Alexis: Today we have USA Today Bestselling author, Mary Buckham visiting and she is giving away an ecopy of INVISIBLE FEARS to one lucky commenter!
Welcome Mary.
What are you working on now?
Mary: I’m working on the next full-length
book in the IR (Invisible Recruits) series. This one is called INVISIBLE
SECRETS and as the fifth full-length book in the series it has some major
twists to the lives of the core IR team members. It should be released late
September or early October. I’m also finishing up the final tweaks on my next
non-fiction writing craft book—WRITING ACTIVE HOOKS Book 1 which will be
released this September.
Alexis: Wow, you are busy. Where did you get
the idea for Invisible Recruits?
Mary: Originally the idea came from noticing
a speed trap and realizing that since a lot of law enforcement agencies use the
same types of cars, some speed traps are really easy to spot. Same issue
happens in undercover work, that criminals get very savvy about spotting a cop
so what if you used agents who were not trained in law enforcement ~ that would
be invisible to criminals because they’d look and act like the regular people
they are—a kindergarten teacher, debutante, etc. Then I threw in the paranormal
and preternatural element. What if you were a woman that hid your gift your
whole life and now all of a sudden have a chance to use that gift to battle
preternaturals in a world unaware that preternaturals exist?
Alexis: I love it! So what is your favorite
trait of Kelly McAllister?
Mary: Kelly McAllister, former kindergarten
teacher and current IR agent represents the good girl in most women. The way
we’ve been taught to behave, to hold back, to acknowledge others’ strengths but
not always our own. Placed in a position of leading her first mission I keep
placing her in more and more danger, testing her mettle, putting her through
multiple trials of fire. That’s when we discover who we truly are, not when
things are easy but when things get tough. It’s a fascinating journey of
self-discovery even as the reader finds herself rooting for Kelly even as they
worry about her through each step of her story.
Alexis: What has been the best piece of advice
you ever received for your writing career?
Mary: Never give up. Never surrender. Oh,
wait, that’s the motto from Galaxy Quest. Actually it’s very applicable. As a
writer I have the opportunity, every day, to give up, to stop writing, to turn
away and take another job that’s not fraught with so much insecurity and
variables outside of my control. It takes a daily leap of faith to face a blank
page, to assume there are readers that love the kind of stories I love to read
and write, that all the time invested in learning how to write and write better
and keep on writing, will be worth the time and attention. I’ve been very
fortunate in finding a very receptive audience for my stories, who encourage me
in so many ways, and, by taking the time to write a review or send me an email,
reaffirm that the risks are worth it, that I can truly say I won’t give up and
won’t surrender.
Alexis: Mary, thank you so much for visiting
us here at Happily Ever After Thoughts. It has been so fun chatting with you.
Check out the
blurb on INVISIBLE FEARS below.
INVISIBLE FEARS Blurb:
He’s a
preternatural fighting for the humans.
She's a human
fighting for the preternaturals.
Kelly
McAllister’s Invisible Recruit mission in Sierra Leone is to locate and secure
a threat to humans and preternaturals. Van Noziak is also there, with his own
secret mission, one that’s on a collision course with Kelly’s. In deepest
Africa the race against a deadly bloom reveals secrets, exposes fears, and
forces unlikely alliances.
I love
conflict. The
conflict between dark magic and white. The conflict between beings
created with
different needs and wants. Witches. Mage warlocks. Shifters, Weres, and demons
all trying to co-exist against their natures. Bring it on!
I'm a huge
paranormal and fantasy lover. Especially
Urban Fantasy and any paranormal fantasy series that allows me to throw myself
into magic and mystery page after page, book after book.
The
paranormal world of the Invisible Recruits is built on women who must learn to
embrace their preternatural talents to fight good and evil. Talents that
they've hidden from the human population for fear of being different.
But because I
love conflict I've dropped these women into a world where magic and fantasy
exist side by side with humans intentionally kept in the dark about Shifters,
Weres, warlocks, witches, and especially about magic.
Throw in a
strong dose of romantic suspense, emotional relationships to add more conflict,
and paranormal beings you've never heard of before, and you'll know why readers
can't get enough of this fast-paced paranormal thriller series.
Website: www.MaryBuckham.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MaryBuckham
