Ann is a big fan of the books written by Everly Frost. She writes young adult, new adult urban fantasy and science fiction romance. Since she is not a name that is well known in The Netherlands, Ann thought it would be a good idea to ask Everly a few questions in order to get to know her a little bit better:
Hi Everly,
Thank you so very much for making time to answer some questions for Thrillers & More. As a big fan of your books it’s an honor to get to know you a little bit better on this side of the globe. By the way, I envy you, because you’re heading towards summer and here it’s winter and freezing cold.
Everly: Thank you so much, Ann. I’m honored to be interviewed for Thrillers & More. Keep warm on your side of the globe!
What I would like to know is, where do you get your inspiration from? Do you still dream about things before you write them down?
Everly: I’m always dreaming up new ideas, but they don’t really take hold until I can visualize them. Sort of like having a movie screen inside my head, a character starts to take shape in small pieces – their personality, what they look like, but most important, what is their goal? What do they need to do and why? For Assassin’s Magic, Hunter Cassidy reached out and grabbed me. Her personality is so strong, and she’s so driven to avenge her mother and complete her mother’s work. That’s when the story really takes hold of me.
You wrote the Storm Princess Saga together with Jaymin Eve. What is it like to write a book together with someone else? Did you write certain chapters or a certain storyline? Who comes up with what? How did this all work out?
Everly: Writing with Jaymin Eve was a fantastic experience. It was really great to be able to bounce ideas off each other about the storyline and plot, about Marbella and Baelen and the other characters. Co-authoring is different for everyone, but what works well is if one author writes a segment and then the other author edits that segment and then writes the next segment, and so on. That way you can blend styles and make the writing appear seamless.
Do you think your books will be translated in Dutch one day? (I think they should be, because they are such great reads and there are a lot of YA and Urban Fantasy fans in Holland. There will always be a danger of a bad translation, though. I’ve seen plenty of books where the translation ruins the story.)
Everly: I would be so excited if my books were translated into Dutch! I’ll have to look into that. I will have to make sure I have a good translator though. ?
The same goes for your audiobooks, they are really fabulously narrated by Megan Tusing. Do you have a say in who narrates your books?
Everly: I’m so glad you enjoyed listening to the Storm Princess audiobooks. Megan Tusing is a truly talented narrator. In terms of having a say about who narrates our books, absolutely. Because we’re Indie authors, we can seek auditions from narrators and then we listen to all the submitted samples of narration to decide which narrator’s voice and style suit the main character. Megan made that choice simple for us.
I had the privilege of reading your new book Assassin’s Magic before its release on December 26th. I really, really love that book. I think it’s a brilliant story and I gave it 5 stars. I deliberately read it as slowly as possible, because I didn’t want it to end. It’s the first book in a series. How many books will there be in this series and when will book 2 be released?
Everly: I’m so glad you enjoyed Assassin’s Magic. I’m excited about this story! There will be four books in the series. Three of the books will be the main story about Hunter Cassidy, who infiltrates the Assassin’s Legion to protect a deadly weapon from falling into the wrong hands and ends up finding love and heartache along the way. The fourth book will be a companion book (Assassin’s Menace) about one of the other main characters in the story, Cain Carter. Because I need to give him his happily ever after. ?
Where do you get your inspiration from for the names of your characters? Are they based on real people? Or do you just pick a first name and a last name and join them together?
Everly: The name I give a character has to match their personality. For Hunter Cassidy in Assassin’s Magic, I wanted a name that was a little bit ambiguous, but very strong. Once I have a first name, then I sound out the surname to make sure it matches. Slade Baines and Cain Carter in Assassin’s Magic both emerged that way. For the Storm Princess, the Elven House names made it a little simpler for Marbella Mercy and Baelen Rath. But Cassian actually remained nameless for a lot of Storm Princess Book 2. It wasn’t until nearly the end of writing that we settled on his name – I was watching a move with subtitles and that name popped up on the screen. Inspiration can come from all sorts of places!
Which one of your books is your favorite?
Everly: Noooo, don’t make me choose, haha! I love all of them for different reasons. The Mortality series will always have a special place in my heart as my first completed series (it’s set in a world where everyone is invincible, but one girl discovers she is mortal). The Storm Princess Saga was so exciting to write with all the magical storm elements and the love between Marbella and Baelen wrenched my heart around. And now Assassin’s Magic… I’m in love with the chemistry between the two main characters, Hunter and Slade, and excited to see where their journey takes them.
When you begin writing your story, do you know how it ends or do you let your story, your characters lead the way?
Everly: I always make sure I know how it’s going to end, for each book in a series and for the entire series. For me, that’s important because it gives me a trajectory and an ultimate outcome that needs to be reached. Along the way though, the story and the characters evolve and develop, their journey can surprise me because anything can happen along the way!
Do you have a routine when it comes to writing? Do you go somewhere quiet or does it not really matter where you are?
Everly: I’ve found that a routine is really important for writing consistently. Because my books are usually quite long, averaging 80 – 90,000 words, I need to use every available moment to write. To do that, I always listen to music. That way, I can write anywhere – on the train to and from my day job, while I’m waiting for my kids at their extra-curricular activities, in the evening after dinner. If I have music, I’m happy.
Do you have time to read and what are your favorite books?
Everly: I love to read! Especially fantasy fiction. Jaymin Eve is always one of my go-to authors, as well as Kelly St Clare, Tate James, Heather Renee, Annette Marie, Jennifer Bardsley, Amy McNulty, Julie Hall… I could go on! There are so many amazing authors.
I’ve read Brisbane is the sunniest city of Australia (I’m so jealous). Do you have time to enjoy the nice weather or are you too busy writing?
Everly: It is beautiful here in Brisbane at the moment, although we’re heading into storm season when the weather can get wild and unpredictable. What I love the most is the tropical scents from the trees and flowers. There’s something really inspiring about all the summer colors and warm breezes.
Do you make up your own bedtime stories for your kids?
Everly: I have a series of children’s books, unpublished, that I wrote just for my kids. I would write a chapter and then read it to them and ask them what should happen next. It was so much fun. They keep asking me when I’ll publish them. Definitely one day.
Your books get great reviews. How does it feel waiting for the first reviews to arrive when a new book is released?
Everly: Waiting for those first reviews is exciting and nerve-racking. I want readers to love my books as much as I do, but I’m also very open to feedback. I want to write the best books that I can write, that readers will immerse themselves in and not want to come up for air. Those are the books I love to read, too.
Thanks again for answering all our questions!
Everly: Thank you so much, Ann. It was a pleasure.
