Sunday, February 9, 2014

Who is the man behind The Name: J.R. Stevans



Good Morning Everyone, I hope you are having a great weekend. Today my Author to Author blog features J.R. Stevans. Some of you probably know him on Facebook as Stevan Ray Richards Jr. But the public will know him for his short stories book "Faces of Love". So here is the man behind the name J.R. Stevans. . . .



1.    What would you say is the most favorite part of being an author? - I don't have one specific favorite part. I like being done. I like when stories surprise me. I like when the characters surprise me.

 

2.     Do you stick to one kind of book? Mystery, suspense, thriller, romance? - I haven't completed a novel that has been published. I like short stories. I also like books and movies that have unexpected twists. Butterfly Effect, the director's cut is one of the best examples I can point to. So is Next. When I was in grade school, I read a lot of mysteries. When I was in junior and high school, I read a lot of fantasy and Stephen King. I want to write stories that surprise people and provoke a visceral response. The story itself usually dictates the emotional response I"m looking for.

 

3.       If you had to tell new writers something important about becoming an author what would it be? - Be fearless. If you can't be fearless, write afraid. But write. Write with courage.

 

4.       Out of all your books do you favor one over another? If so why? I've written three novels, none of which have been published, and no longer exist. My favorite one was about a writer who was writing about his past lives.

 

5.       Do you have any stories you want to work on in the future? - I have several. One is about a vampire. One is about a psychic whose spirit guide is her deceased daughter. One is about a child who is a physical empath.

 

6.        How do you come up with your stories? - Lots of ways. One story came from a challenge. Somebody said, "You can't write anything happy, can you?" The second part of that seed was a line from an Alice Cooper song. Processing my own pain, confusion about an issue.

 

7.         Do you base your characters from people you know or are they completely fictional? - Almost all of my characters are based on me. It sounds arrogant, but it's true. I'm introverted and self-reflective

 

8.        Besides writing what would you say is your most favorite thing to do? - If I could do anything, I would write music. I would love the opportunity to act. One of my ambitions to make a living is to become a personal trainer for the elderly and the disabled. I want to become a distance, endurance, wheelchair athlete.

 

9.        What do you want to accomplish in writing books? I want to bring people to the end of themselves and encourage them to seek their Higher Power

 

10.  How would you define yourself as a person and as a writer? - I've almost always been honest. The times i haven't been, I've regretted it. So, what you see is what you get. If you don't see it, I'll tell you about. it. If you don't want to know, don't ask.
 
Thank you for stopping by and learning a little bit about J.R. Stevans. If you check out Amazon remember his kindle book is called "Faces of Love"
Till Next time happy reading,
AJ

Monday, February 3, 2014

255

                                 255

You may be wondering "what is with the number 255?" Well last week my pages reached 255 people. It's amazing as a writer it's the little things that make your day. When I started this journey of becoming a writer, I never thought my stories were that good. If it wasn't for my husband's faith in me I would have never taken the first step to submitting Unspoken Dreams to a publisher. If hadn't been for that loving push to that publisher I wouldn't be where I am today. A friend to many wonderful and talented people and working for a great Publishing house (Mountain Springs House).

For all the writers out there you know the people you reach either on Facebook or Twitter or your blogs is very sketchy. One week we may reach 255+ people then the next day we could go down to 3 people.  The likes, the people we reach is just as great as making a sale. Helping others achieve their dreams is all part of the job.

Coming Soon will be my debut book Unspoken Dreams. . . .


Normally the last year of College was fun and exciting. But for Samantha Sharp it was scary and confusing. She had been dating her best friend Jonathan Carson for the majority of her college career but a week before she was to go to New York for an interview for the New York Times she found out she had become pregnant. . . .


That is just a small description of my first book. I kind of got off track with this blog but I guess I just want to say thank you. Because of my friends, followers and peeps you have made this journey so enjoyable. And I can't wait to see what happens after Unspoken Dreams is released on March 22, 2014.