T.A. White

Rich and layered Science Fiction and Fantasy Romance that leaves readers breathless!

Don’t be surprised if the name, T.A. White, is not on everyone’s tongue. To those who don’t read sci-Ii or fantasy, T.A.’s quiet, unassuming presence belies the incredible drive and talent hidden just underneath. Anyone who loves a great futuristic or slightly fantastical story, however, is deIinitely familiar with her deftly written, expertly nuanced, and unapologetically addictive stories! Each come with just enough romance to keep the heart sighing - all while gripping readers and bringing them back for more. In person, T.A. is just as straightforward and honest as her characters, with a hint of humor and a taste for the off-beat. She has led an extremely interesting life, which leaves her as nuanced as her books, and just as interesting as her characters! Read on and you’ll agree.

InD: Before we get started, when an author says yes to an interview, I always try to read as many books as possible... I had already read every single book you have written! I don't think I have ever had that happen before.

TAW: I didn’t realize there was so many of them until my sister bragged about me to someone and told them I’d written 20 books. I said that couldn’t be right. We ended up counting them up, and sure enough, it really was close to 20.

InD: Me owning that number says how much I love your books! Let’s get to know you a bit better. You were raised in a military family, right?

TAW: I was. Both my mom and dad were in the Marines when they met and married in Okinawa, Japan. We traveled around a lot in my childhood. I was born in Tacoma, WA, before my dad got stationed in Okinawa again. From there we went to North Carolina before returning to Okinawa for a Iinal time. When my dad was about to get out of the military, he and my mom moved us back to Ohio. I was probably 12 and in the 6th grade when that happened.

InD: What was that like growing up in Japan?

TAW: We lived on a military base so we still had that American inIluence, but my parents wanted us to get as much cultural experience as we could, so they would take us off base and we would tour museums and explore the country. It was a unique experience that I don’t think a lot of people get to take advantage of. It's a shame because living in another country and experiencing a different culture gives you a different perspective on everything we have here. I love it here in America, but I also loved it in Okinawa. It was one of my favorite places to live.

InD: What was one of the biggest differences you remember that you liked or didn't like?

TAW: Well, for one thing, it was warm. Okinawa is a tropical island so we spent a lot of our time at the beach or by a pool. I didn't really understand what snow was until we moved back here. We got to experience the food there as well. It opened me up to other cuisines whereas maybe I would not have been so adventurous on the culinary side if I had tried it at an older age.

We visited a lot of the festivals, like the cherry blossom festival, every year. We got to watch the Eisa drummers perform several times, which was always amazing. InD: As a child with parents in the military, did you enjoy the experience of moving a lot? What was your outlook on that?

TAW: No. I remember when we moved back to Okinawa I was very upset with my parents, and my mom looked at me and said, “One of these days, you will thank me for this experience.” Sure enough, when we got back, I realized how blessed we were. It was one of the best things I have ever done in my life. The learning opportunities were amazing.

InD: When you came back at 12 years old, was it a big culture shock?

TAW: It was. When we moved back, my grandparents actually picked us up and drove us back to their house, which was like two hours away. My dad looked at us and said, “Right now, we’re driving faster and traveling farther than we ever did in Okinawa.” That blew my mind. It took a long time to fully comprehend how spread out things were here. School was different too. In Okinawa, I went to school on a military base. I was in 6th grade which there was considered part of elementary school, but here it was middle school. I had to go from class to class during the periods. I remember being so scared because I had never done that before. I was suddenly thrown into switching classes. It was like being in high school, which I wasn’t prepared for.

We had what was called “informal" learning in Columbus, which none of us had ever heard about before. It wasn’t the way they taught in my last school so that was a little bit tough, but the teachers were great. They were very accepting and the kids were very welcoming so there was a plus side to it too. I got to be the new kid who’d lived in a different country and whose parent was also a Marine.

InD: You would have to be good at making new friends because you were moving all the time.

TAW: I am terrible at making friends! Making friends when you live on a military base is much easier. Usually, those living on base all have kids. The neighbors to my left and right both had kids my age, so you just became friends with whomever was on your block.

But when you come back to the States, the kids are not all located in one place. The street we moved to didn’t have a single kid my age. I was used to roaming the neighborhood with my buddies and going to the playground and doing all those things. But here, the only friends were the ones you made in school. I was a super awkward kid who preferred the company of books. I didn't know what to do to make friends. Luckily a couple of kids in my class adopted me and showed me the ropes, but for a couple of months, it was pretty lonely.

