Midnight Burning
By Karissa Laurel
About the Book
As Solina and Skyla delve into the mystery surrounding Mani’s death, Solina is stunned to learn that her own life is tied to Mani’s friends, his death, and the fate of the entire world. If she can’t learn to control her newfound gifts and keep her friends safe, a long-lost dominion over mortals will rise again, and everything she knows will fall into darkness.
Author Interview
How old were you when you knew you wanted to be a writer?
I remember writing stories as a little kid, and bad poetry in high school, and some pretty overwritten short stories in college, but I never considered it as a professional pursuit until I was in my late twenties. I think I wrote my first, full novel when I was 28 or 29.
What inspired you to write your first book?
I had read a popular YA paranormal series and I remember thinking: I could write this. Maybe I could write better than this. I had written a few random scenes before then, but never a whole book. It was after reading that YA series that I first challenged myself to complete an entire novel, and I did. That story was pretty cheesy and I knew it, but I had proven to myself I could start something and see my way through to the end.
What have you written?
After my “practice” novel, I wrote another one that I felt better about. I shopped it around to literary agents for a while. I had a few bites, a few agents expressed interest, but nothing ever came of it. I decided I needed to have more “credentials”, so I set out to establish a publication history by writing short stories.
That turned out to be a thousand times harder than I ever expected. I gained a new appreciation for short stories and the people who write them and write them well. The experience helped me hone my craft, improve my skills, and develop a thick skin for rejection. But I managed to have some success, too—I did eventually publish a few short stories. I also wrote more novels during that time, but many were just for my own entertainment and will never see the light of day. Midnight Burning came after a lot of years of work, and a lot of trunked novels. It’s my first published novel, but I hope for many more.
Is there a message in your book and/or books?
I tend to avoid trying to send a “message” in my writing. I want people to relate to the characters, feel immersed in the story, and be able to escape reality for a little while, but mostly I want to entertain. I have no desire to try to impart a life lesson of any sort.
Is there anything in your book and/or books based on real life experiences?
In Midnight Burning, the town of Siqniq is fictional, but it’s based on a very real fishing town on Resurrection Bay in Alaska that I visited years ago with my father. Alaska made a lasting impression on me, obviously. Also, the main character, Solina, is from North Carolina. So am I, although I live in a different part of the state than she does. When people say, “write what you know,” I tend to take that to heart. At least as much as possible.
Who is your favorite character from one of your stories?
Although she is not the main character, Skyla is my favorite character from Midnight Burning. She’s a highly capable, very independent, bad ass woman. She’s everything I’d like to be, but I don’t think I’ll ever be quite that confident or awesome.
What actor do you see playing them in a movie?
Skyla is a Hispanic woman, and an ex-marine. Janina Gavankar would be great, although she’s a bit older than Skyla would be. Janina has been in True Blood, Arrow, and the Vampire Diaries. I think she really understands supernatural action hero.
What books and/or writers have influenced you the most?
In the world of Urban Fantasy fiction, I’m a huge fan of Ilona Andrews, Jim Butcher, Patricia Briggs, and Karen Marie Moning. But the authors I most love and respect are Neil Gaimon and Margaret Atwood, who tend to be more literary, but everything they write just awes me.
What is your favorite book?
Just one? That’s impossible. I’ll give you five (an most of them are series, rather than a standalone book) Harry Potter by JK Rowling, His Dark Materials series by Phillip Pullman, The Princess Bride by William Goldman, A Winter’s Tale by Mark Helprin, and Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Since I mentioned these authors before, then I should also add American Gods by Neil Gaimon and The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood.
How do you conquer writer’s block?
I took a writing class with Cat Rambo once and she said, basically: My father was a truck driver. He never missed a day of work because he had truck driving block. If you treat writing with the respect you’d give to any other job, then you cannot stop working because of a “block.” You sit down and you bang on your keyboard. You do it long enough and something will come out.
I don’t really have a huge problem with writer’s block, so much as I have a problem with having the time to sit and bang on my keyboard until something comes out. When I’m facing a bout of unproductivity, I do a lot of thinking while I’m walking the dog. Something about walking really helps me concentrate and think through whatever writing problem I’m having. I consider actively thinking and problem solving a plot in my head to be as valid as putting words down on a page… just as long as those thoughts actually do get put down into words at some point.
What has been your greatest challenge when writing?
Time. I work a fulltime job and have a family. Time is the impossible thing to find, and there’s always a distraction waiting to pull me away from writing.
How do you rejuvenate after a writing session?
Rejuvenation? Is that something I should be doing? Usually I’m squeezing in writing before I go to work, or I stay late and do a quick couple of paragraphs. I scribble on a lunch hour, if I get one. I’ve never developed a rejuvenation routine. Usually I write and go on to the next chore on my never ending list of things to do. Every busy, working mom suffers this problem, whether she’s a writer or not. I should probably start rejuvenating. That sounds nice.
What are you working on right now?
I’m working on book three in the Midnight Burning series. I’ve finished book two, and have given it to my beta readers. Solina has a ways to go, yet, before her story ends.
What have you learned and do you have any advice for other authors?
