Interview & Giveaway with JK Beck

Books-n-Kisses is super excited to have JK Beck (aka Julie Kenner) on the blog today.  We are getting to know her a little better. Oh and today is release day for her. So please help me make JK feel welcome and wish her a happy release day.

Q1) Can you please share with us a little about yourself

Well, I was found as an infant when I hatched out of a golden egg that my parents had brought home from their travels in the …

Wait.  That’s not me.

Seriously, I’m a Texas girl, although I was born in California and lived in LA for six years back when I was practicing law.  I’m a terrible housekeeper, I drink way too much coffee, I have two kids who I homeschool (I need the coffee to keep up with them), and I saw Star Wars (the first one, the real one) in the theater 82 times.  No, that’s not a typo.

I practiced law before quitting to write full time.  My most interesting case arose out of the Rodney King riots.  I got to depose Darryl Gates, the Chief of Police at the time of the riots.  He had a radio show at the time of the deposition and referred to me in the show (not by name; he called me a “lady lawyer.” Ah, Darryl, Darryl, Darryl.)

I’ve been an extra in one movie, have an undergraduate degree in film, and have a couple of scripts floating around out there in Lala land.  Novels are where my heart is, though.  I love SCUBA diving, but hate diving in Texas, so haven’t been in years.  I get seasick, and am much happier once I’m under the water rather than on it.  I love to travel, and I went backpacking all over Europe the summer before I moved to LA to practice law.  I watch reruns of Buffy far too often, never got into Angel, and cry at the ending of The Cutting Edge.  Of course, I also cry at the ending of Independence Day.  Show me something like Sleepless in Seattle and I’m a blubbering fool.

I sound like a bit of a mess, don’t I?

Coming in June 2012

Q2) Have you always wanted to be an author?

Yes!  One of my earliest memories, actually, is sitting in my dad’s home office banging out a “book” on his typewriter (so fast the keys mushed together – if you don’t know what I’m talking about, please don’t tell me as I’ll just feel old).

I’ve always made up stories.  My parents were divorced when I was seven, and my dad moved 200 miles away.  That made for a lot of flights from Austin to Dallas in the years between 7 and 18 in my dad’s very noisy prop plane.  Since talking was difficult and reading impossible (motion sick), I would lean back, close my eyes and make up stories.  Weird, strange stories.  I recall at least one that involved Harrison Ford coming to my school because he’d fallen madly in love with me.  Did I mention I write fiction?

Q3) Can you share with us your typical writing day.  Is there anything you have to have while writing?

All I have to have is a keyboard.  I’m the opposite of a Luddite; pencil and paper don’t do it for me.

There is no typical day, alas, but a day might look something like this:

5:00 alarm goes off.

5:15 alarm goes off.

5:30 alarm goes off, husband calls from the bathroom for me to get out of bed, already.

5:30-6 breakfast with husband

6-7:30 write and/or take care of emails, tweet, blog, etc.

7:30 wake kids up

7:30-8 while they watch something (these days, Meerkat Manor), I write

8-9 – feed kids, instruct them to eat, clean dishes, get dressed, do piano.  I sneak off to write.  Instead, I screw around on the Internet.

9-12:30 – school with the kids. Schlep MacBook Air around house; do emails, other stuff, and maybe a scene while they’re doing independent work

12:30-1:30 – lunch.  I write.  Or not.

1:30-3 – more school

3-6 – I write. Kids in my office are verboten.  Doesn’t matter; they come in anyway.

6-7:30 – chat with husband, fix dinner, eat.

7:30-9 – family time (often involving a computer on my lap and me writing)

9-10 (or later if I’m crunched) – write

That’s a “perfect” day.  More often, I get phone calls, have to take the kids to speech or Latin or violin or some other something.  So the 10pm often creeps back later and later.  Bad, as I’m a much less cranky mommy when I’ve had decent sleep!  (And in case you can’t guess, I do a lot of my writing on weekends.  That’s when I can get in the really big chunks of blissful writing time.)

Q4) Most challenging or rewarding part of writing?

