Book Giveaway & Author Interview: Venom by K.C. Grant

Welcome back to Author K.C. Grant.

Bio:

K.C. Grant was born in rural Idaho, but has made Utah her home for most of her life. After serving an LDS Spanish-speaking mission to Anaheim, California, USA, she returned and continued her studies at Weber State University, participating in a study abroad program that allowed her to study at the Centro Mexicano Internacional in Michoacan, Mexico. She has been a freelance writer for eight years. Much of her work appears in family-oriented magazines such as LDSLiving, Latter-Day Woman, Back Home, Parents & Kids, and Natural Life and The Deseret News/Mormon Times. She is currently the president of the Bountiful chapter of the League of Utah Writers and is a member of the Association for Mormon Letters and LDStorymakers. Though raising her children is still her most important task, she combines it with the demanding job of working out the numerous plots she has for future novels. She and her husband of sixteen years love to travel and scout out new settings for books. While ancient Mexico was the setting for her first published novel, Abish: Daughter of God, which was released by Covenant in 2010 and its sequel, Abish: Mother of Faith, released March 2011--modern Mexico was perfect for her suspense novel titled, Venom, to be released January 2012. Other publications include a short story recently published in Covenant's seasonal compilations, How Will Christmas Find Us? and A Christmas to Remember by various LDS authors.

LINKS:
Website: http://www.kcgrant.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/authorkcgrant
Blog: http://www.kcgrantwriterscorner.blogspot.com/

INTERVIEW:
What is one book everyone should read? 
My favorite classic is Jane Eyre, but I also love anything by Stephen King!

If you were a superhero what would your name be? 
Rewrite Woman: I must have some superpower that way because my editor never fails to make me do rewrites and somehow I manage to do them!

If you could have any superpower what would you choose?
To freeze time because there's never enough of it.

What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
Peppermint stick, which I only eat in December.

If you could meet one person who has died who would you choose? 
I would love to meet Marilyn Monroe. She's such an enigma--forced to play the "dumb blonde" but really quite intelligent.

What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?
I love yogurt and granola.

Night owl, or early bird?
Night owl

One food you would never eat?
Anything still moving! Otherwise, I love ethnic food--Indian and Thai are my favorites.

Please tell us in one sentence only, why we should read your book.
Because even the main character's 'inner voice' would tell you to. (You'll have to read it to find out what that means.)

Any other books in the works? Goals for future projects?
Venom is set up to be a series that continues with the main characters but can be read separately. My next idea is to look at the drug trafficking situation at our northern border.

What inspired you to want to become a writer?
I was a reader first and after a while, anyone who loves to read that much starts to wonder if they can write a book.

What was your favorite book when you were a child/teen?
I loved the Anne of Green Gables series, so much that my first attempt at writing involved a dark-haired talkative young girl who was an orphan.

What's one piece of advice you would give aspiring authors? 
Read everything you can get your hands on, find what inspires you and then write!

If you could live any where in the world where would it be?
I'm very partial to California and could easily "set up shop" in a beach time in the Central or Southern areas

Favorite quote from a movie?
"We're gonna need a bigger boat." Jaws

Do you prefer a bunch of small gifts or one big expensive one?
Lots of small

What is you favorite way to spend a rainy day?
Reading

Venom

Samantha Evans is determined to make a name for herself in the cutthroat world of advertising. Newly hired by a prestigious ad agency, she volunteers to work on location in Mexico City as a personal assistant to the beautiful and driven creative director Katrina Edwards. At first the association seems promising. But Ms. Edwards seems preoccupied in a way that makes Samantha increasingly uneasy. In fact, many in the group seem like they are not being completely open about the project including David Ayala, the mysterious and moody photographer for whose attention the two women find themselves competing. After several strange accidents and numerous appearances by an unknown man, Samantha discovers the truth: not everyone on the team is in Mexico to create a stellar advertising pitch. When her sleuthing leads to her abduction, she is brought to the pyramids of Teotihuacán and comes face-to-face with the venomous evil of the South American crime boss known as “The Serpent.” Now Samantha must not only fight for her life, but she must also discover if she can trust the man she’s come to love.

Giveaway Details
1 paperback copy of Venom
Open to US only
Ends 3/1/12


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Also by K.C. Grant

Book Giveaway & Author Interview - Abish: Mother of Faith by K.C. Grant

Welcome to Author K.C. Grant.

