Nichole Giles, author of the Descendant trilogy, and the Water So Deep series, has lived in Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and Texas.
She is a fan of all things paranormal and magical, and her dreams include raising a garden full of fairies, riding a unicorn, and taming the pet dragon she adopted at a local Convention.
She loves to spend time with her grown children and two grand-babies, travel to tropical and exotic destinations, drive with her convertible top down—even when it rains—and play music at full volume so she can sing along.
Caspian is looking for his mother. Snatched from the beach as a child and raised as a half-breed Mer-Prince in the long-lost city of Atlantis, his turn to rule is coming fast. Caspian learns that the Mer in Oceania have found a method to visit land—a practice forbidden in Atlantis—and later return to the sea. Unfortunately, the “magic” method involves poison so potent that only half-breeds with undamaged lungs can survive it. When his Sea King father forces Caspian’s engagement to a mermaid he can’t stand, Caspian decides it’s time to go in search of his human roots, and the woman who gave him life.
Elise has nothing left to lose, except the house she grew up in and a beat-up classic car her father had intended to restore. While her friends leave home for college and abroad, she’s stuck waitressing at The Sea Turtle, begging for enough hours to pay her power bill, and using her lunch breaks to place flowers on her parents’ graves. Not only is she not looking for love—she’s not even looking for friendship. Loss is something she knows too much of, and she can’t survive any more. But when she finds a mysterious stranger wandering the cemetery, she takes pity on the pathetic soul and brings him to her work where she can feed him a solid meal.
The innocent meeting turns into an unbreakable bond, and sets off a chain of events that leaves them both questioning their place in the world—be it land or sea—and discovering just how essential love and family can be.
Q&A With the Author:
1. When did you start writing, and was there a specific event or person who influenced you to become an author?
I started writing about the time my youngest child started preschool. Looking back, I think I was searching for something of my own, since I’d finally gotten past the baby/toddler/diaper phase of motherhood. I’d always been a huge reader, and exceptional with my English skills, so when I came across an online writing class, I took it, just for fun. And then I found my first writing conference, and it kind of snowballed from there.
2. What is your favorite writing snack?
It really depends on my mood. I have a hard time typing and eating at the same time, especially because I do all my writing on a laptop. But I do get snacky here and there, so usually it’s something easy to grab, and okay to have sit for a while if I strike a good vein on my WIP. Fruit, cheese, crackers, nuts—stuff like that. And occasionally gummy candies, because-obviously!
3. If you could have dinner with any of your characters, which ones would you choose? Why? What food would you serve?
Elise from Sea So Blue. I think I’d serve her snow crab (obvs) because it’s her favorite, and mine too. And I’d tell her that grief is temporary, and encourage her to be happy while she can. (Is that vague enough without being spoilery?)
4. Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it?
Oh man. This one actually required a LOT of research. I learned to scuba dive (and did it in the ocean a few times), studied whales and went whale watching, learned about the most dangerous creatures in the sea, and the most poisonous. I had to check facts about criminal procedures with a missing persons’ (thought to be a murder investigation) and what would happen if police suspect foul play but don’t have a body, and also I had to use my knowledge of driving a boat, and learn about a different type than mine. There’s probably more, but that’s a long enough list, I think.
5. How do you relax, or what do you enjoy doing when you are not writing?
If it’s summer, I’m usually out on the lake on our boat. Or near a beach somewhere. Wherever there is water, that’s where I want to be. In the winter, we have snow where I live, so that’s a lot harder. Usually I’m either home reading and enjoying my family, or shopping, because that’s where I go to get out of the house when it’s cold (and I can’t take cold very well).
6. What advice would you give someone who wants to write a book some day?
No matter how you choose to pursue publishing, study the craft of writing well over and over again. Practice, and never stop practicing, studying, and learning. And never give up just because you get rejected or have a bad review. OH, also, don’t read the reviews!
