Natasha Preston Author Interview ~ JeanBookNerd

Book Nerd Interview

My name is Natasha Preston, but most people call me Tash or Tasha. I don't mind either. I was born in England and have lived in small towns and villages out in the countryside ever since.

My fiance, Joseph, is the most supportive person in my life. Without his love, help and patience I wouldn't be where I am today. And this website wouldn't exist! I'm a proud mummy to an amazing little boy who is my whole world.

At school I drifted through, achieving average grades. I fell into administration and receptionist jobs, thinking that I couldn't really do anything else.

In 2010 I stumbled into writing completely by accident. I was searching the 'app store' and came across Wattpad, an amateur writing site. For the first few months, I just read, but then decided to type up some of the ideas I had floating around in my head. I'm so glad I did because I absolutely love writing.

Writing gave me an escape, and Wattpad gave me the self-confidence I lacked.

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Was there a defining moment during your youth when you realized you wanted to be a writer?

Definitely not in my youth! All through school and college I was still panicking that I had no idea what I wanted to do or be. It wasn’t until I stumbled across Wattpad (an online reading/writing community) in 2010 that I discovered I love to write. I was twenty-two.

Beyond your own work (of course), what is your all-time favorite book and why?

And what is your favorite book outside of your genre? Ha my work is definitely not in my all-time favorites! I LOVE Nothing Left to Lose by Kirsty Moseley because, well, Ashton Taylor! I love adult romance, thrillers and horror. Recently I’ve read a little fantasy too.

What is the best piece of advice you ever received from another author?

Be true to yourself and what you want for your book.

In your book; The Cellar, can you tell my Book Nerd community a little about it?

It’s about a teenage girl, Summer, who thinks she’s pretty invincible…until she’s kidnapped and locked in a cellar with three other women. Her abductor is a complex man with a twisted view on reality fighting with what he’s knows and what he wants. Summer’s family and particularly her boyfriend, Lewis, do everything they can to find her.

For those who are unfamiliar with Summer, how would you introduce her?

I would say Summer is a pretty typical teenage girl who is wrapped up in her boyfriend and friends. She thinks because she knows a place that she’s completely safe and the fears of her family are over the top.

What are some of your current and future projects that you can share with us?

I’m currently working on releasing my third publish book with a new cover and added content and editing my sixth book to publish later this year. I have my writing and publishing schedule planned out until 2018 so I’m pretty busy!

If you could introduce one of your characters to any character from another book, who would it be and why?

I’d introduce you to twenty-one year old Kai Chambers. He’s from a book not yet published called Save Me, the one I’m editing now. Usually I’m quite set about what will happen in my novels but Kai surprised me. He was supposed to be in it for five chapters but somehow he clawed his way into mind and heart and just kind of stayed there. He’s been broken and lost but by the time he meets my main gal he’s found himself. I’m currently planning his own book because there’s so much more to him and his journey than what’s we see in Save Me.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating Colin?

That he is far too easy to write! Apart from that I’d say that no matter how much you can hate someone’s actions there is always a reason behind it. I don’t hate him, not at all. He’s the most complex character I’ve ever written and I’m so glad I decided to do his point of view in the book.

What’s the best advice you can give writers to help them develop their own unique voice and style?

Don’t listen to how or what you ‘should’ write. Write whatever you want and however you want. I’ve had people telling me I shouldn’t do more than one or two points of view in a story but that wasn’t how I wanted to write it. You won’t develop your own style if you’re following what everyone else is doing.

Tell me about your first kiss.

I was a bit drunk… Whoops!

What would be harder for you, to tell someone you love them or that you do not love them back?

That I don’t love them back. I’d find it easier to hurt myself than someone else.

When was the last time you cried?

A few nights ago. For no reason at all.

What decade during the last century would you have chosen to be a teenager?

One way off into the future. Flying cars? Heck yes!

What is your greatest adventure?

Motherhood! They may look cute and innocent but in reality they’re little balls of mischief that syphon your energy and turn you into caffeine addicts.

Where can readers stalk you?

My website: www.natashapreston.com or on Facebook: Natasha Preston or Twitter: @natashavpreston. If you’re good at stalking: behind a tree outside my house.

When sixteen-year-old Summer Robinson goes missing one night, her family, friends and boyfriend are devastated. Nothing ever happens in Long Thorpe, so the disappearance of a school girl shocks the whole community. The police waste no time in launching a search and investigation, but with nothing to go on and no trace of Summer, hopes of finding her quickly fade.

Colin Brown, is a thirty-year-old solicitor living alone after the death of his mother. He suffered a traumatic and abusive childhood, and is left with no sense of right or wrong. Desperate for the perfect family, Colin, referring to himself as Clover, turns to drastic measures to get what he wants.