Possessed by Love
By
Sheri Velarde
Author bio
Sheri Velarde, lives in New Mexico with her fiancé and their
two dogs.
Being an avid reader since an early age, she has wanted to
be a writer for as long as she can remember. She has been writing all her life,
but only recently started to actually try to pursue her dream of writing for a
living. She specializes in all things paranormal and that go bump in the night.
Her heart truly lies in exploring unknown worlds or adding the supernatural to
our world. If it goes bump in the night or has magical connotations, Sheri
writes about it.
She is constantly putting out new material with various
publishers, so it is best to keep up with her on her website
www.sherivelarde.weebly.com.
In her spare time Sheri is an artist, jewelry designer,
independent comic writer/artist and freelance non-fiction writer. Hiking in the
mountains, going to live concerts, art openings, museums, and hosting intimate
dinner parties.
Social links
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Sher_V
Website: http://sherivelarde.weebly.com/
Blurb
Andrew faced the growing storm with animosity. He would be
trapped in his shop for a couple of days with no food or electricity. Hopefully
he could at least get food at the Church Street Café. Food he did find and so
much more once Damian, the owner of the café, asks him to ride out the storm
with him in the quarters above the restaurant. Generators, food and warmth
aside, Andrew has spent months wishing for such an invitation from the
mysterious and sexy Damian. What starts out as light flirtation turns into so
much more. Something comes over both men, letting them leave their insecurities
behind as they become possessed by passion and love.
Buy links:
Book excerpt
The door opened and a rush of warm air enveloped and light
him. Andrew sighed in relief, stepping inside. Looking around and seeing no
one, he called out, "Hello. Are you open?" His voice echoed slightly
in the strange quiet that had befallen the entire city, especially the usually
busy tourist section where he worked and practically lived, trying to make his
designs successful. Venturing farther into the restaurant, heading towards the
kitchen in back, he figured it would always be possible to take some food and
leave money. As he pushed the kitchen door open, he called out again, "Is
anyone here?" It was strange that the lights were on and the place was so
warm when the rest of the square was dark and cold, it left him feeling a bit
uneasy.
Suddenly something moved behind him. Andrew turned quickly
but no one was there. The entire dining area was open and he didn't see a soul,
yet he was sure he had felt someone right behind him only a moment before. A
chill ran down his spine, even though the room was warm from several fires
burning. A little scared, he warily continued into the kitchen.
"Hello?" Still no answer, so he proceeded to look
for food. Upon finding some takeout supplies, Andrew began to fill them with
posole and chili, figuring he could warm them on the wood stove back in his
store in some old pot or something should he be stuck longer than expected.
“Always be prepared.” He mumbled to himself, chuckling as he remembered his
brief stint and disastrous stint in the boy scouts where he learned that motto.
Just as he was packing up to leave, wondering why all the
food was there and still warm without a person in sight, he heard a deep, sexy,
masculine voice behind him. "Can I help you with something, Andrew?"
Andrew shrieked like a boy as he turned around.
"Damian, you nearly scared me to death. I called out over and over with no
answer." Andrew’s heart rate kicked up a notch, as it always did when he
was in the presence of the new café owner. The man was so damn good-looking; he
always reminded him of Benjamin Bratt: tall, dark, and handsome, but with a
Spanish accent. He was just too hot for him to handle, and he usually stammered
inanely, making a fool of himself in the other man’s presence.
Questions for Authors
Is there a message in your
novel that you want readers to grasp? That even if you doubt yourself and feel
alone, there is someone out there perfect for you.
Was there an Author who
inspired you to write? Anne Rice and Stephen King were the biggest influences
on me growing up. Still almost everything I write has some sort of supernatural
element in it.
How did you come up with
the characters in your books? Imagination mixed with people I know and some of
my own flaws and insecurities thrown in.
What are your current
projects? I have a couple stories out for more anthologies and I am currently
working on two novels, one is a sequel to my romantic fantasy Quest for
Redemption and the other is a time-travel/steampunk mashup that I am super
excited about.
Do you see writing as a
career? Yes. For the past year writing has been my full time job. My now
husband was very supportive in me taking this leap to pursue my passion.
Do you ever picture
yourself and one of your heroines? If
so, which one? I think there is a little bit of me in every character that I
write, heroes and heroines. I see a lot of myself in Zanna, an elven warrior
princess in Quest for Redemption.
Do you have a favorite
heroine/hero from one of your books? If so, who? Again, my elven princess
Zanna. She learns about herself and grows so much in her story, I like to think
that I have done the same in my life.
What kind of research do
you do for your books? Depends on the book, but I love research. For my latest
releases I had to research ghosts and plausible causes for zombies, so that was
fun. For my time travel piece I am research extensively about possible ways to
time travel, I am going to base my machine on real science, so lots of research
involved. Luckily my husband was a math minor and I am having him help with
some of the theoretical math!
What is the hardest part
of writing your book? Getting the first draft done. There are often times in
the middle of a first draft that I feel the entire story is wrong and no one
will read it. You just have to push through and finish, then the story only
gets better as you edit.
If you could say anything to your readers what would it be?
Thank you for reading! I know all authors really appreciate that you take the
time to read their books and I am no different. The fact that I have readers
and fans still blows my mind and I love each and every one of you for letting
me into a part of your life.
What is your favorite Genre and why? Paranormal romance. I
love supernatural creatures and they need love too!
Do you prefer to write alone or do you like to collaborate
with other authors? Alone. I have never really collaborated, except for
anthologies and there we each have written our own story. Guess I am a bit of a
loner.
Do you ever get writer’s block? If so, how do you get
through it? I used to get writer’s block a lot when I still had a day job. I
would just write my way through it, even if what I wrote was terrible eventually
it would get better. Now that I write full time I find that constantly writing
truly does help keep writer’s block at bay!
When you are reading a book, who is your favorite author? I
still love Anne Rice and Stephen King. J.K. Rowling is a favorite. I love Joe
Hill. The list could go on and on. I still tend to go towards paranormal of
some sort, it’s what makes me happy.
Do you come up with the cover or does someone else do it? I
have always worked with very talented cover artists. I give suggestions and they
are the ones who make the magic!
If you could change anything in your writing what would that
be? I seem to be the queen of short fiction, but I want to move more and more
towards novel length pieces.
What book if any would you want to be made into a movie? My
romantic fantasy novel, Quest for Redemption.
Who would you want to play the hero/heroine? Kate
Beckinsale. She is who I pictured when writing Zanna. I’ve always loved her and
thought her beautiful and powerful.
Everyone uses computers, tablets, phones and no one uses
handwritten form or typewriters, what do you prefer to use? Mainly my computer,
though I do often carry a spiral notebook around so I can write even when at
the laundromat and such.
Is there a ritual you do everything before you begin your
book? I don’t really have any rituals. I just get an idea, flesh it out a bit,
get the characters named and figured out and then start writing.
What do you do when you finish your book and turn it in to
the editor? Start a new book. Or keep working on one that I had already
started. Always keep writing is my best advice to people.
Thank you so much for having me!
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