Today’s special guest author is Elli Morgan to chat about her new paranormal romance, The Shadowed Moon.
During her virtual book tour, Elli will be giving away a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn participant. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!
Bio:
Elli Morgan was born in 1991 in a small town in Germany. Although she only started learning English in sixth grade, she quickly fell in love with the language. To improve her skills, she spent a year working and traveling in Canada and the US.
As a teenager, she devoured countless fan fiction and vampire novels. During that time, she also developed the idea for her first two books.
Her debut, The Waxing Moon, won the Reader Views bronze award in the romance category.
Apart from being a writer, she’s also a trained mathematician, working as a Business Intelligence Developer at an IT company. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, traveling, and all kinds of games.
Welcome, Elli. Please tell us about your current release.
The Shadowed Moon features a young vampire, Sarah, with a traumatic past. A group of vampires kidnapped and tortured her as a child. After they turned her into a vampire on her eighteenth birthday, she escapes. Hoping for allies in her quest for revenge, she hides her true strength and surrenders to a group of hunters.
But The Shadowed Moon is not about taking revenge. It’s about the blurred line between good and evil, the difficulty of learning to trust, and accepting yourself.
What inspired you to write this book?
I’m a big fan of vampires and I always loved the idea of meeting one. My debut features a character who is just like me, dreaming of meeting a vampire, and later becoming one herself.
For The Shadowed Moon, I wanted to take a different route. I wondered what a vampire who hated herself and her kind would do and how she could connect to humanity.
Excerpt from The Shadowed Moon:
“Okay then.” She swallowed and backed away. “Come at me and try to land a hit.”
He drew his sword. “Just one?”
“One will be hard enough, trust me.” She disappeared, only to reappear on the opposite side of the hall with a grin. “I’ll give you ten minutes before I go on the offensive.”
“All right.” He stormed at her.
Every time he approached, she glided out of reach. Whenever he thought he’d cornered her, she vanished. How did she move so incredibly fast? After a while, he bent over, panting.
“If you can’t get close, you’ll never touch me.”
“Well, you’re just running away. Looks like you’re afraid to face me,” he taunted her.
She laughed. “I’m not, and I’ll happily prove it to you in—” She glanced at the clock on the gym wall. “—three…two…one…now. Your time is up.”
He swallowed and tightened the grip on his sword. “Well then, turn your words into actions because I’m not running either.”
“As you wish.” She flew at him. With the force of her speed, she pushed him back against the wall. Faster than he could react, she seized his arms with hers and pressed her delicate body against his to keep him from fighting back.
Her soft breasts rubbed against his chest as he struggled against her, and the scent of chocolate and coconut assaulted his senses. She tempted him in more ways than one, and his hands ached to break free and explore her body. A flush of warmth spread through him as he imagined turning their training session into a make-out one. Since this was neither the time nor the place for such thoughts, he shook his head to clear it.
When his jeans tightened, he knew he’d lost the battle—against his arousal.
What exciting project are you working on next?
I’m currently spending all my time promoting my new release. I haven’t decided on my next project yet, but there are a few ideas. My first two books feature several interesting side characters that demand their own stories.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I can’t pinpoint the exact moment when I considered myself a writer, but I’d say around the time I finished the first draft of my debut The Waxing Moon. Back then, I believed I was done with the writing process. I had no idea about finding a publisher, editing, or marketing. I guess I was pretty ignorant back then, but I’ve come a long way. Now, I’ve got two books with my name on them in my shelf, and it’s a damn good feeling.
Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your workday like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
Writing is mostly a hobby for me. I work as a Business Intelligence Developer at an IT company. So, I can only write in the evening, during the weekend or when I’m on holiday. Consequently, a book takes me around two years. But that’s okay since I don’t feel pressured to publish a certain number of books in a certain time. I write for fun and it’s something I enjoy. Taking breaks from writing and concentrating on other aspects of my life is also part of the process and keeps writing more enjoyable for me.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I always try to include places I traveled to in my books. My debut The Waxing Moon features several places in Europe, for example London, Paris, Dublin, Salzburg, Rome, Hamburg, and many more cities. My second book, The Shadowed Moon, features some places in Seattle, LA and San Francisco, which I traveled to during my work and travel experience in 2016.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
As a child, I was torn between becoming an actress and owning a farm with lots of animals. I’m too self-conscious and shy for acting, though, so it’s good I didn’t go down that path.
This year, I tried wwoofing (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) in Canada, and I realized that this type of work is too exhausting for me. So, I’m glad I reconsidered and chose a more theoretical career path.
Links:
Website | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Newsletter Sign-Up | Goodreads | Buy Link for The Waxing Moon | Buy Link for The Shadowed Moon
Thank you for featuring THE SHADOWED MOON.
Thank you for being part of my release tour!
I would enjoy reading this one. Sounds good.
I love the cover and think the book looks really good.
The book sounds very good!
Great author interview!! Also, very intriguing book cover!!