Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Ruth Frances Long Author Interview


Book Nerd Interview

A lifelong fan of fantasy, romance, and ancient mysteries, Ruth Frances Long studied English Literature, History of Religions, and Celtic Civilization in college and now works in a specialized library of rare and unusual books. She lives in County Wicklow, Ireland. The Treachery of Beautiful Things is her first novel for teens.


Social Media
  



Was there a defining moment during your youth when you realized you wanted to be a writer?

Not as such. I think I always wanted to tell stories. Although I do remember that I was determined to write no matter what, so much so that I was caught in German class with a copybook balanced on my knees trying to write under the desk. My teacher confiscated it and I had to go to the staff room later to ask for it back. It was mortifying, even when she told me she liked it.

Why is storytelling so important for all of us?

"If you don't know the trees you may be lost in the forest, but if you don't know the stories you may be lost in life" – a saying from a Siberian Elder

What is the best piece of advice you ever received from another author?

Not sure if someone told me, or if I sort of picked it up by osmosis, but the best bit of advice I have is to listen to all advice, even the things you don’t like, to take on board the advice that works for you and to discard the rest without worrying about it too much. So many people will tell you how to write, but what they’re really saying is how “they” write. You have to figure out how your write for yourself.

In your new book; The Treachery of Beautiful Things, can you tell my Book Nerd community a little about it and why they should read your novel?

The Treachery of Beautiful Things is a combination of folklore and fantasy, it’s a love story and an adventure. It’s dark and it’s beautiful, much like the faerie Realm.

What part of Jenny did you enjoy writing the most?

I loved watching her grow. She isn’t brave or courageous to begin with, although she wishes she was. And over the course of the story, she learns to be her own heroine, and fights to help the people she loves.

If you could introduce Tom to any character from another book, who would it be and why?

Someone who might knock some sense into him. He can be a bit of a spoilt brat. Jane Eyre might sort him out.

For those who are unfamiliar with Jack, how would you introduce him?

The most important thing in the world to Jack is his duty. He has, over the years, made packs and alliances, and found himself tied in knots so that he can no longer act as he would. Jack has one wish, which he wishes a thousand times over. He longs to be free.

What are some of your current and future projects that you can share with us?

I’m starting to look at a sequel to The Treachery of Beautiful Things, but nothing as been decided as yet. I’m also working on a Space Opera with hints of pre-Revolutionary France, an urban fantasy novel set in Dublin for adults, and a YA about the Sidhe and humans caught between the sides of the angels and the demons in the war in heaven. Lots of projects, in short. I am very fickle.

When asked, what’s the one question you always answer with a lie?

Do I look fat in this?

What’s the best advice you can give writers to help them develop their own unique voice and style?

Use the advice that works for you, and discard the rest. Trust your story and trust yourself, and listen to others, but don’t slavishly follow every piece of advice you get. It will not all apply to you.

Who is the first person you call when you have a bad day?

My husband.

What's the worst summer job you've ever had?

Selling double glazing in Aberdeen. I kid you not. I lasted all of two weeks. Barely.

When was the last time you cried?

Watching archive news footage from 1989 showing Tianammen Square and the fall of the Berlin Wall.

What is the one, single food that you would never give up?

Cheese… Bacon… Cheese & Bacon… wow, this is hard. If I say it really fast does it sound like one thing?

Where can readers stalk you?

My website – www.rflong.com – or Twitter @RFLong (I tweet a LOT). I’ve a facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/RuthFrancesLong and one for The Treachery of Beautiful Things as well - https://www.facebook.com/TheTreachery



A darkly compelling mix of romance, fairy tale, and suspense from a new voice in teen fiction

The trees swallowed her brother whole, and Jenny was there to see it. Now seventeen, she revisits the woods where Tom was taken, resolving to say good-bye at last. Instead, she's lured into the trees, where she finds strange and dangerous creatures who seem to consider her the threat. Among them is Jack, mercurial and magnetic, with secrets of his own. Determined to find her brother, with or without Jack's help, Jenny struggles to navigate a faerie world where stunning beauty masks some of the most treacherous evils, and she's faced with a choice between salvation or sacrifice--and not just her own.



Ruth Frances Long’s fantastical book, The Treachery of Beautiful Things, tells the story of siblings Tom and Jenny. When the two decided to take a shortcut into the woods towards their home from their music lessons, Tom is mystically taken by something in the forest. Jenny tries to explain the ordeal to her parents but ends up getting sent away to school for counseling. Returning to the forest after seven years, Jenny is determined to locate her lost brother. While in the forest, she comes across the border between her world and the Fae realm. Inside, she meets the most peculiar characters such as the border guardian, Puck the hobgoblin, and Jack o’ the forest and in no time, Jack and Puck agrees to aid in her search for Tom.

