Welcome to Writer Wednesday!
Most weeks I bring you a fellow romance author, usually with one or more books to their name. But occasionally I like to break the pattern and feature someone who writes in a different genre, or someone who is “pre-published” (as I heard it called at a Virginia Romance Writers meeting – isn’t that a great term for authors whose work isn’t quite on the shelves/screen yet?).
I’m thrilled that today it’s my fellow writing friend, Taryn Noelle Kloeden. Taryn and I are members of the Shenandoah Valley Writers critique group, so I’ve gotten to know her and her writing over the last two years. Both are amazing!
So grab that mug of tea or cup of hot cocoa (or maybe a nice iced drink if you’re somewhere hot), and enjoy learning more about Taryn and her upcoming YA epic fantasy release, Hex Breaker.
What inspires you to write?
These last few months as I’ve gone through the process of readying a book for publication for the first time, I’ve asked myself this question quite a bit; why did I do this to myself?? Writing, as it turns out, is hard. It’s also something that I can’t help but do. For me inspiration comes in many forms, including people, places, songs, and memories. The basis for my upcoming novel, Hex Breaker, can actually be traced back to games I played in the woods around my childhood home.
Which type of romance do you love most, and why?
First, a confession: I’m not really a “romance” reader (with the exception of Jane Austen and Margaret Locke! [ML says, “Wow, thanks!”]).
However, I do find that while many of my favorite stories are not “romance” books per se, they have quite a bit of romance in them. This is true in my own writing. Hex Breaker is an epic fantasy, but at its core it’s about relationships and the lengths we will go to to save the ones we love. I suppose you could say my favorite kind of romances are the ones you don’t expect to find, but find you anyway!
What one piece of advice do you wish you’d had when first starting out?
In the spirit of romance, I think the best piece of advice I’ve received is to “K.I.S.S.” (Keep It Simple, Stupid!). This goes for the writing itself—from cutting “stage management” lines to catching those pesky filler words—as well as for story-telling. My mind tends towards epics (what can I say, I grew up on Tolkien), but there is such a thing as too much intricacy. Over the course of this novel, I’ve learned to balance grand ideas with immediacy and fun-to-follow story-lines, but it would have been nice to know to K.I.S.S from the start!
A Bit About Hex Breaker (due out Spring 2017):
Forced to decide between her happiness and her pack’s safety, Rayna Myana chooses to protect those she loves. But when shattered promises and dark magic collide, no one is safe…
For six hundred years, Fenear, a land where humans can take wolf form, has warred with Maenor, its neighboring kingdom ruled by a ruthless dynasty. The possibility of peace emerges when the Maenoren Overlord, Rhael, enters negotiations with Fenearen leaders Bayne and Silver, but their niece, Rayna, is skeptical. Yet, when Rhael proposes to her to strengthen the alliance, she agrees for the sake of her country, despite her family’s objections and a blossoming romance with her best friend.
Suspicion of treachery changes Rayna’s decision, but before she can annul the engagement, powerful forces subdue her with a sinister hex. Separated from her pack with Fenear and everyone she loves in danger, Rayna must escape and travel to a distant realm to break the hex. Only then can she save her best friend and her homeland.
Lines blur between heroism and recklessness, dreams and reality, even life and death, and Rayna risks losing herself along the way.
A Bit About Taryn:
Taryn is a writer and lover of all things furry and feathered. She can be found in the Shenandoah Valley in her home state of Virginia, where she balances her pursuit of a Master’s degree in Anthrozoology with her writing. She is currently focusing on her main project, the YA dark/epic fantasy series The Fenearen Chronicles, with the first book, Hex Breaker, due out early 2017. When not studying or holed up in her apartment writing, she is most likely tracking down birds with her trusty binoculars.
Want to connect further with Taryn? Find her here:
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Woo hoo! Thanks for hanging with us, Taryn! I can’t wait for this series to come out, as I know how much I’ve enjoyed reading versions of it!