Welcome to the Saturday Spotlight, a weekly feature hosted by Tinasbookreviews and promotes authors and the great books they write. This week I have the pleasure of introducing readers to:
~BRANDY BRUCE~
Q&A
Hi Brandy and welcome to the blog!! So today I'm going to bombard you with some fun questions to help readers get to know you a little better.....
Please tell us a little about yourself.
Well, I’m originally from Houston, Texas, but I now make my home in Castle Rock, Colorado. I’ve got a wonderful husband and a two-and-a-half-year-old little girl, and I’m currently pregnant with our second child. I’ve been a book editor for Focus on the Family for more than six years, and I love it and feel so blessed to be a part of our book team. Oh, and I can make a chocolate-chip cheesecake that will make you say, “Yum!” J
What inspired you to write Looks Like Love?
I went on a European tour to England, Ireland, Scotland, and France while I was in college, and I came home with lots of inspiration for stories. But it was a few years later when my husband and I had just moved to Colorado that a story of a young woman starting over kept popping into my head. I kept envisioning her visiting England (much like I had), so I pulled out my journal from my trip overseas, my souvenirs, and my photos, and I began to write Kasey Addison’s story.
What authors have inspired you or your work?
Definitely Robin Jones Gunn. I fell in love with the Christy Miller series in middle school and it shaped so much of who I became. Her Glenbrooke series also really inspired me. I’m really a very eclectic reader. I love Liz Curtis Higgs—she’s amazing—and Beverly Lewis and Jodi Picoult. I like to read about the Amish, but then I like to read about vampires, too. J I’m a huge Harry Potter fan; I think J.K. Rowling is a genius. When it comes to nonfiction, Philip Yancey is my favorite author.
I started scribbling my own stories in the sixth grade, so I’ve had a love of writing for a very long time. Even more than that, though, I’ve loved books ever since my mother used to read to me when I was very young. Going to the bookstore to buy a new book was always something that thrilled me. I knew from about the time I was in middle school that I wanted books to be a part of my life in a big way. When I went to college, the idea of being an editor was so intriguing to me. I thought about how great it would be to be surrounded by book ideas and to help shape the stories that came to me. And it’s been an amazing experience. It was the perfect profession for me.
What are you reading now?
The Third Sister by Julia Barrett. It’s a story about Margaret Dashwood, the youngest of the Dashwood sisters, if you’re familiar with Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen.
How does having a blog and being a part of the blog community help you as a writer?
I think having a blog is such a great way to document your thoughts. I love that you can talk about anything you want to, and you can search around and choose to follow other blogs that interest you. For writers, blogging is a wonderful way to interact with your readers and to offer some transparency, which is something I think readers expect of authors today. It’s a great way to feel connected to a group of other people who have similar interests that you may never have known otherwise.
Coke or Pepsi?
Pepsi. J My husband actually worked for Pepsi for about six years, so I’m loyal.
It was actually a TV miniseries called Pillars of the Earth. But I can tell you I’m super excited about the Deathly Hallows Part 2 coming out this summer.
Can you share some future work with us?
My sister and I are working on a book project together, a fantasy series for young adults. It has tons of adventure, romance, excitement, and intensity. We’ve just about finished book one and will start shopping it to publishers soon. It’s been so fun to work on, and I love that we’re doing the project together.
Thank you so much Brandy for answering those questions and giving us a little look at what makes Brandy Bruce....Brandy Bruce!! Best of luck with your book and future YA books...I cant wait to read all of them!! To find out more about Brandy check out her blog http://www.brandybruce.com/
Giveaway
Brandy is offering an Ebook copy of her book Looks Like Love, this is open to everyone. To enter please leave a comment and a winner will be drawn April 2, 2011.
About the Book- Looks Like Love:
When her spur-of-the-moment vacation is over, Kasey, a junior marketing consultant, finds herself on the marketing team for LETA, a growing cosmetics company. Kasey's thrown into the fast-paced world of promotional galas, photo shoots, and magazine interviews. When the owners of LETA decide to release their very first fragrance, Kasey's new assignment is to find out what love looks like and then find a way to sell it. With the help of Amanda and a few new friends, and with a rekindled relationship with the Lover of her soul, Kasey discovers that sometimes love looks like what we least expect....(buy here)
Love the cover.....book sounds great
ReplyDelete[email protected]
Thanks so much for the interview, Tina! So fun!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great looking book! Loved the video, too. I'd love to win this!
ReplyDeletewandanamgreb(at)gmail(dot)com
I'd love to be entered in your draw. Thanks.
ReplyDeletewandanamgreb(at)gmail(dot)com
Great interview! Looks Like Love sounds great. And so does the book she is working on with her sister.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the giveaway.
irresistiblereads(at)hotmail(dot)com
Sounds super fun. I love the cover!
ReplyDelete(not an entry)
Want to be entered
ReplyDelete[email protected]
Yay for Harry Potter part 2! I'm dying to see that as well, though it will be sad to know it's all over:( Love that she enjoys blogging and interacting with readers, I love reading author blogs and feeling like we're getting to know them as people instead of just names printed on a book cover!
ReplyDelete