Interview and Contest with Jacquelyn Wheeler Author of Rising Shadow

Hi there Jacquelyn thank you so much for taking the time to “sit” with me and chat! I just finished Rising Shadow and I really enjoyed it, it's a definite 5 star book IMHO!


The story line is so unique, how did you ever come up with the ideas? I mean good versus evil is nothing “new” but the way you went about it, creating the Soterians, as well as all of the different facets of being one, where did the ideas come from?
It was actually a natural blend of my hobbies and interests. I love the online game City of Heroes, I practice martial arts in the real world, and I regularly dream about flying. Also, it always bothered me that the end of every story seems to end with the villain being killed, which doesn’t give you much guidance for real life--when you have a teacher or sibling or colleague who makes your life miserable, you just have to deal with it, day after day. I thought it would be amazing if the villain couldn’t be killed, if evil could only be brought into balance, the way we have to balance the various parts of our personalities.

One of the other facets to Rising Shadow that I really enjoyed is underlining messages, each woven into the fabric of the story so beautifully, if you were not looking you would not even notice them, but as a mom, I did, how did you decide what traits to make most important to each of the Soterians?
I gave each character a backstory, a birthday, even a middle name so that they would become more three-dimensional. And then I set to work figuring out what each of their strengths and weaknesses would be, which would affect their actions in the story. It also allows me to drop hints about their secrets, which are revealed later in the series. Lastly, I had to make sure their natural tendencies matched up with their type. Other traits, like Ashlyn’s not drinking, have nothing to do with her being a Soterian and more about her trying to move past who she used to be.

The most significant underlying message in the series is moving beyond fear. I think fear is the cause of most of the evil and suffering on earth because it’s such a powerful motivator. The problem is that our fears are usually very subtle, so quiet we don’t even recognize they’re there. Learning to examine the thoughts that go through our heads and realize when we’re acting out of fear is fundamental to happiness.

I have read many of the reviews for Rising Shadow and see that there are many people out there that think that you had Ashlyn and Kai fall in love far too fast...I honestly don't agree, since I believe in love at first sight, and think the way you had them fall in love was perfect, but what about them as characters made you want to “push” them into love so fast?
The love story is inspired by my own life--with lots of embellishments and changes, of course. We met at a party in Isla Vista, fell madly in love by the second date, and after a three-week road trip together, he asked me to marry him. At the time, everyone thought I was nuts and that it would never last, but we were careful to wait a few years before we got married so that we had time to really get to know each other first (and get counseling together), and we’re still happily married 20 years later and have an amazing daughter. Not that it’s all been easy—finding your soulmate doesn’t mean you don’t fight and drive each other crazy at times. So I fully expected people to think “What? That would never happen!” I also know that their romance isn’t that satisfying for readers who want the girl-gets-the-guy-in-the-end kind of story, but that’s not the kind of story I’m writing. I’m much more interested in what happens after you and the man of your dreams fall in love.

I really love each of the characters for a different reason, the strength you give each of them, they are beautiful and so skilled in their own unique ways. Did you model them after anyone in your own life?
Ashlyn represents me at many stages in my life, which allowed me to create her with that blend of immaturity and wisdom that you so often see in twenty year-olds as they’re finding their true voice but are still carrying baggage from the often-damaging teenage years. Rebecca, Todd, Toby, and Michael are each inspired by multiple people, so they don't represent anyone specific. Several other characters, such as Ashlyn's parents, are inspired by real people but are highly exaggerated to make them stand out more in the story. Other than that, the characters are totally made up, and now they are so alive to me, they’re growing all on their own without any further influence from real people.

I know that your next book, Merger, is due out late next month and I am so excited, though Rising Shadow does not end in a cliff hanger, you still have LOTS to work out...can you give us a favorite line from Merger? Or maybe two?
You can read an excerpt from the first chapter of Merger on my web site (http://www.soterians.com/MergerExcerpt.pdf). One of the things I like about Merger is that you get to know Jesse a lot better. There’s also a scene where you get to see Raina skate, which was a blast to write—I posted that scene on the Notes tab of my Facebook page, The Soterians. Ashlyn and Kai get to know each other better as well. One line I really like is when they’re arguing about opera, which Ashlyn loves and Kai despises, and Ashlyn is intentionally pushing his buttons a little bit to get him ranting:

“Come on, Puccini’s music is so beautiful. It’s absolutely transcendent,” I gushed.
“I disagree. It’s all fluff. It’s like eating an entire meal of whipped cream.”

With 5 books in the series, I know that I am very excited to follow on Ashlyn and Kai's journey – I just hope that my hopes for their future will come true, I always think authors might go and mess up a really good thing! Can you tell us anything about the 3rd book yet, or are you really just starting in the process of writing that one?
I’m already 242 pages into book three. It’s the book where stuff really starts to heat up, especially with the relationships. I have a lot of work to do on it still, and I expect it’ll take me at least another six months to finish writing and editing it, but I think it might be my favorite of the three books so far. I’m pretty excited about it.

OK, need to stop talking about the upcoming books, before I ask you something I will regret (though I doubt you would answer anything too specific), what about you...what brought you into writing, did you always know “this was your calling?”
Like Ashlyn, I have way too many hobbies, and I never felt I had a specific calling, although I desperately wanted to be an actress when I was a kid. I’ve always written stories, and right after college I became a technical writer for a software company, which is what I still do for my day job. Looking back, it seems that writing is clearly the direction I was heading in. I've written poetry, a couple of screenplays, and some children’s books, none of which I’ve published. But nothing has taken over my life the way The Soterians series has. This series does feel like it was my whole life in the making.

You have a lot of notes in your bio about different things you enjoy doing when you’re not writing, everything from martial arts to playing music to training for triathlons – your one busy person! How do you fit it all into your schedule?
I write on the train and whenever I get a few spare minutes, which is why I’ve been able to write so much in such a short time (I started the series less than a year and a half ago). If you wait for large blocks of time to write, you’ll never write, at least in my experience. Also, I have a lot of hobbies, but I tend to focus on a couple at a time. I found that I can’t successfully train for triathlons and martial arts at the same time, so I’ve put off triathlons until I get my black belt, and then I’ll start doing them again.

Since you’re so into music, as am I, do you often have it playing while you’re writing or do you find it distracting? What kinds of music do you play?
I tend to have music going through my head most of the time, and sometimes a song will pop up as I’m writing a scene. When I was writing the scene where Ashlyn is really depressed and writing in her journal, Mazzie Star’s “Into Dust” was playing in my brain, so I put it on and listened to it over and over while I polished up the scene. I have very eclectic taste. Anything with strong vocals (without too much embellishment) or good harmonies will get me every time.

I am also really curious, I have often thought about practicing some kind of martial art – but I have no idea what to look for or what might “fit” me as a person – I love the beauty of it, what I have seen, is there a particular kind you enjoy most? I know there's several different kinds noted in Rising Shadow that the characters practice, have you practiced them all?
I’ve done Tae Kwon Do, Hapkido, and Kuk Sool Won. First, you have to pick a style that matches your interests. Not all martial arts are that practical and focus a lot more on choreographed moves, which is wonderful for getting in shape and doing a moving meditation but won’t help you if someone jumps you. You can find anything from Qi Gong, which is purely about moving Qi (energy) through your body for health and vitality, to Krav Maga, which is what the Israeli army trains in for practical self-defense. If you go for one of the more combative styles, I think the most important thing is to find a good instructor who isn’t some hot head who gets his students injured.

Do you have any signing, or tours coming up that we should make note about?
I might do a signing at UC Santa Barbara during the alumni weekend in April, but that’s not firm yet. There are several bloggers reading Rising Shadow right now, so more reviews will come out soon, and Other Shelf Tours said they're interested in setting up a virtual tour.

Anything else you might like to share?
The most wonderful surprise of this whole journey has been the incredible people I’m meeting as a result. Bloggers like you who are so passionate about reading and wanting to share the things you find—you are the new gatekeepers in the publishing world and are getting good books into reader’s hands solely on what you like, not based on which publishing house they came from or how big their advertising budget is. My goal is not to write a best-seller but to tell a good story and get it into the hands of people who might be interested, and to meet some cool people along the way, and the blogosphere is allowing me to do that. So thank you!

Ok, one last question – music is really important to me, so do you have any thoughts on the kinds of things that Ashlyn and Kai would love to listen to?
You mean the music they would agree on? :) That would have to be Arvo Part in a quieter mood (Fratres for cello and piano is absolutely my favorite piece of all time), The Stone Roses in a retro mood, Radiohead or Coldplay on a road trip, and Gogol Bordello live.

LOL thank you so much Jacquelyn I am so excited to read Merger...It's going to be a fun ride I am sure. And I loved the music you picked for Ashlyn and Kai, it's funny music they can agree on...though they seem so similar on most things, music is I guess something very personal for everyone!

CONTEST!!! You can't have my signed copy - but I will send the winner there very own copy of Rising Shadow - I loved it so much, I think everyone should have a chance to read it before Merger comes out!

* International
* Winner will be choosen on Feb. 3rd (so you can hopefully get this awesome love story before Valentines Day)