About The Author

A.B Whelan

I would like to thank you for sending me personalized questions. I want you to know that I deeply appreciate your effort. A.B. 

You're from a Hungarian background, what 3 things do you like/miss about Hungary (places/items/etc)? 

My family and friends. Lake Balaton. Club life. 

You've traveled to Europe and stayed there quite a lot, what are 3 things you love about Europe? 

Its diversity. The food. The rich cultural and architectural evolution that’s apparent in every city, town, village. 

You're quite a traveler, what is your most favorite country? 

I’m one of those weird people who don’t really have favorites. I cherish different values and properties in things. 

I love Hungary for its hospitality, great food, diverse and beautiful landscapes, and openhearted people. 

Spain for its Mediterranean temper and sandy beaches. 

Ecuador for the amazing adventures, friendly people, and breathtaking beaches and jungles. 

Crete for the weather, culture, and extremely diverse landscape for a small island. France for the amazing food and architecture. 

Germany for its perfect order, cleanliness, and lots of fun activities. Italy for its desserts, language, soccer and social life. 

America for the comfortable and accessible life, unmatchable opportunities, the mesmerizing quality of her large cities. 

South America, Africa, The Middle-East, and Europe: they all have a certain allure that rubbed off on me. I have never been to Asia though, but I’d love to visit sometimes. Going on a backpacking trip to Cambodia: I’d love that. 

Your inspiration for Arkana, the planet? 

Arkana is a place I imagined how Earth should be. Peaceful, clean, where nature and technology live in harmony. But to achieve that, Arkanians have no gene for violence; they don’t kill or hurt one another. Also there is easily accessible pure energy on Arkana, which makes the need for coal, fossil fuels, etc., unnecessary. With advantages like these Earth could be such a planet, too. 

What would you say to a reluctant reader, to convince them to read Fields of Elysium? 

I’m not your usual writer: I don’t write to please; I only write what is in my heart. So you will either love my book or hate it, there is no in-between. People that know me love me or can’t stand me. You just have to find out for yourself where you belong, the team of lovers or haters. 

If you were stranded on an island, which one of your Fields of Elysium characters would you take, and why? 

Let’s pretend that I’m not happily married, okay? So my answer would have to be Victor (again J). I bet I would not be bored or scared for a second with a guy like him around. Three words to describe Fields of Elysium. Romantic. Mesmerizing. Dangerous.   

Anything you can tell us about Fields of Elysium 2? 

The title is Valley of Darkness. I’ll publish it in two parts. Part 1 should be out in e-book in mid May. Molly’s life will take a devastating turn when tragedy strikes her family. She will go through a transformation from good girl to punk to Sentinel Apprentice. Her virtues and mental strength will be tested as she tries to cope with becoming a grownup so suddenly. There will be very heart-wrenching, romantic, and intense scenes in the book. Some likeable characters will show their true colors while villains will surprise the reader somewhere along the way. 

How do your older books differ from Fields of Elysium? 

My first series was written out of sudden enthusiasm and based on my true-life romance with my husband. It’s a contemporary adventure romance, where I try to show people that taking chances can bring great things. And also listening to your heart sometimes does you more good than listening to your head (or friends and family). I was brought up with great values, and my protagonist shares these values with me. 

Before I started to write Fields of Elysium I studied English literature very thoroughly. I wanted to deliver this amazing story that kept and still keeps me up at night as best as I could. The story is pure fantasy; however, I did write scenes that happened to me or to someone I know. I purposely dated the story back to 2004 because I didn’t want to write about Facebook and Twitter, about characters with their faces in smart phones, that cuss and talk slang. I love technology, but I balance its use with living my life to the fullest. I try to encourage teens to do more with their lives. My teen years were as good as it gets. I wish that for everybody. 

How do you combat writer's block? 

I have so many stories to tell that I haven’t gotten writer’s block yet. (I hope I didn’t jinx it now). However I’m moody, so I write about whatever I’m in the mood for. If I’m angry, I write a scene that calls for angry feelings. If I hear a great romantic song, then I listen to it over and over again and write a love scene. When I feel youthful and nostalgic I write a chapter of my new novel series (This Diary Belongs to Estee Morgan). Otherwise, I edit chapters of Valley of Darkness, work on interviews, guest posts, movie or book review. Following this system I’ve become very productive. I highly recommend it. 

3 things you MUST have whilst your writing? 

Quiet. Dark. My notes. 

Tracks that I can’t get enough of lately: 

Gotye: Somebody That I Used To Know 

Pink: Please Don’t Leave Me Pink: Fuckin’ Perfect Katy 

Perry: The One That Got Away 

Fun: We Are Young 

Ellie Goulding: Lights 

Justin Bieber: As Long As You Love Me

“Earth?” A shock wave rippled across Weston’s face. He spun on his heels to view the majestic landscape of our grand city. His hands flew to his head and cupped his temples. “I don’t think I’m allowed to do this. The Almighty sees everything.”

“The Almighty? What are you talking about?”

“We’re prohibited from coming back. We don’t belong here.” Backing up, he tripped over a tumbleweed and landed on his butt. I squatted beside him, offering him my arm.

“I don’t understand you,” I said desperately.

With his face troubled, he looked at me, seized my arm and started to shake it. “I can’t be here! My father will kill me if he finds out about this.”

“Why? What do you know about Earth? Have you been here before?”

“Going back to Earth and mixing with earthlings is forbidden. I can lose everything just by being here.”

“Going back to Earth? Are you guys from here originally? Oh, no …” I trailed off, chewing on a nail as an idea started to develop. “It can’t be. Or maybe it can … are you living in the afterlife? I read it somewhere. I think it was in a book about ancient Greeks or something. Yeah, that’s it. The Fields of Elysium. The heaven for heroes. … Are you dead?”