As promised, I interviewed Jamie Summer - author of 'Dalysian Hope'. She has an amazing character. Jamie has a happy and funny personality and she's absolutely lovely. I love to talk to her and working with her means heaps of fun! And above all of that, she's a very talented author <3
First things first :) I want to say a huge >THANK YOU< to Jamie for taking the time to answer my questions!
Jen: One of my followers asked 'What's Jamie's most favourite ice cream flavor?'
Jamie: White chocolate. God I'd die for white chocolate ice cream.
Jen: When / How did you realize you're a writer?
Jamie: I still don't believe I'm an actual writer, even though people keep telling me I am. I've written together with my best friend since we were teenagers. Mostly fanfiction. But I never actually thought of myself as a writer. When the idea for Dalysian Hope became something more prominent, I slowly started to wonder, if maybe I could actually write this story. My best friend encouraged me, and here I am. Kind of a writer, I think.
Jen: What's your most favourite place to write?
Jamie: Lamely enough, my dinner table. Or the couch. I don't have special spot where I can write the best. I'm happy when I get the time to write overall, so any place will do. Now, if you'll book me a vacation where I am in a house on water (like on the Maldives), I wouldn't be opposed to that and THAT might turn into my favorite writing spot.
Jen: Where did you have the idea to write 'Dalysian Hope’?
Jamie: I had one of those very vivid dreams. The kind you can’t forget. Even a few days later I could still remember every detail about it. In the end, I wrote everything down. Not with any direct intention, but I thought, if I ever have a lot of time and a strong will, I might sit down and write it out. Half a year later, I typed the first words of Dalysian Hope.
Jen: How long did it take you to write 'Dalysian Hope’?
Jamie: I think the first draft was finished in five months.
Jen: What's your favourite genre and what's your most favourite book?
Jamie: I don’t have a favorite genre per se. M preference depends on the mood I’m in. Favorite book? That’s a hard one. The Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout are definitely among my fav books.
Jen: How comes that you write in English and not German?
Jamie: Ever since I started writing fan fiction with my best friend, we wrote in English. We’ve both been to the US for a school year, so it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. Writing in English feels more natural to me than German at any given day LOL
Jen: Are you more of a 'messy' writer or do your surroundings mostly look organised while you're writing?
Jamie: Well, the house is usually messy, so I have to go with that.
Jen:What do you love most about writing / being an author?
Jamie: The creativity I can let lose. The freedom of writing what I want. Sure, there are certain things you should watch out for, but just thinking up ideas of stories is an amazing things to do.
Jen: When did the idea for your 'Dalysia' trilogy pop to your mind and did you realize straight away that it will be a trilogy?
Jamie: A few chapters into Dalysian Hope I realized that the story wouldn’t be told in a single book. Plus, I loved the idea of it being a trilogy.
Jen: How far are you in the process of 'Dalysia' #2?
Jamie: The book is about 2/3 done at this point.
Jen: Whom of your characters from 'Dalysian Hope' do you favor? I can at least try to find it out ;)
Jamie: Nice try, but I won’t give that secret away. I can only tell you that, yes, there is someone I favor.
Jen: What can you tell us about your new book 'Broken Jar Of Memories’?
Jamie: It’s a standalone mystery book. I’ve written the book for a cover I bought before I even had the story. I truly love the way this book turned out, though. It’s a story about two sisters and their bond together. A life-altering event threatens to destroy everything they had, and while one loses her memory, the other does everything to help her sister get it back. And therefore save her from the danger lurking around the corner.
Jen: Who designed your beautiful cover of 'Dalysian Hope’?
Jamie: Judi Perkins of Concierge Literary Designs. She’s a goddess.
Jen: How does it work out for you to combine your family life with being an author?
Jamie: It’s a struggle, no doubt. It worked fine when the little one wasn’t moving around so much, but since he’s starting to crawl and pull himself up on furniture now, I can’t leave him alone. So writing is pushed to his sleeping time. On the weekends, my husbands takes him off my hands for an hour sometimes so I can work. But I love every moment I have with my son, and don’t want to miss that.
Jen: Are you scribbling your ideas down straight away in a notebook when it pops to your mind or how do you handle your ideas?
Jamie: I don’t use my notebook for that, but Evernote. That program is my online notebook for everything concerning my stories. Names, characteristics of people, important information told throughout the story, stuff like that. AND, I have a section for new ideas. Thankfully, that app has a voice function, because most of my ideas I had when being out for a walk with the little one.
Jen: How much of yourself can be found in your characters?
Jamie: There are a lot of things of myself that I put into my characters. Usually things like what they like and don't like. I think every author does that partly.
Jen: Is there anything else you want to say to your readers?
Jamie: I hope that when they pick up one of my books, they will enjoy them and got lost in the fictional world for a moment.
Thank you all so much for taking the time to read our interview <3 I hope you like it, as I had a great time working on it together with Jamie <3