Interview Tamia Dawn Osborn
by
Billie A Williams
1) I think the most fascinating thing for me reading about writers is where in the world--or in your case--Future world, do you come up with your ideas?
Sometimes I do wonder that myself, LOL. Other times I just get an idea that won't go away until I start writing the story. It's fun to come up with a story line that can take you on a wild ride throughout the universe and the characters are a joy to write and to bring them together.
2) Your character names seem to carry a lot of weight in that their personalities seem to match the story itself--is this deliberate on your part? I mean do you name them and then write them to fit the name, is the name something off the top of your head or do you dig for meaning first? For instance Blade says too me he has the tensile strength of new steel, he is sharp and yet his last name (Mathews) gives him a biblical quality, still strength but tempered. The short question, how do you come up with names for your characters?
Sometimes a name pops up in my head for my characters. When I have a hard time trying to come up with a name, I look one up in the phone book until I find the perfect name for one my characters. I try to match the names with them and what they do in the story. Blade seemed like the perfect name while writing The Guardian Of Paradise since he's like a mercenary type of man. As for his last name Mathews, well. it just popped up somewhere. VBG.
3) Are your Futuristic worlds created from scratch or do you start with someone else's premise and build on that? How do you go about world creation?
I start from scratch unless it's a series. I like to create my own worlds for my own purpose. VBG
4) This book is part of a series, how many more are you planning in this series? And do you have them roughed or outlined already? Does the number depend on how this one ended, were you surprised about the way this one ended--or did it end according to your plan?
This story was it. Unless I plan on writing about their children, maybe sometime in the future since I have plenty of projects at hand I'm working on.
5) The girl, Tobi, on the very striking cover of The Guardian Of Her Heart has delicate facial features and yet the suggestion of her strength in her attire and the laser she points at the handsome hero suggest she is not the least bit fragile. Can you tell us something about Tobi. Is she in any part Tamia Dawn Osburn? Or who is she modeled after if anyone?
Tobi isn't really modeled after anyone that I know about. For this story I wanted someone who was tough on the inside and sweet looking on the outside. I also thought that Blade needed a woman who is tough yet sweet, sort of to match his character and isn't afraid to challenge him.
6) How much input did you have in the design for your cover and do you feel it represents the premise of your story? Do you feel that your covers can make or break the sales of your book. How important is a good cover?
I think Steve did a great job for my cover. He's really great at knowing what I want. He did ask what I want and I told him and I love his work as well as Christy's. So far I love all of my covers. I think it’s really important that the covers match the stories. As for making sales, yes they can either make or break the sales. Also it's important what people think of the story they're reading.
7) Can you tell us something about the process of writing The Guardian Of Her Heart? For instance did you outline first, did you get this idea while you were writing the first of this series? Where did you start--at the beginning or somewhere else? Is this the same process you use for all your writing?
The Guardian Of Her Heart came after I started my Wiccan/Alliance series. Blade kept demanding his own story and told me what he wanted in a woman. VBG. I usually don't do outlines, I write what the characters want and sometimes I surprise them by throwing in a twist or two. LOL.
8) How long have you been writing and did you always want to be an author? How did you make your first sale? How did you find Wings ePress?
I've been writing a few years now and I always wanted to write. I used to write poetry in high school. Then marriage and kids followed and I didn't have them time to write anymore. When my youngest child, my daughter, started school and being a stay-at-home mom, I found myself bored to death. After watching a program on TV a story popped in my head and wouldn't go away. Soon, a storyline began to form and I got into an online writing group. Soon I found myself writing the story that wouldn't leave my mind. There were a few times I wanted to quit but discovered that I had a fan and she was demanding. VBG. I finally finished my story and had no place to take it to. I was also in another group with Angela and she kept talking about Wings so I looked them up and watched them for several months before submitting. I was surprised that I got accepted with them and stayed ever since. I did write a few stories that were too hot for Wings to handle and took them elsewhere. VBNG.
9) Blade Mathews is on a mission to retrieve a disk--what part does this disk play in your story? What kind of disk is it? What is at stake if the disk is not recovered? If you can tell us without giving away too much of the story.
Without the mission to retrieve the disk and to meet the buyer at a bar, he wouldn't have met Tobi. I don't even know what was on that disk but it was really important. Tobi was sent to protect Blade from someone that wanted to see him dead more than alive. At first Blade didn't know what to make of Tobi but one thing he did know, she meant more to him than he realized.
10) What is the hardest part about writing for you? What is the best and/or easiest part?
The hardest part of writing is the end. It's hard to let these characters go since they've been the biggest part of your life while writing the story. There's really no easy part in writing a story. Coming up with a story may be easy but going from plan A to plan B is the hardest.
11) Do you have any advice for struggling, aspiring writers who would like to become authors?
I always say, don't give up.
12) Lastly, substitute any question of your own for any of the above if you would like to. Or--For instance is there anything you would like us to know about your story, how it developed, or your characters?
Better be careful for what you wish for, you just might get it. VBG LOL. Let's just say, finding out who put the hit on Blade was a big surprise for everyone.
visit my website at: www.tamiaosburn.00server.com
or visit me here: