Book info:
Title: FINAL YEAR
Author: M.J. Moores
Pub. Date: March 2, 2019
Publisher: Love Knot Books
Formats: Paperback, eBook
Pages: 192
Synopsis:
Graduation can be
killer…
Beth pushes beyond her
comfort zone to prove a sociology thesis. She turns a chance meeting with a
known player into a personal experiment on first impressions. Weaving herself
into casual meetings with the guy reinforces her assumptions… until she’s no
longer the one pursuing him.
Jeremy’s only serious
relationship is with his studies as he competes for the coveted post-grad
theoretical chem spot with Dr. Young. When the campus goes into lockdown and
everyone is evacuated to the stadium, his habit of “fun only” friendships turns
into a curse.
Can he trust a
skittish girl he’s known for ten days to help him find his not-so-theoretical
chem project or will her assumptions about him keep her at arm’s length?
Final Year – a
fast-paced new adult romantic suspense that keeps you guessing at every turn.
Author Interview:
1. What does your writing process look like? Do you know the
whole story when you start? Or do you just start writing and go with it
(seat of the pants writing)? If you plan it out, how do you do
that? Outline, notecards, post-it-notes, etc.?
A:
Oh, my process is all over the map – lol 😉. Generally, I let an idea
germinate anywhere from a day to several months depending on what I’m currently
working on and where I hope to go next. Once I can’t contain my thoughts and musings,
I get them on paper. If I know in advance that I want to make this my next big
project, I assign it a journal or notebook so that I can keep all of my ideas,
character sketches, and research in one place. I know there are some amazing
digital programs out there that will do this for you, but I need to keep
connected to the page throughout my writing. I used to over plan and plot out
graphs for each book, but these days I tend to go with: I know where I want to
start; I know how I want it to end; I’ve got some cool ideas for the middle;
Let’s dive in!
2. Do you edit as you go, or wait till you're
finished before you edit? How many times would you say you go over
it yourself before having another set of eyes look at it?
A:
I kinda edit as I go. I’m part of a critique group who meet once a month and
whatever I happen to be working on at the time, I bring a chapter of it with me
for feedback. I don’t integrate their advice immediately, but I do set it aside
and when I’m ready for my first “official” self-edit, I take out their notes
(and mine, because I remind myself to go back and fix or change certain things
as I write) and then I dive in. After I’ve smoothed out these bumps, I will
read my manuscript, top to bottom, with an eye to improve or watch out for
certain things. This is different for every manuscript, but I do always tend to
focus on making sure I’m getting inside my characters heads more. I have a tendency
to rely on action (hence why there’s always an external journey to balance the
internal one) and forget to humanize my characters. Then, I ask my writing
buddy and a couple of beta readers for feedback. I’ll integrate their responses
and then send the book off to my editor 😉.
3. Are you part of a writer’s group that gets together
and helps each other with their writing?
A: Yes. I used to belong to 4 groups, whittled it down to 3,
and now I’m maintaining my addiction with 2 – lol! I am the Chair of the Writers’
Community of York Region. When I lived in that area, I relied heavily on their
networking opportunities and speaker/workshop offerings to help refine my craft
and learn about the business. My other groups were/are critique and writing
support groups. We meet once a month to share our writing goals, news, work on
prompts (for those who’d like to), and share our works in progress. If I had to
do this alone, I don’t think I would have made it this far.
4. What are your favorite:
Books/authors/genres
~ I love fantasy and adventure (YA/NA/Adult). The Chronicles
of Narnia, and the Wrinkle in Time series’ launched my love-affair with adventure/quest
books. Today, some of my favourites are The Green Rider series, Harry Potter, City
of Ashes, Fire Study, and the Throne of Glass series’… to name a few.
Movies/TV Shows
~ I must say, I do like an awesome action flick. Indiana Jones
and the Goonies helped kindle my early love of action/adventure. I gravitate
toward movies that balance their genre blending. I like a lot of action, some drama,
subtle humour, and romance (not love stories, they make me cry – I need the HEA
or HFN of a true romance).
As for TV shows, ditto. My absolute fav was Alias when it
aired, a close second would be Castle. I like Supernatural, Grim, Legacies,
Star Trek TNG (if you want to go old-school), and shows with a touch of
lightness like the rebooted Magnum P.I., Lethal Weapon, and The Rookie.
Music
~ I’m a rocker to the bone. I will listen to pop rock, rock
and roll, hard rock, country rock, you name it. I’ve even dabbled in 80s hair
metal and some crossover metal/rock. My absolute favourite band is Shinedown.
My go-to for singing at the top of my lungs in the car are Sass Jordan, Pat Benatar,
Kelley Clarkson (her earlier stuff), Melissa O’Neil (one album was not enough),
Bon Jovi (post marriage), Def Leppard (Adrenalize onward) and Theory (formerly “of
a Dead Man”).
Food/Writing snack
~ I’m a chocoholic. I don’t drink coffee and I only drink herbal
tea when I’m ill so hot chocolate is a staple in my house. However, my go-to
snack when writing is Doritos or, if I’m trying to keep the calories down,
popcorn flavoured rice cakes – the big ones. I like things that crunch and are
savory. The chocolate is dessert 😉... any time of the day.
About the Author:
Growing up in Ontario,
Canada, MJ was the only child of a single mom. MJ’s passion for the arts
ignited at a young age as she wrote adventure stories and read them aloud to
close family and friends. The dramatic arts became a focus in high school as an
aid to understanding character motivation in her writing. Majoring in Theatre
Production at University, with a minor in English, she went on to teach both
elementary and high school for 10 years throughout Simcoe County.
MJ currently lives
with her husband and young son in Caledon, Ontario. She keeps busy these days
with her emerging authors’ website Infinite Pathways: hosting writing contests,
providing editing services, free publicity tips, book reviews, and opportunities
for authors to build their writing platform and portfolio. In addition she
writes articles, works freelance writing and editing, and is preparing to
launch her first science fiction novel The Chronicles of Xannia: Time’s Tempest
on October 1st, 2014. She firmly believes that if she hadn’t been born a Virgo,
she would not be half as organized as necessary to accomplish everything in her
daily agenda.
Giveaway:
- 5 lucky winners will win an eBook of FINAL YEAR, International.
--> a Rafflecopter giveaway
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
3/5/2019- BookHounds- Guest
Post
Week Two:
3/14/2019- Smada's Book Smack- Spotlight
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