Interview with Christina Smith, author of YA paranormal series and International Giveaway

Goodreads Book Description of Riley's Secret: Megan Banks feels like an imposter in her own life; she doesn’t belong with her friends or with her parents, who ignore her. After a fire she’s indirectly involved with, she finds herself with two hundred hours of community service. It’s the charity she volunteers at that finally makes her feel like she belongs. These people, with whom she has nothing in common, mean more to her than her rich, selfish friends.

But for some reason her supervisor, Nate Green, doesn’t want her there. He thinks she’s a self-centered rich girl who deserves to be in jail. After she’s threatened by the kids who started the fire, Nate and Megan form a strange friendship, built only for her protection. But the more she feels for him, the more he pushes her away.

As they become closer, Megan knows Nate is attracted to her as well, but she also believes that he is hiding something. But she could never guess what he really is. Before she realizes what is happening, she becomes involved in a world she didn't know existed.

In this strange new reality, can she finally find a place where she belongs?

Goodreads Book Description of Riley's Torment:
Months after Megan and Nate's ordeal, they are finally happy and looking forward to the future. With Nate, Megan has found the family she always wanted, and after the night of their six month anniversary, they have something to celebrate. Their life together is solid and unbreakable—until an old enemy returns to wreak havoc on their lives.

When Megan and Lauren are caught in a fight between the rivals, they find themselves trapped with a pack of savage werewolves during a full moon. After their predicament, they will be forever changed. That is, if they make it out alive.

To save the girls, Nate and Joe must confront the past in order to save their future.

In the aftermath of the horrific ordeal, the life that Megan and Nate have created for themselves is torn apart. Will they find a way to take back their happiness or will they let it slip away?

 
Author Blurb: 

Christina Smith grew up in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Like her mother, she fell in love with books at a young age. She started reading her books and usually hid them behind her texts at school. Then she began to venture out herself, reading anything she could find. 

After getting married, she moved to a small rural town in the country. She lives there with her husband Brad, two kids Josh and Megan, and their dog Bailey. She didn’t realize she had the ability to write until a few years ago, but ever since then, she hasn't been able to stop.

Author Interview

1. Tell us about the first thing you ever wrote and how you progressed from that first piece of writing to the writer you are today.
As an adult, I wrote a children’s book called Megan’s Pond. It was about my daughter learning to skate. I don’t know why I started it; the words just came to me. Since I had never written anything before, and didn’t know I could, I was self-conscious about it. I didn’t write anything again until a year later.

Then I chose young adult because it was what I read, and was passionate about it. That book was Fated Dreams. And the first draft was horrible. It was one big block of sentences and no description. I took an online novel writing course from Winghill writing school, and it helped me a lot. And also experience. I learned from each book I wrote.

2. Why werewolves?
I read a few lines of a book on textnovel a few years ago. It was written in the first person, and the story was told by a killer. It got me thinking about how to create a character who is a killer and yet we feel sympathy for him. I was on my Affinity series at the time, and wanted to branch out more into fantasy, but I wanted to avoid Vampires, I thought they were overdone at the time. So that left Werewolves.

3. I absolutely love your characters-- they definitely have their own distinct and witty personalities. Can you tell us the character you had most fun writing and why?
I think Joe; He was a breath of fresh air after writing Nate and his Angst. And he had the best lines in the first book. But I had a hard time doing his Irish accent in the second book. I regretted making him Irish. It was a lot more work for me, since he was more of a central character. And Mona, I never intended for her to come off so sarcastic and fun, but that was how her character came out. I love when a character comes alive, almost on their own.

 4. If Megan could meet any character from a book, movie, or TV show, who do you think she would be best friends with? Worst enemies with? 
Best friend-Olive from Easy A. She was so funny, and I loved her family. Enemy, I can’t think of any one she’d be enemies with. I guess the popular crowd from the movie Mean Girls.

5. Can you tell us a little about your other books?
 My first Series, is called the Affinity Series. It has two books, the first is Fated Dreams, the second is Delusions. It’s about two twin brothers, Lucas and Logan told by their female love interests, Sarah and Lisa. They’re filled with romance, and mystery. My Adult novel is a romance contemporary called Finding Abigail. It focuses on a 27 yr old children’s writer named Abby Watson, and it shows how easy it is to fall for the wrong guy. It’s for people over eighteen.

6. What do you have on the horizon? In particular, can we look forward to seeing our friends Nate, Joe, Lauren, and Megan sometime soon?
Yes, as soon as Riley’s Torment is finished and published, I’ll be back on my laptop to write the third and final, Moon’s glow book. I have so many other ideas; I can’t see me doing a series with more than three books.

Thanks so much, Christina (and my name twin!) for joining us on Ensconced in YA! We are so eager to get our hands on all books in the series! Now enter to win a set of books from this great author!
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