Author Sotlight with Angie Fox

 Let's give a warm therapeutic welcome to Angie Fox, who's stopped by today to talk about her newest release Immortally Yours. Welcome Angie.

Thanks everyone. I’ve been looking at all of the great writing advice being offered up on Much Cheaper Than Therapy and it struck me that another thing that’s important for writers (one thing that we always seem to resist) is stepping outside the comfort zone.

It’s tough for me personally because there are so many things that can trip me up and twist me around while writing a book. Adding another element to the mix doesn’t always seem like the wise thing to do! But, it’s exactly what we need to do in order to keep our readers guessing and coming back for more.

Of course, that doesn’t mean we’re not allowed moments of panic during our enlightenment. For example, I sold a new series about a group of paranormal MASH doctors during a great supernatural war. I was all excited because Immortally Yours is a departure from the books I’ve written before. It has more of an edge.

And then…panic. I remember calling my critique partner about a week after I’d sold the book and asking her, “What did I just do? I told them I could write a book about an immortal war. I write funny. How am I supposed to pull this off?”

Once she calmed me down, and talked me into a bit of therapeutic chocolate (thank you, Kristin), I realized that the underlying drama of war could serve to bring the oddball personalities in the MASH camp together. These doctors and nurses don’t have much, but they do manage to find ways to save their sanity and create the kind of relationships that offer a port in the storm.

It forced me to grow as a writer, to push the story to places I’d never gone before. Yes, it was scary, but it was really cool too.

And then an entirely new element emerged. You see, there’s PNN (The Paranormal News Network) that covers the war. It’s the supernatural version of CNN. I loved writing PNN because it let me explore my own love/hate relationship with sensationalistic 24-hour news.

In fact, I had so much fun that I’ve developed www.PNN-Network.com It’s the official website for PNN, and I set it up to be a bit like a paranormal version of The Onion. I figure it gives readers a taste of the series. And okay, the real reason I did it is because I had a blast coming up with my own take on paranormal news.

So if you’d like to win your very own copy of Immortally Yours, visit www.PNN-Network.com, then come on back here and tell us the headline of your favorite article. 

Or I'm doing a release week contest where you can win naming rights to a character in the next book.

The link is:
http://www.angiefox.com/blog/2012/08/28/immortally-yours-release-contest-name-character-next-book

Immortally Yours

IN THE WAR BETWEEN THE GODS… 
No one patches up the incoming wounded like Dr. Petra Robichaud. Recruited by the gods for her uncanny medical skills, she’s the best M*A*S*H surgeon in the army. Along with a nosy guard sphinx,vegetarian werewolf, and otherparanormal paramedics, she bandages soldiers who are built like Greek gods (literally). But when one sexy immortal ends up on her operating table—half dead and totally to-die-for—Petra’s afraid she’ll lose her patient and her heart…

NOTHING IS MORE DANGEROUS THAN LOVE
Commander Galen of Delphi is one gorgeous but stubborn demi-god. When his spirit tries to slip out of his fatally wounded body, Dr. Petra has to slip it back in—unwittingly revealing her ability to see ghosts. Now that Galen knows her secret, he’s convinced she’s part of an ancient prophecy. If the oracles are right, Petra could lead Galen’s army to peace. And if he seduces her on the way to hell and back? Heaven knows—all’s fair in love and war…

 Angie Fox is the New York Times bestselling author of several books about vampires, werewolves and things that go bump in the night. She is best known for her Accidental Demon Slayer urban fantasy series. She is also writing a series about a group of paranormal M*A*S*H surgeons. The first book in the Monster MASH trilogy, Immortally Yours, is out now. The second book, Immortally Embraced, releases in February 2013.

Visit Angie at:

Website: www.angiefox.com

Twitter: @AngieFoxauthor or https://twitter.com/AngieFoxauthor

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Angie-Fox/176533609089557

Interview with Angie Fox

I’d like to welcome our guest today, Angie Fox. It’s a pleasure having you come visit us at Much Cheaper Than Therapy, where chocolate is plentiful and advice is free. So grab some chocolate and a lounge chair. Your therapy session has begun.

I understand you have a new release out called The Dangerous Book for Demon Slayers. Can you tell us a little bit about your fabulous new book?

Sure. Accidental demon slayer Lizzie Brown and her grandma’s coven of biker witches have rolled into Sin City to take out a super-sexy succubus who has her eye on world domination – and worse, Lizzie’s man.

The Dangerous Book for Demon Slayers is the story of what happens when you take a bunch of biker witches to Las Vegas. Well, it’s more than that, I suppose. Lizzie and the gang head to Las Vegas to save her uncle from marrying a succubus.

As she experiences all kinds of new (and weird) things in Vegas, Lizzie is determined, once and for all, to master her powers. In fact, she’s going to write the book on demon slaying. So she begins a journal, The Dangerous Book for Demon Slayers, where she records what she’s learning, starting with newfound discoveries about demons, gargoyles and a particularly mischievous live spell named Beanie who likes to fill Lizzie’s boots with pumpkin spice latte.

Things get dangerous when the demons get their hooks in Dimitri. He’s much darker and sexier in this book. And we introduce a new character, Max, who is half demon and 100% yummy.

Where did you get your idea for this particular book?

When I was writing the end of my first book, The Accidental Demon Slayer, this joke about Las Vegas popped into my head and I thought, “why not?” Lizzie is just about to kiss her man when she’s interrupted and told she and the gang have to head to Las Vegas to save her long lost uncle from marrying a succubus. Kind of fun. At least it made me smile. I was an unpublished writer at the time.

