Welcome Guest Author - Penny Ehrenkranz Interview #pennyehrenkranz #guestauthor

  

Author Penny Ehrenkranz

Penny: Hi Stephanie, thank you for hosting me today and giving me the opportunity to talk about Mirror, Mirror, published by MuseItUp Publishing. 

Giveaway Opportunity: 

I would like to offer an electronic copy of Mirror, Mirror to one of your readers.  They simply need to leave their names, comments, preferably about why they would like a copy of the book, and their contact information.

STEPH: What is Mirror, Mirror about?

PENNY: Mirror, Mirror is a time travel romance. Here’s the blurb: Lindsey Baker is intrigued by everything about the middle ages, but when she purchases an antique mirror and a costume to attend a Renaissance Faire, she suddenly finds herself transported back in time.  There she finds she’s been called by a witch to right a terrible wrong. 

Graham loves Prudence, but he can’t marry her because he’s landed gentry, and she is only the baker’s daughter.  Before Lindsey can return to her own time, she must convince Graham to marry against his father’s wishes.  Unfortunately, she also finds herself falling for the handsome gentleman.

Can she find her way back to her own time, or will she be stuck in a time when women had no rights?

STEPH: How long did it take you to write?

PENNY: This is a twenty-seven-page story, so it wasn’t a long involved project.  It only took me a few days to do the first draft.  Of course, after that came the revisions before submitting and the editing once it was accepted for publication.

STEPH: What was the inspiration behind the story?

PENNY: Our small community actually hosted a Renn Faire one year, which I was able to attend.  As I wandered around the faire grounds, I kept wondering what it would be like if someone who followed these faires around the country would be transported back in time to an era where they would be forced to live out their fantasies.

STEPH: How does the cover reflect the story?

PENNY: I think the artist, Suzannah Safi, did an excellent job of depicting a young woman who is conflicted by her circumstances.  The cover art also lets the potential reader know the story is set in bygone times.

STEPH:  Lindsey Baker is the heroine. What are her strengths? Weaknesses?

PENNY: Lindsey’s strengths lie in her determination to succeed and her belief in her own abilities.  She’s gutsy and doesn’t go into a panic when she finds herself in a new and unbelievable situation. Her main weakness is also part of her strength.  She simply cannot believe that she can’t do the things she was able to do in her own time, such as read and write. Her other weakness is Graham…

STEPH: Graham is the hero. What attracts him to the heroine?

PENNY: Graham actually believes Lindsey is his own love, Prudence.  He doesn’t know Lindsey was magically transported to his time to convince him to marry Prudence. Through an old crone’s sorcery, Lindsey appears to all who see her as Prudence.

He has loved Prudence since they were children.  Of course, he is also a bit confused that “his” Prudence is suddenly so headstrong and determined to prove she is far more capable than women should be in his time.

STEPH:  Tell us about your writing space.

PENNY: I have three places I enjoy working.  My office is located near my bedroom and has a wonderful wraparound desk for my desktop computer and tons of bookshelves for all my reference books and little treasures I’ve collected over the years. In this room, I have a window that looks out through my sunroom into my side garden. I also like to sit in my Ikea chair with my feet on a footrest and my laptop secure on my lap.  When I sit here, I’m joined by both my small LhasaPoo dogs and commonly my cat as well. Here, too, I have a lovely view of my side garden through a wall of picture windows.  Lastly, when the weather is warm, I enjoy sitting on my patio with my laptop, enjoying the birds and butterflies and flower aromas.

STEPH:  Do you have any advice to aspiring authors?

PENNY: My best bit of advice is to have faith in yourself as a writer.  If you enjoy writing, if you’ve studied the genre in which you want to write, if you’ve perfected your grammar and writing skills, then don’t be afraid to submit.  What one editor might not like, another might love.  It sometimes just comes down to being in the right place at the right time with the right story.

STEPH: Fun Question: What's your favorite sport or hobby?

PENNY: Is reading a sport? LOL.  I’m not very sports oriented, so I will answer with my favorite hobby being crocheting and crafting.

STEPH: What book did you read recently?

PENNY: I’ve read several recently including the Divergent series, which was well written, and Orphan Train, which I loved. I tend to enjoy fantasy and science fiction, but I belong to a book group that forces me to expand into genres I might not try on my own.  Orphan Train was on our book group list, and I’m glad I had the opportunity to read it.

STEPH: I'm reading the Divergent series now and I'm totally hooked! Love it. Just finished Insurgent and it has the BEST ending for a 2nd book in a series that I've read yet! 

BUY LINKS FOR MIRROR MIRROR :

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Mirror-Penny-Lockwood-Ehrenkranz-ebook/dp/B006R0A3KY/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

MuseItUP: http://museituppublishing.com/bookstore/index.php/now-available-in-ebook/mirror-mirror-detail

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mirror-mirror-penny-lockwood-ehrenkranz/1108148500?ean=2940032955863

ENJOY THIS EXCERPT:

After Stefany left, Lindsey adjusted the water spigots on her tub.  A few drops of bubble bath went into the water, and the soothing scent of lavender filled the moist, steamy air.  While the tub filled, Lindsey tried on her Renaissance outfit for the upcoming Faire. She couldn’t believe her good luck at finding the perfect pieces.  She tested the bath water to be sure it was the right temperature. Then she picked up her antique mirror to get a better view. Was this a scryer’s mirror at some point in time? It slipped from her wet hands into the bathtub.

