![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Lisa-Kessler-1.jpg?resize=229%2C362&ssl=1\")
Lisa Kessler is a Best Selling author of passionate, page-turning paranormal fiction. She’s a two-time San Diego Book Award winner for Best Published Fantasy-Sci-fi-Horror and Best Published Romance. Her books have also won the PRISM award, the Award of Excellence, the National Excellence in Romantic Fiction Award, the Award of Merit from the Holt Medallion, and an International Digital Award for Best Paranormal.<\/p>\n
Her short stories have been published in print anthologies and magazines, and her vampire story, Immortal Beloved, was a finalist for a Bram Stoker award.<\/p>\n
When she’s not writing, Lisa is a professional vocalist, and has performed with San Diego Opera as well as other musical theater companies in San Diego.<\/p>\n
You can learn more at http:\/\/Lisa-Kessler.com<\/a><\/p>\n Were here today with the fabulous, multi-talented author Lisa Kessler. Her award winning paranormal books have received wonderful reviews and are highly recommended by her readers. Let\u2019s get a look into her lair!!<\/strong><\/p>\n Jann: When did you decide to be a writer? Why paranormal romance?<\/strong><\/p>\n Lisa: <\/strong>Music was my first love. I actually performed in operas and musicals and had a few callbacks to sing Disney voices, but I always wrote every night just for fun. During a trip to New Orleans for work, I got a palm reading and at the end, she asked me if I was a writer. I was quick to say no, but then I added that I did enjoy writing, but it was just for fun.<\/p>\n She smiled and told me I was going to be a famous writer someday. I was boggled to say the least, but I also couldn\u2019t stop thinking about it and wondered if I really could write a book\u2026 Six months later my first draft of Night Walker was finished! She changed my life that day!<\/p>\n I\u2019ve always written paranormal and horror because those are the genres I love to read.<\/p>\n Lisa: <\/strong>My friend, Linda Thomas-Sundstrom invited me to be a part of the fae holiday anthology and I was eager to get back into my Summerland Stories so I was happy to team up with Linda and PJ.<\/p>\n Jann<\/strong>: Which character did you develop first in A Winters Wish<\/em>\u2014Darren Slater or Abriette? Tell us about their story and how they get their HEA?<\/strong><\/p>\n That led me to Darren, a down and out songwriter in Los Angeles. He doesn\u2019t have enough money to make his rent and he\u2019s forced to make some extra money by being a mall Santa.<\/p>\n Seeing him fall for a real elf was magical, and I hope their story brings a little magic into the reader\u2019s holiday season too.<\/p>\n Jann: Your Sedona Pack series<\/em> is fabulous!! Book 8 in the series, Sedona Sanctuary<\/em>, came out in October of this year. You write such amazing characters. What major conflicts do you have your leading characters, Miller Sloan and Rayne Lowry work through?<\/strong><\/p>\n Miller had to work through a lot of self-loathing for his past decisions and his road to redemption was rocky, plus I paired him up with a more free-spirited, newly retired FBI profiler made for lots of sparks and tension. Sedona Sanctuary was really a pleasure to write. I loved giving an older, battered hero a happily ever after!<\/p>\n Jann: How many books do you have planned for the Sedona Pack series?<\/strong><\/p>\n Lisa: <\/strong>There will be 9 books. I\u2019m working on the final installment, Sedona Salvation, right now. It\u2019ll wrap up the series when it debuts in February 2022.<\/p>\n Jann: Do you find yourself returning to certain themes in your stories? What? Why?<\/strong><\/p>\n Lisa: <\/strong>Most of my series involve \u201cfound family\u201d. Characters who have been loners or lost or abandoned find a circle of friends who become family. I\u2019m pretty sure I can trace that back to being an \u201conly child\u201d. We lived in the country too, so no playing on a cul-de-sac with friends for me. I spent lots of time playing make-believe all alone and I often imagined being from a large family that would have my back no matter what. I find many of my books carry that theme. Belonging, being loved, and even when they disagree, there\u2019s always someone ready to stand at your side no matter what.<\/p>\n Jann: When did you develop an interest in tarot and oracle cards? I understand that you do readings.<\/strong><\/p>\n Lisa: <\/strong>I\u2019ve been interested I them since I was a teen, but I didn\u2019t really connect with reading them until about 15 years ago. I\u2019ve been reading tarot professionally for about 8 years. It\u2019s a huge passion for me!<\/p>\n Jann: I see you have an upcoming Tarot for Writers online class available next year. What can you tell us about the class?<\/strong><\/p>\n Lisa: <\/strong>It\u2019s a four-week online class through zoom on Tuesday nights. I take everyone through all 78 cards with a focus on ways each card could impact characters and scenes. At the end, I share some different card spreads for character building and scenes. The cards work for both plotters and pantsers and you don\u2019t have to know anything about tarot either. It\u2019s very interactive, and inspiring for creative ideas. I love working with writers to teach them to use tarot cards to help them connect with their writer intuition. It brings my two passions together! \ud83d\ude0a<\/p>\n You can find out more on my website: http:\/\/www.authorlisakessler.com\/online-classes-book-coaching\/<\/a><\/p>\n Jann: Are you still doing your Book Lights podcasts?<\/strong><\/p>\n Lisa: <\/strong>Yes! Book Lights is live on Mondays at 1pm eastern\/10am pacific every week. I get to chat with writers from all genres and backgrounds. You can find the podcast under the Readers Entertainment Radio umbrella on all podcasting sites.