Thursday, March 29, 2012

Interview with Author Deanna Jewel and Dana Kaster of Whispers at Ghost Point



I've been invited to sit in with Author Deanna Jewel as she interviews Dana Kaster, star of her upcoming novel, Whispers at Ghost Point.  I've never met anyone that worked in a haunted...anything.  So, I'm excited to meet her.  Join us!    

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Deanna:  Charlene, thank you for having me this weekend on your blog.

Charlene:  It’s great to have you here, Deanna.  I love to meet the characters from fascinating stories. 

Deanna:  I love talking with readers, so I hope they leave a question or comment for us, which will also get them into the book giveaway at the end!

Charlene:  *nods and looks at the blog readers*  You heard what she said.  Give. A. Way!  Woot!  *turns to Deanna*  So, who do we get to meet today?

Deanna:  I’ve brought with me my main character, Dana Kaster, from Whispers at Ghost Point. Since I have a love for lighthouses, I had to write about one and added a ghost to make it a bit spooky!

Charlene:  *eyes light up and she looks over at her guest*

Deanna:  Dana loves remodeling and decorating—who else loves doing that? Tell us at the end if you love lighthouses and decorating!

Charlene:  I adore them!  Took so many pictures of the ones around Cape Breton when we visited Nova Scotia.  *smiles at Dana*  What made you go into remodeling? 

Dana:  I’ve always had a soft spot for decorating which is why I got my contractor’s license—it also allowed me to do more in the area of remodeling. Meeting other contractors and builders isn’t bad either! *wink*

Charlene:  How long have you redecorated them?

Dana:  I moved to Wilmington NC a year ago after my divorce and found the abandoned lighthouse on the coast while I worked at the Cape Fear Historical Society. I was fortunate enough to get a job remodeling their lighthouse projects we took on but I recently opened my own shop and I’m so excited.

Deanna: Taking on the entire remodel of a lighthouse that’s stood empty for hundreds of years won’t be easy. Have you run into any roadblocks?

Dana: The lighthouse in question is owned by an individual who I found through my research but he refuses to return my phone calls. That in itself is annoying. I want inside the place to see what might need to be fixed and put some plans together. I don’t understand why this man won’t call me back, but my guess is that he’s too old to care about the place being fixed up or is a recluse not wanting to be bothered. The lighthouse is begging me to fix it up though. Why can’t he sense that? LOL

Deanna: Does the lighthouse talk to you when you visit or is it the ghosts who talk to you? That would be spooky!

Charlene:  Wait.  It talks to you?  Or…  *eyes widen*  Ghosts talk to you

Dana:  I have an ability to sense the spirits in old places but I still need to work on that. It is scary when they 
come around and they usually visit when you least expect them to. If I were better at that, I could learn who they are faster but it still scares me so I need to get over that if I want to use my ability to the fullest.

Charlene:  *leans in closer and watches her with mounting interest*  But…  *whispers*  What happens?  Really?

Dana:  When I sit on my deck at night, I can see the lighthouse across the inlet. The tower light flashes and there’s no way the electricity still works there! It couldn’t for as old as it is, so what makes the lights come on? I also sense a spirit or two there and the pull they have on me is getting stronger but I just can’t learn who they are.

Deanna:  You’ve become good friends with a co-worker at the Historical Society who has the ability to sense spirits. Tell us about that. Everyone is always interested in people who talk to ghosts!

Charlene: *raises her hand*  Interested party here!

Dana: Sarah and I have really gotten close since I moved to Wilmington.  She doesn’t let very many know that she can speak to spirits…they think you’re crazy when they learn that! Even with all the shows on television these days, but I love it. Personally, I just need to learn how to distance myself and set up my circle of light for protection.

Charlene:  So you take her with you, right?  You don’t go alone do you?

Dana:  I visited the lighthouse a few times without telling Sarah, but she has a way of knowing what goes on without me even telling her!

Charlene:  Oh my word.

Deanna: How does she feel about the lighthouse?

Dana: Oh my gawd! She isn’t keen on it at all! She said the spirits there aren’t at all friendly and that I need to quit going over there alone before something happens to me. She’s sat with me on my deck at night and we’ve both seen the lights come on. I think she knows more than she’s telling me about the spirits over there.

Deanna: Well that would make anyone jumpy to sense a spirit is evil. Maybe you need to listen to her and quit going over there.

Charlene:  *quickly nods in agreement*

Dana: I’m too nosey to stop going so the owner just needs to give me permission to go inside.

Charlene:  Have met him?

Dana:  I did meet a man on one of my visits there once. He said he was just a friend of the owner but wouldn’t tell me who the owner was. Too bad he wasn’t the owner—his eyes alone distracted me!

Charlene:  *smiles wide, the romantic that she is*

Dana:  But anyway, if I were able to get that lighthouse restored, it would help boost my business in Wilmington and the residents would be able to see what I can do. The work I’ve done on our historical lighthouse remodels has really helped too, but…I want inside the forbidden tower!

Deanna: You’ve lived in Wilmington for almost a year now. Any men you’re interested in?

