Effrosyni Moschoudi, aka Frostie, is not just a frequent visitor of my blog, but also one of the first friends I made since starting on this strange journey of becoming an author. Turns out she’s also a cousin of mine, as we’re both from Corfu. However, I had never interviewed her, so her 99c discount of Lady of the Pier in the US between May 26 and 31 was a great excuse for doing so.
Hi Frostie, great to have you here. What inspired you to write this book?
The Lady of the Pier was inspired by my own experiences as a young girl holidaying on Corfu with my grandparents. The heroine Sofia is very much like me, back in my early 20s. I was an overprotected girl who yearned for freedom. I had to put up with awkward family members too and, just like Sofia, wasn’t allowed to vent my annoyance. I guess I felt the need to record all that on paper, partly as psychotherapy, and partly in order to share with the world my love of Corfu and the bliss I felt back in the 80s during my summers there.
What other writing have you done? Anything else published?
My debut novel, The Necklace of Goddess Athena, is a fantasy set in Athens that combines Greek myths and time travel. Again, I recorded in this book my love for Athens, for Greece, its hospitable people and vast heritage. Whenever a reviewer points out they felt my love for these things in the book, or whenever they say they felt like they were in Athens due to the vivid descriptions, it really makes my day!
Any hobbies or interests that you enjoy in your spare time?
I love to exercise so I do aerobics and yoga as well as meditation to focus my mind and to relax. I have a huge affinity for the seaside and love to take strolls down at the marina or the beach in the little town where I live. Mind you, I don’t have the chance to do any of these things on most days, as being an indie author means I work eight to ten hours a day in front of a screen, but I do try to make the time. After a long day on the computer, I enjoy cooking to relax and ease my mind. My husband and I adore British TV series and Hollywood movies and on most nights we’ll play something on the DVD during our meal. Last, I enjoy reading of course but find time to read a bit at bedtime only. I think I have summed up a typical day now, actually!
Having met Andy, I suspect most of these series and movies will be comedies – he’s so much fun to be around! What are you working on at the moment? Tell us a little about your current project(s).
I am working on the sequels in The Lady of the Pier trilogy. The Flow (book 2) is finished and I am doing the last edits. I am nearly done writing The Storm (book 3), too. I plan to publish them both later this year.
Are there any sites or writing tools that you find useful and wish to recommend?
Yes, I can recommend Socialoomph, Crowdfire and Roundteam as indispensable tools for Twitter. I am committed to raising my follower count monthly and these three tools work wonders for me. The first one autotweets 24/7 so I have a constant presence on Twitter even when I sleep. The second one I use to unfollow en masse the people who unfollow me and the third one retweets automatically and gets me new followers. As far as writing tools go, my set up is quite basic. No fancy software like Scrivener for me. I like to keep things simple. I use Google when I need a thesaurus or a dictionary definition. I don’t trust Word’s proofing tools, especially the spell checker. I mean, it never likes “it’s” and prompts me to change it to “its” every time – how stupid is that?
Yes, that does sound pretty silly. Tell us about your website/blog. What will readers find there?
In my website I list my published works but also my upcoming titles. This way anyone interested in my writing will always know what to expect next from me. Visitors can browse book covers, blurbs, book trailers and are also welcome to download free excerpts. Also, there’s a blog where I mainly post author interviews and book reviews. I encourage visitors interested in my work to sign up to the newsletter as to be informed of my future launches and promos. I don’t spam people and will only email them in the above two cases.
As I am subscribed to your newsletter, I have first-hand experience of that. What are the things in your life that you’re most grateful for?
For me, gratitude is a way of life and I practice it daily. It comes naturally to me by now. I have come to feel grateful even towards the bills in the post, as they serve to remind me of the commodities I enjoy in my home every day. But if I were to name the big ones, then I’m mostly grateful for my devoted and supportive husband, Andy. Also, for my family and very few special friends who helped me when I needed a hand. Last but not least, for my beloved grandparents and my three-month summer holidays in Corfu when I was young.
How would you like to be remembered?
Steve Jobs once said, “I want to put a dent in the universe.”
