Virtual Tour & #Giveaway for The Otherling by Heather M. Walker

Welcome to my stop on the Virtual Tour, presented by Goddess Fish Promotions, for The Otherling by Heather M. Walker.  Please leave a comment or question for Heather to let her know you stopped by.  You may enter her tour wide giveaway by filling out the Rafflecopter form below.  You may follow all of the stops on her tour by clicking on the banner above, the more stops you visit, the better your odds of winning.  Good Luck!

Interview with Heather M. Walker

Me: The Otherling is the first book you published, and you have a 2nd book out now, what would you say was the most important thing you learned as a writer between publishing both books?

Heather: Editing, without a question has been the most important thing that I have learned so far. Thanks to my editor, Laurie Sanders, I have learned so much about the art or editing and revision, and how working hard at both strengthen the story and the characters.

I always though that the editing process would be grueling, but actually going through it, it wasn’t like that at all. I enjoyed it. It was like visiting with my characters again and getting to know them even better.

Me: Dreams play a very important role in The Otherling - how much formal research did you do on dreams and have dreams played an important role in your own life?

Heather: Dreams have always been a pivotal part of my life, and I started learning about their importance when I was about 13, reading the works of Patricia Garfield. I often enjoy profound dreams, lucid dreams, and what are called “epic” dreams. I also think I owe some thanks to the author Michelle Belanger, whose book “Psychic Dream Walking” laid a great foundation for learning more about dreams. Dream walking is a very real thing, though in its true form, it is rare due to its extreme difficulty.

Me: Although you consider yourself a mother first, you are clearly an artist with varied talent - besides writing, which of your other artistic skills is the easiest and one you gravitate to most?

Heather: I would have to say painting glass. I love to use the special paints to make glass look like real stained glass. I have to admit though, it did not come easily to me at first at all. It took great determination to keep at it, due to the nature of the mediums I worked with. Using the liquid leading was difficult, as was learning how to work with oil based paints when I was only familiar with working with acrylic prior to this. Even though it was difficult, I loved it. It took a few months before I became good enough to show it to others and a few more before I began to sell my work.

I dream of one day owning a glass studio, and working with this medium in all its forms, from glass blowing to real stained glass works.

Me: As a fellow reader, what book has made the top of your "favorite of the year" list for 2016?

Heather: The first book that jumps into my mind is “The Scarlett Gospel” by Clive Barker. I am a huge horror fan, and if I am not reading about the paranormal or psychology, chances are I am reading something others would consider terrifying.

I really enjoyed this book, though at first I have to admit, the opening scenes of the book were a bit extreme, even for me. I almost put it down and walked away form it due to the graphic nature right from the get go, which I was unsure if it had to be in the book for it to make sense, or if it was just there for shock value.

That being said, Clive Barker is one of my favorite authors because of his ability to delve into the darkest parts of the human psyche, without pause. He doesn’t consider anything taboo, and because of this, he is able to reach into the dark corners of his readers mind and rattle them.

I am grateful I continued to read this book, I absolutely adored his depiction of Lucifer. I am hoping this wont be the very end of the Hell Priest, or at least the Hell Raiser Chronicles. I think he could make a fantastic sub theme from the characters in this novel for several more books to come. I sincerely hope that thought has crossed his mind.

Me: Who would you say has been your biggest supporter in regards to your writing and do you have a "mentor" in regards to your writing?

Heather: My biggest supporter no doubt has to be my mother, Linda Walker. She was my alpha reader, and it was a lot of her input on the story and her enthusiasm for what was going to happen next that kept me writing. She would ask questions I hadn’t thought of, point out spelling and grammar mistakes, and just generally be my biggest cheer leader. I am forever grateful for that.

I’m not really sure I have a mentor in writing per se, though I do consider the books I read and the journeys I go through in them to be each mentors in and of themselves. Reading is such an enormously important thing to do if you want to write well, and each book teaches a lesson.

Me: We are rapidly approaching the end of 2016 - what do you hope to accomplish as a writer in the time left this year and at the beginning of 2017?

Heather: I’m very much hoping to over come the writing slump I am in right now. I have some ideas about what I want to write, and I am in the gestation phase of my next novel, but I haven’t been able to get anything of worth out yet. I am optimistic that by the end of the year I will at least have the first chapter of a new novel written.

Quick Get to Know You Questions:

1. Favorite food?

Anything sweet. I am an avid baker and I enjoy baking new treats. Right now I have to say it is something called “Crack brownies”. I took the nuts out and added marshmallows in it instead. It is seriously amazing.

