Rogues Angels Presents -- Chrysallis by Michel Prince

Please welcome Michel Prince author of Chrysallis.

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Chrysalis

By

Michel Prince

INTERVIEW:

Interview Questions for Rogue's Angels 

1.    What or who inspired you to start writing?  I always toyed with it over the years.  When I was younger I got a few poems published, but I never considered going further.  One day I was watching a Stephanie Meyer interview where she talked about writing down a dream and it just kept going.  Up to that point I had a prologue that I’d written out a few times when I was bored.  It was always the same thing, but this time I took it a little further.  Eighty thousand words later I decided I should see how long a novel usually was…then I realized I needed to wrap up Chrysalis and move on to the next book in the series because I hadn’t gotten to my prolog part yet.  Now the prologue is in the third book of the series Not Even Death, that should come out in 2013 through Rebel Ink Press.  Thus began my career. 

2.    What elements are necessary components for this genre?  In all romance there has to be a coming together, a break, and something bringing the couple back together with a stronger bond than before.  With the paranormal elements I needed to do quite a bit of research into Gods and demons.  Gaap is listed as Lucifer’s third son, I tweaked him a little, but he was born of Lucifer and Lilith, Adam’s first wife.  The biggest thing with paranormal is to let go of reality. The hard part of that for me is I still need it to be realistic so I like to tie in real situations that could have a paranormal twist.

3.    How did you come up with your idea for your novel?  Have you ever look around at people and thought, “That’s what you think is a good idea?” Sometimes you have to wonder if there are others influencing them because the decisions aren’t logical.  Why would a person continue to put themselves in dangerous or destructive situations?  I was trying to show a reason why those decisions were made.  With Ellie she comes from a family that are the consummate study in failure even though they come from a normal nuclear family.  Instead of showing the normal white girl from the good family saving the black boy from the ghetto, you have the reverse. 

4.    What expertise did you bring to your writing?  I usually have main characters that are athletes.  Being an athlete all the way to college as well as marrying an athlete and now raising one I tend to understand their mentality.  If nothing else my sports scenes are realistic. 

5.    What would you want your readers to know about you that might not be in your bio?  The best dates my husband and I have are when we learn to make a new dish.  The last one was Vietnamese egg rolls.  Maybe that’s why I have Oscar and Ellie come together so much over Sunday’s dinners as he teaches her to cook. 

6.    As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans?  I have a few different characters I want to explore more.  Many I think could branch out into a multi-level universe.  In addition the Chrysalis series is a cross over series that follows Oscar and Ellie through adulthood.  Right now I’m playing a little with spinning off a few of the characters because they keep bouncing around in my head making me laugh.

7.    If you could be one of the characters from this book, who would it be and why?  ?  I love Ellie’s growth over the series.  As each book progresses she blossoms from a self-doubting person to learning how amazing she is. 

Can you give us a sneak peak into this book? 

Only a few minutes removed from Sharyn’s injury and still everything seemed as if it was moving in slow motion.  It felt like it took an hour to walk to my position.  Shaking out my hands, hoping my fear would go with it, the Bears setter looked at me and smirked.  She knew she was older, more experienced.  What was I doing?  Was I crazy?  I closed my eyes, reminding myself that I’d worked hard for this.  This was my position. 

I could still hear Sharyn screaming on the bench.  Her parents were there to help get her settled down, fighting over whether they should leave now for the emergency room or wait until the end of the game.

I don’t know where I found it, but somewhere deep inside I found the courage to step up to the situation.  I kept telling myself it was just practice.  The ball went back and forth a few times.  The score was now tied 25-25.  We needed two points to win.  Betsy served us up an ace which was great.  No pressure.  If she could do that one more time, we would win. 

Slam!  The ball went deep into the left hand corner.  Pass, set, get low, get low, get low, here comes the spike.  Kelly dug the ball, but it came off her arms wrong.  I ran to where it flew my eyes trained on the ball, refusing to let it get away.  This was my job!  I had to get this ball and set up for the kill.  Yelling "mine, mine, mine" at the top of my lungs, I ran across the floor.  Finally catching it on my fingertips right by the stands, I did a back set, yelling "5-2, 5-2, 5-2," letting Mary know it was coming to her and low at that.  I felt myself falling backwards.  I knew I had to turn, but the arch from my back getting it to Mary was enough to upset my center of balance.  I fell back in time to see her slam home a spike that went right through the defenders’ block and hit between the left and center back players.  They both dove, missing the ball and ended up hitting each other.

Our bench erupted.  I scrambled to get myself off the floor and this was when I realized I truly never fell.  Someone’s strong hand was holding me on my low back above my waist.  I lifted my head.  Oscar’s deep brown eyes were like a warm inviting macchiato begging me to fall forward to him.  My legs were straddling one of his own. 

He slowly pulled me up so I stood upright, but he kept his hand on the small of my back.  His hand was so massive it fit across the whole of my back.  I clutched his shoulders for balance and to let him know he could let me go.  But he kept looking in my eyes.  If I didn’t turn I’d be eternally lost in his. 

"Aahh…thanks.  I think I got it from here." 

"Great save.  Lucky for you I was here to save your life." 

