Sensational Series Spotlight: Interview with Dani Harper

SSS Post #1 - Please leave a meaningful comment about this interview, or a question for Dani to gain entry into the Sensational Series Spotlight GIVEAWAY! Use Rafflecopter Form in this post, below.

Don't forget to come back to the BookShelf tomorrow for my review of Changeling Moon (repost) and more chances to enter!

“Welcome” to the “BookShelf, Dani! Thanks so much for sharing with us today!

Who is Dani Harper?

Most of the time, I’m Dani Harper, Paranormal Author. I’m married to an amazing man who inspires me daily, and I’m mom to four grown daughters and all their friends, plus two opinionated pugs. I’m incredibly fortunate that the entire bunch enthusiastically supports what I do and understands my need for coffee, chocolate and some solitude. I’m also lucky that they pull me out of my writing cave regularly and force me to participate in normal human activities.

What prompted you to write a novel?

I actually wanted to write from a very early age. I adored books, but I always knew I wanted to be the person on the other side of the paper, the one who made up the stories. I did a lot of creative writing as a teenager and filled up a lot of notebooks. As an adult, however, I spent most of my career in journalism and technical writing. It was my discovery of the paranormal romance genre that finally inspired me to begin writing fiction. I found a copy of an anthology containing Christine Feehan’s Dark Dream. Wow – I was soooo completely hooked by this new-to-me genre! I read every PNR I could get my hands on after that, and finally I just HAD to write my own.

Is Changeling Moon your first published novel/story?

I’ve had some stories brought out by small ebook companies, but Changeling Moon is my first novel with a major publisher (and I’m still pinching myself!)

Can you fill us in on the basic premise of the Changeling Series?

The Peace River region of northern Canada is a unique place where raw wilderness exists side by side with farmers’ fields. And in the quiet rural community of Dunvegan, human beings unknowingly exist side by side with those who are something more than human. They call themselves Changelings, and they have the ability to become wolves at will.

Changelings live as humans – they have jobs and pay bills and go to school and mow the grass and do all the things that humans do. They view their wolfen side as a wonderful gift, but it also complicates their lives, sometimes dangerously so. Especially when it comes to relationships.

Why Dunvegan, Alberta?

I lived in that area of northern Alberta, in the Peace River region, for over two decades. I had a little farm for a while too, and my first experience with wolves took place there. Dunvegan is an area on the river that was named for a similar-looking landscape in northern Scotland, which just happens to be where the Macleod family originated both in my books and in reality. I’m looking forward to exploring more of this unique history as the series progresses.

Despite the size of the Dunvegan pack, so far this series has featured the hunky men, Connor and James, of the Macleod family. Is there a specific reason for this?

The series really belongs to the Macleod family. There are six siblings and six books. However, many of the secondary characters have become very popular in their own right, so who knows what other stories may evolve?

Will readers learn more about pack mates outside the clan Macleod?

Definitely. I couldn’t keep these characters quiet if I tried!

Who has been the most difficult character to bring to life?

It’s always the one I’m working with at the moment and right now the culprit is Culley Macleod. He’s been a fun and easy supporting character in the past but right now he’s exasperating me. He’s the hero of my WIP and he’s not cooperating one bit! No wonder his siblings are always wanting to strangle him! I have my fingers crossed that the heroine will give him a kick in the butt for me.

Who is your most favorite character from the series, thus far?

I think I like Birkie Peterson the most. She’s the queen of down-to-earth, like a wise and unflappable mentor and everybody’s favorite aunt rolled into one. Birkie returns in Changeling Dawn (Book 3) which will be available for December 27, 2011.

What are the most challenging and the most rewarding aspects of writing?

The best feeling in the world – and the one that makes all the hours worth it – comes from a reader who really connects with something you’ve written. It’s like the two of you suddenly become co-creators, because you’ve worked together to bring a character to life.

The biggest challenge of writing for me is sitting still for long periods of time! I do like my laptop but I’d love to find a way to write where I can be more physically active. I have a pocket tape recorder that’s always with me, and I’ve been ogling treadmill desks! For now, I just try to make it to the local swimming pool for an hour each day.

How do you keep track of your world building?

That’s getting harder as my world gets bigger, LOL. I have a bulletin board, a notebook that acts as my character “bible”, copious paper and computer files. Yet I still find myself having to search back through my previous books for specific details.

