Avon Addict Blog Hop: Q & A with Avon Author Juliana Stone and HUGE SWAG GIVEAWAY!

Q & A with Avon Author

Juliana Stone 

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Bio

Juliana Stone has always believed in the power of a good story. When her first narrative, a futuristic story about Santa Claus set in a world that resembled her friend’s hamster cage, was a hit with her fourth-grade teacher, she discovered her calling was writing: novels, short stories, songs. As long as she was writing, she was happy. During a stint on the music end of things, she toured Canada fronting an all-female rock band, and after meeting her husband, she fell into married life. Kids, dog, and the requisite white picket fence followed, and her writing took a bit of a backseat.

But in the fall of 2007, she decided to resurrect her love of writing and,inspired by the paranormal works of Christine Feehan, Keri Arthur,and Lynsay Sands, she set out to write something great. Luckily, a unique world of jaguar-shifters was born, and the rest is history!

Her first release for Avon was His Darkest Hunger, which was released in April of 2010.

Official Websites:

Juliana Stone's Official Blog

Juliana Stone's Official Website

~Also visit her website for excerpts from her books as well!

Hobbies, Interests, and Enthusiasms:

Music and words have always been my passions. I sing in a band in which my husband plays guitar and my son comes along for the ride as well. We're total '80s geeks, but sadly, the big hair, big shoulder pads, and neon colors are a thing of the past!

I enjoy reading and in my spare time (you know when the kids aren't around) I love to golf and play baseball!

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Hi, Juliana!

Thanks so much for agreeing to be here on this momentous inaugural day. This is the first ever Avon Addict Blog Hop and you're Toot's Book Reviews first ever spotlight/interview!

Sorry, I'm going a bit fan girl over having you here. Love, love, love your books and it's all thanks to being an Avon Addict. They sent me the ARC for "To Hell and Back" and "King of the Damned" and OMG I was hooked! Right away I wrote my reviews (see below for links to the reviews) and even joined your street team. Can't preach the Juliana Stone love enough.

Ok I'll stop gushing and get on with it. So after much consideration, web surfing and just plain asking everyone who would listen, I came up with some questions for you as well as asked fans if they had any questions, so here it goes~~~

Questions from Toot's:

How did you become an Avon author?

My path is going to sound simple and easy but trust me it’s not the norm!  In the spring of 2008 I decided to write a book.  I was in love with paranormal romance so I wrote a book about a jaguar shapeshifter out for revenge on his former lover. I sent it to a few agents, signed with one almost immediately and she sold it to Avon in September of 2008.  I had a lot of luck on my side and as always timing in publishing is so important. 

What is your favorite part about being an Avon author?

I think my favorite thing is the fact that I’ve met and worked with so many wonderful people.  My editor Esi Sogah, the publicity people, Pam and Jessie. All of them are made of awesomesauce.  And the authors, I’ve met so many wonderful authors. It’s been wonderful.

What do you love most about writing romance?

I love the HEA’s. I love reading happy ever afters and I sure as heck love writing them.

Have you met any of your Avon cover models *evil grin*? Thoughts?

No, I haven’t and it’s a damn shame.

Lastly - let's steal an idea from the magazines....What's 10 things fans don't know about you?

I hate peas.

I’m shy.

I’m deathly afraid of spiders and kill any that cross my path.

I stood beside Jon Bon Jovi once in a bar and nearly caused a riot when I realized he was there.

I have an obsession with The Walking Dead.

I talk to myself all the time. (mini me thinks I’m weird)

I’ve never read a Steven King novel.

My son was on Canada’s Got Talent

I named my cat after a guitar. (Gibson)

If I could have one talent, I’d love to be able to play the guitar. Alas, it’s not in the cards.

Questions for from Fans:

From Amy - Juliana, you write strong, smexy women, you get up on stage and sing before crowds of people, is there anything at the end of the day that terrifies you to the point of weakness and would you or have you given that fear to any of your characters?

Wow, good question. First off, I’m able to sing in front of a lot of people because with the lights in your eyes, you don’t see much. I hate singing in small intimate room where I can watch people watching me…it freaks me out. That said, I don’t think there is anything that terrifies me to the point where I’m frozen…BUT I hate flying.  We went to Belize for a family vacation a few years back and we were booked into a resort on a small island off the coast.  Um, we had to take a small charter plane off the mainland and I can’t describe the fear.  I kept looking down into the water, convinced there were thousands of blood thirsty sharks just waiting for a chance at my butt.  It was awful and I medicated myself something fierce for the trip back!

From Crystal - When writing, do you listen to music or do you need quiet?

Quiet.  I can’t listen to anything because I end up singing along or thinking of the lyrics and then I just don’t get any writing done.  I will listen to certain songs to get me in the mood…something sad if I’m writing an emotional scene etc.

From Blithely Bookish - For readers new to Ms. Stone, where would she suggest we start with her books?

If you’re into paranormal you should start with the Jaguar Warriors.  The League of Guardians is as offshoot, but some of the characters overlap.  As for my contemps, OFFSIDE is the first in a trilogy featuring a set of triplets and it’s a good place to start!

