Interview with Author Kristy Centeno

Today, we have the pleasure of chatting with author Kristy Centeno, who recently had her latest YA/NA paranormal romance released, Deliverance. In addition to being the author of the Secrets of the Moon saga and Keeper Witches series, and now, Deliverance, Kristy is a wife and mother to five children, and she holds down a day job, as well. This interview will kick off her book blog tour for the book with Full Moon Bites author promotions, so let’s give her a good send off.

Kaye: Your most recent paranormal romance released is Deliverance, and I hear it has received some great reviews. Would you like to tell us a little about it?

Kristy: Deliverance depicts the story of a young man who has been imprisoned in an Institute his entire life. Created in a lab, he has no clues as to what he is. Only that he’s not human. Tired of a life of suffering, he escapes to seek the assistance of a man that can help permanently free him and the other prisoners from his creator’s clutches. To do so, he requires the assistance of a young woman—one that will come to challenge everything he believed his enemies to be.

Deliverance delves into the paranormal, with a hint of romance, and some mystery thrown in as well. It took me a year to complete this project and enjoyed every minute of the process. Tiger wasn’t an easy character to develop as he isn’t quite your average hero. He’s both fierce and vulnerable. Strong yet weak. A potential killer yet innocent. As readers go through the story, they’ll better understand what I mean.

Kaye: Deliverance is listed under both YA and NA paranormal romance. Would you talk a little about what the difference in these two genre categories are?

Kristy: Young adult is basically geared more toward the teenage audience with coming of age scenarios that help shape the young character’s future, personality, or outlook in life. The main characters are usually in their teens, experiencing, learning, experimenting things for the first time.

New Adult, however, portrays characters that are a bit older and perhaps, a tad more mature. Think college age adults who undergo a series of scenarios that might have more of an impact on their lives than it would a younger person. They might have to deal with things that might not be an issue for someone in their teens.

Kaye: You are currently working on a sequel to Deliverance. Any hints as to what might be in store for your readers there?

Kristy: There is a bit more background story for some of the main characters as well as information on how the Legion works. It gives some insight on what Gerard’s next plans for the main characters were. And, of course, another mystery unfolds. One that will flip Tiger and Kristina’s worlds upside down.

Kaye: You have a large family, including five children. What are your secrets for juggling writing with family?

Kristy: Between my day job and my five children, finding time to write isn’t always easy. To be honest, even when I find time, I struggle between heading off to bed early to get some rest or get the next chapter completed. My days are full, but I try to make the best of what time I do have.

Most days, I get some writing done after the kiddies head off to bed. It’s nice and quiet. Not having anyone vying for my attention provides me with at least one to two hours of uninterrupted writing.

Basically, the way I work around my schedule is by tending to the kids first, house second, and then my writing. If the kids need something or the house is unorganized I can’t concentrate on my writing either so when I sit down to write, no matter what time of the day it is, I have to make sure that my to-do list is complete. Then and only then can I devote my full attention to those that live in my head.

Kaye: What is the one thing you hope to teach your children?

Kristy: There’s so much I wish to teach my children that I could go on forever naming each. But one thing that’s important for me is that they learn how to love themselves first and everyone else second. With so many issues about body shaming and public ridicule for being different, I don’t want my kiddies to feel as if they have to be like everyone else just to fit in the crowd. I always tell them that it’s okay to be different and there’s nothing wrong with being a little weird.

Kaye: You have two blogs dedicated to author promotions and writing. Would you like to tell us how they came about and what one might find there? How do you come up with enough content to keep them both active?

Kristy: When I was first published, I realized right away that one of the most difficult things to do as an author was, and still is, promoting. I had to develop an online presence and that took time. Fortunately for me, I found a network of authors that were willing to lend a hand when it came to promoting my work, offering advice, and some constructive criticism when needed.

While I was establishing an online presence, I found many new authors that like me, struggled to promote their work and would benefit from the same kind of help I received when I first got started. Thus, the idea was born to create not one but two blogs where I could assist anyone that needed it.

