Interview with sci-fi author Sharolyn G. Brown

My special guest today is Sharolyn G. Brown to talk with me about her new sci-fi dystopian novel, The Heaviness of Knowing.

During her virtual book tour, Sharolyn will be awarding a $15 Amazon or Barnes & Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn winner. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!

Bio:

Sharolyn G. Brown is a lifelong science fiction and fantasy fan who decided the best way to deal with all of the characters in her head was to give them stories and put them in a book. She lives with her husband in Houston, Texas where she divides her time between working, writing, and spending time with him.

For more information about Sharolyn, check out her website www.sharolyngbrown.com. You can also connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. To keep up with the latest news, please sign up for her Newsletter.

Welcome, Sharolyn. Please share a little bit about your current release.
The Heaviness of Knowing is primarily about an alien woman named Roxal who knows the gods on her planet, The Keepers, are fake, but chooses to continue serving them because not doing so would endanger her life. In service to them, she manipulates an Earth woman named Lauren, through her dreams, to do The Keepers’ bidding. You also get to meet Lauren who finds out about Roxal (and other things) and has to figure out what to do now that she knows about these aliens and their planned invasion.

What inspired you to write this book?
I was inspired to write The Heaviness of Knowing by a conversation with a friend who told me she never dreams. It made me wonder why some people remember their dreams, and others don’t. My imagination took over and came up with an idea involving aliens who were using our dreams to invade the Earth.

Excerpt from The Heaviness of Knowing:
“What are you doing back here? I told you it was dangerous for them to find you here. How did you get to this place? I did not initiate this link.”

The voice sounded the same as the one from her dream-like meditation from two nights before. Lauren wondered why the presence spoke to her like she knew her. Also, what she was saying didn’t make any sense to Lauren.

“I’m here because I was guided here. Why is it dangerous to be here?”

“No one can guide you here but me,” Lauren heard the presence say, while at the same time, Estella was asking, “Lauren, are you talking to someone?”

“Yes, Estella. There’s a woman here and she’s telling me I should go because it’s dangerous for me. And she wants to know how I got here in the first place. I told her you guided me here, but she says you can’t do that.”

“Who are you talking to?” The woman now sounded as if she were confused.

“I’m talking to my therapist, Dr. Estella Olivier.”

“A therapist?” The voice was quiet for several moments. “Are you awake, Lauren?”

This woman was asking the strangest questions. And though she didn’t want to answer, there was just something about her that Lauren sensed she could trust.

“Yes, I’m awake. I’m at a session with my doctor to determine why I can’t sleep. She led me to this room to figure out the answer and then you started talking.”

Both the woman and Estella were silent.

The woman’s voice broke the silence. “Lauren, we have never spoken before while you were awake.”

What exciting story are you working on next?
I’m working on Book 2 of the Conscious Dream Series. Roxal and Lauren had to make tough decisions in Book 1. Book 2 will show what happens as a result of the decisions each woman made.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I didn’t consider myself a writer until someone in my writer’s group told me I was one. Seriously. I knew I wanted to write a novel, so I joined a writer’s group. After writing and sharing a few short stories I told them that one day I hoped to be a writer. One of the members then questioned whether I had written the pieces I’d shared with the group. When I answered yes, her reply was, “Well that means you’re already a writer.” From that point on I made sure never to make that mistake again.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
For now, I write part-time. I’m a full-time engineer for an oil company. I try to set aside about two hours a day during the week, and as many hours as I can find on the weekend to write. Occasionally, I’ll have all-day writing sessions on Saturday. However, I try to avoid the all-day writing sessions because I have a life outside of writing (husband, friends, TV) that I enjoy very much.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I have to write in complete silence. I can’t have a TV or music on in the background. When I write, it’s like I’m seeing the scenes play out in my brain, and I’m simply trying to get them down in a coherent form. So having any sound on while I write interferes with my process.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I didn’t know what I wanted to be when I grew up. In fact, I’m an engineer because my Dad has a degree in engineering, and my Mom said I should be one because I was good at math and science. I chose Mechanical Engineering as my major in college and never looked back. I still enjoy being an engineer, but writing is something that I absolutely love.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
I just want your readers to know that I thank them for checking out my interview and excerpt, and I hope they’ve enjoyed reading them. Also, I’d love to connect with them on Facebook, Goodreads, or Twitter. The book can be found on Amazon.

Thank you for being a guest on my blog!

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