Sounds to me like a great way to be remembered, so I’ll go with that!
The unusual
Men are from Mars, women are from Venus. Where are you from?
Planet Forks, of course, or wherever the Cullen clan goes!
Oh, I didn’t realize you were such a fan! Is it true you’ve been abducted by aliens?
What makes you think you’re talking to the real me?
I knew it! Name your claim to fame.
Once, I was walking down Panepistimiou Ave in Athens minding my own business, when this female reporter thrust a mike in front of my face, then this camera guy started filming. Before I knew it, I was on the eight o’ clock news that night expressing my opinion about the statues in front of the University building being covered during a demonstration. I can’t remember what I said but somehow I came across quite good. Been dreaming of a career on TV ever since (just joking!)
Lol – so you had fame thrust upon you! What is the weirdest thing that’s happened to you?
A million things that are weird have happened to me! It’s because I believe in angels. How long do you have? Ok, here’s one: Once, I was running through the streets of London to catch a bus from Victoria Station after watching a theatre show on the West End (The Phantom of the Opera, actually). Anyway, it was the last bus of the day and had I missed it, I’d have been stranded in the city all night as my home was in a rural area very far away at the time. Anyway, it was winter and there was ice on the streets. As I ran, I asked my angels to help me catch the bus. All of a sudden, I slipped on the ice. What I am describing next happened in a split second but I remember it as if it happened in slow motion: My feet had left the ground. I was hovering in mid-air, I had lost my balance and was tilted too much to the right to ever regain it. I knew I was in trouble and braced myself for the nasty fall. But instead, all of a sudden, I was upright again and still running. I never worked that one out!
Wow! Plus, The Phantom of the Opera – I love that musical (have watched it twice, in fact). Where in the universe would you live if you could travel anywhere?
A Greek island, got to be! Corfu or Santorini, I think, preferably with a panoramic sea view!
Ah, both fine choices. Thank you so much for being here with me, and best of luck with the discount promo!
Who is Frostie?
Effrosyni and Nerina
Effrosyni Moschoudi was born and raised in Athens, Greece. As a child, she often sat alone in her granny’s garden scribbling rhymes about flowers, butterflies and ants. She’s passionate about books and movies and simply couldn’t live without them. She lives in a quaint seaside town near Athens with her husband Andy and a naughty cat called Felix.
Her debut novel, The Necklace of Goddess Athena, is a #1 Amazon bestseller in Greek & Roman literature. The first part of her romance trilogy, The Lady of the Pier – The Ebb, is an ABNA Quarter-Finalist.
- Purchase The Necklace of Goddess Athena on Amazon (US)
- Purchase The Necklace of Goddess Athena on Amazon (UK)
- Purchase The Ebb on Amazon (US) – only 99c for a few days!
- Purchase The Ebb on Amazon (UK)
Great interview! I have spotted many interesting tweets from Frossi, but I had never actually read any of her books. But, now I definetely do it! Nice job Nicholas!
Glad you enjoyed the interview 🙂
Frostie paints quite the vivid image of Greece – much like your own blog, with its stunning pictures!
Fabulous interview Eff an Nicholas. Wouldn’t we all love to put a dent in the universe? 🙂
Oh, absolutely! 😀
It was nice to get to know Fros a little more. I too have read the Necklace of Goddess Athena and The Lady of the Pier. Congrats!
Many thanks for visiting, Elle! 🙂
Thank you for your kind comments, Elle 🙂
Enjoyed reading this interview, Nicholas, and finding out more about you, Fros. If you were abducted by aliens, I’m jealous. I always talk to them just in case they’re listening, and invite them down for a drink, but none have ever taken up the offer. 🙁
It’s a shame. Personally, I leave them kebabs at the front porch. It seems to attract them. One night I heard a noise and opened the door, and there they were, a bunch of greys having pita bread souvlakis, tzatziki smeared all over their faces, singing Hatzidakis. Such noisy creatures, I had to tell them to behave, LOL 😉 Thank you for your visit, sweetie 🙂
Are you sure it wasn’t neighbors who haven’t been getting much sun lately?
