Capital Thirst by R. W. Buxton

Please welcome R.W. Buxton author of Capital Thirst

R.W. Buxton will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

Capital Thirst

by R.W. Buxton

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GENRE: Paranormal Romance

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INTERVIEW:

1. What or who inspired you to start writing?

I was inspired to start writing by all the amazing authors I read as a kid growing up. At the time I loved fantasy and sci-fi and it was a way to escape from reality and be transported to new worlds where magic or amazing scientific advances made anything possible.

I love to read and knowing what impact other authors have had on my life at different times I wanted to return some of that for others to enjoy. I can’t say one specific book or author really inspired me. It was all of them in their own way. I received so much joy from reading I can only hope that my work does the same for others.

2. How did you come up with ideas for your books?

Most of the ideas come from the characters. Usually I have a character in mind before I ever start writing. With Capital Thirst I had written several short stories with a female vampire. Once I had a strong feel for who she was the novel flowed from that. I almost always develop characters first with backgrounds and personalities and then fit them together and let the story flow from their interactions.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve found myself dreaming about various characters. Even if I don’t remember exactly what the dream was there is usually something that I can use. It amazes me how our subconscious mind works and the amazing things that it can do. Even if you aren’t actively thinking about something our brain is always working on it.

3. What expertise did you bring to your writing?

I sometimes think expertise is exactly what I’m lacking. I’m not an English major or Journalism major. But what I do bring is a passion for stories, reading and a huge desire to want to help people get away from their problems if only for a while. Also, I have a desire to explore and understand the human condition. Even Capital Thirst while it’s paranormal romance, one of my goals is to explore good and evil and the role they play in life. Questioning things like is someone evil because of the things they do?

4. What would you want your readers to know about you that might not be in your bio?

4. 5. As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans?
   I’ve written a second and third novel in the Erin Kingsly series and am currently editing the second one. I really thought the story ended at that point, but Erin wouldn’t leave me alone and I now have ideas for a fourth and fifth book. Although to be honest I may never write the fourth.

Beyond that I have an idea for a book about a young witch who only finds out by accident that she is a witch. This idea has be brewing for a while. So even though I would like to finish with the Erin Kingsly series I may have to take a break to entertain this.

6. If you could be one of the characters from any of your books, who would it be and why?
7. Do you belong to a critique group? If so how does this help or hinder your writing?

I am a member of an online critique group. It’s very useful in the early stages to get a feel for what people think when they read my work. Some of the critiques are more mechanical in nature and at that point I’m usually not interested in that. What I like are critiques that ask the why questions. When they make me think about the motivations for what the characters are doing. I generally get very worthwhile feedback and maybe don’t make all the changes but consider all of it and what it would do to the story.

As for hinder, when I was working on Capital Thirst, I had the work posted in a vampire group. I couldn’t believe the number of people that just wanted to argue with me that vampires are evil and can’t have feelings or emotions. There was no reasoning, even when I mentioned Anne Rice whose vampires were rich with emotion, they wouldn’t let it drop. The takeaway is there are trolls everywhere and you just have to go with what you believe.

9. When did you first decide to submit your work? Please tell us what or who encouraged you to take this big step?
10. 10. What is the best and worst advice you ever received? (regarding writing or publishing)

The worst advice ever was that you have to get an agent to get published. I chose to go the indie route after much thought and for me that’s been the best decision. I wanted to get my book into the world and not have it sit waiting from some publisher to think it was the right time. Or wait for all the wheels and cogs to turn at a big publishing house before it could be released.

Being an indie author. I chose the editor I wanted to work with, the cover artist I wanted to work with and the timeline for the release. The world of publishing has changed and needing an agent isn’t important like it was in the past. I suppose if I was concerned with being published by a major publisher it would be. But the reality is I wanted to share this story. Not be a brand sold by someone else.

11. Do you outline your books or just start writing?

Like everything in life I’ve evolved in this over time. When I started writing Capital Thirst, I’d only ever written short stories. It’s easy to know where you are going and what the beginning, middle, and end are going to be. I was also very excited about Erin as a character and I just started writing. Things went great until I hit the middle. I knew what I where I wanted to end, but I lacked direction to get there.

At that point I realized I need to take a step back and create a roadmap of how I would get to the end. I hate to call it an outline because that sounds so structured. With a roadmap, like you would create for a vacation if you want to take a side trip it’s not a problem. That’s how I looked at my outline. It was a guide to get to the end but if the characters needed a detour that wasn’t a problem. I could explore that as long as at the end of the day I was back on my trip.

I’m not a huge fan of outlines because they are so structured. I’ve found for myself starting with a mind map and getting all the ideas down and then connecting them is a much better approach. Once I have all my ideas in little circles all over the page with lines connecting them, I can start to think about a logical order for putting them together. In doing this I often find what I thought would be the beginning isn’t and maybe even there is a different ending than I imagined.

12. Do you have any hobbies and does the knowledge you’ve gained from these carry over into your characters or the plot of your books?

I have lots of hobbies. My wife says I have too many hobbies. My favorite though is photography. I’m out early in the morning for that beautiful time when the sun is just rising and the light is perfect before the harsh shadows of the day.

Surprisingly photography has taught me a lot about writing and the other way around to. When taking a photograph, you don’t just point and shoot. You have to plan, consider what’s going to be in the frame, where the shadows and light are. You think about the mood you are trying to create. It’s very similar to plotting a book. The difference is you have more time when plotting a book. If you wait to long to take the photo you miss the sun, or the bird moves. But if you don’t wait long enough you end up with nothing more than a snapshot.

