Hi everyone,

This is Marie-Claude.

I have a winner to announce from last week…Kimberley C. Congratulations!!!!

Well, I have interviewed all the finalists and I am the only one left. I felt a little strange interviewing myself and when I told this to Lily, the main character in my dark paranormal ANCIENT WHISPERS, she volunteered to interview me. I suppose she might be a little curious to find out where she came from and what will happen to her.

She is a pretty no-nonsense kind of gal so she doesn’t quite get why I would be making up such crazy things as sorcerers and Celtic Priestesses living among us, but she is a very generous and warm person so she made me a nice cup of coffee while I sit in the cozy kitchen of her apartment in downtown Providence RI, where she live with her great-aunt.

Lily:Marie-Claude, I am still amazed that you finaled in a writing contest. How did your react when you found out that you were an American Title V finalist.

Marie-Claude: It was very odd. I had started writing just a year before that, in September, so I stared at the email from Liz French in awe. Because I had no idea that I could write, and this was the first sign I got that someone might actually like my story. It was like a whole world had just opened in front of me, full of possibilities. It was a true magical moment for me. Then an hour later when I picked up my kids at school, the best part was to see the delighted faces of my 7 and 9 years old boys when I told them. They had really wanted this for me. They are my stronger supporters.

Lily:Your head is often in the cloud, but I know you are pretty focused in your writing schedule. Has the final changed anything in your writing life?

Marie-Claude: Yes, a lot. I was pretty organized in my writing, spending each early mornings writing before my family would get up and I use to spend very little time online. But now that I am blogging a lot and meeting so many people online, I am very chatty and having way too much fun on the internet and it’s slows my writing down!

Lily:Since this is about me, I am very curious to find out what this story is about?

Marie-Claude: Let me tell the whole thing to our blog readers as well then.

ANCIENT WHISPERS is a dark paranormal inspired by the poem Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie by Henri Longfellow (1847). It is the story of a bold immortal sorcerer and his obsession to be reunited with the fiancée he lost centuries ago

Gabriel Callan is the youngest member of the Priory of Callan, an ancient Celtic brotherhood of thirteen cursed sorcerers and alchemists, each deadly, each haunted by a tragic past.

Still tortured by the devastating events of the Acadian deportation in 1755, Gabriel wants nothing more than to reunite with his lost soulmate, now reborn to this century as you the cool-headed and practical Lily Bellefontaine.

But you Lily, a pediatric nurse, yearn for a peaceful life in your own dream home. You seek an existence far different from the experiences of your unstable childhood and purposefully ignore your latent psychic abilities.

Will you ever be able to accept your fate? And can Gabriel let go of his tragic past to live fully in the present?

ANCIENT WHISPERS is filled with tortured heroes, engaging and mysterious characters, intense emotions, scorching dark desires, gothic rituals and a touch of history.

Lily:Okay, I’m a little sacred now. Where did you get the ideas for this story?

I’ve known the story of the Acadian deportation for many years because my family descends from deported Acadians and my grand-father had told me all about it. I was very saddened by the fate of Gabriel and Evangeline in the poem, how they are forced on separate ships on their wedding day and spend their life searching for each others. It got me to think of many tragic lovers of literature and legends, and I decided to use paranormal element to reunite them on paper. I’m a big fantasy geek, I played Dungeons and Dragons a while back, so I used that for inspiration. I have also studied Pagan witchcraft for a few years now and I wanted to use that and portray realistic ritual magic using what I know.

Lily:What series of words would best characterize your writing style or tone?

Marie-Claude: Deep, emotional, intense, dark, incredibly romantic, gothic, sexy, full of hope, passionate, packed with powerful imagery, lyrical.

Lily:Passionate. I cannot imagine a story with me in it that would be passionate. Dark maybe, but passionate? How does this show in ANCIENT WHISPERS?

Marie-Claude: I think all my emotions show up in the story and in my writing in general. I tend to be intense and it is as if I literally bleed all over the page. All my feelings, my hopes, my darkness and belief in true love. I am passionate about my writing and my characters tend to have passions, whether they love, hate or desire. I cry at the end of my stories and also every time I re-read a high moment in a manuscript. My writing has once been called melodramatic, but it doesn’t bother me. I choose to see this as a compliment!

Lily:Do you have any idea why your writing is so passionate?

