Thursday, February 17, 2011

Interview and Giveaway with Kathryn Meyer Griffith

Have you always wanted to be a writer or is it something you discovered along the path of life?

No. I wanted to be an artist when I was a kid. Though I always loved to read and loved books…at nine I began drawing everything in sight. I could copy anything, all I had to do was see it. I was a graphic artist in the corporate world for 23 years, and I still draw or paint whenever I can, when I’m not too busy writing my books. Then at 14 (the Beatles and all that English music) I wanted to sing. And I did, with my brother, when we were very young. Folk music, at first, and then I was in a pop rock band with him until I was 19. Those were the days. The writing started at 21. I consider it as my butterfly stage, though I still draw once and a while and jam (for fun only) with my brother, Jim. That’s me singing with him on the book trailer I made for BEFORE THE END: A Time of Demons. I’m not a great singer but I wanted it to mimic the two main characters and my brother obliged me. He wrote the song and he let me sing it with him. He grew up to be a singer/song writer and hold down a full-time computer job.


Do you commit to a daily writing goal? Like so many words or chapters?

I try to write everyday…about 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; weekends off unless I have a tight deadline or am editing, then I’ll work them, too. I don’t do so many chapters or words….just what I can finish in the time allotted. Holidays off, of course, so I can be with my family.

If you could give a new writer one piece of advice, what would it be?


Keep writing, always keep writing. While you wait on the last book or two to sell, forget it, them, and start another one. Just keep writing. Oh, and don’t let the rejections kill your spirit. As a writer we all get tons of them but remember…liking or disliking a book is so subjective. I’ve had people positively love a book or short story I’ve written and then another person can just hate it to death – and tells me so! So there. People are so different. And that I believe to be a writer you have to do it out of love of the pure act of writing. Not for the money or fame or whatever.

A lot of writers never get any of that. Write the book for you. Write only what you love and not what other people want you to write. For me being a writer is who I am. It makes me happy to spin my tales and even happier when someone appreciates them. Great therapy, too. I’d really be a messed up person if I couldn’t get all my fears and anxieties out through writing them down. I think that’s why I love to write romantic horror more than anything…I’m afraid of everything in the world and in my books I can be brave. Shed or defeat my demons, so to speak.

Are you a long time paranormal fan or new to the Other world?

Oh, no way am I new. I’ve been writing horror/supernatural/paranormal and vampire books for almost 27 years now. Though I’ve been writing closer to 39 years, but my first book was a historical romance with a touch of ‘witch’ to it called The Heart of the Rose (which has just recently been rewritten, given a great new cover and rereleased from Eternal Press www.eternalpress.biz ), which eventually came out from Leisure paperbacks in 1985. I’m considered a supernatural horror writer, but of my 14 original novels and 7 short stories, 5 novels and 3 short stories are also romantic suspense, SF horror (my 1992 Zebra paperback The Last Vampire, also rereleased from Damnation Books recently), murder mysteries and time travel.

Who are some of your favorite authors?


My favorite authors (of which I have many), of course, are Stephen King (because his fiction is so diversified and real feeling), Dean Koontz (because he melds so many genres together), Peter Straub, Dan Simmons, and, right now, Sara Gruen…Water for Elephants was great!


If you could entertain a character from a book, who would it be and what would the evening be like?

I’d like to meet the two main characters from BEFORE THE END: A Time of Demons and jam, sing, with them. A whole night. Since they’re fashioned after my brother and I, it would be a strange band, ha, ha. I wouldn’t mind meeting the rest of the cast, either. The clown, the best friend psychic, the crazy aunt and uncle. Who wouldn’t want to go traveling through a pre-apocalyptic America in an RV with a bunch of demon hunters who are fighting with invisible angels? Sounds like fun, ey?


If you were not a writer what would your career be?

I’d be an editor or an artist (as I am…and I still draw and paint when I can) or a singer. I love to sing but my brother says I’m not very good. What does he know? Ha, ha, he’s only a great songwriter/musician.

When you are not writing, what can you usually be found doing?


I love television. I know, I know. It rots your mind. But I love the well-written dramas or PBS mysteries. I love the stories. As a writer I learn a lot from good television. That’s the key, GOOD television.

What are some of your favorite activities or hobbies?

As I said, I love to draw and sing. Read good books. Be with my family and husband, laughing, gossiping and just being together around the kitchen table loaded with tasty food we’ve cooked ourselves. I also love to walk in the woods or enjoy nature. I love the rain when it’s tapping on my rooftop. I love to watch the snow fall…as long as I don’t have to drive in it! The National Parks, the lakes, rivers and oceans call me.

