Author Victoria Roder!

AN: Happy New Year! I'm pleased to welcome my first guest author of 2010, Victoria Roder! Did you make any resolution's pertaining to your writing?

VR: I’m glad you specified resolutions that pertain to my writing or I would be forced to go on and on. I would call them New Year’s goals. I always make writing goals to continue forward momentum in my career. The main goal is to edit and submit The Haunting of Ingersull Penitentiary, and then begin my next work. I also have a goal of being on a guest blog post, interview, and book signing per month.

AN: Editing and more promo ops are great goals for all writers! Have you always wanted to be an author?

VR: My mom always said I should write, but it didn’t enter my mind until I wrote a short article about our Husky Rocky that we rescued after he was hit by a vehicle and left to die. My original goal was to write children’s books. My sister told me to write down a recurring dream I was having and one thing led to another and, The Dream House Visions And Nightmares was created.

AN: How long did it take you to become published?

VR: Although I work full-time the book poured out of me within a year. It felt like forever when it took a year to find a publisher, and an even longer year to reach print.

AN: What genre do you write and why?

VR: I have always thrived on scary books and movies. The Dream House Visions And Nightmares is a Paranormal Romance, Bolt Action due out April 2010 is an Action Thriller, and The Haunting of Ingersull Penitentiary is Paranormal Horror.

AN: Let's talk about your latest release The Dream House Visions and Nightmares. What's it all about?

VR: Visions…nightmares…, and murder. The Dream House Visions And Nightmares is a murder mystery wrapped in a paranormal ghost story. Apparitions and vivid dreams reveal sins of the past and foretell of danger in the present. Hope Graham travels home to stop the agony of her sleep deprivation from horrifying visions of a house she lived in as a child. The romance comes in the form of a very sexy bakery owner named Brock Cooper that offers Hope all the things her ex-husband didn't, friendship, support, encouragement, romance, understanding and love. Can that love survive the danger Hope will face?

AN: Wow, what an interesting premise! What was the inspiration behind this paranormal romance?

VR: Since I was a child I have experienced recurring dreams about a house that my family lived in. I talked to my sister about it and she suggested I write the dream down and then perhaps it wouldn’t bother me anymore. Instead of not bothering me, it consumed me. I wrote the dream down and then mixed with my imagination it became the premise of The Dream House Visions And Nightmares.

AN: How many books have you written, Victoria?

VR: I have written three novels and two children’s mystery books still pending a publishing house. My favorite is The Dream House Visions And Nightmares not only because it is my first novel, but because I think it identifies a group of adults that suffered in silence at the devastating effects of domestic violence during a time when people didn’t have anywhere to turn or anyone to talk to. My hope is that generation that suffered in silence is able to forgive their perpetrators and live fulfilled lives. Letting go of the pain leads to recovery and strength.

AN: The power of words has always amazed me and I think it's terrific you've written a book dealing with these issues. Ok, switching gears! Is there a fave food or ritual you must have or do to get into the writing zone?

VR: I must have that warm cup of coffee. My husband designed a beautiful open porch and gazebo for me and I love to sit with my coffee, laptop, and dogs and write in the early morning during the spring, summer, and fall.

AN: Now, that sounds very relaxing and muse inspiring! Any advice you'd share with aspiring authors?

VR: How about the old High School cheer─Never give up, never give in! Work hard, be determined and take rejection with an open mind. It takes time to find the right publisher for your work.

AN: Do you have a favorite author?

VR: Favorite author is tough because there are so many, but I do have a few questions for Stephen King. I want to know if he sleeps peacefully at night and I want to know if he has any phobias or fears.

AN: Tell me one thing your readers would be surprised to know about you!

VR: Touching cotton balls gives me the heebie-jeebies.

AN: LOL . . . now that is surprising! Victoria, thank you for stopping by Poetry, Prose and Print today! I wish you continued success in the New Year!


Enjoy an Excerpt from The Dream House Visions and Nightmares:

I opened my eyes and inhaled a deep breath as if I had sucked all the air out of a Macy’s Parade balloon. Once again the house watched me, yearned for me. Motionless, I stood in the middle of the uninhabited street. The eerie quietness made me feel as if I had been swimming and my ears were plugged with water. I felt the dampness on my nightgown, but I couldn’t look down; I knew it would be blood.
Against all my strength─mental and physical─I was helpless in resisting the house’s tremendous pull. As I drew closer, I walked over decomposed human remains, grinding bones into dust beneath my feet. I couldn’t stop myself…I looked down. An ear-piercing scream split my lips as I helplessly watched my blood drain from my body onto the remains below.

The Dream House Vision and Nightmares is available now with Asylett Press, Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Learn more about Victoria Roder at: www.victoriaroder.com