Tell us a little about you : )
I’m a Southern girl who’s
lived in Alabama, Texas, and Louisiana—plus three odd years in northern
Illinois thrown in for variety, where everyone made fun of my accent. (What
accent?) My “day-job” career is in university magazine work. Let’s see…I hate
to cook, have an unholy addiction to Diet Coke, work too many hours, and have
two elderly furkids, Shane and Tanker.
What inspired you to write Omega?
I’d
always envisioned the story arc for the Penton Legacy series culminating with Omega,
where my town of peaceful vampires and humans is literally forced underground
in order to survive. It’s kind of an apocalyptic scenario, and an interesting
setting for the love story between the hero and heroine, who each have to fight
their way out from behind the walls they’ve put up even as they’re fighting
their way out of this underground prison they’ve made for themselves. I also
wanted to write a paranormal romance where the story didn’t play second-fiddle
to the romance. They’re equal partners.
How long did it take to write?
Omega was written on a
very tight deadline, in about two months. Four months is a good pace for me for
a full-length novel; three is doable. Two was insane!
Do you mostly write during the day or
night? Or whenever?
Since
I do have a pretty demanding full-time day job, I keep to a very rigid writing
schedule at night. Usually 7-11 p.m. seven nights a week, plus an extra
four-eight hours on Saturday and Sunday.
In general, how do you come up with
your story ideas?
They
usually come to me when I’m not actively trying to think of them. I read
magazines that are my “idea incubators”—Science News, National Geographic,
Smithsonian. When I read an article, I look to see if it has potential for a
paranormal spin.
Which character(s) were the most fun
writing?
I
always fall in love with my characters at some point in the writing. Mirren and
Glory (the hero and heroine of Absolution) were probably the most fun to write
because they’re such polar opposites. He’s this big, short-tempered grouch of a
vampire with a violent past; she’s a human chatterbox who isn’t intimidated by
him in the least. And that equals fireworks.
Did you have to research, and if yes,
how was that process?
I
do quite a bit of research as I write. Even though I’m writing a paranormal
romance, I want the details to be as right as I can make them. I’m working with
a couple of attorney friends right now to ensure a legal detail about my work
in progress is right. I want to know how buckshot could be laced with poison to
damage a vampire. How much a 17th-century Scottish battle sword
weighs (Mirren’s weapon of choice) and how it’s wielded. All kinds of research!
Fortunately, the Internet has made research much, much easier.
What do you want readers to get from
your story?
I always seem to come back
to the same themes in my writing, whether it’s this series or the urban fantasy
series I write under another name: real family has nothing to do with DNA; own
your feelings; forgiveness.
When did you first realize that you
wanted to become a writer?
I was on a pre-med track
in high school, but in my senior year I got really interested in writing (bad)
poetry and co-founded my school’s literary magazine. I ended up with college
degrees in English lit because I loved it and journalism because it would make
me employable. Which is pretty much how it worked out.
How long have you been writing?
I’ve been working as a
journalist for a long time, but only began writing fiction in 2009. I was
living in New Orleans at the time of Hurricane Katrina, and decided to try my
hand at an urban fantasy novel set in the city during that time. I caught the
fiction-writing bug big-time and was fortunate to find an agent and a publisher
for that book, Royal Street, which became the first in an urban fantasy series.
Is there a place you especially like
to write? Ultimate place to write?
I can write anywhere, but
ideally I’m in my home office on my own laptop with my iTunes cranked up. I
stayed at a cottage in Cedar Key, Florida, last year that has become my dream
writing spot. I’d like to rent it for three or four months and just write and
watch the birds and wildlife.
What are you currently working on?
I’m working on a serial
novel that’s a loose spinoff of Omega, although it doesn’t have any of the same
characters. It’s a paranormal-romantic suspence novel called Storm Force, and
it will be released initially in episodes as a Kindle serial beginning March
19, and in July will be released as a complete novel. For the serial, you
“subscribe” for $1.99 and every two weeks get a new episode at no extra charge
delivered to your Kindle. The first episode comes out on March 19. Or you can
wait until July and buy the complete novel in print, digital or audio just like
any other book. It’s an interesting process!