I doubt it, Ray. My neighbors are all Albanian emigrants and they seem to love hanging out in the street all together all day, absorbing the sunshine. Can’t have been them. Being an indie author, I am the only one stuck indoors all day, which probably explains why the greys wound up in MY porch – the others are much too sun-kissed for their liking! MAKIA 😉
Ah, so that’s what I’m doing wrong. Thanks for the tip and I’m off to make some kebabs. 😀
Lol – I guess you only need to start worrying when they do 😀
Oh, but it would be so fun. I have never thought they’d be anything but friendly in real life.
As long as they don’t express the desire to dissect me like a lab rat, they’re more than welcome, LOL
Here we go again. Envy rules every time I read an interview with Frossie. Just send me a rental list. Corfu sounds wonderful, but NOT Santorini. I fear the instant I might set foot on the island, the volcano will erupt and send half the island will go sliding into the sea.
Jackie Weger
No Perfect Secret
Lol – you can’t be too careful 😀
Thanks and welcome 🙂
LOL, thank you for your fun comment, Jackie. No worries, you can come to Corfu without fear. Not a volcanic stone on the island 😀
Excellent interview! Fun and informative. I’ve enjoyed (read and five-starred) both The Nevklace of Goddess Athena and The Lady of the Pier, and I highly recommend them.
Many thanks for taking the time to comment and put in a good word, Maria. I’ll send the money in the post, shall I? 😉
Oh my! Very generous of you since in my comment The Necklace has a typo! 🙂 Sorry about that. Always rushing…
This was a fantastic interview. I especially enjoyed reading the reply to “What is the weirdest thing that’s happened to you?” But then I, too, am a believer.
Lol – me too! 🙂
Hey, a kindred spirit! Thank you for commenting on that. Nice to hear at least one person didn’t think I am weird 😉
A real television star! LOL Great interview, both of you.
Lol – thanks! 🙂
LOL! Ah, what can you do, I haven’t been discovered yet 🙂 Thank you, Sue 😉
Since Frossie is one of my favorite people–not to mention, an awesome author–I always enjoy learning more about her. We are proud to claim her as a member of eNovel Authors at Work.
Thanks, Nicholas, for featuring Ms. Moschoudi on your blog. Frossie, thanks for all your support and the info on Roundteam. Best wishes for your continued success!
A pleasure! Thanks and welcome 🙂
Linda, as always, a total sweetie 🙂 Thank you so much for the kind words – you made me blush, LOL
Such a nice interview, Effrosyni! And what a lot of places you’ve been and experiences. I really enjoyed reading about them. I love time travel books and will have to be sure to pick up your book, The Necklace of the Goddess Athena. Thought I saw a link here somewhere . . .
If you can’t find it, it’s on https://www.amazon.com/Necklace-Goddess-Athena-Effrosyni-Moschoudi-ebook/dp/B00I5GXHCO/ 🙂
Thank you for your visit, Abby, and for your interest in my work 🙂
Such a nice interview!! I’ve always wanted to go to Greece and now more than ever! Thank you!
Thanks and welcome! 🙂
Come and visit anytime, Sarah, would love to meet you 🙂 Thank you for stopping by 🙂
Great interview, Nicholas. Your questions left us with a perfect profile of an indie writer’s life. Keep writing, Fros, The universe could do with a new dent!
So glad you enjoyed the interview 🙂
What a lovely comment, thank you dear Pete 🙂
Odd thing to focus on, but I’m curious about that Roundteam thing. I see it all over the place on Twitter, especially when I’m trying to retweet someone. Is it anything like Hootsuite where you schedule things or is it more independent of your actions than that?
I’ll be happy to enlighten you, Charles. No, Roundteam is not like Hootsuite. You cannot issue tweets from Roundteam. This service is only for automatic retweets. Basically, you tell it which accounts and/or hashtags you want it to retweet for you, you tell it how many retweets an hour you want it to do and Bob’s your uncle, as they say. It’s easy to set up and it wins you a lot of new followers. I recommend it highly. You can even add filters, to exclude profanity, erotica, or specific accounts or hashtags. Anything you do not wish to see yourself associated with.
I didn’t know that, thanks!
