Thursday, January 10, 2013

Author Interview with Angela Quarles!

Hellooooo, my friends! So happy to see you! As many of you know, I've been participating every Sunday for the past several months in a little thing called Six Sentence Sunday. In it, authors share six sentences from a completed work or a work-in-progress, and readers and authors-as-readers hop around from blog to blog and feast on all the snippets they can handle! That's how I met the lovely Angela Quarles, as a matter of fact. She refers to herself as the geek girl romance writer. How can you not love that?! :D So, without further ado, let's get to know Angela!




Describe yourself in three words.
Quirky, easy-going, creative

I knew I liked this girl. Quirky is my middle name! :) Hey, Angela, any nicknames?
Plange. It morphed in college from Angie Pangie to Pange to Plange. 

Interesting. I shall call you Phalanges from now on. What's your dirtiest secret? 
Not saying! ;)

:P Such a tease. In your opinion, what's the most important part of the sandwich? 
The right blend of condiments. You can have the best meat, but if you've got too much or too little condiment-wise, it can ruin it.

So very true, Phalanges. The mayo to mustard ratio is of the utmost importance. As authors we tend to have to research many bizarre and unusual topics. What's the strangest thing you've Googled research-wise? 
This isn't probably too unusual, but on my first novel, a murder mystery, I needed a low-acting poison to kill the murder victim and had to Google it. For that same book, my favorite example of the wonders of Google was when I needed to know if Stalin had a favorite book, and so I thought what the heck, I'll Google it, and boom, sure enough, the answer was in the first result set. Googling historic underwear is always funny. 

Hell, even the word 'underwear' is funny. :D Speaking of words, share your favourite word or phrase! 
Discombobulated. It's such a wonderful word. I remember my dad using it a lot and thought it was a made up work until I was writing a college paper and it just fit so well and I was like dammit, wish it was real, so I looked it up and was surprised and pleased to learn it was a real word. 

I'm discombobulated that more people don't love the word 'discombobulated'. Oh, here's a question. Do you believe in love at first sight? 
I think it can happen for some. I've certainly felt instant attraction but it wasn't love. 

I usually think it's love, but often it's just heartburn. What writing accomplishment are you most proud of and why?
Finishing my first novel, even though I ended up trunking it, because it was a testament to me that I could do this, I could finish a novel. Up until then, I wasn't sure it was possible. 

Major kudos to you there, Phalanges. I'm still working on my first big novel. If you had the opportunity to live one year of your life over again, which year would you choose? 
Oh wow. Hmmm.... That's a tough one. I've had some very wonderful moments in my life. Also some regrets. Maybe one that encompasses both would be 1988. I was ending my junior year in college, which was a very transformative and empowering year for me, then that summer I studied abroad in Vienna, Austria, and then started my senior year in the fall. It was also a year where I could've acted with more confidence with guys and wish I'd had that experience under my belt before entering my twenties.

I hear you on the confidence with guys. I'm only just now developing that sense. :P

Now it's time for the quick and dirty round of questioning!

Cake or Pie? Cake
Jocks or Nerds? Nerds
Coke or Pepsi? Coke
Boxers or Briefs? Boxers
Poolside or Beach? Poolside
Pancakes or Waffles? Pancakes 
Baked or Fried? Fried

Aaaaaand, last but not least, tell us about your new book!

Sure thing! It's BEER AND GROPING IN LAS VEGAS, an erotic geek romantic comedy with a touch of the paranormal by way of a wish-granting djinn. (Can I get one?) It's a novellete, so if you're looking for a quick but fun read, this might be just for you. 





Here's the blurb:

Can a djinn and a magic slot machine bring two geeks together? 

Riley McGregor is a geek trapped in a Good Ole Boy body and as owner of a microbrewery, smart chicks never look at him twice. 

Rejected by a geek who wanted to "trade up," Mirjam Linna would rather immerse herself in work than be the girlfriend-of-the-moment. Stranded in a Vegas hotel, she makes a wish--a night of hot sex with the man of her dreams. It's granted. She agrees to dinner, but afterward, she'll say thanks, but no thanks, and see what's on the SyFy channel. But when they meet, they're surprised to find they had a shared connection in their past. Sparks fly as these two learn to be in the moment, be themselves and find love. 

Fans of Star Trek, Star Wars, Monty Python, Firefly and Marvin the Martian will enjoy this romantic comedy. 

Beer and Groping in Las Vegas (btw, how awesome is that title?) is available at the following retailers: 

 Amazon | B&N | ARe | BookStrand trailer | goodreads | shelfari 

Bio:
Angela works at an independent bookstore and lives in an historic house in the beautiful and quirky town of Mobile, AL, with her two matched gray cats, Darcy and Bingley. When she's not writing, she enjoys the usual stuff like gardening, reading, hanging out, eating, drinking, chasing squirrels out of the walls and creating the occasional knitted scarf. She's had a varied career, including website programming and direction a small local history museum. 
She's an admitted geek and is proud to be among the few but mighty Browncoats who watched Firefly the first night it aired. She was introduced to the wonderful world of science fiction by her father, by way of watching reruns of the original Star Trek in her tweens and later giving her a copy of Walter M. Miller Jr's A Canticle for Leibowitz as a teenager. She hasn't looked back since.
She has a B.A. in Anthropology and International Studies with a minor in German from Emory University, and a Masters in Heritage Preservation from Georgia State University. She was an exchange student to Finland in high school and studied abroad in Vienna one summer in college. She recently found representation with Maura Kye-Casella at Don Congdon, Assoc.
You can find Angela here: 
website | blog | twitter | facebook 
Thank you so much for being here with us today, Phalanges! Best of luck with your new release! I just got myself a copy and I can't wait to read it! :)
:) :( ;) :D :-/ :x :P :-* =(( :-0 X( :7 B-) #:-S :(( :)) =)) :-B :-c :)] ~x( :-h I-) =D7 @-) :-w 7:P 2):) :!! \m/ :-q :-bd ^#(^

12 comments:

  1. Thanks Evelyn, I had fun re-reading this with your extra comments, LOL! BTW, Phalanges was an alternate nickname in college once one of my friends took an anatomy class and learned about them one day! So you made me feel right at home...

    Thanks for having me on here!

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    1. Glad you enjoyed! I had fun responding to your fabulous answers. ;) Btw, I LOVE that Phalanges was an alternate nickname for you. You and me, we're freakishly linked. :D

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  2. Love the interview! And I loved the story...it's a breath of fresh air to see folks break out of the same-old mold and try something a little bit different: sexy times with beer and geeky characters. :^) Awesomesauce!

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    1. I agree! I get tired of the same old boring story lines. It's nice to see something new and fresh, not to mention sexy! Thanks for commenting, Penelope!

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  3. I so need to finish what I'm doing so I can read this book.

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    1. I hear you, sister! It's next up on my to-read list! Thanks for stopping by, Ella! :)

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  4. Welcome to Evelyn's blog. Very interesting interview. Loved the responses.
    Looks like a fun book.

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    1. Thanks, Laurie! I'm so happy you enjoyed the interview! :)

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    2. Thanks Laurie, it was fun being here!

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  5. Fabulous interview! Beer and Groping in Las Vegas is now on my Kindle!

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    1. Woohoo! Awesome news! Thanks for stopping in, Mags! :)

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    2. Oh wow, thanks for your support, Margaret! Hope you enjoy it!

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