Hello & Welcome!

Today I’m happy to introduce Jennifer Siddoway author of Dealing with the Devil. Jennifer, Thank you for visiting Angel’s Guilty Pleasures and speaking with me today.

What have you written?

I have written the first and second books in the Earthwalker Trilogy. Book one, Dealing with the Devil, is available in paperback and as an e-book. The second book in the series, The Devil’s Due, should come out Late May or early June of this year. I’m thoroughly enjoying writing about these characters and love where Wynn’s journey is taking me. Once I have completed her trilogy, I would love to write about her mother and how she got involved with this demon to begin with.

Which character in what book are you most similar to and why?

I definitely relate to Wynn quite closely, especially since we’re both strong willed, fiery red heads that grew up in the south. I think we have a lot in common and I particularly enjoy her brand of snark.

I think it’s almost impossible not to put a little of yourself into the characters you write. Obviously, I’m not a demon like the character in my book, but Wynn absolutely displays some of my personality quirks – the good and the bad. Every now and then I find myself giving her habits or personality quirks that I display myself and laugh it off a bit.

On one hand, she is funny, brave, and fiercely devoted to her family. On the other, she has some anger management issues, a fiery temper, and is also kind of a jerk at times. That’s understandable because she is, in fact, a demon and it gives her personality depth. No one is without flaw.

Most of the time when we read about teenage girls, we must ask ourselves if they are vicious or vulnerable—I suggest that they’re both. There is something deliciously satisfying about co-existing in that dual relationship and while I don’t strive to be like Wynn, her shortcomings are human nature.

For your own reading, do you prefer e-books or traditional paper/hard back books?

That is a difficult one to answer! I love the feel and texture of having a book in my hand, but lately I’ve found more and more that I’m reading things on my kindle. As fun as it is to hold a paperback, they take up a lot of space after a while and can be extremely heavy.

What is your favorite color, food, and TV show?

My favorite color is bright teal or turquoise. There’s something about the electric blue that I just love ESPECIALLY when its couples with purple or black. Unfortunately, I don’t get to wear it very often because it looks terrible with my complexion, but I try to use it anywhere else I can.

My favorite foods include anything with gooey melty cheese. I’m not much one for chocolate, but melted cheese is my Achilles heel. Also, bacon. Give me all the bacon and we won’t have any problems. LOL.

The TV shows I’m watching right now are usually lighthearted and funny, such as Community, Parks and Rec, or How I Met Your Mother. I don’t really enjoy or get into political dramas, especially considering the current state of affairs, I just want to laugh and be entertained.

How did you come up with the concept and the characters for Dealing with the Devil?

I’ve always loved Fairy Tales and enjoy a good re-telling of an established plotline. It’s especially fun if there’s a dramatic shift, or unexpected role reversal. I started toying with the idea of Rumpelstiltskin and started thinking, “What if something went wrong?”

I didn’t want to do an actual re-telling, so I twisted things around a bit and tried to picture how that would play out from the point of view from the child who got wished away. The whole concept of selling your unborn child to the devil is such a terrible thing to digest you have to wonder what kind of a person would do that. Around the same time, I was pregnant with my first child and a well-meaning, older person in church put her hand on my stomach and said, “You only get to work hand in hand with God to create life a handful of times in life, so enjoy it while you can.”

I knew what she meant was intended to be sweet and reassuring, but I just felt this chill run down my spine. “What if I wasn’t? What if it wasn’t God that I was creating life with?”

I walked away and my arms were covered with goosebumps and after that the story just wrote itself.

What was the hardest thing about writing Dealing with the Devil?

Editing, hands down. I made the rookie mistake of trying to edit my own work and that just made me miserable. I’ve since learned my lesson and decided to leave that to professionals because I never know when to stop and leave it alone. If left to my own devices the story would never be finished, I would be continually going back and adding scenes here and there and tweaking dialogue. It important to know when to stop.

What is your favorite scene from Dealing with the Devil? 

I think my favorite scene from Dealing with the Devil is when Wynn wakes up from waving this hallucinatory fever and realizes she’s transformed into a demon. She’s been living in denial of what’s happening to her up till this point, but now faced with the reality of her situation, realizes that she doesn’t know how to conceal it without being trained in how to use magic.

I rolled up the sleeve of my shirt to expose the irritated patch of skin, or more appropriately, lack thereof. On the inner side of my forearm was a large section of flesh that had sloughed away to reveal a pattern of black and reddish scales. My hair was still the fiery, red that it had always been, but instead of curling gracefully down my back it looked as though it had been set ablaze with heatless flames. I still maintained a woman’s

figure, but my skin was covered in hard back scales and a pair of enormous, leathery wings sprung outward from my back.

As I stared at my reflection in the mirror and tried to formulate a statement in my mind, the words would just not come. “I’m…”

“Beautiful,” Aidan finished for me. “You’re a demon, Wynn. That human illusion was just a shell to conceal your true identity. Now that your demon half has been activated, your body’s begun rejecting it and your true, magnificent form has finally broken free. May I just say what a pleasure it is to be seeing you at last.”

“I’m a monster…” I muttered dismally.

He rolled his eyes dismissively and sat up in his seat. “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, love. I’m telling you, you’re no such thing.”

If you could have given your characters any piece of advice before the opening pages of their book, what would it be and why?

Oh man, If I could give Wynn advice it would be to sign up for some anger management issues! Take a yoga class, learn about meditation, something. She’s extremely emotional and needs to learn the art of Zen.

I’d also tell her to believe in herself and trust her instincts a little more.

If you could spend the day with one of the characters in Dealing with the Devil, who would it be and what would you guys do?”

If I could spend one day with any of my characters, it would probably be Aidan. He is sexy, funny and just the right amount of dangerous. Because he’s the Lord of Pride he’s incredibly well dressed and has charisma oozing out his eyeballs, I absolutely adored writing him and can’t wait to see where this story takes me.

What would we do? … I’ve always wanted to go dancing with the devil ?

Jennifer, it was a pleasure having you visit. Thank you for taking the time to chat with me today!

 

Dealing with the Devil

The Earthwalker Trilogy #1
by Jennifer Siddoway
Publication Date: March 6, 2017
Genres: Romantic Fantasy

She wanted to be like any other girl…Fate had other plans.

Wynnona Hendricks has some shocking surprises in store. Struggling to figure out her comatose mother’s secret, Wynn gets more than she bargained for, and ends up caught between the realms of Heaven, Hell, and Earth, fighting for her life.

Family and friends are stunned by her bizarre behavior; the only one who believes in her is Caleb, an angel who chose to spare her life . But by saving her, he may have started a war between the factions, throwing the Mortal Realm into mayhem. Wynn discovers new allies, new enemies—including her own human weakness—and new powers. To protect her family she vows to fight. Like. HELL.

Purchase: Amazon

 

Jennifer is an author from Tallahassee, Florida who writes paranormal romance and fantasy novels for young adults. She is a member of both Gulf Coast Authors and the Florida Writers Association. After receiving a degree in theatre from BYU and working as a scenic artist for twelve years, she changed careers to do what she really loves—writing.

Jennifer believes that part of her job as an artist and story teller is to create a narrative that explores a fresh perspective and leaves the audience thinking. Even as a child, she has always been intrigued by Grimm’s Fairy Tales and particularly enjoys a twist on an established plotline. When she’s not busy writing or burying her nose in a book, Jennifer enjoys doing medieval reenactment with her husband and two children.

Her debut novel, Dealing with the Devil, is a contemporary Young Adult Fantasy and the first book in the Earthwalker Trilogy. Jennifer is a member of the Florida Writer’s Association and the Gulf Coast Authors.

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