Author Interview with Savannah J. Goins

I met Savannah J. Goins at the online Indie Book Festival, and guys, not only is Savannah a fantastic fantasy author, but she’s also a real-life dragon wrangler! I had so much fun speaking with her last Saturday about story research that I invited her to talk more today about her books, her dragons, and her own author journey.

Welcome, Savannah!

Ellen Smith: Hi Savannah! Thanks for joining me on the blog today. I love the premise for your fantasy series, The Odan Terridor Trilogy. Can you tell readers a little bit about your main character, Enzi Montgomery?

Savannah J. Goins: Thanks so much for having me on your blog, Ellen! Here’s a little peek into where Enzi’s story begins:

Just when Enzi discovers the connection between an old necklace and her ability to turn invisible, a dragon recognizes the artifact he’s been searching for dangling around her neck. And he’s not the only dragon watching her now.

ES: What sparked the idea for the Gwythenian?

SJG: A giant icicle on the side of a mountain, actually.

My family used to drive from Indiana to Georgia to visit family for Christmas, and whenever we drove through the mountains on the interstate, we would see sheets of huge icicles draped over the cliffs.

When I was about fourteen, I thought how cool it would be if there was a ring or something that would give you the ability to see through icicles into other places. Basically like scrying, but I’d never heard of scrying then so I thought I was making it up. And then I thought I would be super original and make it a magic rock instead of a magic ring, since nobody’s ever done that before :)

ES: I have to tell you, I absolutely love the cover art for your series! It’s the perfect fit for your books. How did you find your cover artist?

SJG: Her name is Ingrid Nordli and she is amazing! I saw some fan art she created for a friend of mine, and was so mesmerized by how gorgeous it was that I had to reach out and ask her to create some art for me. At the time, I was looking for character art for Enzi, Gaedyen, Shaun, and Veri. I had a wonderful experience working with her on those, so when the opportunity arose to create new cover art for the series, she was the first person I thought of. I had another fantastic experience working with her again and 100% recommend her!

Enzi

fan art by Ingrid Nordli

Gaedyen

fan art by Ingrid Nordli

Shaun

fan art by Ingrid Nordli

Veri

fan art by Ingrid Nordli

ES: In addition to writing about dragons, you’ve done some real-life dragon wrangling! What has been your most interesting rehabilitating and fostering experience?

SJG: I have fostered a lot of tiny dragons over the last few years. Possibly the most interesting experience is the one I’m in right now, with a bearded dragon I adopted from the rescue.

I adopted Abraxos (points if you recognize the name!) a few months ago and shortly after, he broke his jaw in two places biting my finger. His bones were in poor condition from his previous owner’s level of care. He had an emergency procedure with my friends at the exotic animal clinic where I began my dragon wrangling career and he is still healing and undergoing daily treatments at home.

The vet had never seen a break like his before, so we don’t know how well it will heal, but we’re providing the best care we can for him and are hoping he will make a full recovery with nothing but a bit of an underbite left from the experience.

Another interesting foster I had was a young alligator named Levi (short for Leviathan. Full creds to my creative genius for that one:). He’d been abandoned in a vacant apartment with no heat or food for an unknown period of time in zero-degree weather.

He lived in a large aquarium in my guest room for a few months until an alligator rescue in Michigan had room for him. He was not a nice little dude, either. We kept the door closed because every time my husband or I would walk down the hall, he would launch himself at the glass hissing and cussing at us. By now, he’s probably longer than I am tall.

ES: Besides dragons, you’ve worked with some other really interesting animals! What are some of the most unusual animals you’ve treated as a veterinary technician?

SJG: I’ve worked with everything from tiny axolotl salamanders to full-grown tigers. My favorite animals to work with were the large reptile species (I even got to handle some Gila monsters and beaded lizards once—the only venomous lizard species in the world!) and rats. Rats are awesome little creatures!

I also worked with a couple of kangaroos, a coatimundi, a lynx, a patas monkey who’d been in the news for attacking people, and a lot of local wildlife such as raccoons, foxes, owls, eagles, possums, and giant snapping turtles.

ES: I really love that you’ve used some of your real-life experiences with animals in your stories. What helped you decide to start with writing fiction instead of non-fiction?

SJG: Writing non-fiction never occurred to me until a couple of years ago. As a teen and young adult, I thought all non-fiction was boring (ha! I gobble it up now!) and I’d always loved reading fantasy, especially the Chronicles of Narnia. So I guess it just naturally flowed that way.

ES: What are some of your favorite fiction books?

SJG: The Chronicles of Narnia, Eragon, Tiger Queen, Harry Potter, Six of Crows, and all Sarah J. Mass books, just to name a few!

