Hey guys and gals! As you probably know, I'm part of the Farsighted virtual book tour. Emlyn has been kind enough to do an interview for Breaking Bookshelves today! Check out was she has to say about her novel, self-publishing, and more!

P.S.

Why not drop by the "Tour Notes" area, after all the content? You never know, you just might find some info about winning a few special prizes :)

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Author Intv. w/ Emlyn Chand

Welcome to Breaking Bookshelves Emlyn! It's a pleasure to have such an accomplished person like yourself here! This is my first author interview so I hope I've come up with some decent questions for you to answer~ Let's get this train churning, shall we? Farsighted is your first published novel, correct? What was the process of self-publishing like for you? Did you run into any troubles?

I actually wrote a blog post about why I decided to self-publish (that’s here). Basically, the publishing industry is not only changing – it’s changed. I’m not really sure there is any benefit to being traditionally published anymore, especially if you’re an author who has the know-how and financial/time resources to A) professionally edit your books, B) get a stellar cover designed, and C) market your work. Another reason I’m all gaga for the self-pub world is because it’s what I preach through Novel Publicity. I spend all day trying to convince writers that the indie path can work for them. By choosing that route for myself, I am showing my belief in that statement; I am practicing what I preach. Yes, I have a literary agent and a condition of our contract was that I’d be allowed to self-publish Farsighted. I want the hands-on experience. I want the control. If this works out for me; I’m pretty sure I’ll stay indie forever!

As for the troubles, I knew what to expect in terms of logistics, but I had no idea what to expect in terms of the emotionality and neuroticism that follows actually putting your work out there, so in that way, it’s been tougher than anticipated—still totally worth it. But tough too.

That's amazing! There are rarely times when people actually practice what they preach so I'm glad you've gone down the indie road! I'm also happy you've pulled through! Anyway, next question: have you written other novels or stories before you published Farsighted? If so, what made Farsighted the novel you chose to stick with and share with the world?

Yes, I have. After lots of back and forth, I decided my first novel (which was work of literary women’s fiction) would be better off unpublished. So with that said, it’s important to remember that not every work has to be published. My first novel was important, because it taught me I could see an entire novel through from start to finish. But in that first novel, I made lots of mistakes as a writer. Luckily, I learned what my faults were and sought out ways to improve upon them. And Farsighted is the better for it.

Ah, I see. In your Twitterview for Farsighted, you mentioned being inspired by Tieresias, a blind prophet from Greek mythology. Have you always been a fan of myths, legends and lore? If so, do you have any favourites, and why?

I’m flattered that you tuned in for my twitterview! Yes, I love mythology. I even took a course on it in college. My favorite tale is of Narcissus, the demigod who loved staring at his own reflection in the lake so much that he eventually drown in it. Later in the Farsighted series, you’ll find that Dax has a touch of Narcissus in him too. I don’t just stick to Greek myth either. The runes are Nordic. I have some Indian folklore and references to the Incans coming up later in the series as well. I love putting a fresh spin on the classics.

Oh, what a coincidence! Narcissus is one of my favourite myths too! I've always found it such a fascinating and sad story~ Do you know what else is fascinating? That Alex's story came into fruition just from you looking into a car's mirror wearing sunglasses. Do you always find yourself stumbling over ideas in such obscure ways?

I don’t usually get story ideas in such obscure ways, but I do usually get them in the car. If you’re ever in Ann Arbor, just be careful. I am a HORRIBLE driver, because I spend so much of my mental energy daydreaming. I don’t just get my initial ideas in the car either. I plan a great deal of the plot and character quirks behind the wheel as well.

Hahaha, sounds like an interesting car ride. I'll make sure to keep a look-out if I'm ever in the vicinity! Anyhoo, you also mentioned in the Twitterview about having a hard time knowing your characters from the get go, and that you have to be writing about them for a while to get to really know them. What is that experience like? Do you feel as if you're getting to know a completely new person, or figuring out more sides of yourself?

Oh, the characters are completely different people for sure! Although my reaction to them certainly fills me in on my own character ;-) I find that stories live or die with the characters who populate them. Plot is important. World-building is important. But a story without strong or relatable characters isn’t going to stay with readers in the same way. That process of literally bringing someone else to life is unbelievable. Yeah, it may give us writers a bit of a God-complex, but it’s so much fun!

