Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Introducing CJ England
How very fitting that the very first interview
here at Rivendell Romance Spotlight be with CJ England, author of
the Mylari Chronicles! The Mylari Chronicles – The Soulmates is 419
pages long. It is a full length epic novel complete with elvish
language translations. This is the first book in a series of at
least six, that chronicle the love and lives of the Sáralondë family
who are Elven Royalty.
Trista: Could you tell us a little bit about yourself?
CJ: I credit my passion for writing to my second grade sweetheart,
Steven, a blond haired cutie with dimples, who dumped me for a girl
who could swing on the monkey bars. I wrote my first story about
love and loss after that tragic episode. I am married to a wonderful
man who puts up with all my craziness, and doesn’t complain too much
about the fact that his wife argues copiously with her computer. I
have three kids, two cats, four ferrets, and a turtle, and they are
all as “different” as I am. I was first published in Country
magazine ten years ago, and have been writing ever since. Since I
chose to home educate my kids, much of my writing was put on the
back burner until recently.
Trista: I understand you have a new release coming out soon. Could you tell us a little bit about
the book?
CJ: The Mylari
Chronicles – The Soulmates. An ancient prophecy comes to life in the
erotic tale of the forbidden love between an Elven prince and a
kidnapped human woman. When Talia, a human female, is captured and
taken into the faerie world, she finds that her life is threatened,
until Calion, a prince of the elves saves her. As they escape her
captors, the desire between them rises, but it is a love that is
sardai… taboo. As they struggle to understand the feelings that they
have for each other, the choice is taken out of their hands when
Talia is betrayed and she is once again stolen away from her prince.
Will Calion finally understand what Talia means to him? Will he be
in time to save her? Will the ancient prophecy be fulfilled, or will
all that the gods intended be for naught?
Trista: What genre is this book?
CJ: I would say it is first and foremost a fantasy novel, but it is
full of adventure and action as well… and of course yummy hot
romance.
Trista: Could tell us more about Calion?
CJ: Calion Sáralondë, is the Prince of the Calen’taur Elves. They
are just one of the races of faerie that live beyond a barrier of
faerie mist that separates the human world from our own. He has been
raised since birth to be king of his people some day, and is bound
by those traditions and loyalties.
Tall, dark and handsome, with piercing sapphire eyes, he welds the
most powerful eleven magic there is... the power of nature. He
fights his attraction to Talia, because he knows that giving into it
would change everything… forever.
Trista: How would you describe Talia?
CJ: Talia Jennings, is a dreamy, green eyed blond, whose diminutive
form
belies her fiery nature. Originally from New Orleans, she has
traveled through America looking for something she just can’t quite
describe.
Misunderstood and estranged from her family because of her inability
to settle down into a “normal” life, Talia is pleased when she meets
Calion, seeing in him the answer to all those yearnings in her
heart.
Trista: What is your favorite quote from The Mylari Chronicles – The
Soulmates?
CJ: Wow! That is a hard one… There are so many grab at you type
lines. I think my favorite one is made by Calion when he is fighting
for Talia’s honor against Bradok, heir to the Orcan Throne. He
says…”Never anger an elf… we have very long memories.” My husband
says I’m kind of elfish myself in that way.
Trista: How does The Soulmates fit with the rest of The Mylari
Chronicles series?
As I said this is the first of a series of at least six. The sequel,
which I am working on now, is called… The Princess and the Paladin,
and tells the story of Princess Eámanë, Calion’s little sister, and
the human man who becomes her Paladin (protector). The third book is
tentatively called… His Healing Hands. It is about the third sibling
of the Sáralondë family who was banished from the kingdom. He
returns to find things aren’t quite as he expected them to be.
There was only one other book planned, the finale that wrapped
things up (and must remain a secret for now). But then a couple of
the characters in The Soulmates said they wanted their own book.
They refused to cooperate until I promised them, so now we will have
at least six full length stories.
Trista: You really must tell us about Hot
Tubs and Hot Hunks and any WIPs you're currently working on!
On February 11th, I released my first E-book from
Silk’s Vault Publishing… Hot Tubs and Hot Hunks. It is a fast
sexy romp about a woman who falls for the hot hunk who comes to
install her hot tub.
Also, soon to be released from
Silk’s Vault is The Peacekeeper Journals – The Joining. This is
a sensual story about Kira, the Peacekeeper who has been sent to
save the human world from evil. She joins with six supernatural
leaders, and together the fight to save San Francisco. It is the
first of a series of seven books.
In submission to
Silk’s Vault at this time is the next book in the Peacekeeper
Journals, called The Gates of Life, and an Easter story called Here
Comes Peter…
I am collaborating with another Silk’s Vault author, Annemarie
Ortega, on a vampire story, called Damned if you Do, Damned if you
Don’t, and have several other books in the works as well. I am a
very busy gal!
Trista: Wow! I'd say you're very busy, and working in many different
genres too, from contemporary to fantasy and now to paranormal.
Where do you get your inspiration?
CJ: The question to ask would be… where don’t I. I have so many
ideas, I wish I could clone myself. They all roll around in my head
demanding to get out, and they get very cranky when I don’t listen.
One of the things that I do… is I dream my stories. I have the
special gift of choosing a topic before I go to sleep at night, and
then I will dream up a story by the time I awaken in the morning.
Sometimes it is completely done, and just needs to be written down,
or I may have a dream that sparks an idea, and I go from there.
Hot Tubs and Hot Hunks was an idea that came to me in the shower,
(appropriately enough) after my husband Jonathon, challenged me to
write a short story. The Peacekeeper Series was a full fledged
dream, complete with Technicolor and sound, and was the first full
length novel I ever wrote.
I wrote Mylari specifically for
Silk’s Vault. My inspiration for that was of course, The Lord of
the Rings. I wanted to create my own little world, just like Tolkein.
Now my problem is… ever since I went beyond the faerie mist… it’s
harder and harder to come back!
Thank you, so much for your time, CJ!
I plan to do a follow-up interview with this author in a few months.
Please post any questions you may have for her.
In the meantime, CJ invites everyone to visit her
Website. For the latest information about CJ England, please
sign up for her
Newsletter. Come chat with CJ at her
Yahoo! Group.
And,
as always, CJ says, "Follow Your Dreams."
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Welcome to Rivendell! A place where magic, tranquility, and
romance collide! RRS will Spotlight romance authors, acquisitions
editors, cover artists, and (hopefully) cover models.
-
- Name:Trista Bane
- Location:Arkansas,
United States
Trista loves to create worlds
beyond the ordinary. She writes paranormal and erotic romances.
Trista owes her family a lot for allowing her to experiment with
her writing without judgment. They have kept an open mind, and
encouraged her to let her imagination soar!
View my
complete profile
Why Rivendell?
I'm not a Lord of the Rings fan, particularly,
although I do love the books, especially The Hobbit.
So, why did I choose Rivendell? Every time I read The
Hobbit, I drift away to that place and all my troubles
melt away.
It seems a place of magic and tranquility. Of all the places
of Middle Earth, Rivendell is the one place I'd love to
visit.
As such, it is my hope that Rivendell will be a blog that
visitors will want to visit time and again. Together, we can
make this a place of magic and tranquility, and yes, one of
romance.
So, sit back, grab a cup of java, and enjoy Rivendell for a
while!
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