Wednesday, July 28, 2010

CREEP

QUICK SHOUT-OUTS!!!!

Check out the upcoming blog fest! It's going to be fun! For details hit the sidebar picture (Guess that character) and sign up today!! For those who've signed up already (YOU ROCK) Feel free to snag the picture and place it on your blog! Too fun!

Kari over at Under the Fairy Dust has one awesome contest happening where tons of books are being given away! Feel free to check out that! Or don't... so I can win... Muah-ha-ha... just kidding, but seriously not.

I'm going to see the lovely Maggie Stiefvater tonight with my sister!!! So if you are in the houston area and would like to see her Blue Willow Bookshop will be hosting the event! Buy your book there, pick up your signing ticket and enjoy!

Now to the author of the day!

Jennifer Hillier is someone I just recently met and had to interview!!! Her first novel CREEP is to debut in 2011 agented by Victoria Skurnick of Levine Greenberg Literary Agency and published by Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. So let's get this interview started with a kick ass synopsis!

Synopsis pulled from her blog:
Everything bad that's happened to popular psychology professor Sheila Tao is her own damn fault.

Had she told her investment banker fiancé about her sex addiction from the beginning, maybe he wouldn't have walked out a week before their wedding.

Had she not had an affair with her student, Ethan Wolfe, maybe her career at the university wouldn't be dangling by a thread.

Had Ethan Wolfe not been the serial killer responsible for the deaths of several homeless women in the Seattle area, maybe Sheila wouldn't be shackled to a bed in his state-of-the art kill room, wondering how the hell she could have been so stupid.

CREEP is a character-driven psychological thriller that explores what happens when you cheat on your fiancé with Hannibal Lecter.

INTERVIEW!

1. After the complicated mess Sheila has gotten herself into it makes me wonder, have you ever been in a scary relationship before?

Not unless I'm considered the scary one. Kidding aside, no, I haven't (thank God). But I have made my share of bad choices, and CREEP explores the worst case scenario (the nightmare scenario, really) of making terrible decisions. I've always been interested in the dark side of human nature, and it's a theme that pops up constantly in my work.

2. Are you one to dabble in several different genres or are thrillers your calling?

I'm pretty sure thrillers are my calling, but watch me eat those words in a few years. My first novel (a.k.a. my trunk novel) was a horror. I'd love to attempt something like that again, but I find writing horror really hard. Thrillers are easier because they tend to be grounded in reality. With horror, it's harder for me to suspend my disbelief, which makes the writing a bigger challenge. And if I can't suspend my disbelief, I can't very well expect readers to suspend theirs. But someday I'd love to write a juicy, gory horror novel. I'm a huge Stephen King fan.

3. Dare to share any new pieces you are working on?

Right now I'm working on a novel that shares some of the same characters as CREEP. I don't know that I'd go so far as to call it a sequel – it's more like a spin-off, and if I can pull it off, it will be able to stand on its own. My other WIP is a novel I've been picking at for two years, in between revisions (and during Query Hell) for CREEP. I actually think this book (a supernatural thriller) is some of my best writing, but the story doesn't flow easily. Go figure.

4. When you snagged the agent of your dreams (after query hell of course) how did you react? Scream, Jump in the air, kill a character? Feel free to divulge the story of excitement here! Everyone is waiting in anticipation!

That was a great day. I hadn't expected to hear back from this agent (now my agent) so soon. I thought she would be in touch via email the following week, and I was anticipating a revise-and-resubmit. But the next day, she called offering me representation. I didn't hesitate to accept. When I got off the phone, I cried. And I am SO NOT a crier! But it was a happy, happy day. You can read all about The Call here

5. Do serial killers control your thoughts? Are they more of the main character for you than the real MC?

I love villains (and of course my preferred brand of villain is the serial killer). Sometimes I love them more than protagonists, and this goes for both reading and writing them. I firmly believe that protagonists should be interesting or likeable (ideally both), but with villains, anything goes. You can make a villain as horrible and evil and crazy as you want, and the more complex, the better. There's a freedom in writing characters like that, and a lot of glee in reading about them. CREEP has a lot of scenes in the killer's POV, so I guess in a way, serial killers do control my thoughts.

Fun & Random Questions
Pizza:New York Style all the way.
Beach or Mountains:Close call, but I have to go with the beach. Nothing feels better than the smell of the ocean and the sun on my face.
Chick flick or horror:Horror. But always with the lights on.
Barbie’s or Polly Pockets:Barbies. Mainly because I don't know what Polly Pockets are.
Zombies or Vampires :Vampires. Zombies make me nervous. You can't reason with them.
Book: IT by Stephen King.
Book Series:The Lincoln Rhyme novels by Jeffery Deaver. Lincoln is a quadriplegic forensics expert who catches serial killers. In my book, that also makes him a rock star.
TV Show:True Blood. It's such a crazy, bloody, unpredictable show. And it's funny, too.
Snow or rain:Ah… here is where I'm torn. I'm from Toronto, Canada, so I have a soft spot for snowy days. But I now live in Seattle, and I can't deny that rainy days are perfect for writing. I'd have to call it a draw.

Isn't she awesome!!! Doesn't her book rock??! So make sure to add it to your TBR list!!! Debuting in 2011! Check out her website!

43 comments:

Nomes said...

wow. this book sounds psycho good. cant wait for it. just love that blurb about it, all voice and just a whoah flipped out premise :)

Candyland said...