But then the book sold. Better still, The Accidental Demon Slayer hit the New York Times bestseller list. The sequel was on and I decided to pick up right where The Accidental Demon Slayer left off. Of course I should mention that each of the books is a stand-alone book. Each has its own complete story and happy ever after ending, so you don’t need to read the first book to enjoy the second.

What was your reaction when you learned The Accidental Demon Slayer was a New York Times bestseller?

Complete shock. The phone rang on a Friday afternoon, as I was writing the climax of The Dangerous Book for Demon Slayers. I almost didn’t answer. After all, who would call in smack dab in the middle of a demon invasion?

Luckily, I picked up because it was my agent, saying that The Accidental Demon Slayer would be #34 on the New York Times list the next day. I didn’t know what to think. Heck, I’d just wanted to sell enough books so that I could keep writing about biker witches, demon slayers and talking terriers. I had to ask my agent to please email me too, just to make sure I wasn’t phone-hallucinating.

Did you have to do a lot of research for the book?

Loads, actually. First off, the biker witches ride Harleys, and I’d never been on a motorcycle before. Second, I had to figure out how to get Pirate the dog onto a bike.

I went online and learned about the Biker Dogs Motorcycle Club, made up exclusively of Harley riders and their dogs. I ended up meeting some of them, along with a few other bikers along the way. These bikers were so great to me. They hoisted me onto the back of their Harleys (with dogs in tow). They took me to biker rallies (note to self: don’t wear pink). And they laughed at me when I tried to put my helmet on backwards (I still say I was distracted by the Pomeranian wearing a tiny pair of motorcycle glasses). After a few outings with my new biker friends, I was able to make my geriatric biker witch characters a lot more realistic. And I took home some great pictures, too.

My second favorite bit of research was the behind-the-scenes tour of Hoover Dam. The climax of The Dangerous Book for Demon Slayers takes place down there, and I was lucky enough to be invited to see first-hand what I’d be writing about. A guide took me far down into the inspection tunnels they used in the 1930’s and 40’s, when the cement was still curing. It was amazing to see the notes these inspectors made on the walls, to hear the stories of those that didn’t quite make it out and to walk the same old metal steps that they did. All of that made it into The Dangerous Book for Demon Slayers, along with lots of things I had a blast making up (this is fiction after all).

Tell us about how you develop your characters. Do you create character sheets, do interviews, that sort of thing? How does your research and/or world affect your character development?

For me, personally, it works better when I let the characters develop on the page. For example, when I sat down to write the first book, I had no notes about a sidekick for my heroine. But in the second chapter, when she’d learned she was a demon slayer and all hell was after her, she took comfort in her dog. As I was writing, I thought, ‘This is a sweet moment. Now how do I throw her off?’ Simple. I made the dog say something to her. Nothing big. After all, he’s only after the fettuccine from last week. And he knows exactly where my heroine can find it (back of the fridge, to the left of the lettuce crisper, behind the mustard).

It amused me, so I did it. Thanks to her unholy powers, my heroine can now understand her smart-mouthed Jack Russell Terrier. I don’t know if Pirate would be here today if I’d depended on character sheets or traditional methods of plotting. I think the most important thing when you sit down to the keyboard is to be willing to follow your story in new directions, because if you’re enjoying the surprise, chances are your readers will too.

How do you go about building your world if you use one? Do you use maps, charts or drawings?

LOL I actually got into writing so that I could avoid charts, graphs and any kind of math. I have a plot outline, so I know where the story needs to go, but when it comes to world building, I write what amuses me. I follow my instincts and let the story evolve on the page.

What do you feel is the most effective promotion you have done for your book?

Hmm…how do I say this? Okay. I’ll just say it. My readers are a bunch of crazy loud women and I love them for it. My best advertising has been word-of-mouth – girlfriends telling girlfriends, daughters getting their moms hooked, readers who tell me they’ve seen someone pick up my book at the store and told the person, “you have to read that.” It’s really neat and I’m just so grateful.

What do we have to look forward next?

Right now, I’m writing book 3 in the Accidental Demon Slayer series, tentatively titled A Tale of Two Demon Slayers. In it, Lizzie and the gang travel to Greece where they learn more about Dimitri’s past and a threat that could destroy them all. I’m having a ball with it because it’s so much fun to explore Dimitri’s home, his family and his juicy past.

I also have a story in The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance 2, which comes out on Halloween. And then I’m working on a voodoo novella for this amazing anthology that I can’t officially announce yet.

Thanks, Angie!

To celebrate her book release, Angie Fox is offering a free copy of The Dangerous Book for Demon Slayers to one lucky commenter on today's blog. Just take the quiz Are You Part Demon Slayer? and tell us your score in the comments section. We’ll pick one winner at random. Oh and if you post that same score to Angie’s website, you’ll be entered to win a walk-on role in the next Accidental Demon Slayer book.

Here’s the quiz link:

http://angiefox.wordpress.com/books/the-dangerous-book-for-demon-slayers/

Angie will be around all day today. I'm sure some of you have questions or comments for her, so please ask away...
Good luck!

Bio:
Angie Fox is the New York Times bestselling author of the Accidental Demon Slayer series. She claims that researching her books can be just as much fun as writing them. In the name of fact-finding, Angie has ridden with Harley biker gangs, explored the tunnels underneath Hoover Dam and found an interesting recipe for Mamma Coalpot’s Southern Skunk Surprise (she’s still trying to get her courage up to try it).

Angie earned a Journalism degree from the University of Missouri. She worked in television news and then in advertising before beginning her career as an author.

Visit Angie at www.angiefox.com. You’ll find freebies galore and answers to burning questions, like What is Your Biker Witch name?

Check out author’s website at www.angiefox.com
Buy at your favorite bookseller.