InD: Have you always loved to read?

TAW: I’d like to say yes, but the truth is I actually had trouble learning to read. I was born in September which meant I started school early. My brain just didn’t develop as fast as my peers’. My dad would sit with me every night with Ilashcards and he’d ask me what each word was. Every time I’d answer, “I don’t know”, Then he would go back to the beginning and I still wouldn’t know. Part of the problem was that I just wasn’t interested. I’ve always been kind of hard-headed, and if I didn’t want to learn, my brain put up a block and refused to take in information. I was also a very active child who wanted to be outside all the time. I didn't want to concentrate. That all changed when I was in the 3rd grade for the second time in Okinawa. My parents had held me back when they realized I was having trouble. The school had this reading day where you came to school for half a day and all you did was read, then you went home and the teachers had a work day for themselves.

I took a Nancy Drew book with me because my dad had bought it thinking I would like it. He’d really enjoyed The Hardy Boys and thought it might get me interested. I read the Iirst chapter of that book, and by the time they released us, I went home and asked my parents to help me read it. After that, I kind of never stopped.

InD: You said you were in the 3rd grade at that time?

TAW: Yes, but that wasn’t the beginning of my writing career oddly enough. I started trying to write stories in the 1st grade. I couldn't write well so I’d ask the older kids to write the stories down for me while I dictated them. Everybody would always lose interest long before I did, and I would get upset. I remember one time, in the 1st or 2nd grade, there was a ghost story I wanted to tell. This older girl—she was probably only a year or two older, but at that time she seemed way older than me—knew how to write and said she’d be my partner.

We spent the rest of the day at camp writing my story down. The next day she wanted to go play with the other kids and didn’t want to be my writing partner anymore. That day, it just happened to be my turn to pass out the cookies, and I passed them to everybody but her. She complained to the teachers, and they told me no matter how upset I was, I had to give her a cookie – so I did… by throwing it at her head. I admit I was a bit of a brat, but at the time I felt like my world was falling because my writing partner had deserted me and I’d never get to tell my great story. Sadly, I was not allowed to pass out cookies after that.

InD: That is such a wonderful story! You had such passion for storytelling at a young age.

TAW: I come from a storytelling family. My dad’s family and my mom's father always liked to tell tall tales at the dinner table. One of my dad’s mottos was actually “Never let the truth interfere with a good story.” Maybe that’s why I gravitated to Iiction. They’re the kind of people who would tell these random and long stories. Then they’d get to the punchline and everyone would always chuckle. I always wanted to do that. Even as a very small child, I’d wait until the other kids had deserted the table and I’d just sit and listen to their stories. My grandmother used to say I had an old soul because of it.

InD: Did you incorporate any of these stories into your writing?

TAW: Some of them. Not so much the ones from when I was a kid, but more from later in my life. For instance, my sister used to drag me on this backpacking trip every year. One of the years we had to camp where there was high bear activity. Late at night, we heard rustling and someone started yelling “bear!" Everyone came out of their tents, waving their arms to try to scare this bear off.

We still don't know if there was actually a bear, but I have that experience earmarked in my head for future use! I could use it in a type of adventure story where people are panicking about a creature they're not certain exists, then they Iind out they were panicking over nothing.

I tend to take experiences and Iilter them. My Broken Land series is actually based on a story a fellow service member in Afghanistan had told me about a patrol he’d gone on. They were supposed to visit a village at daybreak. The plan was to camp on top of a mountain nearby and then walk down later, but when they got to the top of the mountain, they realized they were on the wrong mountain! It made me think, “Wow, what would it have been like before we had maps? Or what if there was a reason our maps couldn’t work? How would someone like that navigate the world?”

InD: That was really interesting! You take everyday stories and turn them into amazing tales! It's just the coolest thing. Even so young and through high school, you always wanted to tell stories. When did you decide to write those stories yourself?

TAW: I’ve wanted to be a writer since the day my mom and dad came to an open house at school. My mom read something I had written, and at the end of it, she looked at me and said, “It looks like we’re going to have a writer in the family.”

I latched on to that. I’d never put into words what I wanted until that moment. It felt very right, and I felt like it was a purpose for my life. I kind of deIined myself by thinking everything I experienced was in preparation for becoming a story teller.

