Thursday, March 3, 2016

Virtual Tour + #Giveaway: Loves of our Lives by A.C. Chenier @AC_Chenier @GoddessFish



Loves of our Lives
by A.C. Chenier
GENRE: Romance


BLURB:

For Katie Benjamin, finding the perfect soul mate was just a fairy tale until a chance encounter on a train changes everything. What she discovers takes her on a journey that spans lifetimes.




EXCERPT:

“I had this commissioned for you to have. I want you to wear it close to your heart and know my heart is now and will always be yours.” He opened the case and displayed a gold locket. She gasped at the beautiful locket within the case. It was a white cameo in a pale pink background.

“Turn it over,” he said.

She did and read the words he had engraved on the back. Forever in my heart, forever in my soul.

She felt tears running down her face as she looked at the beautiful words and then into Jonathon’s eyes. She looked deep into his eyes and felt her own soul connecting directly to Jonathon. He said to her, “Forever in my heart, forever in my soul. I will find you again.” He then wrapped his arms around her and took her lips in a passionate kiss. Her heart was hammering in her throat as she kissed him back. To her it felt a bit like a good-bye kiss, but a kiss filled with the promise of reuniting in time.





 AUTHOR INTERVIEW:

I wanted to thank you for hosting my blog tour today. I’m happy to talk to you about my writing, and my debut novel “Loves of our Lives”.


What inspired you to write “Loves of our Lives

About 18 months after my husband passed, I met singer/songwriter Ross Kennedy. He was in the process of completing his first CD “Your Friend”; the bulk of the songs he had written himself. Watching him during the creative process re-awoke in me my long held desire to write my own songs. (I had been a pianist when I was young, and always had this ‘need’ to write music, but never managed to put anything together that was any good)  Anyways, I dabbled a bit with music, and then started to write some poetry. That led to a desire to write a book.  I guess being around Ross, and his creative methods finally stirred the long dormant creative side of myself.

The inspiration for the novel itself was Dr. Brian Weiss and particularly his book “Only Love is Real”. That true story of soul mates finding each other through time seemed to be a siren call to my creative side. Soon I was crafting the stories of Katie, Elinor and Catherine.


When or at what age did you know you wanted to be a writer?

I’ve just started writing novels in the past couple of years. However, during my prior career in downtown Toronto, I was engaged in writing technical documents and sales pitches. It was all IT related, so extremely technical and factual. I actually loved the entire process of creating each of those documents, including the many rounds of edits. So, I guess that was the love of writing coming out. However, I had no idea that I had a creative side that would result in Loves of our Lives until I met Ross, and was exposed to Dr. Weiss.


What is the earliest age you remember reading your first book?

Earliest memories would be from around grade 5ish. The first book I have clear memories of reading was The Lord of the Rings by Tolkien, well, first The Hobbit. I know in my early years I read a lot of short story sci-fi/fantasy books. My dad read a lot of that genre, and got me hooked on it, especially novellas.


What genre of books do you enjoy reading?

Fantasy and Romance are the key genres you will find on my Kindle or Kobo. (or in my rather large collection of paperbacks)


What is your favorite book?

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen


You know I think we all have a favorite author. Who is your favorite author and why?

Jane Austen for romance; I love the cadence of her language and the finesse she writes with, a product of her times no doubt.

David Eddings in fantasy – I love the worlds he creates and the winding intricate plots that he brings to life.


If you could travel back in time here on earth to any place or time. Where would you go and why?

Wow, that is a really tough question to answer. I find myself drawn to so many different places and times. I’ve travelled a bit in Britain and Europe. I’m always amazed by the feeling of the old homes and churches there. They all call to me.  But then, so does the south of the US, particularly South Carolina and the Charleston area.

I’m also fascinated by ancient history, the ancient Egyptians, the Greeks and The Templars (my second novel is partially set in Templar times)

I think I’d want a time travel machine to visit all of the places. But in reality, I really like this time and place that we are in now. The world is changing before our eyes; becoming smaller all the time. What an exciting time to live.


When writing a book do you find that writing comes easy for you or is it a difficult task?

When I wrote “Loves of our Lives” and “Love by Knight” (my second book, in the advanced editing stages) writing came very easy. I would just sit at the computer, and the characters would leap to life in front of me. As I started my 3rd book “That Muskoka Summer’ (currently in first re-write) it was easy to write, but has since become more difficult.  I’m finding that I have a hard time alternating between the business aspects of the industry (publishing and marketing) and the creative side of actually setting pen to paper (or in my case fingers to keyboard)


Do you have any little fuzzy friends? Like a dog or a cat? Or any pets?

I have many fuzzy little friends. I have horses (who don’t qualify as “little” actually), and recently adopted two kittens. I’m more a dog person, but do travel a fair amount, so having cats is much easier for me when I need to be out of town.


What is your "to die for", favorite food/foods to eat?

Give me red meat anytime; a great steak or a prime rib.  Yum!  For comfort food, give me dark chocolate or chips and dip


Do you have any advice for anyone that would like to be an author?

Take a page from the Nike slogan and “Just do It”.  Put your fingers on a keyboard or take up a pen and paper. Getting started is the hard part; don’t let the naysayers around you or those in your own brain, stop you from trying. 






AUTHOR BIO:


I am a CPA, CGA and live in Southern Ontario. After working for many years in the high pressure worlds of banking and IT, I decided that it was time to have a change in pace. Leaving Toronto behind I embarked on a new career in retail sales. The change was wonderful, but I felt something was missing.

Then, the unthinkable happened, and I was widowed at 46. That was a truly life altering experience. In time, I was introduced to the books and work of Dr. Brian Weiss. I discovered in his research a new purpose in life, and was driven to start writing, something I had always enjoyed, but never thought of as a career choice.

And now here we are in 2015, and my first novel is ready to be published. My second, also in the Past Lives series, will follow shortly.  I continue to write and dream of a future that I had never even considered in my wildest dreams.

LINKS:



Giveaway:

$15 Amazon or B/N GC





Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning.


13 comments:

James Robert said...

Thanks so much for the opportunity to win

AC Chenier said...

Thank you very much for hosting my tour stop today.

Victoria Alexander said...

Really great post, I enjoyed reading both the excerpt and interview! Thanks for sharing ;)

Stormy Vixen said...

Great interview and excerpt, sounds like a wonderful read, thanks for sharing!

AC Chenier said...

Thank you all for the kind comments. And I'm happy you like the excerpt. Good luck to all in the giveaway.

Mary Preston said...

Such a lovely cover.

James Robert said...

Happy Friday, thanks again and have a great weekend

Unknown said...

I enjoyed the interview and the excerpt. Thank you for sharing the post and the giveaway!

James Robert said...

Wishing you a terrific Saturday and thanking you for the giveaway

James Robert said...

I'm late but made it to thank you again for the chance

James Robert said...

I made it but real late tonight. Thanks again for the giveaway

James Robert said...

Don't get upset to see me again but saying thank you this evening

James Robert said...

My days are confused, was thinking it was Friday all day. Anyway, thanks again