On the Red Carpet # 4 : Surface by Tiffany Daune

Hello everyone! Welcome to my On the Red Carpet. This is basically an exclusive feature at my blog where I'll be hosting author guest posts, promos and/or interviews. This is not a weekly meme, as I don't plan to host these every week, but I'll be doing it when an author does a guest post, interview or promo on my blog, either as a part of the tour or in general. If you like, you can do the same. Just use the image above (or any other properly accredited image bearing this feature's name), put a link back to this blog and then proceed with your posts.

So glad to have my fourth post On The Red Carpet:) Today I have Tiffany Daune, the author of the newly released Surface. Keep on reading to find out about the herself and her book. Enjoy!!                                          

Blurb:

Bound to the water bound to land, a Siren’s soul will never be safe on either side of the ocean’s surface. Hidden beneath the rolling waves lies the secret to Theia’s past and as she unveils each haunting truth, she realizes the last seventeen years of her life have been a lie. Now, drawn into a mysterious new world and with nowhere to turn, Theia must place her trust in Luc, a beautiful boy who stops her heart with each dazzling smile, but even his unearthly charm can’t hide the truth—he has secrets— dark secrets binding him to his world—an underwater world where Theia will never belong—a world determined to destroy her soul. 

In conversation ...

Please start by telling us a little bit about yourself.

Currently, I write YA/ NA Paranormal romance novels.  I like ghostly apparitions, vampires, witches and their enchanting spells, but right now I'm obsessed with wicked mermaids. My totem animal is a crow, but sometimes takes the form of a hummingbird. 

When did you know that you wanted to write professionally and how did you take the leap to get into the business?  

I started writing with the intent of publishing four years ago. I have always scribbled in notebooks, but I thought what the heck, let's try to get some of these stories published.  I faced a lot of rejection letters, but I kept submitting and writing, until I received the first contract. Then I paused for a few days to celebrate and then it was back to writing and submitting.

Can you tell me a little bit about  your book and what inspired it? 

Surface is a young adult paranormal romance, set above and below the ocean's surface. I've always loved mermaids even the singing ones. I really wanted to explore the darker side of the mermaids I grew up with and at the same time introduce a crossover of other water beings in our world. I love when fantasy blends with reality. Surface is a meld of all my years of watching Disney movies and thrillers. 

What do you hope that readers take way with them after reading your book?  

I want them to feel the story, more than just reading the words. When they put the book down the emotions of the characters should still resonate within them. 

I find it interesting to know what environment authors find most productive… Do you use a pen and paper or laptop? Quiet room at home or bustling café? Basically, what gets your creative juices flowing? 

The outlines and first few chapters of Surface and Landlocked were written at the local pool while my son was swimming. I usually brainstorm with pen and paper to work out the plot. Then I switch to the laptop for writing. 

What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?

The toughest criticism comes from me. I don't think anyone would beat the manuscript up as much as I do. I'm pretty hard core until I think it's right. Then I close my eyes, press send, and try not to look back.

The best compliment was having my little sister tell me she was obsessed with Surface and tweeting #reading.

What book is currently on your nightstand? And who are some of your favorite authors? 

I have five on my nightstand right now. The one I am reading is Underworld by Meg Cabot.

I could never pick just one, but I a few of my faves are Alyson Noel, Tehereh Mafi, Kendare Blake and Lesley Livingston.

Excerpt from the book...

Theia's head fell back as soon as she lifted it, her brain pounding with the demons' shrill cries. She closed her eyes tight, trying to remember what had happened, but all she could see was the perfect, smiling face of the angel, his watery eyes staring back at her. I must be dead, Theia thought. But dead people didn't feel pain. She tried to sit up, but her limbs felt heavy with every movement. She stretched her arm out to her side, and her elbow brushed against something soft. She peeked to her left. Sitting next to her was the angel with an amused, crooked smile on his face. "Hi," he said, his eyes soft with concern. Theia gasped. He was beautiful. Loose waves of golden hair fell around his face in an ethereal halo, and his blue eyes sparkled like sapphires. Are all angels this hot? She wondered. He reached for her hand, but she snapped it back. "Fair enough," he said, with a cool grin. "I wouldn't go around holding strangers' hands either." He held out his hand for her to shake, but she tucked hers against her chest. "I'm Luc," he said. Theia flushed. His voice was soft, even soothing, yet somehow beguiling at the same time. "I really just wanted to check your pulse." Luc held out his hand again in truce. "You've been out for hours—" "That long?" Theia coughed. Her voice was cracked and hoarse. "You lost a lot of blood and passed out." He shook his head. "Those witches should have never touched you." His eyes searched Theia's looking for an answer, but he did not seem to find the answer he was looking for. "Their reaction was so strange," he continued. "I don't know what they were thinking." Theia's pulse quickened as memories flooded back. She remembered the disappearing boat, treading water in the rain, but, most of all, she remembered the freaky demon girls, their vicious cries, and the little girl with a tail who tried to eat her alive. Hallucinations brought on by hypothermia, Theia thought. But Luc had seen them too. "What were they?" Theia asked. Luc laughed. "You must still be out of it. Maybe you should lie back down." The room swirled as he lowered her back onto the pillow. Theia tried to focus on his blue eyes, but they seemed to spin like Van Gogh's twisted stars. "Your hair is so dark." He swept his hand across her cheek and past her temple. Theia held her breath. His touch warmed her down to the tips of her toes. She didn't dare exhale.  

Author Bio 

You know when someone reads you a story as a child and it sticks with you forever? Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid was that story for me. I love the original and I adore the Disney version. But, it wasn`t until I went to see Pirates of the Caribbean on Stranger Tides did I find my mermaid muse.

Tiffany Daune doesn't get why people want to grow up or why anyone would ever stop eating candy. Her purse is filled with books, lip gloss and a few pieces of Lego bricks. She writes best with a dish of chocolate chips on hand and finds licorice makes a better straw than plastic.
She lives on an island and believes mermaids may be raiding her candy stash, though she hasn't caught them, yet.

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