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Friday, March 23, 2018

#Interview With Jacky Dahlhaus




Hey Everyone!! :-)

Jacky Dahlhaus is here with us, today. Jacky, can you please us about yourself and how many books you have written?

Jacky: I’m a Dutch-Australian-almost-fifty-years-old girl. I only began to write in 2015, when my children encouraged me to write down a dream. I didn’t leave my computer until I wrote 50K words even though I had never written anything other than a high school essay before. Writing gives me immense pleasure, and I can’t imagine doing anything else now. Since that dream, I’ve written a trilogy of three novels, a novelette (the prequel), and a bundle of short stories.

Me: That's great! My first novel started with a dream, too. ;-) What's the name of your latest book and what inspired it?

Jacky: I just finished the last book of the Suckers Trilogy. It’s called Killing A Vampire. I wrote the first two books both in 2015 and spent the next two years to improve my writing. I hope it shows in this third instalment of the trilogy.
Me: Congratulations on finishing your trilogy! What are you working on now?

Jacky: At the moment, I’m a free woman! I hope to read a lot and work on the renovations of my Victorian schoolhouse. I have several ideas for new books, though. I’m not sure which one it’s going to be.

Me: Ahhhh... That lovely time of ease between projects. :-) What authors, or books, have influenced you?

Jacky: The book that got me into fantasy was Urshurak, by the Brothers Hildebrandt and Jerry Nichols. It’s a story very much like Lord of the Rings, with beautiful images by the brothers. I love the Dragonriders of Pern chronicles and the Discworld stories by Terry Pratchett. I own nearly all their books and even met Terry Pratchett once! I love how he sees the world through a stranger’s eyes.

Me: That's so cool! :-) I love Anne McCaffery's books, too. What are you reading now?

Jacky: As I have just finished writing the last book of my trilogy, I haven’t had the time to pick up a new book. The last book I read not so long ago was Lullaby of the Dead by Lynn Lamb. Great story. I’m hoping to read as much as I can before I get into my new project. I’ve got over seventy books lined up!

Me: Lynn Lamb is awesome. :-) For those who might consider reading your book, what would you tell them to expect?

Jacky: I found it hard to categorize my books as they have so things happening into them. There’s suspense, action, humor, a bit of thriller and horror, and a lot of drama and romance in there. Books 1 & 2 are romances at heart, but Book 3 is more of a whodunnit. In all three books, the stories are more about the relationships of the people, in particular the main character Kate, than about vampirism. There isn’t any gore or explicit sex in any of the books, but the themes of the books are more for young adults, especially Book 2 in which I write about topics like adultery, rape, and abortion.

Me: Sounds interesting. What's your favorite part of being an author?

Jacky: What I like most about writing is that I can stay at home and work the hours that suit me. I also love it when I’ve plotted out a path for my characters to follow, and they decide to go in a completely different direction, making me work hard to get them out of the most awkward situations.

Me: Ha! Yeah, characters can be really uncooperative, at times. :-) Do you have a day job as well?

Jacky: I’ve given up on paid work since 2009 when I had brain surgery. I decided then and there that life is too short to be unhappy and have dedicated my time to my family and finding happiness. Don’t get me wrong, I love my family very much, but they all leave me every morning :-D. So I had to find something that made me get through the day. It took me six years, but I’ve finally found happiness in writing. It is what makes me get out of bed each morning.

Me: Good for you! What are the hardest and easiest parts about being a writer?

Jacky: As I grew up in The Netherlands, English is not my first language. I thought I knew English, but writing is a completely different ballpark. I’m still learning every day. Being a writer also means you never have a holiday. You’re always thinking about your storyline, your word choices, and your next project. Not to mention the continuous promotion you have to do to keep your books visible. I guess the easiest thing about being a writer is that you can do it anywhere, any time, anyhow. No matter where you are, what time of day it is, or whether you’ve got a pc or just a pen and paper, writing is always possible.

Me: I think writing is a different ballpark even for those of us whose first language is English. ;-) What genre do you place your book in?

Jacky: At first, I called my books paranormal romances, but since the third book isn’t a romance, I’ve changed the subtitle of the trilogy to paranormal suspense novels. It’s hard to categorize them as they could also be classified under thrillers, humor, or urban novels. It depends on what attracts you in the books the most.

Me: Cool! Is there anything else you’d like to tell your readers?

Jacky: My eBooks are available on Amazon, Kobo and my website. Book 3 is stuck in KDP Select at the moment, so only available on Amazon for the time being. If you buy my books from my website, you get a 20% discount if you use the voucher! BookFunnel will then give you the option of downloading the format you prefer. You can find my bookshop at https://jackydahlhaus.com/books/. I’m very proud that one of my short stories won entry in the Create50 horror contest called Twisted50 Volume 2. The book will come out soon, so keep an eye out for it! I also run a local writers’ club and write short stories with them, and set up a film club with which I film the short stories I’ve written. Great fun!

Me: Congratulations on your win! And so these fine folks can find your wonderful stories, are there any links you’d like me to post?

Jacky: I try to be as active as I can on social media and you can find me on:
My website: https://jackydahlhaus.com (blog and shop!)
Twitter: @JackyDahlhaus
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/jackydahlhaus/pins/ (check out my Wicked Dark Stuff board J)
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JackyDahlhausWriter/
Instagram: jackydahlhaus

Me: Awesome! Thank you so much for stopping by, today, Jacky. And thank you to everyone else who joined us, as well. Don't forget to check back tomorrow for the latest in Mistral Dawn's Musings! :-)




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