Tales of the Lonely Sun Blog Tour // Interview with the Team

FORENOTE: I am aware the formatting is messed up...I just don't know how to fix it.

Heads up, I've never participated in a blog tour, so I have no idea if I'm technically doing this right.

Anyways, Tales of the Lonely Sun is a new-ish blog (created back in October, I believe) that I stumbled across when mindlessly clicking a link on another site (I know, the very thing I warn everyone not to do). It's a Jesus-centered blog that, as the name implies, illustrates the concept (through name and deed) of a Light in the Darkness.

What could be my favorite thing about their blog (though it remains to be seen, as of the moment) is their bi-monthly writing contest. Granted, I'm writing this article on the literal last day of the contest, and it's about a month later this is actually being posted, so you probably won't be able to participate in their first ever contest, but the next one should be fun.
They also have a giveaway, apparently, which you can find with this link. Note that it's only available for the United States and Canada. I'm also required to mention that the giveaway is not affiliated with Nadine Brandes. I'd list the rewards for the winner, however the list would break up flow of this post, and the link covers that detail.

1) Let's start with the obvious question: From where do you gather inspiration?

Carlye: I gather inspiration from things I think about, books I read, or YouTube videos. If there’s a blog post that I would be interested in reading, I’ll write it.

Merie: If I find that there’s something I want to share to those who will listen, I write a blog post about it. If I find that there’s something I want to share whether my readers will be looking for it or not, I write a story about it. Story ideas come from anyplace-- other stories, worlds, life experiences, my history/science textbooks, dreams. 

Jorja: I gather inspiration from many places. My blog post ideas are often inspired by the answers I find when struggling with a particular writing problem or when I read a book that stands out to me. My story ideas come from all over the place, but I would say that I am often most inspired by the books and stories I read. 

Mya: For blog posts, I either share advice I learned from experience or talk about stories and genres I love. I write stories inspired by what I love to read and integrate themes and topics that are important to me. Writing prompts, “what if” questions, and random daydreams spark lots of ideas for stories. 

2) When you write, what message do you usually try to get across to your audience and why?

Carlye: When writing, the message I’m trying to give will be the point of my post. If I’m writing about character development, the message I’ll try to portray will be character related. I’m a very logical person, so I don’t typically have huge and complex messages. I like to keep it short and simple.

Merie: I try to get across whatever message fits my story. I mean there’s the everyday, the simple, the obvious, the sensible… But the blockbusters, the classics, they either share the same message in a totally different way or just share a different message altogether. 

Jorja: For my stories, the message varies a lot, there’s so many things that I think people need to hear. I don’t really have one core theme that I try to hit home in each piece of writing, but maybe I’ll find that someday. As for my blog posts, the core theme of our blog, shining bright in a dark world, is always taken into consideration.

Mya: Like Jorja said, when writing for TotLS I center my focus on our blog’s mission. When writing fiction I incorporate multiple messages that vary with each story. Some common ones are forgiveness, sacrifice, hope, friendship, and family.

3) (To assist with blog advertising) What makes "Tales of the Lonely Sun" unique and fun?

Carlye: For me, I think the best thing about Tales of the Lonely Sun is how well we collaborate together and share the same goals. I can’t find a lot of collaboration blogs where the main focus is Jesus and writing, so I think that definitely makes us stand out.

Merie: We focus on books-- whether they’re being read or written-- from a wide variety of genres that are not unfriendly to a younger or Christian audience. Not to mention, we all have some very unique writing perspectives...

Jorja: I agree with Carlye. The four of us all have very aligned goals and our goals are also pretty unique to TotLS. 

Mya: We have a lot of different posts ideas that all share the same goal. Readers and writers alike can enjoy our blog and get regular posts about their favorite topic. We also have our specialties in writing, so where one of us is weaker in an area there is someone else who excels in it! We also read a variety of genres, so book review wise you’ll be covered. ;)

4) Ice Cream or Frozen Yogurt? 

Carlye: Frozen Yogurt, but only if it’s some sort of fruity flavor.

Merie: I love both. Ice cream can be either fruity or non, but frozen yogurt should be chocolate. The end.

Jorja: Either. Both. Frozen desserts are frozen desserts to me, and I enjoy all of them equally. 

Mya: Both are amazing, but I especially love frozen yogurt.