An Interview with Author Stephanie Erickson/The Dead Room Release Celebration!

The Dead Room is LIVE!!!!

322 years after the apocalypse, the world has changed, but her people have not.

 Secrets, lies, and manipulations endure among a small group of survivors taking refuge on an island in the Northern Pacific. No one knows what claimed so many lives over three centuries ago, and no one asks, except Ashley Wortham. She can feel the secrets all around her, begging to be uncovered. 

But the nine elders who govern the island guard their secrets jealously. 

They believe the islanders know what they need to, and they hide their secrets behind a ruse of peace. But when Ashley, and her best friend Mason, go down the rabbit hole, no one is prepared for the truths they uncover. 

What will they do when they discover the downfall of humanity lies within their own island, deep inside the dead room?

Book                                ebook

          

A few months ago, a dear author friend of mine had the brilliant idea of putting the wonderful Stephanie Erickson in touch with me, telling her that I was a blogger and that I would be more than happy to read and review her work (all true).

Not only did I fall in love with her work, but I found a kindred spirit in Stephanie as well. We've been as close as two peas in a pod (and Stephanie's given me many book hangovers) ever since!

When Stephanie told me that she was releasing a book soon, I knew I had to put all of my energy into promoting her work, and spreading the word about her stories. What better way to do that than to do an interview with her in celebration of her release of The Dead Room?

So, without further ado...

An Interview with Author of The Cure, The Blackout, Unseen, and her new release The Dead Room, Stephanie Erickson  

The Literary Connoisseur: Hello, Stephanie! Welcome to The Literary Connoisseur! Thank you so much for stopping by and answering some questions about yourself, and your life as an author. If you're ready, let's begin. Tell us a bit about your work.

Stephanie Erickson: Well, I have books in a few different genres.  It took me awhile to decide what I enjoyed writing.  So I have some post-apocalyptic stuff, some dystopian, and some paranormal romance.  A little bit of everything.  

The Literary Connoisseur: Have you always known you wanted to be a writer? When did you start writing? 

Stephanie Erickson: Yes, I did.  I started writing fiction in third grade with my best friend.  She was an artist and would illustrate/draw in the margins when I finished typing (on a type writer), or hand writing a page.  When it was raining, that's what we did/how we played.  I still have some of those pages!  

The Literary Connoisseur: What is appealing to you about writing dystopian/post-apocalyptic/secret society stories? 

Stephanie Erickson: I love to read those types of stories, and for me, reading is inspiration.  And although I also love to read historical fiction and epic fantasies, these genres are fun for me. Although they're still fictional, they're closer to our world than historical fiction or fantasies.  While I'm writing them, it's fun to think it could really happen.

The Literary Connoisseur: Which of your books; The Cure, The Blackout, Unseen, or The Dead Room, was most fun to write? 

Stephanie Erickson: Each book has been such a different experience.  The Blackout was my first, and took me three years to write.  The Dead Room was the most difficult so far.  But The Cure for sure was the most fun.  I've never been so inspired as when I wrote that book.  The idea hit me and it was all I could think about until I got it all out.  It. Was. Awesome.

The Literary Connoisseur: Which of your main characters would you say you relate to the most? Why? 

Stephanie Erickson: I relate to them all in different ways.  Mac has my sense of humor, Macey has a bit of a quick temper and is flawed in many of the same ways I am, and Molly is married to a pilot (so I understand her way of life and how hard it is to be alone all the time).  And they all love McDonalds, because who doesn't? 

For The Dead Room, I actually relate to Mason, or maybe Mattli, more than any of the others.  They both struggle big time to know what the right thing to do is, how to do it, and when the right time to act should be, and I can relate to that big time.  

The Literary Connoisseur: What has been your favorite thing about being an author so far?

Stephanie Erickson: WRITING!  I love to tell stories, and make them real even if it's just for a moment.  When you're reading it, the story becomes our shared reality, our shared moment.  And I love that.

The Literary Connoisseur: Do you have any role models in the literary world? If so, who? 

Stephanie Erickson: Oh my God yes.  Some day, I would love to write a book that moves people the way Harry Potter or Game of Thrones moved me.  (So, JK Rowling and George R. R. Martin to answer more directly, lol.)  But, the writer that made me want to write was Roald Dahl.  We read Matilda in third grade, and that's when I knew I wanted to connect with people the way his stories had reached me.  

The Literary Connoisseur: How would you say your ideas for your books come to you? Do you have a particular trick to keeping track of your plots and storylines? 

Stephanie Erickson: Frustratingly, my ideas come to me when they want, how they want.  Sometimes it's a dream I had.  Most of the time it's a 'what if' question that occurs to me out of the blue.  My husband and I will be chatting along about what to have for dinner or whatever, and I'll be like: "What if a disease killed everyone in the whole world and this one girl held the key to the cure and didn't even know it?"  Or, "what if this mind reader was also an anti-terrorist assassin?"  Or, "what if the world ended and a group of survivors was left on an island off the coast of the Pacific Northwest?"  What ifs are my friend.

The Literary Connoisseur: Where would you like to see your career as an author go in the future? 

Stephanie Erickson: I have eyes on the bestseller lists.  Hoping to at least hit USA Today before I die, but NYT would be AMAZING!  

The Literary Connoisseur: Do you have any upcoming releases you would like to talk about? 

Stephanie Erickson: The Dead Room and its new, exciting release, perhaps? Haha! The Dead Room is my newest post-apocalyptic book, and it's sooo different from The Blackout it's not even funny!  It's by far the most complex story I've written, with something like eleven characters, set 322 years in the future.  It was a challenge, but I'm so excited about it, and can't wait to see where this trilogy takes us!  

The Literary Connoisseur: Are you currently working on any new projects? 

Stephanie Erickson: I am!  Unforgiven is in the early stages, and will be off to the editors in a week or two.  Then I will start the process over again with book 2 in The Dead Room trilogy!  Lather, rinse repeat! (There's my token Friends reference for the interview, haha.)

The Literary Connoisseur: Is there anything else you would like to share with your readers? 

Stephanie Erickson: I would just like to thank all of you, and The Literary Connoisseur! You guys are all so amazing!  Thank you for taking the time to read my books, and being so supportive of me!  I can't wait to see where we go together!   

The Literary Connoisseur: Stephanie, again, thank you so much for joining us and for answering some very intriguing questions! I look forward to hearing about (and reading) more of your amazing work! 

For more on Stephanie Erickson, like her on Facebook here!

Follow her on Twitter here!

Follow her on Goodreads here!

About Stephanie:

Stephanie Erickson has always had a passion for the written word. She pursued her love of literature at Flagler College, in St. Augustine, FL, where she graduated with a BA in English. She has received several honors in her writing career, including recognition in the 72nd Annual Writer's Digest Competition. 

After graduation, she married and followed her husband in pursuit of his dream. The Cure and The Blackout were written to reignite Stephanie's passion, when she found the time. Now that he is settled in his career, it's her turn to devote more time and energy into writing.

Stephanie currently has 3 projects planned for 2015. Her upcoming release is well underway and is slated for a March 2015 publication date. 

Stephanie, of course, loves to read and write. She also enjoys living on the beach on the Florida's Treasure Coast. Most of all, she and her husband are in love with their baby girl.