Lately, the biggest challenge is finding blocks of time.  I can write in spurts.  I prefer a huge chunk. The most rewarding is the feedback from fans!

Happy Release Day Today

Sure!  WHEN PASSION LIES is the fourth in the Shadow Keepers series, which centers around a paranormal world with its own government hidden within ours.  In this book, I got to spend time with Caris (a really kick-ass female character who’s a vampire/werewolf hybrid) and her estranged love, Tiberius (who’s a very alpha vamp with a hatred of werewolves).  Theirs was an epic love, but something horrible happened and they were ripped apart.  The book is the story of how they get back together…set against the backdrop of a mission to save the world!

Q6) How did you come with the idea for this story?

Oh, goodness…I don’t know if I can recall the details!  I do know that it started with Caris.  She didn’t actually exist in the world at first.  But then she appeared on the page in the very first book, When Blood Calls, and she was such a cool character that she kept elbowing her way into stories until, finally, she demanded a book of her own!

Q7) Can you share with us your current work in progress?

I can’t!!!!!!  I’m weirdly superstitious that way.  I will say that I’m in the process of finalizing (editing, formatting, etc.) the sixth Demon Hunting Soccer Mom book (a series I write as Julie Kenner) and that it’ll be available in mid-June as an indie release.  I’m super excited because I love that series and have missed writing Kate!  (The book is PAX DEMONICA.  Folks who aren’t yet familiar with the series can get a sense of Kate and the world in the short story, The Demon You Know, which is available in e-format for only 99 cents!  You can read about all the Demon-Hunting Soccer Mom stories at http://www.demonhuntingsoccermom.com

Q8) Who are some of your favorite authors?

There are waaaaaay too many to list.  My “get it the second it comes out on my Kindle” author is J.D. Robb.  LOVE the In Death books.  I’ve glommed all of Sue Grafton, adore Scalzi, think Lee Child is fabulous, could sit all day reading Jill Churchill, recently started re-reading Anne Perry’s Pitt series, think Stephen King writes the most amazing characters, and on and on.  Frankly, I rarely find an author I don’t enjoy.  I. Read. Everything.

Q9) Do you feel that any of your favorite authors have inspired your writing style? 

Sure!  I’ll notice bits and pieces of tone coming into my work.  So I try not to read dark and depressing if I’m writing light fiction.  (The other way, though, works.  Even dark books need lighter moments!)

Coming in July 2012

Q10) What is in your To Read Pile that you are dying to start or upcoming release you can’t wait for?

Divergent!  I’ve heard such great things about it, and I haven’t yet had the chance to dive in.  But our neighborhood book club picked it, so I’ve got it and I’m starting it tonight.  (fingers crossed!)

Q11) Is there anything else you would like to add?

Just thanks for having me!  It’s been fun!  And I hope readers find me on Twitter and Facebook and visit me on the blog, where I share slices of both my writing and my personal life and thoughts on various gadgets I love!

http://www.twitter.com/juliekenner

http://www.twitter.com/jkbeck (the Julie Kenner twitter account is more active; I tend to mostly tweet release-related stuff as J.K. Beck)

http://www.facebook.com/juliekennerbooks (be sure to “like” the page for exclusive content; for example, I just ended one contest and another will come soon!)

http://www.facebook.com/jkbeckbooks (ditto!)

And I’m ramping up to offer exclusive content to my newsletter subscribers, too, so I hope folks sign up.  The link is on the banner of my website, http://www.juliekenner.com or http://www.jkbeck.com

Oh, and I recently discovered Pinterest.  I’m “juliekenner” over there.

(I’m not yet active on Goodreads, but I’m working on it.  I’ve had an account for years, but it’s sitting there stagnant.  Once I’ve got it down, I’ll add links to my webpage.  And if any readers have tips for navigating Goodreads, feel free to drop me a line or just comment on the blog!)

Thanks, Kelly!!

JK, is offering up a $25 Amazon gift card to one lucky commenter.  To enter please fill out the Rafflecopter form below.
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