Beauty Within by Jae El Foster

Posted: November 27, 2018/By: achristay@aol.com

Please welcome Jae El Foster author of Beauty Within

Jae El Fosterwill be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

Beauty Within

by Jae El Foster

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GENRE: Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, Fairy Tales

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INTERVIEW:

1: What is the best and worst writing advice you ever received?

Thanks for having me! The best writing advice that I ever received was: ‘Please yourself with your first draft; work on pleasing your audience with your second one.’

The worst writing advice I ever received was: ‘Write what you know.’ This is the advice most often given in the industry, and really – it’s a load of crap. Create your own worlds; build your own societies. Do not be afraid to explore the unknown, or to invent it. Sure, most writing requires a degree of research, but if you write horror, you sure as heck don’t want to know from life experience what you’re writing about.

2: Do you outline your books or just start writing?

I see no fun in drafting an outline. I keep a document for story notes, ideas and characters as I write – just so I won’t forget stuff – and that’s enough for me. I like the excitement of writing without an outline. This isn’t high school; that outline’s not going to get me extra credit or make my book any better.

3: Are you plotting bunnies, angels or demons?

Oh, now… don’t make me choose! I usually plot demons, sometimes angels, and rarely bunnies. However, in Beauty Within, there are mostly bunnies and angels, with a healthy dosage of demons thrown in for that special Jae El touch my readers enjoy.

4: How did you come up with the idea for Beauty Within?

Beauty Withinwas intended as a ‘thank you’ to my faithful readers and an offering of something different and unexpected from me. My works have more often than not fallen into the thriller and horror genres, and often I’d dabble in other fields, but nothing quite like where I ventured with Beauty Within. I wanted to give my readers a fairy tale – one along the lines of my personal favorite Beauty and the Beast, but with my own special touch. While Beauty and the Beastis a partial inspiration, Beauty Within offers readers something very unique and different. On a side note, this book took a couple of years to create, with a completely new draft of the ending in what was supposed to have been my final read through of the manuscript before publication. A lotta love went into this book.

5: How do you maintain your creativity?

I look for stories within the stories. For example, if there is a married couple I see that just doesn’t get along, I might picture them trying to rekindle their romance with either stellar or disastrous results. If I learn of an injustice occurring and I think my voice would help spread awareness, I may decide to incorporate something similar to the injustice in my writing. Inspiration is everywhere. You just have to be awake enough in this world to actually see it. Most of us stay hidden behind our cell phones and social media pages, when we should instead be enjoying the world and breathing in the majestic inspirations that it provides to us.

6: What expertise did you bring to the writing of Beauty Within?

I brought nearly 20 years of publishing experience to these pages, which allowed me to pull from that experience a great wealth of what has worked in my books in the past, and on what hasn’t. Learning from past trials and tribulations is important to any writer. If you ever get a bad review, don’t let it get you down. Let it inspire you to make your next book even better. Over my literary career, I’ve penned thrillers, horror, science fiction, romance, erotica, slices of life stories, chick-lit and RomComs, poetry, and photography books. It’s been a long journey. Everything that I write builds off of a continuously growing experience that I didn’t have when I first started writing, and that’s the same with every author. Beauty Withinwas my23rd publication, when those published under my former pen name are also thrown into the mix.

7: Who is your favorite character in Beauty Within, and why?

Madame Howell has a special place in my heart. She has also appeared in my story ‘To Adventure’ in DCL Publications’ anthology Enchanted Fairy Tales. In Beauty Within, she plays the role of the village witch – a kindly woman that presents the protagonist with a very important gift on her birthday. This role is fairly different than the Madame’s character in ‘To Adventure,’ where she played a powerful tarot-reading gypsy. And, although Madame Howell does not actually appear in my upcoming story ‘Elisabeth’s Holiday Gift’ in the anthology The Greatest Gift of All, she does receive mention in the story, and depending on which of the three you read first, your response with be different than if you’d read either of the others first. She’s just that awesome of a witch. I love Madame Howell.

