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Thursday, March 31, 2011

Who's That Girl? interview with Eleni Konstantine

Please welcome one of my fellow Dark Side DownUnder members!

Name: Eleni Konstantine.

Where are you? Adelaide, Australia.

How many years have you been a member of Romance Writers of Australia? Hmm….about 13 years. They can’t get rid of me!

What genre/s do you write? Fantasy and paranormal fiction, both in the short and long forms.

Who are your favourite authors? Tough, tough question….so many to name. But here I go - David & Leigh Eddings, Jennifer Roberson, Diana Gabaldon, Keri Arthur, Tracey O’Hara, Denise Rossetti, Jennifer Crusie, J.R Ward, J.D Robb, Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, Barbara Hannay, Marion Lennox, Nikki Logan, Rachel Bailey, Anne Gracie, Anna Campbell, and many many more…..

What inspired you to write romance? I’ve always loved romance in stories but didn’t’ realize I wanted to write romance myself until I read Diana Gabaldon’s CROSS STITCH (OUTLANDER in the US). I totally fell in love with the characters. Jamie – phwar!

I also loved fantasy, so the cross seemed like a great match to me. It hasn’t been easy to place though.

Who's your dream agent and/or dream publisher? Basically someone who believes in my work and wants to work with me to on my writing as a career instead of just one book. It’s a hard market out there and I have queried some top agents. So far, I’m still waiting. Maybe with the next project… But publishers that I would love to be published are Tor, Ace/Roc, DAW, Berkley – the big names with speculative fiction.

What's the best thing about going to conference? Oh the gas-bagging, hands down.

There is nothing like being with a group of your peers. No one understands me as a writer as other writers do. They don’t think it strange that I have voices in my head. They nod, understanding perfectly.

I suppose I love all aspects of the conference – the networking, the information at sessions, the functions, the pitching, the support, and basically relishing in being in such a great learning atmosphere. It’s such a buzz and I would recommend it to anyone—if can make it, go for it.

Having said that, there is still a feeling of fun and camaraderie with the RWAustralia Clayton’s Conference. So if you can’t make it in person, all is NOT lost.

And lastly, finish these statements...
My greatest strength as a writer is...
ha, strength? That I’ve persevered despite barriers to health. I can be a stubborn thing at times. *wink *
A sexy hero needs...a sense of humour, a great smile, and eyes you can get lost in!
My latest WIP (work in progress) is about...OK, which WIP? There’s the fantasy story of a princess and a dragon, who quest to find the lost tribe of dragons. Romance comes in the form of a Traveller. There’s also the novella of the Gateways to Hell and the Warders who guard against evil.  Or the short story about a Gypsy and another about a female paranormal detective.
When I write I like to...eat! And the sad thing is it’s either chips or chocolate lately. I try and substitute with nuts and fruit but it doesn’t always work. Hmmm…I’m feeling peckish!
My best writing milestone to date is...being requested for a full.

Thanks for answering my questions, Eleni!
Thanks for having me here on your fantabulous blog, Kylie. You know how much I love it here!

You can visit Eleni at her website, her blog - Eleni’s Taverna, Twitter, and of course, don’t forget to visit the Dark Side DownUnder blog, where Eleni is the blog mistress.

19 comments:

  1. Lovely interview as always! Eleni, I know exactly what you mean about talking, talking, talking at conference! It's wonderful :-)

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  2. Hey, Eleni, what a gorgeous glam photo! Va va voom! Hey, I popped over to say hello and got rewarded big time - thank you so much for mentioning me in such stellar company among your favourite authors! Love the sound of the new stories! Good luck with them. And see you in Melbourne. Can't wait!

    Waving madly at Kylie!

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  3. Helene & Anna - you guys sure are the early birds this morning!

    Conference time is something I look forward to all year - like both of you, I can't wait. :-)

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  4. Lovely interview – good luck with your writing Eleni (great name for a heroine BTW). I wish I was coming to conference in Aussi this year but sadly it is not to be. I hope you all have fun.

    I've just started reading Kresley Cole's Immortals After Dark paranormal series and I have to say I love it.

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  5. Hi Eleni! Yep, the gasbagging, hands down!

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  6. Hi Helene - LOL - gotta say I love to chat, waving hands around and all.

    Anna - you wouldn't want to see how I normally look. Eeek - right now I am dressed stellarly in my track pants and t-shirt, no makeup, hair in a ponytail. The writer's life is SOOOO glamourous :) And you are so welcome, I have more of your work on my shelf to read. But alas, I am not going to make it to the conference this year - sniff, sniff.

    Hi Bron - thanks for your lovely comments. LOL though I can't imagine me writing a heroine with my name - maybe someone else here may take that up! :))

    Ms Paula - I'm surprised - you gasbagging, well I never! LOL - always love chatting to you! :)

    Thanks all for popping bye. Hey Kylie - waving - thanks again for having me here.

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  7. Have to agree with Anna, Eleni, you look stunning in that photo. Can't wait for conference so we can do some of that gas bagging *wink*.

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  8. Eleni I won't be making it to the conference this year either, but hope to make the next one =)
    Love the gasbagging LOL! Though I have to say I also like being able to run to my hotel room when it all gets overwhelming! (g)

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  9. Hi Eleni and Kylie! Gas bagging is one of my favourite things at conference too :-)xo

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  10. Hey Anita, awww shucks - amazing what air brushing can do! What you are not seeing on the other half of the photo is my gorgeous god-sister with whom I made a day of it a few years back. Hope you enjoy the conference but hopefully next time!

    Mel, hope you are going to sign up for Claytons too. And yes, indeed conferences can get overwhelming. We are so used to talking to each other via email. I had to have a few quiet moments too - I'm not ALL talk (though some people beg to differ),

    Christina - isn't gasbagging just a glorious term. It really sums up the conference - it's about the people!

    Thanks for stopping by.

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  11. Ha, I go away for half a day and you guys are all here - gas bagging! :-)

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  12. Eleni, how fab to see you here! And I totally get the eating while writing thing. Dh calls it my 'writing chocolate'. =)

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  13. Hi Kylie and Eleni,
    It's lovely to see the gorgeous Eleni profiled here. Thanks for your insights into writing, Eleni.

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  14. Your ideas sound fascinating Eleni. I can't wait to read them in print.
    Best
    Cathleen Ross

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  15. Hey Ms Rachel *waving* - LOL - guess what I just ate?!! Though technically I'm doing writing related things - eg checking out the blog.

    Shayne - I love that word 'insights'. Never attributed it to myself but there you go. Thanks!

    Thanks Cathleen. I hope they are both fascinating and get published. :)

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  16. Oh.. someone said chocolate....

    Hey Eleni, so lovely to see you and your glam photo here (trackie-dacks or no...)

    Wishing you one of those dream agents, or publishers, or both!! And soon! How fabulous will it be to have a public outlet for all those stories crammed into your head!

    xx

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  17. Pass the chocolate around, ladies! It's not nice to hog it all to yourself!

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  18. Hi Nikki - LOL - yes chocolate brings everyone to a party. Thanks for your well wishes. My poor head is feeling a little crammed! :))

    Kylie, oh goodness, I didn't offer. Well here you go!! How remise of me. Naughty!

    :)

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