The SparkNotes Version:

Penned Con 2016

I’m a young adult author, avid reader, and a habitual chatterbox.

Since my first publication in 2007, my work has appeared in numerous poetry collections and anthologies, and both of my YA series are now available. If you love paranormal romance, Minutes Before Sunset, book 1 in The Timely Death Trilogy, is free. If you’re looking for a dark fantasy, you should check out my Bad Bloods series. Book 1, November Rain, is also free. I am a SCBWI member in the KS/MO region.

Writing is what I do, and I love it more and more every day.

As a novelist, poet, and blogger, I spend my free time writing and sharing ideas with my black cat, Bogart, named after my favorite actor, Humphrey Bogart. Between writing and befriending cats, I graduated from the University of Kansas with a bachelor’s degree in English with an emphasis on creative writing, and I travel whenever the road calls.

I am also an editor and social media marketer, and you can read more about my services by clicking the link. You can also reach me at shannonathompson@aol.com. I’ll be drinking coffee when I read your message.

Talk to you soon!

The Assigned-Reading Version:

I’m Shannon A. Thompson, and I’ve been writing since I read every novel my local bookstore had to offer me. Since I no longer had much to read, my mother (who was also an avid reader) suggested I should write what I wanted to read. She also taught me to write as a coping mechanism. As a child, I suffered terribly from night terrors and nightmares, which often left me confused and unable to differentiate reality from fiction. With her direction, I learned how to turn my night terrors into the stories readers enjoy today. Sadly enough, my mother passed away in 2003, but her loving memory lives within my passion for reading and writing. With that passion, my dream is to create wonderful worlds, inspiring characters, blissful love, and virtues for readers to complement their everyday lives with. To be honest, I live within my daydreams and nightmares; through that, I have learned to create, and I never cease from doing so. That being said, I did give up once upon a time.

My mother and I on Christmas, 1999

After my first novel was published in 2007, I took it off the market to go to college. A few years later, I followed a suggestion and started a blog for fun. One month later, in October of 2012, my college roommate, Kristine Andersen, passed away, and I was featured in a poetry collection dedicated to her memory. This moment has been one of the most emotional experiences I’ve had in the publishing industry, as I’ve been able to honor my loved ones through my writing. Because of that moment, my writer’s heart decided to return, and I was published again seven months later. Minutes Before Sunset is also dedicated to Kristine.

I haven’t stopped writing or publishing since, which means I drink entirely too much coffee. I also love my three cats a little too much (but, really, who doesn’t love their pet?), and my favorite activity (other than writing and reading, of course) is to talk, talk, talk, talk, talk. I love hearing about strangers’ lives, and I adore submerging myself in everything this world has to offer us—culture, language, people, etc. I find that reality really can be stranger than fiction, and there’s nothing like living life with an open mind, willing to learn and meet new people whenever possible. I’ve lived in six states and moved over fifteen times, and I enjoy using as inspiration for writing. But moving around has made it impossible for me to sit still. I travel whenever I can, and I always look forward to my next adventure.

Between adventures, I sleep a lot (almost as much as my cat!), and I listen to Elvis Presley on a regular basis. I prefer manuals over automatics, and I sing while I drive…with the windows down…at stoplights. And I don’t sing well.

My favorite authors include Meg Cabot, Cassandra Clare, Ally Carter, Marissa Meyer, Lauren Oliver, Marie Rutkoski, Billy Collins, and Edgar Allan Poe.

I would name my favorite novel, but—let’s be honest—that’s impossible.

Bad Bloods!

Bad Bloods: November Rain (#1) FREE

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Smashwords, Goodreads

Bad Bloods: November Snow (#2)

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Smashwords, Goodreads

Bad Bloods: July Thunder (#3)

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Smashwords, Goodreads

Bad Bloods: July Lightning (#4)

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Kobo, Smashwords, Goodreads

The Timely Death Trilogy!

Minutes Before Sunset (#1) FREE 

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Smashwords, Kobo, Goodreads

Seconds Before Sunrise (#2)

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Smashwords, Kobo, Goodreads

Death Before Daylight (#3)

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Smashwords, Kobo, Goodreads

~SAT