UFI welcomes Author Ashlyn Chase. Thanks for Joining us!!
What can you tell my readers about yourself that they might not know from looking on your bio or reading in another interview?
I think if you put together all my interviews and bios, there’d be nothing left to tell. I’m pretty much an open book. (Pardon the groaner.) I like people and I’m pretty easy to talk to, so if there’s anything you want to know, feel free to ask. If I don’t want to answer, I’ll just joke my way out of it.
What is your Favorite part of writing?
Let’s see…wearing my bathrobe and slippers to work. Spending time with my imaginary friends who tell me their stories. Sharing my crazy imagination with people, and hearing them say I’m brilliant rather than a crazy person. (Well, sometimes that too.)
Do you have any certain routines you must follow as you write?
I’m a morning person. I like to get email out of the way and get into writing as quickly as possible. If ‘life’ gets in the way before that, I can get derailed for the whole day. I schedule everything else for the afternoon. Woe to the person who tries to interrupt my morning!
What are some of your Favorite books or Authors in the Urban Fantasy/ Paranormal Genres?
There are a lot of authors I admire, and some I am lucky enough to call friends. I really don’t want to start naming people. If I forget to acknowledge someone and realize it later, I’ll feel awful. Some will be at the Fall in Love with New England conference in Manchester, NH, Oct. 14th and 15th, because I invited them, personally. (Hint) Readers! Check out: http://fallinlovewithnewengland.blogspot.com
Can you tell us a little bit about the world that I Dream of Dragons is set in?
A.C. It’s real-world Boston, Massachusetts. I’m a native of the area, so anything I describe, setting-wise, should be fairly accurate. The characters both want the only vacant apartment in one of those gorgeous old brownstones in Back Bay. The building on Beacon Street is loosely based upon an old brownstone that I lived in years ago. It’s one of the prettiest areas of the city, in my humble opinion.
Which one character was your favorite to write about? What about the hardest to write about?
A.C. Easiest? I grew up with a lot of Irish-Americans. I loved the feistiness of the girls, especially. They took no nonsense from anyone. Rory’s sisters Chloe and Shannon were very different from one another, but I loved them both—especially Chloe. She had a good heart, but could never be called a pushover. Shannon was a bit softer, but if you went up against Chloe, you were going to lose. I loved how Rory would correct Shannon’s occasional blunt language, but he didn’t bother to call Chloe on hers, because, as he put it, she was ‘a lost cause.’ Whatever Chloe said or did, she was committed to it and wouldn’t back down.
Who was the hardest to write?
A.C. Probably the Leprechauns. Not having grown up with the legends, I had to research them a bit. Believe it or not, there’s a Leprechaun Museum in Dublin—and I went there. We also attended a story hour, which related more myths of the fairies and little people.
Here’s a story we were told.
Yes, leprechauns are supposed to have treasure that you can claim if you catch one. One day a young man came upon a leprechaun on a tree farm. He grabbed him and the leprechaun said, “Fine. You can have me gold, but you’ll have to dig it up.”
The young man said, “But I’ll have to go home and get a shovel, and if I turn my back you’ll be gone. How will I know where you’ve buried it?”
So the leprechaun said, “Fine. It’s under this tree. Take off your sock and tie it on a branch. When you come back you’ll know where it is.”
“Ha! You’ll just remove it as soon as I leave,” he said.
“No, I won’t.” Promised the little man. “On my honor. I won’t touch it.”
So the young man took off his bright red sock and tied it to the small tree. Satisfied that the leprechaun would leave it where it was, he went home and got his shovel. When he returned, every tree was covered with red socks. And the Leprechaun was nowhere to be found.
Yes, they’re tricky little buggers.
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I Dream of DragonsBoston Dragons #1
THE HEAT IS ON
When Rory Arish and his two fiery dragon siblings are run out of their ancestral Irish home, it seems their luck has run out-until they arrive in Boston and find a paranormal-friendly apartment building. Finally, Rory has a place to call home. There's only one problem: Rory's new lair has simultaneously been rented to an infuriating woman who is as stubborn as she is beautiful and will not leave 'her' apartment matter how steamed he may be...
AND SPARKS FLY
Amber McNally is a down-on-her-luck flight attendant. She needs this apartment, and not even a fire-breathing dragon with his Irish charm and scorching good looks is going to scare her away. Holing up in their respective corners, a battle of wills ensues. Who will be the first to blink...or give in to their off-the-charts chemistry and decide to make this unorthodox living arrangement a little more permanent?
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Ashlyn considers herself lucky. Her degree in behavioral sciences is a combination of psychology and sociology, so she has worked with and studied people most of her life. She never has to write out exhaustive character sketches to understand her characters or predict how they will behave. That doesn't mean they don't surprise her. Sometimes they take her on grand unexpected journeys. For her, it gives "character driven novels" a whole new meaning.
Ashlyn has learned to go with the flow. To enjoy the journey is not only one of her writing goals, but also a challenge in life so she tries to follow where the story takes her. As such, she has lived in 17 different places over the years. At last, she's all settled down and comfy in New England.
Is there a grand design or do we decide our own fates? Perhaps if the powers-that-be have a plot, then they also give us the right to revise it. Ashlyn has certainly made detours on her path, but she thinks she's better for it. She's having fun at any rate and hopes that if she enjoys the journey, so will those around her—including her readers.
Find Ashlyn and her books
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