Right from the beginning, the book has a sense that something magical would occur. Readers are immediately mesmerized the moment the siblings step into the forest. When Jenny returns after seven years, readers are fully invested into the story with all of its fantastical world and highly imaginative characters.

Ruth has built a world so out of ours, but manages to explain each detail with high precision and care. All of these new things Jenny was experiencing will come easily to the reader’s imagination. Her choice of words brought everything alive. From the unforgettable characters, good or bad, and the magical land they live on, The Treachery of Beautiful Things is on the forefront for anyone who enjoys fantasy books. This book can stand on its own but has the capabilities of becoming a series that readers will wait eagerly for.


You can purchase The Treachery of Beautiful Things at the following Retailers:
    


And now, The Giveaways.
Thank you Ruth for making this giveaway possible.
1 Winner will receive a Complete Swag of The Treachery of Beautiful Things by Ruth Frances Long.
(Signed Book, Bookmark, Postcard & Magnet).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

97 comments:

  1. I currently have a image of my BFF and I celebrating her birthday earlier this summer!! :D

    ReplyDelete
  2. my current desktop picture is a slideshow of Matt Bomer :) Don't know who he is? He's the con-artist in the USA Network show, White Collar. Google him. He's GORGEOUS.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Kyo from the manga Fruits Basket! :D

    ReplyDelete
  4. My current desktop picture is Sookie and Bill from True Blood.

    ReplyDelete
  5. The Avengers =D Thor is the best though lol

    ReplyDelete
  6. It's a picture of me and my baby niece the night she was born<3

    ReplyDelete
  7. It's smoke with different colors :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. A picture involving characters from books. :]

    ReplyDelete
  9. Just the normal windows 7 picture

    ReplyDelete
  10. A image with a "This world is mad" quote.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Its a picture of a wolf howling at the moon.

    ReplyDelete
  12. the tower beidge in london taken by St. Catherine's docks

    ReplyDelete
  13. A suit and the text Laters, baby :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. mine is just the boring Windows Ascent desktop picture of a mountain and the moon.

    ReplyDelete
  15. A bunch of squigglies that Windows provided for me. :)

    ReplyDelete
  16. A lavender culture :D. Thank you for the giveaway!

    ReplyDelete
  17. I have on my desktop photo of my dear dog :)

    ReplyDelete
  18. A sequel of the book!!?? OMG! and I haven'teven read this one!

    About the question..
    I love nature, so I have this beautiful image of mountains and a background forest that I LOVE!!

    ReplyDelete
  19. My desktop picture is Adam Levine.

    Thanks for the giveaway.

    ReplyDelete
  20. A picture of my favorite band Kings Of Leon.
    (ileana-rafflecopter)

    ReplyDelete
  21. Rainbow Brite on Starlite with Sprite.

    ReplyDelete
  22. A beautiful picture of my Mom and Dad

    ReplyDelete
  23. A fantasy picture with Unicorns and a faery !

    ReplyDelete
  24. The standard desktop picture for Windows 7.

    ReplyDelete
  25. The cover of Ember by Madison Daniel! :)

    ReplyDelete
  26. A picture of the Main Street of the city I was born in and used to live.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Haha. My current desktop picture is a a picture of these beautiful ski runs in Vermont because I just got home from vacationing there. Seeing Madonna's runs in the Summer when it's all green is gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Dimitrij and Adrian from Vampire Academy
    :))

    ReplyDelete
  29. It's a calendar wallpaper of Jem & Will from the Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare :)

    ReplyDelete
  30. Its a lighthouse at sunset (or rise depending on how you look at it)
    :)
    Thanks :)

    ReplyDelete
  31. An awesome pic I'd found of the pyramids

    ReplyDelete
  32. http://www.google.cz/imgres?imgurl=http://images4.fanpop.com/image/photos/20900000/House-Lannister-game-of-thrones-20939047-1600-1000.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.fanpop.com/spots/game-of-thrones/images/20939047/title/house-lannister&h=1000&w=1600&sz=141&tbnid=XglIL-KcKabcHM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=144&zoom=1&usg=__s4dkbHtGYbt5LePRGTUL39HWd3s=&sa=X&ei=kpg-UOaUM87PsgbM74CYBg&ved=0CCoQ9QEwAg&dur=383

    ReplyDelete
  33. My current pic is of The Sweet Gum Tree, one of my favorite books of all time!

