Author Interview With Angela Shori

Before you learn to read, you look for people to read to you, at least until you memorize your favorite books and can read them to yourself. A good picture book can be read by anyone and still be entertaining.

Author Angela Shori has created her own story that she can read to her own children as well as distribute to other parents to read to their kids. Not only is this an admirable achievement in her children’s eyes, but it has fulfilled her own creative goals as a writer, and that is admirable to me as well as other authors who are working towards the same. Below are her answers to my 10 questions about her books and writing process.

1. How many books have you written and where can you buy them?

I currently have one children's book and one short fiction book available for sale on Amazon. The children's book is titled, A Boo-tiful Halloween and is a short, simple story introducing concepts of opposites using some friendly illustrated monsters. It was very popular among the under five crowd in my home as well as with the young pre-readers who were so kind as to review it with their adults.

The short fiction story is a Christmas short story titled, The Cabin. It's also available on Amazon. It sits firmly in the holiday fiction genre.

2. What famous books can you compare to your own?

In it's simplicity and fun, I'd compare A Boo-tiful Halloween to Mo Willems' We Are in a Book.

3. Why do you write for this particular age group?

I have two daughters ages two and four, so I love creating stories that I can share with them. They were the inspiration for A Boo-tiful Halloween and the coming series starring their alter egos, Twinkles and Stardust.

4. How autobiographical are your books?

A Boo-tiful Halloween was not at all autobiographical. It was just a fun little poem to celebrate the happy side of Halloween. The series featuring Twinkles and Stardust is based on lessons and conversations with my children. They began as their alter egos in parables meant to teach them the proper way to deal with certain situations and took on a life of their own. Look for the first in the series in 2016.

5. What’s the best compliment that you’ve ever received about your writing?

I just received a review on The Cabin in which the reviewer titled it "Blown Away!". As an author, when a reader connects with your story that enthusiastically, it definitely leaves you with the warm and fuzzies.

6. What has been your greatest moment as a writer so far?

In it's debut month, A Boo-tiful Halloween climbed the charts in the Amazon free store to # 12. This occurred without much marketing outside of the promotion, and it was really gratifying to see my little book on the first page of it's category.

7. Where do you get your covers?

I work with freelance designers to create my covers. I've had some success with Fiverr.

8. Who is your biggest fan?

I would say my biggest fans are my two daughters. A friend mentioned he'd bought my book over Thanksgiving weekend, and my oldest leaned in close and said, "Mommy, you're famous!"

9. What is next for you?

I have quite a few projects in the queue - the Twinkles and Stardust Series, Tiny Passports, a travel series for parents traveling with small children, and a new chick-lit novel titled Minor Adjustments.

10. End with a favorite quote.

"Today you are you. That is truer than true. There is no one alive who is youer than you." - Dr. Seuss