An Interview with Andrea R. Cooper

  I'm pleased to say that I had the immense pleasure of sitting down with Andrea R. Cooper and asking her questions about her novels, being an author and anything new that may possibly be brewing...so please, come and sit down with us and discuss books, writing and the love of fantasy and romance.

The Literary Connoisseur: Hello, Andrea! I'm honored to have you join us for an interview, thank you for your time. Let's begin. One of your novels, The Garnet Dagger, is in the fantasy genre and the other, Viking Fire, is historical romance. What made you decide on these genres?

Andrea R. Cooper: Thank you for having me. The Garnet Dagger trilogy was the first time I wrote in the fantasy/ paranormal genre. Before, I wrote historical romance only. After I wrote all three books in The Garnet Dagger trilogy, I wanted to write a strictly historical romance again. However, even in Viking Fire a little magic crept in.

I fell in love with historical romance novels in my late teens. Fantasy and paranormal stories were taboo in my family, but I craved them anyway. They are my favorite genre to read and write.

The Literary Connoisseur: Have you always had a love for writing?

Andrea R. Cooper: I’ve always had a love for storytelling. When I was in Elementary school, the kids would ask me what we were going to play that day. I created the characters and the plots. In my teens and early twenties, I wrote poetry, but it wasn’t until my thirties that I started writing 
down the stories I’d been thinking up for years.

The Literary Connoisseur: The Garnet Dagger is told from a male perspective, and Viking Fire is told from a female perspective. What made you decide who would tell which story? 

Andrea R. Cooper: I don’t decide who will tell the story, the characters do. The Garnet Dagger was the first novel I wrote in first person. I had read a writing book that said never to write in first person, always use third. Therefore, I wrote third person for years and never tried first person until The Garnet Dagger.

However, Brock’s voice came to me while I was at work one day. He kept saying a few lines repeatedly until I wrote them down. Those same sentences are in the novel.

If a character has a unique and strong voice, then I will write in first person. If the story seems to flow better in third person, then I will follow it.

The Literary Connoisseur: This is somewhat related to the previous question...do your characters "speak" to you and/or tell you their story? 

Andrea R. Cooper: Yes, all the time. I don’t plan out my stories and don’t do outlines. Therefore, when something unexpected happens, it’s unplanned. I have a fragment of how the story will end, but the journey and actual ending unfold as I write.

The Literary Connoisseur: As an author, do you prefer selling ebooks or paperback books? Are you a reader yourself? Do you prefer either for reading? 

Andrea R. Cooper: Since I’m a debut author, I just love that my books sell at all. It doesn’t matter to me if it’s ebooks or paperback. Yes, I am a reader myself. I do enjoy the feel of a book in my hand. However, the lower cost and convenience of ebooks wins. 

The Literary Connoisseur: If you were to say something to inspire other writers out there, what would you say?

Andrea R. Cooper: If writing is your passion, then keep writing. Don’t give up. Someone doesn’t like your writing, move on. I recently revised a historical novel, the second novel I wrote, to include a paranormal element. Rereading it after all these years, I saw mistakes. Rather than be upset, I was grateful I saw how much I’ve improved. I’m sure when I read my novels of today years from now, I’ll find the same. You can only grow and get better.

The Literary Connoisseur: Are you currently working on another project?

Andrea R. Cooper: Yes. I just finished my revisions of Son of Dragons, book two in The Garnet Dagger trilogy. I’m finishing up a YA shifter story, and starting the third book of a historical paranormal novel.

The Literary Connoisseur: What do you hope to see become of your novels? 

Andrea R. Cooper: I won’t lie, I’d love to see them become movies. But I’ll settle for readers just enjoying them and asking for more.

The Literary Connoisseur: Have you ever written a scene that made you cry? 

Andrea R. Cooper: Yes, many times. When Celeste talks about her scars is one. The emotion of what she went through, yet only allowed her wounds to affect her physically, and not be beaten down by them. 

The Literary Connoisseur: Have you thought about writing more of Brock and Kaireen? 

Andrea R. Cooper: I have had several reviewers mention wanting to see spin-offs like Elva’s (a prequel) or Shay’s (a continuation) story. I think Brock and Kaireen’s is done, however their children may come to me begging for their stories to told. 

Thank you so much for joining us, Andrea! I look forward to chatting with you again!

About Andrea R. Cooper:

Growing up in Houston, Texas, Andrea has always enjoyed creating characters and stories. But it wasn't until she was in her late twenties that she started writing novels.

What happened that ignited the writing flame in her fingers? Divorced, and disillusioned by love songs and stories. They exaggerate. She thought. Love and Romance are not like that in the real world. Then she met her husband and realized, yes love and romance are exactly like the songs and stories say. She is now a happy wife, and a mom to three kids (two boys and a girl).

Once she heard about a writer who never let her characters deviate from the script. If they did, she just killed them. How sad, she thought. For her one of the best parts of being a writer is letting the characters have a mind of their own and seeing where the story takes them.

She loves this quote from Robert Frost, which sums up her opinion on allowing the characters their freedom: "No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader."

― Robert Frost

Andrea writes fantasy, paranormal and historical romance. When not writing or reading, one may find Andrea dancing in Zumba.

She is excited to work with Crimson Romance on her forthcoming debut paranormal romance, The Garnet Dagger. She hopes you will enjoy the story as much as she did writing it. Viking Fire, her historical romance, is forthcoming late July 2013.

She believes in the power of change and counting each moment as a blessing. But most importantly, she believes in love.

For more information on Andrea R. Cooper, check out her website and Facebook page: 

Website: http://www.andrearcooper.com/

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AndreaRCooper.author

Andrea's novels:

 Book                        ebook                        ebook

                      

And don't forget to check out my reviews for both The Garnert Dagger and Viking Fire!

The Garnet Dagger: http://theliteraryconnoisseur.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-garnet-dagger-by-andrea-r-cooper.html

Viking Fire: http://theliteraryconnoisseur.blogspot.com/2013/08/viking-fire-by-andrea-r-cooper.html

Thank you all for stopping by! I hope you enjoyed my interview and discussion with author Andrea R, Cooper. Feel free to ask questions, leave comments, etc.! Thank you all so much and Happy Reading!!!