Q&A with LAURIE LONDON

Happy Valentine's Day to all my readers. To celebrate, we have a special guest today--my sister, Laurie London, whose debut book just released with HQN.

Q--Thanks for being here today, Laurie. Would you please share a short bio about yourself?

A--Thanks for having me, Becky!

I graduated with a business degree and worked as a tester/programmer for a Fortune 500 company before I quit to stay home with my children. BONDED BY BLOOD, book one in the Sweetblood Novel series by HQN Books, just came out and the second book, EMBRACED BY BLOOD, comes out in late June.

Q--Do you consider yourself a shy and/or introverted person?

A--Sometimes. How’s that? LOL Being extroverted does require you to be “on” and sometimes I find that hard to do. But not always. ;-)

Q--In what ways has being shy or introverted hindered your writing career?

A--I’m not sure it has actually hurt my writing career. I’m able to flip a switch and become extroverted if I need to be. But unlike a total extrovert, at some point, being around a lot of people can be mentally draining to me.

Q--In what ways has being shy or introverted helped your writing career?

A--I’m perhaps more sensitive and in-tune to emotions than what I would be if I gathered all my energy externally as an extrovert does. I internalize a lot of things and analyze why a person acts one way as opposed to another. Hopefully, this makes the emotional beats in my stories deeper and more realistic.

Q--What’s the hardest part of this business for you?

A--It has nothing about being introverted or extroverted. The hardest part for me is translating the thoughts in my head into a Word document. LOL. Self-doubt is rampant.

Does this sound stupid? Would he really say this? Is this scene boring? Is the story predictable? I want to show X happening, but I’m not sure exactly how to do it.

Q--Tell me about a time that you had to step outside your comfort zone either in your writing career or in your personal life?

A--Maybe because I got used to functioning on the edge of my comfort zone at an early age, I don’t dread it like some people do. When you show horses, you learn to overcome your nerves, or at least you’re able to project a sense of calm. If you don’t, your horse will detect your nervousness and think they have a reason to freak out as well. I’ve also done a fair amount of public speaking. Although it’s not easy, it’s not an entirely paralyzing thought either. As long as I’m prepared and feel I have something worthwhile to share, I can speak to large groups of people.

Q--What’s one tip you could share with shy and introverted people that’s helped you (whether you’re shy/introverted or not)?

A--In social settings, because I love meeting new people, I often play a game to find something I have in common with someone else. It’s especially fun meeting someone who, at first blush, may appear to have nothing in common with me. I get a lot of satisfaction finding something that both of us find mutually interesting.

In fact, I have a funny story that I think illustrates this well.

At a large Christmas party I attended a few years ago, I knew only the hosts, so I decided to play that game. I struck up a conversation with a guy in the kitchen and found out he was in a band. Well, I like indie music, so I asked him all sorts of questions and listened to what he had to say. He told me about his band, some of their recent gigs, what they were recording now, how he got started after having worked in a professional career, etc. We also shared some of the same tastes in music. When it came time to leave, he looked me straight in the eye, and with all honesty, he said that I was the most interesting person he’d met in a long time. I just shook his hand and smiled.

Turns out the guy never even asked me my name and didn’t know a thing about me. It’s because I showed an interest in him and listened that he felt that way. LOL

If you get people to talk about themselves, they’ll think you’re the most interesting person in the world. And it totally takes the pressure off. All you need to do is listen.

Q--Where can my readers find you on the web?

A--People can check out my website at www.LaurieLondonBooks.com.
I can also be found on Facebook www.facebook.com/laurielondonauthor and Twitter www.twitter.com/LaurieBLondon

Laurie has offered to give away a signed copy of her debut book, Bonded by Blood, to one lucky commenter. Here's a blurb:

Deep within the forests of the Pacific Northwest, two vampire coalitions battle for supremacy—Guardian enforcers who safeguard humanity and Darkbloods, rogues who kill like their ancient ancestors.

Movie location scout Mackenzie Foster-Shaw has always known that she’s cursed to die young. No one can protect her from the evil that has stalked her family for generations—vampires who crave her rare blood type. Until one afternoon in a wooded cemetery, she encounters an impossibly sexy stranger, a man she must trust with her life.

For Dominic, a man haunted by loss, Mackenzie satisfies a primal hunger that torments him—and the bond they share goes beyond heat, beyond love. She alone can supply the strength he needs to claim his revenge. But in doing so, he could destroy her…