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Thursday, May 24, 2018

Meet Author Ronel Janse van Vuuren


Please welcome my guest, Ronel Janse van Vuuren.



Ronel, pleases tell us about yourself.

I’m a Rottweiler pack leader who lives in South Africa with a whole menagerie to inspire me. I’m fascinated by folklore and mythology; researching it and using it in my writing makes me happy. I also spend (a lot of) time on my compost heap while stories are sorted out in my head. Sometimes you can hear me arguing with my characters…

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

When I was twelve. I’ve always loved reading. Writing my own stories to entertain me seemed like the next logical step.

Where do you start when writing? Research, plotting, outline, or...?

An idea will come to me, so I’ll write everything down I know about the story forming in my head. Then the characters will come calling, the story will show itself more – needing research – and an outline will be written before long. I’ll work on the plot before refining things again.

What did you learn from writing your first book?

That a main character can’t just observe or have things happen without them choosing to be part of the adventure. I’m currently rewriting that first book and I’m amazed at how much my writing has developed.

How many hours a day to you spend writing?

If it’s a shiny new story, twelve to fourteen hours. If it’s rewriting and editing… I can’t do more than eight hours before my head wants to explode (or I want to cry because of the death of so many darlings).

If you could give the younger version of yourself advice what would it be?

Patience is a virtue, persistence is divine.

What two authors would we find you reading when taking a break from your own writing?

Holly Black and Rick Riordan.

Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?

For folklore and mythology, I rely on several sources (The Poetic Edda; Encyclopedia of Norse and Germanic Folklore, Mythology, and Magic by Clade Lecouteux; The Forest in Folklore and Mythology by Alexander Porteous; Encyclopedia of Fairies in World Folklore and Mythology by Theresa Bane; Encyclopedia of Giants and Humanoids in Myth, Legend and Folklore by Theresa Bane; The Element Encyclopedia of Fairies by Lucy Cooper; the sacred texts site that archives all ancient folklore and mythology texts; and the folklore and mythology site hosted by the University of Pittsburgh that lists, categorizes and hosts all folk texts imaginable; whatever new resource I can find that will help me).

As for ideas, they sort of just come to me. I have folders and notebooks filled with ideas that I still have to use.

Tell us about your latest release, including its genre. 

I’ll describe my latest book as a mixture of fairy tale retellings and original tales about Faerie with a Dark Fantasy twist.

It’s about the secrets of how Faerie changed, why Faerie changed, who the rulers of Faerie truly are, the secrets of the seasons, and how magic and fae have infiltrated the mortal realm. And it’s also about the characters, their choices and experiences.

Dark fantasy is all about examining the human condition, looking at the consequences of actions and decisions, and how the beliefs we hold can change the way we see our world. I think “Rumour Has It”, “New Divide” and “Castle of Glass” depicts all of this from different points of view about the same moment in Faerie history very well.

“Once…” crosses over to New Adult. New Adult is all about figuring out who you are, who you want to be and what you have to do to get there. Some of my damsels in distress turn into independent women who can take care of themselves…


Once…


Blurb:
Damsels in distress, curses, echoes of faery tales and tragic love affairs swirl together in sixteen stories found in a dragon’s lair by a curious half-fae.

Unexpected changes to reality causes more than one damsel to turn into a strong, independent woman who takes charge of her own life.

A collection of short stories about Faerie and the fae that live in the human realm. A few of the stories had won competitions and all of them had enchanted readers.

Learn their secrets and enter the realm of the fae…

ISBN EPUB: 978-0-6399476-2-4
ISBN Paperback: 978-0-6399476-3-1
Publication date: 23 May 2018
Available on most online retailers.
Also available in Afrikaans as “Eens…”.
Universal Book Links for Afrikaans and English versions of this book:

Universal Book Link (UBL)
UBLs give you one link that leads to every online retailer selling your book.
And when your readers click on that link, they're shown a list of everywhere your book appears online, so that they can choose the retailer or eReader that works best for them

One link. Every bookstore online.



Excerpt:
Mortals cannot perceive the veil unless they are invited to – or extremely gifted. For centuries, Man and Fae have been kept apart, for nothing good ever comes from them mixing. The collection of The Adventures of Saphira the Faery Dog is proof of this.
Still, there are magical creatures that side neither with Man nor Fae.
Dragons are such creatures. They hold the knowledge of both worlds. Some even collect it in the written word, keeping it safe in their lairs.
An inquisitive half-fae once broke into the lair of a dragon known to hoard books. The knowledge she found was too much to keep to herself…
Here are a few tales, myths and legends from Faerie. Some may sound remarkably similar to legends held by mortals, while others are…  well… as otherworldly as the fae themselves.


One last question. Where can readers find you?


Readers can find me across the web.
And on my blog Ronel the Mythmaker: https://ronelthemythmaker.wordpress.com/


Thanks for having me, Diane.



Ronel Janse van Vuuren is the author of New Adult, Young Adult and children’s fiction filled with mythology and folklore. Her dark fantasy stories can be read for free on Wattpad and on her blog Ronel the Mythmaker. She won Fiction Writer of the Year 2016 for her Afrikaans stories on INK: Skryf in Afrikaans. Her published works can be viewed on Goodreads.

Ronel can be found tweeting about writing and other things that interest her, arguing with her characters, researching folklore for her newest story or playing with her Rottweilers when she’s not actually writing.

All of her books are available for purchase on Amazon.



4 comments:

  1. "Patience is a virtue, persistence is divine." Great advice which can apply even when we're 'not-so-young' anymore.

    Ronel, how many Rottweilers do you actually have? I'm a bit scared of them because they are always portrayed in a negative light....

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    1. Currently, only two. Callum was a bit of a terror when I got him, but I hugged and kissed that little prince like there's no tomorrow and now, at four, he is the most adorable and loyal creature you can imagine. Tony is a sweetheart -- he was that way when I got him. They're twins, but one wouldn't think that with their different personalities. Monsters aren't born, they're made. As long as they have proper boundaries and a pack leader, they do as expected -- for good or ill.

      Because of the negative light Rottweilers are always cast in, I'm working on writing as many faery dogs in my stories as possible to show that they are just like any other dogs. I even have a Pinterest page about how adorable Rottweilers can be :-)

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  2. My father had ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) for 3 years His first symptoms were weakness in his hands and losing his balance which led to stumbling and falling. He never lost the ability to swallow or breathe. His one hand, then his legs, were affected first; then his arms. The Rilutek (riluzole) did very little to help him. The medical team did even less. His decline was rapid and devastating. The psychological support from the medical centre was non-existent and if it were not for the sensitive care and attention of his primary physician, he would have died . There has been little if any progress in finding a cure or reliable treatment. So this year his primary physician suggested we started him on Natural Herbal Gardens ALS Herbal mixture which eased his anxiety a bit,We ordered their ALS herbal treatment after reading alot of positive reviews, i am happy to report this ALS herbal treatment reversed my dad condition. His quality of life has greatly improved and every one of his symptoms including difficulty in walking and slurred speech are gone. Their official web site is ww w. naturalherbalgardens. c om He will be 74 soon and can now go about his daily activities

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    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for the information. It's wonderful that your father responded to the herbal treatment.

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