Marie-Claude: Why? I’m not sure. I think every writer writes because they must. Ray Bradbury says that “writing is survival”. I suppose it is true for me. I express my intense emotions that way and I am actually a pretty normal and leveled person in life.

Lily:Is your setting important in your story and why? I mean this is Rhode Island. Why would that be interesting?

Marie-Claude: Yes, little Rhodie might not seem that interesting. But I’ve lived here for seven years and got to know it well. It can be a pretty harsh environment, especially for a dark paranormal story such as this. I don’t want to reveal it all to you, Lily, but there are the woodlands where you got lost, and the lakeside house where Gabriel’s aunt lives, it’s a fairly gothic setting. And then there are the cold beaches in winter, the constant wind, the quaint villages and of course the dock area and club scene of Providence.

Lily:You’re telling me that I am involved in both a romance and a dark paranormal story. I am very curious. How are these two elements balanced in ANCIENT WHISPERS?

Marie-Claude: They are intertwined. The paranormal kind of sneaks on the reader. At first, it is not expressed so much, but it is always there, as an undercurrent. But life is just as we see it now.And then the otherworldly builds, builds until you, Lily, your relationship with Gabriel and the forces against both of you are filled of dark powers and rituals. And you have to both accept it and confront it. And it is the romance that helps resolve it all.

Lily:You know, I haven’t witness much love in my family. How does the American Title V finalists theme of “Love Conquers” relate to your story?

Marie-Claude: Love Conquers is actually the main theme in my story. And I didn’t come up with the finalists theme, Jessica Darago did. And it was spooky because it is so much was this story is about. It is love that vanquish all, true love between two people, an unconditional kind of love, where both lovers accept all of each others, without any demands. When you finally reach that level, Lily, when you find that kind of strong and selfless love, that is when you vanquish everything and find happiness.

Lily:My life is pretty boring, you know, go to work at the hospital, then swimming, cook dinner for my great aunt. The library, a movie with my girlfriend Brianna. I heard this story is pretty fast paced, is it true?

Marie-Claude: Yes, it is. My critiques thanked me for a wild and entertaining ride. It is a story that I hope will wrap itself around a reader, slow at first, but consistently increasing in pace and drama, in a way that carries the reader through with more and more action and intense emotions to finally end in a very powerful climax.

Lily: Of course I know who the hero is. It’s Gabriel Callan. And yes, I’ve met him and ….okay things got out of hand. I couldn’t help myself. I know how amazing he is. I’m not sure if I’m ready for such a guy though. Can you tell me more about him?

Marie-Claude: Lily, I can’t tell you all there is about him, because he will have to reveal himself to you. He is a tortured soul though. As I know you’ve guessed. Beneath is dark curl and smoky green eyes, his dangerous air betrays none of the turmoil brooding in his heart. He has suffered. But he is also brave and true and fiercely protective of those he loves. He just needs some time.

Lily:So far, since I have met Gabriel, I haven’t seen much paranormal element in this story. I mean, I got lost in the woods, that was very scary but nothing otherworldly. Gabriel’s aunt, Morag Callan, practices some sort of Pagan witchcraft, but it is hardly paranormal. What sort of paranormal word building is there in the story?

Marie-Claude: Again, not to reveal everything, but there are various magical elements in this. Morag Callan practices witchcraft as you guessed, ritual magic using her devotion to the triple moon Goddess. Her magic comes from ancient Celtic wisdom and it follows closely the rituals used by Wiccans and Pagans today. Her consort, Iain Callan has completely different powers. He’s an alchemist and also a sorcerer. His magic is more of a spell-casting sort, using his herbs and powders, and also his acute mind to control the elements. All the sorcerers in ANCIENT WHISPERS have powers similar to Iain Callan.

Lily:Sorcerers, there are sorcerers in the story? I thought Iain was just an old chemistry professor. Never mind, I don’t want to know. There is a happy ending to this, right? How important is this to you?

Marie-Claude: Very important. All the books I read have to have a happy ending. I will read the ending of a book just to make sure, before I can read the whole thing. I need that reassurance. It took me a while to have the courage to read the Harry Potter book when Dumbledore dies. I had to read that scene first to brace myself for the whole story! So yes, I need happy endings. Maybe not for all the plots and subplot, but for you and Gabriel, definitely!

Lily:What do you think readers will get out of reading my story? Do you really think they will care?

