Hello Splinkervillians!
Today I will be sharing a recipe for Beer Ribeye and interviewing Kay Kauffman.
It's simple. Get two ribeye steaks, about a pound each. Rub in two tablespoons of salt and two tablespoons of lemon pepper. Put the steaks in a deep pan and pour in two cans of beer. Let sit for two hours. Then grill 'em up! Moooolicious!
I’ve read what’s
posted on authonomy. I’m not usually one
for zombie stories, as my husband will attest, but I loved this one. I enjoyed it so much that I even bought a
copy of it and have it waiting on my phone to be read again. Brilliantly funny!
Buying it is even better than reading it! Tell us about your current release.
Buying it is even better than reading it! Tell us about your current release.
I currently have a collection of poetry available called Tuesday Daydreams: A Journal in Verse. I write a lot of poetry and I’ve been at it for years. This is a small sample of it.
I rhyme all the time. So give us a look about your next book.
My next release will hopefully be my first novel, The Lokana Chronicles. It’s a fantasy novel that deals with the struggle to maintain tradition in a changing world and is currently out on submission. While I’m waiting for that wonderful agent and/or publisher I know is out there somewhere to insist I sign with them, I’m working on the sequel.
My next release will hopefully be my first novel, The Lokana Chronicles. It’s a fantasy novel that deals with the struggle to maintain tradition in a changing world and is currently out on submission. While I’m waiting for that wonderful agent and/or publisher I know is out there somewhere to insist I sign with them, I’m working on the sequel.
Other than me who is your favorite
author? Even if they are a distant second to me, my readers want to know.
My
kids keep asking me this question. I’ve
yet to come up with a satisfactory answer.
Can’t I just say all of them?
No? Okay, fine. I love Jane Austen’s novels. Ann Rinaldi is another favorite – I’ve read
her book Time Enough for Drums so
many times it’s a miracle I don’t have it memorized. When I was younger, I worshipped at the altar
of R.L. Stine – I started with his Goosebumps series and worked my way up to
Fear Street. The Fear Street Saga remains one of my favorite reads. And who doesn’t love Alvin Schwartz and Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark?
The
hardest part, I think, is knowing when to stop with a scene. In The
Lokana Chronicles, my initial drafts skipped from scene to scene to scene
like a pebble skipping across a pond. I
have a tendency to skip to the next scene when the writing gets tough, which is
something I’m trying not to do with the sequel.
Fortunately, I didn’t have that trouble at all with my poetry.
With
poetry, the hardest part for me is figuring out how to say what I want to say
within the constraints of the form I’m working in. I write a lot of haiku and sometimes it’s
practically impossible to say what I want to say in five or seven syllables per
line. I’ve also written acrostic poems
and run into the same problem. With
acrostics, the first letter of each line spells something out when read from
top to bottom. I’ll start with a
particular message in mind and then try to fit the rest of what I want to say
into that form and it can be maddening.
Do you have critique
partners or beta readers?
I’m
part of an online writing group on authonomy called the Alliance of
Worldbuilders. They’ve been absolutely
wonderful for critiquing everything from pitches to chapters to whole
projects. If I need something critiqued
or beta read, they’re the first ones I turn to.
Tell us about your family.
I
have a wonderful husband and four wonderful kids who seem determined to drive
me crazy…er. We’ll soon be entering
those crazy, mixed-up teenage years with the oldest two, who are both nine (no,
they’re not twins), but at least we have a little while before the younger two,
who are one and two, will hit them.
We’ve got three boys and a girl, and I’ll have two teenage boys in my
house at one time. I fear for my grocery
budget.
What books have most
influenced your life?
Probably
two of the most influential books I’ve ever read are ones that I read in
elementary school. The first, The Princess in the Pig Pen by Jane Resh
Thomas, is one I read in second grade.
My teacher thought I would like it and I thought I wouldn’t. She was so convinced that I would like it,
though, that she checked it out for me and left it on my desk. I grudgingly read it…and she was right. I couldn’t get enough and I’ve been
fascinated with Elizabethan England ever since (the book is set partly there
and partly in Iowa, my home state – another reason to love it). If I hadn’t taken my teacher’s advice and
tried something new, I’d have never fallen in love with this wonderful book.
The
other book that influenced me was The
Blood-and-Thunder Adventure on Hurricane Peak by Margaret Mahy. I don’t actually remember a whole lot about
this book except that it was funny and I read it a number of times. There is one thing that always stuck with me,
though, and that was the motto from the school in the story: Expect the unexpected. The kids in the story were taught to always
expect the unexpected. I think that’s a
good bit of life advice right there.
I
am addicted to Bones and Rookie Blue. I also really enjoyed Alcatraz, despite the fact that the main character was a terrible
cop, so I was annoyed when it was cancelled.
Person of Interest is also
great – evidently they have all the good writers because the season premiere
was excellent.
"It's an honor just to be nominated!"
"It's an honor just to be nominated!"
What is it that you
like to do when you’re not reading/writing?
I
like playing the flute, though I haven’t practiced in ages, and I enjoy
photography. I am descended from a
family of shutterbugs. Growing up, I
thought the camera a natural part of my grandfather’s physiology. Only later did I learn that, like his
glasses, it was removable.
Are the names of the
characters in your novels important? More important than me?
Some
of them are. Some names describe a
character’s situation or personality.
DoLani, for instance, was inspired by the Spanish word for pain and her
name is important because she suffers much pain. Ravenna comes from the word ravenous, meaning
intensely eager for gratification or satisfaction, and which is a synonym for
greedy.
What are the most important
attributes for remaining sane as a writer?
