An Interview with Darynda Jones

Morning, readers! Tomorrow is the official release date for Darynda Jones's second installment in the Darklight series, Death, Doom and Detention. As part of the tour for DD&D's release, I've got a super cool Q&A post for you guys today along with a contest. Be sure to read all the way to the bottom for the contest entry.

So a big, big welcome to Darynda!

1. Can you tell readers a little bit about yourself and what inspired to write in this particular genre?

Absolutely! Well, I’m kind of boring, so I won’t go into detail. I’m married, have two gorgeous sons, three dogs and a pretty amazing husband. I have a BS in sign language interpreting and worked as an interpreter for several years before selling to NY. I am one of the lucky few who got to quit her day job and write full time. Every writer’s dream!

As for this genre, I simply love it. The very first scary movie I ever saw was an old black and white vampire movie and I’ve been hooked ever since. I was five and I’ve never forgotten it. I used to write vampire romance years before it was cool. Of course, I was just a kid so our hero and heroine never got past the kissing stage, thankfully, but paranormal elements have been in my blood since I could write.

2. There is a bit of a love triangle going on in this series, which of the two, Cameron or Jared have fans been rooting for more?

Actually, one might think it’s a love triangle between Cameron and Jared, but in reality it’s more between Cameron and Glitch. Glitch is very jealous of Brooklyn’s relationship with Cameron and we get to find out more about that in Death, Doom and Detention.

3. What is your favorite scene from the book? Could you share a little bit of it, without spoilers of course? 

I think my favorite scene in DDD is at the very end when Jared tells Lorelei to trust him and “take a leap of faith.” I love that scene and it shows just how much she really does trust him even after everything that happened to them.

4. Is there a character that you enjoyed writing more than any of the others? 

I have to say, I love writing Brooklyn and Glitch. Their dialogue is fast, fun and merciless. Brooklyn reminds me very much of the heroine in my adult series, Charley Davidson. 

5. What did you have the most fun with while adapting this paranormal tale to fit in into the real world?

I think coming up with things like secret societies and centuries-old prophecies to explain the events that are taking place in our world, and yet to explain why only a handful of people know about them. It makes it fun and, hopefully, plausible. 

6. Did you find anything really interesting while researching this or another book? 

I did. I was doing some research to explain Lorelei’s lineage, how she is the last prophet in a long line of predecessors, and I got to research bits about Saint Joan of Arc and Sappho, both remarkable women. I love their stories and Sappho’s poetry, the small clips that have survived, is gorgeous. I would love to be able to write like that. 

7. With the book being part of a trilogy, can these books be read as stand alones? 

Absolutely! My editor makes sure of it. LOL. In each sequel, it’s up to the author to make them stand alones, to give enough background info as to not bore the previous readers, but to fill in any new readers to the events that took place beforehand. It’s a fine line and sometimes readers still get annoyed with all the backstory, but it’s a necessary evil. 

8. Will there be a spin off with any of the characters in this series? If you had to write about a spin off which character would have the honor of becoming the hero or heroine? 

Brooklyn! I would love to write a series with Brooklyn, but I kind of doubt I will. Mostly because I have too many other projects in the fire. I want to write so many books and there just aren’t enough hours in the day. 

9. What are you hoping fans will get out of this second book in the series? 

I hope they will just enjoy the ride! I write to entertain. I have no ulterior motives, and if I’ve given the reader a few hours of fun and excitement, I have done my job. 

10. What was the last amazing YA book you read? 

Oh, my gosh, so many! I am a huge Hunger Games fan, but that was a while ago. I really liked Divergent and its sequel Insurgent, so I will go with those. LOVE the storyline.

Big thanks, Darynda, for being on the blog today!

Thank you so much for having me!

About Darynda:

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious Golden Heart®, a Rebecca, two Hold Medallions, a RITA ®, and a Daphne du Maurier, and she has received stellar reviews from dozens of publications including starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly, Booklist, and the Library Journal. As a born storyteller, Darynda grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike, and she is ever so grateful for the opportunity to carry on that tradition. She currently has two series with St. Martin’s Press: The Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. She lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of almost 30 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com.

And now for the contest:

a Rafflecopter giveaway