At The Round Table with Katie Salidas and Giveaway

Author Katie Salidas

Hey Katie it is wonderful to have you back and I'm so excited for your new release of Hunters & Prey.  Can I offer you a beverage while we chat at the round table?  Mystic Brew, tantalizing tea or a frothy Irish Beer?

Oooh, a Mystic Brew! That sounds tasty. Thanks BK. And thanks again for hosting me. I am so excited to be back and touring with this series. It’s my “baby.”

Your Mystic Brew :)

First I'd like to start off by telling everyone that this is the second installment to your Immortalis Series.  The first,  Carpe Noctem, was released March 2, 2010.  Readers can learn about Katie's books at www.risingsignbooks.com .

Today Katie is also giving away an Interactive CD containing the first two books in the series,  Immortalis: Carpe Noctem and Immortalis: Hunters & Prey.  Simply leave her a comment at the end of this post answering this question:  What do you love most about reading Vampire novels? Be sure to leave your email address too so we have a way to contact you if you are the lucky winner.  Winner will be drawn using Random.org on January 28.

Want an extra entry?  Share this post and in a separate comment leave the link you shared it to.

Now lets talk Immortalis,  shall we?..



1.    What inspired Immortalis to be a series?

Immortalis was always meant to be a series. I originally envisioned it as a 3-part story, but as it progressed it sort of took on a life all its own. I currently have the third book finished and I’m working through rewrites but the story is far from over. We’ll just have to see how long it lasts. I’d love to see it have longevity, like the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris but I’m not going to get too far ahead of myself. I’m taking it one book at a time.

2.    How difficult is it to write a series?

In some aspects a series gets a little easier as you write it. You know all of the characters intimately. You’ve watched them grow and mature as each book passes and it becomes almost second nature to dive into their head in a particular scene. On the flipside. There are times when the minute details of a character’s history slip past you. I’ve had Beta readers catch me on a few things that I couldn’t believe I’d forgotten.

3.    What is your favorite part about writing?

Just like with reading, writing is an escape. When I write I dive into the world I’m creating and for a while, just leave the real world behind. It’s very therapeutic at times. Have a bad day, take your frustrations out and give the “bad guy” a gruesome death scene. LoL.

4.    Do you have a favorite book in the series?

I always say the current book I’m writing is my favorite. The reason for that is, the excitement of seeing the new chapter come to life and wondering what should happen next. I’m a pantser which means I don’t have a hard outlined plot in front of me when I write. I have a general idea and I wing it. I know where point A and point B are, but I have no clue how they get there until they do.

5.    Who is your favorite character?

I should say Alyssa, she is my main character, but in Hunters & Prey, I really took a liking to Fallon. She’s put in a really bad situation and though she should run screaming for the hills, she doesn’t. I’d originally envisioned her as a bit player but now that I’ve seen potential in her character, I might have to bring her back for more fun.
 
6.  Which one would you most likely invite to dinner?

Lysander! He’s such a fun character to write. Sometimes he has a stick up his… (can I say ass on your blog?) and then he shows an amazing level of caring and compassion. If I could meet him for real, I’d probably pick his brain to death about history and mythology. He is after all the Historian of the Peregrinus.

7.    Are you finding yourself running into any challenges while writing this series?

Without giving away too much, yes, there have been some challenges, particularly with what characters should remain in the series. I’ll tell you this, killing off characters is not as easy as it looks. =p

8.    Where do you draw your inspiration from?

I am an inquisitive person. I like to know the: who, what, when, where, why and how of everything. It’s that need to know feeling that leads me to inspiration.

In Hunters & Prey there is a chapter that explains the transformation from human to vampire. In the first book Immortalis Carpe Noctem, Lysander said, “It doesn’t always work.” Meaning the transformation. Sometimes it could fail.

 Becoming a vampire saved Alyssa from death, but the price was high: the loss of everything and everyone attached to her mortal life. She s still learning to cope when a surprise confrontation with Santino Vitale, the Acta Sanctorum s most fearsome hunter, sends her fleeing back to the world she once knew, and Fallon, the friend she s missed more than anything.

Alyssa breaks vampire law by revealing her new, true self to her old friend, a fact which causes strong division in the group that should support her most: her clan.
Worse yet, her revelation entangles Fallon in the struggle between vampires and hunters and The Acta Sanctorum is ready to attack again, with a new army of hybrid creations: the Frenzy Soldiers.
If Alyssa hopes to survive and keep her mortal friend safe, she ll have to be willing to make a deal with the enemy, and regain her clan s support. It will take everyone working together in a precarious truce to fight against the Acta Sanctorum s new threat. (From Goodreads)





I’d never answered the “Why” to that statement and that answer became a whole chapter to itself and helped me understand other chapters surrounding.

