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I met Mari Passananti through a mutual author friend, Wendy Walker, and I’m so glad I did. She is truly the sort of person who makes her own luck and doesn’t take “no” for an answer. In 2011, after leaving a longterm law career to pursue her real dream of writing, she published THE HAZARDS OF HUNTING WHILE HEARTBROKEN with her own Rutland Square Press. Two years later, she veered off the “chick lit” path dramatically to release a political thriller called THE K STREET AFFAIR. 

Like self-publishing phenom Heather Gaynor, she’s an inspiration to every writer who has what it takes to make it in the big leagues and won’t stay put until she gets there. I’m honored to have her here today.

After the interview, leave a comment for a chance to win a signed copy of one of her books. This week, you’ll have two chances!

1. You practiced law for many years before deciding to take the plunge and try your hand at writing full-time. Was this something you always knew you wanted to do? If so, what gave you the push to finally take that leap and how did you make the transition?

I practiced law at the beginning of my career, and left law firm life to become a headhunter, which I did happily for several years. I always wanted to write, and I had flirted with the idea of writing a book for I don’t know how long. Then I had one of those milestone birthdays that makes you stop and think, and I decided to go for it. 

This may sound macabre, but I looked in the mirror, realized that (in actuarial terms) I’m probably halfway out of time, and that if I want to reinvent myself, to take a stab at making it as an author, I had to get to it. 

I had one of two key things I should have had when I took the plunge: a bit of a financial safety net. Little did I know that I would also need a tribe. I thought writers lived a solitary existence, that they worked at cluttered desks surrounded by cats and overgrown plants. Maybe that works for some teeny minority, but I think most of us benefit from robust discussion with other professionals about both the craft and business of fiction. Continue reading →

As a redhead, I was immediately drawn to Kerry Schafer’s BETWEEN because of its cover. Of course, that’s like saying I was drawn to the Louvre because because it has comfortable bathrooms! Kerry is a phenomenal author with a great discovery tale and loads of ideas springing from her fingertips. I’m honored to host her today at Skipping Midnight.

After the interview, leave a comment for a chance to win both BETWEEN and an advanced reading copy (well, aren’t you ahead of the game!) of WAKEWORLD, which comes out January 28.

1. You have a very interesting publishing story, having gotten your big break using Penguin Random House’s Book Country. What appealed to you about this community and how did it lead to a two-book deal with Penguin/Ace?

When I connected with Book Country is was brand new and still in test mode. I was invited to be one of the original beta testers and the whole idea just sounded like fun!  it was also helpful to my writing process. Getting feedback from a wide variety of readers is an eye opening thing – it helped me see some aspects of my writing that beta readers hadn’t pointed out. It also helped me understand that what one reader loves the next reader might hate, and that you can’t possibly please everybody. As for the book deal – a lot of agents and editors keep their eyes on Book Country. I was lucky to be the first author acquired directly off the site. Continue reading →

Thank you to everyone who read Julie Anne Lindsey’s interview on Wednesday! Both she and I had a fantastic time going through all the wonderful comments. Quoth the author: “The response was wonderful and I am giddy happy.” :)

Congratulations go out to Kimberly and Paula, who received their copies of DECEIVED and MURDER BY THE SEASIDE yesterday. For everyone else, there’s still hope!

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Now that all the gifts have been unwrapped, the stockings emptied and the bellies filled, it’s almost time to get back to business. But before we return to the grind, author Julie Anne Lindsey is here to help ring in the New Year with some words of wisdom and a DOUBLE giveaway!

With a “seize the day” mantra and loads of enthusiasm, Julie is beyond passionate about her craft. In just a few years, she published nearly a dozen novels and novellas with small publishers, and recently landed a cozy mystery series with Carina Press (a digital imprint of romance giant Harlequin). She equates the “big six” publishing world to an overcrowded swimming pool, and she won’t sit still until she’s fully immersed in the water. Well, let’s hope she has a towel nearby… because it seems she’s  pretty darn close.

After the interview, leave a comment for a chance to win an e-copy of either DECEIVED (young adult suspense) or MURDER BY THE SEASIDE (cozy mystery). Please specify which one you want, or I’ll assume you’re interested in either.

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For someone whose writing career only officially got started in 2011, you’ve published a crazy number of novels and novellas—ranging from romance to mystery to thriller. Which is your favorite?

Wow. Okay. That’s really hard. ::taps chin:: Um. I’m deeply attached to most of my characters and stories for different reasons, so this is an insanely difficult question! Lol. I think I’ll say the October cozy mystery release, Murder by the Seaside is my favorite at this moment in my life. I pick this story because it was an underdog. It was on submission for months and I thought it was sunk — headed to the file drawer with so many others, but my agent called and voila! Carina Press wanted it along with two sequels. So, I feel like it has a victory story.

The next installment, Murder Comes Ashore, arrives in March 2014 and the final manuscript is now in the hands of my editor. Writing this set of stories opened a new world to me. Continue reading →