    Thanks for the giveaway!

    ReplyDelete
  34. A purple open book with its pages in the shape of a heart :)...I am truly a BookNerd lol

    ReplyDelete
  35. The Wall from The Game of Thrones :)

    ReplyDelete
  36. It's a fabulous green and black neon tiger that I found while browsing through facebook.

    ReplyDelete
  37. A Charcoal drawing of Jesus. :)

    ReplyDelete
  38. I have a landscape of autumn trees and leaves

    ReplyDelete
  39. My current desktop picture is a Pokemon background :) lol still a child at heart

    ReplyDelete
  40. My current desktop picture is of me with my one daughter Shiah on one side & my othr daughter Noelahni on th otheer side! LOVE my girls!!! <3

    ReplyDelete
  41. A cloudy sky with the sun shining through; took the picture myself =)

    Thanks for the chance to win!

    ReplyDelete
  42. My current deskop picture is a promo picture of the new season of Doctor Who. What can I say - I just can't wait! :)

    ReplyDelete
  43. A shot of my boyfriend in the lavander fields near my parents cottage that I took.

    Thanks for having your giveaways open internationally!

    ReplyDelete
  44. My current desktop photo is a theme about lighthouses and seagulls with the voices and everything (^_^)

    ReplyDelete
  45. Ooh and I got to say thank you Ruth and Jean for this magical giveaway... the cover is GORGEOUS!!

    ReplyDelete
  46. A sexy cowboy model :) no idea who he is just that he's hot

    ReplyDelete
  47. it's a picture of the sky

    ReplyDelete
  48. a picture of my 5 year old daughter

    ReplyDelete
  49. My current desktop picture is a bunch of boomboxes. It was one of the stock ones with Windows 7

    ReplyDelete
  50. a fantasy angel-girl in front of a big moon. looks beautiful ^^

    ReplyDelete
  51. It's a picture of my 2yr old niece Liliana!

    ReplyDelete
  52. A TMI of Jace and Clary

    ReplyDelete
  53. a picture of my bf and me from our holidays :)

    ReplyDelete
  54. It's a really cute background I made my self from pics I collected from sites like weheartit and pininterest I made a collage of it.

    ReplyDelete
  55. Oh, wow!! I LOVE LOVE the quote she wrote to the question about storytelling, also... how she described her book, it shows just how proud if it she is!!

    And.. my current desktop image is an Edward Breaking Dawn Part II poster :D

    ReplyDelete
  56. Bamboo trees. Thanks for the chance.

    ReplyDelete
  57. This: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-h0WB_U1r03o/UCwELC4ybAI/AAAAAAAAEAQ/zX_jYik6_7U/s1600/Cloud-Atlas01.jpg

    A wallpaper of Cloud Atlas movie. :] Amazing book!

    ReplyDelete
  58. I currently have a picture of a girl reading amongst a tower of books as my desktop.

    ReplyDelete
  59. There picture that was used for the cover of Witch Born by Amber Argyle.

    ReplyDelete
  60. Me and my fiance in front of a waterfall <3

    ReplyDelete
  61. I have a pic of Ian Somerhalder on my desktop.

    ReplyDelete
  62. the expendables poster for Liam Hemsworth. seaxxxxay. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  63. My three children in their school uniform, Thankyou for a wonderful giveaway x x

    ReplyDelete
  64. Chris Hemsworth as Thor. Bare chested.

    (Carla C. on the raffle)

    ReplyDelete
  65. A scene from the animated Fire and Ice film. No NOT the ice skating movie! >:( Its an 80s animation movie and its awesome! Its of a character DarkWolf in the middle of killing Neron's men on top of a hill!

    ReplyDelete
  66. just the windows symbol, nothing to exciting!!!

    ReplyDelete
  67. the default windows desktop background. so boring. lol.

    ReplyDelete
  68. A cherry tree surrounded by a dead mountain with lava flowing... Thank you for this!!!

    ReplyDelete
  69. my current desktop picture is picture of me with my mother

    ReplyDelete
  70. My current desktop picture is a picture from an anime called Saint Seiya

    ReplyDelete
  71. It's a picture of the Eiffel Tower, in Paris.

    ReplyDelete
  72. A picture of Sakura from the anime Sakura Wars.



    Nazish @ Nazish Reads

    ReplyDelete
  73. A digital scrapbook page I made of me and my best friend!

    ReplyDelete