Friday Fantastic Feature Author Feature

Today I'm really glad to have Nancy Medina - writes under Lissette E. Manning -  here with me.  Without further ado, lets get up and close with our guest.


About Nancy Medina

Nancy Medina is an author from Connecticut who writes under the pseudonym of Lissette E. Manning. She has been writing since she was six-years-old and spends most of her time trying to place her thoughts into order and giving life to the stories that are always brewing inside her head. 

She enjoys reading books, listening to music, playing the occasional video game, watching movies, and spending time with friends and family. She's also a bit of a computer geek.

Her writing genres of choice are Science-Fiction/Fantasy, Romance, Erotica, Paranormal, Short Stories, as well as Poetry. She's currently working on several projects due out sometime in the new year, as well as her finishing her NaNoWriMo project, The Corsicanth Princess.

*CeCe*:  Welcome to my den,Lissette. Please tell us your name, officially that is. :)

*Lissette*: Hi. I’m Lissette E. Manning.

*CeCe*: What project are you currently working on?

*Lissette*: I currently have several projects  that I’m working on.

One is a Romance/Comedy novel (sort of) titled Until There Was You. It centers around Angelia Montgomery who’s been in love with a celebrity friend of hers for years. She finally gets to meet him face to face and all sorts of shenanigans ensue.

There’s also a Science-Fiction/Fantasy novel titled Marius that’s centered around a series I’m working on called Tales of Velosia. Marius discovers he’s a shape-shifter and learns how to deal with that aspect of his life along with protecting the realm against outside forces.

I’m also in the process of editing and rewriting my NaNoWriMo project from last year titled, The Corsicanth Princess. It’s pretty much about a teenage faerie who must accept the circumstances surrounding her birth and exile to Earth in addition to restoring balance to the world she really comes from.

These are just a myriad of projects I’m working on, of course.
 

*CeCe* : What inspired you to write the first book?

*Lissette*: I wrote my first book, Closure, via a writing class I was taking online back in 2010. It was for an assignment I was given that grew into the story it is now. Self-publishing it was an experiment, of sorts. I wanted to see what would happen and if I could make something of my writing. I’m very glad I took that chance and have enjoyed the journey, thus far.

My inspiration behind it, I confess, is Ben Barnes. There’s just something about him that intrigues me so I modeled my character, Ben Morgan, around him.

*CeCe* I know what you mean about Ben Barnes. I find him quite intriguing. What genres do you write?

*Lissette* I write Science-Fiction/Fantasy in addition to Romance, Erotica, Paranormal, Young Adult, Poetry, and Short Stories. I think we can safely say that most of my stories center around Romance themes so I guess that would be my main genre, right?

I do dabble in other genres, though, and am also currently working on a Horror short story called Marty Pattinson which centers around a vampire/ghoul who seeks revenge on those who wronged him.

*CeCe*  How do you create your characters? How do you mould them to fit what you require for the story?

*Lissette* Hmmm . . . this is quite a intriguing, mostly because the characters seem to just pop in my head and don’t stop speaking until I write what they want me to. Of course, there’s also my muse who will fuel the urges to write so that I can make each character come alive.

I mostly just listen to what the characters have to say and write down their life stories and experiences. Each of them has a unique voice and I do my best to make them seem as real as possible.

Of course there are times when my muse will throw a curve ball at me and will change a story idea out of the blue. When that happens, though, I use things to my advantage so that I don’t lose the voice for whichever character I’m writing of/about at that given moment.

*CeCe*:  What is your writing style like? (more description, dialogue…)

*LIssette*: My writing style is a balance of description and dialogue. Not too much and not too little, so to speak. Just enough to keep a reader interested in the story.

Ironically that’s what a friend of mine told me recently when I shared an Erotica piece I wrote titled Forever Yours that pertains to Tales of Velosia. He said, “You have a nice knack for giving just enough to enlighten the reader without overdoing it with back story.  Perfect.“

*CeCe*: Have you ever hated a character/ a story you wrote?

*Lissette* I don’t exactly hate a character or a story I’ve written, really. I’ll just be displeased with the fact that things didn’t come out the way I wanted it to. Mostly, I’ll just set the character or story aside when this happens and work on them later on in order to make them more likeable. Sometimes, I can make that work, but on others they prove to be lost causes and I’ll never work on them again.

*CeCe* How did you do the research for the book you are currently writing?

*Lissette*: For the current book I’m writing, I haven’t had to do much research for it. The characters are centered around real-life people so I’ve been using what I know about those I’m including in the story to make them real and likeable. The story has pretty much been writing itself, so to speak, since I’ve had so much inspiration from my friends and those I’ve included in the story.

*CeCe*:  What project are you promoting?

*Lissette*: I’m currently promoting my book, Broken, a Romance/Drama short story centered around Ellie Morgan, Ben’s now ex-wife, from my first book, Closure. It’s her take/feelings on what’s she gone through since leaving Ben.

It’s found for sale exclusively at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007I5HRBK




Book Blurb:

The past is hard to bear, but sometimes, we must face it, no matter the cost.

Displeased with the life she’d led, Ellie Morgan walked away from it all in hopes of finding happiness amidst all the turmoil. She knows it’s only a matter of time before she has to face the bitter reality of the repercussions caused by her past actions.

Broken and bereft, she tumbles head first into her despair. Yet there’s always a silver lining to every cloud, a certainty she knows is there if she’ll allow herself to see it. To do that, she must let go of the past and put her ghosts to rest, once and for all.

Excerpt:

The alarm went off, its loud shriek grating within my ears. Groaning loudly, my hand sneaks out from under the duvet and slams down on the button in hopes of turning it off and promptly missed the mark.

The clock slides off of the night table, clattering to the floor and shattering into a million pieces. Peeking out from under the covers, I slowly crawl over to the edge of the bed and stare down at the mess I’ve inadvertently made.

Broken shards of plastic are scattered in every direction. Large, small, and even some minute pieces it would take forever to find them.

As I stare at the damaged clock, I come to the realization that it sort of resembles certain aspects of my life. There were so many pieces needing to be glued together that I’d never be able to put them back together again. A slight shiver crawls down my spine as I consider the significance of what I’m seeing.

Giving myself a mental shake, I shove the bed covers aside and slide out of bed, careful not to step on the splintered pieces. Walking towards the kitchen, I grab the broom and dustpan and trudge back to my room to clean up the debris.

Satisfied with my efforts, I hurry back to the scullery and toss the pieces into the trash can. I tuck the broom and pan into a corner of the pantry, grabbing a can of instant coffee, a bag of flavored oatmeal, and the bottle of Nutella.

The door swings closed behind me as I step up to the kitchen counter and deposit the lot onto its shiny surface. Whirling about, I yank open the refrigerator and rummage about until I find what I’m looking for. Dropping a new set of ingredients beside the rest, I take a moment to run down the hall and into the bathroom to brush my teeth clean.

As I stare at the reflection in the mirror, I mull over the thoughts that have been consuming me this cold and dreary Tuesday morning. Images of the broken clock keep rising to the surface. With each one, certain parts of my life spill forth in vivid detail. The miscarriage, my walking out on Ben, Mom’s ending battle with cancer, and Luli’s suicide.

The film of the life I’d lead tumbles forth, weaving and converging as I try to make sense of everything I’m feeling. The hurt, pain, betrayal, lies, and anger - I hate feeling this way. Deep inside, I have no wish to acknowledge what I’ve locked away for so long.

*CeCe* Great Excerpt, Lissette! Where can readers and fans find you? (online that is)

Website: http://www.simplistik.org
Blog: http://www.simplistik.org/lissetteemanning
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LissetteElizabethManning
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/xLizzieBethx
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4867044.Lissette_E_Manning
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Lissette-E.-Manning/e/B00535P6O2
Google +: https://plus.google.com/b/108975492094713089871/108975492094713089871
Email: LizzieBeth1095@sbcglobal.net 

Here are other books by Lissette E. Manning:

Love is supposed to be forever. Sometimes, we're not meant to keep it. 

Ben Morgan thought he had it all - fame, fortune, a beloved wife, and a loving family. His work kept him out

of the country for long stretches at a time, but he did his best to provide for those he loved. He never

imagined that his being away so much would have severe repercussions. When his life starts to shatter and

his wife walks away without another glance, he's left to deal with the pain and sorrow of the choices that

he's made in the past. 

A world too different from what we once knew . . . all we hold onto now is survival.

Memories of the dead remind Annie Page of the world she'd once known. Renegade forces are closing in, seeking to command the little that remains. Yet she refuses to stand by and watch the world crumble.

Her children’s love the driving force behind the choices that she’s made, she’s determined to make their world a better place. Yet their survival comes with a price – one that she never meant to pay.

Thank you so much for coming over today, Lissette.