AC Arthur won four Emma awards, including author of the year at the recent
Romance Slam Jam Conference in New Orleans. The Maryland native has always had an active imagination and we're lucky enough to savor the fruits of her mind.
Working in the legal field for more than twenty years now she’s seen lots of horrific things and longs for the safe haven reading a romance novel brings. Her debut novel Object of His Desire was written when a picture of an Italian villa sparked the idea of an African-American/Italian hero. To date, Artist has written in several genres including, young adult paranormal (written as Artist Arthur,
www.artistarthurbooks.com), erotic romance as Sapphire Blue, a sensual contemporary romance following the loves and life of The Donovan Family, and most recently a sexy paranormal series titled The Shadow Shifters, both written as A.C. Arthur.
AC spoke to me about her award winning night and the upcoming Season of the Shifters event in Disney World.
1. How did you come up with the Shifter Series?
I've always loved the paranormal genre so when my editor asked me to come up with a concept that we could build a series around, I jumped at the chance. I had this picture of a panther and he was gorgeous. (Bear in mind I am deathly afraid of cats!) But I loved this picture. There was another picture that I think I saw on a book cover, it was of a male's torso and I just knew he was the other half of my panther. My daughter was also working on a research paper revolving around the demise of the Amazon Rainforest at the time. So as I helped her with that project I figured this would be a great home for the shifters and the world just grew from there.
2. There are not a lot of African Americans writing urban fantasy, was this something you always wanted to venture into?
Yes. I wrote another paranormal when I was at Genesis Press, titled
Heart of the Phoenix, and really enjoyed building a world that was different than our everyday life.
3. Tell the readers about you new adult Trilogy, The Shadow Shifters: Damaged Hearts.
I write what I like to read and for the past two years I've read a number of new adult books because my oldest daughter made the transition from high school to college and changed her reading habits. I loved the emotion and angst in these books. So when it came to my attention that the next book in the Shadow Shifters series would be pushed back I asked my editor if I could do a few novellas to fill in the gap. I really expected her to say sure, write more adult Shadow Shifters, but she asked, "Would you like to write a new adult spin-off?" The answer was a resounding yes! So Damaged Hearts is about three shifter brothers who are just coming into their shifter abilities and grappling with how to live in this human world with these differences. Two of the stories are set on a college campus where there are several other issues facing the teen transitioning into adulthood. The final story has a more urban setting, a bar in D.C., but still tackles those growing pains of new adulthood.
4. Is it really wise to break a shifter’s heart? LOL.
No. That's as simple as I can tell you. They don't take rejection well at all.
5. You really cleaned up at the EMMA awards and congratulations on being named Author of the Year. Tell me what your emotions were like that night.
Sometimes I do not like to be nominated for awards because I'm so anxious about the final announcement. With the EMMA awards its part of a year of waiting for the answer and then three long days of conference still wondering. So by the time I walked into the banquet and took my seat my heart was about ready to jump right out of my chest. LOL My parents were there and my husband and two of my cousins, which only made me more nervous. The first time they called my name I was like, "wow". I thought, okay, I can get up there one time. But then they kept calling it and by the time Author of the Year rolled around I was ready to faint. I am still amazed that so many people enjoyed my work enough to vote for me.
6. The Season of The Shifters event is coming in August, is there still time to register?
Yes, registration is open until July 15th and authors and readers are invited.
7. What can attendees expect?
Fun, fun, fun! When I get together with my street team to discuss these events the one thing we always try to focus on is taking the attendees in a different direction than other literary conferences. We want them to have fun with the stories they've read and the authors they enjoy. So we have a couple of great parties planned, one that will require animal outfits. We also have a good lineup of authors that will not only talk about their books but will answer any and all questions the readers wish to throw at them.
8. What’s next on the horizon for you?
Well, I just signed a contract with Alloy Entertainment for a book that I re-released in 2013 titled Within The Shadows and I will be wrapping up my Donovan series with the final five books.
9. How can readers follow you online?
They can LIKE my Facebook page, ACArthur's Book Lounge and I'm on Twitter @AcArthur
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| Registration runs through July, 15th!
The Season of Shifters
Reader Appreciation Event
Eleven talented authors shifting the scene of
paranormal, erotic and romantic suspense!
Featuring
National Bestselling Authors: Kianna Alexander, Koko Brown, Vivi Dumas, Tigris
Eden, Sara Humphreys, Farrah Rochon, Melissa Shcroeder, Yahrah St. John, Paige
Tyler and Eve Vaughn.
August 29 – September 1, 2014, Disney’s
Coronado Springs Resort©
There are still spots left for authors
and readers to join us, visit www.acarthur.net
for details. |
Comments
And thank you Cheris for this interview. I would have never found her if it hadn't been for you.