Today, I welcome Catherine Mesick onto my blog, for an interview and an excerpt from her book, Pure. Isn't the cover absolutely gorgeous?!
Pure
(Pure Series, Book 1)
Catherine Mesick
After people from her small town begin to vanish, 16-year-old Katie travels to Russia to unravel the truth behind her family’s past. There, she meets mysterious William — a handsome stranger who may be hiding dark secrets of his own… A fast-paced fantasy filled with romance and adventure!
This book is FREE on #Kindle!
INTERVIEW
Writing Interview questions.
What inspired you to write this book?
I was inspired to write Pure by Russian fairy tales—particularly the ones about a heroine named Vasilisa the Beautiful (or the Wise, as she is sometimes known). I loved reading about her as a child—she was brave and resourceful and had scary yet magical adventures. I also drew inspiration from the “Imperial” Fabergé eggs—in particular the Rosebud egg. My main character, Katie, can conjure a sphere of light, and I pictured it having colors just like that egg, though it doesn’t necessarily have all those rubies and diamonds!
Can you share something about the book that isn’t covered in the blurb?
The book is also a bit of a “whodunnit.” People are disappearing in Katie’s hometown, and she has to find out who is responsible.
If you had to describe your protagonist(s), in three words, what would those three words be and why?
Katie is dreamy, inquisitive, and romantic. She’s dreamy because she wonders about her family’s past and the secrets her grandmother seems to be keeping. Her inquisitiveness is just a part of her nature, and it’s what makes her such a good student—but it’s also what draws her into investigating the disappearances in her town. And Katie is a romantic at heart—she’s hoping to find true love someday.
What are you currently working on?
Right now, I’m working on the fifth book in the Pure series. This one will reveal a lot of answers to questions that have run throughout the series!
What would you tell an aspiring author who had some doubts about their writing abilities?
I would tell any aspiring author to just jump in and start writing! Sometimes people think that writing ability is like magic and that you either have the talent or you don’t. But every bestselling author today was once a small child who couldn’t even spell his or her own name. Everybody has to learn how to write, and I believe everyone can learn to write a good book. So my advice would definitely be to go for it!
Personal Interview questions.
What do you like to do when you are not writing?
When I’m not writing, I spend a lot of time reading, and I’m always looking for new authors I can add to my reading list. That’s why I love blogs like Candlelight Reading. They help me to find new-to-me authors.
What did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be a ballet dancer when I grew up. Unfortunately, I wasn’t very coordinated!
What’s for dinner tonight? What would you rather be eating?
For dinner tonight, there will be salmon, brown rice, and spinach. All of which I love. However, I’d rather have macaroni and cheese, which is one of my favorite “comfort” foods.
What would be a perfect day?
On a perfect day, I would travel to a country I’d never been to before and get to spend most of the daylight hours exploring. Then as the sun went down, I would spend the rest of the evening writing. 😊
What is the best part of your day?
The best part of my day is the early morning when I first wake up and everything is quiet. That’s when I get a lot of my best work done.
Either or!
Tea or coffee: Tea
Hot or cold: Hot
Movie or book: Book
Morning person or Night owl: Morning person
City or country: Country
Social Media or book: Book
Paperback or ebook: Paperback
EXCERPT
I leaned my forehead against the dark window, welcoming the feel of the cool glass against my feverish skin.
I could feel the night calling to me, though I didn’t exactly know what I meant by that. It had been happening more often lately—it was a strange tugging on my mind.
Something was pulling me out into the dark.
In an unguarded moment, GM had told me that my mother had had visions. The way the night called to me, I wondered if this feeling was the beginning of a vision.
I wished I could talk to my mother. I’d been wishing for that more and more often lately.
I turned away from the window, trying to shake off the feeling that tugged on my mind, and I picked up the framed photograph that always sat next to my bed. In the photo, a man with curly brown hair and a pale, blond woman smiled as they kneeled on either side of a laughing, fair-haired girl of five. The inscription on the back was hidden by the frame, but I knew well what it said. In GM’s busy scrawl were the words Daniel, Katie, Nadya.
My father, me, my mother.
Though the memories were faint, I did remember those early days in Russia. I remembered the big apple tree and the roses that grew at our house. I remembered playing with my red-haired cousin, Odette.
I remembered, too, the day GM had taken the picture. Little had she known then that her son-in-law and her daughter would be dead soon afterward.
My father had died first in an accident in the mountains. My mother died just a few weeks later of a fever, and GM had moved us to the United States shortly after that. We’d been here for eleven years now, and my old life was beyond my reach for good.
I set the picture down.
The darkness continued to call to me, and I tried to force my mind back to reality—back to what was normal and safe and unrelated to the unknown out in the dark.
I thought of my friends—and school—but even as I did so, I felt a sudden, sharp tug on my mind, and I was seized by an irrational desire to run out into the night—and to keep running until I found the source of the summons.
I closed my eyes and willed the feeling away.
After a moment, the night calling began to subside. I concentrated harder, pushing it further away from me. In another few minutes, the feeling was gone entirely. Relief flooded through me.
I was free.
I stood for a moment, breathing hard and looking around at all the familiar objects in my room, as if to reassure myself. Then I climbed back into bed and turned out the light.
I was just drifting off to sleep when I was jolted wide-awake by the sound of a car tearing down our street. The car screeched to a halt somewhere below my window, and then turned sharply into our driveway.
I sat up. I heard the muffled slam of two car doors outside, and I heard GM, who usually kept late hours, hurrying toward the door.
I got out of bed and fumbled in the dark to find a robe. I was puzzled—who could possibly have come to see us in the middle of the night?
Catherine Mesick is the author of Pure, Firebird, Dangerous Creatures, Ghost Girl, Little Sun, and A Maryland Witch. She is a graduate of Pace University and Susquehanna University. She lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Thank you very much for having me! It was lovely to be here. :)
ReplyDelete