ES: What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned so far as an author? What advice would you offer new writers?

SJG: The biggest lesson I’ve learned is that perseverance is key. Writing is hard and revising is hard and producing a book out of a manuscript is hard, but you just have to keep doing it. Keep making a little progress every day.

And remember to enjoy the journey, despite the many struggles. I’ve met many of the most important people in my life and made several of my best memories with them all because of writing, because I didn’t give up all the times I wondered if I should. There is so much joy in writing stories (why did you start in the first place, anyway?) so make sure you focus on that and not how hard the hard times are. You can push through them and learn and become a better writer and a better person for it, and have so much fun along the way!

ES: Thanks for stopping by the blog today, Savannah! How can we stay in touch with you?

SJG: To jumpstart your writing journey and/or get unstuck, you can book a one-hour coaching call with me here:

To inquire about booking me as a podcast guest or to speak to your group, please visit this page:

I spend most of my time on Instagram and YouTube, and you can subscribe to my newsletter here:

Thanks so much for having me on your blog, Ellen! It’s been a pleasure!

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The Gwythienian: Odan Terridor Trilogy: Book One

By Goins, Savannah J

YA fantasy novelist, speaker, and professional dragon wrangler Savannah J. Goins has been a fantasy nerd for as long as she can remember. While spending her days working with real animals, she has accidentally touched both tiger blood and dragon blood, so it’s only a matter of time until her own magical abilities surface. She especially enjoys stories with sword fights and talking animals. In real life, she likes drinking tea and coffee and discovering new bookshops.

She lives in central Indiana with her husband and their dog, and sometimes has a foster dragon or two hanging around as well.

Author Interview with Carole Brecht

Please welcome Carole Brecht, author of The Artistry of Caregiving: Letters to Inspire Your Caregiver Journey

Carole Brecht recently published her first book: The Artistry of Caregiving: Letters to Inspire Your Caregiver Journey. I met Carole through social media just about a year ago. Prior to publishing the book, Carole created an active online Facebook community called SanGenWoman: The Heart of the Sandwich Generation (formerly known as The Sandwich Woman). The posts are always uplifting, encouraging, and inspirational, and it’s impossible not to feel drawn to such a positive place on the Internet.

She also has a presence on Instagram, Twitter, a blog and her Tangled Art Boutique online store that her sister, Jan Steinle, and her own together. There's a Caregiver gallery of 60+ designs and the store houses a total of 160+ designs with a variety of gift lines, including tote bags, cell phone cases and greeting cards. A fun place to shop with all the customization features.

When Carole’s book was published, I knew it was going to be a wonderful and engaging read. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it! One of the lovely things that Carole does in her online community is to encourage all of us to recognize ourselves as Caregivers. Whether we are caring for an aging loved one, a young child, or simply being present for a friend or neighbor in need, we all have opportunities to care for others and we all need support and encouragement in that caregiving role.

Throughout the book, Carole seamlessly shares stories from her personal caregiving experience with letters of inspiration and her Caregiver Zentangle designs, an art form she has found to be relaxing and healing. These are a few of her favorites:

I’m thrilled that Carole agreed to be interviewed for my blog and I’m excited to introduce you to her!

ES: Carole, congratulations on publishing your first book! What has the publishing experience been like for you?

CB: Thank you Ellen! As a new author, I found the process challenging, especially because my book is a book of pictures and text. I had a large learning curve, but it was a labor of love.

ES: What inspired you to write The Artistry of Caregiving? What did you hope readers would take away from your story?

CB: I was my mom's Caregiver for several years. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2010 and my dad was still working. (He didn't retire until he was 85 yrs old) I had just closed my art gallery in Pittsburgh, PA and intended to get another job. My parents needed me at the time so I put my job hunting on the back burner. During the time of caring for my mother, I experienced great sadness, isolation, the sense of being alone and I became withdrawn. These feelings are not uncommon for those that take on the Caregiver role. By the end of my mom's life I was compelled to write a book for those that were caring for a loved one. I thought - if I am going down this slippery slope of emotions, there must be millions around the world that are too. All I could think about was helping someone to not feel alone, but very much supported, affirmed and understood. I didn't write a tell all book. I didn't write a book about a particular disease. I wrote a book of inspiration with a unique format to support those navigating the emotional journey of Caregiving, for all ages. 

Zentangle of Carole's mother, featured on the back cover of her book.

ES: I’d love to know more about your writing process. How long did it take you to write your book? What was the process like for you?

