Cate: Please welcome Ami Blackwelder. Ami, will you please share a short bio with us? Ami: I grew up in Florida and went to UCf. in 1997 had my BA in English and teaching credentials. I decided to travel overseas and teach and have worked in Thailand, Nepal, Tibet, China and Korea. Thailand is considered my second home now. I have always loved writing and wrote poems and short stores since childhood; however, my novels began when I was in Thailand.
Cate: Tell us about The Hunted of 2060 and where it's available.
Ami: The Hunted of 2060 is really a novel about how the human race would react to a species that ‘invaded’ our planet. Would we be peaceful or would we be afraid? Would this fear suffocate understanding? Could we live in peace or would differences constantly divide us. This can be applied to humans as well from different backgrounds, geographical locations, races. Secondly, it is about wildlife conservation and taking care of our planet. The story is told from the alien point of view through the mind of April, the main character.
Cate: Please tantalize us with a story blurb or excerpt.
Ami: I am torn. Two halves dividing. I feel it deep inside of me. There is no escaping it. There is no denying it. My body aches. The pain is too familiar. I clutched my hands around the metal student desk in Sophomore Biology class at Alaska University. Sweat dropped from my forehead in the air conditioned room. Chills rushed up my spine and I shivered in a brief moment only noticed by me. My long nails scratched the surface of the classroom desk and protruded into the hard aluminum. My class schedule appeared on the square shaped electronic device on my desk, beaming in and out of focus as my eyes blurred:
BiologyEnglish
Humanities II
Lunch
Calculus II
Ethics
Cate: What inspired you to write about the theme?
Ami: The environment and conservation of resources as well as wildlife is a constant theme in many of my novels as well as on my mind. I love additionally the idea of an invading species and what that species would like....so I combined the two themes.
Cate: How do you develop your plots and characters?
Ami: I usually have a clear vision of the few main characters and the sub characters develop as I write. sometimes characters change or grow though as changes occur in the story and you have to let them change whether you as a writer want that or not. Its like a parent to a a child sometimes.
Cate: Do you feel as if the characters live with you as you write? Do they haunt your dreams?
Ami: They definitely have a special place in my heart. Writing about April was very fun for me. I got explore a darker side of life and humanity. Conflicting personalities within her make her very multi-dimensional. Arken was a second favorite of mine, followed by David and Diamond. They each have idiosyncrasies that distinguish them and make them unique.
Cate: What's next for you? Ami: I will be working on EXIST -science fiction romance -beginning in July and it will be out by the end of the year, 2010. It is a play with time, love, prison, and freedom.
Cate: Any other published works?
Ami: The Gate of Lake Forest, and The Day the Flowers Died.
Cate: Describe your writing in three words.
Ami: Forbidden. Passionate. Unique.
Cate: What’s the most challenging aspect of writing? Most rewarding?
Ami: Finding time. Once its completed, meaning professionally edited with beautiful cover design...nothing can beat that feeling.
Cate: What’s the most interesting comment you have received about your books?
Ami: That I was not expecting to be so engaged or intrigued by the story, but that I found myself loving the characters.
Cate: Who are some of your favorite authors and books? What are you reading now? Ami: Rhiannon Frater, Jim Bernheimer, and Imogen Rose. Because they are self-published genius writers!
Cate: Where can readers find you on the web?
Ami: http://amiblackwelder.com and http://hotgossiphotreviews.blogspot.com and you can find The Hunted of 2060 at my website as well as at these sites: http://paranormalromancereaders.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000483080700
http://www.paranormalromance.ning.com
Cate: Is there anything you’d like to ask our readers?
Ami: Who is your favorite character from The Hunted of 2060?
Cate: Readers, Ami is giving away a book to a random commenter... so start commenting. Ami will draw the winner’s name, notify the winner and post the winner’s name here.
Thanks for being my guest, Ami! Best of luck to you.
