Interview: Kate and Nicole

Once upon a time I asked an amazing author if I could interview her with her amazing agent, and they both said yes.

Kate had me at "What if..." --- which isn't even technically part of RED, but from those two words, I fell in love with everything about her Transplanted Tales, and I'm jealous that Nicole, super agent, gets to read Kate's books first! *I joke. Maybe*

Now, at the end of the interview, be sure to enter the giveaway, because Kate's prizes include any ONE of her Transplanted Tales (e-book) and The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Character Expression.


Kate SeRine

Onto the interview...

Question 1: Please share with us how your relationship developed.

Author Kate:
It almost didn't! When Nic requested the full of RED I immediately sent it to her, but she never received the message!! Luckily, she contacted me again a month or so later to see if I was still planning to send it. You'd better believe that I made sure she received the manuscript the second time around. A few months after that she *kind of* passed on the manuscript. I'll let her explain that part. ;)

I contacted her again when my editor made the offer on RED a week before Christmas, and Nic said she actually had been planning to call me after the holidays. I signed with her a day or two later when we had a chance to talk on the phone. It was an unbelievable week, let me tell ya! And Nic has been amazing agent from the word "go"! I honestly can't imagine having a more dedicated, talented, and caring advocate in my corner, and I'm so proud to call her my friend and mentor.


Agent Nicole:

Nicole Resciniti

I'm a big proponent of not having in-house competition, so at the time that I wanted Red, I still had a few projects I needed to place. But Kate's writing stayed with me. Seriously with me. I'd think about her characters and the world she created. I was itching to get my hands on her series and to see what other projects she had in the works.

When we reconnected, I literally did a happy dance. I was SOO psyched to be able to work with her.

Kate is incredibly prolific and talented. I LOVE HER! I think she's brilliant. The writing is always tight and witty. The imagination she breathes into each manuscript, it's unsurpassed. Tess, Nate, Lav, Nicky Blue, Gideon... I find her characters to be the perfect combination of strength and vulnerability. They're REAL. She's an author to watch!


Question 2: Please give us a look into the typical day for you.

Author Kate:
I wake up at 5:30 (or so...) and somehow manage to get everyone ready and out the door by around 7:00. I have a crazy-long commute to my day-job, so I spend a lot of time brainstorming on story ideas, plot points, characters, etc., while I'm in the car. After putting in the hours at my office, I head home to the general chaos of running my kids to their various activities, helping with homework, and trying to hang with my hubby now and then! The "magic" of writing happens after everyone goes to bed and on the weekends. I usually collapse around 11:00 or 11:30 each night (except on weekends when I'm up until the wee hours of the morning).

Agent Nicole:
My days begin early and end, um, embarrassingly late. The 'office hours' are when I process/negotiate contracts, queries, and respond to emails. I make my phone calls to editors in the afternoons. We discuss marketing, promo, upcoming release dates. There is correspondence to our film and foreign rights agents. Then there are the submissions and following up on them. A lot of my job is centered on ensuring that my authors are receiving the attention they deserve.

The afternoon and evening is reading/editing time. I work closely with my authors and we might edit a manuscript several times before sending it out on submission. It's the 'quiet' time at night when I can bang out a lot of work.


Question 3: What is it about The Transplanted Tales that caught your attention to write it (Kate) and to represent it (Nicole)?

Author Kate:
The idea for the Transplanted Tales came to me while having a what-if conversation with my son who was around 8 years old at the time. He asked the question, "What if fairytale characters were living next door to us?" And the idea just sparked. I immediately heard Tess "Red" Little's voice in my head--and if you know Tess, you know she can be a persistent pain in the butt.

I finished the manuscript right around the time fairytale retellings/reimaginings were really starting to explode in popularity, so the timing just happened to work out great. Shows like ONCE UPON A TIME and GRIMM came out when my manuscript for RED was already under consideration with my editor. I've honestly never seen these shows, but I'm certainly grateful for their popularity and will have to check them out at some point! :)

Agent Nicole:
For me, it was taking something we're all familiar with, the fairytales of our childhoods, and making it fresh. Forget about what you think you know about Little Red Riding Hood, Tess "Little Red" is a kick-ass heroine. She's smart, capable, a woman who knows what she wants. I LOVE that these characters are unique.

Kate blends humor, action and suspense. Her writing is polished and very very witty. And there are layers, to the characters, to the plots. You don't know how the story will end, but then when you reach the last pages, you want to savor every word. You don't want the story to end. What's more, the stories stick with you. I love characters that are memorable.

I don't know that I can adequately convey just how talented Kate is as an author. I am incredibly blessed to be able to work with her!!!


Question 4: If you could cast the characters in The Transplanted Tales, who would you cast and why?

Author Kate:

I've never been able to nail down an actress for Red, but Amy Lee of the band Evanescence is much how I picture her in my head. Her eyes are electric in every sense of the word. I had better luck with some of the others:

Nate Grimm - Clive Owen (dark and brooding but a gentle side that's dead-sexy--LOL, no pun intended)

Seth Wolf - Bradley Cooper (lean and muscular but with an everyman quality and quiet strength that I love)

Nicky Blue - Jensen Ackles (sexy, bad-boy look but can pull off Nicky's gentleness and fierce loyalty toward the people he loves)

Lavender Seelie - Natalie Portman or maybe Jewel Staite (both women have a very sweet, adorable beauty but an inner strength that comes through)

Trish Muffet - Sophia Myles (looks delicate and fragile but can be a total badass)

You can check out some of my other casting picks at: http://pinterest.com/kateserine/character-inspiration/

Agent Nicole:
Oooh, this is fun! For my picks, I'd cast the following:

Red Little--Angelina Jolie. Hands-down.

Nate Grimm--Eric Bana or Christian Bale

Seth Wolf--Gerard Butler

Nicky Blue--Ryan Gosling

Lavender Seelie--I agree, Natalie Portman

Trish Muffet--Emma Stone

Gideon--Alexander Skarsgard


Question 5: What’s the best piece of advice you can give our readers about getting published?

Author Kate:
Keep writing, be persistent, and always, ALWAYS be professional. The industry is smaller than you think and people talk. Make sure they're talking about you for the right reasons.

Agent Nicole:
Ditto to the above. And most importantly, NEVER GIVE UP. Keep writing. And then keep writing some more. Read.

Just for fun…

Morning or night?

Author Kate: Morning, believe it or not. But I require copious amounts of coffee.

Agent Nicole: Night. Late night.


Television or radio?

Author Kate: Hmm... Tough one. Depends on my mood. I love cheesy horror films, martial arts movies, and anything about the paranormal (go figure). But I need music to feed my muse.

Agent Nicole: Neither, lol. Radio, only while I'm driving. I rarely watch TV. The hour or two spent glued to the tube is time I could spend doing other things. Although I find the cooking channel soothing, and I like action flicks.


Laptop or desktop?

Author Kate: Desktop at work; laptop at home; iPad and iPhone when on the go.

Agent Nicole: Laptop. Droid phone. I've 'killed' four phones in the last 18 months. Note to self: stop reading books on phone...


Strawberries or blueberries?

Author Kate: Strawberries (preferrably covered in chocolate)

Agent Nicole: Blueberries. Love them! I'm a snacker, eating pretty continuously throughout the day. Blueberries, blackberries, almonds... they are my fave go-to foods.


Pool or ocean?

Author Kate: Pool. In my opinion, the ocean is best admired from the shore.

Agent Nicole: Haa! Damn, Kate, I didn't know we were so different! I love the ocean.


Email or voicemail?

Author Kate: Email; it's tough to catch me on the phone.

Agent Nicole: Not voicemail. Texts are great for me. Emails too. Gotta love today's technology, my phone let's me do everything. :-)

 

*** GIVEAWAY ***

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Thanks for stopping by!
xoxo ~Marisa

Author Spotlight: Julie Ann Walker

I am so excited to have the Julie Ann Walker on my blog!

As you will see from her answers, she's got the best personality, and she's gorgeous!

She's also beyond generous, so good luck to those who enter the giveaway.

 

 

Marisa: Since I stalk you on Twitter, I know where you live. Not the exact location, but the city. :D Please tell us what a typical day in your life in the city is like. 