Bio:

K.C. Grant was born in rural Idaho, but has made Utah her home for most of her life. After serving an LDS Spanish-speaking mission to Anaheim, California, USA, she returned and continued her studies at Weber State University, participating in a study abroad program that allowed her to study at the Centro Mexicano Internacional in Michoacan, Mexico. She has been a freelance writer for eight years. Much of her work appears in family-oriented magazines such as LDSLiving, Latter-Day Woman, Back Home, Parents & Kids, and Natural Life and The Deseret News/Mormon Times. She is currently the president of the Bountiful chapter of the League of Utah Writers and is a member of the Association for Mormon Letters and LDStorymakers. Though raising her children is still her most important task, she combines it with the demanding job of working out the numerous plots she has for future novels. She and her husband of sixteen years love to travel and scout out new settings for books. While ancient Mexico was the setting for her first published novel, Abish: Daughter of God, which was released by Covenant in 2010 and its sequel, Abish: Mother of Faith, released March 2011--modern Mexico was perfect for her suspense novel titled, Venom, to be released January 2012. Other publications include a short story recently published in Covenant's seasonal compilations, How Will Christmas Find Us? and A Christmas to Remember by various LDS authors.

http://www.kcgrant.com/

Interview:

If you could travel in a Time Machine would you go back to the past or into the future?
To be honest I always feel like I’ve been born in the wrong time and that I could find a certain amount of happiness in the simpler, more tranquil way people lived about 100-150 years ago. Though there are certain technological advances I would miss, I think that they would more than be made up for. There was a love of language and correspondence was thoughtfully engaged in. There was a gentility and politeness that existed among people. Plus I think the dresses (not the corsets!) would have been fun to wear all the time.

If you could invite any 5 people to dinner who would you choose? 
William Wordsworth, Marie Curie, Shakespeare, Einstein and Marilyn Monroe. I think we’d find a lot to talk about.

If you were stranded on a desert island what 3 things would you want with you? 
I’ll forego the obvious like food, water and a cell phone with GPS. Instead, a Kindle with an endless power supply and all of my favorite reads. A notebook so I can write my memoir. And a chocolate bar for when I get writer’s block.

What is your favorite flavor of ice cream? 
I love peppermint stick ice cream and only allow myself to eat it in December.

Night owl, or early bird?
Night owl—it’s the only time the house is quiet and I can write.

Pet Peeves? 
At the risk of offending anyone, I can’t stand it when people don’t signal when they change lanes while driving. I can’t read minds!

Please tell us in one sentence only, why we should read your book. 
I wanted to tell a familiar story from The Book of Mormon with a new perspective: through the eyes of one of the few women mentioned by name. I felt this would give me a chance to examine ideas that could only be related because of her unique experiences as a woman and wife and mother.

Any other books in the works? Goals for future projects? 
My next release is a suspense novel due out in January. I hope to make Venom a series by exploring other significant drug trafficking problems in and near the U.S. After my husband and I returned from a “research” trip to Vancouver, Canada, I’ve been working on the sequel.

What inspired you to want to become a writer? 
I've always loved to both read and write and though it takes some time to learn how to become a writer, I knew it was something I had to work toward. Having my third book published is almost as exciting as the first. It’s something I still love to do.

Tell us your most rewarding experience since being published. 
I had a woman from Hawaii email me that Abish: Daughter of God, my first book, helped her understand a blessing that Elder Kikuchi had given her many years ago. She understood that Abish had been a woman of great faith and courage and that she was being blessed with that.

If you could jump in to a book, and live in that world, which would it be? 
Though I could live without the war part, I’d have to say that I could spend a week or so in the pre-Civil War pages of Gone With the Wind. I’ve always wanted to see if I could talk some sense into Scarlett. Ashley over Rhett? Come on!

What is your dream cast for your book? 
For some reason I always have Ashley Judd pop into my mind when I’m writing my female heroines. I think she’s really versatile and could play a variety of parts.

What was your favorite book when you were a child/teen? 
Hands down the Anne of Green Gables series.

What's one piece of advice you would give aspiring authors? 
Here’s two: Read, read read. Write, write, write.

If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? 
I love the ocean and think I could be really inspired if I lived in a house somewhere along the West Coast where I could hear the waves crashing in while I wrote.

Who are your favorite authors of all time? 
I admire the Brontë sisters for their courage in writing during a time when women were still seen as decoration.

Can you see yourself in any of your characters? 
That’s a dangerous thing to admit to. I’m sure there’s plenty of similarities.

Hidden talent? 
I once hula-hooped for two hours straight. OK, I was nine at the time.

How do you react to a bad review? 
After I’ve written a scathing response and torn it up? I calmly remind myself that they’re just jealous.

Favorite places to travel? 
Does it matter? I’ll go anywhere.

In your wildest dreams, which author would you love to co-author a book with?
Jane Austen

Book excerpt:

Perhaps my story should have ended that glorious day when my life found its purpose. On that day, my Creator saw fit to use my weakness as His strength so the truth of His gospel could surge across the land, enveloping my people from the east to the west, from the sea to the wilderness. That wave of righteousness, I knew even then, would never again be at the mercy of one person’s hand. I also knew that I would never again have such a role to play as I did that fateful day in King Lamoni’s court.
So I must admit that it is only my own vanity that wishes the rest to be told. After all, how could the fulfillment of a heart’s desire compare with the deliverance of a nation? I can only hope that an old woman will be forgiven for her shortcomings because there are things one can’t help but remember: the look on a husband’s face when he calls you his own, the softness of a baby’s skin when he is put into your arms for the first time, and the inevitable joy that comes when the anguish of death is softened by time.
How could I not add these memories to the ones that have come before? Especially now. Especially when the past is all I have left.

Book Giveaway:
1 copy of Abish: Mother of Faith
Open to US & Canada
Ends 11/28/11

Winner:
TV Mc Arthur