InD: That is amazing. Since that childhood revelation, have you always written your stories down?

TAW: I was always great at starting stories, but not so much at Iinishing them. I remember—probably in the 5th grade—I wrote a story with a friend about a woman who could talk to dogs. Unfortunately, while we were still writing it, my friend’s parents rotated back to the States. We tried to send the little journal we were writing in back and forth, but in those days, it was done through snail mail. Our intrepidness didn't last more than a couple of months.

I didn’t actually Iinish my Iirst story until my senior year of high school. We had to write a senior thesis, and it had to have a written component. It only had to be ten pages, but I had the brainstorm of “Why not write an entire book?” So I did, and it was terrible. I think it took my dad Iive months to get through the whole thing. When he Iinished, he told me he thought the beginning was extremely slow, but that he saw a lot of potential.

I had a couple more false starts after that. It wasn’t until I was in Afghanistan that I Iinally wrote my second book, which would go on to be my Iirst published book. It was one of those situations where you’re locked on a FOB, what’s called a Forward Operating Base, where there’s a very small area where you can be active in.

You go to work, then you come back to your tiny room where you have hours to just sit and think. You’re a hostage to the entertainment you can Iind through your computer. But there are only so many books you can read and TV shows you can watch before you need something else.

So I thought, why not write a book? Only this time, instead of throwing it in a bin afterwards, have it edited and publish it. That’s how I wrote the Iirst half of “Dragon Ridden”. After that, I came home and Iinished it before eventually publishing it.

InD: That's perfect! What prompted you to become a soldier yourself?

TAW: Well, my parents were Marines, my grandfather was in the Navy, my dad's brothers were in different services, and my sister had joined Army ROTC.

InD: So it's kind of like a family business?

TAW: Yes, it is, but I’d also graduated in 2008 when the housing market crashed. I had a lot of trouble Iinding a job. My mom came to me and said, “You're either joining the military or you're getting a job. If you join the military, there's a chance you can do public affairs. You’ll get a lot of experiences that you can use in your books later. I don’t care which of those you pick, but you have to do something.” So I joined the Army.

InD: How old were you at that time?

TAW: I was 23.

InD: Before that, you had various jobs?

TAW: Yes. My Iirst ofIicial job was at the Columbus Zoo. I did that through high school and college. I was a resident assistant, and I worked at a swimming pool. When I got out of college I worked as a camp counselor, but I was struggling to Iind my way, and my mom knew that the military had really helped her. I’m not very assertive and she thought the military would give me the tools I needed to navigate life. It would also help me mature.

I hate to say it, but she was right. It was probably the best decision I could have made. The military doesn't accept excuses. For instance, if you get sunburned, it’s your fault for not putting on sunscreen. They don't accept that you failed something. They make you take a look at yourself and see why you failed, so next time you’ll do better. That kind of applies to everything in writing, as well. You may not be the greatest writer, so how can you make yourself better? They teach you that when you are faced with a seemingly insurmountable task, you break it into smaller pieces. You complete each one and get to the Iinish line that way. Or in my world—to the end of the book you’re writing. You may not be as successful as you wanted, so what can you do to become more successful? You read the reviews. The critiques always kind of sting, but you can learn something from the bad along with the good. The military helped teach me all that.

InD: What did you major in college?

TAW: I went into Journalism because I saw it as basically telling a story, but I had forgotten I am not a people person. As a result, I was terrible at Iinding subjects to interview. That was very intimidating for me. The military was great for that. In public affairs you write a lot of press releases which require you to interview soldiers. They were obliged to talk to me because I was also a soldier, and I was there under orders.

InD: When you were over there and started to write, what inspired you to say, “I’m going to write about dragons”?

TAW: I had the "PathIinder/ Broken Land" idea, but I didn't know how to start it. The world I wanted to create felt too complicated for a Iirst book. As a result, I started writing a scene based on a dream I had. The premise was that I was stuck somewhere. Time had passed and the world had changed, so I wrote that scene… then immediately in the next scene. I had this odd idea that pirates were essential to the story. From there I also added dragons, and many more bits and bobs until I got to a Iinished product.

My fans always asked if I planned everything out in that book, and I'm like, “No. I started at one place, and then the story went in a really weird direction, so I kind of mashed it all together.”

