Author Interview – Kara Stefanowich @Karakazoo

Apart from writing, what else do you do to earn money?

I’m afraid I won’t be a full time writer for years to come. So until then, I am a PCA (Personal Care Assistant) I take care of people who can’t take care of themselves. More specifically, I specialize in the care of quadriplegic people.

Are your family/friends supportive of your writing?

Unfortunately, I have very little family and just as few real friends. I grew up a foster child and now the only real family I have is my son. Though, I do have a sort of adoptive family, a group of people I happen to lump together who have made my life a happier place. They have been extraordinarily supportive of my writing ventures. For them, I am grateful. J

How do you like to write? Edit? With paper and pen? Laptop? In bed? At your desk?

I have a sort of odd way of doing things. When I first began writing I actually penned out the entire thing in notebooks. I had so many notebooks I couldn’t keep track anymore so I rewrote the manuscript on the next available source, an electric type writer. Now, however, I use a laptop to write my manuscripts. Once the first draft is complete, I print out the entire thing and edit it with a red pen and highlighters. Is that old fashioned or just a waste of paper? I don’t know, but that’s how I do it. As far as when and where, I typically write at night, as I work during the day. Bed time is for sleep since I work so much. But it’s not uncommon for me to keep a pad and pen next to the bed for those sudden strokes of genius that creep up on me in the middle of the night.

What would you consider to be a ‘successful career’ as a writer?

I personally believe in two things that can possibly equal out to success. One is money. If my work earns me a good living then I do believe that would be considered success. The other thing that would make me feel the exact same way is if I look back on my career as a writer and think, “I did it.” with a smile. If I’m happy, then I succeeded.

Tell us about your new book. What’s it about? Why did you write it?

My new book is called ‘Hostage’. It’s about a love that has been broken and tortured for hundreds of years. Kane, who is a vampire in search of the love of his life, is forced to forever watch Ivy, a witch who holds his heart, die by the hands of Alexander, a soul who is both a demon and an angel. Ivy’s gifts of controlling the elements are necessary to complete Alex’s task at becoming God and taking over the universe. But without her hand in marriage, he will never achieve his goal. When he doesn’t get his way, he kills her. After many years of failure he has found new ways to kill and torture her which drives Kane insane. Kane spends his cursed years trying to save Ivy and destroy Alex. He must find a way to end this vicious cycle. There are many twists and turns in this story including witches, vampires, angels, demons, ghosts, hell hounds and so much more.

I wrote this story because I happen to have a long time love for vampires. After reading so many books and watching so many movies the story behind vampires became compound and mute. I got bored. But I wasn’t prepared to give up my love for the myth. So I decided to make up my own. (And I’m sure it won’t be the last.)

When you’re not writing, what do you do to relax?

I usually write to relax, or unload my day but even that gets to be exhausting sometimes. So when I’m not writing and need to relax I usually do any number of ‘girly’ things. I like to soak in a bubble bath, do my nails (fingers and toes), I lotion up, pour myself a good glass of Merlot and pop in a movie. I’ve been told I don’t do this (relax) enough, but I’m working on it.

What do you hope people will take away from reading your books?

I guess in the long run I’m really just hoping people will read my work and think, “Now she’s real.” I often encounter what I consider to be ‘sell outs’. To me, a sellout is someone who fakes whatever it is they do just to make money. They may be good at it. They may even be successful and or become a well known celebrity for it. But at the end of the day, they were fake. They had to be someone they’re not to be seen, heard or noticed. I don’t want that. If I can’t be me and be happy and successful, then it’s time to search inwards and find whatever it is I’ve lost.

I’d also like to be known for doing well at many different things. I’d rather be the Jane of all trades than master of only one. As a writer, this would be to say I like to write many different genre’s of books and write them all well.

After years of recluse, Ivy Stone, an angry heavy metal musician living in the dangerous city of Springfield, MA gets more than she bargains for in her search for band mates when she gets a gig at a violent night club and catches the attention of Hostage, a masochistic metal band with a blood lust and a front man who’s mastery is in death and vengeance. Just when Ivy thinks her life has finally taken a turn for the better, she discovers the horrific secrets of her new band mates, but her discoveries didn’t stop there. In finding the truth about her mysterious new crew, she also discovers a shocking and unknown truth about herself. As the dust settles, mysteries of times long past catch up to the present with demons, hell hounds, vampires and a powerful amount of witchcraft chasing close behind. When Alexander, a demon with his feet set firmly in both worlds of heaven and hell, targets Ivy yet again as the key to ruling the world, the only way to save the universe from utter destruction and stop the raunchy murders of Ivy’s soul is for Ivy to fall in love with the right monster and solve the longest waiting riddle of all times, how to kill what’s already dead. In a dangerous adventure filled with rip tides of heavy metal, mind numbing sex, heart pounding terror and an eternity of red hot madness, Ivy and her eternal love, Kane, bull doze their way into your adrenal gland with unexpected twists around every corner in my new novel, ‘Hostage’.

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Genre - Paranormal Romance

Rating – R

More details about the author and the book

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Website http://www.thrillsandchills.net/