Books-n-Kisses is pleased to welcome Laura Lee Nutt to the blog for her first visit.  

Laura, can you please share with us a little about yourself?

Sure, but first, let me say thank you, Kelly, for having me today. I really appreciate the opportunity to be here. Now, let me give a few interesting details you won’t find in my bio. I am 4 feet 8 inches tall and love being short except for the need to hem pants and skirts. I have two rambunctious boys and am about to try for a third or, if I’m lucky, a little girl to spoil with pretty things. I was born under a crescent moon but not so secretly wish it had been a full moon. It seems a full moon would have been more romantic and haunting. And finally, the evening my husband first told me he loved me and we shared our first kiss, the sun was setting beside us, further feeding my affection for special moments in life that hold true romance.

Have you always wanted to be an author?

I have always wanted to write stories, but no, it was not always my goal to be an author. For several years, I thought of other occupations such as paleontology or chiropractic, seeing them at the time as both fascinating and more financially practical. However, deep down, I think I always wanted to write. Eventually, I accepted the fact rather than fighting it. I’m much happier I went into storytelling.

What is your most interesting writing quirk?

My characters, at least most of them, literally develop minds of their own. If they are not leading the story off in one unexpected direction or another, I’m not listening to them hard enough. Sometimes, my husband will inform me of something a character feels, thinks, desires, or is planning that I consciously had not realized. A few years ago, he flat out told me that a villain, Emile Benderique, in one of my books was lying to me about his motivations because he was uncomfortable with anyone knowing his true desires. I started to argue, then stopped and gaped because my husband was absolutely correct. This may sound a bit schizophrenic, but rather, I think it’s the mark of characters well and truly developed.

Can you please tell us about your latest book(s)?

Red and the Wolf is about Little Red Riding Hood grown up and how she overcomes the terrors the childhood “wolf” attack inflicted on her. She must accept herself, including the curse left on her from the attack, and the love of the huntsman who rescued her long ago. But she has to manage all this before the local nix, a German-style freshwater merman, takes over her village and before a heroic hunter of all things monstrous and unnatural executes her and the huntsman. Only then can she truly gain her real happily ever after.

How did you come with the idea for this story?

In January of 2011, I was sick for about two weeks. To keep myself from going stir-crazy, I wrote the first draft of Red and the Wolf. I no longer recall what the initial idea that started the whole story was, but I’ve always loved fairy tales, which frequently influence my writing. This time, though, I did not want to just retell the story. Plus, it made no sense to me how a child of ten or twelve could undergo such horrors and not come out emotionally scarred. Thus, I sought to tell a story that had a touch more realism for all I included werewolves in this one. I was in the mood for romance and wanted the wonder of fairy tales and fantasy.

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

Right now, I’m working on the sequel to Red and the Wolf. Currently, it’s titled Gretel and Her Ghost. Like Red and the Wolf, I took a well-known fairy tale and extrapolated into the future, asking what would happen if there had not really been a happily ever after? How would these characters deal with the logical difficulties they faced from their childhood fairy tale encounters, and how might they find happiness in the end? In this case, Gretel is desperate to marry and have a normal life, but Hansel, who never truly recovered from nearly getting eaten by the witch, sabotages her every attempt. When a mysterious man comes to town to seek her aid in rescuing other children trapped in the candy house, she must make some of the hardest choices of her life, but ones that have the possibility to at last set her free.

I also recently finished a novel starring Karl Kaismann, one of the antagonists from Red and the Wolf. It’s a historical urban fantasy that I will soon start shopping around among editors and agents. In this novel, I drew upon the haunting legends of the Lorelei Rock on the Rhine River in Germany about a beautiful maiden deprived of her true love and a nixie, a sort of nymph-like creature, who causes ships to crash beneath the rock’s deadly foot. Karl naturally gets caught up in the legend and must save a town that despises him, choose between his heart’s desire and the lives of thousands, and come to terms with his destiny.

Who is the one author that you would love to meet someday and why?

