Author Interview: Cindy Young-Turner

Good Morning to Everyone in the Blogosphere!!

Today I have to good fortune to welcome Cindy Young-Turner to my blog! I had the opportunity to review her new book, Thief of Hope from Crescent Moon Press... so good!! I hope you have a chance to pick it up!

Welcome Cindy!!

Why don't you start by telling my readers a little bit about yourself?

I’m a technical editor by day, fantasy writer by night. I’ve been an editor for a while now, but my favorite job was working as a VISTA volunteer at an adult literacy program in inner-city Baltimore. I really felt like I made a difference in people’s lives there.

I also love bagpipes (listening to them, not playing them).

What drew you to writing?

I’ve been writing forever. Sometime in elementary school I must have been given an assignment to write a story and that began my love of writing. I’ve always been a big reader, so the idea that I could create my own stories and characters was exciting. I used to carry around a notebook and pen and I’d write wherever and whenever I could. When I was about twelve I wrote my first novel, an epic SF novel that ripped off all my favorite movies. I still have it, carefully printed on notebook paper in a three-ring binder.

Do you write for the story burning to be told or do you write for a character that won't leave you alone?

Usually it’s a character that won’t leave me alone. Once I start paying attention, the story starts to unfold.

Are you a pantser or plotter?

Totally a pantser. I can’t outline to save my life, and I’ve tried. It would certainly make things easier sometimes. But for me part of the fun of writing is figuring out where the story is going. I honestly don’t know exactly what will happen until I write it because things often change or characters do things I don’t expect that might take the story in a different direction than I envisioned. I often know a few plot points along the way, but how I’m going to get there is never certain.

When do you like to write? Mornings, Afternoons, Middle of the Night, or somewhere in between (like when the kids sleep)?

With a nearly full-time job and a three-year-old daughter, my days are pretty full. I usually write at night, in the wee hours of the morning. Sleep, who needs sleep?

LOL.... I know what you mean.....

Do you have some favorite music that inspires your writing? A movie? What inspires you?

I like to listen to movie soundtracks. The Lord of the Rings movies, Braveheart, Last of the Mohicans, and original Star Wars trilogy are all favorites for when I write. I have really eclectic taste in music, so it also depends on the tone of the scene I’m working on. Sometimes I listen to harder music, like Metallica, Godsmack, or Cold, and sometimes it’s Irish music like the Chieftains.

I like The Killers, David Bowie, and The Beatles...

When you're not writing, do you have a favorite author or genre you enjoy?

I read all kinds of authors and genres. It’s hard to pick a favorite. I’m a big fan of Diana Gabaldon and love her Outlander series. I have a bunch of fantasy on my to be read list, like Game of Thrones and The Hunger Games. Sadly I don’t have as much time to read as I’d like, so I have to squeeze it in wherever I can.

What advice would you give to others in the journey to becoming published?

Just keep writing and don’t give up, because you will get rejected and feel discouraged. Join a critique group or find a good critique partner. I feel lucky enough to belong to two amazing critique groups (over ten years in each of them) and they have been invaluable in helping me with my writing. You really need to get honest feedback from other writers, plus have that support and encouragement.

Did you have a long line of submissions before you “got the call”?

Yup. I do have an agent and he’d been submitting my book for about two years before I received the offer from Crescent Moon Press.

Where can we find you and your books?

My website: http://www.cindyyoungturner.com

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4882750.Cindy_Young_Turner

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cindy-Young-Turner/206268086074718

Crescent Moon Press: http://crescentmoonpress.com/books/ThiefOfHope.html

Thief of Hope is available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.com

Share with us something about your current book.

Thief of Hope was recently named a EPIC ebook finalist in fantasy! I was so excited to get the message that I was a finalist. Winners will be announced in March 2012, so we’ll see what happens. Thief of Hope has an unusual heroine, Sydney, a pickpocket with authority issues who becomes involved in the fight to overthrow an oppressive regime, not to mention some dangerous magic. And there’s a bit of romance also.

Oh! Congrats!!

What are your future plans for your series? Are you cooking up a new one?

I’m currently working on a sequel titled Thief of Destiny that continues the adventures of Sydney and Willem. The scope is much bigger in this book, and Sydney faces new challenges that make her question many of the things she believes. Fun new characters and old favorites. Plus there’s a lot more Willem in this one. 

I, for one, would love more about Sydney (she's so sweet in her own way) and Willem (Willem is such a great character!)

Some fun stuff!

Coffee, Tea, or Something Harder?

All of the above! I’m a tea fanatic, though. I have drawers full of tea. Loose tea, tea bags, I love it all. I’m like a kid in a candy store when I find a tea shop, and there aren’t nearly enough of them around here.

If you were stranded on a desert island... would you hope that Johnny Depp, Hugh Jackman, or Gerard Butler was stranded with you (if hubby/boyfriend decided to stay home while you cruised, for me, not likely, lol, but I'd have a hard time choosing...)?

