Pulled Blog Tour!!!

Interview with  A.L. Jackson!
1. What led you to be an author?

I've always enjoyed writing. Of course my English and writing classes were always my favorite in middle school and high school. When I was in college I carried around a journal where I jotted down my thoughts, which really looked a lot more like poetry than stories. Once I got married and finished school, writing kind of became something I didn't do anymore. And I missed it. I had a story rolling around in my head, and I finally sat down and began putting it on paper, and it all just went from there. 

2. What was the most scariest or hardest part about becoming a published author?

For me, it was reviews.  It's hard to see your work criticized, and it was key for me to understand that not everyone is going to love my books. Everyone enjoys different genres and styles, and I had to learn to write for those who love what I do. 

3. Please tell us about Melanie and her journey. 

Melanie is a 26-year-old woman who is just existing. She's lost everything that is important to her, and she's given up on any chance of happiness. Pulled takes us on the journey that led her to this miserable place, and the road that leads her back to find true joy-love.

4. How did you create such a fascinating character?

When I wrote Melanie, I wanted to show how a tragedy can drastically change a person. She began as a confident girl who allowed a life-changing event to steal her joy, her confidence, and her future. I also wanted to show that a person can make the decision to take their life back again. 

5. When and where is your favorite time and place to write? 

 

My favorite place to write is in my office. It's quiet and set off from the rest of the house, so I have a little sanctuary where I can go and close myself off from the rest of the world. When I wrote Pulled, I wrote it almost entirely at night because I was working a full-time job at the time, so I naturally thought I was a night-time writer. Now that I'm free to write during the day, I find that I like that much better.  The main thing for me is that I have a good five to six hours to write at a time.  I'm not a writer who can sit and write in tiny increments.  It usually takes me an hour or so to get warmed up, and then the words begin to flow.  

Thank you A.L. for taking the time to answer my questions. I really enjoyed our fairy tale week!

UPDATE 6/28/12: We have managed to "pull" another secret from A.L. Hehehehe:)
We have her stumped on the next question, so let's put the squeeze on her and PULL something else exciting from her secret, fairy tale life!

And here it is, straight from her heart to my blog! (*keep scrolling further down if you haven't had a chance to read her first secret!

oh...what to share...what to share

When I finished Pulled, I got my first and only tattoo on my forearm, which is a huge black square with MM in the middle, which are the initials for my first writing name Midnite Murmurer. I'd accomplished something that meant so much to me, and I wanted a permanent memento to remind me of it.

haha...I'm not sure what I'm going to say if we get 10 more comments!! That is so awesome though :)

Okay Fairy Tale Fans, we reached 10 comments (there are 2 posted here on our Pulled Fashion Show. If you haven't commented yet, or even if you have, you can comment AGAIN) Leave your words here or over at the Fashion Show. Oh, yea, and tomorrow, we will have a personal interview with a couple of characters from the novel, Pulled. How exciting, right? Don't miss it!

Anyhoo, for the first 10 comments, we got some inside info about A.L. Jackson. Remember, you heard it first, here at Ink in the Book! Without further ado, here is what A.L. had to tell us today:

hmm...here goes, something very personal but profoundly related to my writing:

I was a teenage mother, which is why you'll often find grown women looking back at themselves as young mothers in my stories. It's something that I very much relate to-the fears and trials that come along with it.

Visit here for the beginning of our fashion show! Want to help add to our line-up? Comment! The more comments, the more we can add to the show. We are transforming A.L. into a princess and Matilda needs your help.

Hey all you Fairy Tale Fans out there! Today starts author A. L. Jackson's PULLED virtual blog tour. If you are not familiar with this author and her books, boy are you in for a treat! PULLED is a modern fairy tale, so this week we are all going to put on our Cinderella dresses and grab a magic wand. Speaking of Magic wands, A. L. Jackson had a fairy godmother. Bet you didn't know that, did you? But, her godmother, whose name is Matilda, has lost all her magic stars inside her magic wand! We have to help her out! For every comment we get, Matilda gains a new star for her wand. We need all the stars we can get because without the magic, A. L. will not be able to be sprinkled with magic and be transformed into the Princess she deserves. Not only that, but for every TEN comments we get during the week, A. L. will have to reveal something about herself that none if us know. So get busy commenting. Tell your friends. Tell strangers. Tell your kids!! We need comments!! We have prizes, too! Some lucky person will win a SIGNED copy of PULLED. Yippie! We have door prizes, photo ops, guest autographs, interviews, a fashion show, and so much more scheduled for this week. PLUS, today kicks off our Sapphire Star Publishing Spectacular!! That's right! Various authors will be making appearances here on Ink in the Book. We have lots of games, prizes activities lined up, so come back daily for updates. Now, we need a little magic to get our party started. Where are my comments?