Author Interview & Constest with Marlene Perez

This week I have a young adult author as a guest on Amberkatze's Book Blog! Marlene Perez surprised me with her first book in the 'Dead Is' series and I can't wait to read more.

Read my review for Dead is the New Black and then check out the interview and contest!

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Amber - Welcome to Amberkatze's Book Blog! Thank you so much for being a guest. Maybe you can start things off by telling my readers a bit about your paranormal teen trilogy?

Marlene - The DEAD IS trilogy is about Daisy Giordano and her two psychic sisters, who solve paranormal mysteries in Nightshade, California. It has a little romance, a little mystery, and a lot of humor.

Amber - How did you come up with the idea for the trilogy? Was it something that just happened or did it take alot of time to put together?

Marlene - The first line of DEAD IS THE NEW BLACK popped into my mind, fully formed. "Being dead became fashionable approximately forty-five minutes after Samantha "the Divine" Devereaux came back from summer break." And soon after, I thought of the title. I'd read that the actor Poppy Montgomery was from a family where all the girls were named after flowers and it kind of took off from there.

I knew right away that I wanted to write a series. I like that world and those characters so much, which is important. As a series writer, you end up spending a lot of time with your characters. You'd better like them. A series does take a bit of time to put together, especially when you have to create that world. I deliberately melded the high school world with the paranormal, but you have to think about what you want the rules of that world to be.

Amber - Did you have to do alot of research for the trilogy? Talk to alot of psychics? :)

Marlene - I didn't actually talk to a lot of psychics, but my mother used to read tea leaves when I was little, so I've always been a believer in at least the possibility of psychic abilities. I also read a lot of non-fiction about psychics.

Amber - Are you anything like the main character Daisy? Or any of the other characters?

Marlene - Like Daisy, I'm the youngest, but instead of two sisters, I have seven (and four brothers.) I think we always bring a little bit of ourselves into our characters. I can't cook nearly as well as Daisy, though. My husband is the chef in the family. I think I can be a little bit like Samantha, too.

Amber - The dead is books aren't your only novels. How did you end up writing Young Adult books? Is it a genre you enjoy reading yourself?

Marlene - I LOVE reading young adult books. Not only that, but some of my favorite television shows are geared for teens. I read pretty much everything though. I tried writing other things, but when I started writing my first young adult novel, I felt like something just clicked. I think more adults should read young adult novels.

Amber - Whats next? Are there going to be more than 3 Dead is books? Are you working on anything else?

Marlene - The DEAD IS trilogy is now officially a series! There will be two more books in the series, DEAD IS JUST A RUMOR and DEAD IS NOT AN OPTION. DEAD IS JUST A RUMOR will be out in the fall of 2010 and DEAD IS NOT AN OPTION will be out in the spring of 2011. I have a stand-alone contemporary young adult novel, THE COMEBACK, coming out in August. I'm also working on a teen paranormal romance, tentatively titled RIFT, and I'm very excited about that project.

Amber - What books do you enjoy reading? Are there any must read authors or series that you have to have?

Marlene - Mysteries, romance, paranormal, urban fantasy, contemporary ya. I like Charlie Huston's Joe Pitt vampire detective novels, Charlaine Harris's SOUTHERN VAMPIRE series, and a long long list of teen authors like Holly Black, Libba Bray, Mary Pearson, Melissa Wyatt, Nancy Werlin, A.M. Jenkins. The list goes on and on. I also am a big fan of any writer who can make me laugh and cry in the same novel. My goodreads to read list is embarrassingly long, but it's the only way I can keep track of the books I want to read.

Amber - Some authors have playlists for their books. I noticed you have some on your website. Does music have alot of influence on your books?

Marlene - Music has a huge influence on me. I love finding the right song for the right moment. For the paranormal romance I'm working on, I've been listening to Robert Plant/Alison Krauss's album, particularly the song "Please Read the Letter." And the prophetic jukebox in the DEAD IS series is a fun way for me to mention some of my favorite songs and sneak in some clues at the same time.

Amber - How do you like to relax? Any hobbies? Favourite TV programmes you have to watch?

Marlene - I like to read, watch movies & TV (I love my dvr!) but all my favorite shows seem to get cancelled. I loved Veronica Mars, Arrested Development, Freaks and Geeks, and Reaper. Do you see a pattern here? I also enjoy hanging out and having coffee with friends, vacations with my family, and traveling, when I get the chance.

Amber - If you could be any paranormal creature, what would you be and why?

Marlene - That's a tough one. Maybe a psychic. I can't stand the sight of blood, so a vampire is out. And all that hair on a werewolf!

Amber - Thank you so much for answering my questions. I hope you will come back and be a guest again someday!



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Contest Time!

This week there are Three copies of DEAD IS SO LAST YEAR up for grabs!! (US only! Sorry!)

To enter the contest you have to comment here letting me know what music you are listening to lately?

No music = No Entry.

Earn another entry for each place you link this contest on the net. Make sure you add links here for me to confirm your entries!

You can also earn extra entries by emailing your friends about the contest. Just make sure you send a copy of your email or receipt to me at Amberkatzes_book_blog at gmx dot net.

The contest will stay open until Saturday 7th of June 2009 4pm CET and the winner will be picked by a randomizer. Entrants should check back to see if they have won. I do not hunt down winners and will pick new winners for any prizes not claimed within 7 days.

If you are claiming a prize, have emailed me and have not heard back before the 7 day limit is up then post a comment here on the blog. Your email may get sucked into my spam filter.

Enjoy!