I’d like to welcome author Cyndi Brec to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday.

A few of your favorite things: Peach Snapple, puppies, and my family—but not necessarily in that order. Lol

Things you need to throw out: Left-sided socks because I always lose the right-sided ones.

Things you need for your writing sessions: My timer and a beverage. Initially, when I began writing I didn’t use a timer, but a dear author friend of mine introduced me to the power of a buzzer. I use the timer for writing sprints, it keeps me in the writing zone (otherwise, I can feel guilty for not getting stuff done around the home). Having that set time aside to write forces my brain to hone in on the specifics of a scene or a thought for an extended period of time.

Things that hamper your writing: Interruptions. People distracting me, conversations, and not having a white noise. Anything that keeps me from staying in the mood.

Things you love about writing: Okay, I’m a myth and legend geek. There are so many secrets hidden in myths and legends and that’s where my storytelling comes into play. I love tweaking and twisting existing tales and seeing a new story idea take shape. This approach puts a new spin on an old legend, brings about a fantastic surprise, and plot twist. I also believe developing depth of the world building, can deepen reader interaction with the characters. History teaches us and stories connect us to the richness this world has to offer us. In my opinion, a great story is one that a reader can engage with, but an excellent story is one that helps us see beyond ourselves and allows us to feel, sense the pain of the character, and grow—deepening our understanding of life.

Things you hate about writing: There’s never enough time to write. Plus, my ice melts before I’ve finished the scene.

Hardest thing about being a writer: The industry is subjective and there is no easy way to make everyone happy.

Easiest thing about being a writer: Diving into unchartered territories and creating whatever I want, even making the unbelievable believable. Writing is fun!

Words that describe you: Loyal, bubbly, friendly, cheerful, and it’s been mentioned a few times that I can be silly—I love to laugh.

Words that describe you, but you wish they didn’t: Oh, boy! I’m a talker, and at times, I may insert my foot in my mouth. I’m not perfect! Lol

Favorite foods: Any and all Mexican and Italian dishes.

Things that make you want to gag: Liver and onions.

Something you’re really good at: I’m really good at cooking main dishes—not that I follow recipes well.

Something you’re really bad at: Technology. I love the craft of writing but navigating even my computer is troublesome.

Things you always put in your books: Plot twists and unexpected turns for the character.

Things you never put in your books: Never is a strong word to use, but I try to not overly describe the setting and my characters in the story. I want to give the reader the opportunity to create the images in their mind.

Favorite places you’ve been: Austria, Germany, France, and Venice, Italy.

Places you never want to go to again: I truly love to travel, experience new things, and venture beyond my comfort zone, but that’s because I love seeing things through my husband’s eyes or my kids. For me, it’s more about the company you travel with than the location.

Favorite books (or genre): I enjoy fantasy (I’m a huge Victoria Aveyard fan) mystery, and historical romance. Some of my favorite books are Red Queen, A vow so Bold and Deadly, Shadow Fall, and the Twilight series.

Books you wouldn’t buy: I see what’s popular in the industry, read book reviews, and monitor what comments are made about a new book before I buy it. The first thing that will stop me from buying a book is several different people commenting ‘there is no character arc.’ The inner journey of a character over the course of a story should be powerful and unforgettable—the character should never be perfect.

People you’d like to invite to dinner (living): Author Steven King, Victoria Aveyard, and Stephanie Myer. These authors represent different genres, but it’d be intriguing to hear who influenced their writing and what fuels their story building.

People you’d cancel dinner on: Hannibal Lecter

The nicest thing a reader said to you: A reader once said to me, “I can’t believe you can conceptualize that plotline and write it out. It’s awesome work.”

The craziest thing a reader said to you: “I think you should use more semicolons in your manuscript.” Mind you, this is after my agent, Jonas Saul, and writing buddies told me to eliminate them. Lol

About Cyndi

Cyndi Brec is a debut author of Scarred Visions, book one of the Marked for Life series. Also, author of Scarred Secrets and Scarred Lies—short stories.

An Ohio native, Cyndi lives with her best friend, her husband, her two crazy-fun-loving kids, and her embarrassingly energetic dogs, who find unending trouble.

Her experience as a Recreational Therapy Technician for the Geriatric psych and mentally challenged, love for travel, and creative story building has given her many facets to draw from when world-building.

Cyndi never thought of herself as an author, more of a storyteller. Her love of history was part of the driving force in writing the series, but more so, mythological stories that stretched across civilizations and time. The secrets hidden within those mythical tales cultivated an unending list of questions and inspired her to write a YA urban fantasy series.

Let’s Be Social

Website; www.Cyndibrec.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/cyndibrec7
Instagram: www.instagram.com/callie_tresham