Sunday, November 04, 2007

COMMENT on this post for a chance to win a copy of Witchy Woman by Karen Erickson.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

After leaving the working world to become a stay-at-home mom, Karen Erickson realized she needed to get serious and pursue her lifelong dream of being a published writer. A busy mother of three, she fits her precious writing time in between chasing her children, taking care of her wonderful husband and pretending she has a maid. She lives in California.

To learn more about Anne and her writing, please visit her website at http://karenwritesromance.com


INTERVIEW:

Why did you become a writer? Was it a dream of yours since you were younger or did the desire to write happen later in your life?
Well I always liked to write, to make up stories. I wrote terrible stuff in high school, in my early twenties. Then life got in the way and though it always lingered in the back of my mind, I just didn't have the time. Finally, after having my third child, I was staying at home taking care of them and I realized hey why am I not writing? And it just kind of took off from there.

What do you love about being an author? Is there anything you dislike?
I love that I'm able to live through my characters, do and say things I would never EVER do. I love the fact I can sit at home in my sweats and write all day. I love all of the people I've met through my writing - I've made a lot of wonderful friends that I'm lucky to have in my life.

Dislike? Hmmm, well it drives me nuts when I have a mental block. But really that's the only thing I can think of. There's really nothing to hate about this profession - I'm doing something I LOVE, you can't beat that.

How do you balance your personal and writing time?
Personal time? What's that? LOL Well, I try and keep my writing time to the evening when my kids are all asleep. But sometimes if I'm working extra hard on a book or I have a deadline I write a lot throughout the day. I just try and make sure to spend time with the kids and the husband. Family time is important, I value it and I'm thankful for my family. They tolerate me when I'm on deadline!!

How do you write? Do your characters come to you first or the plot or the world of the story?
Hmm, sometimes characters come to me first but mostly it's plot. A story idea. I'm a pantster who is becoming more of a plotter.

What genre(s) do you write? Why do you write the stories that you write?
I write mostly contemporaries though I've dabbled in paranormal and I'm working on a historical. I write contemporaries because I'm taking the easy way out, LOL. Actually I love to read a good contemporary so I like to write them too. I'm not as much into paranormal books but I've read some wonderful stuff and I like to experiment with it because it allows me to stretch my wings, so to speak. I always wanted to write a historical, started reading historical romances first but the research always intimidated me. Now that I'm getting into it I'm finding it is actually fun - and the Internet is a beautiful thing. :)

What is the biggest misconception about being an author?
That we make a lot of money! That the way books are written are with a formula and that anyone can do it. Not true. If everyone could do it, then everyone would be a writer.

Do you tend to base your characters on real people or are they totally from your imagination?
Totally from my imagination though I have based the occasional character on a real person. Or a combination of a few people. But I'm never going to tell who! LOL

Out of all the characters that you've written, who is your favorite and why?
Hmmm, that's tough because I love all of my characters and I usually favor the one I'm working on at the moment. But if I have to pick a character from a book of mine, I'd have to choose Lily my holiday fairy from Fairies & Wishes (Cobblestone Press). She was just so fun to write because she was a fairy, a complete innocent in the human world. I could make her react in ways that "real" people wouldn't normally do because she was a fairy. That was fun.

If you were writing a script for the big screen, who would you want to act in your movie?
Ah jeez what a question! Ummmm, well I'm going to give the typical hot man answer. I'm a little obsessed with Clive Owen right now. Yeah, I want Clive to be in my movie and I'll work on one on one sessions with him. That sounds good. Excuse me while I go swoon now. ;)

What would you want readers to take away from your books?
I want people to finish my books and think, "That was a great story." I want them to be able to lose themselves for a little bit and just enjoy my characters. That's all. :)

Do you have any advice for beginning writers in regards to writing a book?
Finish the book. That's the biggest hurdle to get over. I wrote in fits and spurts for years, starting things but never finishing them. Finally in 05 I finished something and even though it was utter crap, at least I finished it. I knew I could finish something. And I swear that makes all the difference in the world.

Who are your favorite authors?
Hmm, I love all kinds of authors, that's so hard to answer! Too many to even mention.

What are you reading right now?
I'm reading Sylvia Day's A Passion for Him. It's so good! I love Sylvia Day, she's one of the many I admire.



ABOUT THE BOOK:

BLURB:

Tessa Laurent is a witch searching for love. She casts spells on men to lure them into her bed but once she gets them there, she's never satisfied. Afraid to be condemned to a life with no love, she vows to meet men the 'normal' way.

She meets Devon Smith and she’s is immediately attracted to him even though he’s a vampire. Vampires and witches just don't mix—or so she thinks.

He's out to prove her wrong, because Devon's not quite what he seems…


EXCERPT:

To read an excerpt, just click HERE!



Witchy Woman by Karen Erickson
ISBN: 978-1-906328-48-1
Publisher: Total E-bound
Release Date: November 5, 2007
Genre: Seasonal Short/Paranormal/Vampire
£1.69 from Total-e-bound.com


Purchase Witchy Woman by Karen Erickson HERE!!!