I want to thank Casi McLean for taking the time for this interview!
BIO:
USA Today & Amazon Best
Selling Author, Casi McLean, pens novels to stir the soul, crossing genres from
ethereal captivating shorts with eerie twist endings to believable time slips,
ghostly encounters, mystical plots, heart-pounding thrillers, and sensual
romantic suspense--all dusted with a sprinkle of magic.
Known for enchanting
stories with magical description, Casi McLean entices readers with fascinating
hooks to hold them captive in storylines they can't put down.
Her romance entwines
strong, believable heroines with delicious, hot heroes to tempt the deepest
desires, and she fans the flames, sweeping readers into their innermost
romantic fantasies.
With suspenseful settings
and lovable characters, you'll devour, you'll see, hear and feel the magical
eeriness of one fateful night.
You'll swear time travel
could happen, be mystified by a touch of supernatural, feel the heat of
romantic suspense, and drawn into gripping thrillers––but most of all you'll
want more.
When and how did you know you wanted to be a writer?
My mother told me I used to tell stories as young as three years old. She wrote them down then read them to me mingled between fairy-tales. So, I guess I’ve always been a writer.
Did you have any influencing writers growing up?
Ever since my childhood imagination discovered Madeleine L'Engles, A Wrinkle In Time, the idea of time travel intrigued me. I guess she would be my original inspiration.
Years, later, a friend gifted me Jude Devereaux’s A Knight In Shining Armor––another time slip, but this one was a romantic suspense. I fell in love.
After that, I was a vacuum. Diana Gabaldon's Outlander was a favorite. Whenever a time travel movie released, I was mesmerized. From Back to the Future, Somewhere in Time, The Lake House, and Time Traveler's Wife to made-for-TV stories like Two Worlds of Jenny Logan and The Final Countdown.
All those books fed into my eventual writing career.
Are any of your characters based on people in real life?
Yes. In fact, many of my friends have inspired characters over the years.
Where do you draw your book inspirations from?
Everywhere I go, I see stories. But my biggest inspiration sparked my writing career when I moved to Lake Lanier, GA. The eerie lore attached to Atlanta’s famous man-lake fascinated me. Homes, churches, businesses hid beneath 38,000 acres of water, and the strange phenomenon, vanishings, eerie lore, and ghost sightings sparked curiosity and my muse.
What if the explosions used to excavate the lake triggered a seismic shift that––given enough energy––could open a portal to a different dimension or create a rip in time. I loved the premise. What a perfect setting for my first book, a time-travel romantic suspense. Beneath The Lake was born.
Do you use have a basic outline when
starting a new story or do you let the characters lead the way?
I’m a complete pantser. I never know where my stories will lead until my characters show whisper in my ear and show me the way.
When you are picturing the characters in your book, do you have a cheater photo for inspiration?
No. Each character reveals their personality along the way, so my readers can visualize them through their own frame of reference when they read the stories.
Many people read as a form of escape and relaxation. What is your favorite way to sit back and relax?
My eyes are too spent to read after writing and looking at a computer all day, so, I listen to Audiobooks.
Who are your favorite current authors to read?
My favorite author is Sandra Brown. She writes mystery and thrillers.
What are your favorite books by others?
Ha, ha. The one I’m reading.
Do the locations in the stories have any meaning to you?
Absolutely. Locations stir ideas for all my work.
Do you write in single or multiple POV?
Multiple. I like my readers to be able to see inside my character’s heads, so they can have more facets to their experience.
What do you find to be your best research tool?
The Internet is obviously the easiest, but visiting a location is a lot more fun.
I also use videos and the History Channel for more realistic time-travel descriptions.
Do you write under a pen name? Also, do you write under more than one name?
Yes…and yes. But I hide those identities for personal reasons.
What genre do you write and why is this your preference?
Obviously, time travel, but I also write romantic suspense, mystery––cozy, medical, political, military, and anywhere my muse takes me––thrillers, and supernatural ghost stories.
Tell me something about yourself outside of writing. Jobs, accomplishments, family, quirky trait...what led to you being you?
I had three last names before I was three.
What advice would you give to an aspiring writer?
You have to love writing to be successful, because writing is the easy part.
A career involves energy, marketing, and a whole lot more, with very little monetary reward.
How do you deal and process negative book reviews?
