Author Maggie Mae Gallagher Interview and $40.00 Amazon Gift Card Contest LIVE Here!

BBB: If you could mix three animals together, which ones would you choose to make the ultimate animal?
MMG: Wow, good question. If I was going to create the perfect animal, I think I would choose a lion, a horse, and a dragon. The body and back legs would be that of a horse, the head and front legs a lion since those claws would make an awesome defense, and then the wings of a dragon that way they could swoop in at a moments notice. Oh and then there’s the whole ability to shoot flames from its mouth and burn any attacker.
BBB: If someone wrote a biography about you, what do you think the title should be?
MMG: A Kelly Clarkson Song Compilation
BBB: What were you like in school?
MMG: In college I was a very good student. I left the partying to my peers and studied my tail off. I have both a bachelors and masters degree and graduated cum laude.
BBB: What would you say are the main advantages and disadvantages of self-publishing versus being traditionally published or the other way around?
MMG: I made the decision to self-publish versus being traditionally published because I wanted the control of my product. There is a freedom to self-publishing that you do not get via traditional publishing. For me, personally, the advantages are being able to work with a cover artist to design the vision I had for my cover. Very shortly after the cover art was completed, my dad saw it for the first time and said, “Wow! That’s Alana (my heroine).” Second it gave me the freedom as to who would work on my book, I hired an editor and a copy-editor both of whom I felt were best suited to the project.The only true disadvantage is that it all falls on your shoulders in the end, the writing, hiring the editor, hiring the copy-editor, hiring the cover artist and formatter, uploading the finished product onto all the etailers, ordering print books, and all the promotion. I love it! Every bit of it, this is the most satisfying and wholly terrifying work I have ever done. Writing a book, that’s the easy part, it’s putting it out in the world and allowing others to read it that I think is the most difficult. I hate to coin a phrase but publishing is what separates the boys from the men, or girls from women, as the case may be.
BBB: Please tell us more about Anointed and the storyline that drives it.
MMG: Anointed is the first book in The Cantati Chronicles Series. The series begins 83 years in a post- apocalyptic future. My heroine, Alana, is a Lieutenant in the Cantati Special Forces. Cantati are humans that the Mutari changed on a cellular level, bestowing them with magical powers, the strength of ten men, and the ability to fight the demons swarming the globe. Alana’s story begins when her world ends and her father, a General of the Cantati Forces, sends her back through time to our present day. Her mission is to try and stop the Mutari from ever happening only things go wonky from the moment she arrives in our time. She has three weeks to find a way to stop the fall of human civilization. If that weren’t hard enough, she must escape an exiled Fae Prince, Gaelen Cormac, who wants to use her for revenge, among other things. The spark’s fly fast and furious between Alana and Gaelen, and these very unlikely allies will stop at nothing to complete their mission.
BBB: How many more books will there be in the Cantati Chronicles series?
MMG: There will be two more full length novels. Book two Ascended should be out in early 2015 and then Enthralled will be released late 2015. In addition, there is a prequel novella Ruptured which will be released September 2014. I also have some super secret projects in the works on the world of the Cantati. Make sure to join my newsletter for updates on those projects. I am really stoked about them and am bursting at seams to tell everyone once I am able. Up next, I have two more series in the works, one is another urban fantasy series, and the second is a paranormal romance series and readers can look for those in 2015 and 2016.
BBB: What sets Anointed apart from other books in the same genre?
MMG: In my opinion, it blends elements of sci-fi and fantasy, and is not beholden to one. I am a total geek at my core and I think this series is very representative of what fascinates me. I love exploring worlds of magic, like those at Hogwarts (I’m still waiting on my acceptance letter), love where science and technology are headed like Tony Stark’s self sustaining power, and even love a good journey ala Bilbo Baggins.