CB: I started in September 2014, two months before my mom died. She passed on November 23, 2014. She was my best friend and we were so close. The love I have for my parents runs deep. They have always been my best cheerleaders and have been so kind and generous over the years. I stepped up as the daughter to help them. I was out of work, I had the time and it seemed the right thing to do. I didn't know the word Caregiver until the end of my journey. Caregiving was not my career path. I completed my paperback edition in July of this year and the Kindle version launched in April. It was an intense process because I have 40 pictures in my book, 35 of them are Zentangles created by me. Most of them are affirmations for Caregivers, one of my favorite sources of inspiration. It was no small feat to get everything in place exactly the way I dreamed it would be. I wrote the book I would've liked to have had during those years caring for mom. To this day, I am now caring for my dad throughout the workweek. Looking back, it was quite a long journey, but well worth it. I had a calling to help others and there was no stopping me. It became all consuming the last year, trying to meet deadlines and understanding the process as I went along. I didn't have my ducks in a row. I just jumped in and learned as I went.

ES: Throughout the book, you encourage Caregivers to care for themselves as well. One way you recommend doing this is by taking time to be creative. How was making time for creativity helpful for you as a caregiver?

CB: I'm an artist by trade and hadn't created original art in many years. I was too busy raising my 4 children. I discovered Zentangle at the end of my mom's life, a few months before she died. I fell in love with it immediately! I am an abstract artist and it was a perfect fit for me. Anybody can draw a Zentangle. You don't have to have a formal background to draw lines and create patterns. Once I started making them, I was appreciating not only the beautiful creation, but also the Zen aspect to it. This form of art requires focus, patience and peace of mind to stay the course. All those benefits spilled over into other areas of my life, including Caregiving. After a long day, it was a great way for me to unwind. Being in a creative mode seems to bring joy to many, so I encourage you to find something you can do on your own, anytime of day or night, to work on when the mood hits. 

ES: I love that you included your Caregiver Zentangles in the book. For readers who might not be familiar, can you describe Zentangle Inspired Art?

CB: Zentangle® is an easy-to-learn, relaxing, and fun way to create beautiful images by drawing structured patterns. Everything you need to create beautiful Zentangle art can fit into your pocket. This easy-to-learn method of relaxed focus can be done almost anywhere, alone or in groups, without any special abilities or costly equipment. No previous artistic instruction required - if you think you have no artistic talent & can't even draw a stick figure, you can do Zentangle! To learn more, logon to: www.zentangle.com

ES: In addition to writing The Artistry of Caregiving, you created an Internet community for Caregivers called SanGenWoman: The Heart of the Sandwich Generation. What do you hope that visitors to SanGenWoman will gain from the community?

B: Like my book, I created a community that I would've liked to have been a part of during my years of caring for my mom. I'd like to think people will find peace, inspiration, affirmation, community and connection. My timelines are a mix of Zentangle Inspired Art that affirm and support Caregivers, created by my sister and myself. There are all different kinds of posts to engage, enlighten, educate and I hope bring calm to the reader's life. SanGenWoman on facebook is nearing 4,000 in number and is represented by 45 countries. The need for global support is great! My Instagram and Twitter feeds are topping 2,400 and my blog turned 10,000 page views a couple months ago. This all came from an idea to write a book in September 2014. I never gave social media a thought, but was advised it would be a good thing to do so when my book came out I'd have an audience in place. That was one of the best pieces of advice I was given at the beginning of my book writing journey. I was dealing with serious grief after mom died, but put aside my own heartache because my desire to help others was so much greater than my sorrow. You could say my grief inspired me to get the ball rolling. I had tunnel vision and all I could think about was helping another navigate the emotional journey of Caregiving. My social media is not just about Caregiving though. There are a plethora of topics I cover, including the art world. I want to reach a broad audience and there are many people that are not involved in Caregiving. I like to keep that in mind as I post. 

ES: Both in your writing and in your online community, you’ve created such an encouraging and uplifting space for Caregivers and San Gens. How can readers connect with you on social media and around the web?

CB: Thank you so much Ellen, that is my goal. Here is my contact information. Please come visit often and let me know if you have a topic you'd like me to post about.

Email: cbrecht4@gmail.com

Website: www.SanGenWoman.com

Facebook: facebook.com/sangenwoman

Twitter: @SanGenWoman - bit.ly/SanGenTW

Instagram: @sangenwoman - bit.ly/SanGenIN

Blog: bit.ly/SanGenBlog

Store: TangledArtBoutique.com

ES: Thank you so much for stopping by the blog today, Carole! It was a pleasure to read your book and to talk with you, too!

CB: Ellen, it's been great getting to know you. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to meet your audience! You are a source of inspiration to me and I'm so glad we've connected!