Author Spotlight with Amanda N. Newman

First off, introduce yourself and tell us a bit about you and your books!

Hi. I’m Amanda, a self-published author of young adult and new adult fantasy. I’ve written in three different series so far (a ya paranormal romantic fantasy trilogy called Hybrid Empire trilogy, a new adult dystopian fantasy series called Tales From the Outback, and an upcoming urban fantasy series called Shrouded Curses). Though the subgenres are different, each book has it’s fair share of found family and characters trying to find a place to belong in life.

What (or who) inspired you to write?

It depends on the book/series. For Shrouded Curses specifically, I was inspired during a rewatch of Yu-Gi-Oh season 2 and The Owl House.

What’s something unique about your book that’ll make readers want to immediately check it out?

Let’s see… Something unique… Does sentient Curses (basically evil entities that can possess people and come from a different dimension) count? No, wait that doesn’t start until book 2. Maybe the combination of learnable and inborn magic is cool to some people? Or the various different guilds?

Who was your favorite character to write about and why?

Gosh. There’s a few. I’d have to say Hunter Wildmoor (one of the MCs) is my favorite because I relate to him on several levels.

Without giving us any spoilers, what’s your favorite quote or scene from your book?

There’s so many and sadly most of them are spoilery. I guess maybe I can talk a little about the scene I just got art from… Basically there’s a high school dance Hunter (reluctantly) and his eventual friends go to that ends with the three of them stargazing and Hunter realizing this is how it would feel to live as a normal teen, but he’s also sad because he knows this feeling can’t last forever.

Quick! Dinosaurs have found a portal through time and have come to destroy earth. Which of your characters are you picking to help defend you and why?

From the Shrouded Curses series specifically: Hunter, Xavier, [REDACTED] the MC of book 2. They’re three of the most resourceful magic users in the series.

What’s the weirdest thing you’ve had to look up in the name of book research?

Not for this book, but for my dystopian fantasy series I had to look up if an arrow to the eye is a 100% death sentence (spoiler alert, there is a very small chance of surviving that)

What’s one book trope you just can’t get enough of, and what’s one that you absolutely despise?

Can’t get enough of: found family and hurt/comfort I can’t think of anything I outright despise because I think any trope has the potential to be done well.

If you could choose to be one of your characters for a day, who would it be and why?

A character to be? Hmm… I’d have to go with book 2 through companion book Teya because objectively she doesn’t go through anything too horrible at that point and she does end up improving her life over that time period. Or I’d pick post series Hunter for similar reasons (I can’t elaborate more because of spoilers).

What do you hope readers will take away from your stories?

I just hope people can find characters to relate to. And if they end up falling in love with my characters that’s a bonus.

Where can readers find you?

Website: https://amandanewmanauthor.wixsite.com/my-site

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Amanda-N.-Newman/author/B01N644ZN9

Instagram: @amandanewmanauthor

Facebook: @amandanewmanauthor

Twitter: @amanda_n_newman

TikTok: @amandanewmanauthor

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