Sara Humphreys – Interview

---

We are talking today with Sara Humphreys the author of the new paranormal romance series about the Amoveo, who are clans of shifters that live among us. Her first book is entitled Unleashed and features Malcolm Drew, a member of the Eagle Clan, and Samantha Logan, artist and unknown to her, a half-breed human and the last of the gray wolf shifters.

Sara, thank you for joining us today. Before we talk about all the interesting aspects of your series, tell us about yourself.

This is your first novel.  Have you always dreamed of being a writer?

When I started college my original major was Communications/Writing with a goal of writing for film and television but then I got bitten by the acting bug at the start of sophomore year and I was hooked. I went on to do some acting but then marriage and children followed and life took me in some unexpected directions. I found my way back to writing a few years ago and have never looked back.

What do you like to do when you are not writing?

I have four sons and a full-time job so there’s never a dull moment and always something to do. I love spending down time with my boys and my husband. I adore watching movies but with precious little free time it doesn’t happen very often. I’m also an avid reader and usually get to do that at bed time.

Your website indicates you’re a big science fiction fan. Why did you choose shifters? Why not vampires or aliens?

I chose shifters for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, I wanted to create something entirely different and build a brand new world for readers to get lost in. I love vampires, but for my first series I really wanted to do something original. Actually, I have vampire series in the works but I’ll have more news on that in the coming months.

Your story features the Amoveo. Where does that name come from?

Amoveo is Latin and it means, to shift or move away from. Although the Amoveo are fictional, I wanted their world rooted in some kind of reality so I chose Latin as the formal language of their race. It is the oldest language that’s still around and since they’re an ancient race it seemed like a good fit.

In Unleashed, was there a reason you decided to make Sam an Artist? Is Nonie based on someone in your life?

Samantha’s character struck me as sensitive and creative, so making her an artist seemed like a good fit. Also, she’d have to be a relatively open minded person to be accepting of everything Malcolm tells her and most artistic people I know are open to the strange and unusual. Nonie is named after my great-grandmother, Helen Costigan but her character is a combination of my two grandmothers Mimi and Gammy.

In Unleashed, Sam moves back to her family’s Rhode Island beach house. Was her town based after the town where your family has their beach house?

Yes. My family has a vacation home in Westerly and I’ve been going up there every summer for close to thirty years. There are some locations within the book that are actually real places in Westerly. Paddy’s, the spot where Malcolm and Sam go on their date, is a fantastic beach side bar and restaurant that I’ve been to many times. Millie’s diner, however, The Dugout is modeled after a local joint but I decided to use a different name. The Dugout is actually the name of a diner my dad used to take my sister and I to when we were little.

Not to give any spoilers, but your next book is called Untouched (Anyone who has an e-book, there are a few pages of this next book attached to your copy of Unleashed. Sorry paperback readers, you’ll need to go to Sara’s website). This story features Malcolm’s cousin, Dante and Sam’s best friend, Kerry. We find out that that Kerry is not really a germaphobe as we are lead to believe, but she is an empath who receives information through touch. This was an interesting concept for a hero or heroine. What lead you in that direction and were there any issues that you needed to work around having a character who can’t or won’t touch?

The idea came to me when I heard the song Honey on the Skin, by Amy Petty. I wondered how would someone get around touching people? The truth is that she has to touch people but she avoids it as much as possible because it causes excruciating pain and horrible visions. I don’t want to give too much away but let’s just say that when she meets Dante…things change significantly.

Please tell us there will be a third book. If so, who can we look forward to learning more about?

There will be a total of five books in the Amoveo Legend series. The third book is titled Untamed and will be released in Fall 2012. This story is different from the first two in major way but I don’t want to give away too much. Let’s just say that not all Amoveo or hybrids embrace the idea of having a pre-destined mate. How do you run from your fate?

Who are some of your favorite writers?

My favorites are Christine Feehan, Lori Handeland, Terry Spear, Judi Fennell, Christine Dodd….I could go on and on! There are so many brilliant writers and fantastic story tellers out there that I don’t think I could ever give a complete list.

Thanks so much for having me on the blog today! I hope the readers will check out Unleashed and get lost in the world of the Amoveo.

Dream on…

Check out my review of: Unleashed and Untouched.

---

About Sara

What if everything you knew about yourself turned out to be a lie? What if the soulmate you were waiting for came from a completely unexpected world—and was threatened by your own world?

One day several years ago, sitting in the kitchen of her family’s summer home in Westerly, Rhode Island, Sara Humphreys began writing this tale. It was the beginning of the Amoveo Legend…

www.sarahumpreys.com