It didn’t take long at all for my inbox to start to fill up with requests from authors all over the States, Canada, and even the UK. I keep a calendar to track which author I’m hosting on what day due to the sheer volume of requests. Many of the authors I’ve worked with over the years also help cross promote my work on their sites/blogs, which is fantastic. Plus, I get to learn about new authors and their fabulous work that I’d probably have a difficult time locating if I didn’t hear from them directly.

Now, I also host blog tours for various book blogging companies as well. It’s something that I’ve come to enjoy over the years and continue to do as a hobby.

Kaye: What’s something most readers would never guess about you?

Kristy: I’m a bit of an introvert. Most people don’t believe this because I’m generally outgoing. Though at first I’m a bit shy, once I’m comfortable with someone I tend to talk a lot more and joke around. But I prefer the comfort of my own home as opposed to going out.

Kaye: What is the biggest challenge of being a writer?

Kristy: Aside from getting published and struggling with promoting your work once it’s published, I’d say one huge challenge is overcoming the dreaded writer’s block.

Kaye: Would you share the story of your own publishing journey?

Kristy: My story isn’t that different from most authors. At least, I don’t think. I must have queried close to thirty agencies that first year, receiving nothing but rejection after rejection. It was very disappointing, not to mention it really made me suffer through periods where I had serious self-doubt about my work and myself as a writer.

I didn’t understand that even if your first manuscript isn’t the best, you tend to improve overtime. I wasn’t in that state of mind though. I considered quitting before I even got started. That was until I heard a positive response from a publisher that was interested in reading the full manuscript of the first book I ever submitted.

They decided to pass, but that rejection ended up helping so much. When they got back to me, they were kind enough to say where my strengths lay and where and what I needed to improve. I took their advice to heart and worked on my manuscript some more. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but it read a lot better. When I submitted it again to another publisher, I was once more asked for a full manuscript. Three months later I was offered a contract. I was elated!

From there it has been easier but I’m still learning. I’m sure there’s still so much room for growth and I don’t mind. I love evolving my skills and developing my voice as I go along. With every publisher and every editor I work with, I learn something new. I learn where I have to improve and what areas I should focus on. It’s a never-ending cycle but one I don’t mind repeating.

Kaye: What’s the best piece of advice you were ever given?

Kristy: “No matter how hard life knocks you down, you better get right back up again and plow through. Life will never stop trying to knock you off your feet so don’t ever stop getting right back up again.”

Kaye: You are fortunate enough to have found a publisher for your books. How much non-writing work, (marketing & promotion, illustrations & book covers, etc…), do you do yourself for your books?

Kristy: Fortunately, the book covers are taken care of by the publisher. However, I do most of the marketing for my book. I organized takeovers, hire book blog companies, spread the word via social media, send emails, etc.

One of my publishers does quite a bit in terms of spreading the word about our books. They have put our books in local libraries, they send out newsletters with interviews, guest posts, etc. and we occasionally do author takeovers and Facebook events as well.

Kaye: What strategies and promotional tools work best to sell books for you, as far as marketing goes?

Kristy: It’s hit or miss with marketing to be honest. I have found that when I book a tour via a book blogging company, some will do extremely well and I immediately see an increase in sales. While there are other times when there’s barely a difference. However, I’ve found that when I do character interviews, guest posts, or giveaways my book does well and there’s a lot of online activity, which is great.

I prefer to schedule release tour weeks in advance to get the release off to a good start. Usually, this is when I see the most impact when it comes to sells as well as reviews. Giveaways do very well too so I have tend to partake in them more and more nowadays than I used to. Especially if I’m giving out a signed copy of one of my books. People respond positively to that.

I want to thank Kristy for joining us here, on Writing to be Read, and for sharing a little bit about herself and her paranormal romance, Deliverance. You can purchase Deliverance on Amazon, iTunes, B&N, Inktera, and Createspace.

To find out more about Kristy, or her books:

Her Website: https://booksbycenteno.com/

Blog: http://therightbook4u.blogspot.com/

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Kristy-Centeno/e/B00BR7KQ4U

Goodreads Author Page:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6580510.Kristy_Centeno

Or check her out on social media:

Facebook

Twitter

Google+

Pintrest

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