Ashley was born and raised in Oklahoma, where the wind really does sweep down the plains, and horses and carriages aren't used as much as she'd like. When she's not writing (haha, like that EVER happens!), she's probably working out or pretending she's Sherlock Holmes. Her obsession with writing began after reading the Lord of the Rings in the eighth grade. Since then, she's loved everything Fantasy--resulting in an unhealthy obsession with the 'geek' tab on Pinterest, where all things awesome go.
Author's
Favourite things:
Tea & Tea Cups - I LOVE tea. I drink it a lot when I write. I mean one cup after the other. I stopped drinking coffee about two years ago, and well...replaced it. I also love tea cups. The one below is one I got from Windsor Castle!  |
| Ireland - Dingle Peninsula |
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| Peru - Machu Picchu |
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| England - Tower Bridge |
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| Rome - The Colosseum |
Connecting with people who love my books! The feeling I get when I talk or chill with readers is just awesome. I mean, it's still a surreal feeling and I think it will always be, but I hope I can convey how grateful I am for every message, comment, and download of my book.
Connect with the Author here:
Cutlass: Notorious pirate Barren Reed has one thing on his mind: Revenge against the man who killed his father. So kidnapping his enemy's fiancé seems a perfect plan…until he actually does it.
Larkin Lee is more than a pretty face and fiancé to a powerful man. Her fierce personality is enough to make any pirate want to push her overboard.
But when the King of the Orient comes to Barren with a task—to find the Bloodstone, a powerful gem thought only to exist in legend, Barren sees another opportunity to destroy his enemy. Together, Barren, Larkin and a crew of pirates set off to find the stone, only to discover it caused the death of Barren’s own mother and Larkin’s, too. As his strongest allies turn into his greatest enemies, and the life of the girl he kidnapped becomes more important than he ever dreamed, Barren’s quest for revenge becomes a fight to save the Orient.
Flintlock:
Barren Reed hopes to protect the Orient from his tyrant uncle, but his plans to make the King’s life a living hell aren’t supported by the Elders of the pirate community. As it stands, Barren has earned the Elders’ disdain for his carelessness, and they threaten him into exile if he makes one more mistake.
Barren’s not the only one feeling the Elders’ wrath—they don’t trust Larkin either. Worse, Barren can’t comprehend Larkin’s wish to have a relationship with her father, and the secrets she’s forced to keep create a tension that may pull them apart forever.
When the Pirates of Silver Crest begin to die, bullets laced with dark magic are to blame. With more and more of these weapons infiltrating the Underground, discovering who’s behind the dissemination is no easy feat. As fear and tension mount among the people of the Orient, Barren and his crew find themselves in a race against time to stop the spread of dark magic before the world of Mariana spirals into collapse.
Cannon (coming soon!)
The king is dead, the Network is destroyed, and Barren Reed has been exiled by the Elders of Silver Crest. To make matters worse, the black spot--a curse of dark magic--continues to devour him. It’s true purpose is still unknown, but one thing is certain: It will corrupt Barren in the worst way.
With her greatest secret revealed, Larkin Lee flees Maris. Accused of slaying the king, there’s only one place to go--Silver Crest. But Barren isn’t happy to see her, and their reunion leaves more questions unanswered, including whether they have a future together.
As Datherious rises in power, Barren and Larkin must work together to find the fifth Relic to complete the King’s Gold and prevent Datherious from obtaining control over dark magic, but the black spot has other ideas, and the closer they get to finding the final Relic, the more corrupt Barren becomes. Larkin finds herself in a head to head battle with the only man she’s ever loved and the reality is harsh--only one can walk away alive.
Q&A with Author Ashley Nixon
1. Describe yourself in 50 words or less.
Writer, librarian, pug lover and tea drinker. :)
2. What do you love most in the world?
My family & friends.
3. What do you fear most?
Failure.
4. What is your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it?
Having an agent is actually my biggest unfulfilled dream. I'm working really hard on a book right now and doing everything to better my skills as a writer, including reading books on craft and attending conferences.
5. What is the hardest thing you've ever done?
The hardest thing I've ever done so far is probably more like the most stressful thing I've ever done: a combination of school, work, and writing. I think you always do what you have to do, though. That's how you succeed.
6. Now that we've gotten to know each other, tell me a story. It can be long or short. From your childhood or last week. Funny, sad, or somewhere in between. Just make sure it's yours. What's your story?