A good photograph can be very evocative, it tells a story too, just like a good novel. The light and shadow are your words.

13. Do you have an all time favorite book?

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is probably my favorite collection. I have a huge book of all of Arthur Conan Doyle’s work and couldn’t even tell you how many times I’ve read it. Even though the individual stories are relatively short I always find new details I missed or something that Doyle put in to divert your attention or give you a hint.

There’s no doubt fiction has changed dramatically since 1892 when these were first published but they stand the test of time. I love reading them.

14. Have you started your next project? If so, can you share a little bit about your book?

I have. Actually, the second book in the Erin Kingsly series is written and I’m busy editing it. I hope it will be available early spring. Without giving away the ending of Capital Thirst I’ll just say the story doesn’t end there.

A year later Gerry get’s a frantic middle of the night call from Erin. He gets part of an address and that she’s in danger before the line goes dead. While the Capital Thirst is split pretty evenly between Gerry and Erin, Beverly Hills Torture is predominately from Gerry’s point of view. He’s caught in a race to find her before it’s too late or maybe it is already too late. One of the things I’m exploring in this book is Gerry’s feelings for Erin. Does he really love her, and can he accept what she is and what she’s done?

A few readers have commented that they didn’t really like Gerry in the first book. I don’t think he’s a bad guy. He’s lost and trying to figure out who he is and where he fits in life. In the second book he has that chance and can contemplate what impact his decisions will have. Although most of the time he’s in reaction mode. I’ll also say there is a lot more action in the second book.

17. What is your favorite reality show?

I haven’t watched TV is so long, what’s a reality show? The truth is I can’t stand any of them. Years ago, I watched some of the first season of survivor. That was about all I could take.

18. Can you tell us a little bit about what it was like to write a series.

There are definitely pros and cons to writing a series. One of the big advantages is you don’t have to tie up all the lose ends in the first novel. If you leave something dangling, there is another book to wrap it up or explore the concept further. Some of the things that are mentioned in Capital Thirst will take until the third book to be resolved. Also, by writing it as a series I didn’t have to create a massive tome to tell the whole tale. I’m a big fan of bite sized chunks so you can read part of the story and take a brake before diving into the next part.

The disadvantage, and it’s really not a disadvantage as it is just more work, is that you have a continually growing list of characters and backstories to keep track of. The details grow and grow and if I mess them up, a reader is going to call foul. Keeping track of everything from dates to events to dialog becomes more important. To keep track of all this I have timelines and detailed sheets of all the characters which I’m constantly referring to. That wasn’t so much of an issue with the first book, but now and as I move into the third it’s become very important.

Another issue I’ve run into is even though it’s a series and themes and characters run through it you want each book to be as standalone as possible. A reader may pick up the second book and start there so you need to provide information for them to know what came before without boring someone that read the first book.

The final issue that I’ve run into in a series, especially now that the first book is published and I can’t change it, is there have been times I wish I hadn’t said or done things in a certain manner because now that impacts or dictates what happens in the next book. But that’s how life works. Our actions dictate our future.

BLURB:

DC bustles, the light from the city fills the night. But in the dark alleys and backstreets, only slivers of light from a full moon dance. In such an alley, a shadowy figure is hunched over a body. She lifts her head to reveal soulless eyes and fangs dripping with blood as she licks her lips with exultation.

Standing up, she wipes her chin, and tosses her long black hair, then saunters away.

At FBI headquarters, Gerry examines the case files of 18 wealthy men, dead, with few clues, no DNA, and no leads…

When predator and prey become one, no one is safe.

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EXCERPT:

Getting Ready

The smell of the lavender in the bath water made her linger a minute longer as she ran her hand down her smooth, alabaster arm, and then across her flat stomach. She lay back in the tub with her head resting on the soft spa pillow at the end. Her body melted into nothingness. The

warmth filled her with a longing for a time now beyond her grasp.

Her thoughts floated through images of men she had killed. The terror of their last thoughts flooded back, aroused, and saddened her.

A siren on the street jarred her from her thoughts. She stood and let the tiny rivulets of water run the length of her lithe body. She stepped out onto the soft, luxuriant bath mat. Her long black hair, in stark contrast to her body, came just short of the middle of her back. She reached for a plush white towel to dry herself. She bit her lower lip, worried that she lingered too long. That she might be late.

Tonight was her night to kill, and she wanted it to be perfect. Just who would it be?

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

I love a good paranormal read, something about the un-dead haunts the fringes of my mind. Mix in romance, love, loss, and you have a great story.

I voraciously read everything, fiction, and non-fiction but always find myself turning back to the darker stories. I’ve always wanted to write and the dream became a reality with Capital Thirst, and the remainder of the Erin Kingsly novels.

I spend most of my days designing and building websites, but my free time is devoted to my wife, family, and cats. Yes three grown children and three cats. Things can be hectic.

For fun you might find me driving winding roads with the top down or out photographing nature.

Info Links

RWBuxton.com

facebook.com/rwbuxtonauthor

@rwbuxtonauthor – Twitter

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19658320.R_W_Buxton

Buy Links

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/capital-thirst-rw-buxton/1131960010

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE

R.W. Buxton will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/28e4345f3231