Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Blog Tour: The Final Omen by Heather Topham Wood [Author Interview + Guest Post + International Giveaway]

Title: The Final Omen
Author: Heather Topham Wood
Series: Second Sight #2
Date of Publication: November 9th, 2013
Genre(s): New Adult, Paranormal Romance

**To know more about the book and the author check this blogpost. **
Here's an interview with the author, Heather Topham Wood

The Final Omen is the last book in your series, are you sad to say goodbye to the characters?

Absolutely! There should be some sort of support group for authors that have to say goodbye to their beloved characters. I’m definitely glad to have completed the series, but I can’t say for sure Kate’s story is over. I’ve outlined a potential spin-off series featuring Kate and her psychic partner Declan.

How exciting! What would the books be about?

They would be standalone novels that would each feature a single missing persons case that Declan and Kate would solve together. The books would have dual POVs: Declan’s and Kate’s.

Any other upcoming projects?

I have a new release coming in December from Crescent Moon Press called Memory Witch, so I’m starting the sequel this month. I’m also in the process of writing a New Adult contemporary romance called Falling for Autumn. The complete Second Sight series will also be released soon as a boxed set.

Have you found the publishing experience a lot different working with a traditional publishing house?

Yes and I think there’s pros and cons with traditional publishing and self-publishing. With traditional publishing, you’re basically handing over your novel and telling a publisher to go have fun with it. You have less control when it comes to marketing, cover art, editing, etc. Not to say your input isn’t welcomed, but they are making the final decisions. However, self-publishing means you have to either do most of the work yourself or pay a team to do it for you. Editing, proofreading, cover design and formatting services are pricey, but required if you want a polished book.

Where do you find your inspiration for your works?

I am the biggest bookworm in the world. I read an average of three books a week and if my schedule allowed it, I’d probably double that amount. I love getting lost in a romantic scene in a novel and then feeling inspired to tackle a love scene in my own works. Besides fictional characters, I’m inspired by the characters in my life. My friends and family are always popping up in secondary roles in my books. Since not everyone would appreciate a gag reel of their most embarrassing moments, I change all of the names and identifying characteristics.

What’s your favorite book?

This question always makes me skittish because it’s so hard to nail down a “favorite.” Pride & Prejudice is my classic pick, but a more recent read I’d choose as my favorite would be Unravel Me by Tahreh Mafi. Mafi has such a unique literary voice and I love her world building.

What’s the hardest challenge you face as an author?

Finding the time to write is very difficult for me. I’m a mom first and foremost and I have to often put my work on the backburner often for my boys. They are still young (six and four) and although I’d love to spend more time writing, I know I’ll never get this time with them back. 

What’s the biggest perk of being an author?

I LOVE hearing from readers. Any time I open my inbox and read something from a reader, I get a little giddy. It’s amazing to hear that these little stories in your brain touched someone in some way. Each book I write is so different and I love hearing if I made someone laugh, cry or swoon.

Any advice for new and aspiring authors?

Don’t put a lot of pressure on yourself. I’m my worst critic and it can often take the fun out of writing. I would read reviews and try to puzzle out ways to please every single reader that picks it up. Your book may not be perfect, but you wrote a freakin’ book! How cool is that?
This is a guest post by the author of The Final Omen
Topic: How To Avoid Epic Book Fails

The Final Omen: Second Sight Book Four was the one for me—the book that would have me banging my head against the walls and questioning why I ever decided to print my stories for the world to see. Every possible book related catastrophe has plagued me since I began writing the novel and I hope to share some of my insight to prevent the same fate from befalling other writers.

I’ve got a MacBook now, it’s all good…
After my Windows computer went wonky on me and contracted some sort of zombie virus, I decided to save up my pennies and upgrade to a MacBook. The Apple brand gave me a fall sense of security, as if nothing ever bad could happen to my livelihood if I used a MacBook. So very freaking wrong! One hard drive crash later, I was left scrambling to try and find a data recovery firm who could get my precious novel off of the MacBook. When it didn’t work, I was forced to work off of a partial copy I had emailed myself a month earlier. This disaster led me to discover the wonders of Dropbox: an online document storage system that every writer should have installed on their computer.

My editor is the shizzel, I can’t wait to hear her thoughts on my final book…
A month past my expected publication date, I had finally managed to recreate The Final Omen as best to my ability as I could. I was all set to send my manuscript to my editor when all of a sudden her email address isn’t working. I go to her Elance page and it’s gone. No!!!! Since we only communicated via email, I had no way to track her down. This meant I had to start over with a completely new editor who hadn’t read or worked on the three previous books in the series. My point is that don’t assume anything. In hindsight, I should’ve worked out the editing details way in advance.

I can do it all on my own! I don’t need any help!
I bit off way more than I could chew with The Final Omen. I lost a month’s worth of work and tried to cut corners to get the book out on time. It was a bad call on my part and I finally had to take a step back and ask for help. Since my original cover art was lost on my computer, I tried to redo the cover using a small file I saved online. It was frustrating and time-consuming and I finally scraped it altogether and hired a cover artist. The end result? A cover that I love! I’m not a graphic artist or a formatter and I learned that although doing these things myself could save a few bucks, it’s not worth the headache.

When you’re a writer, it’s a constant learning experience. As crazed as I may have been because of these issues, I’m sort of glad they happened. It’ll make the process of publishing my next novel much easier.
To win one e-book copy of First Visions, the first book of the series enter in the following giveaway!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

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