AAD Author Spotlight: Carolyn Crane

If you have been reading my blog recently you may have noticed that I have become a bit obsessed with the (new to me) Disillusionists Trilogy and it’s spin off novellas. Carolyn Crane has become a must read/auto buy author for me. So I am beyond excited to have Carolyn guest blogging here today.

Don't forget to enter the giveaway at the end of this post!


THERE’S A THIN LINE BETWEEN LOVE AND DOOM.
No wager is too outrageous for Simon Fitzgerald, the most reckless of the Disillusionists. His dark secrets drive him to take increasingly extreme risks, but he’s never lived so quite so dangerously as when he hooks up with Midcity’s most powerful prognosticator.
Fawna Brady is tormented by the destinies she sees for those around her. To Fawna, knowledge of the future is a cage she’d do anything to escape. She’s stunned to discover a taste of the freedom for which she yearns at the side of Simon, the one person in the world who despises everything she is, everything she stands for.
Simon’s defiant attitude toward destiny captivates Fawna, but will her love destroy him? And will Simon rush headlong into the delicious doom she offers?  (e-book novella)
Read my review for Devil's Luck here
Read my review for the Disillusionists Trilogy here 

Please join me in giving Carolyn a warm welcome!

Seven confessions about luck!

In honor of upcoming St. Patty’s day, and the fact that Devil’s Luck, my new stand-alone novella from the disillusionists world, just came out, I’m talking about luck today!

My sordid history in the luck business
I used to work at this import store where we had little trinkets and masks from all over the world. We really didn’t know what most of the stuff was, but our manager always told us to say everything was for good luck. Let me tell you, we sold some very demonic-looking masks and trinkets to people that they thought were for luck, but heavens knows what they were really for (cue Brady Bunch music. Greg finds the amulet in the Hawaiian cave!) But part of me thinks, if they thought it was for luck, it was probably lucky. Hopefully. 

Luck in books
Do you ever think, with different people in your life who are important to you, how lucky you were to ever cross paths with them? I think that about books all the time. I feel like some authors have really changed my life, either by bringing me endless pleasure, or else by showing me new things as a writer, and that it was sheer luck I came to read them. Because really, isn’t it so random, what makes you pick up a book?  For me, it kind of depends on who I am interacting with at the moment, what I read and hear at specific times. In a parallel existence, I could easily not have read anything by Kresley Cole, for example and be a massive Karen Marie Moning fan. However, in this existence, I am a massive Kresley Cole fan and I have not yet read KMM (but I have her on my shelf! *ducks from flying projectiles*). 

Luck in writing
More than anything in the world, I like to sit around at home and not go places, except for the occasional run. But, as a married person who is not a hermit and who also works as a freelancer, I must go places. Sometimes when I go to, say, a meeting, I see or hear something unexpected that gives me an idea for whatever story I’m working on, and I’ll think, Wow, lucky I went to that meeting.
But then again, maybe if I was forced to go somewhere totally different, a picnic, and had a different experience, maybe that would impact the story and I’d think, Wow! Lucky I went on that picnic! Sometimes I think novels are just a giant collage of all the stuff sifting through your life. Oh, this is a random post indeed!

My theory on luck
The only way you can truly know what is really lucky is if you had an alternate timeline of yourself without that thing.

Social media luck
Woody Allen said that 90% of life is showing up. I think it applies to social media luck. So many lucky and cool things happen on social media, like twitter, but you have to be there. Engaged. Sometimes I just go there and have nothing to say! But even then, I follow interesting links. You never know when hermity Carolyn Crane is lurking.

Character luck
I made Simon, the hero of Devil’s Luck to be a villain in the first book, Mind Games. Seriously, I didn’t want people to like him. And I found out that when you try to make dark and unlikable, they often turn quite interesting and likeable. So I let him be frenemies with Justine, and eventually I liked him so much, I gave him his own book. I feel lucky that this happened - that I learned this character-creating lesson from Simon, and got this great character to write a novella for. I think a lot of character luck like that is following your gut.

Devils luck
Did you know nobody really agrees on what Devil’s Luck means? If you look online, you can see that some people feel it ‘devil’s luck’ is especially bad luck. Other people feel devil’s luck is good luck. I suppose it all depends on if you think the devil is lucky.

Karen, I am so happy you invited me here. thanks so much. And also, for the idea of posting about luck. Happy St. Patrick’s day. I hope luck follows you and your blog readers. 



About Carolyn...

I’m a writer living in Minneapolis with my husband and two daring cats.
I work a day job as a freelance advertising writer, and have for years. I’ve also waited tables at a surprising number of Minneapolis restaurants and bars (though not as many, incidentally, as my writer husband has). I’ve also been a shop clerk and a plastics factory worker, which I was dismal at (think I Love Lucy).
Also, I can relate almost any life experience to one or another Star Trek episodes, and if you invite me to your party, your cheese plate will be in grave danger.
During rare moments when I’m not at my computer, I can be found reading in bed, running, helping animals, or eating Mexican food.

Connect with Carolyn website | twitter | facebook | goodreads | newsletter

Karen here! Thank you Carolyn! I will try not to be too scary/stalkerish when I meet you at the Authors After Dark Convention in August lol

Carolyn is giving away an e-copy of Devil's Luck to one lucky winner! Just fill out the Rafflecopter form to enter. I’ll announce the winner on Sunday!

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