Ooohhh great interview! And PS I'm jealous I can't go with you tonight.

Vicki Rocho said...

It DOES sound good but thrillers stress me out! I'd have to read the end first to alleviate the pressure.

Unknown said...

Can't wait to get my hands on this one! Thanks Jennifer and Jen!

Christina Lee said...

Nice to meet you! NY pizza all the way (going there this weekend and can't wait to get Ray's on 11th St.);--)

Jessica Bell said...

Oh! I wanna come with you! Any chance of sending me over a jet?

Renae said...

Great interview. Creep sounds amazing! Can't wait to read it.
Thanks for the other links as well!

Jaydee Morgan said...

Awesome interview - and I so can't wait to read this book. I'm a thriller fanatic and this one sounds great!

Bidisha said...

A psycho thriller book? Wicked cool :D

Also, Thanks for dropping by my blog. And your blogfest sounds totally cool.

And you're meeting Maggie?! :O
TAKE. ME. ALONG.

Jillian said...

I love psychological thrillers! I must must must have this book, can't wait to get it!

Meredith said...

What a creepy, awesome premise for a book! I can't wait to read this one, and I loved this interview! I think I would cry after I got the call, too :)

Matthew MacNish said...

This book sounds crazy! Crazy awesome.

Jen said...

Great interview!

Love the blurb!

Summer Frey said...

I love psycho thriller books! When hubby's home, anyway... :)

Great interview! I'll have to put that on TBR list.

Have fun seeing MS tonight! I know it'll be awesome.

Laura S. said...

Great interview! Jennifer's book sounds pretty awesome! I like that she cried when she got her agent though she never cries. She must've been SUPER happy!!!

I prefer Barbies, too!!! I always got Barbie stuff for my birthday or Christmas every year. I still have them safely packed away in case I have a daughter some day! Though I did have some Polly Pockets when I was little. My niece has a lot of Pollys, and they're big now. You can fit the Polly in your pocket, but not her house or accessories. Kind of defeats the purpose of calling her Polly Pocket, haha.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for all the links, Jen! And I hope you'll have a fabulous time at Maggie Stiefvater's signing! :)

CREEP sounds like such an great book with a creepy premise. :)

Amy Saia said...

Jennifer's book sounds really extreme in a great kind of way! A little envelope pushing is exciting! Love this interview Jen!

LMB said...

great interview & I love the 'Guess That Character' icon that you made.

Jackee said...

Great interview! I recently met Jennifer too and love her blog.

In other news, you won something over at my blog, Jen. :o)

Diana Mieczan said...

Ahhh she sounds wonderful...I cant wait to read it:)

Kisses, girls .Have a fanatstic day:)

Angie said...

Sounds awesome! Great interview.

TerryLynnJohnson said...

thanks for another great interview! Sounds like a book to put on TBR list!

Jennifer Shirk said...

I WILL add her book to my TBR list. Thx!

VICTORIA SAAVEDRA said...

Great interview :)

Talli Roland said...

Yay - a Canadian! The book sounds fantastic, Jen - thanks! And as always I love your little quick-fire questions at the end! :)

Jennifer Hillier said...

Wow! Look at all the comment love. :)

Thanks for having me, Jen. This was fun!

Anonymous said...

Creep sounds so cool! I do love exploring the dark side of human nature.

Terry Stonecrop said...

Great interview. Book sounds scary and good. Talk about sleeping with the enemy!

New York pizza all the way, too.

Rose Cooper said...

Awesome interview! This book sounds great--I want to curl up with it in my bed. At night. With all the lights off and just my tiny book light on. While I'm under the covers. And if it's raining outside, all the better :)

The Words Crafter said...

What an interesting/funny interview! The protagonist sounds like she needs all sorts of help, lol! Filing this under the ever growing TBR list...

The Words Crafter said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Melissa said...

UMMMM!!!! I WANT this book. RIGHT NOW! It sounds like the best thing... EVER! AHH, Great interview Jen (as always!).

Why can't I be with you tonight?

I've missed you.

Shelley Sly said...

CREEP sounds like a fantastic book!

Thanks for this interview, very fun to read! :)

Lindsay said...

Great interview Jen. Now I've got to add CREEP to my list. :)

Susan Fields said...

That book does sound good! A definite addition to my TBR list! Thanks for another great interview, Jen!

Theresa Milstein said...

If that's how her query letter was written, she must have had many requests.

Unknown said...

How utterly fantastic this book sounds... EVEN better than you had originally described! lol & meeting Maggie was a BLAST! Thanks again!!

Stina said...

I usually just read YA, but this one sounds amazing. Great interview!

Eva said...

Doesn't know Polly Pockets??? haha that brings back some memories. Loved the interview though, I'll forgive the Polly Pocket thing :)

Michelle D. Argyle said...

Thanks for introducing a new author to me!

Charmaine Clancy said...

Creep is the sort of thriller I love to read (who doesn't love serial killers?) I'll be looking for it :-)

Jennifer Hillier said...

Thanks again for all the support, guys! It really means a lot.

@ Eva: Hahaha! Sadly, I had to google Polly Pockets to find out what they were. I don't recognize them AT ALL. Either they weren't sold in Canada when I was growing up(which doesn't seem possible) or they weren't around in my day (I'm older than you!). I suspect the latter is true. :)

Jennifer Hillier said...

@ Theresa: This was one version of my query. I had three I tried out, and they got pretty much the same results. But this isn't the one that got my agent's attention. It's just the one I liked the best. :)