Hey everyone! I’m really excited to have Kathy Cunningham, author of Finding Erin Campbell (May 25th 2015), here for an interview. First, here’s more about the book:

Erin Campbell is lucky – she’s popular, she’s been accepted at Berkeley, she’s got the perfect boyfriend, a great car, parents with plenty of money, and a future that’s going to be even better than her dreams. Lucky, right?

But then one Tuesday afternoon, Erin’s luck runs out. She’s in her car, driving on a deserted country road, and she reads a text from her boyfriend. It’s only a few words, no big deal. What could happen in ten seconds, anyway? But she doesn’t see the boy on the blue bicycle. Not until it’s too late. Not until he’s lying in the road, broken and bleeding, and she’s standing there staring down at him, her cell phone in her hand.

Things get worse when another girl – Macy Wilkes, an outsider at Erin’s school – is charged with the hit-and-run. Macy is black, she doesn’t live in Erin’s upscale neighborhood, and it would be so easy for Erin to just let Macy take the rap. Or would it?

This is a novel about what it means to do the right thing in a world that isn’t always fair. Confessing could cost Erin everything – college, her boyfriend, her parents’ respect . . . even her freedom. But not confessing could cost her even more.

Sometimes the world can fall apart in the time it takes to read a text message. Erin Campbell lost herself on a Tuesday afternoon; finding herself again will mean looking at who she really is. Warts and all. And there’s nothing harder than that.

Goodreads | Amazon

And now here’s the interview. Enjoy!

Question: Your debut novel, Finding Erin Campbell, has been out for over three months. When you began the process of self-publishing, did you ever think you’d get to this point? How does it feel?
Answer: It actually took me quite a while to come around to the idea of self-publishing. It used to be called “vanity publishing,” and there was a stigma attached to it. Things have changed over the last few years; the Internet has made it easier (and much less expensive) for authors to get their work out there. I’ve read a lot of self-published books, and some of them have been fabulous. That’s what convinced me. I realized that if I wanted this to happen, I was going to have to do it on my own.

And it was scary! It really was! While I love the idea that one of my books is actually for sale on Amazon (wow, that’s a cool feeling!), it’s hard facing the fact that writing a book and selling it are two very different things.

Question: What has the process/journey been like? What was the hardest part? The easiest part?
Answer: The easiest part of this process for me has always been the writing. I love writing – I have stories in my head all the time. And getting them down on paper (or on the computer screen!) has always been great fun.

The hardest part is definitely marketing. The whole “selling” thing is totally alien to me. I don’t do twitter or Instagram, and while I do have a Facebook page, I don’t have anywhere near the number of “friends” you need to start a marketing campaign. It takes a ton of self-promotion to get your book into the hands of readers. And for someone like me, with little marketing background and no fondness for social media, it’s very, very hard.

Question: Finding Erin Campbell discusses an important and timely topic. What inspired you to write this story?
Answer: The accident part of the story (Erin hitting the boy on the bike) was probably inspired by a movie I saw back in 1999 called “Hit and Run” (about a wealthy middle-aged woman who accidentally runs over a child during a rain storm and flees the scene). But what happens to Erin (including her texting, her collaboration with her friend Annie, and the legal consequences) is all my invention. As for the racial justice aspect of the story (and what happens when Macy, a black girl from Erin’s school, is charged with the hit and run), that came from my years of teaching black and white teens at a Maryland high school. Prince George’s County is one of the few areas in the country where the majority of people – including the majority of wealthy, successful people – are black. Many of my students experienced a rude awakening when they went off to college and we talked about that. The world we live in isn’t fair. And it won’t ever be until we can talk about these things openly.

Question: What do you hope readers will gain/learn from reading your book?
Answer: The novel is really about personal responsibility. The most important thing for Erin is coming to terms with herself and what she can and can’t live with. She regrets the texting, yes, but I think she regrets leaving the scene of the accident and letting someone else take the blame even more. And that’s what I want my readers to think about. It’s one thing to say, “I’ll never text while driving,” but that isn’t really what Erin learns in the novel (she knew that all along). What she learns is more about taking responsibility, and about being courageous enough to tell the truth, even if it might cost her everything. She learns that she and Macy have more in common than she thought, and that people are people, no matter what color their skin is (or how much money their parents make). And she learns that life isn’t fair – that’s something I want my readers to think about, too.

Question: Did you do a lot of research for this story? What was the most interesting/disturbing thing you learned?
Answer: The research I did was mainly about the legal aspects of the story – what exactly is the charge for killing someone accidentally in a car accident and then running away? What are the potential penalties? I read a lot about plea bargains and how they work, and about the different levels of murder and manslaughter. I read about bail and what it means to use a bail bondsman. These aren’t things I’ve ever had to deal with myself, and I wanted the story to be as true-to-life as possible.

Probably the most disturbing thing I discovered was how different the sentences are in this country for people of color, as opposed to whites. There are assumptions made about white people – especially affluent white people – that are not made about black people. And that means it’s harder for a black person to get fair treatment in many parts of this country.

