The Creatively Green Write at Home Mom: Interview and Giveaway The Hazel Tree by Julia Debski

The Hazel Tree by Julia Debski

Please share a little about yourself, your genres, any other pen names you use.

I was born in Warsaw, Poland, I speak French fluently, I have two dogs, two horses, and three black and white cats! Lately, when I’m not writing I am either at my new job at Starbucks (the same location where I wrote the majority of The Hazel Tree), with the horses at the barn, reading, or spending time with my best friend, Sam. I’m going off to college in the fall, even though I don’t know where yet, and after that a move to England if possible. Ideally, I would love to be a novelist and live off my writing, but we all know it isn’t likely. I have a few career options though, such as an editor, translator, and event planner.

The Hazel Tree is fantasy, romance, and young adult, and I really do love those genres. I’m a huge fan of mythology, folklore, and the supernatural, so I will continue incorporating those into my writing. The romance genre, not so much. I wouldn’t say it is a guaranteed thing for every novel. But fantasy and young adult for sure.

I don’t currently write under any pen names, though that may change in the next couple years.

Tell us a little about your latest or upcoming release.

Well it isn’t ‘upcoming’ per se. The Hazel Tree was released in October 2013. This book tour is sort of re-promoting it because I’ve added a chapter, and 5,000 words of bonus content throughout.

The Hazel Tree combines the elements of the classic childhood fairytale, Cinderella, with darkness and the struggle for freedom. It has elements taken from the original fable, and ancient mythology. It is pretty badass.

I wanted to write my own twisted fairytale retelling with an additional supernatural twist. That’s how The Hazel Tree started out, as a retelling of Cinderella with werewolves. I also wrote it because I wanted to read a book like it. Also, I wanted to point out something I find is sometimes ignored in these big classic fairytale endings– good always wins, but at what cost?

Have you ever based your book or characters on actual events or people from your own life?

Not in The Hazel Tree, but I recently wrote a short story in which all the characters were based on friends and family members, with the unnamed protagonist being based on myself.

What would your readers be surprised to learn about you?

I (apparently) talk and babble like a baby in my sleep. (And sit up suddenly at random intervals.)

Which romance book or series (or other genre, if you don’t write romance) do you wish you had written?

I wish I could have been the one to write Harry Potter, or Lord of the Rings, or something just as magnificent. Anything similar to them would just be seen to be a poor attempt at a copy – think of the huge vampire phase we went through after Twilight.

Is there a genre(s) that you’d like to write that you haven’t tackled yet?

I would like to try writing horror. I’ve read Steven King and some other lesser known authors who were very ‘hardcore’ horror - and I don’t think I could write that. My favorite is Jen Archer Wood’s Point Pleasant. It’s about the Mothman. (Note: don’t look it up at nighttime.) I loved her style of writing which was suspenseful and scary, but not too much. I’d like to write like her.

If this book is part of a series…what is the next book? Any details you can share?

I have an idea for the sequel to The Hazel Tree, though it will be for a couple of years before I write it – I have college coming up to focus on. It would center around the aftermath of the Alpha’s actions (mentioned in the epilogue) and Judice coping with new experiences after what happened to her. I would dive into the themes and morals of the story, but I think it would give too much away. If you read the book though, what I said above will be more than enough information.

What is next for you? Do you have any scheduled upcoming releases or works in progress?

I’m working on a collection of short stories focusing on the different types of extraordinary relationships between humans in ordinary situations, and how it correlates to their environment. I didn’t start writing them with that concept in mind, but that seems to be the reoccurring theme with them! I also just started writing my new novel Along Shiloh. I’ll have more details in a few months, but in the meantime you can check out the Pinterest board for it here. (http://www.pinterest.com/julponey/along-shiloh-novel/)

What book are you reading now?

Love & Misadventures by Lang Leav and Witchstruck by Victoria Lamb. Love & Misadventures is poetry, and Witchstruck is about a witch in Tudor England. They are both great!

What is in your to read pile?

Well, according to my Goodreads to-read list, over 200 books! But here are the three I’m planning on reading next.

- These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman

- Secret Letters by Leah Scheier

- How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster

The Hazel Tree

Julia Debski

Genre: YA Fantasy Romance

ISBN: 1493510789

59,990 words

282 pages

Cover Artist: Julia Debski

Available at Amazon and BN

Book Description:

The Hazel Tree revisits a classic Cinderella tale of abuse and sought after freedom from the confines of a cruel life.

Ivy Lune is not your ordinary girl for within her blood flows the secrets of an ancient species of werewolf; a secret that also foretells of a great war and a struggle for ultimate supremacy.

Ivy lives a life of isolation torment at the hands of her aunt and cousins for the majority of her life. Mistreated and neglected, she longs to escape the shackles of her prison-like life. And in that longing, she learns the truth of her identity. She learns her place in a long line of events that were set into motion many years ago. She finds intimacy and belonging in a much larger family.

All the while, unknown to her, there are dangerous forces are at work; old blood ties and murderous plots threaten her chance at happiness beyond her current life.

The Hazel Tree is a tale of mystery and romance set against a supernatural backdrop of terrifying and awesome power.

Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/a6y2fro8eG8

About the Author:

Julia Debski was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1996. Her family moved around a lot during her childhood before finally settling down in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It wasn't until the 8th grade that she found her passion for writing. It was thanks to a particularly inspiring English teacher and a story that needed to be told. So she began to write, and she never stopped.

Four years later she found herself with nearly a dozen started novels and short stories. As junior in high school she was introduced to Greg Wilkey, a self-published independent author of four novels. He soon became a mentor to her as she worked to write and self-publish her own novel. After two years of hard work, and a nearly a year of mentorship The Hazel Tree was published in October 2013.

Website: http://juliadebski.weebly.com

Blog: http://spotofinkandstory.blogspot.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/juliadebski (@juliadebski)

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorjuliadebski

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7351439.Julia_Debski

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/julponey/

http://www.pinterest.com/julponey/the-hazel-tree/

a Rafflecopter giveaway

April 1 Guest blog

Fang-tastic Books

www.fang-tasticbooks.blogspot.com

April 2 Interview