I entered this world much the same as I am now--impatient and determined. I was born two and a half months early. I paid for my impatience by having to stay in the hospital for a long time, a month longer than my brother (*angry face*), and when I left the hospital, I was on oxygen for about a month because I couldn't breathe well on my own. But, thankfully, I was determined to live and experience this world I was so eager to see.
Let's just say, I haven't changed much.
Before I realized I was a writer, I was actually a very avid reader. I read lots of mysteries. Lois Duncan was my hero. I also loved Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. In the eighth grade, over Christmas break, I had to read over 1000 pages. I picked up The Lord of the Rings, because God knows THAT book had well over 1000 pages. I started to read the books--completely out of order. I read The Two Towers (favorite!!), half of The Return of the King, all of The Fellowship of the Ring, and then the rest of The Return of the King. Somehow I still had a brain and I LOVED them.
Seriously. Obsessed doesn't begin to cover it. I wanted to be an Elf so bad.
Anyways, the point is, reading Tolkien's works made me realize that I wanted to write Fantasy. Now I look back at my life and realize my soul was drawn to writing. I'd do this weird thing where I'd take out blank sheets of paper, knowing that I wanted to write, but not knowing what I wanted to write. Instead of writing a story, I would practice my handwriting. Just so you know, my handwriting sucks. Bad.
So that's where my author journey began. I wrote all the time. I loved the worlds I created and I loved that I had control. By the time I graduated, I had...probably twelve stories. I loved them all. I dreamed of being published all the time. I dreamed of talking to fans about my books. I dreamed a lot.
Then I entered college as an English Writing major.
*cue ominous music*
English Writing was a great major for me, I totally believe that NOW. In the thick of it all; however, I wondered if I had what it took to be a great writer.
I got over that at some point, but not without a lot of tears.
My senior year of college, I found an AMAZING critique partner. She told me that I needed to rewrite Cutlass. I said okay. (there were far more tears).
I had known I needed to rewrite Cutlass for some time. I knew it needed to reflect the person I had become. That is the Cutlass you have in your possession today.
Anyways. I think the biggest thing is that I never actually felt like my dream was impossible. Believe me, though, there were plenty of times when I wanted to give-up. There were also plenty of people who told me that writing was not a career.
Except, the people who mattered--people like my mom, my dad, my husband, my BFF, so many other people, they all believed in me. And I kept going. I kept fighting. Until I made it.
Let's just say, I haven't changed much.
Before I realized I was a writer, I was actually a very avid reader. I read lots of mysteries. Lois Duncan was my hero. I also loved Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. In the eighth grade, over Christmas break, I had to read over 1000 pages. I picked up The Lord of the Rings, because God knows THAT book had well over 1000 pages. I started to read the books--completely out of order. I read The Two Towers (favorite!!), half of The Return of the King, all of The Fellowship of the Ring, and then the rest of The Return of the King. Somehow I still had a brain and I LOVED them.
Seriously. Obsessed doesn't begin to cover it. I wanted to be an Elf so bad.
Anyways, the point is, reading Tolkien's works made me realize that I wanted to write Fantasy. Now I look back at my life and realize my soul was drawn to writing. I'd do this weird thing where I'd take out blank sheets of paper, knowing that I wanted to write, but not knowing what I wanted to write. Instead of writing a story, I would practice my handwriting. Just so you know, my handwriting sucks. Bad.
So that's where my author journey began. I wrote all the time. I loved the worlds I created and I loved that I had control. By the time I graduated, I had...probably twelve stories. I loved them all. I dreamed of being published all the time. I dreamed of talking to fans about my books. I dreamed a lot.
Then I entered college as an English Writing major.
*cue ominous music*
English Writing was a great major for me, I totally believe that NOW. In the thick of it all; however, I wondered if I had what it took to be a great writer.
I got over that at some point, but not without a lot of tears.
My senior year of college, I found an AMAZING critique partner. She told me that I needed to rewrite Cutlass. I said okay. (there were far more tears).
I had known I needed to rewrite Cutlass for some time. I knew it needed to reflect the person I had become. That is the Cutlass you have in your possession today.
Anyways. I think the biggest thing is that I never actually felt like my dream was impossible. Believe me, though, there were plenty of times when I wanted to give-up. There were also plenty of people who told me that writing was not a career.
Except, the people who mattered--people like my mom, my dad, my husband, my BFF, so many other people, they all believed in me. And I kept going. I kept fighting. Until I made it.
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