Today we’re sharing our interview with Carrigan Richards,
author of YA Contemporary Paranormal Romance and Psychological Romance. I just spent several
hours getting to know her via Facebook chats and over at the Beach Reads
Bonanza, which has been so fun. She is a great human being, and was kind enough to answer some interview
questions for me.
Kristi Cramer Books: Thanks for joining me, Carrigan! Tell us about you in a
nutshell. What makes you tick as a writer?
Carrigan Richards: I’m a Southern girl who loves to
read, write, garden, listen to music, hang out with family, play with my
furbabies, and eat, particularly cheese. I love creating worlds, people,
events. I watch people (even though I’m sure they think it’s creepy). I read stories
and empathize with people and when I try to imagine myself in their shoes, I
get stories brewing. I try to take what they experience and put it into words
for others. I also use real life experiences. As for my paranormal series,
while most of it is fantasy, I do include real-life elements. I try to make the
stories as realistic as possible.
KCB: What pets do
you have?
CR: 4 dogs: Marley (German Shepherd), Elsa (Collie/Shepherd mix),
Eli (lab/boxer mix), Beckett (Pit/lab mix)
KCB: Which is
your favorite?
CR: I love them all, but honestly, I have to say Eli, since he
was mine before I met my husband. He’s my baby and even though he’s rather
skittish, he’s always there to comfort me.
KCB: If you could have any pet on the planet, which would you
have?
CR: Well, since I have dogs, I’d say panda. They’re so cute and cuddly. They’d have to be well trained not to eat me though. Or I’d have a gorilla.
KCB: What inspires you to write strong female characters?
CR: The fact that I am one, and that I want others to be inspired
by a strong female voice. They’re becoming more and more popular, but there
could be more. I want women to know their strength and to know it’s okay to be
strong and independent.
KCB: What is your favorite season – why?
CR: Because
I’m a weirdo, I love all seasons equally. Winter for some reason makes me
reflect and it also means family time for me. I spend more time inside, so I’m
writing more. Spring because it’s beautiful. I love the warmth, the fresh
flowers, and the sense of renewing. Summer because longer days. Hanging out
more outside and enjoying the sunshine. Fall for its beauty, the foliage and
the crisp fall air with the gorgeous blue skies.
KCB: How many books have you written?
CR: I
have written a total of twelve books, most of them are YA, but I have a
detective series I wrote a while ago.
KCB: How many have you published? In what genres?
CR: I have published 6 books and 1 novella. All are young adult.
KCB: Do you have any favorite elements you like to put in your
books? How do you come up with the ideas?
CR: I love
astronomy and celestial themes. I included these pretty heavily in my paranormal
series and a little in my contemporary. I also like to push my characters as
far as they’ll go. As for ideas…this is sometimes a hard question for me to
answer. Sometimes I really don’t know where they come from. I get a lot of
inspiration from reading, music, TV, movies, real life. As for Pieces of Me, my contemporary,
psychological romance, the idea came to me after reading several psychological
books. I also studied psychology and am fascinated with how humans react to
events and what makes them do what they do. As for the Elemental Enchanters
Series, I have always been fascinated with witches, magic, super powers, so I
combined all of them to make the series. It’s kinda like X-Men meets The Craft..haha.
KCB: If you could take one of your characters with you to a nice
night out, say dinner and a movie, which one would it be? Where would you eat,
and what movie would you see?
CR: Gabriel. Hands down.
Well, because he’s such a gentleman and takes care of his woman, we would go to
a fancy Italian restaurant, since that’s my favorite. He’d have something fancy
because he has rich tastes, but I would go with the old standard: chicken
parmesan. We would go see an action movie – along the super hero lines. Because
those are one of my favorites and I wouldn’t want to torture him through a
romance. J
KCB: For someone who is new to your work, where should they
start?
CR: If they want adventure, action, romance, I’d
start with Under a Blood Moon. I love
the series and I’m so proud of it. If they want something emotional that will make them cry, Pieces of Me.
Thanks so much for joining us today! Isn't she fun? Be sure to check out her stalker links, and order one or more of her books today.
Stalker links:
TWITTER: @carrigan34
INSTAGRAM: @authorcarriganrichards
WEBSITE: https://carriganrichards.com/
Books by Carrigan Richards:
Elemental Enchanters Series: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B012XYQ08G
Pieces of Me: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EDCELY2
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