The Amazing Carian Cole @CarianCole

I first came across Carian Cole and her novel, STORM, via a Takeover on Facebook held by Bella Jeanisse. I was completely won over by Storm and have pimped it on my Blog, Twitter, Facebook, Groups, etc since then. I have not read the next books in this series, Vandal & Lucas, mainly because I was into other books. But, when I followed Carian on Amazon I found out she had a new release and I had to have it.

Not only is her new book, TALON, amazing… but, I now have the pleasure of introducing the author to you. I am thrilled she agreed.

Welcome Carian, and thank you for letting me interview you.

As you know, I just read “TALON” and loved it. I was sad when it ended. When I read a good book and I get involved with the characters I hate to say goodbye.

For the benefit of my blog readers, here is the synopsis and my review…

SYNOPSIS for TALON

DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL PARTNER:

Caring. Hard-working. A devoted family man, loves kids. Clean cut, funny, smart, quiet, but a good communicator.

~ Asia Jenson

DESCRIBE YOUR IDEAL PARTNER:

Independent. Tall, blonde, sexy. Outgoing. Intelligent, neat. Unslutty. Confident. Loves to travel. Committed.

~ Talon Valentine

A SOCIAL EXPERIMENT.

The concept was scary but exciting...

Marry a total stranger.

Live together for six months.

Journal everything. (Feelings. Fights. All of it.)

After six months, we each get $50K in trade for our journals, whether we stay married or not. But the goal is to commit to the experience and see if the relationship experts could put together the perfect matches.

I have never been lucky in love. This was my chance to find my soulmate.

I couldn’t wait to meet the man the experts felt was perfect for me.

My hopes were immediately dashed when I saw him at the altar.

Shit. I married my worst nightmare.

Right?!

5 STAR REVIEW

“I absolutely loved this book. Again, I was impressed by the style of writing of Carian Cole and this book was the perfect companion for STORM - a book I also loved.

Asia (love the name) is a woman with a troubled past who seems unable to meet her dream man. Talon is a rock star known for his "reputation" with women, who is fed up with the usual one night stands and disappointments that follow from them.

Both are ready for a new start and become willing guinea pigs for a social experiment. They agree to marry without meeting first... it's a modern "arranged marriage" come science experiment. The idea is funny and interesting. Trademark to the previous book I read, Storm, the attraction at first is non-existent, but as they get to know each other sparks fly - sizzling in some parts!

But, the story, which has an unexpected twist, and writing is fantastic and I got drawn into this world SO easily!

I would personally LOVE to see the whole Ambers & Ashes series as a TV series and hope someone takes note. It's time for a new kid on the block - move aside vampires, open the doors to rock stars! As far as I know it has never been done and I think its time for stereotypes to be cast aside.

Another fantastic novel - a MUST read in my books. But, take note this is for 18+ only due to the sexual nature and swearing! (I might add that even though I hate swearing in this case it makes the main character, Talon, cute & funny at times - weird, I know!)”

So, on to the questions… what did you think of my review? Fair?

I absolutely loved your review!

Do you base your characters on real people?

Usually yes, however, this book was actually inspired by a relationship between two of my cats. Crazy, I know. But, I’ll take creative inspiration from anywhere!

Who was your favourite character in this book, Asia or Talon?

I loved them both, but Talon became my favourite. I really fell in love with him as I was writing him. I love a sarcastic bad boy with a hidden sweet vulnerable side.

I love the humour in your novels. Both in STORM and in TALON the female MC is SO funny in how she reacts when she first meets her man. I will never forget Evie in Storm thinking he was a hobo! Is it important to you that people smile when they read your books?

YES. I want readers to smile, and to feel all the feels if possible. Reading has always been a sort of escape for me -- to get lost in another world for a little while and that is ultimately what I want for my readers.

Obviously, you are tackling some prejudices in the way the female MC’s perceive their ideal man. Do you think how a person dresses, chooses to express themselves, defines them? Are you glad your books might help people overcome their ideas?

I’m very glad that my books may help people overcome their initial judgment of those that have long hair, tattoo’s, piercings, maybe dress a bit different, etc. I’ve personally always dated men with long hair – starting in high school. 