JAW:  Oooh, this is going to be so disappointing.  Because that dang Carrie Bradshaw led everyone to believe the life of a writer in a city is nothing but brunches, art openings, and cocktail parties.  Now don't get me wrong; there are those things.  But they're fairly few and generally far between.  The truth is I work fifty to eighty (when I'm on a deadline) hours a week.  And that means my days are scheduled to the gills…

So, I wake up… well, that's not true.  Really what happens is I tumble out of bed, stumble to the kitchen, and immediately pour myself two cups of very strong coffee. (That sounds remarkably similar to an old Dolly Parton song.)  Then I wake up.  The second step is to plunk my ever-expanding bottom into my office chair and take care of what I call the "business" of being an author.  I update my website, post on Twitter and Facebook, compose blog posts, write speeches, create lesson plans and handouts for the classes I teach at conferences, organize book signings, put together contests and giveaways, answer fan mail, touch base with my agent and editor, etc.  This usually takes me most of the morning.  Lunch rolls around and I try to catch up on an episode of one of my favorite TV shows: Justified, Sons of Anarchy, Mad Men, Breaking Bad, and most recently The Following.  Then in the afternoons?  Bliss.  Finally.  I get about five hours of uninterrupted writing until it's time to go to the gym, hop on my bicycle, or take a walk along the lake shore in an attempt to combat my ever-expanding bottom.  Shower.  Dinner with my lovely husband.  A couple of hours for some fun stuff.  (Oh, get your heads out of the gutters.  I'm talking drinks with friends, watching Comedy Central, or taking in a movie.  I swear!  *wink, wink*)   Fall into bed.  Rinse and repeat. 

See, I told you Carrie made it look like a lot more fun than it is!  LOL!

Marisa: We met at RWA in New York City, but it was brief and totally intimidating. You were on your way to dinner with your agent and your editor and maybe other people from your publishing house. Would you please share with us what it was like back when you were just getting started? Before your three novels hit the lists and you became a household name.

JAW:  Bwahahaha!  A household name?  I soooo wish.  Then maybe I wouldn't have to work those fifty to eighty hours a week.  I could hire an assistant to take care of the "business" of being an author for me, and I'd spend my mornings having brunch with my homegirls.  Maybe that's how Carrie managed it! *narrows eyes and rubs chin contemplatively* 

 

But, seriously, back when I first met you I was a complete rube.  I didn't know what the heck a "brand" was supposed to be.  I didn't know there was a "big six" in publishing.  I didn't know about royalties or the Rita Awards or book bloggers.  I was completely lost when folks used industry jargon around me, and particularly acronyms: HEA, H/H, POV, ARC…  (Happily-ever-after, hero/heroine, point of view, and advanced reader copy for the uninitiated among those who're reading.)  My degree is in mathematics, so it was like I'd traveled to a foreign country where I didn't speak the language.  I still feel that way most of the time, a stranger in a strange land.  But I'm learning.  Slowly but surely…  ;-)    

Marisa: Did you buy stock in Dum Dums? From where did that piece of characterization develop? 

JAW:  My local drycleaner has a bowl of Dum Dums sitting on the counter, and my husband and I actually fight over who gets to pick up the clothes because each of us wants to brandish our lollipop in front of the other.  Picture Eddie Murphy sing-songing, "I got some ice-cream!  And you can't have none!"  But my husband always picks out the root beer-flavored ones, which I think are -bleck - hideous.  So, yeah.  The Dum Dums featured in the BKI books are a bit of fiction inspired by fact.   

 

Marisa: Congrats on THRILL RIDE releasing in April! How many books in total do you have planned for Black Knights Inc.? 

JAW:  Thanks!  I'm really excited for readers to get their hands on Rock and Vanessa's story.  As for the total number of books planned, right now I'm banking on twelve.  Of course, there's always room for more operators at BKI.  So… who knows?  *shrugs*

 

Marisa: What has been the most thrilling part of this experience for you?

JAW:  I'd have to say it was the evening a friend introduced me to one of her work associates as Julie Walker, and the work associate said, "You mean Julie Ann Walker?  Oh, my god!  I read all your books!"  It wasn't five minutes of fame, more like five seconds, but I'll take it!  :-D

 

Marisa: Okay, so in every picture you're so completely glamorous! Even the one with the foil on your head. ;) Please tell us what you wear when you write. Ball gowns? Harley outfits?

