Devri
Walls is the best-selling author of six YA fantasy novels. She is a theater
major with a flare for the dramatic and wishes more than anything for a magic
wand. Devri is from Boise Idaho where she lives with her husband, two kids and
the cutest mutt of a dog the world has ever seen. When she’s not writing she
can be found teaching voice lessons, trying to resist the urge to sell her two
beautiful children to the circus, and cooking. Because…. food. Mmmmmmm.
Connect with the Author here:
"Six
years ago, Grey Malteer was attacked by creatures he thought couldn’t possibly
exist. They repeated a word, calling him a name he’d never heard
before…Venator. Since then, his life has been a hellhole of secrecy—hiding old
pain alongside strange new abilities.
Rune
Jenkins has an itch, as she calls it, but it’s more than that. It’s an anger
that builds up like the inside of a boiler whenever she’s around anything
remotely supernatural. The pressure is growing steadily worse and she can’t
understand why. All she knows is—her control is slipping.
By
order of an unknown council Grey and Rune are pulled through a portal in the
St. Louis arch, landing them in an alternate dimension where creatures of myth
and legend exist. A realm that calls them, Venators.
Made
up of centuries old fae, vampires, werewolves, elves and succubi the council’s
corrupt nature becomes obvious as they seek to wield the newly returned
Venators as weapons. Wedged in an impossible position, Grey and Rune must
decide their fate—do they go against the council’s wishes and help the
innocents of this unforgiving land, or face the possibility of execution by the
council."
Q & A:
1 If you had 3 wishes, what would they be?
To
travel the world with my husband.
That
my kids will grow into successful, kind, responsible adults.
To see
my books in bookstores around the world.
2
Where do you write?
I
really have to bounce around a lot. Areas go stale for me, I don’t know why. I
have an office and sometimes I work at my desk or armchair in there. When that
doesn’t work I pick different chairs throughout the house. When THAT doesn’t
work, I flee. I have a favorite place in
my hometown called The Village. It has
indoor and outdoor seating, restaurants, fountains, loads of flowers! Oh, I just
love it there. I’ll work in coffee shops sometimes, or parks. Wherever my
laptop can go and my brain decides it can focus, that’s where I land.
3 How long does it normally take you to write a novel?
That
varies so much! I’ve done it in 6 months, lately it’s been more like 9+ months.
I will never be a super speedy 1 month for a book writer. My personal writing
style mixed with a fantasy genre… yeah super speed is just not going to happen.
But I am working on picking up the pace again.
4 What are your inspirations?
Everything!!!
Nature, books, movies, people. You name it, hit me at the right time and the
smallest things can inspire a total novel.
5 How did you come to write this particular book or
series?
I
was actively looking for something to write that could be a long series. One
that lent itself to that naturally, as opposed to feeling forced when a series
continues past an original three book idea. Because of this I chose to lay out this
series more episodically than my previous books. This allowed me unlimited,
organic storylines. Each book is a full length epic adventure, but written with
both inner book story arcs, and large series story arcs that are slowly
unfolding.
And
because I am somewhat addicted to the freedom of writing fantasy I wanted to
try something that was truly unlimited. The world of the Venators has both
Fantasy and Paranormal elements combined, which means I can have a dragon and a
vampire in the same book and it totally works! I’m very excited about this
series. So far the biggest challenge has been to keep my brain from spiraling
off into all the hundred of story ideas available to me.
6 What was the hardest part of writing your book, and
how did you overcome it?
Book
one is always the hardest for me, everything feels…slippery. The characters, the world, they feel a little hollow. The
only way for me to overcome it is to just keep going. Keep rewriting scenes
until things are fully fleshed out and I have a better handle on what I’m
trying to create here. It’s exhausting and first books always take me longer.
But once I’ve finished that process the rest of the series flows.
7 What is your writing drive? The power that keeps you
going when your writing gets difficult?
The
fact that I love it. Writing fulfills a part of me that demands to be fulfilled.
There are times, many times, where I
cry and wonder why I’m still plugging away at this. In those times, I imagine
for a moment quitting, and I just can’t fathom my life without it. So I knuckle
down and try to focus on my love for the craft.
8 How did you come up with the title?
Titles
are hard! This one was easier than most because the main characters are called
Venators. It made sense with the layout I chose to title it Venators and use subtitles
for each new book.
9 Name one entity that you feel supported you outside
of family member?
Does
my counselor count? Lol! But no, seriously, my counselor. Unfortunately a
writer’s personal life has EVERYTHING to do with their writing. Personal trauma
derails a great many of us. Having someone there to help me sort out those
thoughts and feelings that get in the way of my craft is huge.
To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page
Thanks for having me!
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