Interview with AJ Schippers and giveaway |

Ylva author AJ Schippers is here!

She’s giving away two copies of Shadow Haven. One winner will receive an e-copy and the second will get a paperback. More details are below.

Please welcome AJ Schippers.

Before we begin, thanks so much for stopping by today for a chat.

Thank you so much for having me!

Where are you from and does it influence your writing?

I’m from the Netherlands and I live in Utrecht. It’s about thirty minutes away from Amsterdam. So far living in the Netherlands hasn’t influenced my writing that much. Although, while writing Shadow Haven I had to do a lot of research to find all the right information regarding that specific region in America. I’m in the process of writing a new novel which is set in the Netherlands and it is so much easier because I don’t have to look up anything!

You’ve stated you’re a professional procrastinator. Does this impact your writing?

I wish I could say ‘no’. But it really does. I think a common theme among writers is the whole, ‘God, no one likes my writing and I suck’ thing, but add to that the procrastinating and you never get anything done. I am very much known for pushing things towards the next day and before I know it, a month has gone by and my writing file has had zero additions to it!

What type of stories do you enjoy reading?

I really enjoy stories that are riddled with angst. To me, a perfect story is one where there’s a lot of pining between two characters and one where it takes about ninety chapters before a kiss even takes place. That being said, I do also enjoy the fluff.

What type of stories do you prefer telling?

I prefer stories that have an aspect in them that might not be the norm. In Shadow Haven it was the BDSM aspect and for my next novel I haven’t quite figured out yet what I’m going to throw in there, but rest assured there’ll be something. I like to tell the kind of stories that I feel secure writing about and that mostly includes lots of angst and lots of kinky fuckery.

What was it like publishing your first novel?

Scary as hell! I knew absolutely nothing about the publishing process. I was lucky enough to be one of those people who got offered to transform their fanfic into an original novel by Ylva. The whole process has given me a lot to think about and along the way I might have learned a thing or two! While editing Shadow Haven I remember that my writing nemesis was point of view and I’ve really struggled with that. But all in all, publishing Shadow Haven was a dream come true and I can now finally change all my social media from ‘One day I’ll be a published author,’ to ‘I’m now a published author.’ It has been a humbling and incredible experience!

Speaking of your first novel, please tell us about it?

Shadow Haven is an erotic romance story that heavily includes the BDSM aspect. It’s a story about two people coming together (in the most ridiculous way, let’s be honest) and finding that first impressions aren’t everything. Shadow Haven also started out as a Swan Queen fanfiction that, even now, was quite popular and one of my favorite things of writing Shadow Haven has been the people contacting me that they finally could put a name to what they were feeling and that there’s nothing wrong with them.

What type of research did you do for Shadow Haven?

While in the editing process the first thing my editor (brilliant woman btw) made me do was find an actual location where Shadow Haven could be in the world. I looked up private islands (so expensive, holy shit) and I did some research about local fauna (my least favorite part). I want to say I did lots of research about BDSM but truth is… I already knew that.

Are you working on a new story?

Yes! I’m working on a romance novel about a high school teacher set in the Netherlands. I’m still very much in the middle of writing it, but being an ex-teacher I know lots about it and I thought it would be fun to write about it. My main character is a dedicated teacher who loves her students, but not so much the parents that come with them. Except for maybe the mother of one of her most troublesome students!

What’s your idea for a romantic date?

Is snuggling in bed an option? I like snuggles. I guess when it comes to dating I don’t have a lot of experience but the one date I truly did enjoy was when my girlfriend and I went for dinner at a Greek restaurant and then walked along a tiny, tiny beach in the city I was born in. It was a perfect day and a perfect date.

When was the last time someone completely surprised you in a good way?

I hate surprises. They set of my anxiety, especially when the surprise includes going somewhere public. But based on the last time it would have to be my ten-year-old niece. My mom had just dyed my hair a lovely shade of red and kept commenting on what a good job she did (which she did to be honest). So, my niece looked at me, leaned in and whispered, “What a bragger!” It had me in stitches for most throughout the day.

But let me give an honorary shout out to my girlfriend for sending me out of the house and when I came back she had transformed our tiny apartment into the most romantic place ever, complete with candles and a little den made out of sheets and covers!

Thanks so much for chatting today.

Thank you so much for having me! It’s been such a pleasure.

SHADOW HAVEN

Julia’s holiday on a private island, ordered by her boss, comes with an erotic surprise when she encounters the alluring Alexandra, a professional dominatrix. An explosive first meeting leads to friendship and something more sensual…and a little kinky. Can Julia overcome her fears to explore a submissive relationship with her? Can she overcome her doubts about Alexandra’s unusual career? And what happens when power is not just left to the imagination?

Ylva / Amazon

MEET THE AUTHOR

AJ Schippers is a professional procrastinator who likes to make people cry with heart-wrenching stories in her free time. When she’s not writing, Lara Croft often entertains her and, when she’s not playing games, AJ is often furiously reblogging about fandoms on Tumblr. She believes publishing her first novel is an honest-to-god dream come true and a big step up from plagiarizing The Never Ending Story when she was six years old.