Marie-Claude: I do hope they will care. I think you are such a great character Lily. So solid, so brave. You need that happiness and I think readers will want that for you and for Gabriel too, who is so tortured. But I want readers to see that there is always hope. I wonder sometimes why I write so dark, but maybe it is my way to come out of the darkness, find that hope. See that deep love can get bring us out from darkness into the light.

Lily:I haven’t seen any villain so far. Except maybe Morag Callan who is pretty domineering. Do you have any villains? Do I get to meet them?

Marie-Claude: Yes, there are villains and they may not be who you think they are. There is one villain in particular, a suave looking gentleman called Theuron Keir. He is fascinating, so dark yet so appealing. His darkness is such that women want to be near him, to neutralize it. They want to merge with him, be his. All I can say is: stay very far from him and also warn your best friend Keira. Because I don’t know if I can save her from him.

Lily:Is he so bad that even you, as the author, cannot resist him? I find that hard to believe. But tell me, I know all good fiction has tension, conflicts. That worries me a little. After my crazy childhood, I’m not sure I want to experience conflict. In fact, that’s probably why I am not so keen to have Gabriel call me back after that week-end we had together. What are the conflicts in ANCIENT WHISPERS?

Marie-Claude: Well, there is the conflict between Theuron Keir and the sorcerers. That is pretty obvious. But there are more subtle conflicts. The relation you have with your great-aunt for example. How easily you hide behind being her devoted care-giver. How you use this as a way to stay away from Gabriel. And what of your own feelings about your magical powers, you have a tremendous inner conflict there. Why do you suppress your powers? And of course, between you and Gabriel, as all couples, it all starts so nice, but when you both reveal your true selves to each others, things won’t be easy, not easy at all.

Lily:Well, I think I’ve heard enough about my story. It seems a little too dark. Have you told any more stories so far? Gabriel’s cousins maybe? Phoebus and Loic? They’re pretty interesting.

Yes I have told more stories. I have a manuscript called GOTHIC WARRIOR about medieval knights fighting demons in modern-day Paris. It’s a pretty dark urban fantasy. And I wrote a short piece called PANTERA’S HEAT which pits a half-werecat and a warlock leader, former lovers fighting each other for the possession of a sacred dagger. But if you are interested in Gabriel’s cousins, yes I started Phoebus’ story in a manuscript called ANCIENT CONFESSIONS. And yes, he is fascinating. I’m glad we get a glimpse of him in ANCIENT WHISPERS.

Lily:I know you are an internet freak. Where are you on the web if readers are interested?

Marie-Claude: I do feel that I am everywhere on the web these days and please, I love friends so if you are on MySpace or Facebook, add me to your friends list!

My website is at: www.mcbourque.com

My LiveJournal is at:
mysticblu.livejournal.com

I’m on MySpace at:
www.myspace.com/marieclaudebourque

On Facebook at:
www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1322252310

On Twitter at:
twitter.com/mysticblu

And I am also on a brand new writers’ group blog called Musetracks (http://musetracks.wordpress.com ) and where in January, I will be using my fitness professional expertise to do a series of interactive posts on “The Fit Writer – Get Back on Track after the Holidays.”I do hope people will join me and come share their health routine with me. Just bookmark the site! I’ll be giving away some fitness logs and free personal consultations to help everyone stay on track.

Lily: Sounds good. You choose to interview Gabriel on Thursday, right? He doesn’t reveal much of his past. Why did you choose him?

Marie-Claude: It’s very simple Lily. Gabriel is hot, so hot. And it might be my only chance to be around such a hot hero. I just wanted to be near him for a little while, even if he might not talk much. I just want to look at him. And maybe see if he’s okay after spending this whole week-end with you.

I’m sorry though, I can’t report to you what he tells me. You’ll have to wait for the story to unfold.

And so everyone, I leave Lily in the cozy apartment she shares with her great-aunt. Don’t worry, I’ll report my whole visit with Gabriel to you. In fact, you can be right there with Gabriel and I on Thursday. Bring a warm jacket though, because it’s cold on the town beach in Langdon RI, in December.

And so thank you all so much for dropping by today and thank you Sylvia for having Lily and I today on your blog. And please leave us a comment for your chance to win!

See you all Thursday!

Marie-Claude Bourque
www.mcbourque.com

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