Interview & Giveaway with Ellie James, Author of "The Midnight Dragonfly Series"

Today we are participating in Ellie James Blog Tour for the Midnight Dragonfly Series! And we will be hosting a giveaway for a signed copy of Broken Illusions!

Marie :

I would like to take this time to say thank you Ellie for stopping by our blog today, and taking some time out of your schedule to do this interview with me. Hope you don’t mind us diving right in, lets start with some fun questions shall we?

Ellie:

Thank YOU!  I’m excited! I love what you’re doing with your Facebook community!

Marie:

Awe, Thank You Ellie! Can you tell us a little about yourself?

Ellie:

Sure!  There’s all the basics: mom, wife, animal lover, Louisiana native, Lost junkie, chocolate chip cookie fanatic, and thunderstorm lover, but when you peel all that away, at heart, I’m a dreamer. I believe anything is possible, that we’re all stronger and far more capable than we realize. I believe in trying new things, especially those that frighten you, that the only way to fly is to spread your wings. I believe attitudes are contagious and adversity makes you stronger. I believe in love and friendship, that promises are meant to be kept and forever is more than a word. I believe sunrises and sunsets are equally beautiful, that the best way to predict your future is to create it, and that imagination can take you anywhere.

Marie:

Wow, I love your outlook! As a child was it always your dream to become a writer?

Ellie:

Actually, yes!  I’ve been concocting stories as long as I can remember….I even still have several of my earliest creations, such as Monster Falls In Love and Jacquie and the Swamp. In middle school and high school I was always writing little poems (and even songs!) for my friends. Growing up in Louisiana, my stories always took on a mystical feel, featuring ghosts and danger and all sorts of things that couldn’t be explained, and always, always a healthy dose of star-crossed lovers.

Marie:

How great is that! And especially growing up in Louisiana! I always wanted to visit New Orleans especially; Do you have any favorite movies?

Ellie:

So many!!!  It’s tough to choose only one, but my favorite movies give me something unexpected. Something I never saw coming. I find that the longer I work with story structure, the more difficult it is for a movie to catch me by surprise. That’s why the Sixth Sense blew me away. I totally did not see the twist to that movie coming, and I LOVED it!  Two other favorites are Raiders of the Lost Ark (loved the mystery of the ark) and Last of the Mohicans (for the epic-y, us against the world feel), and

Marie:

Oh I know what you mean! At the end when he realizes what he is I was blown away as well! But it made perfect sense why we never saw him talking to the mother! Sorry, got caught up in the moment of talking about the movie; Do you prefer ebooks, paperbacks or hardcover books?

Ellie:

Hmmmm, good question!  I love books. I really, really do. I love to hold them and flip through them, to look at them. They are crammed everywhere in my house, and THAT is the problem. They take up too much space!  There’s a lot about e-books I love, in particular the space-saving aspect, but also the search features. I’m somewhat neurotic, and it drives me nuts when I remember something from earlier in a book and can’t find it. Love that with e-books it’s easy to backtrack!  As much as I love paper books, I see e-books as the future that is already happening.

Marie:

Yes, we are seeing a lot more people with some type of ereader now a days, even if it is on their own phone with an app! Technology is amazing; Can you tell us your all time favorite Paranormal Being?

Ellie:

LOL….Since you asked, I must confess that my favorite is from a LONG time ago: The Highlander!  I was pretty young when I first encountered the tortured, sword-wielding Connor MacLeod, and maybe that’s why he made such an impact on me, but the combination of suffering and honor swept me off my feet, and made me think. I crafted so many stories about him, what it would be like to live and live and keep on living, while everyone you loved passed on. Sigh…  Long suffering immortals get me every time J.

Marie:

Would you say that you have any authors in particular that you got inspired from and led you to become an author yourself?

Ellie:Welllllll, growing up I was a big Nancy Drew buff. I adored all the mysteries. Then I found Stephen King, and a whole new world opened for me J  I gobbled up the concept of mysteries and the unexplained and soon my mind was spinning in that direction, as well, with the addition of a bit more romantic conflict.

More recently, I’m crazy inspired by JJ Abrams, creator of Alias, Lost, and Fringe. History + Mysteries + The Unexplained + Possibility + Boy/Girl = The Perfect Recipe.

Marie:

That does sound like the perfect recipe indeed! What do you do when you’re not writing??

Ellie:

My family would tell you I’m never not writing!!!  More and more I’ve come to realize that writing extends beyond the fingers-to-the-keyboard time. My mind is always spinning and considering, plotting and replotting, exploring and wondering. I’ve learned to always have a way to document my thoughts handy!

But when I’m not at the computer, I’m doing all that normal stuff, such as laundry and cooking, playing Legos with my little boy and hanging out with my daughter. I love to run and bake (hence the running!) and go to baseball games. I’m a huge sports fan!

Marie:

Wow it seems that the writing is something that is so natural for you! What inspired you to write your books?

Ellie

Curiosity, I think. I’m a big believer in following your dreams, and my dream was to tell the stories that play through my mind. I have a plaque in my office that reads: You’ll always miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. That totally resonates with me. You have to try. If you don’t, you’ll never reach your full potential, and you’ll never know what could have been. Each of us is capable of extraordinary feats.  I had no idea what, exactly, to expect when I began exploring the stories in my head (and my heart), but I knew the only thing worse than failure was never trying.

