Interview with Marisette Burgess

Welcome to my blog Marisette!
1) Please tell us something about you and about your books?
Teacher, mother, and wife, not in that order. I’m an extreme Florida girl whose never seen snow. I believe white should be worn at funerals, not black. Studied at the University of Central Florida for a BA in English. I am co-chair of the Florida Writing Association’s youth program. If I can avoid close-toed shoes, I do. Born from Cuban immigrant parents I spoke Spanish before I spoke English. If you ever see me staring blankly into nothing, then my head is in a story.
Men of the Cave is a YA Paranormal Romantic Adventure with a twist on Greek Myths and Christian Legends.
Kasey Reese, 18, flees to Spain on a scholarship to restore the comfort she finds in anonymity. Destiny, however, has other plans for her – a life threatening, life-altering journey into the supernatural when she meets the men of the cave.
If you are looking for something different and unique then you just might like this. A “Twilight-ish” love story with a little bit of adventure.

2) When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?
Writing was always something I enjoyed to do for fun, but I didn't pursue it professionally until a few years back.

3)Which is your favorite book and favorite author?
I like Shakespeare and Poe. I also love the works of Joss Whedon and Neil Gaiman. Each author brings a unique trait into their stories that I love. I enjoy reading Shakespeare’s romantic works. With Poe it’s his dark creepy stuff I love. Joss Whedon's banter and comedy, and Neil Gaiman's magic for the supernatural.

4)What inspired the Symbol of Hope series?
This story is something that I am quite passionate about, because it encompasses different aspects of life, faith, and the supernatural. When I decided that I wanted to write a young adult novel with a female protagonist I knew exactly whom I wanted my heroine to be like. Kasey’s loosely based off my favorite storybook character a young girl named Juniper, from the Juniper Game by Sherryl Jordan.
Once I established Kasey in my head, I then needed a story, an adventure for her. I also needed her male counterpart. This proved to be difficult. I had no clue what I was going to write about, all I had was this great protagonist. One frustrating day I decided to Google unknown rare legends and like a diamond in the ruff I found my precious answer. A title flashed across my screen, Seven Sleepers.
I read an article about these seven men who went to sleep in a cave for 200 years to escape persecution from an Emperor. I started to research about these seven men and discovered as much information as possible. I fell in love with the legend and the idea of these self-sacrificing men who were willing to give their lives.
Most authors take from their personal lives to create stories. As a lover of Greek Mythology, I wanted to incorporate this somehow. I thought, wouldn’t it be neat to write a Twilight/ Percy Jackson-esk type of adventure. That is just what I aimed to do.
The ideas started to flow quicker than I could get them down. I created an outline and never followed it. Once the writing got underway, the story took on a life of its own. I knew loosely what I wanted the end result to be, but not everything that happened in the story was how I originally envisioned the plot would go. As soon as I finished Men of the Cave, I knew without a doubt how the rest of the storyline would unravel in the series and where I wanted my characters to end up.


5) Outside of writing what you do for fun?
I love the beach especially sitting by the shore reading my kindle. I also enjoy boating. Pretty much anything around water I love. I also love to go see plays even though I don’t get to them too often. Musicals are my favorite.

6)Where do you get the motivation to keep writing and doing what you love?
The characters are my motivation. I know they aren’t real but I feel like I owe it to them to tell their story and complete their journey. They have an adventure to complete and share with the world. I feel like I need to get them there, all the way to the end.

7)Which is your ideal day as an author?
The days when I write that last chapter and the story is complete.

8)Is there anything about you that would surprise your readers?
I am not what I perceive to be. People are always shock when they first meet me then get to really know me. I’m not as stiff as some might think. I’m open to a lot more than people give me credit for.

9) What's next for you?
I have a couple of things started. I think I want to write an adult romance story. A mid-evil fairy tale for adults.

10) Please leave a message for your readers.
I cannot thank you enough for reading my series. I love to hear from those who have read Men of the Cave and Jar of Pandora. The last book Symbol of Hope will be released sometime in 2013. Thank you Adriana for the blog post and the cool site!
Happy Reading.
Contact: http://www.marisetteburgess.com

Thank you for your interview and for the awesome ebooks !!!!