Books-n-Kisses is pleased to have Kelley Grealis on the blog today.  

Kelley, Can you please share with us a little about yourself? 

I was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio and the surrounding suburbs and continue to live in the area with my husband and our two cats, Maverick and Jasmine.  As a kid, I wrote a lot of poetry and always enjoyed creative writing assignments.  In middle school, I attempted my first novel but didn’t make it past chapter one.  I pushed my creative writing aside when my parents sent me to Catholic high school. I figured I needed to focus on my schoolwork to ensure my parents got their money’s worth! I attended a small private college where I majored in accounting. I went on to get my CPA and worked in public accounting before joining the bank I currently work for as a project manager.  In 2009, it was a combination of my career midlife crisis and having read a book whose premise was so simple that I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought of it myself, that reignited my passion for creative writing and I’ve been writing every since.

Have you always wanted to be an author?

No, I never grew up dreaming that I’d one day be an author.  What I didn’t know then but now realize, is that writing is my creative outlet and although I may not make a living off of my writing, it is my writing that adds so much meaning to my life.

Are you a plotter or a punster or combo of both? And you explain the difference?

Insert sheepish grin, I never heard the term ‘punster’ before so I had to look that up! I suppose with this question you are asking if I tell stories more through the plot or through techniques such as puns? If I’m on target with that, I’ll admit that I’m a plotter. And I plot through planning.  I start each novel by outlining the nine major plot elements, then I start outlining and review that several times to ensure my plot is in order, and then I write.  I’ll apologize in advance if I didn’t understand this question and completely got this wrong J

What is your most interesting writing quirk?  I don’t know how interesting it is, but I need complete silence in order to write. Unfortunately for my husband, our den (my writing room) is on the other side of the wall from our living room. So as I’m writing, I’m shouting every few minutes for him to turn down the TV volume. I don’t know how he can hear any shows that he tries to watch while I’m writing!

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

The Descendant is book 1 in The Descendant Vampire Series and is dubbed a vampire tale of biblical proportions.  The book reveals the biblical origin of the vampire told through the experiences of a woman who discovers that she’s a descendant of the first vampire.  I explain the vampire’s origin by elaborating on popular biblical stores such as The Garden of Eden, Cain and Abel, The Flood, The Plagues, and others.

The Search, book 2 in the series, is due out later this year and will have more biblical tie-ins (Saint Michael and the archangels).

How did you come with the idea for this story?

When I first decided to write a book, I knew that I had to write about something that I was passionate about, and lucky for me, that was easy to figure out – vampires! I’d been a vampire fan ever since I was a kid and my mother hooked me on Dark Shadows reruns.  However, I also realized that the literary and cinematic worlds were crowded, maybe even overcrowded, on the vampire front. I knew I needed a different angle than any other story out there. Thankfully that angle was easy for me to come up. In all of the vampire books I’d read and movies I’d seen, there was one thing I noticed – the vampire was always just there; I never really read about how the first vampire was created. So I decided to write a story about the vampire’s origin and decided to explain their origin by tying it to popular biblical stories. I joke with my parents that I’m finally putting that Catholic schooling to good use!

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

The Search, Book 2 in The Descendant Vampire Series, is my current work in process.  I don’t want to give too much away for those that haven’t read The Descendant, but The Search picks up where Allison’s adventure left off in book one.  You’ll see a very different Allison who struggles with her new existence.  The title isn’t as obvious as you might think; there are several different searches going on in this book.

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

I’d like to meet Boyd Morrison.  He’s the author of several thrillers including The Ark, The Catalyst, Rogue Wave and others.  His books are exciting and fast paced and hard to put down.  What first drew me to his book The Ark was that it was a thriller about the search for Noah’s Ark and I’m a fan of books that can weave history or biblical stories throughout a fictional tale.  I’d like to meet him to learn how he was able to parlay his writing into his full time career (he was first an engineer).

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

Learn the craft, use test readers, hire an editor and have fun!

When I first started writing, I had no idea what I was doing and just put finger to keyboard and started typing. Several rejection letters later, I realized something was wrong. That was when I attended a writing clinic and learned that I needed to polish my writing skills.  Believe it or not, there is a method to the madness of writing and I learned a lot about the craft in the classes I took.

Test readers are huge. When you’re writing a book, the book is in your head and it’s your job to get that story onto paper. The problem is, you as the author can’t always see what is or isn’t on paper.  Test readers can point out if something doesn’t make sense in a story, if there’s something missing, if you’ve contradicted yourself, etc. Enlist test readers!

Hire an editor!  I always considered myself a grammar queen…that is until I wrote my novel and attended that above mentioned writing clinic. It became clear to me that I couldn’t edit a book on my own.  Hiring my editor was the best money I’ve spent.

