The Changing Earth Series Book Tour, Guest Post, and Giveaway

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Day After Disaster The Changing Earth Series Book 1 by Sara F. Hathaway Genre: Dystopian

“ How fragile everything had been. People walked through life everyday taking it all for granted, their cars, their cell phones, their lattes, their dramatic social issues and their medical problems.” She started her day at her home in the mountains just like any other. There was nothing unusual about making the familiar drive down to Sacramento to go to work. Then in a flash Mother Nature decided it was time to create a new landscape. Follow the journey of a dynamic young woman, mother and wife, Erika, as she is thrust into a world turned upside down by a series of natural disasters. Alone in a mutilated city, she must navigate the path home, back to her family. Not knowing if they are alive or dead, Erika calls upon all of her survival instincts to traverse this broken environment. Will she make it home? Will her family still be alive? What will Mother Nature dish out next? Goodreads * Amazon

Without Land The Changing Earth Series Book 2

“I thought I was entering a brave new world of freedom but I walked right into the arms of soldiers I thought were there to protect me… They told us we were going to live at this ‘happy’ camp where we would be cared for until the country was stabilized.” Erika thought America would let freedom reign forever but nine years after the Great Quake the reaction by the American Government was quite different. The Day after Disaster brought hardships to the world. The American citizens fought valiantly to bring back some sense of normalcy in a world that was shaken to bits. Many people were left landless and those still in possession of land had many obligation to fulfill for the citizens left fighting for their lives. Erika and her family are just another group left landless and forced to find their way in this new government construct. They are caught between a yearning for the freedoms they used to take for granted and a will to fit in and excel in this new landscape. However, Mother Nature will always have the last word and she isn’t done yet. Goodreads * Amazon

The Walls of Freedom The Changing Earth Series Book 3

“I just hope I…Have the spirit to go on fighting. Have the power to take on forces that are so much bigger than me.” On the run, Erika, her husband, Vince, and their children flee the government forces in search of a new life. The Great Quake ten years ago left the United States devastated. FEMA camps sprouted up in Regional Districts to control the chaos and separate the landowners from the refugees. Erika and her family spent nine years as refugees in the camp before they found out that Vince’s parents were still alive and they were searching for them. The Las Vegas FEMA Director, realizing his mistake, attempted to have the family eliminated to save his career. Vince and Erika take their family’s future into their own hands and flee the camp in a cross country action packed adventure. Will they find Vince’s parents? Will society accept them again? Can they accept this new government system? Goodreads * Amazon

Battle For the South The Changing Earth Series Book 4

“ I’ve come to realize that staying true to your values and loyal to the people you love can make you into a legend…We must fight the hatred and fear that is crippling the spirit of our country.” Unsure of the loyalty of her mentor, Erika and Vince take drastic measures to ensure the safety of their loved ones. After trying to merge back into an American society severely altered by the repercussions of the first Great Quake ten years before, Erika and Vince are unsure whom to trust. Time has spread the people they love out across the country and another Great Quake is imminent. One thing is for sure: they will not let their loved ones be annihilated by disaster. As the Federal Government takes steps to eliminate any signs of resistance among its citizens, Erika and Vince seek refuge in the free south where they can find help to rescue their friends and family from the Las Vegas FEMA camp. Can they make it in time? Are their loved ones still alive? Who is loyal to a freedom that was once provided under the Constitution? Goodreads * Amazon

Dark Days in Denver The Changing Earth Series Book 5

“I wanted to give up so many times. Take my family and find a hole to crawl into, but I believe in a country that once stood for something beautiful. A supreme message that gave all its citizens equal rights to exist.” As the Earth continues to unleash a series of natural disasters at the surviving inhabitants, Erika finds herself hiding from the federal forces aiming to eliminate her. Rapidly trying to adjust to new circumstances, the refugees from the Earth’s fury spread out into new geographic regions, searching for someplace safe to live. The Federal Government’s grip on its lands tightens, as food becomes scarce and overpopulation intensifies. Fighting for control of the West, the world is turned upside down as the unthinkable happens to the planet and Erika’s family. Is this the end of life as they know it? Who will survive to continue the fight for the freedom of the American people? Goodreads * Amazon

Author Sara F. Hathaway is an individual with an insatiable urge for learning. She grew up in the woods of Michigan, fishing, hunting, gardening, canning, and horseback- riding with her family. She loved to learn about the stories of times past from her great-grandparents and grandparents. After moving to the rural mountain landscape of California, she attended the California State University of Sacramento and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in General Business Management. She managed many businesses, all while working on the manuscript for her first novel, Day After Disaster. Eventually, she realized that her passion for the outdoors and learning about survival techniques outweighed her passion for the business world. Sara still lives in Northern California with her husband and two sons, where she is at work on the next installment of The Changing Earth series. Website * Facebook * Twitter * Pinterest * Amazon * Goodreads

How long have you been writing?
I have been writing since I was a child. I used to write poems to express my feelings about things in life
that were out of my control. I started writing my first novel in college. Attending business school, my
teacher told me my writing was to “flowery” and I only needed to include the “meat and potatoes.” In an
effort to release my urge to write creatively, I started crafting Day After Disaster.

Do the characters all come to you at the same time or do some of them come to you as you write?
The characters in my stories mostly appear as I need them. There are some exceptions with characters
provided to me by reader suggestions. However, most of the time I craft them as they are required within
the story. Then I develop who they are and go from there.

