Ashley Dawn:
Author Ashley Dawn was born and raised in rural Arkansas where she developed her love for writing while helping in her parent's office. She graduated with an accounting degree from the University of Central Arkansas. Ashley has been writing professionally for the past seven years. She and her family make their home in TX.
K.S. Hello and welcome to the blog. I am very excited to have you here. Why don’t we start off with a small introduction? Tell us a little about yourself. A.D. Hi Katie & thank you so much for having me! My name is Ashley Dawn, I have two published books in the genera of romantic suspense, Shadows from the Past and Shadows of Suspicion. I love my writing and I absolutely love being a working mother of two!
K.S. Any interesting writing quirks or stories you would like to share with my readers?
A.D. I do have one strange thing I HAVE to do with each book, I hand write each word on a legal pad before I type the story at all. I have a specific color legal pad and pen that I use while I write the story. My first book was written on 5 blue legal pads and I think I went through a whole package of gel pens!
K.S. When did you realize you wanted to be a writer? What sparked the desire to pen your first novel?
A.D. I have always loved making up stories so it just seemed natural to put pen to paper. I actually started my first novel when I was 19. I guess I actually considered myself a writer after my book was edited and I thought about getting it published. Before that, the stories had always been just for my or my family’s benefit.
K.S. What genre do you write?
A.D. Romantic Suspense with a Christian overtone. That is the type of story I like to read the most and it just seemed natural to write what I liked to read.
K.S. What would you say has inspired you most in your writing career? Or, who is your favorite author and why?
A.D. I would say my family has inspired me the most. I use their personalities for the people in my books and it just gives my characters a solid presence in my mind. I love Dee Henderson and Irene Hannon. They both write Christian Suspense and their books are never boring or predictable and always a message of God in them!
K.S. What does your family think of your writing?
A.D. They love it and are so supportive. I couldn’t have gotten published if it hadn’t been for my family. I really believe they mainly like the books because they like guessing which character was ‘modeled’ after them!
K.S. What was one of the most surprising things you learned while creating your book?
A.D. I was surprised at how much research actually needs to be done to make scenes realistic. You use your imagination but if the scene only makes sense in your mind and isn’t realistic, people won’t take your work seriously. Before I started writing I assumed authors just made everything up, but it isn’t that easy. If you want realistic scenes they have to be based off real life.
K.S. What inspired you to write your novel?
A.D. I was reading a book that was very predictable and none of the characters were catching my attention and started thinking of things the author could have done and my thoughts went from there to IF I wrote a story the characters I would use…I wrote the first chapter of my book that evening and gave it to my mother to read who encouraged me to finish and eventually publish my book.
K.S. Can you tell us a little about your novel?
A.D.
Shadows From the Past:
“…It is the price you pay for choosing to be a cop. Your brother’s life…”
Those words haunt her dreams, and her waking moments. LAPD officer, Aurora Kavvan cannot rest until she finds her brothers killer. Digging into the past always brings back unpleasant things: memories, guilt…the hit man. Now she is in a race against time to find the murderer before he finds her.
“Kill her. I don’t care how, and I don’t care where, but I want her dead now!”
Someone was trying to kill his dead partner’s sister. FBI agent, Jordan Reiley will stop at nothing to protect the woman he loves. Even if it means going against her wishes; putting himself between her and the man who murdered her brother.
Will God keep them alive long enough for them to find the truth?
Shadows of Suspicion:
Revenge is the agenda…
“Find my sister.”
Rick Reiley’s words were what drove Luke to search mercilessly for Kerry. He is in a race against time to find her and will have to face more than a criminal mastermind to get close to her. He is prepared to give his life for her, but what about his heart?
“…I would like you to meet….My wife.”
Those words from her enigmatic rescuer threw Kerry more than anything else that had happened to her in the last few days…and that was saying a lot! Kerry’s simple life is turned upside down when she is kidnapped and dragged to the middle of nowhere by a madman. She trusts Luke with her life, but can she trust him with her heart?
As Luke fights to keep Kerry safe, the chemistry ignites and the danger gets closer.
Will God protect them while Luke tries to sort out his heart….and capture Kerry’s?
K.S. Where can we find your novel?
A.D. Both are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and every other big retail store. Hopefully within the next month, I will have both available on ebook! Or if someone would rather you can email me at ashleywintters@gmail.com and get autographed copies.
K.S. Do you have a website, fan site, or Blog that we can visit?
A.D. I do a review blog and I have my book information, about me etc on there: http://ashleysbookshelf.blogspot.com
K.S. Do you have any closing advice to aspiring writers?
A.D. Write what you love and never give up. If you aren’t passionate about what you write, others won’t be either…but if you are, passion is contagious!
Please include any promotional photos of you and/or your book.