Sane
writer? Does such a thing exist? As we say in the Alliance, we’re all mad
here.
I
think having a schedule and a helpful and supportive family are the most
important attributes for remaining sane.
No one else can help you defend that sacred writing time quite the way a
supportive spouse can.
A
rapidly-expanding colony of dust bunnies bent on a hostile take-over of my
home.
Don't ask Kay about her closet. It's pretty dusty in here as well.
Don't ask Kay about her closet. It's pretty dusty in here as well.
If I came to visit early in the morning would you impress me as being more like a chirpy bird or a grumpy bear?
Neither. You would find a hissing, spitting hell
beast. Quite possibly, I’d be foaming at
the mouth. A morning person I am not.
On
the other hand, if you came bearing a truckload of caffeine, I would quite
possibly be slightly more like a grumpy bear.
It’s as Garfield once said: If we were meant to pop out of bed in the
mornings, we’d all sleep in toasters.
Describe what it’s like
to be an author in three words.
Frustrating. Exhilarating.
Maddening.
What one word best describes
you? And remember, this is a family oriented blog.
Determined.
Entice us, what future
projects are you considering?
I
am currently working on a sequel to The
Lokana Chronicles. I’ve got a couple
of other projects in the works that have a bit more of a romantic element to
them than what I’ve written so far, but they need a lot of work. I don’t know how long it will be before I get
back to them, as I’ve been working on them off and on for the last decade or
so, but I would like to get them finished and polished up someday.
What is something people
would be surprised to know about you?
I
have fallen out of a tent. Believe it or
not, it is possible.
Without mentioning me, do you have a favorite
quote, quip, or saying?
Good
judgment comes from experience and experience, well, that comes from bad
judgment.
Is there one passage
in your book that you feel gets to the heart of your book and would encourage people
to read it? If so, can you share it?
In
Chapter 5, Vegin argues with his parents over a traditional arranged
marriage. They’ve arranged for him to
marry the daughter of a wealthy courtier, and neither the prince nor the girl
wants any part of it:
“Your
Highnesses, I apologize most sincerely for my daughter’s impudent behavior,”
Arkin said, attempting damage control as he tried to hold himself
together. “I hope it won’t interfere
with our agreement.” He shot Ravenna an
icy glare. “If you’ll excuse us, I need
to have a word with my daughter.” Though
he led Ravenna out of the room, much of their conversation was heard inside the
library.
Danalla,
having been left behind by her husband, looked as uncomfortable as everyone
else felt. “Do excuse me,” she nearly
whispered as she fled the room.
Once
she had gone, Vegin seized the opportunity to discuss his feelings. “Clearly she doesn’t want to marry me,” he began.
“She’s
young and foolish. She doesn’t know what
she wants,” Tol said, irritated. This
wasn’t going at all the way he had planned.
“Don’t
be so sure of that,” Enya said, a far-off look in her eye as she recalled her
own youth. “When we married, I wanted
nothing to do with you, remember? I had
the same conversation with my parents that Ravenna is having with hers. I was wrong, of course, and so is she. After all, parents do want what is best for
their children and I know she will love you in the end, dear. How could she not?”
“You
really think it’s best for me to marry a complete stranger who has sworn to
love another? What possible good could
come of that?”
“But
she will love you one day, darling, I know it.
After all, I learned to love your father.”
Tol
and Vegin both gaped in surprise at the queen, who was not normally so
outspoken. Tol was the first to speak as
annoyance quickly replaced his shock.
“We haven’t the time for this right now, woman! Vegin, the future of the monarchy is at stake
here and I’ll not have you toying with me.”
“I
am not toying with you, Father. I will
not marry Ravenna. She is in love with
someone else and so am I.”
Do you have a Website
or Blog? I will be shocked if the answer to this question is 'yes.'
I
do, as a matter of fact. It’s called Suddenly they all died. The end. You can find it at
http://suddenlytheyalldied.com.
When
I was in high school, I asked one of my teachers to read a story I’d written
and give me her opinion. She asked me
why one of the characters had done something and when I couldn’t give her a
satisfactory answer, she told me I needed to get into my characters’
heads. I took her advice and I haven’t
been seen since.
"It beats Sterno!"
That's it! Thank you Kay and good luck on your poetry, novels and house cleaning. Here be the links:
That's it! Thank you Kay and good luck on your poetry, novels and house cleaning. Here be the links:
Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/kaysielynn
Tuesday
Daydreams (Kindle): http://www.amazon.com/Tuesday-Daydreams-Journal-Verse-ebook/dp/B007OC9896/ref=la_B007M4DZKE_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1350159979&sr=1-2
Tuesday
Daydreams (paperback): http://www.amazon.com/Tuesday-Daydreams-Journal-Kay-Kauffman/dp/1470078082/ref=la_B007M4DZKE_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1350159979&sr=1-1
Tuesday
Daydreams (Kindle) (Amazon UK): http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tuesday-Daydreams-Journal-Verse-ebook/dp/B007OC9896/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1350160260&sr=1-1
We’ve got three boys and a girl, and I’ll have two teenage boys in my house at one time. I fear for my grocery budget.
ReplyDeleteLOL! And this is why I love your writing, Kay.
Are the names of the characters in your novels important? More important than me?
And this is why I should probably read this blog on a regular basis. :)
LOL! And this is why I love your writing, Kay.
DeleteAw, thank you. I'm all flattered. :)
Welcome tarazza! All kinds of hidden treasures here. Maybe I can get Kay to write a poem about it.
ReplyDeleteAnything is possible. ;)
DeleteVery nice description it's. It's possible. I hope
ReplyDelete