Q@A WITH AUTHOR JOY SPRAYCAR

Joy Spraycar was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, but raised in Utah.  She has always been an avid reader, and began writing in the 7th grade.  Her stories were published in the school newspaper.  She continued writing, but then set it aside to work and raise her family.

Now that her children are grown, she’s thrown herself back into writing. She’s always enjoyed the darker side, such as ghosts, vampires and monsters, especially the werewolf lore.  Quicksilver was conceived when she was attending Utah State University, and now she’s enjoyed letting the story out.

She’s a member of the Absolutely Write chapter of the League of Utah Writers, Vice President of the Utah Romance Writers of America, and the winner of the Gold Pen award for the Heart of the West contest.  She’s also a  participating member of Fanstory.com.  She has three children, Jony, Tanya, and Ty.  And has been married to her second husband, Steven Spraycar for eight years.

Book Description:

In this wonderful tale of love and the occult, writer Joy Spraycar has fashioned characters that appeal to all.  Quicksilver follows Quinton Worthington from his original betrayal by his father in 1853 all the way to the present day.

Wesley Worthington has taken everything that once mattered to Quinton.  He stole Serenity, Quinton’s fiancé and kept her for himself.  Being doomed to living life as a monster, Quinton would do anything to be free.  He begins a life-long search to rid himself of his curse, but what he has to do, leaves him fearful. 

When a drunk driver strikes his car, he sees the face he dreams about every day, standing just inside the hospital doors.  He’ll do anything to be with Serenity again.

Serry Miller lives in a nightmare with an abusive, alcoholic husband, and she has a recurring one at night.  There’s a catch, she’s in love with the man who becomes the monster.  When she sees his face in the hospital, she knows that she needs to be with him.  But can she overcome what he truly is?  Only time will tell. 

Together they seek the one thing that will let them live their lives, the destruction of Wesley Worthington and the curse of the werewolf.

Welcome Joy to Romance Author Buzz.  Is there a back story to Quicksilver?

I’ve always love the werewolf legend.  I began this story back in college, but back then it would have been hard to sell a story like that.  I can’t tell you how long ago that was, because then I’d be dating myself.  But when the supernatural or paranormal became big, I thought now was the time to tell this story.

How long have you been writing and what was your call story?

I started writing in 7th grade.  I really enjoyed the off the wall stuff.  Steven King is a writer I really enjoyed, and I loved the twilight zone and Night gallery tv shows. I’ve always enjoyed monsters.

When did you first know that you wanted to be a writer? Have you had other jobs along the way? 

I enjoyed writing all through Jr. High and High School, then on into college.  But I had several careers along the way.  I worked as an EMT for ten years, groomed and showed dogs for a long time.  When my children were grown and I retired from grooming, then I went back to writing.  Quicksilver was my best loved story, but now there are many others waiting to make their appearance.

Do you plot your stories or let your characters lead you?

I definitely have character driven stories.  I know the general plot, but sometimes my characters throw twists in that I didn’t expect.  That actually happened in Quicksilver, where Serry brought something in that added a twist I didn’t expect. 

Of all of your characters, do you have a favorite you identify with and why? 

I identify with most on my characters on one level or another.  There is always something about them that is me.  I won’t tell you what those things are, because then you’d question my sanity.  But what writer is really sane.  We all have voices in our heads. 

What are you currently working on? 

I have two more books finished.  One is a fantasy about dragons and witches.  The second is another Paranormal Romance.  A girl in love with a ghost. 

What I’m working on now is the first in a series call “The Keepers”.  This will be supernatural and fantasy all rolled into one.  The first book will be “The Keeper of the Southern Gate”.  The main character in this book is in charge of the Hounds of Hell.  His family is destroyed by his job, and he vows to never get close to anyone again.  But a stranger comes to his island and charms her way into his life.  He feels a deep connection with her, but that’s because she also is a Keeper.

What is the best thing about your job as an author? What is the hardest thing? 

The best thing is knowing that others enjoy the stories that you personally enjoy.  Each story to a writer is like one of their children, or a very personal piece of them.  It’s always great when other people get joy from reading your story.

The hardest thing is juggling everything in your life.  Most of us that write still have a full time job, a family and are trying to write too.  So finding the time to write and do everything is the hardest part.  We’d all love to make enough money to just write, but that is the minority.

If Oprah invited you onto her show to talk about your book, what would the theme of the show be?

The theme would definitely be about werewolves and all the perks of them over the vampires.  Who wouldn’t want to be team Jacob after all? 

Describe a day in the life of Joy Spraycar. 

Well most days are filled with watching kids.  I only write two or three mornings a week.  On a writing day, I get out of bed and immediately sit down to the computer.  I read over the last chapter just to immerse myself in the story again and then begin writing.  I usually write about 2000 words on a writing day.  All other days I spend about two hours critiquing and helping newer writers learn the craft.  I help with grammar, building setting and stuff like that.  I love to have those times to help others become the best they can be.

What is something you definitely want readers to know about you? 

I want them to know that if they want to be a writer, they can do it.  Go to conferences, read books, but most of all sit down and write.  The more you write the better you become.  You can do this if you set your mind to it.  If I can do it anyone can.

When the time comes for you to retire from writing, what would you like your readers to remember the most about you and your writing? 

I would love them to remember the characters I created more than anything about me.  A great story lives on even after the author is gone.

Who is your favorite author? 

That’s a tough one.  I have so many.  Dan Brown, Steven King, Christine Feehan,  Jennie Hansen, Clair Poulsen, Bree Despain, just to name a few.  I love all sorts of books, and because of that I have favorite authors in all genres 

What are you currently reading?

Right Now I’m reading The Maze Runner but James Dashner.  He’s a writer right here in Utah and I get to rub elbows with him all the time.  His story is the same as mine. 

Before I let you go is there anything I forgot to ask that you want the readers and fans to know? 

I want them to know how important they are to us as writers.  Without them we aren’t anything, so don’t be afraid to come up and talk to us.  We are just people after all, and we love to share ourselves with our fans.

 Joy, thank you so much for taking the time to do this interview with me!

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