"When I'm not writing" with Jenn Bennett + giveaway!

Today the wonderful Jenn Bennett is stopping by to tell us what she does when she's not writing her amazing Arcadia Bell stories, or her upcoming Roaring 20s paranormal romance series (which I'm so excited to try!). Jenn's one of my favourite authors, and not just because we share a name, so I truly hope you'll enjoy this peek into her life. She's been gracious enough to give us a peek into her life, complete with never-before-seen-online artwork and the evilest of pugs. =)

Jenn has also been gracious enough to offer up a giveaway of a signed copy of one of her Arcadia Bell books, so make sure you stick around to enter that. It's a prize I'd love to get!

I wasn't always a writer, but most of my interests have been creative. When I was in college, I was certain I'd be making a living in the art world. Little did my starry-eyed 20-year-old self know that my super-cool degree in Fine Arts would later be virtually useless. But at the time, I didn't care about things like Jobs and Money and Adult Responsibilities, and painted almost every day—mostly in oils, and usually figures (like the one in the photo here). Over the years, I've made stained glass, mosaics, metal jewelry, screen-prints, and pottery. I still draw on occasion, and I've taught myself how to paint in photoshop. Some of the character sketches I've done are up on my website.

Later, when I began working real-world jobs, I channeled all that creative angst into my living space. My kitchen is rainforest-frog green, and my living room is decorated with flea-market finds and oddities my husband and I have picked up on our travels. I have a lot of unique collections, including vintage ouija boards (see photo), Fiestaware, early 20th century postcards of redwood trees (weird, I know), and small statues of toadstools (weirder, I know).

Now that I'm writing, most of downtime is spent unwinding. I have two Evil Pugs (see photo of the most malevolent one), who basically hold me hostage in my own home. I like to play video games—mostly survival horror or adventure, like Bioshock and Uncharted. I watch a lot of old movies (1920s-1950s is my sweet spot), and I love to cook. Usually. When I'm not on a horrible writing deadline. But the thing I probably enjoy doing most when I'm not writing is: reading. Funny how life circles back around, isn't it?

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Thanks for stopping by, Jenn, and sharing your collections and artwork with us! =)

For more information about Jenn and her books, check out her website or follow her on Facebook or Twitter.

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Here's the scoop on BINDING THE SHADOWS:

Renegade mage and bartender Arcadia Bell has had a rough year, but now the door to her already unstable world is unhinging. When a citywide crime wave erupts, Cady’s demon-friendly tiki bar is robbed by Earthbounds wielding surreal demonic abilities that just flat-out shouldn’t exist. With the help of her devilishly delicious boyfriend, Lon Butler, Cady sets out to find the people who wronged her—but her targets aren’t the only ones experiencing unnatural metamorphoses. Can Cady track down the monsters responsible before the monster inside her destroys everything—and everyone—she loves? If she survives this adventure, one thing is certain: it’s last call for life as she knows it.

Jenn (from the blog)'s thoughts

Read an excerpt

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Here are the earlier books in the series. Click on the cover to see Jenn (from the blog)'s thoughts:

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Jenn is offering one (1) lucky reader a signed Arcadia Bell book!

To enter the giveaway, listen to the Rafflecopter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Do you guys have suggestions for who you’d like to see featured on the blog? If so, you can make your suggestions on this page. No guarantees that your favorite authors will be able to participate but we’ll try!

Authors, would you like to visit and share with us? Please email me at jennblogs (at) gmail (dot) com and we’ll set it up!

Posted by jenn at 07:00

 giveaway, Jenn Bennett, Simon Schuster, When I'm not writing  29 People left their mark

Born and raised in the Toronto area, Jenn moved to St. John's, Newfoundland, eight years ago for school. She's still in school (thankfully on another degree!), now trapped in her dissertation. When she's not dissertating, which happens more often than it should, Jenn spends her time reading, watching movies, playing volleyball, travelling, and enjoying the local music scene. Her latest addictions: yoga and Almond Crunch cereal.