8: Can you give us a sneak peek into Beauty Within?

Beauty Withinis a fairy tale of fantasy, romance, magic, and excitement. It tells the story of young Natalie – a peasant girl who, upon being driven away by some of the meaner girls in her community, happens upon a forsaken castle that has been cut off from the rest of the village. Among those that live in the village, it is rumored that a terrible monster lives within those castle walls, but Natalie will discover that there is more to this castle than just dust, cobwebs, and a rumored threat, and she will learn that not all of the village’s monsters hide away in the dark. When tragedy strikes and Natalie takes on a new role in her family, she finds herself caught up in a fiery adventure that could prove disastrous for everyone involved. A sweet and fast-paced romantic fairy tale, Beauty Withinis sure to please.

As I love visiting here with Christine Young and your wonderful readers, I have an excerpt just for you that has not been shared with any other stops during this Virtual Book Tour. I hope you enjoy!

Wandering outside, the afternoon sun was high above her and temporarily distorted her vision. She turned away from its brightness long enough to lock up the shop, and when she turned back, she could feel her heart sink deep into her chest.

“Would you care for a cup of tea?” Sarah St. John asked with an untrustworthy smile engulfing her face. “My treat, of course.”

“I was just going to wander down to the deli for a bite to eat,” Natalie replied, startled by her nemesis’s sudden presence but still able to find her words.

“Nonsense,” the girl said. “I heard you were managing your father’s shop today, and I decided you could use a break. Besides, seeing as your family was not able to provide you with a proper celebration for your birthday, I decided I should treat you to tea and a pastry. I, myself, will just have tea, of course. After all, I don’t want to have to literally squeeze into my dress on Saturday. It should flow around my natural curves.”

Natalie had a snide reply ready to voice, but she decided against it. Her mother surely would have scolded her if she knew she was even considering lowering herself to Sarah’s level of rudeness.

Instead, she agreed to the cup of tea, and despite the feeling of hunger that ached in her stomach, she turned down the idea of a pastry. “I better skip on the pastry. I’d hate to have to have my seams let out at the last minute.”

“Smart girl,” Sarah replied. “One cannot be too safe before the ball of the year, after all.”

9: What are your future writing plans?

I am busier than ever. I have two new releases out now along with Beauty Within – Restive, a paranormal romance from DCL Publications, and Tabitha Sparks and the Door to Everywhere, a young adult fantasy chapter book that I’m quite proud of. Both of these can be found at www.jaeelbooks.com. On November 30, the DCL Christmas anthology The Greatest Gift of Allwill be released. I’m joined with DCL alum Kristi Ahlers as well as two authors new to the DCL Family, Roxy Q. Reise and Jennifer Patricia O’Keeffe – so I am in very good company. Armando Gonzales will steam up our cover with his stunning sexiness. I’ve read everyone’s contributions, and there is such a great variety of fiction here that everyone will love it! Other projects in the works include my long-awaited adventure novel Fortune, my first long-piece science fiction work Emotional Withdrawal with author Adesanya, and my next horror entry She Rises at Night. People wanting shorter form fiction might consider my Free Flash Fiction, which goes live every Sunday night at 9/8 CST. Genres are horror, sci-fi, or suspense. All previous installments are catalogued at www.jaeelbooks.com/free-flash-fictionand are a great way to sample my storytelling styles. From anywhere on my website, visitors can also sign up for my monthly newsletter, which arrives in email once per month and offers a concise breakdown of everything I’ve got new and happening for my readers.

10: Is there anything else you would like to add?

