I’m honored to be chosen to be part of this blog hop, and I’d like to thank Ron Voigts for tagging me to participate. This gives us all a chance to view new releases from authors we admire, as well as introduce us to some works in progress.
Ten Interview Questions for “The Next Big Thing” are as follows:
What is the working title of your book?
Heart of the Raven, named after the mythological heart of Lilith, who is the mother of the vampires. Or, at least it’s a mythological object in my Amaranthine universe. The truth is, I only invented the heart as an object because I wanted to use it as a future book title.
Where did the idea come from for the book?
It’s the fifth book in the Amaranthine series, so many of the plot ideas have been percolating for awhile. I wanted to send my vampires overseas because most vampire series do at some point. Usually vampires go to Europe and, while they do have to go to Germany, I wanted them to do something unusual after that. Originally I’d planned Mexico, but Twilight used it so heavily that I chose another country. The problem was to figure out WHY they’d go there. And then I saw a documentary a year ago and it all fell into place. Well, with a lot of research.
What genre does your book fall under?
Paranormal. If given no other choice I’d say Paranormal Romance because it has some hawt vampires in it and of course Katelina and Jorick’s romance. Oh, and a couple of sex scenes. There hasn’t been much killing thus far. By chapter ten the body count is only two vampires and *maybe* a couple of human port patrol officers. (It’s a bit ambiguous what happened to them in this draft.)
Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
That’s a tough one. Jonathan Harvey once did a casting call for the series, and he did a pretty good job. I agree with most of his choices, except Patrick, and Jorick. I really don’t know who would play them. Verchiel could be played by any number of smexy Japanese actors, though I lean towards Hideaki Takizawa.
What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Katelina and Jorick land in international hot water while trying to recover a legendary artifact, said to make its owner invincible.
Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
Self pubbed because I like being self pubbed.
How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
I’m setting this post up in advance, and right now I am still working on it. Work keeps getting in the way.
What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
If I say I don’t know, is that a bad thing? I can tell you some books it is NOT like. Twilight, for instance.
Who or What inspired you to write this book?
The series must go on. Mainly it’s the so-called apocalypse that has spurned me to hurry up, though. I know, I know. It’s superstitious and silly, but I’d like to have it done before December 21st just in case. Not that it’s going to be a conclusion, but it’s the last book where I have any events planned. Book six is going to be as surprising for me as for the readers.
What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
Rather that giving you a sales pitch, I’ll let the book speak for itself. I’ve posted several UNEDITED snippets of Heart of the Raven for your reading enjoyment, so if you want to see sex, violence, and a vampire in a bath tub, check them out!
Last but not least, here are the authors I’ve tagged. They will post their blog on November 14th, so be sure to check them out or you can always stop by in the meantime.
lccooper
/ November 7, 2012This is cool, Jo. Glad to see that I’m not the only author who lives in a bubble enveloped by a vacuum (regarding your comment about other authors’ books in this genre).
Thanks for sharing your thoughts about your WIP. Planning on having the first draft finished by the end of this month for NaNoWriMo?
Thank you, as well, for inviting me to participate in this blog hop and for adding a link to my site. This is fun!
All the best,
LC Cooper
Joleene Naylor
/ November 15, 2012alas the first draft was supposed to be done already but it;s not *sigh*
Looking forward to your post 🙂 Nice to know I am not the only one not reading my genre – though they claim that ‘s a bad thing…. But who has time?!?!
Sharon
/ November 7, 2012Such a great post Joleene. Your answers give such a fascinating glimpse into your world – I really enjoyed reading them.
Thanks also for inviting me and tagging my blog – I’ve never participated in a blog hop before and am finding it a lot of fun! – Sharon 🙂
Joleene Naylor
/ November 16, 2012You’re very welcome! Enjoyed your post! 😀
Roger
/ November 7, 2012Great post.
I’ve just read your vampire shorts. They were all terrific. Just enough to get my teeth into (as it were) but not enough. Now I’ll just have to have the lot.
Joleene Naylor
/ November 16, 2012Glad you enjoyed them! *cough* feel free to leave a review on amazon *cough* LOL! I am supposed to be practicing asking for reviews but it’s not going so well… makes one feel like… well, I don;t know what but it’s not good!
Roger
/ November 16, 2012Sorry, I forgot. One review coming right up.
Joleene Naylor
/ November 16, 2012ha ha no worries! I am terribly slow at doing reviews myself!
Roger
/ November 17, 2012Done. I hope you like it.
Sue
/ November 7, 2012I missed that post by Jonathan somehow. I don’t believe in assigning faces to literary characters. I prefer to visualize them in my own warped mind and certainly not James Marsters, spike, for Patrick no flipping way. Get in touch and I’ll give you my nano update 😀
Joleene Naylor
/ November 16, 2012Yeah I didn’t like his choice for Patrick and while I love Orland Bloom i don’t know about him as Jorick, either :p
Barb
/ November 8, 2012Yikes, post an IMDB link to actors, at least there’s a pic! 😦
Anyway, I think I have a suggestion you might consider for Jorick – although I have no idea how good his English is: Arjun Rampal. He looks great with long hair! 😉 (see Rock On! and take out the moustache, for example… IMDB doesn’t have many pics of him long-haired, though, but trust me, he looks good! http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0992000/)
Joleene Naylor
/ November 16, 2012He is good looking! heh-heh – and hang on lemme find you a Tackey photo – there are lots >:)
http://www.tokyohive.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/tt.jpg – the one on the right 😉
Barb
/ November 17, 2012gotcha! Verchiel indeed! 😀
Donna DM Yates
/ November 9, 2012All your books speak for themselves. And I can’t wait for this one, just can’t wait.
Joleene Naylor
/ November 16, 2012Hopefully I can get it finished soon, LOL!
thejissilly
/ November 11, 2012It’s a fun paranormal romance series. I highly recomend it.
Joleene Naylor
/ November 16, 2012Thanks, Jonathan! You know, you could write that on amazon too *cough*cough* The special editions are especially lonely…
Reena Jacobs
/ November 12, 2012I completely forgot about upcoming apocalypse. And lately I’ve been so worried about other things. In a couple of months it won’t even matter. Guess I just need to calm down already. 🙂
Thanks for the insight for your upcoming book.
Joleene Naylor
/ November 16, 2012Yep! If you consider we’ve got just over a month left, it throws everything into perspective, LOL!
Barbara
/ November 13, 2012Such a fun post Joleene. I enjoyed a glimpse into your world.
Joleene Naylor
/ November 16, 2012Thanks, Barbara!