Stephanie Burkhart's "The Hungarian"

The Hungarian by Stephanie Burkhart

We're happy to have Stephanie Burkhart with us today talking about her book, The Hungarian. Read on to learn more about Stephanie and her book.

1) How did this story come to you?
I'm a Moderator on Writing.com and it was inspired by a simple contest prompt. Write a story about a werewolf that falls in love. Called "The Wolf's Kiss," Count Matthias hires a British nanny, Katherine, for his daughter and they fall in love. It was well received. I entered the story into the Writer's Digest Pop Fiction Contest and out of 3,000 entries it received an honorable mention in the romance category. Spurred on by it's success, I wrote the novel, "The Hungarian."

2) Tell us about the journey to getting this book published.
If you consider I wrote the prompt story in 2006, it's been 4 years. My first draft was best kept in the closet. *smiles* The first draft allowed me to get to know the characters, but plotwise, it wasn't as strong as it could be. I wrote a second draft in the 1st person from Katherine's POV, and showed it to Gail Delaney, Editor-in-Chief at Desert Breeze. She said, "I like it, but can you do 3rd person?" I spent about six months changing the POV. If anything, I would say I would say I earned a healthy appreciation for patience.

3) Tell me three things about yourself that would surprise your readers.
A – I was married in Denmark in 1991. My marriage certificate is in 5 different languages.
B – I have a big comic book collection. I collected from 1981-2000. I have over 3,000. My favorites – X-Men, Teen Titans, and the Legion of Superheroes.
C – I spent 7 years in Germany while in the military. I was an MP.

4) What are you working on now and what's next for you?
I'm doing my final edits on "The Hungarian's" sequel, "The Count's Lair." I'm also writing a sci-fi, speculative short story, "Shadows and Light," for Desert Breeze's Borealis Anthology.

5) Parting comments?
For writers, have patience. Learn your craft. Learn how to take constructive criticism without being overly critical.

6) Where can fans find you on the internet?
Website: http://sgcardin.tripod.com/
Blog: http://sgcardin.blogspot.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/StephBurkhart
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=1357922219&ref=profile
You Tube Channel (Botrina) http://www.youtube.com/user/botrina