he discovers more than he bargained for in the luscious bounty of Miss Sabine Tanner. But Miss Tanner hides more than tempting curves in her skirts. When Boone finds her sneaking about the Port Royal taverns, meeting with dubious captains, he’s determined to learn what devious game she’s playing.
The daughter of a condemned pirate captain, Sabine Tanner took to the seas to clear her father’s name and locate his legendary treasure. When her ship bound for Port Royal is boarded, she’s captured by the sun-bronzed, muscular Captain Wilder. While the man is dangerously attractive, she knows from experience that Wilder is nothing but a scabrous bilge rat. Circumstances force her to sail with the scoundrel to find her father’s ship, lost on the phantom Devil’s Island. Driven by opposing agendas, will they survive the hidden truths, or does their greatest threat lie with each other?
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The Necromancer's Seduction
- The Necromancer Series Book 1She has never feared the walking dead. It’s the power required to reanimate the dead that startles her, seduces her. The power that dwells inside her . . . and is growing. For Professor Ruby Montagne, being a necromancer has brought her nothing but heartache, and she walked away from that part of her life long ago. However, her quiet existence in San Francisco is shattered when she stumbles upon the body of a slain witch, and the supernatural community insists she transform him into a revenant to track the killer. But his murder was just the beginning, and Ruby soon realizes that the stakes are higher than anyone can imagine—and that revenants have nasty minds of their own. Now demonic creatures have escaped into the human world, and zombies once again walk the streets. For humanity’s sake, Ruby forms an unlikely alliance with a witch, a revenant, and Ewan March, a demon warrior who sets her senses on fire. She’s always distrusted demons, and Ewan is no exception. But circumstances push them closer together, and Ruby not only finds it harder to resist him, she isn’t sure she even wants to. But she suspects his job of patrolling the portal separating humans and demons conceals a dark and deadly past that may consume them both. With events spiraling out of control, Ruby unravels a plot that not only threatens the human and demon realms, but puts Ruby’s very soul in jeopardy. Because when the dead walk, no one is safe. Especially Ruby.
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- KOBO
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