JAW:  I'm going to have to disappoint you again. :-/  The truth is my daily attire consists of a rotating selection of yoga pants and sweatshirts and/or T-shirts.  Except for when I'm crunching on a deadline...  Then I've been known to stay in my pajamas for days on end.  It's a scary sight, believe me!  LOL!  We're talking no makeup, haven't showered, greasy hair twisted up in a lopsided bun… *shiver*   

Marisa: Do you write in any other genre besides romantic suspense?

JAW:  Nope.  I'm an action and adventure girl at heart, so romantic suspense is the genre for me! 

 

Marisa: Where will readers be able to find you to connect with you in real life?

JAW:  I'm headed to three writer/reader conferences this year including RT Booklovers Conference in Kansas City, the RWA National Convention in Atlanta, and Authors After Dark in Savannah.  I invite everyone to come and visit.  It should be tons of fun!  Confession: look for me at the hotel bar.  I tend to hang out there.  *cough, cough*   

  

Fast Facts:

Morning or night?

JAW: Night.  Definitely night.  If you try to have a conversation with me before about 10AM I'm liable to cut you.

Wine or liquor? 

JAW:  Both!  I love a good bottle of wine, especially a big Chardonnay or a deep Cabernet.  But I'm a fan of gin and tonics, as well.  Oh, my god!  Did I just come off sounding like a huge lush?  LOL!  Now I want to call an audible and take back the part where I told everybody I tend to hang out at the bar during conferences!

Desktop or laptop?

JAW:  I work on my desktop the majority of the time.  But I've been known to take my laptop to the gym and use it to answer emails and such while I'm on the treadmill. 

Jeans or a dress? 

JAW:  If it's a casual tunic-type dress that I can wear with tights and boots, I'm there.  Otherwise it's jeans all the way!

Ponytail or headband?

JAW:  Ponytail!  I'm sporting one right now! :-D

Shower or bath?

JAW:  When it comes to baths, I take a page from Sweet Brown, "ain't nobody got time for that!"

Summer or winter?

JAW:  Is this a real question?  Who in their right mind prefers winter? 

Motorcycle or bicycle?

JAW:  I should say motorcycle, right?  Considering what I write?  But I must admit I like to ride my bicycle (Queen song alert!) when the weather is nice in Chicago.  In fact, I'm out on it almost every day from spring until fall.  It's where I do all my best plotting. 

 

...and because Julie is completely amazing, she's offering to one lucky winner three SIGNED Black Knights Inc. novels: HELL ON WHEELS, IN RIDES TROUBLE, and REV IT UP.

 

***GIVEAWAY***

Good Luck!

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 

 

Thanks, Julie, for stopping by Pens and Peonies! I can't wait for THRILL RIDE! Be sure to check out her website www.julieannwalker.com for details on how you can receive a wicked cool bandana!

JAW:  Thanks for having me on Pens and Peonies!  It was a blast!

 

***CONNECT WITH JULIE ANN WALKER***

 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/JAWalkerAuthor

Facebook: www.facebook.com/jawalkerauthor

Website: www.julieannwalker.com

 

...and don't forget to add THRILL RIDE to your Goodreads list!

 

THRILL RIDE BY JULIE ANN WALKER – IN STORES APRIL 2013

 

He’s Gone Rogue…

Ex-navy SEAL Rock Babineaux is as Cajun as they come—spicy, sexy, and more than a bit wicked. But would he actually betray his country? Even his best friends on the special-ops Black Knights team aren't sure they can trust him. Now the target of a massive manhunt, Rock knows the only way to protect the team—especially his partner, Vanessa—is to run...

 

She Won’t Back Down…

Rock might think he can outmaneuver them all, but he hasn't counted on how stubborn Vanessa Cordero can be. And she refuses to cut him loose. Sure, her partner has his secrets, but there's no one in the world she'd rather have by her side in a tight spot. Which is good because she and Rock are about to get very tight...

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Julie Ann Walker is the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of the Black Knights Inc. romantic suspense series. She is prone to spouting movie quotes and song lyrics. She'll never say no to sharing a glass of wine or going for a long walk. She prefers impromptu travel over the scheduled kind, and she takes her coffee with milk. You can find her on her bicycle along the lake shore in Chicago or blasting away at her keyboard, trying to wrangle her capricious imagination into submission. Look for the first four books in her fast-paced series: Hell On Wheels (August 2012) In Rides Trouble (September 2012) Rev It Up (October 2012) and Thrill Ride (April 2013).