Interview With Alexandra Lanc and Jack Frost

by - Tuesday, December 20, 2011


Yes, it's 5 days to Christmas and aren't we all excited?

And I'm even more excited that Alexandra Lanc, the author of Clara Claus had agreed to do an interview with me (not to mention tolerating my infinite questions) to talk about her Christmas themed book Clara Claus, which is the perfect book to pick up for Christmas!

Here's a short synopsis of Clara Claus and my review:


"The world was given the greatest gift, and that's what started Christmas."


Jack Frost has done it again! He's tried to destroy Christmas, and now he's going to loose his job--for good. And the only thing that can save him is something he doesn't want...to fall in love with a human before sunrise on Christmas morn.


As Christmas draws nearer and Jack's time ticks by, Santa's granddaughter Clara arrives in the North Pole. Playing the role of "tour guide", Jack feels drawn to the snow obsessed girl, who sees things as no one else does.


But when faced with the chance to leave the past behind, will the prince of winter choose to look towards the future? Will Jack's new plan to destroy Christmas prove fatal for the North Pole and its holiday, or can Clara finally melt his icy heart?


In this fantastical Holiday novel, the first in the Snowflake Triplet series, author Alexandra Lanc explores the wonder of Christmas and reveals the truth about hope. 


This novel is recommended for ages 12 and up, and contains: very brief/slight alcohol reference. Does not contain: drug abuse, sexual content, or language.


My Reiew : Clara Claus - Alexandra Lanc


And, I'm also happy to have the one and only Jack Frost present today, gosh, I'm starstuck...

Without further adue, here's my interview with Alexandra and Jack: (yes!)

Interview with Jack Frost

Hi Jack! I'm delighted to have you here! How are things between you and Clara? Last I heard you saved her from a terrible storm…

Why, hello...it’s Natasha, right? Lovely name. I’m sure you are delighted to have me here. I’m awfully busy this time of year, so I don’t normally get to do things like this...and before someone berates me, I’ll say “thank you” for having me.

Alexandra (the scribe for my story) is glaring at me. I’m being honest, you know! I’m honestly grateful that Natasha invited me! 

Anyway…

Clara and I are fine. Wonderful, in fact -- not to sound sappy. Things have been difficult these past two years, since I met Clara, but...I can’t really go into the details, or the author will hate me forever. Something about giving away the story for Clara Claus and Clara Frost -- great names, aren’t they? Oh, well. Let’s just say that these last two years have been very eventful, and that I’m glad to have Clara back -- oops, I went and said too much...darn. 

Alexandra, stop glaring at me!

Hmm Clara Frost, I like the sound of it.....you can send me a PM about that!

So we know that Christmas is just around the corner, is Santa as busy as always? Are you helping out? 

Me? Help Santa? Don’t be ridiculous. I have a job, too, you know, and all he has to do is fly in a sleigh and deliver presents. Not that hard -- I have to distribute frost to the whole world. As you can imagine, I spend a lot of time on planes. I have so many frequent flier miles, I don’t know what to do with them. 

But, Clara and I are going to help someone else this year -- or, well, a few someones. We found this great charity, and since Santa’s still getting into gear with the whole “changing Christmas back to what it used to be” plan, we’ve figured helping out there would be more useful -- after all, I’d personally rather give things that people actually need, instead of toys and gadgets. I’ll leave that to the fat man.  

That's very kind of you guys! You and Clara definitely make a great team! In the meantime, I will be waiting patiently for the fat man's arrival, hehe....

I am curious, you used to hate Christmas but now that you are no longer planning to destroy Christmas, what are you going to do on that day?? Any celebration plans??

Well, as I said, Clara and I are going to help out at the charity we found. And after that, we’ll probably spend Christmas together, so at least something good will come out of the day -- yes, I’m still a little abhorrent of Christmas...I’m getting better about it, though. Maybe we’ll have a party, and then we can invite North and his --  Alexandra is glaring at me again. I can’t give away the story. How am I supposed to answer any of these questions! 

North and his ~bites lips~ PM Me!

What are you getting Clara? I can keep a secret.....shhhhhh.....

What am I getting Clara? Hmmm...well, I got her something pretty big two years ago, and then last year, well...I’m going to give away the story again! This is cruelty! These questions are too hard!
Anyway...I’ve been thinking of getting her a big book on snowflakes. I’ve heard that she used to have one, but it got lost sometime when she was moving. It’s adorable how obsessed she is with snow. I’m sure she’d love it. (grins)

That's very thoughtful of you, Clara is lucky to have you ~smiles~ 

Hey Jack, is North still single?? (I'm interested, though he might be a bit mono-toned, still....) And can you let me in in some guy gossip? What do you and North do as male bonding time?

Is North single? What, are you wanting to date him? (laughs) I’d feel bad for you if you did. He’s so obnoxious. Nothing like me. Not at all. 

Half of the time I have no idea what North is thinking, so he could be dating someone. I don’t know. He’s been acting awfully strange lately...so...maybe. 