Question: You have four books listed as “coming soon” on your website. Which book are you planning to publish next? Which one are you most excited for readers to enjoy?
Answer: That’s a hard question! The other four books I’ve written are very different from Finding Erin Campbell, and from each other. Beautiful Lies is a mystery set in rural Pennsylvania, Now is post-apocalyptic, Mirror Vision has an element of science fiction, and Peanut Butter Effect is Middle Grade fantasy. Right now, I’m focusing on Beautiful Lies, mainly because it is the closest in style and content to Erin. But I have to admit I’m excited about all of them! I’m looking at getting the next book up on Amazon sometime this fall, so I’ll be making the decision very soon.

Question: Craziest thing you’ve had to Google for a work in progress?
Answer: I don’t know if it’s crazy, but I had to Google a bunch of stuff about horses for Beautiful Lies – I needed to know how long horses live, and what towns in Pennsylvania had horse ranches. I’ve also used Google maps for several of my books, since I had to figure out how characters could get from one place to another. I’ve also Googled bus fares and train schedules, parking options in Brooklyn, NY, and whether or not a can of tuna would be edible after ten years!

Question: What advice do you have for other writers who hope to self-publish?
Answer: Here’s my best advice: If you’ve written a book, publish it! These days, writers really are in control of their own work. That means you don’t have to wait for someone else to tell you your book is good. You know if it’s good, and if it is, it deserves to be read! So do it! Just make sure your manuscript is as close to perfect as it can be before you put it up for sale (proofread it over and over again, get editorial advice, and spend the time to make the formatting right, even if it drives you crazy!). The point is to make your book look as good as the books on the shelves at Barnes & Noble. But the most important thing is to go ahead and put yourself out there. It hasn’t been easy for me – it’s been downright scary! – but I’m glad I did it. Even if my book never sells more than a few dozen copies, I’m still glad. Because it’s something I can be proud of.

And now for the giveaway! Four winners will receive digital copies (.mobi files) of Finding Erin Campbell! To enter, leave a blog comment on this post, telling me what you’d do if you were in Erin’s shoes. Also, leave some love for Kathy! Winners will be randomly selected on September 25th, 2015 at 11pm EST. Good luck!

About the Author:

My name is Kathy Cunningham. I’ve been a lot of things in my life — paralegal, newspaper reporter, religious educator, teacher, wife, mother. And I’ve been writing forever. According to my mother, I started writing when I was two years old; I would dictate stories to her, and she would write them down on my father’s yellow legal pads. She saved those stories. I still have a few of them. And they are pretty damned exciting — one is about a duckling named “Yellowy” who talks his mother into getting a merry-go-round for their backyard (good stuff, those stories from my youth!).

Now, I’m publishing my own novels. It’s very scary, this self-publishing thing. It means putting yourself out there without a net. It means saying to the world, “I think this book I’ve written is good enough to expect people to pay money to read it.” And after trying for three years to find an agent willing to agree with me — and failing — I feel very much on my own. You’ll find info about my books — including where to buy them — on the My Books page.

I’m also an Amazon VINE reviewer — you can read my reviews HERE. A lot of them are book reviews, including some for other self-published writers who have contacted me about reading and reviewing their books. It was actually that experience — reading other writers’ self-published work — that gave me the courage to do this myself. I owe them a lot.

I’m excited about what this website will bring to my life. I’m not a techie (as I’m sure is abundantly obvious!), but so far it’s been fun putting this together. I hope you’ll read my blog, post comments, and check out the books I’ll be releasing over the next few weeks and months. And who knows where things will go from here?

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Hey everyone! I’m really excited to have Shelley Pearsall, author of The Seventh Most Important Thing (September 8th 2015, Knopf Books for Young Readers), here for an interview. First, here’s more about the book:

It was a bitterly cold day when Arthur T. Owens grabbed a brick and hurled it at the trash picker. Arthur had his reasons, and the brick hit the Junk Man in the arm, not the head. But none of that matters to the judge—he is ready to send Arthur to juvie for the foreseeable future. Amazingly, it’s the Junk Man himself who offers an alternative: 120 hours of community service . . . working for him.

Arthur is given a rickety shopping cart and a list of the Seven Most Important Things: glass bottles, foil, cardboard, pieces of wood, lightbulbs, coffee cans, and mirrors. He can’t believe it—is he really supposed to rummage through people’s trash? But it isn’t long before Arthur realizes there’s more to the Junk Man than meets the eye, and the “trash” he’s collecting is being transformed into something more precious than anyone could imagine. . . .

Inspired by the work of American folk artist James Hampton.

Goodreads | Amazon | Kobo

And now here’s the interview! Enjoy!

Question: Congratulations! Your novel, The Seventh Most Important Thing, will be out in the world soon! Have the last few months been crazy with last-minute prep, or is this the “calm before the storm” for you?
Answer: It is always a long wait for a new book to be published. To keep from going completely crazy, I usually start on another book project, so I’m about a hundred pages into writing a new novel right now.