I think my husband would understand (right, hon?) that Johnny Depp would win, hands down. Plus if anyone could get us off a desert island it would be Captain Jack Sparrow. Riding on the back of a giant sea turtle? LOL Not that we’d want to leave…

Cake or Ice Cream (or both, what flavor)?

Chocolate peanut butter ice cream

Favorite all-time read? Movie? Favorite banned book?

There are too many to pick just one. A few on my “favorites” bookshelf are Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley, Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien, On the Road by Jack Kerouac, and a collection of stories by Edgar Allan Poe. Same with movies, but I love the original Star Wars trilogy and the Lord of the Rings trilogy. So many good banned books also. To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my all-time favorites.

To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my all time favorites as well... and Edgar Allan Poe!

Favorite paranormal creature?

I’ve always had a fondness for vampires, thanks to the vampire Lestat and The Lost Boys movie.

I LOVED Louie in Interview with a Vampire! The Lost Boys is a must watch, lol, every time it's on...

If you were going to pick a book/movie character to become...who would it be?

Eowyn from Lord of the Rings. I love a strong warrior woman.

Secret desires?

To buy a VW van and drive cross country. I’m a hippie at heart.

Sounds like fun!

Thanks again for being here today Cindy! So much fun to learn more about the authors I love!!

Thief of Hope by Cindy Young-Turner

Publisher:  Crescent Moon Press
Pages:  318

(Released:  May 16, 2011)

From the Cover:

Sydney, a street urchin and pickpocket in the town of Last Hope, has managed to evade the oppressive Guild for years, but there is no escaping fate when she's sentenced to death for associating with the resistance.

After she's rescued by a wizard, Sydney is forced to accept that magic-long outlawed throughout the Kingdom of Thanumor-still exists, and the Tuatha, a powerful faery folk, are much more than ancient myth and legend. When the wizard offers a chance to fight the Guild and bring Willem, bastard prince and champion of the Tuatha, to the throne, Sydney embraces the cause as a way to find her own redemption.

But Sydney's fear of the Guild, distrust of authority, and surprising connection to the Tuatha threaten Willem's success. Can she untangle the strange threads that entwine her life not only to the fate of the kingdom, but also to Willem himself?

Sydney has lost everyone who was important in her life. She never knew her mother, and the only father she has ever known, Edgar, was taken by the Guild and hung for his actions against the authority. She's grown up in a world where she can't depend on anyone but herself.

When the Guild comes looking for her, she knows she'll be put to death. She's a pickpocket who has the misfortune of nixing a few coins from a Guild official, and they're merciless. Sydney feels almost without worth, no one has valued her since Edgar's death. Love has been almost nonexistent in her young life, a life full of strife.

Oryn finds Sydney left to die in the forest outside Last Hope, and brings her across the magical boundary. He brings a little hope back into her life, and though she doesn't know it yet, she's one of the keys for the hope of the realm. At Oryn's home, she meets other exiles, in preparation for a revolt against the Guild. The bastard son of the King is ready to take his place on the throne, all Willem needs is the help of the people of Last Hope. For Sydney, it means learning to trust someone other than herself. For Willem, it means trusting Sydney's senses, her ability to see what others cannot, to know what has been forgotten.

Thief of Hope by Cindy Young-Turner is a tale told through the twists and turns of a place where the Guild controls lives, brings death, and most of society under it's boot heel. The Guild has taken over this realm, outlawed magic, and forgotten that the fae ever existed, nothing more than myths and fairytales. Willem offers a chance to bring change, to give freedoms and safety, to crawl out of the shadow of the oppressive Guild. Sydney hasn't trusted anyone in a long time, but in Willem she sees a possible future, the possibility of a free life. Willem sees in her the possibility of hope, if she can change, have faith, then others can as well. It brings new meaning to the tireless battle before him. Each is drawn to the other like moths to a flame, Willem to the hope that Sydney can give, and as well as the hope he can give. Each is what the other needs, but it is a love that can't exist. Or can it? The bastard King and the one-time pickpocket have to learn if love can exist where you want it, where you need it.

Thief of Hope exists in a place where magic has been bled out of the land, and the people are suffering for it. Not all magic comes in the form of wands or spells (though that can be found in this story as well), but in the ability of the land to renew itself, heal, for the people to have hope, and for the oppression to be alleviated. Willem and Sydney can help make this happen, but through their time together, love and need blossom. But, will it survive? Is it meant to be? I wish I had the answer to these questions, and it's my hope to find them in the next book in the series. I would like to see Willem and Sydney together, but can the bastard King take a former pickpocket as his bride and queen? Can Sydney accept something else? I'll be waiting to see what's in store for this pair. There are excellent secondary characters in this book as well, so I'll also be looking for some of their continuing story. Lovers of paranormal romance will find a sweet romance at the core of this book, and magic lovers will want to take a peek as well. There's a mysterious world waiting to be discovered. 5 out of 5 fairy kisses for this reader. Most excellent tale, and I'll be looking for more from this author.

I received my ebook from the author for review. All opinions expressed are my own.