As far as “bonding time”, well, we seem to visit coffee shops a lot. I’m more prone to tea myself, but I love those peppermint mochas that Starbucks makes. And North likes black coffee, even though it’s disgusting. I can’t see how he can stand it. But then again, North is strange on the best of days. 

I'm blowing raspberries at you.....Are you making me jealous? But I forgive you when you say peppermint and Starbucks...I love them!

I know guys are all he-man and doesn't show emotions as obvious as us girls, but what were you feeling when you found out that you're in love with Clara?

This is...an awkward question. (starts to sweat) Why are you asking me this? 
Alexandra is glaring again. I guess I have to answer. She is such a pain…but, she writes my books, so I can’t complain. 

Well, it was a shock, quite honestly. But, then again, not really, because this is Clara we’re talking about -- and can I help it if she’s amazing, and wonderful, and sweet, and kind, and beautiful, and -- oh my God, I’m starting to rant. Next question, please! Hurry, before I embarrass myself!

I'm going to cry! 

Do you have a favourite quote? A favourite movie? A favourite song?

Honestly, I don’t really pay much attention to things like that anymore. When I was growing up, movies, music, and quotes were so much better than they are now -- and don’t gasp in shock or roll your eyes, because you may have CGI, but we had actual plots and good lines in our movies! 

So, I’d have to say, my favorite movie would probably be “Forbidden Planet”. It’s an old sci-fi flick, and it’s mostly ridiculous, but I love it. 

As far as music, I mostly like music without lyrics -- old piano music, like Beethoven, though I like the soundtracks from musicals, too -- anyone heard of Phantom of the Opera? Genius.
I’m not big on quotes though, unless they’re mine. (grins)

Do you believe me when I wanted to punch Christine for choosing Raoul over Erik? Okay, I'm a huge Phantom fan.

Eh, I never figured you to be funny Jack, hehe. 

Where do you imagine yourself 100 years from now?

I imagine myself to be exactly where I am now, with Christmas hopefully a little less ridiculous -- okay, more than less ridiculous, hopefully back to how it used to be, when it wasn’t so commercial. I hate commercialism. 

So much. 

And of course, Clara will be there, and North, and...everyone else who I can’t mention, for fear of giving away the story of the next two books! But yes, I picture me -- and then my friends, and my family. Sappy, maybe, but...oh, well. I’ll live.

So now, from the bottom of my heart -- which I do have, despite what some people may think -- I’d like to say thank you for having me, dear Natasha. And to everyone reading -- if you haven’t read my book, then what  are you waiting for? I’m Immortal -- I don’t have forever to hear what you think! 

That's so sweet!!
Thanks Jack for being here today! You just made my day!

Interview with Alexandra:

I love the title of the book but I was curious on why you would choose Clara Claus as the title instead of Jack Frost seemingly the story centered mostly around Jack. 

Honestly, I couldn’t think of naming it anything else. The story is more about Jack than it is about Clara, but it’s also about Clara, and she was the catalyst for Jack’s change, so it seemed fitting to name the book after her. Plus...I just love the sound of the title, and it makes sense when you match it with the other two books in the series (Clara Snow and Clara Frost).

Do you have writer's block while writing this book? Which part was the hardest and easiest to write?
As an amature writer, I often come across a writer's wall (that was the reason behind my many abandoned stories), how did you overcome that obstacle and do you have any advice to anyone who wanted to become a writer?

I actually didn’t have much writer’s block when writing Clara Claus. The story honestly just flowed out of me. But, that doesn’t always happen. Other books I have written have taken longer, and I’ve had horribly bad cases of writer’s block before. I find that the best way to deal with it is to step away from the story for a little while and give yourself time to relax -- writing is fun and enjoyable, but it’s also work, and if you don’t take a break, it can overwhelm you. 

Why is Clara obsessed with snow? 

Clara is obsessed with snow because I am. It’s something that we share. Whenever I write a character, they always have some part of me (sometimes big, and sometimes minute) in them, and that is the part that Clara inherited. 

As to why I love snow...well, I think it’s beautiful and magical, and I’ve also never seen it (living in Florida, where it’s hot, humid, and the “norm” is a horrible sunburn). So, that makes it even more magical and mysterious. Plus, snow helps Clara to grow, in a way (I don’t want to spoil the story in any way; Jack did enough of that...sigh).

I have to say the idea of Santa's employees (as I call it) being immortals were unique and creative! And Santa's working system was very peculiar! How did you came up with such brilliant idea?

Well, I really wanted this book to be different than any Christmas book (or show) that I had seen, and I thought it would be fun to add all of the “winter characters” into the plot, especially since I was adding Jack. I basically started with the idea that Jack had to have someone to punish him for trying to destroy Christmas, and instead of Santa having all of the power, I figured that it would be nice for others to vote on what happened to him...which led to me stitching together the Winter Council (Santa’s “employees”). 

I have taken up a fair amount of interest on North, although he was just a minor character in the book. If you were to write a sequel or a spin-off novella, would you write about North as the main character?