My father would immediately think these guys were junkies, poor, bad news – you name it. He wanted me to date the guys with short hair, clean cut, wearing nice clothes and not ripped up jeans and work boots. However, I am happy to say that most of the guys I dated proved my father wrong – they were nice guys that treated me good, had good jobs, didn’t drink or use drugs, and had hearts of gold. 

I don’t think appearances define a person, but it definitely gives us a glimpse of their personality, individuality, and creativity.

I have to ask because some of the scenes are pretty HOT. Many movies have sexual scenes that are explicit and work for the plot, yet I never think anything of it because you know by the rating it receives. Do you think books need to have a warning? Are you careful who you promote your books too? I know there are many books classed as YA, which sometimes cross the boundary and get away with it.

Being a new author, I have to admit I really didn’t think about putting a warning on my books. In hindsight, I think I should probably add a disclaimer to each book to avoid any confusion. There are such mixed reviews about what a reader perceives as romance and erotica. I’ve had readers tell me that Storm didn’t have enough sex scenes, and others say it had too much. It seems to vary per reader and every day is a learning process!  I certainly would not want my book to offend anyone.

I love the family aspect to Ashes & Ambers series – it remind me of classics like Dynasty & Dallas – just a Rock & Roll version. I seriously think it would be fantastic for TV. Have you considered submitting it anywhere? Will we see your books on the screen?

Eek that would be an unbelievable dream come true for me. I haven’t submitted my books anywhere for TV and honestly wouldn’t even know where to start.

Without sounding like a stalker, I have noticed that TALON is doing extremely well in both the US and the UK! Congratulations. Even though most of your reviews are amazing, some will always be disappointing. How do you deal with critical reviews?

Thank you!!  I love stalkers!  (Phew...)

I read all of my reviews and I have to admit that I’m a sensitive person and bad reviews hurt. I am extremely grateful that my good reviews far outnumber the bad, but those bad ones really dig deep. I know that we can never please everyone, but of course we want to. I’m a pleaser and a giver by nature, so I feel bad if someone doesn’t like my book. I’m trying to develop a thicker skin because as long as I continue to write, I know there will always be bad reviews. It comes with the territory. I try to at least learn from every review – whether its good or bad, to help myself grow as an author. 

In fact, one of my very best beta readers came from leaving me a low review. I respected her opinion and the points she made were all valid, and she has become a valuable member of my team as well as a good friend.

I don’t want to give anything away, but your plot was incredible. What gave you the twist idea? Let’s try not to reveal any spoilers!

The twist in Talon was my first major idea for the story. I was very intrigued with a young musician who had everything he could ever want suddenly faced with a life altering issue that could take everything away from him. Because I also like humor and ‘what if” situations, the marriage experiment seemed like a great way to bring the characters together in a unique way that gave me a lot of room for humor, sexual tension, a true falling in love story, and also to explore how far a person will take their commitment to someone.

What is the most important thing you have learnt, as an author, since you published your first book?

Not to rush. I learned I have to write my books in my own time, without strict deadlines. Some authors do great under the gun, but I am not one of them. I wish I was! I am a slow writer. I need to put a lot of thought into my writing before I’m ready to let it go. So now, I don’t give definite publish dates until I’m confident I’m ready to let the book go out into the world. I know that lack of a date can frustrate readers, and I feel bad for that, but I hope in the end the waiting is worth it for them.

I hope I inspire my children too :)

Growing up did anyone inspire you to write, either an author you read or someone in your life?

My mom was an avid reader and encouraged me to read a lot when I was young, and I fell in love with books. I started writing at a very young age and my mother always supported my dream of someday becoming a writer. 

Sadly, my books were not published until after she passed away. I wish I had taken the leap sooner in life to pursue publishing.

Where we can find out about you and buy your books?

You can check out my web site at www.cariancole.com.  I am also very active on Facebook and welcome friend requests. I do a lot of giveaways and I usually have some pretty cool swag. I donate a portion of my sales to pet rescue, so you’ll see a lot of pet-related stuff on my social media pages, but most of my readers seem to enjoy it.

Thank you again for letting us find out more about you. Readers – buy the book! You will not be disappointed.

Thank you so much for reading my babies. It means the world to me!

It was an absolute pleasure