Interview/Giveaway with Marissa Dobson

I first met Marissa as a fellow blogger. It's a pleasure to welcome her on my blog as a debut author.

Hi Marissa, Welcome to Anna's Book Blog! I'm glad to have you here. To start off can you tell the readers a little about yourself?

First let me say thank you for having me. I am honored to be here. Thank you Anna for having me.

When it comes to me there isn’t much to tell. I am nowhere near as interesting as the characters I write about. I am just your average twenty something housewife with a reading fetish and an active imagination. I am originally from the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area, but moved away when I met my husband. I have two wonderful writing buddies, Max (a cocker spaniel) and Dawne (a beagle mix).

Your newest release- The Twelve Seductive Days of Christmas, is featured in the Believe anthology can you tell us a little about it and the series?

The Twelve Seductive Days of Christmas is a sweet romantic story. Jasmine has a rocky past, she has been burned by love and family before, and now she has a daughter to worry about. She isn't looking for anything, just a quiet place that she can raise her daughter.

On the other hand Logan Clarke fell in love with the mysterious Jasmine long ago, hearing stories from her grandmother. And now that Jasmine is finally here, he knows he’s in love for sure.

Snowbound in a cottage, twelve days before Christmas, does Logan have enough time to convince Jasmine of love at first sight? And can Jasmine let go of her past, and let Logan into her heart?

What is your writing day like?

My writing day, boy that depends a little on what I need to do for my review site, and how much I got done the day before. Normally after my husband leaves in the morning I have some coffee and get stuff done around the house or work on my review site. I am not a morning person, which means I don’t write my best until around 10am or so. Normally I start writing around 10am and keep working on it until my husband gets home. I try to stop writing when my husband gets home from work between 3 and 5 so we can spend some time together. I do some writings in the evenings if I am on a roll or really behind, but normally that time is saved for reading.

What was it like learning your story was gonna be published?

Just thinking about hearing the news brings a smile to my face. I was cuddled up on the couch reading when my cell phone went off letting me know I had an email. I was engrossed in my book, I was going to wait and check the email later but for some reason I couldn’t get back into the book, I was wondering what that email was. Finally I gave in and checked the email. It was telling me that it was going to be included in the Believe anthology and I started screaming. I couldn’t believe it. I was so excited. It was a dream come true for me. It is something I have worked so hard for and to see it really happen was amazing.

When your not writing what kind of books do you like to read?

When I am not writing I read just about everything. I love paranormal romance, and urban fantasy. I read anything with some romance in it. I grew up reading horror, mystery, thrillers, and things like that so I still read those.

Which authors have influenced this the most?

Now this is a hard question. I know so many wonderful authors and they have all inspired me in some way. But I have to say one of the first author’s that influenced me was Nora Roberts. Her books grab you from the beginning and make you care about the characters until the very end. I wanted to do that. However it was Terri Grimes that gave me the encouragement and final push to submit something.

What are 3 things that are "must haves" for you when you sit down to write a book?

Three things I must have when I am writing… The first and more important is quite. I can’t write with music on or anything like that. Second, would be something to drink. Lately that has been coffee or tea since it is cold outside, in the summer it is normally coffee in the morning and ice water later. The third one would be hard candy. When I am stumped I pop a piece of hard candy and think it over. Normally that helps.

A lot of times I wonder how some authors juggle blogging, reading and their writing.  How do you manage it?

For me this is all about time management. Trust me there are days where it doesn’t go well and I feel so far behind but I just have to stick with it. Everything I do, whether it’s my review site, or stuff for my writing it is something I love to do. I divide my day into sections. First thing in the morning I do things I need to do, along with working on my review site. Then from 10am until my husband gets home I write, and then after dinner is when I read and working on reviews. If I am behind or I am on a roll with my writing then I will do a little in the evenings. Basically every day I set a goal on what I would like to get done, including word count, books read, reviews done, everything. If I don’t finish it then it is the first thing I do the next morning.

Are there any real life people that have inspired the characters in your story?

In Believe I can’t say any real life people inspired the characters, but I can say that some of the names are special. Vivian is Jasmine’s Grandmother in Believe, and I named her that after my Grandmother, but other than that I can’t say that any of the others were inspired by real life people. However the cocker spaniel in the story is inspired by my cocker spaniel Floppie who passed away in October.

What is up next? Do you have any projects in the works that you can tell about?

My current work in progress (WIP) is another sweet romance

~Want to learn more about Marissa, check out her website, blog and Facebook. ~

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The Twelve Seductive Days of Christmas

By: Marissa Dobson

in the Believe anthology

Jasmine Pierce has been burned by love and family before, and now she has a daughter to worry about. She isn't looking for anything, just a quiet place that she can raise her daughter.

Logan Clarke fell in love with the mysterious Jasmine long ago, hearing stories from her grandmother. And now that Jasmine is finally here, he knows he’s in love for sure. 

Snowbound in a cottage, twelve days before Christmas, does Logan have enough time to convince Jasmine of love at first sight? And can Jasmine let go of her past, and let Logan into her heart?

Amazon(Print) | Amazon(Kindle) | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords

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GIVEAWAY:

Thanks to Marissa I have a digital copy of Believe to giveaway to one lucky winner. To enter leave a comment along with your email address. Open to everyone! The winner will be announced on December 22nd.  Good Luck!