For aspiring writers, do you have any
advice for them?
I’ve said this a lot, and
I don’t think anyone really believes me—LOL. And that’s that you really need to
decide how badly you want to pursue writing as a career rather than a hobby. It
takes a lot of sacrifice, long hours, and hard work. Chances are good that you
will struggle. You will likely not get rich or be able to support yourself on
your writing alone. People are always waiting in the wings to tear down your
work, so develop a thick hide. If you can handle all that, the rewards are
amazing.
What are your favorite genres to
read?
I’m really a promiscuous
reader. I tend toward urban fantasy and paranormal romance, but I also love
dystopian fiction, and read a good bit of nonfiction as well.
What are you currently reading?
Currently, I’m reading a romantic
suspense novel (see, I told you I was promiscuous), Blank Slate by Tiffany Snow, one of my fellow authors at Montlake
Romance. I started reading it to see how it was organized since it’s also
coming out as a serial, and then got hooked.
All time favorite film that you can see endlessly,
and you have practically memorized all the lines?
(Spoken in imperious, deep
voice) You. Shall. Not. Pass! Yes, it’s Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings
trilogy. Beautiful movies that I could watch forever and still not see
everything.
Favorite guilty pleasure television
show?
Currently, I’m obsessed
with a show on Animal Planet called Gator Boys. Yes, I’m a reality-show geek.
Location of place you have never visited, but
really want to go to someday?
Alaska! I find it
fascinating and am forever watching all those “Last Frontier” shows. Outside
the U.S., Scotland. I really, really need to go to Scotland. Really.
- Fall or Winter?
Fall—summers are so hot in
the south that the first cool breeze of fall is invigorating. And then we’re
wusses when cold weather comes.
- Hot Chocolate, Tea or Coffee?
Coffee. I love my coffee.
- Mac or PC?
I’m bilingual. I use Mac
at the day job and a PC at home. I’d probably go all-Mac if they weren’t so
expensive.
- England or Scotland? : )
About 90 percent of my
ancestors were from Scotland and there are some of the old Sandilands (Sandlin)
castles still standing near Edinburgh. So I really, really do need to go to
Scotland!
- Print or E-Book?
Both. Until a friend gave
me a Kindle for Christmas a few years ago I said I’d never want an ereader.
Now, I actually prefer it, although for authors or books I really like, I want
print.
- Middle Earth or Hogwarts?
I can only choose one?
Sigh. I love Middle Earth, but I’d probably choose Hogwarts. I want a Room of
Requirement.
- Frozen Yogurt or Ice Cream?
Ice cream. Preferably,
Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla.
- Sunny or Rainy Weather?
Depends on whether I have
to go anywhere. If I’m writing or hanging out at home, I like a rainy day.
- Christmas or New Years?
Christmas. I’m a total
loser on New Year’s. I spent it writing this year, and protecting my dogs from
fireworks, which they were convinced were gunshots.
Book Descriptions (1-3)
REDEMPTION
Book One Penton Legacy series
By Susannah Sandlin
Following a worldwide pandemic whose vaccine left human blood
deadly to vampires, the vampire community is on the verge of starvation and
panic. Some have fanned into rural areas, where the vaccine was less prevalent,
and are taking unsuspecting humans as blood slaves. Others are simply starving,
which for a vampire is worse than death—a raging hunger in a creature too weak
to feed.
Immune to these struggles—at
first—is Penton, a tiny community in rural Chambers County, Alabama, an
abandoned cotton mill town that has been repopulated by charismatic vampire
Aidan Murphy, his scathe of 50 vampires, and their willingly bonded humans.
Aidan has recruited his people carefully, believing in a peaceful community
where the humans are respected and the vampires retain a bit of their humanity.
But an unresolved family feud and the paranoia of the Vampire Tribunal descend
on Penton in the form of Aidan’s brother, Owen Murphy. Owen has been
issued a death warrant that can only be commuted if he destroys Penton—and
Aidan, against whom he’s held a grudge since both were turned vampire in
17th-century Ireland. Owen begins a systematic attack on the town, first
killing its doctor, then attacking one of Aidan’s own human familiars
To protect his people, Aidan is forced to go against his principles and kidnap
an unvaccinated human doctor—and finds himself falling in love for the first
time since the death of his wife in Ireland centuries ago.
Dr. Krystal Harris, forced into a world she never knew existed,
must face up to her own abusive past to learn if the feelings she’s developing
for her kidnapper are real—or just a warped, supernatural kind of Stockholm
Syndrome in which she’s allowing herself to become a victim yet again.
Susannah
Sandlin’s REDEMPTION is the first in the Penton Legacy series. Book two,
ABSOLUTION, will be out September 18, and book three, OMEGA, on December 18.
ABSOLUTION
The Penton Legacy, Book 2
By Susannah Sandlin
Release
date: October 9, 2012
Publisher:
Montlake Romance
Book Description:
With the vampire
world on the brink of civil war over the scarcity of untainted human blood,
battle lines are being drawn between the once peaceful vampire and human
enclave of Penton, Alabama, and the powerful Vampire Tribunal.
A Scottish
gallowglass warrior turned vampire in the early 17th century, Mirren Kincaid
once served the Tribunal as its most creative and ruthless executioner—a time
when he was known as the Slayer. But when assigned a killing he found
questionable, Mirren abandoned the Tribunal’s political machinations and
disappeared—only to resurface two centuries later as the protector and
second-in-command of Penton. Now the Tribunal wants him back on their side—or
dead.
To break their
rogue agent, they capture Glory Cummings, the descendant of a shaman, and send
her to restore Mirren’s bloodthirsty nature. But instead of a monster, Glory
sees a man burdened by the weight of his past. Could her magic touch—meant by
the tribunal to bring out a violent killer—actually help Mirren break his bonds
and discover the love he doesn’t believe he deserves?
It’s a town
under siege, a powerful warrior in a battle with his past, and one woman who
can make the earth move—literally—as the Penton Legacy continues.
Omega
Penton Vampire Legacy, Book 3
Susannah Sandlin
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Date of Publication: February 5,
2013
ISBN: 978-1612183596
ASIN: B0073XV3L2
Number of pages: 328
Word Count: approx. 88,000
Book Description:
The
bloody war between the Vampire Tribunal and the defiant scathe of Penton,
Alabama, rages on, forcing its residents and their bonded humans to retreat
into the underground fortress of last resort: Omega. There, Will Ludlam is
charged with the care of Penton's humans, though he longs to fight alongside
his vampire brethren. He knows the risks: as the renegade son of the Tribunal's
vicious leader, Will's capture could doom the resistance.
Yet he
is determined to prove his worth to his adopted scathe, to his vengeful father
and to former US Army officer Randa Thomas, his beautiful, reluctant partner.
Randa has little faith that a former member of the vampire elite has what it
takes to fight a war. But as their enemies descend upon Omega, Will's polished
charm and Randa's guarded heart finally give way to the warrior within.
Fans of
Susannah Sandlin's Penton Legacy are sure to devour this long-awaited third
installment of the steamy paranormal series.
About The Author
Susannah
Sandlin is the author of paranormal romance set in the Deep South, where there
are always things that go bump in the night. A journalist by day, Susannah grew
up in Alabama reading the gothic novels of Susan Howatch and the horror fantasy
of Stephen King. (Um…it is fantasy, right?) The combination of Howatch and King
probably explains a lot. Currently a resident of Auburn, Alabama, Susannah has
also lived in Illinois, Texas, California, and Louisiana.