So, in short, asking and answering questions helps me find inspiration. You’ll find I ask a lot of questions to the “fans” on my FB page, sometimes that’s part of the process. I want to know what you think too.

9.    I know we have discussed this before,  but how did you come up with the Series Title,  Immortalis?

Latin has always been an interesting language to me. As my husband likes to tease… it’s the language you learn to understand other languages, or perform magic spells. (seriously though, almost all magic in books and movies has a Latin or Latin-sounding incantation.) One day I think I’ll have to make a hobby of learning it. Anyway, Immortalis Carpe Noctem, the first book in the series, translates roughly into Immortals Seize the Night.
 

Explore the emotional upheaval that is the transformation from human to vampire.

Bleeding to death after brutal mugging on the campus of UNLV, Twenty-five year old Alyssa, is rescued by the cold and aloof, vampire, Lysander. Taking pity on her, he shares the gift-and curse-of immortality. She awakens as a vampire and is soon devastated by harsh realities of her new way of life: An unyielding thirst for blood as well as the loss of her friends, her independence, and her humanity.


As if having her humanity stripped away was not enough to make life interesting, Alyssa finds out her "turning", did not go unnoticed by the rest of undead society. Old enemies; an ancient sect of vampire hunters, known as the Acta Sanctorum, as well as a powerful Vampire mistress, each set plans in motion to destroy both Alyssa and Lysander.

Only by accepting her new-found immortality, seizing the night, will Alyssa hope to survive. She and Lysander must fight together against two sets of enemies bent on destroying them both.  (From Goodreads)








Which is quite fitting when you consider the plot of the first book. Alyssa must learn to seize the night if she ever expects to “make it” as a vampire. For the second book, I wanted a similar feel but just couldn’t find a word combination in Latin that “fit.” At that point I had been calling the entire project Immortalis for so many years that it was just second nature. So it remains as the series title and the book title is just an extension of that. Immortalis: Hunters & Prey.


10.    What do you like to read when you're not writing?

I’m a vamp-aholic LoL. I love to read any books involving vampires. I do tend to get hooked into series books. I love being able to follow characters through multiple books. I’m almost done with the Sookie Stackhouse series and feeling a little bittersweet about it. I never like coming to the end of a long series. I hope there are more books on the horizon.

11.    Do you have a favorite author/book?

Anne Rice will always have a place in my heart. She’s one of the originals who got me reading about vampires. But there are so many good authors out there, both traditional and indie that have amazing stories. It’s really hard to just pick one and call them a favorite. Each one brings something new to the table. Know what I mean?

12.    What is one thing your readers would be most surprised to know about you?

I’m 100% introvert. I’d be a hermit if you’d let me. I love to sit and write but sometimes being out in public makes me really nervous. My first book signing (which went so well!) had me so nervous I didn’t eat all day before it. I was imagining every worst case scenario and of course none of them came true, but I was just a mess. LoL.

13.    What do you like to do for fun?

I love the usual type of stuff: hiking, bowling, movies, playing poker (though I haven’t gotten to do that in a while). My daughter and I love to walk the trails out here. Vegas has quiet a few really nice outdoor recreation areas and beautiful hiking trails!

14.    What is your favorite food and restaurant?

Oh, give me some Famous Daves BBQ!!! That place is so good. They have 5 different sauces to try and they’re all tasty. Just thinking about it is making me hungry!!

15.  Do you have any special announcements or events you would like to share with readers today?

For the entire month of January, I’m having a huge online celebration! Visit My FB page for more details. There are daily and weekly prize giveaways and it last all month long so there is still plenty of time to win.

16.  Can you tell us about any projects you are currently working on?

Other than my Immortalis series, I have some shorter Romance pieces I’ve been working with. My next Paranormal Romance Novella is due out in February. It’s called Karma & Melodies.

Kendra and Marcus, could have had the one thing we all strive for, True Love, but fate stepped in and split them apart before that love had a chance to blossom. Now, ten years have passed and a chance encounter reunites them. But they’re not the same people they once were. He’s a Rock star with a bright future and she’s a vampire with a dark past. Can their love work, or have their fates been split forever?

17.  Where can readers find you?

I’m all over the web, but I have a terrible Facebook addiction. LoL. You can find me there just about every day:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Katie-Salidas-Author/214780936916

For more information on my books, please stop by my website www.risingsignbooks.com

You can also check out my blog. www.myimmortalstories.blogspot.com


Thank you so much for joining me at the round table today Katie,  it has been such a pleasure.  I can't wait for Pandora's Box to come out and I am wishing you much success in the future.  Katie will also be with me Monday,  January 24, 2pm EST/11AM PST at BK Media Entertainment.  Live chat will be open for Q&A with the fans and we will be hosting another giveaway for an Interactive CD.  So stop in,  listen to Katie and I,  and join the chat room for your chance to win the first two books in the Immortalis Series.  Hope to see you there.