Interview | Suzi Davis, The Lost Magic series and a giveaway!!!

Today, we’re welcoming the fabulous Suzi Davis to the blog.  Suzi’s Amber Frost is the first book in The Lost Magic series, and she very recently released the sequel, Silver Dew.  With incredible characterization, vivid storytelling and an original mythology of Celtic magic, Davis does a fantastic job of luring the reader in and convincing them to emotionally invest in her plot and her characters.

 

 

 

Click on the covers above to read more about each book, and click HERE to read my review of Silver Dew

 

 

A little more about Suzi…

[box]Suzi Davis is a British-born Canadian writer and artist and has been writing stories and poetry for as long as she can remember. Her current focus is on writing young adult novels whose genre allows her to explore the relationships between families, friends and young lovers. Interested in the paranormal, there is always an added element of magical fantasy to whatever tale she spins. Suzi lives on British Columbia’s Vancouver Island with her husband and young sons.[/box]

 

 

1. So first and foremost, what inspired The Lost Magic series? What was the thing that planted the idea in your head and really got the wheels turning?

The furthest back I can trace the idea for The Lost Magic to is when I was in high school. I remember walking home from the bus stop one day and the wind suddenly picked up and swirled dead leaves all around me – it gave me chills. And I remember thinking, what if strange, inexplicable things like that always happened wherever you went. It was about eight years later that I started playing with the idea again and that’s when Sebastian’s character was born. Everything else fell into place from there.

 

 

2. There are a lot of Celtic/Irish elements in the nature of the magic and history of both Amber Frost and Silver Dew. What kind of research did you find yourself doing for these books?

I really enjoyed the research that I did for both books. For Silver Dew, I spent a lot of time looking at pictures, reading travel blogs, researching cities and flights and even interviewing people that had travelled to some of the places in the second book. My original degree is in Visual Arts and I took a LOT of Art History courses so some of my knowledge of Celtic history and art comes from there. I had always loved the idea of tying drawings and patterns into The Lost Magic (Amber Frost begins with a “design” for many reasons) and Celtic patterns suited this need so well. Not to mention that Ireland has always seemed like such a magical and mysterious place to me with a beautiful landscape and rich history – it was a great opportunity to explore all these elements.

 

 

3. Can you tell us about the development of Gracelynn and Sebastian? Are they modeled after anyone from real life? They each go through some pretty difficult things, was it difficult for you as a writer to take your characters through some of experiences and circumstances that happen to them?

Without a doubt it was the idea for Sebastian’s character that started this series. His character came first and the story was shaped around it. Once I had decided that Sebastian couldn’t remember his past and wouldn’t understand his own magic, I realized I needed to create a character to help him along that path of self-discovery – and that’s when Gracelynn appeared. But the tables soon turned and they ended up helping each other in ways I never originally anticipated. What originally appeared to be Sebastian’s story, quickly turned into Gracelynn’s.

 

Like everything in my stories, the characters are random compilations of things from my life, my dreams and my imagination. A lot of people have asked if Sebastian’s character is inspired by my husband? He’s not. But there is one line in Amber Frost that is actually something my husband said to me once – you can go ahead and speculate! But Sebastian’s eyes are inspired by my son’s – they shift colours and there has always been magic sparkling within them. Gracelynn isn’t much like me or anyone I know! She’s such an interesting combination of confidence and insecurity. I really enjoy the journey her character goes through in Silver Dew. There were some parts that were hard to write but since I always knew the outcome, that made it easier to put my characters through what I felt I must. The hardest part to write (and the part I was most looking forward to) was actually the Epilogue.

 

 

4. Are there more adventures in store for Gracelynn and Sebastian? Or I guess I should ask, any adventures that will be written?

Hmmm… how to answer this one? Let’s just say, yes, I do expect there will be more books in The Lost Magic series. It’s been a very busy year (2 books published and a new baby in the past 365 days!) so I plan on slowing things down a bit. I have a lot of ideas and I’ve grown to love Sebastian and Gracelynn, so I’m not quite ready to let them go completely!

 

 

5. Have you always been a storyteller, and what pushed you to publish?

I have always loved reading and writing, and have always had a pretty big imagination. About five years ago I decided to just go for it and I wrote my first book. I’ve written 5 books now, 2 have been published, 1 was repeatedly rejected (the first I ever wrote) and the other two have never been read by anyone but myself! Writing is just so amazing to me. The process of creating a whole intricate world and getting to take it out of your head and share it with others has a magic of its own – and it’s addictive!

 

 

6. Can you tell us about any upcoming works-in-progress that you’ve been working on? What’s next for you?

There is a Young Adult book that I wrote in between Amber Frost and Silver Dew that I am currently cleaning up and reworking. I also recently began writing another Young Adult paranormal, and I have plans to write at least one more book for The Lost Magic series. I have lots to keep me busy and never enough time to get it all done. You will definitely see more books from me in the future.

 

 

And now we have a GIVEAWAY! A big thanks to Central Avenue Publishing for providing an ebook of Silver Dew!

ONE (1) follower will win ONE (1) Kindle/Nook ebook of Amber Frost by Suzi Davis

ONE (1) follower will win ONE (1) ebook of Silver Dew by Suzi Davis

 

Please fill out the Rafflecopter form to enter.  This is mandatory.  Comments will not be counted as your mandatory entry. You must be a GFC follower to enter.  Complete rules and conditions are listed below the Rafflecopter form.

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