Well, North will appear in both of the other books in the Snowflake Triplet series (Clara Snow and Clara Frost), and will have his own short stories at the back of each paperback as an added bonus (the first short, “North Of Perfect”, is available in the paperback edition of Clara Claus). As far as a novella...well, that might be fun! I love North, and I would love to write more about him, though he is very hard to write, I must admit. We will have to see what happens…

Who designed the cover? It looks so pretty! 

Thank you! I actually designed the cover myself. I design all of my covers, in fact. I basically drew up the snowflake design, using charcoal as a medium, and then scanned the picture and put it into Photoshop, and then went from there. I have to say that it’s probably my favorite of the covers that I’ve designed so far.

I loved asking this question! After reading Clara Claus, I was hoping that it would be made into a movie, I would certainly watch it especially during Christmas! Do you have any actors in mind for the role of Santa, Clara, Jack and North?

Wow, I actually hadn’t thought of that! Of course, it would be amazing to see Clara Claus as a movie (I’m writing a script for it, in fact, though right now, it’s only for fun). I honestly can’t clearly picture anyone playing the roles, though. I’ve always thought that there is so much untapped talent in the world, so if it were to be a movie, I’d probably want to hold an open audition, and have the director, producer and I sit down and choose who would play the characters. 
On a side note, though, I think that Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy, anyone?) would be a great Jack, though he would have to lose the English accent...which would be a shame. 

Now for some off-topic question. Can you tell us about your new novella releasing in January, as well as the first in your Foxfire Chronicles series?

Of course! 

The new novella is called Lyrics of the Heart, and is basically a short story/poetry book about Kristi, a girl whose dad has just been in a horrible accident, and how she deals with the fact that he may never wake up again. It came from one of my own experiences, and was honestly a little hard to write, looking back on that time in my life, but I’m very proud of it, and think that everyone will enjoy reading it. I love poetry, and it was good to write something short. The best part, though, is that I’m going to be running a charity donation with the novella, in honor of my brother: for the first sales week (January 23rd -- 29th), proceeds from every Lyrics of the Heart book sold will be donated to the Red Cross. 

Now, the first book in my Foxfire Chronicles series, Shadows of Past Memories, is actually kin to Lyrics of the Heart, because I started writing it directly in the middle of the time in my life that spawned the idea for Lyrics of the Heart. This story is about two best friends, Aura and Terren, who are about to graduate and move forward with their lives, when they are suddenly attacked by otherworldly creatures, and both of them have to face their pasts -- one that was kept hidden, and one that was run away from. This book took me a total of four years to write and finish, and I’m so very happy that it’s out now, and I can’t wait to write the rest of the series (though I’ve finished writing the next book, a novella companion to SOPM called Shadows at Midnight, which will hopefully come out sometime in 2012). It’s going to be a great series, so I hope you’ll check it out!

I’ll be running a Blog Tour in January showcasing both books, so please stop by my blog (http://www.wordsoftheworlds.blogspot.com) and join in on the fun -- also, this wonderful blog here, run by the equally wonderful Nat, will be part of the tour as well! 

How about a Christmas shout-out to everyone! 

Wonderful! 

Well, everyone, this Christmas, I hope that you get everything you’ve been wishing for -- and not just presents, but time with family, fun, and a reminder of the Hope that Christmas is all about. 

Thank you so much to Nat for having me here on her blog, and --

Jack: Hey, wait, don’t forget about me!

Alexandra: Oh, sorry, Jack. Do you have something else you’d like to say?

Jack: Yes. (turns to audience) So, in case you missed it earlier, my book is --

Alexandra: This isn’t marketing time, Jack!

Jack: Why not? 

Alexandra: Because --

Jack: I was going to say that my book, named after my oh-so-wonderful Clara, is free December 20th through Christmas, as my present to you. 

Alexandra: Um, I wrote the book. Don’t I have some part in this? 

Jack: Whatever! The point is, it’s free for Christmas -- because Christmas is about giving, and about Hope, just like Clara said. 

Alexandra: (smiles) You’re right. So please, everyone, share this free gift with your friends and family. Go to http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/95898 to grab your free ebook, and we hope you have a wonderful, Hope-filled Christmas. 

Jack: And don’t forget to leave a review. 

Alexandra: Jack! 




Thank you Alexandra for the lovely interview, I am so happy that you agreed to it! And you made me laughed so hard! You and your awesomeness! And what is Christmas without a bit of sharing and giving right? Thank you for giving out free copies of Clara Claus. I also posted the Clara Claus button at my sidebar!


What are you guys waiting for? Head over to get one now! Spread the Christmas spirit!


Merry Christmas everyone!


You can also find Alexandra Lanc at:

Her blog Words of the Worlds
Her Twitter Alexandra Lanc
Goodreads Alexandra Lanc


And for more great news, I am also excited to be participating in The Foxfire Book Tour next month! Thanks again Alexandra for the great opportunity!




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3 comments

  1. What a great interview! And just in time for the holidays! Good job ladies - I can't wait to read this book!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks so much, Nat! Looking forward to January! :D

    Merry Christmas!

    Alexandra~

    ReplyDelete

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