Question: The Seventh Most Important Thing deals with the loss of a parent and what it means for those left behind, especially for a young child. It also deals with the idea that good things can come from dark, sad situations. What inspired you to write about these things? What do you hope your readers will take away from it?
Answer: The inspiration for this novel came from several different places—a work of art that I saw back in college, a middle school student I met at a writing workshop who was having a hard time dealing with grief, and some of my own experiences with loss. I hope readers take away the importance of looking beneath the surface—don’t judge someone before you know his or her story, in other words. I also hope they see the power of art to help us understand and express our feelings.

Question: Can you explain the significance of the title and cover (which I love!) without spoilers? Maybe just a hint?
Answer: Arthur Owens, the main character in the story, must collect seven “important things” to fulfill his sentence for committing a crime, so the title was inspired by that idea. The jacket illustrates at least two of those seven things…but that’s all I can tell you!

Question: Craziest thing you’ve had to Google for a WIP?
Answer: Flip-flops, the word “dude,” TV dinners, baseball schedules for the Washington Senators (a 60’s expansion team in D.C.), candy bar varieties…

Question: Any fun plans for release day? What do you think you’ll do the first time you see your book in stores?
Answer: I always go out for a dinner with my family on the release day to celebrate. A week later, I have a bigger party, called a “launch party,” at a local library to celebrate with readers and friends—there is usually a cake, free giveaways, and a short talk (by me). Mostly, the party is a great way to thank everyone involved in the book journey. Seeing my book in stores is always a little scary—kind of like seeing someone you know, when you aren’t expecting it, and suddenly you can’t think of what to say or do!

About the Author: 
 
 
A former teacher and museum historian, SHELLEY PEARSALL is now a full-time writer. Her first novel, Trouble Don’t Last, won the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction.
 
 

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Hey everyone! I can’t even begin to express how excited I am to have Caroline B. Cooney here for an interview today! Seriously, Caroline B. Cooney was my childhood! I read (and re-read) The Face on the Milk Carton, Goddess of Yesterday and The Ransom of Mercy Carter so many times, I lost count! So my 13-year-old self is pretty much shrieking non-stop right now! Okay, I’m done fangirling… not really, but I’ll try to contain myself! So first, here’s the cover and synopsis for Caroline’s new book, No Such Person (July 14th 2015, Delacorte Press):

From the author of the multimillion-copy bestseller The Face on the Milk Carton, this riveting new thriller, set against the backdrop of a bucolic summer town on the Connecticut River, will have readers guessing until the very last page, as a seemingly innocent sibling rivalry and newfound young love turn into something much more devastating than anyone could ever have imagined.

Miranda and Lander Allerdon are sisters. Miranda is younger, a dreamer, and floating her way through life. Lander is older, focused, and determined to succeed. As the girls and their parents begin another summer at their cottage on the Connecticut River, Miranda and Lander’s sibling rivalry is in high gear. Lander plans to start medical school in the fall, and Miranda feels cast in her shadow.

When the Allerdons become entangled in an unimaginable tragedy, the playing field is suddenly leveled. As facts are revealed, the significance of what has happened weighs heavily on all. How can the family prepare for what the future may hold?

“Jangling suspense juxtaposed with cozy details of family life keeps thriller master Cooney’s latest zooming along.” — Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

“Full of twists and turns . . . has all the elements that keep young mystery lovers coming back for more.”–School Library Journal

“No one writes suspense like Cooney . . . . Haunting, harrowing, and hard to put down.”–Kirkus Reviews

“Cleverly plotted . . . rooted in suspense . . . fully satisfying. Mystery fans will be delighted.”–Booklist

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Book Depository | IndieBound | Kobo

And now here’s the interview! Enjoy!

Question: Congratulations! No Such Person will be out in two weeks (and will be celebrating its Book Birthday when this interview goes live). How does it feel?
Answer: I’ve written more than ninety books, but the excitement of a new one never diminishes. It’s so marvelous to hold the real book in your hands for the first time. This one also has a wonderful cover, evocative and spooky.

Question: No Such Person sounds amazing! What inspired the idea for the plot?
Answer: I had a little red cottage perched on a bluff over the Connecticut River. In the summer it was busy with motorboats, kayaks, sailboats, and tugs pushing or pulling oil barges. One day I saw a boy in a small speedboat playing chicken with a barge the size of half a football field. I thought, You could murder a water-skier that way. Tow him in front of the barge, ease up on your speed, drop him in the water, and here comes the barge. He’s cooked.

Immediately it began to shape into a book.

What if you are looking out on the river one beautiful day, and you and your sister both stand helplessly watching this terrifying event? But you are watching it from different heights and different perspectives. You know immediately that the driver of the boat planned and executed the death of his friend. But your sister doesn’t see it that way. She is filled with compassion for the driver, who, she insists, is guilty only of carelessness. What if your sister now begins to date that young man? A man you believe to be a murderer?

Question: You’ve been writing and publishing books for a long time! How do you keep your plots fresh and interesting and your characters realistic?
Answer: No Such Person was very exciting to write. It’s a double narrative, with each sister in a separate but overlapping nightmare. I’ve written over ninety books and I don’t think I’ve ever written a book in the present tense before, let alone two different first persons.

