Author Interview: Tracey Lee Campbell

Hey thanks for taking the time for this interview. Can you tell us a little bit about your book Starcrossed: Perigee?

Starcrossed: Perigee is the first book in a trilogy. I class it as paranormal romance, but I guess it crosses over into sci-fi too. It is the story of Lucy, a relatively normal 17 year old girl who is unaware of her interest to the sinister 'Innaki' alien race. She falls for Aric Brennan - a perfectly engineered alien/human hybrid who was created specifically by the Innaki to charm and seduce. As she learns about the true state of reality, she has to put her trust in Aric to help her escape the Innaki, a shadowy military agenda and other creepy, paranormal creatures.

Where did you get the idea for Starcrossed: Perigee?

I've been very interested in all things 'highly strange' for years and strongly suspect there's more to this existence than meets the eye. I saw a UFO as a young child which helped peak my interest. Starcrossed: Perigee is really my attempt at gathering different theories about the paranormal, adapting them and weaving it all into a story so that it all makes sense.

The cover for Starcrossed: Perigee is a very interesting cover. Even though it is an all black cover there is something so eye-catching about it, in the detail of the branches around the sides and the silhouettes of the boy and the girl. Did you have any input into the cover? Who designed it?

My daughter, who has plans of becoming a graphic artist, designed it. I made a vague attempt at it, using the silhouette idea, but it was terrible. She asked me if she could have a go at it. I said 'yes', and was gobsmacked at what she came up with - all in around 15 minutes!

Paranormal YA novels are very popular at the minute, the whole aliens, vampires, werewolves type of novels are very popular. What do you think is the reason we are so drawn to paranormal genres at the minute. What makes these creatures of the "dark" so appealing to us?

Throughout the ages humans have always had a fascination with the paranormal. Researchers say humans believed in the paranormal through ignorance - a way of explaining everyday occurrences. Nowadays, we are supposed to be 'enlightened', educated. I don't think we can blame our fascination on ignorance any more - if anything, our abilities to think, reason and research have gotten better. Perhaps the reason we're still so interested in 'dark creatures' is that they provide an explanation for the mayhem in fictional worlds, which satisfies a craving for an explanation as to why our own, real world is in a shambles right now. Or perhaps, we are fascinated because we sense, deep in our psyche, there really is something to this existence other than our mundane, everyday world!

When you start writing a book do you know exactly were the plot is going to go/ and does it surprise you when the book takes a whole different direction that you thought it would go?

 I know the beginning, the end, and a loose idea of what will happen in the middle, but usually extra ideas come to me as I'm writing and, luckily, they seem to fit right in as though they were meant to be there all the time.

Starcrossed: Perigee is the first in a trilogy! How is the writing on the second book going?

I'm up to chapter two and have some really exciting ideas which I'm itching to write in! The relationship between Lucy and Aric will have more tension in the second book, and I'm adding some extra (spooky) supernatural characters to the mix as well. I'm really looking forward to seeing what they get up to.

You write YA is this a genre you like reading yourself?

I like anything 'paranormal', so the only YA I've read is in the 'paranormal YA genre'. Meyers, Lauren Kate etc.

Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?

Keep at it, read about the craft of writing and apply what you learned to your writing - there are tons of free writing sites on the net so you don't need to pay for a writing course. It is all a learning process and you will get better the more you practice, take advice etc. Learn how to take constructive criticism and use it to your advantage. My book is so much better than before because I listened to my beta readers. Be ruthless when you're editing - cut out superfluous stuff which doesn't allow the book to flow and bogs down the reader. Best advice I can give? Just finish it! It is the best feeling ever to know you have completed an entire manuscript, even if it doesn't become a best seller - it is yours, and you wrote it!

Thanks to Tracey for taking the time to do an interview with me. Starcrossed: Perigee is avaiable now:


Buy the paperback version: Amazon Paperback
Buy the ebook version: Amazon Ebook
Also on Smashwords: Smashwords - various formats
Coming soon to Borders, Barnes and Noble, Apple etc.


Also you can check out the Official Starcrossed website: http://www.starcrossedthebook.com/ & the Starcrossed: Perigee Trailer: Book trailer


Other places you may want to visit:

Tracey Lee Campbell author's site: http://www.traceyleecampbell.com/
Twitter: @traceylcampbell
Facebook: Starcrossed: Perigee Fan page