InD: How did it do once you Tinished and published it?

TAW: It’s safe to say that it failed on every level. I sold less than 100 books my Iirst year. It did terrible.

I gave away more e-book copies than I sold, but by then, I was already halfway through writing "PathIinder’s Way". Unfortunately, I got stuck with that book and I couldn't Iigure out how to Iinish it. In the end, I walked away from writing entirely. Writing takes a lot of time. You have to sacriIice time spent with friends and family, and I wasn’t making any money, so I took a break for about a year. This was shortly before I met my soon-to-be husband. Right around the time I started dating him, I decided to rethink what I was doing and see if I could modify some things to make the story work. I liked the world and the characters I had created, so I went back to the beginning and re-worked it. I was just starting to edit it when I met him, and I had to balance spending time with this new boyfriend and working out my dream of writing. I was meeting him three or four days a week and spending the majority of the weekends working on “PathIinder’s Way”.

InD: Were you still in the military at that time?

TAW: No, I was out.

InD: Where were you working at that time then?

TAW: I was working in marketing for a sort of credit bureau. I took the job so I could eat, but writing was my passion. I published “PathIinder’s Way” right when I had just taken a promotion I thought was going to be great. Sadly, it ended up being something I totally had not expected and involved no writing at all. I knew it was a mistake.

By that time, “PathIinder’s Way” had come out, but the book kind of sank into the ether. I remember being in Denver for a work thing and checking my dashboard to see how many books had sold—it showed I had seven sales. At the time I was super excited because that was the most I’d had outside of a release week. "Dragon Ridden" still hadn’t done anything (and this is important, I promise). The next day I got four more sales. Fast forward a couple of days, and there were 20 sales in a single day. I’m like, “That's amazing!” Then I noticed that “Dragon Ridden” was beginning to sell. People would read “PathIinder’s Way” and they liked it so much they would go buy "Dragon Ridden". I’d abandoned that series, but requests for a second book were starting to roll in.

I couldn’t say no. As a result, I ended up writing another book in the Dragon Ridden series. And because I am a glutton for punishment, I started a third series—my Aileen Travers series. That started doing well too. So all of a sudden, I had fans for all three series, and they were all like, “You can't abandon my series!”.

That’s how I ended up writing three series concurrently. In retrospect, it was a horrible idea.

InD: Which you are still doing!

TAW: I know. [sighing as both laugh]

InD: I have read all three of them and I am one of the worst for, “When's the next one coming out?”

TAW: The thing is, once I start something I want to Iinish it, and I want to Iinish it to my speciIications, so even though I had all three series out, the Broken Land was my best selling series. A smart person would have abandoned the other two, but I couldn't do that because I was still attached to them. I felt I had to do them justice.

I’m currently whittling down the number of series I’m writing. It has taken quite a while to get here because I keep getting ideas for new stories in those worlds that I want to explore. Every time I think I’m ready to say goodbye to those characters, they draw me in with the possibility of a new adventure.

InD: I think one of your biggest gifts is your characters, and readers get attached to the characters. I can see how that put you in a big can of worms because you have fabulous characters in all three series, and readers want to know what happens next, so you end up having to juggle them.

TAW: Right. Even when you reach the end of a book, you can still have questions about the characters inside the book. There are spin-off series I would love to do. Sometimes a side character that doesn’t have a lot of screen time will do something that intrigues me. I’ll sit back and think, “I really want to know more about this person. What’s going through her mind and what’s her history? Where does her journey lead?” That happens with all of my books. I’ll get to the end of the series and think, “This other person had nothing to do in 90% of the series, but they’re really interesting to me. I want to see where they're going.” InD: You did that in the Broken Land series. Eva was a very interesting character, but had very little page space.

TAW: Yes, she came out of nowhere. Her character wasn’t planned at all. She just walked onto the page and I was like, “Oh you’re an interesting person. Who are you? What are you about?” Caden was someone I found very intriguing as well, but he was underutilized. When I started writing Eva's story after

I Iinished Shea and Fallon’s, I realized those two make sense together.

With Shea and Fallon, I had resolved their story but made the world so big there were so many other adventures in that world that could be explored. I’ve always thought that every character has their own story to tell. For instance, Shea is a pathIinder who gets disconnected from her people and picked up by this barbarian horde. She ends up falling in love with the warlord. Events unfold from her perspective, but if you told that same story of Fallon conquering the Lowlands from anyone else's perspective, it would be a totally different story. It’s why I wanted to tell Eva's story—because it was something only she could tell. InD: And it works perfectly. Like you say, it’s the same world but from a different perspective, and it's really incredibly interesting. So you have got the Broken Land and Dragon Ridden that are Fantasy, then Aileen Travers, which is kind of a Mystery.

TAW: Yes, it's kind of a Mystery Vampire Thriller. I refuse to close that series, even though it will never be my bestseller. There’s a lot of fun in that series. I grew up loving Urban Fantasy, so I think that’s part of it. InD: And then the mega-seller, The Firebird series! I want to talk about that because for so many years, Sci-Fi just kind of had its own little niche and its own little following of people, and I wasn't one of them because it can be very technical, but your Firebird Chronicles! Somehow, you made that genre more human, more relatable. What do you think made that book and series just explode?

TAW: A lot of people think that Sci-Fi is exclusively techno babble. They expect hardcore Sci-Fi or something really highbrow. Honestly, I’ve read those books too and enjoy them, but when I write or read a book, the thing I identify most with are the characters. The thing Firebird does really well is that it focuses on the characters and less on the science behind everything.

It’s kind of like a cell phone. I know it works but I don't know exactly how. You just trust the readers to follow you and that they don't need you to break everything down to the minutest detail. I think that’s part of it. People really relate to the characters, especially that of Kira and Graydon. Their connection is part of why people keep reading—that and Kira’s relationships with the other characters in that world as well. The fact that you have aliens running around is secondary. It’s interesting, but what you really focus on is the fact Kira thought she was human—granted, a genetically modiIied one—but still human. Then she realizes she’s actually an alien.

Her story as an outsider, someone returning to her people for the Iirst time and having to Iind her place, is extremely relatable. That’s what most readers want— a character they can follow and root for.

As to why the series works so well, I’m not really sure. It just does.

InD: Yes, it took off like wildTire! I also contemplated why, and think it’s like you say; it’s character, not science driven, which brings in mainstream readers. On top of that, we all are interested in what is out there in space; it’s just that most of the Science Fiction community are more technical than what many of us like.

TAW: Yes. My favorite author growing up was Anne McCaffrey. She wrote “The Dragon Riders of Pern” and a couple of other series. I think that's where I learned that from. You have to focus on the people and the relationships between them. Everything else is Ilavoring. She also showed me that you can blend genres. Dragons are High Fantasy but they can be in space books. You can have these really magical types of things, as long as you have a technical reason for them being there.

InD: I am impressed and amazed at the creativity of all the things you come up with. How do you imagine all of this stuff?

TAW: With Firebird, I started dreaming that book before we moved to Okinawa. I remember writing the Iirst two chapters, but the characters were very different then than they are now.

I also pull from the world around me. Many of the monsters I create are actually based on earth life forms. There are some really weird things in our oceans!

A lot of times I think, “That's kind of cool. Maybe I can incorporate that somewhere,” then I’ll just put something weird on the paper and Iine tune it later. That’s actually about half of what I do—throw something on paper. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't.

InD: So did “Rules of Redemption” do well right from the start? Or did it take a while?

TAW: Yes, it did well. I wrote that concurrently with the last Broken Lands book. My husband and I were heading for our honeymoon when I sent it to my beta readers. I asked them, “Please don't tell anybody about this book because I'm not sure I'm going to release it anytime soon.”

At that point, I was way inside my head and I kind of hated the book. I was questioning myself, wondering if it was any good or just plain awful. In the end, I knew I needed to give it to somebody else to get their opinion.

I sent it off the day before we left to go on our honeymoon. When we landed and got to the resort, I had a message from one of them saying, “Please, publish this now! Please write the next book now. I will do anything you want. If you write the next book now, I’ll even send you food for a year!”

I asked her, “Did you have any edits?” and she said, “No. Please just give me the next book! It is perfect as is.”

The rest weren’t as quick to respond, but when they did, they said they also loved it. The book wasn’t like anything that they’d read before.

InD: I agree with your beta readers. When you Tinish “Rules of Redemption” you want the next one immediately! It wasn’t left with a clifThanger either; the story is just that good.

