An Interview with Author Ben Wolf

I’m stoked (I really hope you all get that vampire reference) to have the award-winning author Ben Wolf on my blog today. I’m a fan of his writing in general, and I have to tell you, his novel Blood for Blood is awesome. Please give Ben a warm welcome.

Yes, there is a giveaway! (Details at the bottom of the post.) And you can get Blood for Blood for 99 cents, but only for a limited time! This sale ends Saturday the 24th of October, so get your copy before the Halloween season (and this deal) ends.

Blood for Blood is the story of what might happen if a vampire got saved and tried to start living his life for God. 

 Me: Thank you so much for being here, Ben! Please tell us a bit about you. What do you like to do when you aren't writing? Are you a coffee or tea person? Do you have any children or pets?

Ben Wolf: Thanks so much for having me. I'm a bit nuts, but in a good way. I love watching action/adventure movies and TV shows, and I also take MMA classes at a local gym. I enjoy playing volleyball, sword-fighting, shooting friends with Nerf guns, and hearing myself talk, especially in front of large groups.

I prefer tea to coffee (I don't like coffee at all), but I don't drink tea very often either. I'm caffeine-free these days since I get too many withdrawal headaches when I do drink the caffeine and then don't follow up with more caffeine soon enough.

I've got two adorable kids, Liam and Violet. They're amazing. I also have a furry child named Marco. 

Me: What was the inspiration behind Blood for Blood?

Ben Wolf: I've always been a fan of vampires and their lore, but the story idea is actually one I stole (with permission) from a fellow writing friend. He was talking with me about how ironic it would be for a vampire to get saved and then have to endure life as a Christian among other Christians and their religious symbols, practices, etc. I loved the idea so much that I hijacked it and wrote the novel in the course of only a few months' time. 

Me: You recently won an award for Blood for Blood - tell us about that!

Ben Wolf: I was honored to win the Oregon Christian Writers 2015 Cascade Award for Best Speculative Fiction Novel. I was up against some stiff competition, and I was thrilled just to be nominated, but I'm even more thrilled that I won. I really think it's a great book, and I'm happy to see it get some recognition. It's also validation that I should keep writing. 

Me: The character of Raven is unique and complex. How do you think people can relate to him? How do YOU relate to him?

Ben Wolf: I'm glad you think he's unique and complex. That's a huge compliment to me. 

I think people will relate to him in his uncertainty. I know I certainly do. Raven is uncertain about his new faith from the very beginning and throughout the entire book until almost the end. The moment he finally decides to really go for broke and surrender EVERYTHING to God is the key moment in his faith development.

I'm like that, only it's a daily struggle. I am constantly fighting against surrendering to God, even though I should do it and need do it. I think a lot of American Christians are like that as well. We tend to think that we've got it under control, and we'll just call on God when we get into a bind. But that's not what God wants. He wants an ongoing relationship, not one of convenience. I struggle with this personally, and I definitely can learn from Raven's story and character in this way. 

Me: If you could spend the day with one of the B4B characters, which would it be?

Ben Wolf: Oooh, tough one. I think I'd benefit the most from hanging out with Luco. My hope would be that he'd rub off on me in a good way. He could mentor me a bit in my faith. 

Me: What authors have influenced you the most?

Ben Wolf: Frank Peretti is responsible for me falling in love with reading and also for inspiring the desire within me to write. Robert Liparulo and Ted Dekker furthered that drive, and Randy Ingermanson and James Scott Bell both contributed a ton with their excellent work on teaching the craft of writing. More recently, Stephen King has become something of a favorite of mine. 

Me: What are you working on now? What's next for you?

Ben Wolf: I'm developing a sci-fi horror novel as we speak. I've got most of the basic outline done, and I'm set to begin working on it in November for NaNoWriMo. I have purposely given myself permission to write during that month, despite a busy freelance editing schedule. I'm hopeful that I can knock out a big chunk of the book, if not finish the first draft entirely. 

Me: I assume you’re dressing up for Halloween this year. Are you going as a vampire?

Ben Wolf: It's highly likely that I'll be going as Wolverine for Halloween this year. Gotta get some more mileage out of those claws. 

Thank you again for taking the time to be a guest on my blog today!

I know you want to know how win a signed copy of Blood for Blood AND two copies of Havok Magazine. All you have to do is sign up for Ben’s newsletter. Make sure you do it by 11:59 p.m. Saturday October 24^th, 2015. Good luck!

A Time To Die Blog Hop

Today I'm part of a blog hop for this awesome, newly released Christian dystopian novel A Time to Die by Nadine Brandes.

In celebration of the new release, there is a GIVEAWAY! I know, right? I loved this book, and not only for the amazing story and characters I loved hanging out with. I loved how it made me think about using the time I have wisely. Here's what I mean:

 

 

How would you live if you knew the day you’d die?

Parvin Blackwater believes she has wasted her life. At only seventeen, she has one year left according to the Clock by her bedside. In a last-ditch effort to make a difference, she tries to rescue Radicals from the government’s crooked justice system.

 
But when the authorities find out about her illegal activity, they cast her through the Wall —— her people’s death sentence. What she finds on the other side about the world, about eternity, and about herself changes Parvin forever and might just save her people. But her Clock is running out.




For this blog hop I was asked to answer one question: How would you spend the last year of your life?

That's a tough question.

The first thing I would do is spend time with loved ones--family, friends, and God. Not the kind of time where I would hurry up and try to fit in every last thing I ever wanted to do with them, but the kind of time where I could just hang out. You know? Soaking up their presence. Be still, be me, and be in their company.

Like I said, this includes time with God. I would want to spend so much time with Him. And the number one thing I'd be asking is how He wanted me to spend the rest of my time. I would follow His path the best I could, wherever it leads.

A Time to Die blog hop

Then, I imagine, I'd have to get over the fears. Fear is a time waster. A time killer. I'd have to get over being afraid to die and leave those I love. I'd have to get over being afraid of trying and failing. And I'd have to get over being afraid of doing whatever it was God asked me to do. Because He tends to ask things of us that we really can't do alone. And I'd have to trust that He gave me enough time.

The next thing I'd do is write more. I'd write letters to everyone I love. I'd write my fiction books to the world and hope the messages they need to read would be clear in my characters' journeys. I'd write because I love it, it's the passion God gave me.

I wouldn't sleep much. Time is precious as it is. I imagine I'd try to spend as much time awake as humanly possible.

And I know this sounds so strange, but I would slow down to stop and smell the roses, count the blessings, and take joy in the simple things. This is hard for me (a huge planner!) to say. But it's the little, unrushed things in life that we often overlook when we're trying to make the most of our time. And maybe that's why time starts to fly so much.

To learn more about A Time to Die, you can connect with the author on her website, Facebook, Twitter, or Goodreads.

And now it's time for that giveaway. Am I right?

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway