An Adventurer’s Heart: An Interview with AnneMarie Mazotti Gouveia, author of Drifters Realm

AnneMarie was born and raised in California. She has a vivid imagination and loves writing magical adventure stories that take place in strange lands. She is passionate about reading, art, and family; the youngest of seven children, a mother of four children, and a grandmother. She’s traveled through Europe and has lived in Germany, Washington, and Kansas. A former high-tech executive with a Bachelor of Science Information Technology degree, she is a geek at heart who enjoys mentoring others and trips to Disneyland. AnneMarie lives in Northern California with her husband and two mischievous cats. Drifters Realm: Book 1 is her first book.

You can buy Drifters Realm here.

Are you a writer, too? Submit your manuscript to Atmosphere Press.

Tell us the story of your book’s title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?

The title of my book, Drifters Realm, is also the name and setting of where the book takes place. It was easy to choose the title because I wanted the book to speak to the adventurer and traveler within each of us.

How did it feel when you first saw your book cover? Or when you first held your book in your hands?

It’s almost impossible to fully explain the feeling of holding my first book in my hands. I felt equally excited and terrified, right alongside immeasurable gratitude and accomplishment.

Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?

I am inspired to write because I want to tell stories that take you by surprise so you keep turning the pages, stories with characters you can relate to, heroes and villains alike. I love stories with magical elements set in strange, faraway places in different time periods where the unexpected is possible and adventure lurks around every corner. J.K. Rowling, Diana Gabaldon, Victoria Aveyard, C. S. Lewis, and Luanne G. Smith are some of my favorite authors, but the list of works that influence my writing is constantly changing as I read new authors and books.

What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?

I am a retired IT business executive with over twenty years of experience in the management of business processes, systems, applications architectures, and technologies. As Managing Director of Enterprise Applications at Lam Research Corporation, I led various highly cross-functional global project implementation and multi-billion-dollar M&A integration teams to successful completion.

Something readers may not know about me is that I lived and worked in Germany for four years.

What was the most rewarding/meaningful part of publishing your book?

The most meaningful and rewarding part of publishing my book has been hearing how much people loved the story, saw themselves in the characters, and were genuinely excited about the second book and where the story will take us next.

If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?

Geronimo – Sheppard

When the Stars Go Blue – Tim McGraw

Shut Up and Dance – Walk the Moon

More than a Feeling – Boston

Show Me the Way – Peter Frampton

What is one thing you hope readers take away from reading your book? How do you envision your perfect reader?

I hope young and old readers alike will fall in love with reading again, and be drawn to stories filled with adventure, family, and friendship. And how any journey in life is always better when its shared.

What new writing projects are you currently working on? Or, other projects that are not writing?

The second book of the Drifters Realm trilogy is nearly finished. In the second book, pieces of the prophecy become clear, and at the same time, a mystery unfolds involving the discovery of the Shadow Stone, the Mirror Tree, and the Ghost of Ruin trapped in an underground library! These new findings are key to understanding why the events in Drifters Realm are happening, and hold the answers Roe, Theo, Ori, and the others need to restore peace and harmony to Drifters Realm!

How was working with Atmosphere Press? What would you tell other writers who want to publish?

My experiences working with Atmosphere Press were all very positive. I greatly appreciate their help, coaching, and support from start to finish and couldn’t imagine having published my book without them by my side.

You can buy Drifters Realm here.

Are you a writer, too? Submit your manuscript to Atmosphere Press.