TAW: Yes, I’ll resolve the overall plot, but I’ll put a little hook in the end. You’re satisIied, but there’s always that one piece of information that's going to drive you crazy until the next book.

InD: That's exactly right. I have always felt that is the best way of ending a book within a series. You need to resolve things so we're happy when we close the book, but we really want to know what happens next. That is when a book is perfectly done. TAW: I think that’s the big reason why people like that series so much. Things are resolved—for now—but there’s always that hook at the end that still needs answering. They hate it, but they love it. It brings them back. InD: I think we just connect enough with the characters that we really want to know what happens next. I mean, you can take two stinking years to write the next book. I think that is really rotten of you.

TAW: It used to be only a year or less. I think between the “Age of Deception” and “Threshold of Annihilation” it was only eight months, and people were still saying, “It's been over a year.” I was like, “No, I’m tracking it. It’s only been eight months.”

The longer I’ve been writing, the pickier I get with it. “Rules of Redemption” was written in four months, and that was mainly on the weekends. Now, it takes me six to eight months to write a book in that series because they're really long, and they’re complicated to write. There’s so much thinking that goes into them.

I know the delay is kind of mean, and I wish I could really focus on that series. I think after the latest Aileen Travers book, that’s what I'll be doing.

But at the same time, I think giving people a cool down period actually helps to keep them invested. It gives them time to think and reread and get super focused. By the time the next book comes, they devour it and the process starts again.

InD: Or you forget about it because it’s been two years since you read the last one. I was so excited when the last installment Tinally published, but when I began reading, I was like, “Wait a minute, I don't remember what was happening!” So I guess I did go back and reread… [both laughing] Do you have books that are harder or easier to write than others?

TAW: The Aileen Travers series is the easiest to write because it's based in the real world. It’s set in Columbus, Ohio. I live in the city, which means I can use the landmarks and the history I'm already familiar with. My other series are all Fantasy or Sci-Fi, and the settings are all places that only exist in my head. So not only do I have to Iigure out where my characters are going and why, but I also have to construct an entire setting and culture from scratch. I put a lot of thought into the cultures I create so when people read, they don't just get the surface level, they will sense that there's something deeper beneath it. Some series are easier than others. Firebird is really hard because of the complicated situations I put my characters into and having to Iigure out their motivation in a creative way to get what I want while satisfying the reader and also leaving them surprised. That takes a lot of brain power.

InD: I can absolutely understand that. Are there any characters you personally can really relate to?

TAW: I usually relate to most of the characters because I spend a lot of time in their heads. My characters all have parts of my personality. Shea isn't so good with her words and relies more on actions. There was a time in my life where I didn't feel the need to explain myself to the people around me, and I had problems because of it.

Aileen is a combat vet who returns from Afghanistan and gets bitten by a vampire and becomes a vampire herself. She comes across as very angry in the Iirst book. I didn't notice that until people started commenting in their reviews. Then I realized there's a reason why she’s so angry. It’s because when I came back from Afghanistan, I was a little bit rough around the edges and a little bit angry for no reason.

InD: Why were you angry?

TAW: It's a product of the stress, I think. In Afghanistan, we were getting rockets launched at our base every couple of days. My FOB was actually known as Rocket City because of how often it happened. When you live with that 24/7, 365 days a year, your nerves are going to be a little bit strained and a lot of peoples’ stress responses are anger. I wasn’t always angry, but I was quicker to anger. I was more impatient. I used the f-word a lot. You have to reacclimatize and that’s pretty normal, but it took me a while to recognize the behavior in myself. Aileen actually helped me do that.

InD: That is really, really interesting. Do you still enjoy the process of writing?

TAW: It depends on the day. There are days when my Iingers Ily over the keys and I think, “This is the best job in the world!” And then, some days I'm like, “Why did I pick this career?” With what I do, I sometimes feel like I'm pushing the boulder up a hill. Sometimes that hill is really scenic. Sometimes that hill is a post-apocalyptic nightmare. It’s a lovehate relationship.

InD: I think every other author needs to hear that! Somebody who's very successful has “those” days too. Does your husband read any of your books?

TAW: He hasn’t read a single book. Two of those books are even dedicated to him! A lot of people comment about that, but I'm actually kind of relieved. Reading is so personal. I know I hate when people try to pressure me into reading a genre or book that doesn’t Iit my interests. What usually is a joy becomes torture. There are a lot of ways to support someone that don’t involve reading the actual book. When we Iirst moved in together, I remember him coming home and I was just lying on the couch because I'd had a bad writing day and there weren’t any words on the paper. I was in a really bad mood because of it.

