"When I'm not writing" with Kalayna Price + giveaway

I'm very excited about today's guest because it's none other than Kalayna Price. I love her Alex Craft novels and I can't wait to read the third book in the series, GRAVE MEMORY, which *finally* comes out next week. (Can you tell I've been waiting for it rather impatiently? ;)

To celebrate her upcoming release, Kalayna has stopped by to share what she does when she's not writing. She's also offering a giveaway of the first two Alex Craft novels so make sure you enter. They are must-read urban fantasy.

What do I do when I’m not writing? That’s called sleep I think . . .

No I’m kidding. I actually have a lot of hobbies. Maybe too many.

Reading is probably at the top of the list because books and the amazing worlds they unlock are the reason I started writing in the first place. (Big surprise, right?) So I read. A lot. In fact, the head minion said we’re not allowed to move again because he doesn’t want to help move all the books again. Here you can see one wall of books in my library.

I’m also a hoop dancer. I got into hoop dancing years ago after seeing someone dance at a convention. It’s something I can do with friends and it’s good for me—hey, I have to work off all that time spent in a chair in front of my computer! I hoop with LED hoops mostly, but on occasion I get a chance to hoop with fire and I love it. What a rush!

And speaking of a rush. I recently added skydiving to my list of things I’ve done. I don’t know if I’d call it a hobby, but I do plan to do it again!

I also make jewelry, garden, paint, and play video games. (Skyrim anyone?) I dabble in photography and I recently started learning violin. See what I mean about too many hobbies? Of course, none of these hobbies get as much energy devoted to them as in the past, so I tend to focus on them in waves.

Since writing takes up so much of my life, I also collect art and random cute (or terrifying) objects to surround my desk. That way, I always have something interesting and inspiring to focus on when I look up from my screen.

---------------------------------

Your hoop dancing is amazing, Kalayna! What a fantastic hobby. Also, yay for Skyrim! Thanks for taking the time to share this with us. =)

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

---------------------------------

Here's the scoop on GRAVE MEMORY, coming out on July 3:

When the dead need to talk, Alex Craft is always ready to listen…

As a Grave Witch, Alex solves murders by raising the dead—an ability that comes at a cost, and after her last few cases, that cost is compounding. But her magic isn’t the only thing causing havoc in her life. While she’s always been on friendly terms with Death himself, things have recently become a whole lot more close and personal. Then there’s her sometime partner, agent Falin Andrews, who is under the glamour of the Winter Queen. To top everything off, her best friend has been forever changed by her time spent captive in Faerie.

But the personal takes a backseat to the professional when a mysterious suicide occurs in Nekros City and Alex is hired to investigate. The shade she raises has no memory of the days leading up to his brutal ending, so despite the very public apparent suicide, this is murder. But what kind of magic can overcome the human will to survive? And why does the shade lack the memory of his death? Searching for the answer might mean Alex won’t have a life to remember at all…

Read an excerpt

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Get caught on the series by checking out GRAVE WITCH and GRAVE DANCE. Click on the covers to read my posts about these books.

---------------------------------

Kalayna is kindly offering one (1) set of GRAVE WITCH and GRAVE DANCE to a lucky reader!

To enter the giveaway, obey the Rafflecopter!

US only

Ends Monday, July 9, 2012

a Rafflecopter giveaway

---------------------------------

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 07:02

 giveaway, Kalayna Price, Penguin, When I'm not writing, Witch  30 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.