Have fun, because let’s face it, if you’re not having fun, why bother?

Can you share with us something off your bucket list?

I’d love to own a canary yellow Corvette (just like the one Allison acquires in The Descendant).  Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve wanted a yellow vette!  I think it has something to do with the Camaro IROC Z 28 my brother’s friend had.  He gave me a ride in that and ever since I’ve wanted a sports car & have been obsessed with vettes for as long as I can remember.

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

I have too much in my to-read pile!  The Vault by Boyd Morrison is next up on my list.  I’m anxiously awaiting book 2 in The Darcy Walker Series by AJ Lape and book 2 in the Night Aberrations series by JD Nelson.

What is one book everyone should read before they die?

If you’re a vampire fan and love historical fiction, then you must read The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova.

What is your favorite time of year & why?

Fall is my favorite time of year. I love the changing colors, the cooler weather, wearing jeans, a sweatshirt & flip-flops, and football, of course!

Who is your Celebrity crush?  And what would you do if you ever meet them?

Johnny Depp has been my celebrity crush for some time.  A more current crush would be Charlie Hunnam who plays Jax on Sons of Anarchy. What’s not to like about long blond hair, tattoos, motorcycles & a bad boy attitude???  I’d probably be a blubbering fool if I met Johnny or Charlie.

GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

Kelley is giving away the following prizes on her tour:

 Grand Prize:

$25 Amazon gift card & signed paperback of THE DESCENDANT

Runners-up:

TWO (2) runners-up will receive an eBook of THE DESCENDANT plus a Descendant can koozie & bookmarks

a Rafflecopter giveaway

THE DESCENDANT

by Kelley Grealis

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Smashwords | B&N  

The Descendant reveals the Biblical origin of the vampire through the experiences of a modern day woman who discovers that she is a descendant of the first vampire.

Allison Carmichael wakes from an accident with no memory of the past three years. She doesn’t recall her husband’s death or how she alienated her friends, and she definitely doesn’t remember her new boyfriend Vincent Drake – a charismatic man with a penchant for rare and unique possessions. The only things familiar to Allison are her seemingly common ailments – insomnia, lack of appetite, erratic body temperature – which have gone undiagnosed and are vtly who, and what, Allison is – a mortal descendant of the first vampire. He is a vampire who has watched over Allison and her ancestors since the Biblical times of Cain and Abel ensuring their secret is kept. Once he realizes Allison’s symptoms are accelerating and transforming her, he’ll stop at nothing to have her.

Allison discovers that she is a descendant with a lineage dating back to the Biblical times of Cain and Abel and is the first of her kind to exhibit signs of vampirism. She must decide between risking her mortal death if she cannot control her symptoms or fully transforming into a vampire and damning her soul for eternity. A decision made even more difficult once Allison discovers Vincent has manipulated her life, and everyone in it, so he could have the first descendant-turned-vampire all to himself.

A little more about Kelly: 

Kelley Grealis was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. She has a B.A. in Accounting from Baldwin-Wallace College and a Masters of Businss Administration from Cleveland State University.

She has loved all things vampire since she was a little girl, and it was that passion combined with thirteen years of Catholic schooling, that inspired her to write THE DESCENDANT.

Kelley lives in a Cleveland suburb with her husband.

Connect with Kelley:

Website:  http://www.kelleygrealis.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KelleyGrealis

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/KelleyGrealis

Goodreads:  http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6436838.Kelley_Grealis

Blog:  http://www.myarttoinspire.com/kelleygrealisblogs

Independent Author Network:  http://www.independentauthornetwork.com/kelley-grealis.html

Kelley Grealis’ THE DESCENDANT

1 Year Anniversary Blog Tour Schedule

5/20- Book Monster Reviews (guest post)

http://www.bookmonsterreviews.com/

5/20- Literal Addiction  (guest post & review)

http://www.literaladdiction.com/

5/21 – Wicked Readings by Tawania (spotlight & review)

http://www.wickedreadingsbytawania.blogspot.com/

5/22- Romance Junkies (interview)

http://www.romancejunkies.com/rjblog/

5/22- The Reading Cafe (spotlight & review)

http://thereadingcafe.com/

5/23- Jocelyn Dex Blog (spotlight & review)

http://www.jocelyndex.com/blog.html

5/23- Musings From An Addicted Reader  (spotlight & review)

http://musingsfromanaddictedreader.blogspot.com/

5/24- Books-n-Kisses  (interview)

https://books-n-kisses.com

5/24- Urban Girl Reader (interview)

http://www.urbangirlreader.com/

5/25- Paranormal Book Club (spotlight)

http://paranormal-bookclub.com/

5/26- Page Flipperz (Spotlight)

http://pageflipperz.blogspot.com/