<\/p>\n Jann: <\/strong>You\u2019re a professional vocalist. Are you still performing?<\/p>\n Lisa: <\/strong>I am! I actually recorded two audio CDs before I ever got my first book published! I gave up being in operas and musicals once I started signing book contracts. The rehearsal time took too many hours away from writing, but I still had my church job singing every week until the COVID lock down. Since then, things have been virtual, so I haven\u2019t performed live since March of 2020.<\/p>\n Jann: Do you have a website, blog, twitter where fans might read more about you and your books?<\/strong><\/p>\n Yes! I\u2019m just about everywhere and I love to talk books!<\/p>\n Website – http:\/\/Lisa-Kessler.com<\/a><\/p>\n Amazon – https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Lisa-Kessler\/e\/B003V5RYVO\/<\/a><\/p>\n Facebook – http:\/\/facebook.com\/LisaKesslerWriter<\/a><\/p>\n Twitter – http:\/\/twitter.com\/LdyDisney<\/a><\/p>\n TikTok – https:\/\/vm.tiktok.com\/TTPd2F3oLk\/<\/a><\/p>\n Goodreads – http:\/\/goodreads.com\/LisaKessler<\/a><\/p>\n Instagram – http:\/\/instagram.com\/LdyDisney<\/a><\/p>\n Pinterest – http:\/\/pinterest.com\/LdyDisney<\/a><\/p>\n Author Newsletter – https:\/\/goo.gl\/56lDla<\/a><\/p>\n Follow Me on BookBub – https:\/\/www.bookbub.com\/authors\/lisa-kessler<\/a><\/p>\n Facebook Reader Group – https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/LisaKesslerNightAngels<\/a><\/p>\n Jann: What\u2019s your favorite movie?<\/strong><\/p>\n Lisa: <\/strong>Rocky! It was the first movie I ever saw that the hero didn\u2019t win the battle\/fight and it didn\u2019t matter. Going the distance, getting up after being knocked down, that was the message, and I was hooked. Life didn\u2019t have to be a competition. It was the journey. It takes heart and lots of it.<\/p>\n I have a signed movie poster of Rocky in my writing space. The tagline: His whole life was a million-to-one shot\u2026 has always reflected how I felt about my writing career. I\u2019m so lucky and so blessed to get to share stories with readers from all over the world. I haven\u2019t hit a list\u2026yet, but someday? I\u2019m definitely going the distance!\u00a0 Okay I promise no more lines from Rocky\u2026 for now!<\/p>\n Lisa, thank you for sharing with us a bit of your world. Wishing you the best for this holiday season!!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Lisa Kessler is a Best Selling author of passionate, page-turning paranormal fiction. She’s a two-time San Diego Book Award winner for Best Published Fantasy-Sci-fi-Horror and Best Published Romance. Her books have also won the PRISM award, the Award of Excellence, the National Excellence in Romantic Fiction Award, the Award of Merit from the Holt Medallion, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":480,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1375],"tags":[365],"featured_image_urls":{"full":"","thumbnail":"","medium":"","medium_large":"","large":"","1536x1536":"","2048x2048":"","mbt_book_image":"","mbt_endorsement_image":"","theme-large":"","theme-half":"","theme-third":"","theme-fourth":"","theme-thumbnail":""},"post_excerpt_stackable":" Lisa Kessler is a Best Selling author of passionate, page-turning paranormal fiction. She’s a two-time San Diego Book Award winner for Best Published Fantasy-Sci-fi-Horror and Best Published Romance. Her books have also won the PRISM award, the Award of Excellence, the National Excellence in Romantic Fiction Award, the Award of Merit from the Holt Medallion, and an International Digital Award for Best Paranormal. Her short stories have been published in print anthologies and magazines, and her vampire story, Immortal Beloved, was a finalist for a Bram Stoker award. When she’s not writing, Lisa is a professional vocalist, and has performed…<\/p>\n","category_list":"Writing<\/a>","author_info":{"name":"Jann Ryan","url":"https:\/\/www.asliceoforange.net\/author\/jann-ryan\/"},"comments_num":"1 comment","featured_image_urls_v2":{"full":"","thumbnail":"","medium":"","medium_large":"","large":"","1536x1536":"","2048x2048":"","mbt_book_image":"","mbt_endorsement_image":"","theme-large":"","theme-half":"","theme-third":"","theme-fourth":"","theme-thumbnail":""},"post_excerpt_stackable_v2":"![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Holiday-Anthology-cover-art-for-TINSEL-WINGS-AND-FUN-box-set-image-to-use-1.jpg?resize=300%2C200&ssl=1\")
Jann: A Winters Wish<\/em>, your holiday fantasy romance novella made its debut in November as a part of the Tinsel, Wings and Fur: A Fae Worlds Holiday Storybook<\/em>, with authors Linda Thomas-Sundstrom and PJ Mellor and now it\u2019s a solo release with a never-before published epilogue. How did the anthology come about?<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/AWintersWish_ebook-1.jpg?resize=188%2C300&ssl=1\")
Lisa: <\/strong>Abriette was first. My previous Summerland Stories novellas featured fae princesses and this time I wanted a warrior. So Abriette is a warrior elf for the Winter Realm. Since it was happening at Christmastime, I figured an elf that crossed the veil would be assumed to be one of Santa\u2019s Elves.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.asliceoforange.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/SedonaSanctuaryArt_final-1-1.jpg?resize=200%2C300&ssl=1\")
Lisa: <\/strong>Thanks so much! The Sedona Pack series evolved in an unexpected direction. Sedona Sanctuary hadn\u2019t been on the series list, and I hadn\u2019t been planning to give Miller Sloan a book! Book 8 was going to be Sedona Sentinel (Deacon\u2019s book) but in Book 5 (Sedona Sacrifice) Miller Sloan was a side character and during one scene his backstory started to unfold. I realized this retired general had a story to tell. So suddenly I was writing my first silver fox werewolf!<\/p>\n