Interview with Author Erin Rhew

Today I’m pleased to welcome author and editor Erin Rhew to the blog. I hope you enjoy getting to meet Erin and don’t forget to check out her books! 

1. What made you decide to start writing?

I don’t think there was any specific thing that caused me to start writing. I think I’ve always been a writer. From the time I was small, I loved the written word. I started reading very early and wrote my first poem at four. So, I think it’s a part of my soul and what makes me who I am.

2. Do you prefer series or standalone books?

That’s tricky–LOL! I don’t like the waiting involved in a series, and I want to know how things will end up. But I’m a little sad if there’s only one book because I don’t get to spend as much time with the characters and their world. 

3. What is The Dream Team? And how can a new author create their own? 

The Dream Team is a group of my friend who rally around to support me as I write my books. One helps keep me on task by requiring a chapter a day, one helps spur my imagination, one proofreads, and one immerses herself fully in my world to help me stay consistent. And through every step of the process, they all encouraged and inspired me.

A new author can create one by finding a group of friends who are passionate about the written word. Tell them your ideas and see if they’re willing to help.

My books would never have been written or published without the Dream Team. 

4. What was your inspiration for The Fulfillment series?

The story just came to me one day. I’d been really involved in reading and watching Game of Thrones as well as studying Arthurian legend. I believe my mind spun a story with those two main elements, which resulted in this series. 

One day, I was sitting at home, and the words “Vanguard” and “Ethereal” popped into my head. After that, the names “Layla,” “Wil,” “Nash,” and “Samson” did too. The story evolved from there. I wrote up a synopsis and sent it to my friends, and the Dream Team was born. The rest is history. 😉 

5. Can you give us one fact about The Fulfillment series we should know? 

It’s unexpected. I think that’s the main feedback I keep getting. People say, “Wow, I thought I had things figured out, and then BAM!” LOL!

6. As an editor and an author, how do you juggle both careers? 

It’s VERY tricky! Time is not on my side since both writing and editing take up a lot of it. I think the biggest problem I have is not letting the editing side of my brain interfere when the creative side is at work. I need to get the story purged from my brain and then worry about grammar, sentence structure, and sentence flow. But sometimes, that little editing side won’t stay quiet!

7. What is your favorite thing about being an author?

My favorite part is meeting amazing people–fans, other authors, people in the industry. In fact, I met my husband through a critique partner group! 😉 

8. What is your favorite thing about being an editor?

I love to see someone’s work evolve. I like polishing up something that’s already beautiful by giving it that extra shine that makes it truly gleam. 

9. What is the best advice you would give to young writers?

Edit, edit, edit. When you’re self-editing, have your beta and critique partners edit it, and edited it again and after that…edit again. It’s crucial to have a polished piece before submitting to agents, small presses, or self-publishing.

10. What can readers be on the lookout for from you next?

I currently have an adult historical fiction out on submission with agents (several of whom have requested fulls–SQUEE). And while I wait on pins and needles for the agents to tell me what they think, I’m working on a YA futuristic thriller. It doesn’t have a name yet, but I call it “the Molly and Ryder story.” I’ve written the whole thing out before, but I got inspiration for a whole new way to tell it.

About the Author:

Erin Rhew is an editor, operations manager for a small press, and the author of The Fulfillment Series. Since she picked up Morris the Moose Goes to School at age four, she has been infatuated with the written word. She went on to work as a grammar and writing tutor in college and is still teased by her family and friends for being a member of the “Grammar Police.”

A Southern girl by blood and birth, Erin spent years in a rainy pocket of the Pacific Northwest before returning to her roots in the land of hushpuppies, sweet tea, and pig pickin’. She’s married to fellow author, the amazingly talented (and totally handsome) Deek Rhew, and spends her time writing side-by-side with him under the watchful eye of their patient-as-a-saint writing assistant, a tabby cat named Trinity. Erin and Deek enjoy taking long walks, drinking coffee, lifting, boxing, eating pizza, staying up late into the night talking, and adventuring together.

Visit her on her website.

About the Book:

Growing up on a small farm in the kingdom of Vanguard, seventeen-year-old Layla Givens lives a deceptively tranquil existence. But her carefully constructed life quickly falls apart when she’s abducted by a religious zealot who proclaims her The Fulfillment of an ancient peace prophecy and whisks her away to marry her greatest enemy.

Wilhelm, Prince of the Ethereals, is reluctant to meet his new bride. He’s grown up believing Vanguards are evil, an enemy to fight and fear…not love. Can he set aside his prejudices and work alongside Layla to bring lasting peace after centuries of war?

Nash, a loner who has never fit in, carries a huge secret, one big enough to destroy both kingdoms. When he accidently meets Layla, he’s no longer content to live in the shadows, but he must resist his growing attraction—for her safety and for the longevity of the two kingdoms.

When Nash’s secret is revealed, a firestorm sweeps through both realms, with Layla at the center. Now she must choose between duty and desire while the fate of two nations hangs in the balance.