Q&A Interview and Giveaway with Laura Kaye

Good afternoon Book Monsters and Literal Addicts, Book Monster Reviews and LITERAL ADDICTION are very pleased to welcome award-winning author Laura Kaye to our sites today.

A multi-published author of paranormal and contemporary romance, Laura Kaye’s hot, heartfelt stories are all about the universal desire for a place to belong.  Laura grew up amidst family lore involving angels, ghosts, and evil-eye curses, cementing her life-long fascination with the supernatural.  Though an avid fiction writer as a teenager, a career as a historian took her in other directions until recently.  Now that Laura’s inner muse has awakened, she’s constantly creating new story ideas!  Laura lives in Maryland with her husband, two daughters, and bad dog, and appreciates her view of the Chesapeake Bay every day. 

Laura is a member of the Romance Writers of America (PRO), Maryland Romance Writers, and the Futuristic, Fantasy & Paranormal (FF&P) Chapter of the RWA.

Laura's latest releases include her contemporary romance novella Hearts in Darkness, and paranormal romance novel Forever Freed, which we will be discussing and promoting today.  Forever Freed has been called "a great read...packed with memorable characters.  Full of twist and turns.  You have more than just a paranormal story, you get exceptional entertainment!".  It was also deemed "Not just another vampire love story, it's a journey of hope between a man who stopped living and a woman who taught him to love” and “both believable and fresh....Ms. Kaye is phenomenal at writing characters."

Here is a brief synopsis of Forever Freed to tease you guys.  J

A heart can break, even one that no longer beats.

I stalk my new neighbors, a single mother and her child, drawn by the irresistible scent of their joy and love. I crave their blood, starved for some healing respite from my ancient grief. Now to lure them into my grasp.

But they surprise me. Little Olivia accepts me without fear or reservation-talking, smiling, offering innocent affection that tugs at my long-lost humanity. Her mother, Samantha, seeks me out when she should stay away, offering sweet friendship, and calling to the forgotten man within me. They lure me instead.

Ah, Dio, Lucien, run and spare them while you can...

So….now that we teased you all, let's get to the interview so we can learn more about Laura and squeeze out some more info about her book.

Book Monster Reviews/LITERAL ADDICTION:  Hi Laura!  We’re happy to have you with us today!  Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to drop by and spend some time with us!

Laura:  Thanks so much for having me here, to both of your blogs, today!

Book Monster Reviews/LITERAL ADDICTION:  We’d like to start out getting to know you a little bit better.

Q1):   Can you tell us 3 things about yourself that we can't find out on the internet, in your bio, etc?

Laura:  Let’s see…how about these three: I have two tattoos (wrist and shoulder), I work all day with men in uniforms, and I’ve made several stained glass windows, several quite large.

2)  What do you love to do when you're not writing?  Any special hobbies or interests?

Laura: Honestly, I used to have more hobbies before I dedicated so much time to my writing career! Now, I devote most of my non-family, non-job time to writing-related pursuits. However, I love to read and have been an avid reader my whole life. I’m also quite addicted to a few computer games. When the mood strikes me, I also like to plant flowers in the gardens in front of my house.

3)  How long have you been writing, and what genre did you start out writing in?

Laura: I’ve been a writer my entire life. By education and occupation, I work as a historian, and writing is the language of professional history. However, I became interested in fiction writing about three years ago. My main reading and writing interest is in paranormal romance, so that’s where I began, with the novel that ultimately became Forever Freed—the first I wrote, and first I sold.

4)  What made you decide to start writing Paranormal Romance?

Laura: I’ve always been interested in the supernatural. My whole family believed in ghosts and angels and evil-eye curses and other creepy and unexplainable phenomena growing up. It was completely normal to sit around my grandmother’s kitchen table, the whole extended family there with plates piled high, and have various people tell stories of their houses being haunted, etc. I believe I personally experienced two hauntings in my life, both before the age of 17, and I’m also pretty convinced that my parents, both dead for a number of years now, visit me from time to time in their own way. So, my interest in writing about the paranormal extended from all of that. And, Lucien Demarco didn’t really give me much of a choice in writing his story—which slammed into my brain fully formed and demanded to be written. That drive pushed me to write the initial draft in 11 weeks.

5)  Who are some of your favorite authors?

Laura: I grew up with Anne Rice and Stephen King. They were the staples of my reading life as a teenage and young adult. I also love Dean Koontz, Douglas Preston & Lincoln Childs, and J.K. Rowling. In romance, J.R. Ward and Sherrilyn Kenyon are my absolute faves, and they’ve been great teachers for me in male point of view, too.

6) What are 3 things that never fail to make you smile?

Laura: Kindness, without question. The antics of my four year old daughter, who is a huge troublemaker but so damn cute and sweet you can’t help but laugh. A really yummy piece of warm apple pie with vanilla ice cream—zomg—my favorite dessert!

7)  It’s your first Paranormal Romance.  You must be proud.  Can you please tell us a little bit about Forever Freed?

Laura: I’m so proud of this book. The definition of a “labor of love.” Forever Freed is about a reclusive, empathic vampire who falls in love with the woman he planned to kill and her young daughter, then must fight his ancient guilt, bloodlust, lie by omission, and an old vampire rival who threatens everything he holds dear. The two things that make me most proud in reviews is when readers say how much they cared about the characters and how many emotions the book led them to experience.

8)  Was there any specific inspiration that led to the writing of "Forever Freed"?

Laura: I was 20 pages into a ghost story novel when the idea for Forever Freed slammed into my head, pretty much fully formed. In fact, I wrote a 22-page single-spaced outline before I ever started writing the novel, just to get the story out of my head and down on paper! I’ve always been intrigued by the idea that children have the ability to perceive the supernatural more than adults, so that was one inspiration. And then there was a lot of musical inspiration behind the book, too, which is why the playlist I have on the book’s page on my website is so big!

9)  What's next for Laura Kaye?  What do you have planned in the upcoming months?

Laura: Things are crazy busy! In a good way! My next release is a contemporary erotic romance called Just Gotta Say. I don’t have a release date yet but I suspect early fall. I also have two new paranormal series starting this winter. The Heart of the Anemoi series is a four-book contemporary fantasy romance series featuring directional wind gods the Greeks associated with the seasons. North of Need will release November 1. The Vampire Warrior Kings series is a (so far) two-book novella-length dark paranormal romance series with Harlequin Nocturne. In the Service of the King will release in December. I also have a women’s fiction I’m pitching to agents right now—bit of a genre-hopper, here!

10)  Is there anything specific you would like to say to your readers?

Laura: Thank you, thank you, thank you! To me, books are a partnership between authors and readers, so I couldn’t do what I love without readers! Also, please know how much it means to an author when you review their books!

Thank you so much Laura for taking time out of your busy schedule to sit down and talk to us.  We hope to have you on Book Monster and LITERAL ADDICTION again in the future.

Laura: I would love that! Thanks so much for hosting me today!

If you would like to find out more about Laura and her books, you can visit her at any of the sites below.

Laura's Website:  http://www.laurakayeauthor.com/

Blog – http://laurakayeauthor.blogspot.com

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/#!/laurakayeauthor

Twitter - http://twitter.com/#!/laurakayeauthor

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CONTEST: Laura is giving away a $10 Digibooks Café gift certificate with a 20% off code (enough to buy BOTH of Laura’s ebooks!) to a lucky Book Monster Follower.

To Enter, Post a comment on the interview and make sure you leave a valid email address. Any comments without an email address will NOT be entered into drawing. You must also be a follower of the BMR blog. GOOD LUCK!!!!

Want a 2nd chance to win??  Don't forget to drop by the LITERAL ADDICTION website (http://www.literaladdiction.com/) and follow the directions and links to enter their contest as well!!!