Charlene:  Ha!  *taps Deanna on the knee*  Thank you, Deanna!

Dana: With all the work I do remodeling and researching for the Historical Society and now starting my own business, I haven’t had time for dating and I really haven’t missed it.

Charlene:  *shoulders slump*  Oh.

Dana:  Taking time after my divorce to get my life back on track is what’s important to me now. I have to make a name for my business here so I can get to know the residents. Many of them have stopped by my new shop and have taken my card, saying they’ll call me when they start their remodels. I hope they do, I love to be busy!

Deanna: Dana, thanks for stopping in to chat with our readers. I can’t wait to finish your story so they can all read it.

Charlene:  Yes, thank you, Dana.  And thank you, Deanna, for letting me sit in on your interview.  This sounds like a real page turner!


Whispers takes place at an abandoned lighthouse in Wilmington, NC and her main characters from No Turning Back are reincarnated into the present. Join Dana as she learns about her past while working toward her future. The dangers that lurk at an abandoned lighthouse pull her into a past she was unaware of but also involves a man she's never met...in this lifetime! Follow the books progress on her website.






Deanna will be getting back to major writing come May 1st and the book should be ready for release in mid August 2012. The characters in Whispers at Ghost Point are pulled into the present from her historical novel set in England 1778, No Turning Back. To know a bit more about the characters, you may want to read that book.  


Read chapter one of Whispers at Ghost Point by clicking on the BookBuzzr below. 



Whispers at Ghost Point
www.bookbuzzr.com


~ Giveaway ~

Deanna is giving away two copies of the ebook so leave a comment to be in the drawing to be held on Monday, April 2nd.
And…

One last note from Deanna:

Check out my blog, website and newsletters for more info as my progress moves closer to the release date! By subscribing to her newsletter, readers are automatically included in one of my monthly drawings, and by following my blog, you’ll be included in that drawing. Both drawings win gift cards and the blog winner also gets a goodie bag and tee shirt!
 


Deanna Jewel lives in the Pacific Northwest and has been writing since 1991.  She has completed one time travel and one historical novel and has several others in the works. A trip to Dubois, Wyoming, south of Yellowstone, inspired her time-travel novel. The landscape and town locations described in Never Surrender are real.  Jon Daley, a professor at Boise State University, translated the Shoshone language that you will find in the book.

Never Surrender, her time travel romance, was released in 2008 in print, e-book and iBook for download to e-Readers and i-Pads. This novel won an Honorable Mention in the 2008 Quill Awards at Writing.com.  Her second novel, an historical taking place in England, 1778, was released in April 2010, titled No Turning Back, and is also in print, eBook and iBook for download to your electronic readers.

She's hard at work on her next novel, Whispers at Ghost Point, which she hopes to have available in mid 2012. 

Whispers takes place at an abandoned lighthouse in Wilmington, NC and her main characters from No Turning Back are reincarnated into the present. Join Dana as she learns about her past while working toward her future. The dangers that lurk at an abandoned lighthouse pull her into a past she was unaware of but also involves a man she's never met...in this lifetime! Follow the books progress on her website.

She is married to a retired captain of the fire department. He’s also owned his own businesses for 23 years. They have two Siamese cats: Zoie and Sinbad, who keep them entertained. Deanna has enjoyed reading historical romance novels for over thirty years, camping with her family, and traveling.

Her writing goal is to draw the reader into the story to experience what the characters feel, to show both the hero's and heroine's points of view, and to take the reader away from their every day stress to a place not yet visited.


Here's where you can find her:

Twitter:  (@deannajewel)

*See her site for more places to find Deanna Jewel!

Her books are available at:


5 comments:

Deanna Jewel said...

Charlene, thanks for letting us hang around this week. I think we should all gather on the porch of the keeper's house and see if we can 'read' the ghost here.

Let us know if he contacts any of you about who he might be! This is spooky but I love it! I peeked in the windows...tattered wallpaper and cobwebs make it look ghostly too! I wonder if there's a way in? Now I know how Dana felt out here...I want inside to look around!

Readers, thanks for stopping in! Come have a seat on the porch while we wait for the ghost...or....maybe the man Dana saw will come back! oohhh....that'd be nice! I'm giving away two e-copies of No Turning Back so you can get to know the characters I'm pulling forward into Whispers so be sure to comment so you're in the drawing! Good luck and again, thank you for stopping by!

Abigale Charlton said...

I've never had any experiences with haunted places but I sure do believe in them. and I don't think I'd be as brave a Dana. Lol.

Sounds like a great book. Nice interview. I always enjoy your character interviews Charlene.

J.D. Brown said...

Hey, this was a cool post. It was fun to see the author talking to her character as well. :)

Deanna Jewel said...

Abigale and Danielle - thanks for stopping in to meet Dana! Be sure to read Ch 1 of Whispers above!

Deanna Jewel said...

Abigale, you are the winner of the ebook No Turning Back. Please get in touch with me so I can send you the format of your choice.

Danielle, thanks for stopping in also, I'd be happy to send you the ebook of No Turning Back if you'd like a copy. You two are the only commenters! Thanks so much to those who also stopped by to read about Whispers!