My only advice is to practice, practice, practice, and write, write, write. And above all, submit your stories. Then, be prepared for rejection, because writing is a game of rejection. It’s also a game of getting up, dusting off the dirt, and trying again. My mother once said there are an infinite number of “no’s” in the world. You have to get through them all before you can get to your “yes’s”. But you’ll never get those “yes’s” if you never start. In my experience, she was completely right.
If you could go anywhere in the world, where?
I want to take my husband to Alaska. He’s an outdoorsman and Alaska is a dreamland for outdoor activities, and the more remote, the better.
Is there a message in your book and/or books?
I tend to avoid trying to send a “message” in my writing. I want people to relate to the characters, feel immersed in the story, and be able to escape reality for a little while, but mostly I want to entertain. I have no desire to try to impart a life lesson of any sort.
Is there anything in your book and/or books based on real life experiences?
In Midnight Burning, the town of Siqniq is fictional, but it’s based on a very real fishing town on Resurrection Bay in Alaska that I visited years ago with my father. Alaska made a lasting impression on me, obviously. Also, the main character, Solina, is from North Carolina. So am I, although I live in a different part of the state than she does. When people say, “write what you know,” I tend to take that to heart. At least as much as possible.
Who is your favorite character from one of your stories?
Although she is not the main character, Skyla is my favorite character from Midnight Burning. She’s a highly capable, very independent, bad ass woman. She’s everything I’d like to be, but I don’t think I’ll ever be quite that confident or awesome.
What actor do you see playing them in a movie?
Skyla is a Hispanic woman, and an ex-marine. Janina Gavankar would be great, although she’s a bit older than Skyla would be. Janina has been in True Blood, Arrow, and the Vampire Diaries. I think she really understands supernatural action hero.
What books and/or writers have influenced you the most?
In the world of Urban Fantasy fiction, I’m a huge fan of Ilona Andrews, Jim Butcher, Patricia Briggs, and Karen Marie Moning. But the authors I most love and respect are Neil Gaimon and Margaret Atwood, who tend to be more literary, but everything they write just awes me.
What is your favorite book?
Just one? That’s impossible. I’ll give you five (an most of them are series, rather than a standalone book) Harry Potter by JK Rowling, His Dark Materials series by Phillip Pullman, The Princess Bride by William Goldman, A Winter’s Tale by Mark Helprin, and Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Since I mentioned these authors before, then I should also add American Gods by Neil Gaimon and The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood.
How do you conquer writer’s block?
I took a writing class with Cat Rambo once and she said, basically: My father was a truck driver. He never missed a day of work because he had truck driving block. If you treat writing with the respect you’d give to any other job, then you cannot stop working because of a “block.” You sit down and you bang on your keyboard. You do it long enough and something will come out.
I don’t really have a huge problem with writer’s block, so much as I have a problem with having the time to sit and bang on my keyboard until something comes out. When I’m facing a bout of unproductivity, I do a lot of thinking while I’m walking the dog. Something about walking really helps me concentrate and think through whatever writing problem I’m having. I consider actively thinking and problem solving a plot in my head to be as valid as putting words down on a page… just as long as those thoughts actually do get put down into words at some point.
What has been your greatest challenge when writing?
Time. I work a fulltime job and have a family. Time is the impossible thing to find, and there’s always a distraction waiting to pull me away from writing.
How do you rejuvenate after a writing session?
Rejuvenation? Is that something I should be doing? Usually I’m squeezing in writing before I go to work, or I stay late and do a quick couple of paragraphs. I scribble on a lunch hour, if I get one. I’ve never developed a rejuvenation routine. Usually I write and go on to the next chore on my never ending list of things to do. Every busy, working mom suffers this problem, whether she’s a writer or not. I should probably start rejuvenating. That sounds nice.
What are you working on right now?
I’m working on book three in the Midnight Burning series. I’ve finished book two, and have given it to my beta readers. Solina has a ways to go, yet, before her story ends.
What have you learned and do you have any advice for other authors?
My only advice is to practice, practice, practice, and write, write, write. And above all, submit your stories. Then, be prepared for rejection, because writing is a game of rejection. It’s also a game of getting up, dusting off the dirt, and trying again. My mother once said there are an infinite number of “no’s” in the world. You have to get through them all before you can get to your “yes’s”. But you’ll never get those “yes’s” if you never start. In my experience, she was completely right.
If you could go anywhere in the world, where?
I want to take my husband to Alaska. He’s an outdoorsman and Alaska is a dreamland for outdoor activities, and the more remote, the better.
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| Genre: Urban Fantasy |
About the Author
Karissa lives in North Carolina with her kid, her husband, the occasional in-law, and a very hairy husky. She loves to read and has a sweet tooth for speculative fiction. Sometimes her husband convinces her to put down the books and take the motorcycles out for a spin. When it snows, you’ll find her on the slopes.
Karissa also paints and draws and harbors a grand delusion that she might finish a graphic novel someday.
Follow Karissa Online:
Web page:
@karissalaurel
Goodreads:
Goodreads:
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/karissalaurel
Youtube Book Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0YLj4g3Di0
Best wishes to Karissa.
ReplyDelete(The number now stands at nearly 1000 people Aimee.)
Great plotline.
ReplyDeleteKeep going, Thomas.
They're all typed.. None of the sentences are being copied and pasted, but always typed.
ReplyDelete