Question: The Face on the Milk Carton came out in the early 1990s. How has the YA market changed since then? What’s the most significant thing you’ve seen happen since your first YA book was published?
Answer: My first YA was published in 1980, so that’s thirty-five years ago! Topics today are so much deeper and sometimes—though not usually in my own books—so much darker. Covers are more artistic and graphically satisfying. The readership is much wider—it used to be about sixth through ninth grades, and now you have a lot of readers in fourth and fifth grades and plenty of readers in high school. Books are available in digital format, which seems reasonable and logical to my young readers but which I still find absolutely astonishing.

Question: You’ve written across several genres. What’s your favorite genre to work with and why? Do you have a favorite book that you’ve written?
Answer: It depends on my mood. I always want a lot of action; I want the good guys to win, and that means, the book has to have good guys. It’s not the genre that matters, it’s the characters. You have to have great people that a reader will root for.

Question: The Face on the Milk Carton was turned into a movie. What was that experience like?
Answer: I had a big movie-night party. The local cable company ran temporary wires around my house so we could put televisions all over the place. My sixth-grade teacher, who started me writing, was able to come to the movie party! Such a kick for both of us.

About the Author:
 
CAROLINE B. COONEY is the author of the Janie series, which includes the bestselling The Face on the Milk Carton. She has also written Code Orange and Diamonds in the Shadow, as well as hundreds of other mystery and thriller novels.
 
 

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Hey everyone! I’m really excited to have Jill Daugherty, author of The Courage series, here for an interview. First, here’s more about the books:

The end of the world will start in the suburbs of Denver with a faery transfer student from Ireland. If you think that’s totally ridiculous, then you understand how Maggie O’Neill feels. In all of her sixteen years, faeries were something you read about in children’s books. They didn’t actually show up on your doorstep. They didn’t kiss you and make your knees go weak and whisper sweet nothings in your ear. Until Simon Brady, that is. Simon changed everything. He makes her heart race and her skin burn with excitement, but he has also changed her core beliefs about the world and made her see it as a dark and dangerous place filled with monsters that belong only in the lines of faery tales. There is no doubt in Maggie’s mind that she loves Simon, but can she see past who he is and find a place for him in her heart?

Goodreads | Amazon

Maggie O’Neill had a rough junior year… She fell in love with Simon. She found out Simon was a faery. She spent some time with her dead ancestors. An evil faery with control issues came after her and brought his groupies to kill her. …but that was nothing compared to what’s in store for senior year. She’s the new girl at faery boarding school and is subjected to something she never thought she’d have to deal with in her entire life—mean girls. To make matters worse, she’s seeing less and less of Simon, her faery guard is smothering her in their efforts to protect her, and the evil faery is still stalking her, determined to kill her before she can kill him. She starts to wonder if she’ll make it to graduation. Then the unthinkable happens and she wonders if she’ll be able to survive even one more day.

Goodreads | Amazon

Eighteen-year-old Maggie O’Neill is a high school dropout. If her parents knew, they’d probably kill her, but that’s the least of her worries. Balor—the evil faery from hell—is still stalking her, someone is still betraying her, and the mean girl at school is still mean. The worst part of her life, however, is figuring out how to live it without Simon. Will Maggie discover a way to defeat Balor? Will she ever be able to out-snark the mean girl? Will she find Simon? Tune in next week—uh, read the book—to find out.
 

Goodreads | Amazon
 
 

Psst! Loving the sound of The Courage Series? Jill, the author, will be offering the first book in the series – Courage and Other Demons – for free on Amazon from July 17 – 22!

And now here’s the interview. Enjoy!

Question: As of April 2014, The Courage series is complete and out in the world for all to read. How did it feel to complete the trilogy? To say goodbye to these characters?
Answer: I think it would probably be similar to sending your kids off to college. You’ll still visit them, and they’ll always be a part of your life, but it will never be the same. It was definitely very hard to let my characters go. Maggie and Simon have become such a part of my life that my family talks about them as if they’re real people.

Question: The Courage series sounds AMAZING. Where did the idea come from?
Answer: I read a piece of folklore in a book titled, “West Irish Folktales and Romances.” The book was published in the late 1800’s and is a compilation of stories that had been passed on for generations. One of the stories, Simon and Margaret, really stuck with me because the girl saved the boy from the evil giant. We don’t have enough stories NOW where the girl saves the boy, but certainly not a few hundred years ago. The story stuck in my head, and I developed a story line that I finally decided to write down.

Question: Why Faeries? What is it about faeries that you find fascinating? Why do you think they fascinate readers?
Answer: The origins of the story really decided on the faerie theme. Because it was an Irish folktale, I decided to research Irish mythology to include in the story and, of course, faeries are a huge part of that. I did have to work to figure out what I wanted my faeries to be. There are so many different faeries in Irish folklore, and I took little pieces from many different types and put them together to create the faeries in my books.

Question: Any plans for a prequel, sequel or fourth book in the Courage world?
Answer: I’m currently working on a spinoff of the first series with Maggie’s younger brother, Brandon, as the romantic lead. It takes place a few years after the end of the first series, and introduces a new character, Abbey, who witnesses a crime while watching the Abbey Road Studios webcam. This sets off a series of events that pulls Abbey into the world of faeries.

