Author Interview: RENEE WILDES

Today fantasy romance author Renee Wildes is treating us with a look inside her Guardians of Light series. The latest release, Lycan Tides, appears in print next Tuesday, May 4th! Welcome, Renee! (Applause!)

What inspired you to write your current release?

I always knew I wanted Trystan from Duality to have his own story. But who to pair a werewolf/werebadger guardian prince with? Thinking opposites attract, I started thinking “land…sea.” Mermaid wouldn’t work. But shapeshifter to shapeshifter would. I’ve always been fascinated by the selkie legend, so that was my choice. A selkie who lost her skin, stuck on land, yearns for the sea. Can’t leave the sea. Falls in love w/a land-based warrior w/a higher calling, who can’t stay. Perfect conflict.

What do you find attractive in a hero?

A combination of strength, honor and compassion

What do you look for in a heroine?

Never a damsel in distress, she’s not afraid to make a decision and stand by it – and she always thinks of others before herself

How important is the setting/world in your books?

World-building is kind of what I’ve become known for. As a fantasy writer, it’s super important to give the world a concrete world to escape to. The more books in the series, the more pieces of my world fall into place. Each takes place in a separate land, but they’re all a part of the whole. Combining new characters supported by old characters lends a continuity and a certain sense of reality to it all – like they can carry on when we’re not there.

What drives your books? Is it the hero, the heroine, the conflict?

Lycan Tides began with the hero, but the heroine Finora’s plight as a single mom is what drives the conflict and the story. If she finds her skin and returns to the sea, she regains her soul. But if she leaves Trystan and her children, she loses her heart. Part of her yearns to keep Trystan whatever the cost, and she comes to understand why her late husband Bran did what he did to trap her.

If you could pick the actors to play the hero & heroine in the movie of your current release, who could you cast?

Trystan = Gerard Butler, b/c he combines understatement w/a sense of humor (I loved his portrayal of Beowulf)

Finora started out inspired by Karina Lombard, but if it’s a CURRENT movie I’d cast Sandra Bullock

What’s next for you/what are you working on now?

I just finished all edits on Dust of Dreams, which is Guardians of Light Book 4. Benilo, the elven spirit healer from Hedda’s Sword, pairs up w/a dream faerie named Pryseis. Due to popular demand, King Loren’s younger brother Brannan gets his own subplot w/Pryseis’ half-troll nephew, Dax (who’s slotted to get his own book after Riever’s Heart, entitled God of Fyre Mountain)

I’m now working on Book 5 entitled Riever’s Heart, which is Verdeen’s tale AFTER she graduates from the elven military Academy. She gets assigned as a bodyguard for Prince Aryk, a riever prince trying to unite his warring tribes into a single nation. But she’s also a spy for Loren and Dara, who aren’t sure if Aryk is all he claims to be. Verdeen’s the ultimate tomboy, but can she learn to be both warrior and woman?

Thank you, Renee! Today our winner will receive their choice of a Renee Wildes ebook! And as an extra treat, Renee would like to share her book trailer with us. Check it out: