Benevolent by Erin A. Jensen

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Welcome to It's Raining Books. Why do you write in your genre? What draws you to it?

I write in the fantasy genre because it’s my favorite genre to read. Personally, I’m drawn to the allure of an alternate world filled with magic and mythical creatures, and I want to transport my readers to fantastic realms full of possibilities that are beyond anything we experience in this world.

What research was required for your book?

I watched documentaries and read quite a bit on the Lost Books of the Bible, particularly the Book of Enoch and the story of the Watcher angels. I also did some research on religious beliefs about guardian angels. Aside from that, I did some research on the sub-genres of rock-and-roll for the playlist that Abigail’s best friend made for her in the story. The portions of the story in the hospital were based on my own experiences during my grandfather’s final days, and the Supernatural references came pretty easily since I was already a big fan of the show.

Name one thing you learned from your heroine.

I think Abigail taught me not to judge myself based on others’ opinions. There is a lot of me in Abigail, and several of her experiences closely mirror events from my own past. Stepping back and looking at those situations from an adult perspective helped me realize how much they shaped my opinion of my own self-worth. Writing this book was a very cathartic experience for me.

Do you have any odd or interesting writing quirks, habits or superstitions?

I don’t really have any superstitions, but I do imagine each character I create being played by an actor in the real world. Usually when I create a new character, I’ll “cast” an actor in the role in my mind. It helps me to visualize the story and gives those characters more depth. When I describe a new character, I’m almost always looking at a picture of the actor or actress I imagine playing the part. I keep pictures of those actors on my iPad, and I’ll watch YouTube clips of their movie or television performances and interviews to keep their voices and mannerisms fresh in my mind while I write.

Are you a plotter or pantser?

I’m a combination of the two. I keep a rough outline with each scene I envision written on an index card. That makes it easy to rearrange the order, and add or remove scenes while I’m writing. I don’t always have a perfectly clear idea of how the story will end. Even when I do, I might sit down to write and end up with something different than what I originally intended. Sometimes you have to give yourself the leeway to surprise yourself, as well as the reader, during the telling of a story.

Look to your right — what’s sitting there?

An almost finished cup of coffee in one of my favorite mugs. My son gave it to me for Mother’s Day. It has a picture of a dragon holding an open book with a fairy perched on the top of his head. There’s also the Castiel Funko Pop figure my husband gave me for Christmas, and a copy of the original version of Benevolent with Castiel’s picture on the cover. It was the version I submitted to the Cleveland Supernatural convention’s creative competition, and this particular copy has Misha Collins’s autograph and a heart that he drew above it.

Anything new coming up from you?

I’ll be releasing Dream Fragments (Book 4 of my Dream Waters series) in the near future. I’ve also been collaborating with ROC Vox Recording and Production Studio to produce the audiobook version of Benevolent, which I’m narrating myself.

Do you have a question for our readers?

Yes. What’s the best book you’ve read this year? If you didn’t leave a review for that book, would you consider going back and doing it now? Reviews are vital to a book’s success, especially for indie authors like me.

A story about the purpose of life, the healing power of fandom, and the resilience of the human spirit.

Tormented by the in-crowd at school on a daily basis, there were two things that gave fifteen-year-old Abigail Perkins the strength to keep going—her best friend, Danny Cobb; and her favorite television show, Supernatural. But the night Danny’s mother calls to say that his battle with cancer is nearing its end, and the doctors don’t expect him to live through the night, even Supernatural can’t dull the ache in her heart.

Devastated by her impending loss and crushed that Danny’s mother won’t allow her to visit him one last time, Abigail crawls into bed and cries herself to sleep that night; and she wakes to find Supernatural’s most endearing angel standing at the foot of her bed.

Told from Abigail’s perspective as she nears the end of her long life and revisits the moments that defined it, this story was inspired by the deep connection that Supernatural fans feel with the show’s beloved characters, and the show’s miraculous ability to help its fans through troubled times.

Read an Excerpt

I flashed him a sympathetic smile. “What are you thinking?”

“I have never understood why humans are so moved by music,” he muttered as his eyes searched mine.

“Music is the closest thing that we have to magic,” I confided in a reverent whisper, “because it has the power to anchor us to a moment in time.”

His half-smile conveyed a heartwarming mix of curiosity and affection. “How so?”

I felt my face flush a shade darker as I grinned at him. “When we hear a song from our past, it conjures up all the old sensations that we felt when we first heard it.”

He eyed me with a perplexed frown as he took a step toward me. “How can a combination of man-made instruments and human vocal chords wield that sort of power?”

“I can’t explain it with words,” I whispered, “It’s something that you just have to feel.”

He stood there staring at me with that puzzled expression on his face as I stepped closer and carefully inserted the earpiece in my hand into his left ear, so the music connected the two of us, just as surely as the cord connected the earbuds in our ears. “Maybe you’d understand what I mean if you danced to the music.”

“I don’t dance,” he muttered as he watched me begin to sway to the beat.

I smiled at him as I took his hands in mine and moved his arms in time with the music, like a puppeteer pulling a life-sized marionette’s strings. “Anyone can dance. You just have to let go and let the music guide your movements.”

A skeptical frown spread across his face as he watched me, but he let me direct his movements nonetheless. He was stiff and awkward at first but as the music grew louder, he seemed to find the rhythm. “These words are nonsense,” he muttered

“Shhh,” I whispered, “Don’t think. Just feel.”

He was a remarkably fast learner, but I suppose being on earth since the dawn of time had given him plenty of opportunities to watch humans dance. Once he started to feel the music, he moved with all the grace that you’d imagine an angel would.

“Hey Jude” gradually faded away until there was nothing but silence in our twin earpieces.

We stopped moving and stood there staring at each other while we waited for the next song to guide our movements.

About the Author:

Erin Jensen is the Amazon International bestselling author of The Dream Waters Series. She was awarded the Bronze Medal for fantasy fiction in the 2018 Readers' Favorite international book awards. She also received Honorable Mention for fantasy fiction in the 2018 Writer's Digest self-published e-book awards. A part-time pharmacist and a full-time daydreamer, she resides in upstate New York with her ridiculously supportive husband, two teenage sons--who are both taller than her--and a Yorkshire terrier who thinks he's the family bodyguard.

Website: http://www.Erinajensen.com,br> Blog: http://www.blog.erinajensen.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/erinajensen?lang=en
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/erin.jensen.756

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NCFGFCV
Barnes & Noble: http://barnesandnoble.com/w/benevolent-erin-a-jensen/1132005681

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