Question: What scene (from any of your books) do you most regret having to cut?
Answer: I didn’t really cut anything that I felt shouldn’t be cut. If there were a particular dialogue or description that I was in love with, I’d move it to a different scene and change it a bit.

Question: On the flip side, what was your favorite scene that got added during edits (from any of your books)?
Answer: I didn’t add any, but did do some shifting.

Question: Favorite Faerie book you’ve ever read?
Answer: I hadn’t really thought about it until I read that question, but I haven’t really read many faerie books. My first thought was that I should be ashamed of myself, but then it occurred to me that maybe that’s a good thing. I don’t have other writers’ ideas about what a faerie should be in my head. I just create my own.

Question: Craziest thing you’ve had to Google for a WIP?
Answer: I can’t think of anything too crazy that I’ve Googled, but this question does make me think about a time when I was shopping when my mom called and asked me how the writing was going. I started talking to her about having to kill off a character and how it had been hard and I hated to do it, but I knew someone had to die and chose that character. I noticed a man following me around the store and realized that I was doing what I always do—talking about my characters as if they were real. I mentioned something to my mom that made it clear that I was a writer and the man chuckled and walked away. Evidently, he thought I was confessing my crimes in the middle of TJMaxx.

Question: What are three must-have items when you sit down to write?
Answer: My computer, a distraction-free environment, and something to drink—usually tea or water.

Question: Are you working on anything new?
Answer:I’m working on the Abbey’s Road series, a spinoff of the Courage series.

About the Author:
 
 
Jill Daugherty lives in Denver with Bailey, the world’s cutest dog. By day, she works with gifted children and their teachers. By night, she writes. A lot. She is the author of the Courage series, which has received glowing reviews. At the insistence of her readers, she has started work on a spin-off series.
 
 
 

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Hey everyone! I’m beyond excited to share this Author Spotlight with you! Today, I have Jen Brooks (In a World Just Right – April 28th 2015, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers), Lori Goldstein (Becoming Jinn – April 21st 2015, Feiwel & Friends) and Lee Kelly (City of Savages – February 3rd 2015 by Saga Press) here for an interview and a giveaway! First, here’s more about each book:

High school senior Jonathan Aubrey creates worlds at will. In Kylie-Simms-is-my-girlfriend, he’s given himself everything he doesn’t have in real life-–the track team, passing grades, and his dream girl–-until one day he confuses his worlds and almost kisses the real Kylie Simms. Now his girlfriend Kylie and the real Kylie are changing, and Jonathan must solve the mystery of his own life to save his love from a gruesome fate.
 

Goodreads
Amazon | IndieBound | Kobo
 
 

Forget everything you thought you knew about genies!

Azra has just turned sixteen, and overnight her body lengthens, her olive skin deepens, and her eyes glisten gold thanks to the brand-new silver bangle that locks around her wrist. As she always knew it would, her Jinn ancestry brings not just magical powers but the reality of a life of servitude, as her wish granting is controlled by a remote ruling class of Jinn known as the Afrit.

To the humans she lives among, she’s just the girl working at the snack bar at the beach, navigating the fryer and her first crush. But behind closed doors, she’s learning how to harness her powers and fulfill the obligations of her destiny.

Mentored by her mother and her Zar “sisters”, Azra discovers she may not be quite like the rest of her circle of female Jinn . . . and that her powers could endanger them all. As Azra uncovers the darker world of becoming Jinn, she realizes when genies and wishes are involved, there’s always a trick.

Goodreads
Amazon | IndieBound | Kobo

It has been nearly two decades since the breakout of the Third World War, and Manhattan is now a prisoner-of-war camp ruled by island native Rolladin, who controls the city’s survivors with an iron fist. For Skyler Miller, Manhattan is a cage that keeps her from the world beyond the city’s borders. But for Sky’s younger sister, Phee, the Central Park POW camp is the only home she’d ever want.

When strangers arrive in the park, carrying a shocking message, Sky and Phee discover there’s more to Manhattan—and their family—than either of them had imagined. As disturbing secrets about the island begin to surface, Sky and Phee have no choice but to break the rules to uncover the full truth of their long-shrouded history. When their search for answers erupts into violence, the girls must flee into Manhattan’s depths, where their quest for a better future will force them to confront the island’s dark and shocking past.

Lee Kelly’s gripping debut novel is a pulse-pounding journey through a city that’s as strange as it is familiar, where nothing is black-and-white and buried secrets can haunt.

Goodreads
Amazon | IndieBound | Kobo

And now here’s the interview! Enjoy!

Question: What are you reading right now?
Jen: Now that tour leg #1 is over, I’m about to finally start Chandler Baker’s Alive!
Lori: I’m reading my critique partner, N.K. Traver’s March release, DUPLICITY. So fun to read this fantastic book in final form!
Lee: I JUST finished Lori’s BECOMING JINN (so much voice, and so much fun) and started EMBER IN THE ASHES last night. I’m also listening to Tana French’s THE SECRET PLACE on audiobook.