Marie:

I think we are going to be very great friends after this Ellie! I have the same type of outlook, I think a favorite quote of mine is similar to what your saying it goes “To try is to risk failure, but risk must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing"...Just thought I would share it with everyone :)

Can you give us 5 words that can describe your series?

Ellie:

Sentence: Psychic who dreams the future.

Words:  Premonition, Longing, Terror, Secrets, Destiny

Marie:

Interesting word and sentence choice, Can you tell us if you’re toying with ideas for a new series or have any concepts?

Ellie:

Yes!!!  I’ve recently turned in Line Edits for the third book in the Midnight Dragonfly series (Fragile Darkness) and am exploring what comes next. Trinity’s story is far from over and a few secondary characters (including a teenage Near Death Experience survivor) are nagging me about their stories, but a few new ideas are swirling around, as well. Whatever ends up coming next, I can promise you lots of action, adventure, mystery, paranormal phenomenon, and romance!

Marie:

Your book Shattered Dreams was the first book in the series - The Midnight Dragonfly, what inspiration gave you the idea for the book?

Ellie:

Back during the sleep-deprived days after my little boy was born prematurely, I woke up one night from one of the most incredibly detailed, vivid dreams I’d ever had. I’d more than just seen a group of teen sneak into an old abandoned mansion--I’d been with them.  I’d gazed into the darkness, and smelled the decay. I’d felt the fear, and the crazy blast of excitement at the prospect of a game of truth or dare.  My heart was still racing when I woke up. The images lingered. I kept thinking about what I’d seen, and from the questions came: What happened next? What if one of the teens was a psychic? What if she saw something…something bad? What if she had a premonition? What if what she saw actually happened?  What if no one believed her, or at least, no one but the last guy she should let herself begin to fall for?

As I answered those questions, the Midnight Dragonfly books were born!

Marie:

Wow! That is amazing that you got the inspiration that way, but then again dreams are always there to inspire us! Can you tell us why you called the series Midnight Dragonfly?

Ellie:

LOL: Actually it’s one of those serendipity things: I didn’t sit down to write a series with dragonflies playing a key role, but during the first book, Shattered Dreams, I needed Trinity to receive a talisman that belonged to her mother, and the image of a dragonfly popped into my mind. I began researching dragonflies and was blown away at how mystical they are, in particular how they represented existing in two realms at the same time--and dreaming. For my teenage psychic, who communicates with The Universe through her dreams, this was PERFECT.

Marie:

What can you tell us a about your new book in the series that released earlier this month?

Ellie:

Broken Illusions picks up four months after Shattered Dreams, when my protagonist Trinity Monsour is once again plagued by chilling dreams. They come to her without warning or timestamps, and without details. They are a disjointed sideshow in her mind, leaving her in a race against time to figure out what is going on and how to stop it. This time a fellow psychic is missing, and Trinity has the distinct impression someone is toying with her, playing a game without rules or boundaries. And while she struggles to work her way through the mystery while keeping her relationship with her boyfriend in tact, there’s the little problem of this other guy, who keeps showing up at all the wrong (or, um, exactly right) times….

Marie:

Oooo I love the sound of this other guy, I think I might need to get reading to find out more about him ;) Is there anything else you would like to share with us today?

Ellie:

Thank you so much for putting this together!  I LOVE talking books and possibility and have had a great time thinking about your questions.

In closing, I think I’d just like to say to BELIEVE and follow your dreams. Anything is possible. The world is a fascinating place, full of mystery and possibility. You don’t have to understand something for it to be possible. You just have to…believe J

Marie:

Thank you Ellie for taking the time to give us some thought for our minds and  for stopping by our blog to do this interview.

You can visit Ellie on fan page > Midnight Dragonfly Books By Ellie James

About Ellie James

Most people who know Ellie think she’s your nice, ordinary average wife and mom of two little kids. They see someone who does all that normal stuff, like grocery shopping, walking the dogs, going to baseball games, and somehow always forgetting to get the house cleaned and laundry done.

What they don't know is that more often than not, this LSU J-School alum is somewhere far, far away, in an extraordinary world, deeply embroiled in solving a riddle or puzzle or crime, testing the limits of possibility, exploring the unexplained, and holding her breath while two people fall in love.

Regardless of which world Ellie’s in, she loves rain and wind and thunder and lightning; the first warm kiss of spring and the first cool whisper of fall; family, friends, and animals; dreams and happy endings; Lost and Fringe; Arcade Fire and Dave Matthews, and last but not least…warm gooey chocolate chip cookies.

About the Midnight Dragonfly Series

Glimpses. That’s all they are. Shadowy premonitions flickering through sixteen year old psychic Trinity Monsour’s dreams. Some terrify: a girl screaming, a knife lifting, a body in the grass. But others--the dark, tortured eyes and the shattering kiss, the promise of forever--whisper to her soul.

They come without warning. They come without detail.

But they always mean the same thing: The clock is ticking, and only Trinity can stop it.

Find out how in Broken Illusions (St. Martin’s Press), available May 8, 2012.

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And now time for the....

GIVEAWAY!

To Enter:

All you have to do is leave your name and tell us what you think about the book, what do you find interesting, if you have read the first one who was your favorite character, or say Hi to Ellie! We will gather all the names that enter and put them into the "slot machine".

It is that easy! The giveaway will end at 12:00 AM CST tonight and a winner will be announced on Saturday :) 

Go Go Go!

~Marie