Rosemarie E. Bishop

 

Rosemarie E. Bishop was born and raised in Lackawanna, NY, just outside of Buffalo, and now lives in New England with her husband, Christopher, and a "domestic zoo" of various pets which tend to change from time to time. Rosemarie is a Reiki Master/Teacher, a classical musician, a small, promotional entrepreneur, and an avid student of religion, which she has studied for the past ten years. She occasionally gives talks about her books and how they tie in to her life's religious journey, and works as a spiritual counselor when asked. Although she currently has four books in print, she continues to write as a means of teaching by using her "fiction with a message" philosophy. Rosemarie's books include Search For A Soul, A Matter Of Conscience, Spiritual Vengeance and NOAH'S GARDEN. Visit Rosemarie online at www.rosemariebishop.com/

 

With light-hearted moments in all the right places, enough violence to satisfy people who like that kind of thing, well fleshed out characters, and a strong but not preachy message, I have no option but to make this the book of the month -Lesley Meade

- editor of Booknet.org, United Kingdom

 

I look forward to reading the further adventures of these characters with a great deal of anticipation." - Jean Munro (Benedira) - co-founder of Sanguinus Curae

 

Pageonelit.com: Where did you grow up and was reading and writing a part of your life? Who were your earliest influences and why?

Rosemarie E. Bishop: I grew up in Lackawanna, NY, a city right next to Buffalo, NY on the southern end. I have always been an avid reader, spending most of my evenings either buried in a book or holed up in my room writing poems and updating my journal. I started reading as soon as I was taught and I still haven't stopped yet. My mother has been my largest influence in all the creative things I did. She is a retired Educational Administrator from the Lackawanna School District, but she loves language and shared that love with me as I grew up. Being an avid reader herself, she always knew of interesting authors for me to read. One of my all time favorites was Taylor Caldwell, a woman from Buffalo, NY, though I didn't know it until after I'd already become a fan. I read tons of Stephen King during my teenage years because I've always loved supernatural and spiritual avenues of all kinds, whether it be books, movies, religious venues; all things like that.

 

Pageonelit.com: Tell us about your Vampire series which includes Search For A Soul, A Matter Of Conscience and Spiritual Vengeance. What makes your Vampire characters/stories different from others?

Rosemarie E. Bishop: With the Moral Vampire Series I chose a main character, the worst type of being I could envision and used him to teach others how true it is that it doesn't matter how bad you've been or what you've done, all the kind and right things in life are still there for you. That's why it's called the Moral Vampire Series. Other vampire books and series deal with the angst in the mere existence of living such an existence, but in this series I have brought together not only vampires and humans, but Catholic priests, angels, and a witch. And I've had good vamps and bad vamps who fought to destroy each other and the people around them. All the books in this series are filled with ideas about growth and spiritual development for the reader to lock into as they read through a fictional story. The reactions have been more than I could hope for.

 

Pageonelit.com: What is it about the Vampire character that has been so appealing to readers and writers?

Rosemarie E. Bishop: The unknown; the mystery; the dark side we all share and wrestle with in our own existences.


Pageonelit.com: Tell us about NOAH'S GARDEN -

Rosemarie E. Bishop:"Noah's Garden" does the same thing as the Moral Vampire Series, but on a level of fantasy to appeal to children and young adults while getting the same message across. In this case, the main character is a dog who loves to do all the bad things a dog does, like run away, tear up the neighbor's garbage, trapse through the swamps. This story involves animals, faeries, mythical creatures, and new terrors. Throughout the story the reader is given lessons in life in a normal, fictional way that will make them think, but not feel they're being preached to I've had ten year olds who were doing book reports on it ask me to go to school with them the day their report is due. And I've had adults read it and love it, then thank me for writing it.

 

Pageonelit.com: Why do you write?

Rosemarie E. Bishop: That's a loaded question? Why do I breathe? Why do I meditate? Why do I walk through the woods or sit in the middle of a lake in a boat where no one can find me? Writing is healthy. I haven't met an author who would ever say different. It helps release tensions and pent up emotions, pent up frustrations. I write this "fiction with a message" because I am constantly discussing these same issues about religious and cultural differences and spiritual issues with people everywhere I go. At least in a book format, those messages will reach more people that I may never meet. I am a Reiki Master/Teacher/Healer, so I am constantly discussing these subjects with my students and patients because it is so important to keep our souls settled. That's the foundation of the healing process. Writing, for me, is one of the ways I keep my soul settled.

 

Pageonelit.com: What has been your feedback from readers?What do they say to you about their interpretations of your books? What do they like about the book?

Rosemarie E. Bishop: The feedback has always been of gratitude for the messages they picked out while reading my books. I haven't run across anyone at this point who didn't get the gist of what I was doing in each book. I've felt very grateful myself to know that these books are accomplishing what I set out to have them do. What do they like about the book? In the Moral Vampire Series, my readers have been surprised to learn that they are not preachy as they might have expected. They like the scenery, discriptions, things I do to pull them in and hold them captive. Readers love that feeling. In "Noah's Garden", the folks who read it are always concerned about Tolebit, the little sprite, for a very good reason. It's quite endearing, actually.

 

Pageonelit.com: Are you working on a follow up? Or something totally different?

Rosemarie E. Bishop: I am currently working on an entirely new book entitled "Mrs. Pope" which is about a woman who is many things. She is a white witch, or wiccan, a Reiki Healer, born American but lives on an island in Canada, is friends with some of the members of the Ojibway First Nation, not so friendly with others, and she is very intuitive. As all of my other books do, this story combines beliefs and cultures, including faeries and angels, as usual.


Pageonelit.com: What was the last book you read?

Rosemarie E. Bishop: I am currently reading a book called "My Road to the Sundance" by Manny Twofeathers. Before that, I finished reading the first three books of the Left Behind Series. I'm always looking for books about different cultures, ideals, or beliefs.

 

Pageonelit.com: Do you have any hobbies? What are they? (Your website mentions you are an avid activists in animal rights).

Rosemarie E. Bishop: Gardening, playing piano, creating promotional materials to help other authors. I also do Faery Card Readings when I'm asked because people are always looking for supernatural answers to their daily life issues. And I work part time as the Assistant Animal Control Officer in the town where I live.

Animals in my life are another method of keeping my sanity in tact. My husband and I currently house a rabbit, two cats, two Samoyed, and, my husband's favorite, a small Shih Tsu/Poodle Mix that he just adores. She is his fishing buddy, his shopping pal, his drive-around-town-and-visit-people companion. Animals in our lives bring a new source of love that it would be difficult to find elsewhere. We have adopted humpback whales off the coast of Cape Cod and wolves in Ipswich, MA.because of our fascination with wildlife. My personal concern for all animals, domestic and wild alike, is what led me to accept the part-time position of Assistant Animal Control Officer. Animals embody life energy just like everything else does, just like we do. They have feelings. They experience emotions. They get sick. And they bring such joy and companionship into the lives of their keepers, that it is a terrible injustice to think of them as something we can abuse, neglect, ignore, or mistreat the way so many people do, not only to the animals but to each other. Animals teach us so much from their actions and activities. Study the life of a pack of wolves and see how much human beings still have to learn about interacting with each other.