Interview with Eisley Jacobs, Author of Runaway Choices

Hi Everyone. Today we are chatting with Eisley Jacobs, author of Runaway Choices, a Christian Speculative Fiction/Fantasy novel. Eisley will be joining us for a live interview on Blog Talk Radio, Wednesday, March 14th, at 3:30pm Pacific Time. We hope you'll stop by and listen in.

Be sure to leave a comment at the end of this interview for your chance to win a copy of Runaway Choices. Don't forget to leave your email address in the following format: parayournormalteam(at)gmail(dot)com. Now...for the interview:

Eisley! *wild grin* I’m so glad you finally get to join us here on PYN. Please tell our readers a bit about yourself.

Thanks! I'm happy to be here and even happier to be outside the four walls of my insanity (brain), which as luck would have it, is giving me a run for my money. So right, I'm Eisley, Mom to three children whom I homeschool. I'm active in our homeschooling group, church, life, and I still find time to write down the bossy characters that stroll through my brain. Some people wonder who is bossier, my characters or my kids... Really, it depends on the day.

You write in complete chaos! LOL! How do you do that on a regular basis?

Yes, it has been called chaos, but it's an organized chaos. Since we homeschool, I have to keep a pretty tight schedule on our time and efforts (which my characters don't always understand). We have school in the mornings and then after any activities we might need to attend, I dive into my writing. I try to write at least 3-5 hours a day. But since my kids are 12, 11, and 9 the “chaos” really does swirl around me all day.

Also, headphones. Really good headphones. But on top of that, when you have a really good story that needs to get out, you just ignore deal with the chaos. Sometimes I write one sentence and the 9yo needs something. I have to stop take care of issue, then I get back and write one more sentence before 11yo needs something. And so the process continues until sentence by sentence the chapter is written. It can be frustrating, but I know that this time with my kids is short and my characters can wait a little longer because my little people need me.

You just recently launched Runaway Choices. I’ve also had the chance to read it and it’s *singing* AMAZING! I felt wonderful after reading it. Please tell us a bit about it.

Runaway Choices is a story of twenty-three year old Beck and how she finds her way again. The story is one of growth and accepting things we cannot change. It’s about accepting our flaws and still knowing we’re loved and can love despite our short comings.

It’s labeled Christian Fiction, but I barely noticed it. As a pagan, I was drawn by the strong paranormal aspects and the history of the places your characters went to. Can you tell us what inspired this book?

Beck's character was inspired by my own growing up years. I was a bitter young adult and I lashed out at everything and everyone because I was hurt so deeply by circumstances life had afforded me. Choices people had made around me directly affected my life and my relationships and I choose to allow them to rule me. Instead of physically running away from life, like Beck had, I'd run emotionally from the world and accepted anger in place of anything anyone could offer. Choices are a huge part of Christianity and played a huge role in the way this book came together. As a Christian, I weigh my choices heavily, but sometimes choices runaway with us before we realize it, and this aspect of life ultimately inspired the rest of the book.

Tell us something about your characters that we wouldn’t be able to figure out by reading the book.

When I began this journey (RUNAWAY CHOICES) I had no idea Beck would be a fictional portrayal of the young me. No, I'd never conned my way onto a plane, but I was a good liar and could get almost anything I desired. When I realized this was somewhat allegorical, I wasn't sure what to do with it. To think someone might find out that I was once so bitter I couldn't see straight and to maybe realize I still struggle with some of these aspects was difficult to come to grips with. So after I wrote the novel, I tucked it away and told myself it was just another shelf novel. God had other plans.

You have a couple of other books. Can you tell us briefly about those as well?

I started my publishing journey with a lower middle grade series DRAGONS FOREVER. Book One - BORN TO BE A DRAGON came out in July 2011 and was met with immense enthusiasm from kids and schools. I did a mini book tour (mostly speaking at schools) around the western United States in September - October and then wrote Book Two - BLINK OF A DRAGN and released it in January 2012. Again, the feedback has been overwhelming! Kids love these books and parents are enjoying them as well. While they aren’t Christian novels, they do hold fast to the morals and convictions I try to impart in my children. Friendship, believing in yourself, adventure, love, forgiveness… you name it, we will explore it in my children’s books. Also in each book, the child learns something about an obscure area of the world that unless they leave close, they won’t necessarily learn the things I put into the book. The first book tells us a lot about the Cook Island Atolls. The second about Mount Rushmore and the Caverns nearby (as well as the Phoenix Islands in the South Pacific). The third book will be no different, but this time we are heading over to Scotland for part of our adventure. It will be amazing!

Where can readers purchase your book? (Please provide links)

Runaway Choices - http://www.amazon.com/Runaway-Choices-Christian-Speculative-ebook/dp/B007BYWVEG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1331576736&sr=8-2

Born to be a Dragon – http://www.amazon.com/Dragons-Forever-Born-be-Dragon/dp/1456360965/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1331576736&sr=8-5

Blink of a Dragon - http://www.amazon.com/Dragons-Forever-Dragon-Eisley-Jacobs/dp/146791911X/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1331576736&sr=8-3

May we read an excerpt from the book? (Please paste here)

Chapter 1 excerpt:

Sleeping had been a useless endeavor. My pillow had been my ineffective attempt at a buffer, and I’d debated, more than once, on using it as a deadly weapon.

“Ma’am?” I heard from the aisle.

The mouthy flight attendant, whom I’d encountered during a bathroom break two hours into the flight from O’Hare, stood awkwardly at the end of my row.

“Can you return your seatback to the upright position?” Her tone was less than friendly.

A wide, cynical smile crept across my lips. Tilting my head, I raised my eyebrows in the most sarcastic pose I could muster.

“Please?” came her snarky inclusion.

My row buddy turned, and I transformed my face, offering the biggest puppy dog eyes I could muster. The seatback clicked into place.

The flight attendant glared.

“Does she have a problem with you?” the concerned man said in his thick British accent.

“I… She…” I started, maintaining my confused expression as I poured on the dramatic improvisation, complete with quivering lip.

The flight attendant’s glare turned into outrage and she hurried down the aisle.

I wiggled my fingers in a little sarcastic wave outside the man’s view.

My neighbor twisted toward me, and I contorted my face into bewilderment.

Shrugging my shoulders, I leaned my head against the cabin wall again, invisibly rejoicing at my small triumph. That would teach her to mess with a girl who needed a cola outside of “serving hours,” as she had put it. Who cares what time it had been? I’d needed the cola. I would have gladly paid the last five dollars in my pocket for it.

“Give me the freaking can,” I’d demanded, raising a huge scene at the back of the Boeing 747.

“Keep it down,” she’d begged.

Ouch. The wrong thing to say to a woman suffering a caffeine addiction headache the size of a watermelon.

I’d kept it down all right. Only the back ten rows had heard me over the dull roar of the engines. Three-fourths of the plane hadn’t seen the display.

Tragic, really.

It had been my best performance to date. I may not have a lot going for me, but I do have a few talents tucked up my sleeve. After all, I was on my way to London by sheer talent alone.

Where can your readers connect with you on the web?  (please provide links)

My Website – http://EisleyJacobs.com/

Twitter – http://twitter.com/EisleyJacobs/

Facebook – http://facebook.com/EisleyJacobs/