Book Giveaway & Author Interview: Pumpkin Roll by Josi S. Kilpack & iPad Giveaway

Welcome to Author Josi S. Kilpack!


Bio:

I'm the third of nine children born and raised in Salt Lake City Utah. I met my husband in high-school--well, he wasn't my husband then, just the cute guy in weight training with the permed mullet--and we married in 1993. I wrote my first book while on bed rest with my third child and have gone on to publish 13 novels, the most recent being part of The Sadie Hoffmiller Culinary Mystery Series.

I currently live in Willard, Utah with my husband, four children, varying number of chickens, and a dog.

INTERVIEW:

If you were stranded on a desert island what 3 things would you want with you?
My Kindle complete with solar panels so I could read everything I don’t have time to read right now. My laptop, also with solar panels, so I wouldn’t miss my next deadline, and an ax for both food and defense.

What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
Girl Scout Thin Mint by Dryers—it’s only available a few months out of the year and worth the weight.

Night owl, or early bird?
Neither. I’m a very solid mid-afternoon person. :-)

Any other books in the works? Goals for future projects?
I’ve just finished the 7th book in the Sadie Hoffmiller series, Banana Split, and am diving right into book 8, which doesn’t yet have a title. We’re planning to do 10 books in this series, then put together a cookbook featuring all the recipes from all the books. I haven’t had time to think about what I’ll do after that.


What inspired you to want to become a writer?
Great books. I didn’t grow up planning to write, but once I started reading at a teenager I discovered these amazing journeys within the pages of a story. In time that love grew into wanting to create my own. And maybe people read my stories and get the same experience. I hope so.

What was your favorite book when you were a child/teen?
I didn’t actually like to read as a kid, in fact I avoided it whenever possible, but there was one book at my elementary library I checked out over and over and over again. It was called “A Dangerous Year” and was about a family of skunks, most of which got killed off over the course of a year—hence the title. I loved that book and actually found it online a few years ago in the original hard cover. It turned out to have been a Newberry Award winner back in the late 60’s so at least I had good taste. It was very nostalgic to hold that book in my hands 20 years after having last read it.

What is your favorite Quote?
“Use your talents, for use is why they were made. What is a sundial in the shade?” Benjamin Franklin. I have benefited so much from people who developed their talents and I have gained so much from using my own. I believe it’s a very important part of our lives, to learn and grow and take the gifts were given and make them into a true talent that blesses us and the people around us.

What's the best advice anyone has ever given you?
That writing is a business and you need to know how to take care of yourself—no one else will take care of you and if you understand that, and play fair, you’ll have a positive experience. If you blame other people and circumstances for your failtures, you won’t learn from them, and if you expect other people to make you a success, you will be disappointed.

How do you react to a bad review?
I keep thinking that one of these days a bad review won’t bother me, but it always does. I’ve actually stopped reading them. Goodreads is a great place for readers, a painful place for writers. I still hear some from time to time, and I try really hard to give them consideration and see if they can help me with future projects, but it’s still very hard to hear negative things about what I’ve worked so hard to create.

What do you do in your free time?
Free time. I’m afraid I’m not familiar with the term. It seems I am always doing something or getting ready for something. For the most part, I enjoy it, now and then it overwhelms me. I haven’t figured out how to un-overwhelm yet.

What's your favorite season/weather?
I love fall. Love it. I love the crisp mornings and the early nights. I love lying in bed and listening to the wind and the rain. I adore lightening. There are few things as relaxing to me than hearing the rain outside while I am warm and safe indoors. And it’s my favorite time of year to cook—soup, cookies, cake, casseroles. Mmmmmm. There is really no drawback to fall for me. I love every bit of it.

Finish the sentence- one book I wish I had written is....
Skipping Christmas by John Grisham. I never saw the movie but heard it was a poor representation—the book, however, was great. I thought a dozen times that I wish I’d come up with the idea, though Grisham did an excellent job at it. Really fun book.

Favorite places to travel?
Years ago my husband and I went to Costa Rica and fell in love with it. We have gone back a few times since then and it is truly the most beautiful place in the world.

Pumpkin Roll by Josi S. Kilpack:

Sadie Hoffmiller is looking forward to spending her favorite baking season of the year making delicious New England recipes in Boston, Massachusetts, with her favorite leading man, Pete Cunningham, as they babysit his three young grandsons. But when the boys insist that Mrs. Wapple, the woman who lives across the street, is a witch, Sadie and Pete are anxious to distract the boys from such Halloween-induced ideas. However, it gets harder and harder to explain the strange things that keep happening, particularly after Sadie learns the eccentric Mrs. Wapple has been attacked in her home. As the unexplained occurrences escalate, Sadie finds herself embroiled in yet another mystery with life-or-death consequences. Can Sadie discover whoever—or whatever—is behind the mystery before anyone else gets hurt? Or will this be Sadie's last case?

iPad Giveaway:

In conjunction with the release of Pumpkin Roll the author, Josi S. Kilpack, and the publisher, Shadow Mountain, are sponsoring a contest for a new iPad.
To enter, leave a comment in the comment section of this blog post before November 1, 2011. Winners will be announced and notified November 3rd 2011.
Open to US & Canada only.
For additional ways to enter, go to http://www.josiskilpack.com

Book Giveaway:
Josi is also offering one copy of her book Pumpkin Roll to a reader of this blog.
Open to US only
Ends 10/14/11

Optional Extra Entry
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