Michelle Hauck’s debut novel Kindar’s Cure was something fresh in the fantasy world. The book was published in August 2013. The fans accept it very positively with av. 4.6 stars in Amazon from 17 reviews. We’ve got a chance to speak with our next guest during her blog tour, organized by Goodreads’ group Making Connections.

– What is your book Kindar’s Cure about?
– The book blurb says it best: Princess Kindar of Anost dreams of playing the hero and succeeding to her mother’s throne. But dreams are for fools. Reality involves two healthy sisters and a wasting disease of suffocating cough that’s killing her by inches. When her elder sister is murdered, the blame falls on Kindar, putting her head on the chopping block.
No one who survives eighteen years of choke lung lacks determination. A novice wizard, Maladonis Bin, approaches with a vision—a cure in a barren land of volcanic fumes. As choices go, a charming bootlicker that trips over his own feet isn’t the best option, but beggars can’t be choosers. Kindar escapes with Mal and several longtime attendants only to have her eyes opened that her country faces dark times.
Her mother’s decision to close the prosperous mines spurs poverty and joblessness, inciting rebellion and opening Anost to foreign invasion. As Mal urges her toward a cure that will prove his visions, suddenly, an ally turns traitor, delivering Kindar to a rebel army, who have their own plans for a sickly princess.
With the killer poised to strike again, the rebels bearing down, and the country falling apart, she must weigh her personal hunt for a cure against saving her people.

– How did you decide to write the story?
– The inspiration was actually a bad cough that was keeping me awake. From there I invented a character with an illness that dogged them their whole life, and instead of letting it keep them down, they fought against it the best they could.
– What was the biggest challenge during the write up process?
– I wish sometimes that I could write faster. I have to envision a chapter in my head before I start to write it so I can get all the little details right. That means I’m never going to win at NaNoWriMo or finish a book in three months. That and action scenes. Action scenes, with all that description, are the bane of my writing.
– Tell us something more about your main character? Is it close to someone from your real life?
– Kindar is somewhat like a bulldog; she’s feisty and determined, and really grabs onto ideas. She’s also very loyal to people who are kind to her. She starts out isolated by her situation and really learns to connect with people. Usually my main characters are pieces of me and not built on anyone else I know. However, I think Kindar is more adventurous than I’d ever be.
I believe a main character should be active in moving the story forward. They may not always get it right, but main characters should be the hinge on which everything else hangs.
– How much time did you need to finish the story and to publish it?
– I’m a pretty slow writer. I like to take my time and edit as I go. Writing the story took about eleven months. Then I queried it and submitted it to small press. After I got an offer, I had to wait another year for it to be published. Patience is a virtue in publishing.
– You wrote a short story Frost and Fog inside the anthology Summer’s Double Edge. Give us some insight?
– Frost and Fog is a prequel to Kindar’s Cure. It’s a short story that gives the history behind how the people of Kindar’s world met their god. It was inspired by a tapestry I describe in Kindar’s Cure of lumberjacks first encountering the god among the trees.
– Who are you?
– Writer, mother, wife, twitter junkie. A geek who loves fantasy movies like Lord of the Rings, and the Avengers. A sports fan who loves to root on her favorite teams. A bookworm who always has to have a book to read for fun. Someone who likes to laugh. We should all laugh more.
– What are your writing habits?
– My writing habits vary. In general I try to write a chapter a week of new material. I tend to focus on writing one book at a time and editing as I go. When I finish a book I send it off to my critique partners to read and comment on and then it’s time for more editing.
– Are you satisfied by the sales of the book?
– Is anyone really ever satisfied? We almost always hope for more of good things.
– What are you doing to promote your book by the best possible way?
– I prefer to promote without jumping in front of people and saying buy this. I rely on word of mouth and keeping the information up front on my blog. I do as much as I can to bring people to my blog where they can see my books by having interesting events on my blog. I also like to give away free ebooks for review.
I think the best way to promote yourself is to make friends and network.
– When we will see your next novel?
– Nothing is scheduled at this point, but I have a book on submission and another just finished and getting ready to go out. Someday I hope to find time to write the sequel to Kindar’s Cure.
– Are you using some of your kids’ imagination in your writing?
– My kids are too embarrassed by mom to read my books. Perhaps when they are older. My daughter did draw me a picture for one of my middle grade stories that I use for my twitter banner. It’s my silly hamster picture.
– You are working with special needs children. Would you share your experience how much the books help them?
– It’s more like how do they help me. I’ve learned so much patience from working with them and never to take the little things for granted. They are kind of impressed that I’m a ‘real’ author and like to hold my book.
– If you may ask yourself one question in the interview what it will be? (Don’t forget to answer)
– Who would you like to thank for their support? I want to especially thank my family and husband for putting up with me and my obsession. My wonderful critique partners Carla, Angie, Joyce, Sean, and Dean for reading everything I write. I want to thank all the helpful people from twitter who join in with all my crazy contests and fun. And thanks to Ognian Georgiev for hosting me on his blog today!

Learn more about Michelle at her Blog
Twitter

Take a look at her book

Kindar’s Cure