Question: What TV show are you obsessed with?
Jen: I have a six-year-old. I don’t get to watch TV. Unless it’s Transformers or five minutes of HGTV—the big reveal at the end, if I can!
Lori: Game of Thrones!! And The Vampire Diaries, of course.
Lee: It changes every season! Right now, my husband and I never miss GAME OF THRONES. I’m also crazy about AMERICAN HORROR STORY and TRUE DETECTIVE in the fall, and HOUSE OF CARDS in the winter.

Question: Last movie you saw in theaters?
Jen: I think mine was Paddington. The six-year-old controls all the screens in my life.
Lori: Egads, I haven’t been to a movie theater in years. I prefer to watch at home, so it was probably the first Hunger Games movie.
(Jen: Did Lori just say “egads”? *teases*)
Lee: Yikes, it’s been quite a while. I think INTERSTELLAR would have to be the last (which I LOVED).

Question: What Hogwarts House would you be in? What would your Patronus be?
Jen: I have actually worn the real Sorting Hat and was put in Gryffindor. My patronus would be a Pegasus.
Lori: I’m pretty sure I’d be a Ravenclaw. My Patronus? Definitely a monkey. I was always obsessed with monkeys when I was little.
Lee: So I finally formally took this quiz hahah and I’m in Ravenclaw! And I’m pretty sure my Patronus would be a bird of some sort, maybe an eagle or condor or something along those lines.

Question: Would you survive the Hunger Games?
Jen: I doubt it. I can’t kill an ant, never mind a human being.
Lori: Yes, because I’m small and I could hide really really well in the tiniest of spots.
Lee: YES! I’m no archer, but I hope I could hold my own in scrappy fighting and hiding/camouflage.

Question: If you could live in one fictional world, which would it be and why?
Jen: Star Wars. Because, well, it’s Star Wars.
Lori: It’s got to be Harry Potter. I write about magic, and so living at Hogwarts would my nirvana.
Lee: Oooh, great question. Without a doubt, the Star Wars world. That said, my favorite book of all time is THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH, so I might pick the Kingdom of Wisdom as a close second.

Question: If you weren’t a writer, what would you be?
Jen: A teacher, because I was a teacher and miss it terribly. Or maybe an archaeologist.
Lori: A chef.
Lee: I’d be an entertainment lawyer, which was my last job prior to taking a sabbatical to focus on the writing and my son for the next few years.

Question: Quirkiest writing ritual?
Jen: I am not quirky. Am I?
Lori: I listen to the soundtracks to Downton Abbey on repeat all day long. It’s become the soundtrack to my writing life.
Lee: This is hard. I guess I can’t really talk while I’m writing – I’m not a social writer AT ALL, as every time I lift my eyes up from the screen, it takes me a few minutes to find my place and train of thought again. So on our writing retreats, I tend to hole up in a corner rather than do the whole community writing thing (don’t get me wrong, that’s fun too, I just know that no writing will happen!)

Question: Favorite thing to eat/drink while writing?
Jen: CHOCOLATE!
Lori: Tea, hot or iced.
Lee: My favorite FAVORITE combo is a skim latte (hot or iced) and some kind of sweet treat – candy preferred over baked good.

Question: If you were handed an untitled manuscript of each other’s latest novels, would you be able to identify whom it belonged to? How?
Jen: Lori has the awesomest use of voice in her work. She makes me laugh out loud, and I am green with envy that she has the ability to write humor. Beyond their humor, her characters and their plights are moving and meaningful. Lee has this way of cutting to the heart of what makes a character tick. She’s been talking in workshops about how she creates characters who are opposites, and I love how she uses those opposites to drive theme as much as plot in her work.
Lori: I love this question! Yes, I think so. A writer’s voice comes through on the page. Stories, plots, characters will change. Voice won’t be exactly the same in every book but there’s an underlying component of storytelling that is very much distinct from person to person. I think this encompasses both language, style, voice, concept, and theme. I know Lee’s work is going to have strong family relationships and action and thrills as well as a unique new world. And Jen’s is going to have high-concept ideas presented via superior writing with a down-to-earth character who is likable, accessible, and makes you want to be his best friend, kind of like Jen herself!
Lee: Absolutely. Lori and Jen have wildly different styles and preferences – Lori likes analogies, Jen likes metaphors. Lori’s prose is interspersed with humor and her narrators are always accessible and relatable. Jen’s narrators usually have a palpable loneliness or yearning about them, and the prose feels literary. Lori prefers female narrators, while Jen prefers males. After reading some of a writer’s work, it’s crazy how you can really start to hear the cohesive voice that links their novels, even if the novels and narrators themselves are very different.

Question: Any funny tour stories? What about funny stories about the Freshman Fifteen?
Jen: I have been sworn to secrecy on our most hilarious exploits.
Lori: Jen and I got locked in an underground parking garage after a library event because we were too busy planning our next tour day. Jen, Lee, and I almost missed our first writing workshop this week because Lee’s hometown has decided to rip up every road in a two-mile radius of her house. The Freshman Fifteens got our rental car stuck in the mud at our last writing retreat. Huh, a theme is coming through her. Clearly we are better writers than we are drivers!
Lee: When you spend so much time with people, you get to know their eating and sleeping habits and everything hahah. I’ve got a son who wakes me up around seven, and so I’m used to rising pretty early. But without fail both Lori AND Jen are always up before me – I think Jen said sometimes she’s up around 5:30?!?! Every retreat and tour, I’m somehow the late riser.

