You plan, God
laughs. This is the story of my life.
There are ideals and
expectations I assume everyone has; whom you will marry, what your career
will be like, where you will raise your kids. And yes, I had all those
ideologies in my head, except were more like, have a career, don't get marry
and absolutely no kids. Boy was I wrong. Today I am
married with two kids, and living in a state I only passed through on
occasion. And my career? Well let’s just say, I have more than one,
and I never saw that coming. Who needs more than one career? Apparently
me. To make a long story short, I started my first career as a
logistician, yawn, I won’t bore you with the details. The second career
came shortly after.
I've always loved to
write. Always. My imagination constantly runs away with itself, and I am without doubt following
it. My best subject was creative writing. So when I would write, it
was primarily for me (or a good grade). As time went on though, I
found myself imagining more and more and wanting to create, but my life was so
busy, and what would it get me anyway? Until one day my mother- in- law dropped
a bomb that would change my life. She was talking to one of my
husband’s cousins who were complaining about getting her college degree (she
was already married with 4 kids. Yikes. I’d be complaining
too.) And my MIL, the wise woman that she is simply said, honey, and
time is going to go by anyway, so you might as well do it. Well, it felt
like the sky fell on me. The advice wasn’t even directed at me, but it
resonated. I started writing that night. And never stopped.
My husband once asked
where my creativity comes from, and in return I asked him if he ever heard
voices in his head. His reply, I needed to see a shrink. I told him
a keyboard and a curser is the best therapy. I have always loved the
supernatural, thanks in part to my mom; Charmed was one of our favorite shows
to watch together and still is. So when I started writing, it only felt
natural that it took on a paranormal feel. But I didn't want to write
about vampires or werewolves or really anything that had been done. I'm
like that; I always tend to steer towards the opposite of popular and then
proceed to make fun of it. So I started researching, and
brainstorming, and concocting my mix of love, humor and emotion. Liv
was already an entity in my head, festering. I'd often imagine a dark
haired girl with amethyst eyes, suffering and alone.
When I finally established who she really was, and what kind of
supernatural elements she would possess, (an
Empath-someone who can feel the emotions of others- with active
abilities) I asked myself, what would it be like for someone like that to
carry the world's emotions?
Torrential I thought.
What would it be like for her to fall in love? Even worse than torrential. The
story evolved rather quickly after that, but I didn't rush
it. It took me a little over a year to write, over two years to
edit. I learned a lot about my writing style during that time,
developed my voice and really tried to give it a life-like feel.
So here I am almost
four years later, a husband, 2 kids, and a home in what feels like
a foreign country; a daytime career and a nighttime career, all
jumbling together, fighting for a piece of my time. Go hard or go home, my
husband and I always joke, if we have a story, it needs a theme and
that is it. I wouldn't change it though, not for anything. Life is
nothing, if not a venture - (I have no idea who said that).
Bibliography-
Marissa Carmel has been writing since a young age and
although it has always been for personal enjoyment, she finally decided
breakout and share her imagination with the world. She hopes that her universe
is as fun and intriguing to her readers as it is to her. Marissa Carmel is originally
from NJ but moved to Maryland several years ago, she enjoys reading, writing,
and catching up on her DVR library. She is currently working on the sequel to
iFeel, Gravitational Pull, which she hopes to release sometime in 2012.
___________________________________________
Book Blurb-
Lust. Anger. Hate. Desire. Love. Happiness. Joy. iFeel.
Liv Christianni is isolated, alone, tortured and withdrawn, saddled with the
torrential downpour of the world’s emotions. Accepting of her providence Liv
has lost all hope, until one day fate steps in and spins the course of her life
like a spiraling top. Hunted by a Spirit Stalker, Liv is forced to gain control
of herself and her surroundings, threatened by the touch of her immortal love;
she must find a way to survive both physically and emotionally as her reality
is shaken up like dice on a Craps table. Can she find the courage to accept her
true self? Can she love unconditionally cognizant of the condemning
consequences? Can she rise from the ashes to become the person she was always
meant to be?
Funny, witty, real, and poignant, iFeel rips into your soul, and sets your
emotions on fire.
If you are a fan of Charmed or Supernatural, The Vampire Diaries or The Secret
Circle this series is for you!
Excerpt-
I direct my anger towards the mocking bottles of crazy pills
settled in the cabinet. I attack them; clearing all the glass shelves in one
angered fit. Tiny orange bottles fly all around my white tiled bathroom,
exploding an array of colored pills against the walls and floor. It feels like
I am bombing my past; liberating my future and releasing myself from whatever
binds me. I want to be free, and if that means destroying my whole apartment in
the process to get there, I am willing to do that.
I can feel the rage course through my veins; my head throbs and my throat burns
as I thrash at my tiny bathroom. All I can hear are the voices of people who
mean the most to me, those who encourage me, those who support me. To my
surprise, the loudest voice is the one who is farthest away. Justice’s words echo
against the tiled surface, telling me to let go, to accept my fate, to be
magical and not mental. It makes me miss him all the more, but what he said
finally makes sense.
My breaths pulse quickly in my lungs, as if the air is thinning. I have worked
myself up into a crazed frenzy to expel my true self. My enraged fit has
resulted in a bathroom bloodbath, me versus myself.
And I won.
Contact Info-
Twitter- @MarissaCarmel
Facebook- Marissa Carmel
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