How did the idea for your newest book/series come about?

For BEFORE THE END: A Time of Demons… I’ve always wanted to write an end-of-days novel. I loved Stephen King’s The Stand so much. And when (it’s been eight years ago now) I had this idea about a woman, one half of a singing brother and sister traveling duet who also take care of an elderly aunt and uncle, who suddenly starts seeing demons behind her human audiences’ faces, I knew I had to write it. This is a brother and sister who love each other and love the safe life they have now. When children, there was a terrible fire and the rest of their family died in it. I decided to not make it too religious…more like a lay man’s view of the end days. More a horror story…with heart.

Though the woman eventually discovers she is one of many who will have powers to see and fight demons as the end days draw near. She must seek out others like herself and convince them to join the fight. I tried to make this a story of family and human love as well as a survival story in the face of overwhelming odds as the world spins to its end. This is a series…and I hope to write at least one more, perhaps two, once I get done with rewriting and rereleasing seven of my older Leisure/Zebra paperbacks from 1984-1994 which are all coming out again from damnation Books and eternal Press between June 2010 and July 2012. A lot of work, but I can’t wait to get them all done and out so I can go back to this series.

For The Woman in crimson… there’s this real old cemetery on the top of a large hill overlooking the small town I live in and I had this idea one day as I was out on my daily walk. What if a long dead Civil War era witch/vampire had been murdered at the end of the Civil War by her frightened neighbors and buried deep beneath that ancient cemetery next to her large family home…she’s sleeping…and somehow her grave is disturbed and she comes back to reclaim that home (which is now a historic bed & breakfast run by a loving couple) and finds that her long dead lover/confederate soldier is the husband that runs it? She wants him back, too, but his wife is determined that will NEVER happen. Throw in a ghost and a vampire psychic to help her and ta-da! Hmmm.


Tell us a little about your newest book.

As I said I’m busy rewriting seven old (mostly) horror novels for damnation Books and Eternal Press…but I also just released two erotic short stories…one contemporary eternal love story Forever & Always from Whispers Publishing and one romantic horror, The Nameless One, a rerelease of my 1993 erotic short story originally from the Zebra Dark Seductions anthology. They’re also available now. Plus, two others. The Heart of the Rose, that witchy historical rerelease, and one of my favorites, The Last Vampire, a rerelease of my 1992 Zebra apocalyptic vampire romance from Damnation Books. Ww.damnationbooks.com There’s been a few other The Last Vampire novels since 1992…but I’m proud to say, mine is the first and the original. The rewrite is getting 5 star reviews.

Thank you Roxanne for having me here at Fang-tastic Books Blogspot.


I really love your blog! It’s been great visiting.

~Kathryn Meyer Griffith
www.myspace.com/kathrynmeyergriffith
rdgriff@htc.net. I love feedback.


KATHRYN MEYER GRIFFITH’S BIO:

I've been writing for over 40 years now...published for 27 of those years since 1984; have fourteen novels and 7 short stories to my name...and more coming. I write traditional supernatural horror, suspense, murder mysteries and paranormal romance. I've been writing about ghosts, haunted places and evil vampires WAY LONG BEFORE Stephanie Meyer (no relation to me even though my maiden name is Meyer) and the rest of the vampire author crowd, ha, ha. And in the next two years, 2010-2012, all seven of my older Zebra and Leisure paperbacks are going to be repackaged, reprinted and rereleased –and in e-books for the first time ever- for the first time in many years. Yippie! So look for them.
I'm a wife of 32 years (husband, Russell), mother (one son, James) and grandmother (two grandchildren, Caitlyn and Joshua). I was a graphic designer in the corporate world for 23 years; and have published with Dorchester, Kensington, Avalon Books, The Wild Rose Press, Damnation Books and Eternal Press. Recently, I've crossed over into e-books as well as paperbacks. I love cats and nature, classic rock and country music (my brother, JS Meyer www.jsmeyermusic.com, is a singer/songwriter and does the songs for all my self-made book trailers that are on my websites). Please visit me at any of my websites.

http://
www.myspace.com/kathrynmeyergriffith (to see all my book trailers with original music by my singer/songwriter brother JS Meyer)

http://
www.shoutlife.com/kathrynmeyergriffith

http://romancebookjunction.ning.com/profile/kathrynmeyergriffith

Here’s a list of all my published novels and short stories:


