Monday, June 2, 2014

The Wild Hunt by Ron C. Nieto Giveaway & Interview



Mature YA Paranormal

Date Published: May 29, 2014
   
Magic still lingers in the mist-covered corners of the world, wherever the Old Ways are remembered. However, as civilization and reason scoff at the Fair Folk, the paths to power have been forgotten by all but a few.

Lily Boyd was meant to become a faerie doctor, a warden of humans and a keeper of balance, until disbelief and pragmatism led her away from the hidden world and into a mundane life. But truth has a way to be Heard and she will be forced to face it if she wants to save her family.

Armed with nothing but her childhood memories and protected by a debt of gratitude she doesn’t understand, Lily must decide who to trust while she navigates a world that is darker and more twisted than she is prepared for.

And should she make the wrong choice, should she mistake friend and foe… the eternal balance between the Faerie Courts may shatter, and then there will be more than Lily’s life on the line.
  





Virtual Book Tour - June 2 - June 13


Ron C. Nieto

Ron C. Nieto is a fantasy and romance author who has been writing in her secluded fortress for the longest time. Recently, she had a talk with her cat and decided that she should share her creations, because it was selfish to hoard them all for herself.

Interview

What inspired you to write your first book?
It was a “what if” moment. I really wanted to know how certain characters would react to a certain situation, and no one else seemed to be about to write it so I took up the job myself!

Do you have a specific writing style?
I think I have several, depending on the story. I can go from slapstick humor in non-fiction and posts to nearly poetic feels in some scenes… I think if I had to define my style, I’d have to say that I listen to my characters and let them tell their story at their own pace, using their own words. It makes some books harder to write than others, but it makes each series unique too!
I do have a specific writing routine, though. The way I plan and how I sit down to write: I try to be a planner, leave enough room to improvise the details and then factor the improvisations into any further planning. And I always listen to music. In fact, if I don’t find the perfect track, I might be unable to get the story going!

How did you come up with the title?
The title sort of self-generated. I mean, one moment I was doodling away and jotting down scenes for “FaerieBook1.doc” and the next thing I know, the Wild Hunt becomes an integral part of the series and it just clicks as a title. In fact, the moment I knew this book would be called the Wild Hunt, I also knew the second and third book titles. It was a bit uncanny!

Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
I’m sure there’s one. I’m always trying to make a point, to say something. Problem is I won’t know what that message is until I finish the series and step back from it, putting some distance and approaching the book as a reader and not as the author. In fact, it’s most likely that readers will spot the message and comment on it way before I do!
I know that’s extremely odd, and it might make me sound slightly nuts, but every time I’ve tried to write a text with a clear message in mind, the story gets muddied and writing it becomes a chore. Fact is I don’t want to preach, no matter how badly I want people to be touched and moved by my fantasy worlds… So I’ve this compromise with my inner self where I tell the story that needs to be told, as it needs to be told, and someone somewhere will read it when they need it most and find a grain of truth to take away into their life.
So, is there a message? Sure. Which one? Well… why don’t you guys tell me? (Because I love hearing from readers, now that we mention it)

How much of the book is realistic?
Well… The book deals with faeries. I’m not sure I can call it realistic and keep a straight face.
However, the characters are realistic. Lily could be anyone, and I hope her reactions are logical, given her situation. Similarly, I’ve played with the fact that the faerie cast isn’t human, and so their behaviors, their morals, even their feelings are different from ours… but still as solid as I could make them.
Let’s call it a “could-be-real” thing then, okay? 
Are experiences based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
Mostly, The Wild Hunt and its characters exist only in my imagination. But it’s true that I’ve pulled some personal experiences out of context, blown them to story-worthy proportions, and used them to build the sort of feelings I wanted to convey. The best example is when Lily gets lost in a Faerie path: I got lost once in that same bewildering way!
What books have most influenced your life most?
If we’re talking about really having an impact in my life, I’ll have to go with Ender’s Game (understand your enemies to destroy them; when you do, you will no longer want to) by Scott Card and Dune (“fear is the mind killer”) by Frank Herbert. No sequels, no prequels: just those two stories. I don’t believe I could understand myself today if I hadn’t read them in my teen years.
Later, I read The Sundering by Jacqueline Carey and added it to the list of Important Books because there was this one sentence that might have come too late to shape who I am, but certainly has done a lot toward shaping who I am as a writer: “if everything that’s good calls you evil, are you?”

If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?
Difficult, difficult question. To quote George Seferis, “Don't ask me who's influenced me. A lion is made up of all the lambs he's digested, and I've been reading all my life.”
However, if I had to choose and if we’re talking The Wild Hunt, I’d pick Melina Marchetta and her Lumatere Chronicles for her sense of character and rhythm, and Holly Black and her Modern Faerie Tales and Brenna Yovanoff and her The Replacement for their dark take on faerie lore.

What book are you reading now?
A Tangle of Need, by Nalini Singh (book 11 of Psy-changeling series) and Fates, by C. Gockel (book 4 of I Bring the Fire series).  Enjoying them both!
What would you like my readers to know?
I would like them to know I would really like to meet them! Let’s get in touch. I promise you can ask as many questions as you’d like!

Thanks for having me over today! It was lots of fun J

If you would like to know more about her, please visit her website.



a Rafflecopter giveaway
Posted by at
Labels: ,

2 comments:

  1. UnknownJune 2, 2014 at 1:20 PM

    This book is paranormal and that catches my attention first. The excerpt is interesting too.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousJune 15, 2014 at 1:42 PM

    I love that its a paranormal book

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)