I agree completely. I don't know how many times I've put a book down because I just wasn't interested in the characters. I bet some readers want to know...do you have any characters you really love/hate in Farsighted? Who are they, and why do you feel so strongly about them?

Yes, I do. I’ll tell you who I love, but I can’t tell you which one I hate (it may shade readers), but suffice it to say, yes, I do harbor disdain for one of my own characters, BUT this character will become more likable as the series progresses. Now who do I love? Shapri! Not only is she the most fun of all my characters, but she’s also the kind of the person I wish I could have been like back when I was younger. She’s strong, always true to herself, and won’t let anyone disrespect her. Sure, she has fears, but we all do. Shapri is the kind of girl I would love to be friends with. You know she’ll always go to bat for you when you’re too tired to step up to the plate.

I agree, she's a wonderful character~ I've been dying to know...what was it like writing from the viewpoint of a blind, teenage boy? Were there any parts of Alex's personality/life you found hard to come up with?

You know, it wasn’t as hard to write blind as I initially thought it would be. As I got to know Alex better and better, it became easier to tune into his way of seeing things. I read books about coping with blindness in a school setting and spent a great deal of time pondering how I might behave if I couldn’t see. In the story, Alex has always been blind; he’s always known the world to be a certain way. Not everyone understands that, and they have trouble talking about it with him. I gave Alex a tendency to overcompensate. He knows who he is and what he’s capable of, and he wants the world to know it too, so sometimes he overdoes things a bit.

Now, of course, I had to self-edit and rely on my 7 beta readers and 2 editors quite a bit to be sure that I had taken out any visual descriptions that accidentally slipped in. Another really strange thing that happened as a result of writing blind is that I actually wrote the whole story without knowing what anyone or anything looked like (except for Alex). When it came time to shoot the book trailer, the directors were asking me questions about the scenes and which props they should bring, and I really, really didn’t know what to tell them!

Hahaha, oh my, sounds like quite the obstacle for the trailer directors! Good thing it got sorted out! The trailer looks amazing!

To end off this interview, I think we'd all like to know what's next. Farsighted is a 5-book-series, yes? What can we expect from you in the rest of the series? Do you have any surprises planned that you could possibly give hint to?

Readers can expect to not know what to expect until the book releases. I’d like to shroud the entire thing in mystery, which feels appropriate for this series. One thing I can tell you is this: a character other than Alex will be narrating book two.

I'm sure we all completely understand. I, for one, cannot wait to read the rest of your books to find out more! The fact that Alex won't be narrating the second book makes me curious~

It was a joy having you here, Emlyn! I wish you the best of luck with the rest of the tour, your career, your writing, and your incredibly busy life. I hope we get to do this again in the future!

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Blog Tour Notes

THE BOOK: Alex Kosmitoras may be blind, but he can still “see” things others can’t. When his unwanted visions of the future begin to suggest that the girl he likes could be in danger, he has no choice but to take on destiny and demand it reconsider. Get your copy today by visiting Amazon.com’s Kindle store or the eBook retailer of your choice. The paperback edition will be available on November 24 (for the author’s birthday).

THE CASH PRIZES: Guess what? You could win a $100 Amazon gift card as part of this special blog tour. That’s right! Just leave a comment below saying something about the post you just read, and you’ll be entered into the raffle. I could win $100 too! Please help by voting for my blog (Breaking Bookshelves) in the traffic-breaker poll. To cast your vote, visit the official Farsighted blog tour page and scroll all the way to the bottom. Thank you for your help with that.

THE GIVEAWAYS: Win 1 of 10 autographed copies of Farsighted before its paperback release by entering the giveaway on GoodReads (US only). Perhaps you’d like an autographed postcard from the author; you can request one on her site.

THE AUTHOR: Emlyn Chand has always loved to hear and tell stories, having emerged from the womb with a fountain pen grasped firmly in her left hand (true story). When she’s not writing, she runs a large book club in Ann Arbor and is the president of author PR firm, Novel Publicity. Emlyn loves to connect with readers and is available throughout the social media interweb. Visit www.emlynchand.com for more info. Don’t forget to say “hi” to her sun conure Ducky!

MORE FUN: There's more fun below. Watch the live action Farsighted book trailer and take the quiz to find out which character is most like you!