Today’s author interview is with the talented Val Tobin, author of The Experiencers, The Valiant Chronicles, and Gillian’s Island. Please welcome Val Tobin to XterraWeb’s Author Interview Series. We hope you enjoy this interview as much as we did. Before we get started, we would like to thank Val for taking the time to give us this interview. Val’s books are available in ebook and paperback versions on Amazon and Smashwords.

Amor Libris: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Val Tobin: I have a diploma in computer information systems and ten years of industry experience doing software and web development. That satisfied the left brain part of me. However, I’ve always had a fascination for the paranormal, philosophical, theological, and spiritual.

In October of 2004, I became a certified Reiki Master/Teacher. I went on to obtain a Bachelor of Science in Parapsychic Science from The American Institute of Holistic Theology in 2007 and then a Master’s in Parapsychology in 2016. During that time, I also went to Kona, Hawaii to study under Doreen Virtue and completed both the Angel Therapy Practitioner ® training and Advanced ATP ® training.

I’ve participated in paranormal investigations in the US and Canada.

I draw on all of that in my writing.

Throughout my life, I wrote whenever I could, but I only published non-fiction articles. I wrote for Community MX and other online publications. I have a story published in Angel Words, a Hay House book by Doreen Virtue and Grant Virtue.

My dream was always to write a novel, and in 2012, circumstances allowed me to write The Experiencers. Since then, I’ve been publishing one or two novels a year.

Amor Libris: What is your favorite motivational phrase, and why?

Val Tobin: “And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

That quote resonates with me because creative people live in their own worlds, as I always have. When I was a child, I was accused of daydreaming, being over-sensitive, and being odd. Pursuing education in a field that explores the metaphysical reinforces that reputation.

I once woke up in the early morning to find a man standing next to my bed. At first, I was terrified that someone had broken into the house. When I realized I could see through him, I relaxed. It was only a spirit. Many would believe I was dreaming or hallucinating, but that’s just another version of hearing what others might not—in this case, it was seeing what others might not.

Amor Libris: What do you like to do when you are not writing?

Val Tobin: Read. I read like a fiend.

Amor Libris: What books and/or authors have influenced you the most?

Val Tobin: Authors: Margaret Atwood, Nora Roberts, Michael Connelly, Lee Child, Marion Zimmer Bradley, George R. R. Martin, Ayn Rand, Stephen King. There are too many to list them all.

Books: The Lord of the Rings, Watership Down, Duncton Wood, The Chronicles of Narnia, Charlotte’s Web, Gone with the Wind, A Handmaid’s Tale, Rebecca, Atlas Shrugged, A Wrinkle in Time, Anne of Green Gables. Again, there are too many to list them all.

I’ve listed some children’s novels, because they influenced my evolution as a person and as a writer.