2. Favorite color? Indigo

3. Do you listen to music while your write, or craft, and if yes, what type and who is your favorite band/album?

I do listen to music, and my two favorites are David Bowie, and Peter Murphy, in that order. I think I will be in mourning for Bowie for the rest of my natural life. His meaning to me could take up another entire interview though!

4. Have you always loved cats (since you have 4)?

Indeed I have! I have also helped to look after several feral cat colonies. I believe them to be my spirit animals 9as well as owls.)

5. Will you dress up for Halloween this year - and if yes - what as?

I certainly want to, but I am not sure if I will or not. I would love to dress up as Maleficent. It is my favorite Disney movie and I love how Angelina Joulie depicted her. Those horns, those wings, those sharp cheekbones!  But besides her beauty, I find her to be a seriously amazing character. I am glad Disney put out her back story, she has an amazing one to tell.

The Otherling

By Heather M. Walker

Publisher: Black Velvet Seductions

Release Date: March 23, 2016

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Length: 238 Pages

ISBN: 978-1936556045

ASIN: B01DEC2670

Buy Links:  Amazon | B&N | Smashwords

About the book:

In the deep south of Doltree, Georgia, not everything is what is seems. Long accustomed to life as an outcast, the beautiful and demure Annaleah Grace has learned to stand apart from the crowd with dignity. Being the daughter of a white witch and a white witch herself, living in a town of devout Christians, has earned her more than a few raised eyebrows.

When she meets the handsome, yet snarky, Professor Bainbridge with whom she will be teaching at the local University, everything in her life abruptly changes. Something about him seems intimately familiar to her in a way she can’t totally identify. Even though he’s brusque and intimidating, Annaleah is drawn by his otherworldly eyes and foreign mannerisms.

With the help of angels, both Holy and fallen, she discovers just how unique she truly is. Dreams become a meeting place between this reality and the next, and Professor Sebastian Bainbridge’s true identity is revealed.

When her dreams begin to be more than dreams and she wakes up with Georgia red clay she walked through during a nightmare still wet on her feet, Annaleah knows something intense and powerful is going on, and that somehow, Professor Bainbridge is part of it. She is determined to embrace the profound destiny that awaits her and the Professor, even if that means taking up a sword to fight the Devil himself.

EXCERPT

From behind me came a clicking sound, at first so faint that I chose to ignore it. I continued to press my palm against the ground, but now I felt something different. Something which was coming to destroy the beauty of whatever it was Annaleah had done here. It shook deep within the earth as it made its foul way to the surface. Something almost as old as myself was coming, hot with anger and hatred, ready for blood, pain, and utter destruction. The purity of Annaleah's deed, and the innocence of her energy's signature had torn the fabric of the in between worlds, making a portal. Though she had closed her circle well, the lingering energy of whatever she had done served as a beacon to the darker ones. And now, they were coming.

As the clicking behind me grew louder and more insistent, I turned. The moonlight seemed reluctant to shed its beautiful glow on whatever it was that made this hateful noise, leaving only a deep stain of shadow that resonated with the energy of filth and sickness. In the deepness of this shadow, it seemed as though there was only an abyss, with no forest or trees behind it, but a tear in reality which was an ugly, black wound. From this wound the clicking noise grew. Before I registered the sound as insectile, hundreds of black, shiny spots with many legs poured forth all at once. It was as if the abyss before me had given birth to fear, as several dozen spiders of varying sizes burst forth, legs moving in a way I have always seen as alien. My Goddess, the Creator, would never have created something which seemed to live solely for inflicting the pangs of adrenaline laced fear into those it came across. The terrible clicking sound was that of thousands of legs moving against shiny black carapaces, all advancing toward me. These creatures were what had hurt Annaleah; there was no question of it. This angered me deeply, and I used this to my benefit. This many spiders could only mean one thing. Something evil was coming. 

 AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Heather was born into a military family, and has lived everywhere from Mountain Home, Idaho, to a small town in England called Bloxham. She eventually settled down In LaGrange, Georgia with her partner of 15 years, Billy, her 7 year old daughter Makaylah, and her 4 indoor cats. She considers herself first and foremost, a mother. She enjoys being a writer, a jeweler, a glass artist, a painter, and avid crafter.

It has been her life long dream to publish a book, and she has lovingly worked on “The Otherling” in its various stages for almost 3 years. Heather loves to read, mostly horror, fantasy and occult books. She studies angelology, mysticism, Wicca, psychology and the human mind. Her writing goal is to create a book that comes to life in her reader’s hands and minds, and places them there in the middle of the story.

It is her deepest wish that “The Otherling”, as well as her other written works, will accomplished this, and make a home in the hearts of all those who read her words.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/HeatherMWalker6

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100011566055965

Blog: http://heathershappyhaven.com/

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