“Nuts,” she mumbled as she leaned over the tub.  She pulled one sleeve up on her blouse and fished around in the bubbles for the mirror. When she pulled the mirror from the water, spots appeared in front of her eyes, and she felt faint.  While she watched her reflection in the old mirror, the background changed.  She no longer saw the inside of her bathroom.  She closed her eyes as the room around her went black.

AMAZON REVIEWS:

 4.0 out of 5 stars

Time Travel or Magic, August 30, 2013

By Marva Dasef "YA Fantasy Author" (Eugene, OR) 

This review is from: Mirror, Mirror (Kindle Edition)

Lindsay loves antiques, spending a large portion of her time searching through dusty shops. One day, she finds an old mirror which has to have. Hey, for only $9.99, why not? She takes the mirror home and proceeds to dress up for the upcoming Renaissance Faire in full medieval wench array. Checking her image in the mirror...zap! She falls on her butt in a muddy courtyard amidst a pile of dirty laundry.

She soon finds herself scrubbing shirts and getting the 411 from a crone, who gleefully lets Lindsay know she's been grabbed up from the future to help a young scullery maid named Prudence capture the hand of Lord Graham. While he loves Prudence, his father will not allow his only son to marry the maid.

Lindsay realizes she has to solve Prudence's problem by getting Graham to stand up to his old man. She uses her 21st C. smarts to unite the star-crossed couple and, by so doing, get her ticket back through the mirror to her own time.

I enjoyed this short time travel by magic short story. I'm not a big romance fan, but I couldn't help but root for Lindsay's match-making skills to unite Graham and Prudence. I got the fantasy story I like, and the romance readers get a sweet romance with a happy ending.

4.0 out of 5 stars

Good reading!, June 7, 2013

By DB - 

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Mirror, Mirror (Kindle Edition)

A very short time travel. A nice little story of love in the Middle Ages. All I can say is that it was to short!

5.0 out of 5 stars

Yesterday=Today, June 2, 2013

By Lady Bug Lin "Ladybug Lin Reviews" (United States) 

This review is from: Mirror, Mirror (Kindle Edition)

Have you ever wondered what it must be like to, without warning or design, be like Alice and fall through the equivalent of the rabbit hole, or melt into the Looking Glass?

Penny Lockwood Ehrenkranz takes us, her attentive readers, on just such a ride in this, her latest Muse It Up Publishing historical romp.

Poor Lindsey, Penny's heroine...buys an antique mirror rumored to have belonged, in days gone by, to a

scryer. Is it true? How can one tell?

Into the bathtub it falls, and through the tendrils of time, Lindsey is swept...called by the ancient scryer...There's a task she must perform...all on her own. If she fails, will she remain locked into this ancient piece of history?

Penny Lockwood Ehrenkranz is a brilliant author who gives you, right from the opening dilemma all the way through the satisfying conclusion, delightful reading pleasure.

Mirror, Mirror is a fantastic, powerful read. My only criticism is I wish it had been longer. Still it is a DYNAMIC story worthy of all our eyes, so I take great pleasure is awarding it 5 shining stars.

Well Done Penny.

5.0 out of 5 stars

Couldn't Put It Down, March 27, 2013

By Janet Glaser 

This review is from: Mirror, Mirror (Kindle Edition)

I opened Mirror, Mirror, to the first page and never stopped reading this amazing story till the end. Ms. Ehrenkranz easily moves us from contemporary time to the Middle Ages. The shift is so well done and smooth. But the reader knows where she is at all times because the language and descriptions are appropriate for the time change. Loved the twist at the end. Very satisfying.

5.0 out of 5 stars

A delightful time travel romance!, April 7, 2012

By S.Durham 

This review is from: Mirror, Mirror (Kindle Edition)

Mirror Mirror is a delightful short story about a modern young woman, who, by way of an ancient scrying mirror, quite literally `falls' into the year 1421.

When Lindsey Baker, who loves all things renaissance, finds herself abruptly transported back to the fifteenth century, and is tasked with convincing the handsome Master of the manor (Graham) to marry against his father's wishes, identities and emotions become befuddled, passions ignite, and Lindsey must sort it all out before she is lost, not only in time, but to the man she's fallen in love with.

Ms. Ehrenkranz has created a gutsy heroine (even humorous at times) in Lindsey Baker, making this a cleverly plotted romance and an absolute page turner all the way to the surprising end!

5.0 out of 5 stars

Fun dip into the middle ages, March 28, 2012

By Edith (Nürnberg, Deutschland) 

This review is from: Mirror, Mirror (Kindle Edition)

As a fan of the middle ages, I was intrigued by the blurb of this story and didn't get disappointed. The writing is great and beautifully reflects the time shifts. Lindsey's a vividly drawn character and ideal for the mission she's whisked away to although she might not agree. The ending had me balk at first until a fantastic twist made me laugh out loud. Nice one, Ms. Ehrenkranz!