Evil Stalks the Night (1984)
The Heart of the Rose (1985)
Blood Forge (1989)
Vampire Blood (1991)
The Last Vampire (1992)
Witches (1993)
The Nameless One (ss 1993)
The Calling (1994)
Scraps of Paper (2003)
All Things Slip Away (2006)
Egyptian Heart (2007)
Winter's Journey (2008)
The Ice Bridge (2008)
Don't Look Back (2008)
Don’t Look Back, Agnes (ss 2008)
In This House (ss 2008)
BEFORE THE END: A Time of Demons (2010)
The Woman in Crimson (2010)

BLURB for The Woman in Crimson, a vampire novel:

Willowwind is a lovely Civil War era bed and breakfast that sits on a hill above an ancient cemetery filled with Civil war graves and strange stone sculptures made long ago by a woman once feared to be a witch – perhaps once murdered by the townspeople for being one.
Willowwind is run by a loving couple, Adrian and Caroline Stone, and welcomes guests every weekend.

But since Caroline’s beloved father, Edward Winter, died and was buried in that cemetery, Willowwind is also haunted. Haunted by a long dead Civil War era vampiress, Lilith, who believes the man, Adrian, is her reincarnated soldier/lover and will do anything to have him, body-heart-and soul, for her own again, no matter how many she must kill to have him. But Adrian’s wife, Caroline, along with the help of the ghost of her dead father, will do anything to make sure that doesn’t happen.

***

BLURB of BEFORE THE END: A Time of Demons, an apocalyptic horror saga:

Since Cassandra Graystone was a child and her family perished in a fire she knows and sees things other people don’t…when someone will die or that a demon lurks beneath a human skin. She sees phantoms. Yet she craves a simple life singing out with her musician brother, Johnny, and caring for her elderly aunt and uncle; to be with her friends, Sarah, a psychic, and Walter, a clown in a carnival circuit. But when Sarah sees apocalyptic events in her tarot cards and demons are everywhere, Cassandra fears she’s going insane or something terrifying is happening in the world.

Rayner, an ancient blood demon, lodges next door. He becomes obsessed with her. Never having felt pity or affection for a human before he believes he loves her, would die to protect her. The demon realm gathers for the final confrontation between us, Rayner warns. The apocalypse comes. You and your friends must prepare.

Cassandra flees that knowledge until an angelic being, Manasseh, appears. Your powers will grow. You must fight for humanity’s survival after the first wave is taken. Seek out others like you. Persuade them to join the battle. Only these can see and challenge the demons until the end when all eyes see them. She doesn’t want her life to change; doesn’t want to be a nomad who battles demons. Doesn’t want to be anyone’s protector. Until a tornado flattens Sarah’s house. Johnny’s apartment. There are monsters maiming and killing everywhere.

Demons persecute her and those she loves, burn down her home and force her family and friends onto the road, as everywhere cataclysmic weather and signs of the end days make things hellish for humans. Cassandra and her friends can no longer deny their destinies. They must fight…or see the remnants of humanity engulfed in flames.

***

Giveaway Time

Kathryn is giving away a pdf of either PDF of either one of her new romantic horror novels… BEFORE THE END: A Time of Demons or The Woman in Crimson

Winner's Choice

Want one?

Leave a comment on this post


Winner TBA Next Wednesday

10 comments:

SandyG265 said...

Thanks for the giveaway. A Woman in Crimson sounds really interesting.

Roxanne Rhoads said...

I love the Woman In Crimson cover, Dawne Dominique is a great cover designer.

RFTC Blog said...

These books look really good. Definitely want to pick them up.

iqb99@yahoo.com

Estella said...

The Woman In Crimson sounds like a really good read!

kissinoak at frontier dot com

booklover0226 said...

Hi, Kathryn.

I must have been living under a rock for the past 20 years to have missed your works.

The Woman in Crimson sounds great and I look forward in reading it and your other works.

Thanks,
Tracey D
booklover0226 at gmail dot com

Michelle Stockard Miller said...

The Woman in Crimson sounds intriguing and the cover is divine. Please enter me!

truebookaddictATgmailDOTcom

I received my copy of The Discovery of Witches, which I won in your contest in October, yesterday. A gorgeous book...thank you again!

SunTiger said...

Really like the idea behind this part: "dead Civil War era vampiress, Lilith, who believes the man, Adrian, is her reincarnated soldier/lover and will do anything to have him." Whoo hoo. Great tease for the book!

Unknown said...

Thanks for the giveaway. Both books sounds really good. Please enter me in contest. Tore923@aol.com

Leni said...

Both books sound like interesting reads. The interview made me wonder if Kathryn wrote while playing music in the background.

lenikaye@yahoo.com

Anonymous said...

The Woman in Crimson sounds great.
Would love to win.
msuck27@hotmail.co.uk

Michelle Grayce

 
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