He left on an errand. When he came back, he brought me Diet Coke (my favorite), chocolate, and Ilowers. When he handed them to me, he said, “You'll get it tomorrow. You always do.” That meant more to me than if he’d read every book I’d ever written. He helps me in so many other important ways. Every time I have an IT issue and I'm about to tear out my hair, he comes in, calms me down, and Iixes it. He's my rock, and the reason I'm able to focus on writing.

At the end of the day, I’m kind of glad he doesn't read them actually. Otherwise, he’d totally think I'm a crazy person. He’d be like, “You really think like this?” [both laughing]

InD: Tell us the story of how you two met…

TAW: It’s a funny story. We’ve actually lived within a couple of miles of each other for a good portion of our lives. In high school, we lived one block from each other. A single street between us separated the school district. As a result, he went to a different school, and we never met. After we went to college, I went into the military and he went to Indiana. He came back at the same time I got out of the military and we both bought places on the same road.

We were two miles from each other, but again, we never met. We both signed up for this online dating thing and he sent me a message that said, “I'm eating sushi while watching Star Trek “Into Darkness”.” I had put both of those things as my favorites in my proIile. When I realized he liked those things too, I thought,

“This is the guy I want to date!” I had never had a date where I instantly connected with another person like him.

We talked for an hour and we were just supposed to get drinks. After that he was kind of like, “I would love to get another date with you because I think this went well.” I was like, “Absolutely!” And we just kept going from there.

InD: That is so awesome!

TAW: He is totally my opposite, though. He is a much more practical thinker and I am much more creative. We work well together. He's more of a realist, where I am more whimsical. He is very necessary to my process.

InD: I love to do favorites because it's so much fun and you can learn so much about a person. So… your favorite food that’s not a dessert?

TAW: Hmmm, I have so many favorites. I love tacos but I also love sushi, so tacos and sushi.

InD: What is your favorite dessert?

TAW: Black raspberry ice cream from Graeter’s, or the Brown butter Almond Brittle from Jeni’s. Both are really good.

InD: Okay, your favorite color?

TAW: Green or blue.

InD: Why?

TAW: Well, for the longest time I liked green because I thought it went well with my red hair, then I decided I really liked blue because I just like the color, so now I just like both of them. The rooms in my house are either blue or green.

InD: What is your favorite time of day?

TAW: Probably evening, around dinner time… or maybe lunch. I am very food motivated. [both laughing]

InD: Do you have a favorite place to be?

TAW: Home. I really like being home. I like going places, but my husband will tell you when we go on vacation for three days or more, on our way back I’ll spend the entire journey going, “I can't wait to be home. I can't wait to see my cat. I can't wait to sleep in my own bed and be with my own things!” I just like home.

InD: Do you have a favorite book or movie?

TAW: I don't really have favorite books, but I do have favorite authors. Ilona Andrews is one of my favorites. She actually gave me a big boost when the Iirst Firebird had just come out. She reviewed "PathIinder’s Way" on her blog and contacted me afterwards. That made the books blow up even further. I had been doing well beforehand, but I started to do really well after she mentioned me. They say don't meet your heroes, but I’ve had a great experience. She's my hero, and she's pretty awesome.

InD: It is awesome to meet your heroes when they live up to your expectations, and she does.

TAW: I love the fact that she uses her blog to give exposure to other authors who may not be as big as her, and she does it with all of the genres. I have found several really great authors through her.

InD: What is the best piece of advice, personal or professional, you have ever been given?

TAW: I would simply say don't give up. Sometimes that ‘fake it till you make it’ actually works. For the longest time, I told people that I was going to be a published author and I was going to do this full time, and I was going to be the next JK Rowling.

Now, I’m not the next JK Rowling and I don't want to be, but I have accomplished my dream. I only did it because I haven’t given up. Perseverance can carry you through where talent may not. I don't consider myself a very talented person, but I do consider myself a very stubborn one. You would understand if you saw where I started with my writing. I am not a natural writer. It has taken a lot to get me here, but I'm here because I refused to quit. I’ve learned something from every set back. Just keep going!

InD: I think that is wonderful and I think everybody needs to hear it.