Question: Thing you miss the most when you’re traveling for signings/events?
Jen: My family. I got a half-hour hug-fest when I got home after our most recent week on the road.
Lori: My bed. And salad. I eat too much junk food and I’m not a junk food eater. They are bad influences on me.
Lee: My son and my husband, hands-down. And also having down time to write or read or watch the occasional TV show.

Question: Best reader experience so far?
Jen: I’ve had a few bloggers write extraordinary reviews of my book. You know how when you meet someone for the first time, and you talk to them, and you know right away that you have enough in common that you can be friends? That’s how it feels when someone “gets” my book enough to write a review that appreciates all the parts of the story that are most dear to me. Books, like people, are different, and different people like different books, so it feels really good when my book finds a new friend.
Lori: In Massachusetts, “wicked” is an adjective used to mean “amazing.” It’s very, very New England. At one of my first events after release, a young girl, who was timid and shy, came up to me having finished the book already and said “Your book is wicked good.” I was wicked touched, and still am.
Lee: Getting my very first fan mail – it’s such a humbling and wonderful experience when someone takes the time to look up your email address and drop you a line about how much they liked your book. It’s positively day-making, so readers out there, if a book has resonated with you, consider emailing the author – we love it!

And now for the giveaway! Thanks to Jen, Lori and Lee, one winner will receive copies of all three books + some awesome Becoming Jinn swag!

-Giveaway is US only

-Winner has 48 hours to respond. If winner does not respond, a new winner will be selected.

-You must be 13 or older to enter OR have your parents’ permission.

-The authors and I are not responsible for lost, stolen, or damaged items.

-I reserve the right to change any rules as I see fit for each individual giveaway

With that being said, I wish you luck! May the odds be ever in your favor!

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About Jen Brooks:
 
Jen has a habit of being deeply moved by profound ideas, and her writing reflects her interest in exploring human goodness, relationships, and the feeling of being a part of something greater than oneself. She loves the science fiction and fantasy genres because of their dazzling possibilities for portraying characters and ideas. She credits her undergraduate experience at Dartmouth College, her MFA at Seton Hill University, and her fourteen years of English teaching with shaping her writing. She is grateful to her family, friends, and students for inspiring her to write.

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About Lori Goldstein:
 
 
Lori Goldstein was born into an Italian-Irish family and raised in a small town on the New Jersey shore. She earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism from Lehigh University and worked as a writer, editor, and graphic designer before becoming a full-time author. She currently lives and writes outside of Boston. Lori is the author of the young adult contemporary fantasy series Becoming Jinn (Feiwel & Friends/Macmillan, April 21, 2015, Spring 2016).

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About Lee Kelly:
 
Why hello, and thanks for dropping by! My name is Lee Kelly, and I’m a writer of young adult and genre fiction, a lawyer by trade and a new mom (my almost two year-old, Penn Joseph, keeps me very busy). And my debut, CITY OF SAVAGES, is coming in February 3, 2015 from Simon & Schuster (though I still can’t fully believe it — and saying and writing it never gets old :).

I was born and raised in Philadelphia, went to Georgetown University and, with the exception of a couple years spent in glorious Santa Monica on the west coast, I’ve been buzzing around New York ever since.

My debut, CITY OF SAVAGES, naturally takes place in New York City, in a not-too-distant future, where Manhattan has become a prisoner-of-war camp. While I know there are quite a few end-of-the-worlds on bookshelves these days, I like to think my story offers something new, by exploring this potential future NYC intimately, even tenderly, through the eyes of two very different sisters who have never stepped outside of Manhattan. The sisters’ relationship is also front and center, and told via a dual-narrative — and being one of three sisters myself, this was EXTREMELY fun to write. The book also has a very robust subplot which focuses on the secrets of the previous generation, as well as the city’s dark, twisty past. CITY OF SAVAGES was sold by my agent, the lovely and amazing Adriann Ranta of Wolf Literary Services, to Navah Wolfe at S&S. Navah is witty, articulate, passionate… pretty much a dream editor. I am beyond thrilled to be part of such a great team.

What I’m currently working on? Well, I’ve recently teamed up with a fabulous group of 2015 debut authors called the Freshman Fifteens, and am blogging regularly about writing and revision over at Movellas. I’m also in the process of revising AMERICAN SHINE, my next novel with S&S, a magical realism crossover novel which follows two up-and-coming bootlegging sorcerers through an alternate Prohibition-era America.

In any event, always looking for good NYC-driven fiction (or any good fiction!), so please drop me a line or a tweet if you have any recommendations! And for Moms-to-be, check out my Baby Book reviews tab! I WISH someone had done this prior to me spending hours and hours reading some of the deadbeats :).

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Happy Book Birthday to S.E. Green and Killer Within, the sequel to Killer Instinct! To celebrate Killer Within’s birthday, I have S.E. Green here for a fun author interview! First, here’s more about Killer Within:

In the heart-pounding sequel, teen vigilante Lane must face the secrets and unexpected consequences that arise in the wake of her first kill.