Peter S. Beagle. His book The Last Unicorn is my favorite of all time. Each time I reread it, it recaptures my heart with its beautiful language, fantasy, heroism, tragic love, and contrasts of light and dark. It encapsulates so much of what I love most in stories.

What is the best piece of advice you would give to someone that wants to get into writing?

Beyond the obvious “write and keep writing,” there is no right way to write or get published. There are some ways that are less effective and some that are dangerous–check out Predators and Editors for some of those–but don’t let anyone tell you that you have to get into the business or write one specific way. Educate yourself about the industry and craft, and always keep learning. Be humble. Take chances. Be patient and persistent. Don’t let opportunities slip by. But above all, do your best and be true to yourself, whatever that is.

Can you share with us something off your bucket list?

Tour Europe, and I don’t mean one of those two or three week tours. I mean I want to take at last three months, maybe a year, and really experience it. I want to visit all sorts of historical sites, soak in the culture and the countryside, and perhaps find a ghost or two as long as they’re not too frightening. I want to see where my ancestors came from, and there’s a castle in Scotland that used to belong to my clan, MacNaughton, that I’d like to see in person.

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

Oh, wow, that’s a big list. Let me name a few off the top of my head. Both my critique partners, Jessi Gage and Mae Clair, have books coming out this year that I’m looking forward to. I can’t wait to see how Jessi’s Road Rage has changed since those first initial idea talks we had, and I have not yet had the pleasure of reading Mae’s Twelfth Sun. Stina Leicht should have a new book soon, though I don’t know exactly when. I’ve been reading her The Fey and the Fallen series and enjoying it immensely. Peter S. Beagle’s stort story collection Sleight of Hand is also on my list as well as anything by Patricia Briggs or Jim Butcher. Amy Raby’s Bronze Age fantasy Assassin’s Gambit, which comes out in April will soon join that pile of to-reads. Cecilia Grant’s A Lady Awakened was absolutely superb, probably one of the best romances I’ve ever read, so I have high hopes for its sequel, A Gentleman Undone.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Yes. First, thank you so much for hosting me today, and thank you to all your readers who stopped by and stayed to learn a bit about me and my new release, Red and the Wolf. Second, everyone make sure to stop by my blog to get the full details of my Release Week Giveaway.

Learn more about Laura here: website  | Blog | Twitter | Facebook

Amazon Kindle | Barnes and Noble Nook |   I-Tunes |  Lyrical Store

They said Little Red Riding Hood lived happily ever after. They lied.

Six years after the attack at her grandmother’s cottage, Blanchette still wilts at the sound of a wolf’s howl. The scent of pine rising from the Black Forest surrounding her home is a constant reminder of the beast’s assault and the injury it left on her finger. After years spent hiding away, Blanchette’s world tilts when she wakes–naked and without memory of the previous night–in the forest, instead of behind the safety of her closed shutters.

Since rescuing Blanchette and her grandmother, huntsman Heinrich has befriended her family by day, and keeps watch as a powerful wolf over his territory by night. Sinister otherworldly creatures constantly threaten his domain and the human village he protects.

When the emperor sends a hunter to investigate the attack and slay any inhuman beings, Heinrich must tread carefully and protect not only himself, but his newly-discovered mate, who prowls the moonlit nights alongside him. He must also determine who is responsible for a string of murdered villagers, proving he can control his lupine nature and offer protection to the village, rather than danger.

CONTENT WARNING: Vengeful fae, dark magic, vicious murder, moral quandaries, explicit sex, and tragic honor.

Giveaway 

For Red and the Wolf’s release week, Laura is  hosting a giveaway.

There are several ways to earn chances to win one of two prizes, an e-copy of Red and the Wolf and an adorable Annette Funicello Collectable Bear Co. Little Red Riding Hood valued at $105.

You have from Monday, March 4th, 12 AM central time through Sunday, March 10th, 11:59 PM central time to get as many points as you can.

Each point equals an additional time your name gets entered in the drawing for these prizes. Laura will announce the winners on her blog Monday, March 11th.

To begin with, you will earn your first point for the drawing by commenting on today’s post.

For more ways to earn points see Laura’s blog. Good luck!