Author Interview – Nichole R Taylor

 

What’s your story? How did you get into writing?

Hello, my name is Nicole R. Taylor and I’m a paranormal, urban fantasy and contemporary fiction author from Australia.

I always wanted to be a writer. When I was seven or eight, I’d write these stories about horses, inspired by the Australian children’s story, The Silver Brumby. I’d write tons of them. I still have a bunch of old stories I wrote back then. They featured lots of magic, horses and dragons. I can’t say much for my sentence structure, though. Thankfully, I’ve improved.

It’s true what they say about life experience. I don’t think I could have written The Witch Hunter without living my life first. I went off and did a lot of other things before coming back to writing. I’m a qualified hairdresser and I’ve lived overseas in one way or another. June last year, I was in my apartment, sitting on the couch and decided to write down an idea that had been forming in my head. I’ll give this writing thing a go again. See what happens. That scene was the moment when the main characters from the Witch Hunter, Zac and Aya, meet for the first time and what happens immediately after.

What advice do you have for aspiring authors?

Read, write, practice, question. And above all else, have faith in yourself and your work.

What are you working on now?

I’m working on the edits for the third book in my series, The Witch Hunter Saga. It’s called the Shadow’s Son.
The second book, The Return is coming out on June 18th.

What has been the most challenging part of publishing or marketing your book?

The hardest part is trying not to be a spammer! Keeping your book out there, trying different things and contributing takes up a lot of time. Having a balance between that and writing the next novel is the challenge.

What has been your favorite part?

Making new friends for sure! There’s a few people I’ve met from doing blog tours and friending on Twitter that I wouldn’t have met otherwise. And hearing people talk about my books and asking after the next one. That’s a nice feeling.

Who are your favorite authors?

George R R Martin, Tolkien, Anne McCaffrey, Garth Nix, Alison Croggon, Isobelle Carmody, Ian Irvine, Alistair Reynolds.

What gave you the idea for your current work?

I’ve spoken in depth about this on my blog before, but the short of it is that I saw it in a dream, that became a fantasy that became the written word.

If you could be any character in the book, which one would you be?

In my books, I’d probably lead towards Aya. She’s our main star, the Witch Hunter herself. She kicks ass and takes names later. She’s not scared of anything and is sure of who she is.

What other books have you written and/or are working on for the future?

Next, I’m writing something totally different from the Witch Hunter Saga. No supernatural creature in sight! I haven’t announced it yet (and everyone thinks I’m writing something else), but it has a lot to do with music, bands on the road, romance and drama. It’ll be set in Australia, so it will have that Aussie feel to it.

What’s your favorite quote?

The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper. – William Butler Yeats

What’s your favorite supernatural creature?

I write about vampires and witches, so I’d have to say vampires, simply because I like to write about characters that are hundreds of years old. The possibilities for where they’ve been throughout history are endless. I’m a bit of a history nerd, so I like to have that freedom.

About the Author:

Nicole R. Taylor is an Australian born paranormal, fantasy and contemporary fiction author. She is a graduate of the University of Ballarat Professional Writing and Editing program and is a former music memorabilia sales person and grocery merchandiser.

She currently lives in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia with a two year old rescue cat named, Burger. She enjoys reading, writing, traveling and a little too much chocolate. One day she hopes to sky dive, but has to work up the courage first.

The first in her new paranormal fantasy series, The Witch Hunter Saga is available in print and eBook.

Web Links:

Amazon Author Page

Nicole R. Taylor Writes – Blog

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