Interesting. I’ve been doing it on my own all this time, so I might take a look at it. Thanks.
What a nice way to start my day. Wonderful interview, Fros and Nicholas! Isn’t everyone a cousin to one degree or another? Loved the little vignettes within the interview.
I’m starting to suspect we are all related, David. Do you remember Asterix and the Olympics? It’s a bit like that… 😀
Thank you for your visit, David! Have a great day, my friend 🙂
Thanks for this introduction to the interesting Effrosyni Moschoudi and her books. Fabulous interview. 🙂
Thank you so much for your kind words 🙂
So glad you liked it 🙂
Lovely interview, Fros and Nicholas! One day, I’m going to get to Greece. Been wanting to see it since my uncle gave me a Greek doll as a child, then, you know, Mama Mia… 🙂
Ah, Mamma Mia . . . (SIGH). Makes me want to move to Greece too, then I remember I’m already in it, but alas, not on an island. Maybe one day, LOL. Thank you for your visit, Julie 🙂
Lol – we went to the place where they shot the opening scene last summer Damouhari in Pelion). Gorgeous place! If you visit us, we need to send you there 🙂
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Nicholas. I am intrigued how you find out Frostie was your cousin. Sounds like a good story. I have reblogged this very interesting post, particularly I was interested learning about the websites she gives regarding Twitter.
It’s really funny! We met through Twitter, and started talking. We then realized we were both from Corfu. One question led to another, and we found out we were cousins, albeit with several degrees of separation. Still, it counts, right? 😀
Thank you for your comment, Kathy! Nicholas’s Corfiot family and mine have been related for generations in two different ways – one is through marriage between his aunt and my uncle, and also when his great-grandfather christened my granddad. And yes, as Nicholas said, of all places, we met on Twitter. It’s a strange world!
Thanks for taking us ‘behind the scenes’ of Effrosyni’s life and past Nicholas. A most enjoyable interview, as always.
Frostie, if you like British comedy, search out ‘Black Books’, ‘W1A’, and ‘Toast Of London’, all quite different.
Best wishes from England. Pete.
I’ve only watched Black Books, which I loved. Also, Father Ted. I have to look for the other two – thanks for the recommendation, Pete! 🙂
Thanks Pete! I’m writing this down!! Very kind of you, I can’t ever have enough of British comedy 🙂
Great interview. I always want to visit Greece when I hear you talking about it. One day. Is it only in US The Ebb is on reduced price?
Yes, Mary, only in the US. It seems Amazon doesn’t allow it in other countries at the same time… grunt! Thank you for your nice comment, sweetie 🙂
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Start your day with a lot of sunshine from two talented writers. Nicholas Rossis interviews author Effrosyni Moschoudi and I would not mind popping over to this idyllic spot either..
Thank you for spreading the word, Sally, and for your kind comments 🙂
Your books are wonderful, Frossi! Such gorgeous pictures…
Thank you for your visit and the kind words, Mimi 🙂
Wow, what a terrific presentation! Thank you so much, Nicholas, for having me on your awesome blog and for showcasing my work so beautifully. Yes, Andy and I prefer British comedies more than anything else. We recently discovered ‘Mrs Brown’s Boys’ by the way. We laughed like drains. One of the best ever – highly recommended! I am envious you watched The Phantom of the Opera twice. I adore the version with Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman and although the timing could never have worked for me to watch it live, I have it on CD and smooth my soul silly with it from time to time 🙂 Now, my dream is to go back to London and watch the sequel, “Love Never Does”. One can dream, I suppose, even in the times of crisis 🙂
Thanks for the ‘Mrs Brown’s Boys’ tip! As always, it’s been a pleasure having you visit here. My blog is always open for you 🙂
Frostie’s a wonderful writer and persistent friend. Once she’s on your side, she will promote you, retweet your tweets and generally let you know how much she appreciates everything about you. Ευχαριστώ, Nicholas, for introducing this fine woman to the rest of the world.
Makia, Fros’!
Makia, agape mou 🙂 Thank you so much for the kind words, Ray 🙂
I couldn’t agree more! Thank for reading and commenting, Raymond 🙂