  

8.    Do you belong to a critique group? If so how does this help or hinder your writing?  Critigue groups are not apart of my normal writing process, but there are always people I can turn to when I just need to bounce an idea or need help with a blurb. I used to have a small crit group, but when someone read my first chapter of my book The Frozen and tell me one of the characters were unnecessary I found that the group was unnecessary because the character was one of the three POV’s in the book.  Although I do now have a smaller group of beta readers that help me catch things that I miss because my brain inserts the words, I only use them closer to final edits.

9. When did you first decide to submit your work? Please tell us what or who encouraged you to take this big step?  With my first book I realized how much my writing was taking me away from my family.  It wasn’t just something that I did when I had free time.  My writing became an all the time, on the sidelines of my son’s games, while I waited to pick my son up from school, and as I watched a movie with the family.  If I was going to take that much time away from my family I wanted it to be worth it.  I’m not the traditional author, I know that, but I am someone who works hard and puts my heart into my work.  I am an artist and I wanted to share my stories.  For encouragement I have my husband who always backs me in everything I try.  In addition I had a few people read my book and they were wanting more. 

10. What is the best and worst advice you ever received? (regarding writing or publishing)  The best I got from J.R. Ward’s book on the BDB series that she has a section to writers in and that was to just “write it down”.  It’ll all get settled and connected later.  That was something my husband told me when I was blocked.  He told me write the scenes that are in your mind now.  My first book Chrysalis I wrote straight through, but the rest of the series was jumbled between scenes I knew had to be in there.  Writing them out helped me connect the books.  As for the worst…getting rid of a main character because in the first chapter he seems minor would be up there.  It amazes me how people can read a page or a chapter and determine everything about a story.  I always read at least fifty pages before I walk away from a novel.

11. Do you outline your books or just start writing?  Just start writing.  I do have some important things like timeline, eye color, hair, special abilities or family trees mapped out as they come to me because I write so many books at the same time I don’t want Kelly’s abilities to get confused with the Demon Gaap.

12. How do you maintain your creativity?  Flash fiction challenges.  It’s amazing how limiting yourself to 250 words and picture can spark something in your muse.  In addition I read because my muse needs to sleep so I let her rest while I listen to another’s.  At all times I have a book on my kindle, a book I’m listening to on audiable and a paperback.  Much like how I write there are at least three books going at one time.

13. Who is your favorite character in the book? Can you tell us why? In Chrysalis and The Beam I enjoy Max.  He’s a side character but is like a big frat boy once you get to know him.  Joking and irritated by the teenagers he has to deal with on a regular basis.

14. Are your plotting bunnies angels or demons?  Depends on the book.

BLURB:  

In the annals of dysfunctional families, the Chisholm’s are working their way to the top. Drug abuse, an unwed mother with multiple fathers, and the questionable cash flow for the 'pretty one'.   All this from a seemingly normal, two parent middle class family. But were the choices truly made of their free will?

            Bad choices are a Chisholm family trait, one that confounds the youngest child, Ellie, who's trying to separate herself by making smart decisions. And falling for Oscar Jeffreys, the hottest guy at school, would be number one on the list of  Chisholm family disasters.  Yet the crazy part is it’s not a one sided attraction.  Somehow Ellie has caught Oscar Jeffreys’ eye.   Sure she could see the barriers between them.  Race, age, popularity.  They were at opposite ends of the spectrum.  But a demon set to destroy her family? She can't see that.  

            Oscar provides security and acceptance Ellie never imagined she deserved.  As the passion of first love grows, Ellie honestly believes she has a chance to beat the odds and live a happy, normal life. Then her world collapses around her. With the help of a guardian angel, Ellie learns of a world that has unknowingly surrounded her for years.  And she'll have to find strength buried deep inside to save not only her future, but flush out and stop the demon in her midst.

            And Ellie will have to learn that sometimes the hardest lesson about growing up is accepting that you're worth more.  

AUTHOR INFORMATION:

Michel Prince is an author who graduated with a bachelor degree in History and Political Science.  Michel writes young adult and adult paranormal romance as well as contemporary romance.

With characters yelling "It's my turn damn it!!!" She tries to explain to them that alas, she can only type a hundred and twenty words a minute and they will have wait their turn.  She knows eventually they find their way out of her head and to her fingertips and she looks forward to sharing them with you.

When Michel can suppress the voices in her head she can be found at a scouting event or cheering for her son in a variety of sports.  She would like to thank her family for always being in her corner and especially her husband for supporting her every dream and never letting her give up.

Michel is a member of RWA Pro and Midwest Fiction Writers.  She lives in the Twin Cities with her husband, son, cat and new puppy. 

Book Two

LINKS:

www.michelprincebooks.com

http://www.facebook.com/MichelPrinceBooks?fref=ts

https://twitter.com/MichelPrince1

http://www.youtube.com/user/Michelprincebooks?feature=guide

http://www.amazon.com/Chrysalis-ebook/dp/B007USU6AO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1351526304&sr=8-2&keywords=Chrysalis+by+michel+prince

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/chrysalis-by-michel-prince?store=allproducts&keyword=chrysalis+by+michel+prince

https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-chrysalis-779953-140.html

http://www.bookstrand.com/chrysalis-0

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