BBB: What types of creatures/characters can readers expect in your world?
MMG: My world is full of Fae, Elves, Immortals, Demons, and my super soldiers, the Cantati.
BBB: What advice would you give to your younger writing self?
MMG: To not take everything too seriously, and to stop and enjoy life more.
BBB: You are planning the most awesome dinner party of your life. Which 3 authors (past or present) would you add to your guest list?
MMG: That’s a really tough one. I have a lot of friends in the industry whom I adore, but if I were going to choose the ultimate, I would have a fangirl moment with each one, then Emily Dickinson, Karen Marie Moning, and Maya Angelou.
BBB: What three things do you think will become obsolete in the book industry in the 10 years?
MMG: The way things are headed with Amazon’s bid for world monopolization, bookstores. It makes me cringe to even think about it, but with more and more readers supporting the eformat, and ordering print books online. I am afraid that bookstores will go the way of the dinosaur. I still miss Borders, I had one that had been minutes from my home and still bemoan its loss. I hope and pray that I am wrong on this one. However, unless there is a massive movement toward supporting the brick and mortar stores, I don’t see them surviving. That’s not to say some of the independent stores might not survive, but it is a very difficult business to be in now.
BBB: Have you written a book you love that you have not been able to get published? If so, can you tell us more about the storyline?
MMG: Every author has a varying selection of those first books, they are our practice books so-to-speak, and will never see the light of day. Nor do I think they should, they are the books that go under the bed and never come out and that’s where I will keep mine. As a teenager I had fashioned myself to become the next Emily Dickinson if that gives you any indication of the prose style in the beginning. I still tend to write darker, but where I’ve found my true fit is in paranormal and urban fantasy worlds. I do have the first book in my Mystic Series, REMEMBER ME, slated for 2015 but I don’t have the exact release date yet. The story is Madelyn Rose, a world renowned psychic, is hired to help the Navajo Police find five missing boys on the Reservation, except when she meets Navajo Detective Bronx Daniels, she knows with a single touch he is the reason she will die.
BBB: If you could have an unlimited storage of one thing (besides books), what would it be?
MMG: Movies, I adore them, and now with Amazon Prime, HuluPlus, and Netflix, I am in movie heaven.
BBB: What’s coming up for you for the rest of 2014?
MMG: Wow! The rest of 2014 is super packed. I have a Cantati Chronicles novella that will be out the end of September. In addition, I will be doing a ton of traveling. I will be at RomCon in Denver, Colorado, June 19-21st. Then I will be participating in a huge 500 author book signing at the Romance Writers of America(™) Literacy Autographing on July 23rd from 5:30pm to 7:30 pm at the San Antonio Marriott Riverwalk, it is open to the public and there are a ton of awesome authors signing their latest book. Then I have a book signing at Crystal Earth on Mackinac Island, August 1st from 6:30 pm-8:00 pm. I will be signing books at a booth at Cincinnati Comicon in September and in October, I am taking part in the Lady Jane’s Salon in Naperville, Illinois October 7th.

About Maggie Mae Gallagher

Author Bio:

Bestselling Author Maggie Mae Gallagher doesn’t remember a time when she wasn’t writing. When she was a kid she acted out her favorite scenes, only better, with her brother and cousin. As a teenager, she wrote reams of poetry, but realized her true love lay with creating characters and stories. A former music and history major, Maggie is a total geek at her core. When she is not writing, she adores attending the latest comic con or spending time with her family. She lives in St. Louis, Missouri, with her two furry felines.

10 Quick Things About Maggie Mae

Favorite Food? Mexican
Favorite Color? Blue
Favorite Movie or TV Show of all Time? Movie: Lord of the Rings Trilogy TV Show: The Walking Dead
Favorite Drink? Coffee
Favorite Book? Kiss of the Highlander by Karen Marie Moning
Favorite Season? Spring
Favorite Online Hangout? Facebook
Favorite Animal? Cat – I have two
Favorite Band or Musician? Pink
Mode of Travel? (Trains, Planes or Automobiles) My car
Favorite Vacation Destination? Colorado

Connect with Maggie Mae

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