You have an obvious passion for the paranormal, how did that happen?

I think my parents are still wondering that. Mutated gene perhaps?  I’ve had a lifelong love affair with the Netherworld and an insatiable appetite for ghostly events and darksome creatures since I was little. I always liked Halloween more than Christmas, and the candy was just a side benefit. To me, it was a holiday all about possibilities. Still is.

Interestingly, I managed to turn out four daughters who have the same obsession with the supernatural as their mom. I can just picture scientists discovering a strange new orange and black genome and dubbing it The Halloween Gene.

Who’s your favorite author? Do you have a favorite novel?

So many books, so many authors, so little time…..  I admire Stephen King for his uncanny talent to take you inside a character’s head. For instance, by the time I finished Duma Key, I was certain everything had happened to ME! I have two must-buy PNR authors:  Karen Chance and Patricia Briggs. Hunt the Moon by Karen Chance and River Marked by Patricia Briggs are the most recent additions to my keeper shelf. JR Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood series is on that shelf too.

Please share with us what can we expect from you next?

Book 3, Changeling Dawn, is Kenzie Macleod’s story and it’ll be released for December 27, 2011. I already spilled that Culley’s story will be Book 4, and I’m writing it as quickly as that prankster character will allow me to. Books 5 and 6 are in the works (and yes, that wolf medallion on the covers will finally be revealed!)

Do you have any upcoming appearances? If so where can our readers find you?

Living on an island in Alaska makes it a bit tough to make personal appearances, but thanks to the internet, I can make plenty of virtual ones! I post a schedule of my interviews, guest blogs, giveaways and other events on my website at www.daniharper.com .

Thanks again for participating in this event, Dani! I love the Changeling Series and very much appreciate the opportunity to host this interview and help spread the word!

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In Dani Harper's Changeling series, "readers will encounter a realistic and endearing cast of characters from within a super exciting reading adventure that will leave you fully satisfied". (See my review here)

Changeling Moon, Changeling #1
by Dani Harper
Brava
May 31, 2011
ISBN-10: 075826514X
ISBN-13: 978-075826514

Blurb
He roams the moonlit wilderness, his every sense and instinct on high alert. Changeling wolf Connor Macleod and his Pack have never feared anything -- until the night human Zoey Tyler barely escapes a rogue werewolf's vicious attack.

As the full moon approaches, Zoey has no idea of the changes that are coming, and only Connor can show her what she is, and help her master the wildness inside. With her initiation into the Pack just days away and a terrifying predator on the loose, the tentative bonds of trust and tenderness are their only weapons against a force red in tooth, claw ... and ultimate evil.

Changeling Dream, Changeling #2
by Dani Harper
Brava
June 28, 2011)
ISBN-10: 0758265166
ISBN-13: 978-0758265166

Blurb
In times of stress Jillian Descharme has always found calm in her dream of a great white wolf with haunting blue eyes. But she is startled when the visions return and this time seem so real. Late at night he comes to her, speaks to her, touches her. It's almost as if he's alive...


Thirty years ago James Macleod lost his wife and unborn child to a killer bent on destroying the Changelings. Though he longed for death, his animal instinct fought for survival and James has been a wolf ever since. Yet now a woman has reawakened the man in him, taming wild instincts but arousing still wilder needs.  With his ancient enemy hunting the legendary white wolf, James must fight for new life, new hope, new love.

Changeling Dawn, Changeling #3
by Dani Harper
Brava 
December 27, 2011
ISBN-10: 0758265182
ISBN-13: 978-0758265180

Blurb

Run

Shadow and moonlight merge beneath her bare feet, the forest floor blurring as she flees the dogs and torches. Werewolf, monster—those are the names given her kind by the humans who hate them.

Hunt

Kenzie Macleod has spent her whole life hiding what she is, and she’s not about to open up to any man, even one as powerfully attractive as wildlife expert Josh Talarkoteen. But legend says that a Changeling cannot escape the call of her true mate, even in the wilderness of backcountry Alaska.

Mate

An isolated archeological site, a terrified Changeling cub, a shadowy research facility—as Kenzie and Josh face the ultimate betrayal, his obsidian eyes promise untold pleasure and hint at dark secrets of his own…

Find Dani on the Web

Website

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Twitter

Blog: "Way Past Normal"

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