Fantasy Author

Crimson Cloak Publishing Author – Denna Holm

1) Do you write books as a career, or are you currently still juggling your author time with a full or part time job?
As a retired horse trainer, I pretty much write full time now. I think I’m one of the lucky ones. I get to spend as much time as I want every day, most of it spent between writing and editing. Then I also read a lot. I think a good writer needs to like to read. I’m always learning, always trying to be better, the same as I was with training horses.

2) Have you always wanted to be an author, or did some time or event in your life set you on the path?
I have always wanted to write, but it didn’t become a real possibility for me until I stopped training horses. At that time, I went back to school to brush up on my writing skills. I also took an over the mail writing course with Stratford Career Institute on creative writing. The first course I took simply taught me how to write a single scene. Learn how to stay focused. When I finished with this I took a course on writing a novel, learning to put these individual scenes together. This actually ended up being my first published novel Soul of a Warrior. My instructor was extremely positive and helpful, though tough, and I’m grateful for all those critiques, painful though they sometimes were.

3) Do you always write in the same genre, or do you sometimes like a change of theme? If you haven’t already, is there another genre you would like to write?
I pretty much stay within paranormal/fantasy and science fiction. I went outside the usual boundaries and created a story using a combination of all three. It isn’t accepted by all readers/writers, but so far I’ve received far more positive feedback than not. It isn’t easy to carve a place for yourself in the writing world and I think it’s important to take chances, use your imagination and create something unique to you.

4) As a writer, what is the best thing that has happened to you, and what is that most exciting thing that could happen to you?
By far the most exciting moment was when my novel first got picked up by a publisher. It felt like all that hard work, all those painful critiques, had finally paid off. Off course, little did I know that this would only be the beginning of lots more hard work. The best thing—was when I received a positive review from Kirkus Reviews, known to be one of the toughest critique sites around. I was sweating a bit waiting for that one to come back.

5) How do you view the promotion, book signings etc. Is it something you enjoy, or do you prefer the writing stage?
I much prefer writing, though I do enjoy talking about writing or the story itself with other people. Promotion is difficult, trying to figure out what works and what doesn’t. I’ve spent a lot of money, a lot of time, and I’m still trying to figure it out. I think the most important thing is to never give up.

6) Could you tell us something about your published books, and let us know what they are about and where they are available?
My first novel Soul of a Warrior is a paranormal/science fiction story about a young human woman named Kimi and her two friends. A stranger, Neyvarre, shows up at her place of work claiming to be her mate, but he is from another world. She doesn’t believe him and tries to run. Neyvarre also has lots of enemies, one of which abducts our heroine and her friends. He converts Kimi to vampire and leaves her two friends behind as food during her first bloodlust. He doesn’t want to kill Kimi. He only wants to separate Neyvarre from his mate, make his life miserable, as his life has been made miserable. Of course, Kimi doesn’t understand his motive, which makes it all the more difficult for her to handle. Now her mate must plan a rescue with no idea of which planet Kimi and her friends have been abandoned on. The story follows two paths, Kimi and her friend, and Neyvarre and the people who help with the rescue party. We run into many problems on both sides, lots of excitement and tension. You can find a copy of this novel Amazon:
Click here to go to Amazon
and Smashwords:
Click here to go to Smashwords

My second story is part of a boxed set called Love Potion #9. There are fourteen wonderful paranormal stories with USA TODAY and bestselling authors, some are shorts, some novella, and some full novels. All these are complete stories with a happily ever after ending. No partials that make you have to buy another novel to finish it. My part of this boxed set is called Dark Warrior. The story follows Jada, an avid bow hunter, and Bryce, a tracker for the Laizahlian Council. He works for a Hunter of rogues from another world. This is the same universe we are introduced in with Soul of a Warrior. Jada and her three best friends are out in the wilderness of Oregon during elk season when they run into rogue werewolves. Bryce is able to save her, but none of her friends. Though he didn’t allow her friends to die on purpose, his only real interest is in saving Jada, his life mate. He has his work cut out for him trying to convince Jada to believe what he is saying is true. Then there is the added danger of his partner, a vampire, who doesn’t like the idea of Bryce trying to take a human mate. This great collection can be picked up at Amazon:
Click here to go to Amazon

My next novel, Ghost Warrior, will be due out mid 2017, published by Crimson Cloak Publishing. It will follow two of the minor characters in Soul of a Warrior, Kimi’s best friend Amanda, and Neyvarre’s werewolf partner, Tallyn.

You can find me at: Link to Denna’s website if you have any questions about writing or any of my stories. I also love to talk about horses and dressage if that’s your interest.

Fantastic replies, Denna. I know for a fact you are a great writer, and wish you the best of luck in your career as an author!

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