Author Interview & Contest with Kelley Armstrong

I am very happy to welcome back, for her third visit to Amberkatze's Book Blog, author Kelley Armstrong!!! Waking the Witch the 11th book in the Women of the Otherworld series is due out on Tuesday and this time Savannah takes the reins and is all grown up! I was lucky enough to get a review copy to read and it was, as always, an amazing addition to the series.

Oh and not only does Kelley have a new book out but she has revamped her website! So make sure you take a look at her gorgeous new site after reading the interview and entering the contest. Kelley is giving away a couple of books and I know you want them!!!

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Amber - Hello Kelley! Welcome back to Amberkatze's Book Blog! You have been very busy lately. The third book in the Darkest powers book came out in April as well as Tales of the Otherworld. Now Waking the Witch is due out! How do you manage to find the time to write? ;)

Kelley - Very carefully! I like being busy, but sometimes lately it’s gotten busier than I like and I know I need to ease back. I have a general writing schedule plus daily schedules to keep me on track.

Amber - Now I my favourite series is The Women of the Otherworld. Is there anything you can tell us about Waking the Witch without giving too much away?

Kelley - The narrator is Savannah Levine, who has grown up over the course of the series, having first appeared in Stolen at the age of 12. In book 11 (Waking the Witch) she's 21 and gets her first investigation.

Amber - I thoroughly enjoyed Tales of the Otherworld. Will there be more short stories released in book form in the future?

Kelley – Tales and Men went through most of the stories I’ve piled up over the years, so there’s nothing new planned for a while. I need to write more first!

Amber - I don't want The Women of the Otherworld to come to an end. Do you actually see an end in sight? How many more books do you want to write in the series?

Kelley - I don't have an ending in mind. I’m contracted through 13. As for whether the series will go beyond that, it depends on readers and my publishers, and also on me—whether I feel I have more Otherworld stories to tell.

Amber - Your Darkest Powers books were great reads. Will we ever see these characters again? Will you start another series in the same world?

Kelley - I’m contracted for three more YA books after that. They take place in the same universe, with another group of Edison Group test subjects. So I’m doing something similar to what I do in my adult books by changing narrators and main characters, with the possibility of bringing back the original ones later if that’s what readers want.

Amber - What are you working on at the moment? Do you have any other projects?

Kelley – I just finished a book, so I’m in that “between-novels” time when I get everything else tidied up: short stories, guest blogs etc that I’ve promised in the last 6 months. I’m also working on an original graphic novella, starring Elena and Clay, with Dabel Brothers and Dynamite Entertainment.

Amber - How long on average does it take you to write a book? Do you have a process you follow? or do you just start at page one and see what happens?

Kelley - My process is constantly evolving. I've discovered I work best from an outline. My finished novel never completely follows the outline though. Better ideas arise during the first draft and I follow them wherever they lead. The first draft is a very intense process for me, and I’m writing very quickly, so it’s usually done in 3-4 months. When the first draft is finished, I ease back into a more relaxed editing mode.

Amber - How do you pick the names for your characters? Do they have any special meanings?

Kelley - I go through list after list of names to come up with ones that fit the characters. The final choice is based on a combination of experience, such as “have I ever known someone with that name?” and a general feel of the name. I also have to be careful not to have major characters in the same book with similar sounding names (same first letter, rhyming etc)

Amber - How much say do you have in the publishing of your books? Do you get to pick the covers? Decide when they are released? etc

Kelley - The publishers handle cover art—getting the artist and choosing a design. They also set the schedule. My job is really just to provide what’s between the covers, which means lots of editing.

Amber - There has been quite a lot of Paranormal TV series and Films to hit the screens lately. Why do you think that is? Would you like to see and of your characters come to life in the same way?

Kelley – I have no idea! Something hits like Twilight or True Blood, and suddenly paranormal is very popular. While it would be nice to see a movie/TV version of my work, I’m not expecting it anytime soon!

Amber - What have you been reading and watching lately? Do you have any recommendations for us?

Kelley - Right now, I’m finally reading Stieg Larrson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and I’m also reading Cindy Pon’s Silver Phoenix (a teen novel set in ancient China) For TV, this year I’ve been enjoying Glee and Mad Men. All of those come with my recommendation J

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

Kelley - I would love to be a werewolf. What better thrill than to experience life in a different form? The secondary characteristics would be cool, too, but those "extras" also make it hard for werewolves to blend, so if I was being very practical, I'd go with spell-casters. Their powers take work to learn, but overall they have fewer drawbacks.

Amber - Thank you for stopping by again! I hope you will come back again in the future!







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Contest Time

Kelley is being very generous and is giving away TWO copies of Waking the Witch! So that means TWO lucky people will get a copy of the newest installment from Kelley herself!

How To Enter

What is your favourite Kelley Armstrong book and why?

No Book = No Entry

Earn more entries for each link you place about this contest on the net. You can post on Facebook, Twitter & MySpace but make sure you add links here for me to confirm your entries! However please do not make individual postings for each entry. Please post all your entries in one post.

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The contest will stay open until Sunday 1st of August 2010 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.