You have to have tough skin to be an author. The best way I know to deal with bad reviews is try not to get them.
And remember a lot of trolls lurk in the shadows, so don’t let them defuse your passion.
What is the most difficult part of your
writing process?
Marketing!!!!!!!!!
What do you need
in your writer’s space to keep you focused?
A quite space with a lot of nature surrounding me.
What is your
naughty indulgence as you are writing?
I don’t think I have one.
If you could
spend a day with another popular author, whom would you choose? And why?
I’d have to say Haywood Smith.
She spent an entire day with me, editing my first book, and I truly believe she was my mentor. I owe my career to her.
What is your
schedule like when you are writing? Do
you have a favorite writing snack or drink?
My schedule is grueling. From sunrise until my husband drags me away from my computer. And when I write, I forget to drink and eat, so that’s a problem.
Do you listen to
music when you write – what kind of music is your favorite?
No, but I love music, and I’m inspired by old sixties and seventies hits.
Have pets ever
gotten in the way of your writing?
No. My two pups just curl up beside me.
What is your
kryptonite as a writer? What totally
puts you off your game?
Lack of sleep, or when one of my kids is sick.
Have you ever
killed off a character that your readers loved?
Yes. I was sad…but it was time to move on.
How do you
celebrate after typing THE END?
I’m doing that today, ha. But usually, my husband and I go out to celebrate.
I hope you enjoyed this interview!
Check out all my interviews/reviews for Casi McLean!
https://readingbydeb.blogspot.com/2022/07/author-at-glance-casi-mclean.html#more
Make sure to give Casi McLean a shout out and FOLLOW her on social media!
Connect with Casi:
Watch all Casi’s book trailers on her YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHd8StHl14T8NMv6ioHM3bA
~~~~~
Three Sisters Island Mysteries, is a new Lake Lanier saga presented in a cozy mystery platform. Book one, Timeless Secrets, begins a new time slip journey revisiting a time travel portal beneath Atlanta’s famous Lake Lanier with three new characters, Raine, Summer, and Meadow Holloway. Timeless Secrets introduces the three sisters with Raine’s story.
Book two, Timeless Treasures, spins Summer into the 1692 Salem Witch Trials.
In Time for Christmas - A Three Sisters Island Magical Moment – a unique time travel romantic suspense––a mystical, romantic Christmas story you'll never forget.
~~~~~
A Switch in Time - The President is Missing is a time travel stunner where Casi teams up with her mother's never before published manuscript in a unique novel that spans sixty-years in the making--creating a story ripped from today's headlines.
~~~~~
Twins unite when a cutting-edged medical mystery merges with high-tech crime solving, creating a pulse-pounding thriller in Virtually Timeless.
~~~~~
Deep State Mysteries series enters the realm of political thrillers, combined with NCIS Military and a hellastrong ghost you'll root for in Reign of Fire, and The List - Alyssa's Revenge. Her newest work in progress completes the three-book series and is scheduled for release Spring 2022.
~~~~~
Casi's signature series, Lake Lanier Mysteries, features a unique spin on romantic suspense time travel. Inspired by freak accidents, strange phenomena, and eerie lore attached to Atlanta's man-made Lake Sidney Lanier, Casi weaves together page-turning suspense and star-crossed lovers in this three-book series, Beneath the Lake, Beyond the Mist, and Between the Shadows. Toss in an almost believable time portal and Lake Lanier Mysteries will draw you in and hold you spellbound.
A few of Casi’s Lake Lanier Mysteries Awards:
Lake Lanier Mysteries Book #1
A RONE AWARD Finalist, Beneath The Lake
Winner 2019 PRG Reader's Choice Awards for Best Time Travel
2016 Best Romantic Suspense Alabama Romance Writers
2016 Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence
~~~~~
Find your destiny in Casi's Destiny Collection--five short stories with twists you'll never see coming.
myBook.to/DestinySeries
~~~~~
For a more personal look at Casi McLean, please read her memoir, Wingless Butterfly: Healing the Broken Child Within:
myBook.to/WinglessButterfly
Thanks so much for this wonderful interview, Deb. What fun questions. I love your blog. 🌹
ReplyDeleteI loved doing the interview & having so much fun meeting all of the author in the Summer Fling Challenge!
Delete