*Proud Indie Parent Moment* Q&A with R.K. Ryals

I am tickled pink to have the amazingly talented writer, R.K. Ryals on our little blog. I discovered her through the lovely ladies over at Young Adult and Teen Readers on Facebook. I adore you, Jodie and Derinda! I won her entire Redemption series and the first book from her spinoff series, Acropolis. And the rest was history.

 I have been head over heels in love with her writing ever since. Her ability to craft words is in a class all her own. I have yet to come across another YA writer (big press or indie) with her skill to captivate me from page one to the very end. And if that awesomeness isn’t enough to convince you, she is one of the kindest people you will ever meet. She loves her readers and we love her! Okay, I’ll stop gushing and get to the fun part . . .

 Here is some information that I actually took from her Goodreads profile:

 I am a Native Mississippian who started writing in elementary school. I was a reserved child who threw away almost everything I wrote. Later, when I was older, I discovered the crumpled pieces of my work in a box in my mother's hope chest. When I asked her why she saved the work, she replied,

"What you considered trash, I considered genius."

It has been my motto ever since. My mother passed in 2005. She is missed.

I am the scatterbrained (no lie) mother of three, and I live in Mississippi with my husband and three divalicious daughters and a female shitszu (also a diva) named Tinkerbell. My poor husband!

Redemption is a three book series following young, brash Dayton Blainey. The first two books are now available on Amazon.com for kindle and in print.

 

So here is a little bit about her books:

 

The Redemption Series is one of my favorite YA series . . . Ever. I adore the snarky Monroe and razor-tongued Dayton and the trouble that seems to follow them everywhere they go. If you love paranormal romances, you love these angels and demons! Ms. Ryals has taken a genre that is overly popular and made it her own! Right now Book One: Redemption is FREE here: Click Me!  You can also find my reviews for this series here.

Redemption

Ransom

Retribution

 

Acropolis Series is a spinoff from the Redemption Series that follows gargoyle Conor Reinhardt and his new mark, Emma Chase, a very new hybrid. I loved these books just as much as Redemption. Emma is feisty and Conor is totally swoonworthy! Check out Anne Nelson’s review of Acropolis.

Acropolis
 

This is her latest series, Scribes of Medeisia. There isn't words to explain how much this book has touched me. There is forbidden magic, dragons and talking trees. It is a magical story of justice and one girl's quest to discover her own destiny.

My review of Mark of the Mage.

 

Okay now the fun part! My Q&A with the lovely R.K. Ryals!

1) I am completely head over heels addicted to your Redemption Series! So I am curious who would you have play the main characters if it ever went to film? Btw, that would be AWESOME! J *insert wild fangirl squeal*

I think it would be amazing if Redemption were ever picked up for the big screen! My characters are so real to me that I think I would actually find the casting process both interesting and complex. For Dayton, I could see someone like Emma Stone portraying her. I would really prefer a red-haired actress with a lot of spunk and personality. Marcas would be harder. But, all in all, I  think I would break it down like this:

Dayton-Emma Stone

Alessandro-Jeremy Renner

Conor- Chris Zylka (maybe. lol)

Monroe-Elisabeth Olsen

 

As for Marcas and Luther, I am not quite sure. There are people I think may fit the role, but these two characters are so complex that it would take casting auditions for me to really pin that down. Maybe even unknown actors that haven't been discovered yet

 

2) I can’t tell you how much I adore the worlds you create. The banter between your characters and the amazing twists and turns and the wonderful way you always leave your readers wanting more. What is your main inspiration for your books? And can I borrow your Muse? Pretty Please?

 

Strangely enough, the inspiration for Redemption came from watching my two oldest daughters fight over a DSi. I told them to flip a coin, and while watching it flip in the air, the lines " I' wasn’t just tied to the beast, we were somehow part of the same person.  The freakishly opposite sides of the same f*ing coin.” popped into my head. The entire Redemption series are built off of those two lines. Interestingly enough, Marcas didn't exist when I first began writing the book. Damon existed as an antagonist, and then as I began to put together the first couple of chapters, Marcas materialized and the Redemption series was officially born

 

3). One of my favorite things about your writing is how easily I can get caught up and lost in their pages. For you, who’s one author that makes you feel that way?

 

Wow! There are so many! I'm not sure I could just list one author; it's more a group of authors. Karen Marie Moning, Lisa Kleypas, Rachel Hawkins, Maggie Stiefvater, Shannon Hale, Elise Marion, Melissa Wright,  . . . just to name a few. But that doesn't even begin to touch my list of favorites. Lately, I have been reading a lot of Indie books and my list of favorite authors has exploded. Currently, I'm reading Sovereign Hope by Frankie Rose, and I am really enjoying it!

 

4) I know characters are like children but if you could chose, who’s your favorite?

Wow, you threw a hard one at me. It's like trying to pick which child you love more. I would like to say it's Dayton or Marcas since they are the focal point of the Redemption series, but as the series grew, Luther began inching his way into my thoughts constantly. He is a minor character in the books. He plays hardly any role in book one, a minor role in book two, and a little more substantial role in book three, but there is something about him that digs its way under my skin.

 

5) So you have a release out now called the Mark of the Mage. How does it differ from your other two series?

 

Mark of the Mage is a fantasy book rather than a paranormal romance. This was a much harder write than Redemption for me because this world is completely my own. The country is mine, the names are mine, the language they speak is mine, and it required so much more thought in the long run. Mark of the Mage actually began when I was in highschool ....um...cough...about fourteen years ago. The idea for it has been with me an incredibly long time. I was always fascinated by Bulwer-Lytton's quote "The pen is mightier than the sword," and I've always wanted to write a fantasy novel based on this concept. And that is how Mage was born. 

 

Mage is about a blood thirsty king who outlaws the use of magic and knowledge. Mages and Scribes are marked with a tattoo on their wrist. It's a death sentence for them. The novel follows Drastona Consta-Mayria, the daughter of the Medeisian ambassador for Sadeemia, and her journey through a world where magic and knowledge are forbidden and the marked must survive or die. The first book introduces the readers to a dark world. Book two will be a wild ride

 

6) What other projects do you have planned for in the near future? *crosses fingers* Oh please say Monroe/Luther’s book . . .

 

*Big smiles* I am currently working on Cursed: The Thorne Trilogy Book I which is the first book in a series dedicated to Monroe/Luther from the Redemption Series. I am looking to release this around February/beginning of March. I am also working on Deliverance, the third book in the Acropolis series focused on Conor from the Redemption series. Other than that, I have future books for Scribes of Medeisia planned as well as a new series focused once more on Marcas and Dayton from Redemption called the Outer Levels of Hell series. I am also working on a contemporary romance idea.

 

 

*squeeee* I can't friggin wait! Thanks so much for stopping by! *huge hugs* So now who wants a copy of R.K. Ryals new book, Mark of the Mage? Thats what I thought!!!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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