It’s been three months since the sadistic Decapitator’s demise, and Lane feels both closer to and more alienated than ever from her united, grieving family. Haunted by conflicting memories, she resumes the role of Masked Savior vigilante—but her heart just isn’t in it. For Lane now knows the rush of deeper thrills. Darker thrills. And a growing part of her wants to revisit its seductive power.

To Lane’s chagrin, the Masked Savior inspires its own fan site, where groupies gather online to praise, document, and debate each delivered act of justice. But then one of Lane’s secret admirers becomes a cunning copycat, assaulting the defenseless with escalating violence. And Lane suspects someone is spying on her, edging closer to making contact-someone who knows her secrets.

Will Lane be able to stop the copycat and keep her identity protected? Or will she give in to the thrills that tempt her? Because as her life continues to unravel, the revelations shake Lane to her core.

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And now here’s the interview! Enjoy!

Question: Congrats! Killer Within is out in the world! How does it feel?
Answer: Crazy! It’s always crazy to me when I have a new book coming out—like I can’t quite believe I wrote another novel (this from a girl that dreaded reading and writing when I was younger).

Question: Killer Instinct and Killer Within were beyond amazing. What inspired you to write them?
Answer: I am a huge fan of shows like Hannibal, The Following, The Fall, and Dexter. So when I was brainstorming a new series, the serial killer theme was a quick and very natural fit.

Question: There are a lot of serial killer/FBI YA books that have supernatural elements, but ones that are pure psychological thriller, WITHOUT supernatural elements, are more rare in YA, though fairly common in adult books. Why do you think that is?
Answer: Maybe it has to do with suspension of disbelief. A 17-year-old girl who is brave enough and dark enough to immerse herself into such a disturbed world in relation to say a 35-year-old does definitely take some careful maneuvering. For me, though, it was the only way to tell the story.

Question: Killer Instinct received a new cover and it’s amazing! Do you think it (and the cover for Killer Within) better represent the stories than the original cover design?
Answer: I do love the new covers! But then I really liked the original, too. I think the new ones are definitely more teen, though.

Question: Why serial killers? Why do you think people are fascinated by stories like this?
Answer: Morbid curiosity. Everyone has it, they just don’t like to admit it. As my tag line says, “Everyone has a dark side.”

Question: Did a particular serial killer inspire The Decapitator? Or is there a particular serial killer that fascinates you?
Answer: At this point I have done endless hours of research and there are many serial killers that absolutely perplex me. When I give presentations at schools, I discuss many of the facts I’ve read, and the one that always makes people cringe is Ed Gein—he fashioned “trophies” out of his victims’ bones and skin. His story inspired The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.

Question: I’m sure you had to Google some pretty interesting things while writing these books! Can you share one (or several) of the craziest things you had to look up?
Answer: Oh, well definitely the above mentioned Ed Gein. But I’ve also done research on body decomposition, stabbing someone, decapitating a head, blood splatter, and I could go on and on, but I think you get the drift. Gross stuff!

Question: According to your bio, you’ve written everything from Teen Thrillers to YA romances. Is it difficult going from one genre to another, especially with two genres that are so different/opposite? Do you have a routine to help you get into the mind-set of each book/main character?
Answer: I actually like going from thriller to romance to adventure. It helps keep my brain balanced and not to immersed in the dark stuff. Routines . . . hm, I would say a lot of reading and watching of the genre I’m about to write.

Question: What books do you recommend for readers who love your books and want to read something similar?
Answer: Oh, Barry Lyga’s I Hunt Killers for sure.

Question: Are you working on anything new? Maybe a third book in the Killer Instinct series?? Or something similar?? *Hopeful puppy eyes*
Answer: I’ve got quite a few things going on right now. I have a romance coming out in 2016 under Shannon Greenland. I have an adult survival thriller coming out at the end of this year under S. E. Green. Also, I’m just finishing up another YA thriller that explores satanic cults (eek, I know!) And I’m slowly working my way through my very first Middle Grade adventure. If you want to stay up-to-date, definitely sign up for my newsletter at on my website or connect with me socially on Twitter.

About the Author:
 
Shannon Greenland, or S. E. Green, is the award winning author of the teen thriller, Killer Instinct, a YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers; the teen spy series, The Specialists, an ALA Popular Paperback and a National Reader’s Choice recipient; and the YA romance, The Summer My Life Began, winner of the Beverly Hills Book Award. Her books have been translated into several languages and are currently on numerous state reading lists.

Shannon is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, Romance Writers of America, and Mystery Writers of America. She has participated in and served as a guest speaker at festivals and conferences around the country to include but not limited to the LA Times Book Festival, American Library Association, Book Expo of America, Bouchercon, Romance Writers of America, RT Book Convention, Young Adult Keller Book Festival, Southern Festival of Books, and many more.

Shannon grew up in Tennessee where she dreaded all things reading and writing. She didn’t even read her first book for enjoyment until she was twenty-five. After that she was hooked! When she’s not writing, she works as an adjunct math professor and lives on the coast in Florida with her very grouchy dog. Find her online everywhere @ segreenauthor.

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