Author Spotlight: Tasha Black | CJC Photography

Author Spotlight: Tasha Black

Bane by Tasha Black, Tasha Black USA Today Best Selling Author, CJC Photography book cover photographerCJC: How did you get started as an author and what made you want to pursue that field? 

TB: I’ve always been a big reader and I love all things magical. Shows like True Blood are my favorite – sexy, action-packed, fantastical and funny! I realized that there were no books that embodied exactly what I wanted to read. So in summer of 2014 I set out to write one myself!

CJC: What do you find to be the most rewarding and challenging part of bring an author and what hurdles have your overcome while striving towards your goals?

TB: Writing is a solitary activity and I’m a social person! So locking myself up alone to write can be hard at the beginning of a book. But once I start connecting with the characters and getting to know them it’s much easier to “hang out” with them. And of course I have amazing readers who write to me, and my husband who quit his job to work with me once the books took off!

CJC: Which novel has been your favorite to write and why?

TB: I love them all, but the very first one, Curse of the Alpha, was the most magical experience because it was the culmination of all the things I always wanted to read! Writing is much easier for me now, fifty or so books later, but that experience was really liberating!

CJC: For first time readers of your work, which book would you recommend?

TB: You can start almost anywhere! The Single Daddy Shifters series begins with Axel. Bane is the second book, so there’s plenty of time to catch up! If you prefer to start with a freebie, Burn This (the first book of my 300 Moons series) and Bond (the first book of my Stargazer Alien Mail Order Brides series) are both free right now!

CJC: If one of your books were made into a movie, which would you select and who would you like to star in it?

TB: I think my superhero romance, Building a Hero, would be a fun movie or mini-series! I’d cast Jason Momoa as the male lead, West Worthington!

CJC: For those looking to become an author, what advice would you give them?

TB: Just write. Lots of readers who want to become writers get focused on publishing, pricing, covers, etc. The hardest thing to do is get your butt in a chair and let the words out. My own goal is just 1,000 words per day. But if you stick to it, at the end of the year, that’s quite a few books! And every word builds your skill and helps you know your strengths and weaknesses better. There is no substitute for practice!

CJC: If you could co-write a book with any author, who would it be and why?

TB: My books are all co-written with my darling husband, who helps me plot and then edits my first draft. I love writing this way as it allows each of us to work to our strengths. There are so many other authors I would love to write with! My author friend, Sylvia Frost and I just finished the first-draft of a romance featuring Greek mythology together! And there are SO many authors I would be honored to write with. I find it very stimulating to share ideas and excitement with another author!

CJC: Favorite motto? 

TB: Done is better than perfect. (In other words, just write!)

CJC: What do you do to overcome writer’s block?

TB: I read a lot to keep my creativity flowing – almost never romance, I like to read classics and YA! Also, I plot my books, so I don’t really get blocked – when I sit down to write I already know what I’m going to do with that time! Focusing can be hard sometimes, but burning a candle helps or listening to soft, instrumental music.

CJC: In one word, how would you describe your writing style?

TB: Welcoming!

CJC: Which do you find harder to do… writing the blurb for your story or select the cover?

TB: I’m almost always inspired by my covers – which I tend to order before writing the books! Writing a blurb is much harder!

CJC: Which author inspires you the most and why?

TB: I’m constantly inspired by Lev Tolstoy. He wrote War & Peace as a magazine serial and I’m in permanent amazement at how he held together those characters and that enormous storyline – publishing one part before writing the next! When I get overwhelmed with my continuing series I scold myself by reading a bit of his!

CJC: What is your writing process like? 

TB: Mr. Black and I sit down and talk about what would be a fun story! Then we write “beats” – little scene descriptions – almost like if you were describing a tv show to a friend. Then I turn each beat into a full chapter. After that he edits and rewrites. Then off it goes to beta readers, proofreader, etc. And when it’s as polished as it can be I read it one more time for last minute typos that escaped everyone else (yes, that happens) and off it goes into the wild! My goal is a perfect book – one that will make the reader feel like I just gave them a big warm hug and handed them a cold bottle of CocaCola!

CJC: What new projects are you currently working on and what are your goals for the remainder of the year? 

TB: The Single Daddy Shifters series is a paranormal romance with sexy shifter dads and the fierce, lucky women who become their mates. Right now I’m writing the first-draft of the second of three SciFi Romance novels that will release this Spring! Those are set on a luxury space cruiser and they’re kind of like the old TV show The Love Boat in space! Though I write both PNR and SciFi the threads throughout my work are found families, humor, and small-town (or ship) settings that are characters in their own right.

CJC: Any final thoughts you would like to share with the CJC Photography readers?

TB: The cover for Bane was so inspiring to me. Working with professionals like Christopher and Taylor allowed my designer, The Book Brander, to create a cover that really speaks to the warmth and humor in the story. I’m so grateful to the whole team for helping the cover of Bane really express the fun and love in the book!

CJC: This project was a first for me. I’ve never done a father/son themed book cover before and it really meant a lot to try something new. This is something Taylor and his son Ashton can look back on 10 years from now and really reminisce about. Thank you so much Tasha.

Bane is now available and can be purchased here.

Stay up to date with all of Tasha’s latest releases here.

 

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