From Kevin - What influenced your supernatural world (i.e., other authors, movies, historical research or did you just start writing and created as you wrote)?

Kevin, great question.  I fell in love with Christine Feehan and Sherilyn Kennyon and then decided to try and write my own book.  I have a vivid imagination and just sort of went with it.  I think (especially in the League books) I’ve created a unique and deadly Hell. (at least I hope I did)

From Sharon - What singer would you like to do a duet with?

Ah, good one!  Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty. LOVE him and he’s such an amazing vocalist!

From Penny Mc - What was the inspiration for the series? Also how were the characters created, thought of and how much have they expanded or changed since the first point of creation?

Penny, the League books just sort of grew out of my jaguar warrior books. I love books where there are a lot of different creatures and with this new series I’ve embraced that. I have vampires, sorcerers, shifters, werewolves, demons, witches, angels…the list is ever expanding and it’s what makes me excited.

From Crystal - What challenges have arisen while writing your newest books?

Finding the time to write! I’ve got my hands in several series now, both contemporary and paranormal that I’ve had to become very organized and my family has had to learn to deal with an absent mother and wife.

From Mike - Where do you get the ideas for a new series of characters/plots/places?

Mike they’re in my head.  And my head is full.  And they need to come out!

From Becca - What got you in to writing about Paranormal Romance?

A few years back I picked up a copy of Dark Prince by Christine Feehan. I was immediately hooked. Read her entire backlist and decided to try and write my own!

From Sharron - How do you keep story lines from being predictable?

Well, hopefully I manage to do this, but I’m not sure.  I just write what I love….and I hope that my readers like where my mind is taking them!

From LeKeisha - What is your writing process (I.e., Routines, writing binges, etc.)? What keeps you inspired?

I have to be very organized so that I’m on time with all my contracted books.  I have a writing schedule that I stick to and a weekly word count that I have to meet. I love it, but it’s a job and I treat it as such.

From Jenni - What do you do when you get "writer's block"?

I don’t believe in writers block. I believe in working on a project and it stalls because you’ve gone wrong somewhere.  Usually when this happens I have to go back and figure out what plot point is wrong and then fix it.

From Penny - What was the absolute first book you remember falling in love with?

The Black Stallion and Tom Sawyer.  Both because of my grade 5 teacher, Mrs. Rebuk.  She captivated me with those books. She used to read a chapter a day after noon recess and I looked forward to that small block of time more than anything else!

From Beth - (Multiple questions) Who's your favorite writer? What got you into this genre? What was your favorite book or book character growing up? Name one of your heroes (or someone who inspires you) and why? If you had a chance to have dinner with someone from history, who would it be? If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

Okay, some of these questions have been answered, but I’ll try to answer the rest!

Fave writer? I have a few… Karen Marie Moning, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Christine Feehan, Patricia Cornwell.

Fave book growing up: When I was very little, The Velveteen Rabbit.

My hero?  My mom.  Cuz I love her and she’s awesome.

If I could have dinner with anyone it would be Jim Morrison of The Doors. 

Superpower? I’d love to be invisible.

From Zarai - What types of things do you do while you are writing a book (i.e., Listen to music, bubble bath, TV on, etc). Are there any particular places you go to that inspire you to write?

Zarai, I need quiet when I write and because I have a laptop I can move from the dining room to my office when I feel like it and that usually depends on if the family is home (office time) or not!

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Juliana's newest releases have been getting rave reviews on both Amazon and Goodreads as well as by me, Toot. Check out my reviews on her latest books below:

View Toot's Book Review of
Juliana's new book King of the Damned
http://tootsbookreviews.blogspot.com/2012/11/arc-review-king-of-damned-by-juliana.html

Also her fabulous new novella To Hell and Back
http://tootsbookreviews.blogspot.com/2012/11/arc-review-to-hell-and-back-league-of.html 

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Avon swag pack giveaway and what's included

1 - Avon purple and silver tote bag

1 - Purple glitter tiara cuz everyone needs one

2 - Kiss of Midnight by Lara Adrian

2 - The Way to a Duke's Heart by Caroline Linden

2 - A Notorious Countess Confesses by Julie Anne Long

1 - A Blood Seduction by Pamela Palmer

1 - Seducing the Governess by Margo Maguire

1 - An Unlikely Governess by Karen Ranney

1 - ARC for One Good Earl Deserves a Lover by Sarah MacLean

1 - The Ugly Duchess by Eloisa James

1 - Lord of Temptation by Lorraine Heath

1 - My Scandalous Viscount by Gaelen Foley

1 - In the Pink by Susan McBride

1 - Ecopy of To Hell and Back by Juliana Stone

Giveaway open to US only

* If Rafflecopter isn't opening for you, you might try a different browser. Google Chrome seems to work the best for it.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Please visit the rest of the
Avon Addicts Blog Hop
for more spotlights and prizes

Here's the schedule!

http://tootsbookreviews.blogspot.com/2012/11/upcoming-avon-blog-hop-schedule.html