Thank you again for hosting me today! I’d like to extend my thanks to the wonderful people behind Goddess Fish Promotions and DCL Publications. Also thanks to CJ Hollenbach – the absolutely gorgeous cover model for Beauty Within. To those reading, thank you for stopping by today and taking part in this great event! If you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read, please tell your friends to stop by as well! Word of mouth is everything to an author – or an artist of any sort – and kind remarks and honest reviews help these artists by providing them with motivation for their next projects, and the ones after those. Speaking on behalf of all artists everywhere, thank you for helping keep us alive in a time where art education and preservation are shunned, a time where artistic expression is considered uncalled for because it might not keep with the popular mentality of the people, and a time when artists and authors are once again being shunned into silence when their thoughts and their views and their expressions might not match those who may not agree with them. Once we lose our freedom of speech and our ability to express who we are, we have lost everything.

BLURB:

An enchanted mask. A harrowing castle. A reclusive dark lord. With the helping hand of the village witch, these three ingredients form a spell that will warm your heart as much as it chills it. Madame Howell makes her second appearance in Jae El Foster’s literary universe in this fairy tale that puts a new twist on an old classic. When a village maiden finds herself in a forbidden castle, she discovers that its sole occupant might be less of a monster than he has been made out to be. However, dark secrets and black magic are afoot, and a ‘happily ever after’ could turn disastrous. Will true love conquer all, or will a dark power make their world come crumbling down?

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EXCERPT:

“Natalie Wills,” the old withered voice called as pleasantly as possible from the back of the shop. “Come in, dear. I’ve been expecting you.”

“You have?” Natalie asked as she stepped fully into the shop and shut the door behind her.

“It is your birthday, is it not?” the old woman asked in a long breath as she stood from her shadowed chair and stepped out into a bit of light. She had aged a bit since Natalie had last seen her, but the young woman recognized the friendly glimmer in the old woman’s eye.

“Why, yes, ma’am. I’m eighteen today.”

“Eighteen. That’s a wonderful age to be. A very cherished number. You should do something to celebrate this milestone.”

“Well,” Natalie began, smiling a bit and rolling her eyes up to the ceiling, “Willem Grillis’s parents are throwing a masquerade ball in his honor. He, too, is turning eighteen this week.”

“And you are going to this ball?” the withered old woman asked as the glimmer in her eye seemed to catch a spark and ignite.

“Oh, yes! I’ve been looking forward to it since I received my invitation. Mother made me a beautiful gown to wear, but it’s a masquerade ball which means I need to find a mask. That’s my reason for visiting today, Madame Howell. I was hoping you might have something here that would suit me. The dress is cream lace and white silk with cream pearls around the collar and cuffs.”

“It sounds enchanting,” Madame Howell breathed slowly. “And I think I may have something here just as enchanting that will suit you for all of your needs.”

“Oh, Madame Howell! That would be wonderful!”

“Give me a moment, child,” the woman answered in her kindly old tone and raised finger as she turned away from Natalie, moving back into the shadows of the shop. “It is in the back room. I will return momentarily.”

Natalie did not hear a door open or close, nor could she see a door at all. It was almost as if Madame Howell had walked through the wall, or simply into darkness. The young woman found this quite curious, but she did not allow it to plague her mind. She refused to admit that her parents had been right. She refused to admit that Madame Howell was a witch.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Jae El Foster is an author with whom you question going to bed with at night, but you dare to venture beneath the sheets with him anyway. As the venture concludes, you are perhaps romanced by it, or perhaps you are frightened by it. Don’t worry, because you are always satisfied by it. Despite the title or genre of the book, Jae El sets out to please you with climatic and unexpected conclusions that will make you tremble with emotion. Hop aboard the Jae El train and give it a good ride.

Author Links:

Website: https://www.jaeelbooks.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jaeelbooks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorjaeelfoster/

Google+: https://plus.google.com/communities/105715668467648152419

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaeelfoster/

Amazon Author’s Page: http://www.amazon.com/author/jaefoster

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4540432.Jae_El_Foster

Blog 1: https://www.jaeelbooks.com/blog

Blog 2: https://thoughtsbyjaeelfoster.wordpress.com/

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