Today, I have Katie Salidas author of many books including Immortalis Carpe Noctem, which will be reviewed later this week.
Rie: Can you tell me in 20 words or less what your book is about?
Katie: Becoming a vampire is easy. Living with the condition, that’s the hard part.
Rie: What is it about vampires that intrigue you?
Kate: The power, the immortality, the freedom. If fantasy (urban or other) has taught us anything, it’s that vampires have it all.
Seriously though, vampires in fiction have such a chameleon-like quality about them. They can be anything from gruesome gothic creatures, to tortured undying souls, to that hunky bad boy who only comes out at night. They span the gaps of all genres and have been reinvented over and over again to suit the story’s needs. Besides the blood, the one biggest tie that links them all is the immortality.
That by itself is a huge draw. Imagine being able to watch history unfold, to be able to witness all of the important events in time. For me, that’s one excellent perk.
In my Immortalis series Lysander, a vampire of over 2k years, records everything he witnesses. It’s his passion. He chronicles history and has amassed a libraries worth of knowledge. The Peregrinus clan, a small band of traveling vampires, use their eternity to travel the world and see all of its beauty.
To be able to do that would be worth the price of losing the sun, I think.
Rie: Has being raised in Las Vegas helped you have an eye for the fantastical?
Katie: I hate to shatter the mystique of my home town, but living in Las Vegas is no different than living anywhere else. Ok, you can get your grocery shopping done at 2am and there are slot machines everywhere, but really, day-to-day life here is pretty normal.
The city does have one very interesting quirk that I think helps get the imagination working. It is always reinventing itself. Vegas today is not the same place as it was when I moved here as a teen. Every few years it changes in theme from Adult playground, to family friendly, to high class entertainment, to, well… sex appeal.
Watching the change over the years is interesting. Seeing them reinvent themselves make you think of ways you can reinvent things too. Say vampires for example. Today vampires aren’t the killers they once were. Modern Urban fantasy has likeable “good guy” vamps that use blood banks or just take sips. Hell, some even sparkle. For me, I wanted to take a slightly different stance. I wanted to go a little retro, back to the older style of vampires, and modernize them. They have to kill, they have to hide from the sun, they have to wear makeup to pass for human, and they do not want mortals knowing about them. But they aren’t the gothic creatures of old that are forced to sleep in coffins and return to the soil of their homeland.
Rie: What is easiest for you to write about? The world in which is your reality, Las Vegas, or the one that is so far removed, vampire society?
Katie: In my novels the vampires live right here in my quiet neighborhood. I find that using the current world and fitting vampires into it is fun and challenging. It is easy in some respects because of the nature of this city. I joke that because of the 24 hour lifestyle here in Vegas, that a vampire could easily hide in plain sight. No neighbor will ever question why you don’t come out until nightfall because so many people here have night jobs and sleep the day away. Also, with the transient nature of this city, it’s easy to find prey. On the flip side, having vampires here in modern society means playing by the rules of society. They have to be careful not to let their secret slip. That is one of the plot points of Hunters & Prey. Revealing yourself to just one person can have dangerous repercussions.
Rie: What is your current WIP (Work in Progress)? Can you tell us a little about it?
Katie: I tend to work on multiple projects at a time. Right now I am finalizing my next novella, Karma &Melodies (a different take on vampires from my Immortalis series), I’m running book 3 in my Immortalis series, Pandora’s Box, through critiquing groups, and I am starting to brainstorm on a sequel to one of my Paranormal Romance novella’s, House of Immortal Pleasures.
Here is a summary for Karma & Melodies (Expected to release on Kindle in March)
Kendra used to spend her days organizing events for Cafe Enigma while daydreaming about Marcus, the sexy lead singer of Normal Paradox. But all those dreams of becoming Mrs. Rock Star died along with her mortality, the moment Hector entered her life and turned her into a vampire.
Ten torturous years later, Kendra finally escapes Hector and runs straight into Marcus. (Well, actually, his car hit her, but that's besides the point.) The accident leaves Marcus concussed and a few pints too low, forcing Kendra to share her blood to save him.
Sharing her blood doesn't just heal Marcus's wounds, it bonds him to Kendra in a magical "can't live without you" sort of way. Now he's professing his undying love to her and Kendra's not sure if he's for real or just experiencing side effects of their new blood bond. Either way, the two of them can't be separated, without it causing suicidal levels of depression, and the band needs to hit the road for the rest of their cross-country tour.
She's content to travel with the band and explore her new-found relationship until whispered threats from her master, Hector, start invading her dreams. He's tracking her down and she can feel it. She knows the horrors he's capable of and if he finds out about Marcus, Hector will do everything in his power to destroy him.
If she stays, Marcus is doomed to Hector's wrath. If she goes, the repercussions of their bond might kill Marcus. Both options will break Kendra's heart. If they're truly meant for each other, they'll have to find another way... if there is one.
Rie: Do you have a favorite place to sit and write? Where is your favorite place to read?
Katie: I have the most comfy loveseat in the whole world (ok I’m exaggerating a little). I take my laptop and camp out there with the window open to do my writing. My kitties (I have 3) love to sit with me while I do this. They are my audience as I sometimes run dialogue out loud. Thank goodness they can’t talk back. LoL. For reading, anywhere comfy. Most of my reading time is sitting in my car while waiting for my daughter to get out of classes.
Rie: As a reader, do you read in the same genre as you write? What is your current paranormal obsession?
Katie: Yep, I am vampire obsessed. I prefer to read Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, and Erotica. I recently read an excellent vampire erotica anthology called The Sweetest Kiss… Yummy!
Categories: Author Interviews, Random
0 comments:
Post a Comment