What kind of research do you do before you begin writing a book?
Before I begin writing a book, my research is minimal. Once the story is created, a lot of research happens
during editing. I want to ensure that some things are exactly correct, like herbal remedies, weather
forecasting, fighting techniques, and escape strategies. Some areas I want to ensure have a fictional
representation that is very close to reality. For example the planetary changes that are taking place within
the book are possible. However, they are rapidly occurring things that may take hundreds of years to play
out in reality or maybe not.

Do you see writing as a career?
Writing is 100% my career. Even though I don’t make much money at it, it is my passion. Only time will
tell where my books end up going in the future but I strive very hard to achieve my goals that I have in
mind for them. Nothing that I do brings me more joy than crafting stories and sharing them with the world
so even if I never make decent money at it, I will always be a writer.

What do you think about the current publishing market?
I have very positive feelings about it and very negative ones at the same time. Currently, it is easy to write
and publish a book. Never before has it been so accessible for anyone with an idea to publish their book.
No longer do authors have to order thousands of copies of their books. Thanks to print on demand,
struggling authors can order a few at a time to keep costs reasonable. I also have negative feelings
because the market is flooded with new books being published every day. I heard a shocking statistic that
90% of authors don’t sell over fifty copies of their book! It’s eye opening when you think of all of the
published authors out there that make this statistic a reality. The flooding of the market makes it very
difficult to have your book stand out from the crowd.

Do you read yourself and if so, what is your favorite genre?
I do read myself, although I have been writing my books so quickly that I find it hard to fit reading into
my schedule. I also do a lot of preparedness learning and teaching which also limits my time for fictional
reading. My favorite genre is anything that has to do with survival, whether that is in prehistoric times or
a modern-day thriller.

Do you prefer to write in silence or with noise? Why?
I prefer to write in silence, where I am alone with my thoughts. I do not have a problem writing in a noisy
area or with my boys around but my eyes will glass over as I enter my fictional world. Blocking the noise
out, I become consumed with the story and will often ignore those around me, even when they are
desperately trying to get my attention.

Do you write one book at a time or do you have several going at a time?
I write one book at a time. I need to stay in that story and live the lives of the characters. I find it hard to
have two going at once.

If you could have been the author of any book ever written, which book would you choose?
I wouldn’t want to have written anyone else’s books except my own. I value other people’s work for the
ideas and character representation that they bring to life. I guess if I had to pick one, I would say parts of
the bible because then I would know the true stories that made it a reality not translated and recrafted ones
that appear in the book today.

Pen or type writer or computer?
I like to write with a pen on paper. My brain works best that way. However, it is a very long process to
write by hand and then type it into a computer. I am becoming more and more fluid at taking the story
straight to type so I can produce books faster for my readers.

Tell us about a favorite character from a book.
I love the character Ayla in Jean M. Auel’s The Children of the Earth Series. She is a survivor in the
truest sense of the word. She is a strong, powerful hunter but she is also vulnerable to the social nuances
of society. She is beautiful yet humble and her heart reaches out to every person within the camp.

What made you want to become an author and do you feel it was the right decision?
I never wanted to become an author. I wrote. When I wrote a complete book my mom urged me to figure
out how to publish it and I did. After that I kept on going and here I am.
I do feel it was the right decision because it happened without me planning it. Writing is just who I am.

A day in the life of the author?
On a typical day, I wake up and make breakfast for my seven-year-old son. After packing his lunch, I take
him to school. When I return home, I eat and take care of the chicken flock that we have. After a morning
workout, I am either doing interviews for my podcast, putting the podcast together, building websites for
clients I work for and then marketing both my books and for clients. By then it is about time to go pick
my son up from school. After picking him up, I eat lunch and do household chores until my husband
arrives home from work. We usually have an early dinner because in the evenings we go to the martial
arts school as a family for a myriad of classes that we participate in. After martial arts, I come home and
shower and then go to work on my books until the wee hours of the morning. I finally lay my head down
on the pillow, waking up to do it all over again.

Advice you would give new authors?
I would advise new authors to follow their hearts, craft the material they want to and don’t worry about
the opinions of others. Art is a unique thing. Some people are going to love it and some people aren’t. I
would also advise new authors to watch out for self-publishing companies. They are greedy entities,
charging big money for things that you can easily learn to do yourself it you just take the time to do it.
There are also many sharks circling in the water, just waiting for new authors to enter. They have high
dollar marketing schemes that will guarantee your book will be a best seller. Don’t fall prey to the sharks
but look out for the people that are really out there trying to educate. There are some great mentors that
can help you along your way and I wouldn’t be where I am now without some of them.

Describe your writing style.
My writing style is action packed. I am a girl who loves to fight and it is reflected in my books. I want my
audience turning the pages so rapidly they are frustrated when the story comes to a halt. Whenever one
door closes, I want another one opening so they can’t put the book down as they eagerly await the
outcome of the next drama in motion.

What makes a good story?
A good story is built through characters. You need to be able to identify with them. They can’t be so
unrealistic that the reader can’t imagine themselves there, walking in the characters’ footsteps. The reader
needs to feel the emotions of the characters, see what they see, smell what they smell and taste what they
taste. This way the events that impact the character will inadvertently impact the reader, causing them to
explore their own idea of self.