Interview & Giveaway: Jennifer Estep

UFI welcomes Jennifer Estep Author of Mythos Academy, Elemental Assassin and Bigtime. Thanks for Joining us!!

What can you tell my readers about yourself that they might not know from looking onyour bio or reading in another interview?

JE: Well, I’m a total geek. I love mythology, fairy tales, superhero stories, spy thrillers, and more, and I like playing Dungeons & Dragons and other games. Football is my favorite sport. I love the James Bond books and movies, watch way too much TV, and wish that I had more time to read. Some of my favorite musicians include Jimmy Buffett and The Killers. I also like to make people laugh, whether they are reading my books or talking to me in real life.

What do you enjoy doing on your down time?

JE: I love to read, watch TV/movies, spend time with family and friends, and just relax.

What is your favorite part of writing?

JE: Finishing the latest book I’m working on. LOL. It always gives me a sense of accomplishment (and relief!) when I can type “The End” on a manuscript. I let myself enjoy the feeling for a few days before moving on and starting work on my next project.

Do you have any certain routines you must follow as you write?

JE: I have a system that works for me. I’m a panster so I don’t really do detailed outlines, character sketches, or anything like that. Instead, I just think about my main heroine, her magic, and how she can defeat the bad guys with it, then I sit down and start writing.

I try to write about 2,000 to 3,000 words a day until I have a rough draft of about 50,000 words or so. That takes a couple of weeks. Then, I let the draft sit for a few weeks before going back to it and seeing if the story, characters, etc. hold together and what changes I might need to make. Then, I start working on my second draft, adding in more description, dialogue, action, etc. I do that a couple of times until the book is the best that I can make it and about 95,000 words or so (or about 90,000 words if I’m writing a young adult book).

I also need quiet to write, and I don’t listen to music or anything like that when I’m working on a book.

What are some of your favorite books or authors in the urban fantasy/paranormal genres?

JE: There are so many great books for adults and young adults in the urban fantasy and paranormal genres. It’s a great time to be a fan of the genres right now.

Some of my favorite young adult books are Graceling by Kristin Cashore; The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins; Beastly by Alex Flinn; and Beauty by Robin McKinley.

As far as adult urban fantasy/paranormal authors and series go, I like the Immortals After Dark series by Kresley Cole. I also like fantasy authors like Alex Bledsoe, David Eddings, Scott Lynch, and many, many others.

How would you pitch The Mythos Academy series to someone who has not heard of it before?

JE: I would say that the Mythos Academy series features myths, magic, monsters, and mean girls.

Can you tell us a little bit about the world that the series is set in?

JE: The series focuses on Gwen Frost, a 17-year-old Gypsy girl who has the gift of psychometry, or the ability to know an object’s history just by touching it. After a serious freak-out with her magic, Gwen is shipped off to Mythos Academy, a school for the descendants of ancient warriors like Spartans, Valkyries, Amazons, and more.

So the world is mythology-based, and the two main gods featured are Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, and Loki, the Norse trickster god. Nike, Loki, and their followers have been locked in battle for centuries, and Gwen soon finds herself in the thick of things.

Do you have a favorite scene in KISS OF FROST?

JE: I really like the scenes with Gwen, my heroine, and Logan Quinn, the cute Spartan guy that she has a crush on. Logan knows how Gwen feels about him, and he seems to care about her too, but he’s dating another girl in Kiss of Frost. There’s one scene where Gwen and Logan argue about their feelings for each other that I like a lot and hope that readers will too. I also really like the big fight scene between Gwen and the Reaper bad guy near the end of the book.

Which character was your favorite to write about? What about the hardest to write about?

JE: I enjoyed writing Vic, Gwen’s talking sword, who is really bloodthirsty and determined to kill Reapers of Chaos, the bad guys. Vic says some outrageous things, and he’s full of opinions and attitude. He was a lot of fun for me to write.

I would say the hardest character to write was Nickamedes, the head librarian at the Library of Antiquities. Nickamedes is a character who’s a stickler for following the rules. He’s not a villain per se, but he and Gwen don’t really get along. Sometimes, I think it’s harder writing a character your heroine dislikes rather than a villain who’s out to destroy her.

What other projects can we look forward to reading from you?

JE: Dark Frost, the third book in the Mythos Academy series, will be out in June 2012. Crimson Frost, the fourth book, is tentatively scheduled to be published in January 2013. Right now, I’m under contract for six books in the series.

Visit www.jenniferestep.com for free short stories, excerpts, and more. Happy reading, everyone! ;-)

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Jennifer Estep writes the Mythos Academy young adult urban fantasy series for Kensington. The books focus on Gwen Frost, a 17-year-old Gypsy girl who has the gift of psychometry, or the ability to know an object’s history just by touching it. After a serious freak-out with her magic, Gwen is shipped off to Mythos Academy, a school for the descendants of ancient warriors like Spartans, Valkyries, Amazons, and more. 

Touch of Frost, the first book in the series, was published today, July 26. First Frost, a prequel e-story to the series, is available now as a 99-cent download. Kiss of Frost, the second book, will hit shelves on Nov. 29. Visit www.jenniferestep.com for excerpts and more information.

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Find Jennifer and her books

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Kiss of Frost
Mythos Academy #2
November 29, 2011

Logan Quinn was try­ing to kill me. My Spar­tan class­mate relent­lessly pur­sued me, swing­ing his sword at me over and over again, the shin­ing sil­ver blade inch­ing closer to my throat every time. A smile tugged up his lips, and his ice-blue eyes prac­ti­cally glowed with the thrill of battle...

I’m Gwen Frost, a second-year warrior-in-training at Mythos Acad­emy, and I have no idea how I’m going to sur­vive the rest of the semes­ter. One day, I’m get­ting schooled in sword­play by the guy who broke my heart—the drop-dead gor­geous Logan who slays me every time. Then, an invis­i­ble archer in the Library of Antiq­ui­ties decides to use me for tar­get prac­tice. And now, I find out that some­one at the acad­emy is really a Reaper bad guy who wants me dead. I’m afraid if I don’t learn how to live by the sword—with Logan’s help—I just might die by the sword...

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