So, this is the completed cover for Rebekkah Ford, my first willing client I did cover art for. She’s just released her book, Beyond the Eyes, online, and to celebrate, I offered to do an interview with her about her new book. I’d like to thank her for being willing to have the time and patience with me as I got a start in cover design, as well as let the world know about her release. 🙂
And now, an interview with Rebekkah Ford:
What was your inspiration for Beyond the Eyes?
The idea for, Beyond the Eyes came to me when my husband had suggested I should write something that would totally freak me out. Well, the movie, The Exorcist, has always scared me. In fact, I’ve had bad dreams for years over that movie. So that’s where my inspiration for this book came from: writing something that could be plausible and creepy.
What was your favorite part about writing Beyond the Eyes?
The characters surprising me and showing up out of nowhere.
Did you run into any hiccups while writing Beyond the Eyes?
Yeah, I did. Writing the first sentence and the beginning of the first chapter was difficult. I struggled with that for a while.
What made you decide to self-publish?
I was burnt out on querying agents, getting wonderful comments and encouragements from them, yet their client list was full, or my story didn’t fit the type of stories they represented. I did have some agents interested, however, it didn’t work out or feel right to me. I then did a lot of research on self-publishing and was pleasantly surprised with all the information I discovered about it. One day, at the beginning of January of this year, my husband looked at me and said, “Just do it and quit screwing around. Your book needs to get out there.” And in that moment, I decided to give into that constant gnawing in the back of my head that’s been going on for months, telling me to self-publish, and I decided right then to do it. Not to mention, I have a fire in me that believes strongly in this series.
Who’s your favorite character and why?
Hmmmm, that’s a hard question . . . I think Nathan is. In my second book to this series, Dark Spirits, starting at chapter fourteen, the book goes into Nathan’s POV, every other chapter. It’s pretty cool, actually. I wasn’t sure if it would work, but it totally did. Nathan is my favorite character because he doesn’t mess around. If he says he’s going to open the gates of hell upon you, watch out because he will. I also like that he has a soft side to him.
What’s your favorite thing about Beyond the Eyes?
Paige and Nathan’s relationship.
When should we expect to see Beyond the Eyes available and where?
The Kindle and ebook is available now at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com, and Smashwords. My paperback should be available by the middle of this month.
Want to share a small snippet of your story to give the audience a taste?
Sure. This scene is towards the end of chapter one. Paige is at a dance club called The Lion’s Den, and her best friend Carrie is pulling her onto the dance floor where their friend Matt is already dancing:
“As we made our way through the crowd of moving bodies, my ears started to ring again. Okay, this was seriously getting on my last nerve, but then I reminded myself I was here to have fun and began swaying my hips when we reached Matt. My body automatically moved inside a bubble of energetic sound waves–free and unencumbered. I was no longer the freak, with a mother who showed up when she wanted to and a father who had died when I was four. None of that stuff mattered, because in that moment I was one with the music and the pulsing lights. And as each song changed into pure techno melodies, I became more entranced, closing my eyes, swaying my body to the beat of the music, entering my own world.
Then something strange happened. The people around me were now far below me, and I was tethered to a silver cord attached to my dancing body. I wasn’t scared though, and found myself enjoying this sense of release. I had no worries. Even when I thought about the premonition, the fear I’d felt toward it earlier didn’t touch me. Probably since I knew I wasn’t dead. I mean, hey, the silver cord remained attached to my body, so I was good, right?
As I took in my surroundings, a guy wearing a long black coat caught my attention. He was on the high platform overlooking the floor with his hands gripping the black railing. His hood concealed his face, but he appeared to be watching the people down below.
My eyes swept over the crowd and rested on Matt standing there staring intently on my swaying body. He took a step closer and leaned forward.
Was he sniffing me?
He looked up, searching for something.
At that exact moment, the hooded guy jumped off the platform, over the black railing, and ran to the dance floor. And then Matt’s eyes locked onto mine. They were pale and glowing.
I shuddered.
The silvery cord rippled, and then yanked me toward my body, as if I was a balloon being pulled down by an eager child’s grasp. Everything rushed before me: the tables, the crowd of moving heads, and my own head, moving in a figure eight along with my body. I closed my eyes, and collided into a hard, confining surface, and that was the last thing I could remember.”
Beyond the Eyes Blurb:
“A thrilling, wholly satisfying first book to a new young adult series. It will keep you wanting more.” –Valentina Cano, Carabosse’s Library
“Beyond the Eyes is haunting yet passionate. This breakout novel is quick and hip, a saucy must-read.”–Charles Land, Judas Pistol
Paige knows evil exists in this world, but she never imagined it would want something from her.
After a ghostly voice whispers a haunting message to seventeen-year-old Paige Reed, Paige’s life takes a nightmarish turn. Unwilling to tell her friends about the supernatural occurrences happening in her life, Paige feels more alone than ever–until she meets Nathan Caswell.
Nathan is not only hot, but seems to peer into Paige’s soul, evoking a magnetic energy between them that cannot be denied. But he’s no ordinary guy. He tracks dark spirits, and becomes alarmed when they set their sights on Paige.
And then there are the two power-hungry dark spirits who believe Paige can find King Solomon’s magical ring for them, because when her father was alive, he was close to finding it. If Paige doesn’t comply with their demands, they’ll kill her.
Paige is forced to dig deep into her father’s past and unearths shocking secrets about him and his bloodline. With the past and present colliding, Paige is only sure about two things in her life: she needs to outwit the dark spirits to stay alive, and she’s completely and helplessly in love with Nathan.”
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Rebekkah Ford grew up in a family that dealt with the paranormal. Her parents’ Charles and Geri Wilhelm were the Directors of the UFO Investigators League in Fairfield, Ohio, back in the 1970s. They also investigated ghost hauntings and Bigfoot sightings in addition to UFO’s. Growing up in this type of environment and having the passion for writing is what drove Rebekkah at an early age to write stories dealing with the paranormal. At one point in her life, she thought she wanted to be a journalist, and although she enjoyed writing articles, she quickly discovered her real passion was writing fiction. Her fascination with the paranormal is what led her to write the ‘Beyond the Eyes’ series. Visit her online and read her blog at http://themusingwriter.blogspot.com
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And there it is! Hope you enjoy, and don’t forget to take a look at her new book. 😀
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/168857
http://www.amazon.com/Beyond-the-Eyes-ebook/dp/B0088JF7HQ/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1338957308&sr=8-7
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/rebekkah-rebekkah-ford/1111386817?ean=2940014746496
Stephanie Flint - Author and Artist 