LILIAN'S BOOK BLOG: My first Author Spotlight on a well deserved author the wonderful Freya Barker

AUTHOR'S SPOTLIGHT

Today the Spotlight is on Freya Barker

Please tell us a bit about yourself.

I’m a bit of a late bloomer, started writing just a little over a year ago and became addicted instantly.

I grew up in a family of readers, as the youngest of six kids. Books and reading are to this day important to all of us. I had toyed with the idea of stories before but never quite made the move to put anything on paper.

Life ‘happened’ and with the kids finally grown and my employability reduced to zero—not to mention my limited capacity for sleep—I took a leap. Nothing to lose, so why not? I write things I want to read myself. Stories that pull on my own heartstrings, that get my own pulse pounding. In short, I write for ME first and foremost.

I am super grateful to all the amazing readers out there who have appreciated my writing. You all make it so much easier for me but now that I’ve found it, I don’t think I could stop even if no one bought a single book. I’m hooked, line and sinker.

Tell us about your latest book/series. If yours is a series please tell us the order they should be read in.

I have an upcoming 5th novel in my series Cedar Tree, which is the story of Clint and Beth. These two have been spotted in the previous books and are ready to have their own story told.

Cedar Tree is a small town in Colorado where the main draw is Arlene’s Diner and the newest business in town is GFI, a private investigations and security firm that settled in town in book #1, Slim To None. The series describes a group of colleagues and friends who become more like family. All this forged by the joint battling of bad guys and spiced up by their discovery that a healthy, exciting sex life is not just for the twenty-somethings.

Even though each story can be read as a standalone, the full out experience is better when you follow the order. It is as follows:

*Slim To None

*Hundred To One

*Against Me

*Clean Lines

*Upper Hand (releasing October 8th)

I also have one standalone unrelated to Cedar Tree called “From Dust”, which was released in a most successful way this August. There may or may not be a follow-up story featuring one of the secondary characters in the plans….

Tell us about your Work in Progress

The book I am writing now is book #6 in the series and is called “Like Arrows”. The story is Malachi’s, who is Caleb’s brother (see Against Me). Mal headed a criminal gang only a few years ago and started turning things around in recent years. He is now working for GFI which is how he meets……

I think I’m gonna keep that a secret for a little bit longer!

What inspires your writing?

Everything and anything. My own experiences, the news, daily events, people I know. Anything and everything.

You’ve heard the Mark Twain quote: Truth is stranger than fiction? It’s true! There isn’t a story we can conjure from our slightly warped minds that isn’t based in some way in the reality around us.

Life inspires my writing.

What do you do when you are not writing?

Ermmm…. on those rare occasions, I design covers for other authors and I still read each and every day. I can’t sleep without it.

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How hard was it to get your first book published?

Not easy, but nothing is at first go. The learning curve is steep and I’m still learning daily.

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Did you find it hard to think of names for your characters or did they just pop into your head?

Sometimes they pop, other times I randomly stick my finger into the newspaper and the name closest to it wins the prize. But there are also times that I consciously use the name of someone who means or has come to mean a great deal to me. I then use their names as a tribute of sorts.

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Do you prefer stand-alone or series?

Oh man, I thought I would love standalone, which I did when I wrote “From Dust”. Yet when others read it, they immediately pointed out that one of it’s secondary characters needed a book of their own.

Maybe I was destined to write series. I still prefer to make each book a standalone within. I don’t think I could manage a serial or a cliffhanger if I tried.

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Do you read the genre you write about or do you prefer something different?

I don’t know that I fit in any particular genre myself. It’s called romantic suspense, but some consider it contemporary romance or even erotica. I think the truth lies somewhere in the middle (doesn’t it always?).

Similarly when I read or select books to read, they are usually books that come from a variety of directions. The only genre I can never find myself managing is historical romance. I have such admiration for those authors who tackle that genre. It requires a tremendous amount of research and devotion to transfer readers back in time. I can’t handle the language. I am a simple gal and like to read my books in a way that allows me to feel part of it. I can’t do that with the more classic and often flowery and descriptive language customary in Historical.

Now tell us about your absolute favorite book that you have read, and why it is special to you.

I can’t. Seriously I can’t. No one book deserves that distinction on its own, but an entire slew of fantastic books deserves it collectively.

The common thread among all of those is strength, growth, grit and emotion.

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How to you get your books to the attention of the public?

Hahahaha, with difficulty and by whatever means at hand! I advertise, I have fabulous people who offer help through their connections, their social media pages and their blogs. The truth is, it is the MOST difficult part of being a writer for me. I’d rather spend time writing some more!

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Do you have a street team or the likes? If so would you like to share the link so our readers may consider joining?

I do! I have both. My author page is http://www.facebook.com/FreyaBarkerWrites and everyone is welcome.

My street team is called Freya’s Barks&Bites and we have fun, I find support there for when I need additional opinions on something and I usually share information there first. I appreciate pimping but it is not a pre-requisite; a share here or there is welcomed. The one thing I do ask is that you are familiar with my books and have a genuine interest in being there.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/727362817354038/

PURCHASE LINKS

⭐️"SLIM TO NONE" (Cedar Tree #1) ⭐️

myBook.to/SlimToNone

⭐️"HUNDRED TO ONE” (Cedar Tree #2)⭐️

myBook.to/HundredToOne

⭐️”AGAINST ME” (Cedar Tree #3)⭐️

myBook.to/AgainstMe

⭐️”CLEAN LINES" (Cedar Tree #4) ⭐️

myBook.to/CleanLines

⭐️”UPPER HAND” (Cedar Tree #5)⭐️

myBook.to/UpperHand