First of all, I want to thank Author Kasie West for doing this, its always such an Honor to have some of my favorite authors here on my blog and to be able to pick at their brains :D
About the Author
I love to write--too much. It's a sickness really. My debut novel, PIVOT POINT, is out now with HarperTeen. (And will be followed by its sequel, Split Second on February 11, 2014.)
THE DISTANCE BETWEEN US, my contemporary YA novel, is also available for purchase! (HarperTeen).
About Kasie:
1.
Noticed
on your website that you like to wakeboard, what else do you like to do when
you’re not writing?
Well, I
have 4 kids, so yeah…..that. I do a lot of taxiing and help with homework, and
being a cheerleader at games and awards ceremonies, etc. etc. All of which I
like to do. But outside of family obligations, I love to read (of course) and
watch movies, and eat chocolate and travel.
2.
As
always, how did you feel when you first found out you were going to get
published?
An overwhelming feeling of disbelief. It took me a while to
really believe it was going to happen. I remember calling my husband and while
we talked just walking back and forth between my laundry room and my kitchen
over and over again, unable to sit still. I was very excited.
3.
In
college, were you in any creative writing classes?
No, no I was not. Ha. I had no idea in college I wanted to be
a writer. I did take some literature classes, but no creative writing.
4.
What
WAS your BA degree and when was the moment you decided to go into writing
instead of going into a full time career of whatever said degree was for? (I find it hard to word when I don’t know the
degree xD)
My degree was in elementary education. I thought I was going
to be a teacher. After I graduated I
decided to stay home and raise my kids. I was going to teach after my kids were
in school, but I came up with an idea for a book and told my husband about it
and he said, ‘you should write that.’ I did and it really really…sucked. But I
loved writing it so much that I decided to keep trying. So I did.
The Distance Between Us
1.
I
really like the cover. How was the cover chosen? Did you have any initial
ideas? Was the cover presented to you and you approved it? How was the final
cover image decided?
I
get no say in my covers. I mean, they show them to me and if I don’t like them
they take that into consideration, but so far I’ve gotten pretty lucky in the
cover department. Sometimes I have initial ideas about the covers but
ultimately the marketing people usually have better ideas. Lol I figure they
know what they’re talking about.
2.
Where
are Caymen and Xander 10 years from now? What are they doing? Is Caymen’s mom
still in the porcelain doll shop?
10 years? So 27 ish? That’s a good question. I write YA.
Adult stories don’t exist in my brain. Ha. Just kidding. Let’s see, I imagine
they both graduated from college. Xander figured out (despite wishing he could
prove his dad wrong) that he does love running the hotel. Caymen is trying to
work her way up to forensic investigator but she has to start by doing grunt
work like crime scene clean up. (I really should research what the starting
position for a forensic investigator would be but since I’m not writing that
book, I’m unmotivated to do so) They, of course, are still together. And as
hinted in my book ON THE FENCE, Caymen’s mom no longer has the store, but
travels to different trade shows and such. She loves it and it is less
stressful for her. I reserve the right
to change any of this if I do, in fact, write a sequel. J
3.
Talk
about plot twist towards the end, didn’t really see it coming; Did you always
have that idea in your head?
Yes, I had this plot twist in my head from the beginning. I
knew this was Caymen’s mom’s background. It’s what made her who she was and
contributes to her feelings. (That’s my spoiler free answer)
4.
What
truly inspired these characters and their story? Was there a particular scene
that you imaged in your head at first before you decided to go ahead and write
their story?
The setting inspired this story. My daughter used to do
guitar lessons. It was just a half an hour lesson so pointless for me to go
home during it. I would just wait in the car. Next door to the music store where
she did her lessons was a porcelain doll store. For months and months I stared
at those dolls and for months and months I thought to myself it would be the
coolest setting for a book. At first I thought the book would be creepy or a
mystery or something. But as I started to write it, Caymen’s personality came
out and her sarcasm changed the tone of the book completely. She, the product
of being raised in a porcelain doll store, had developed a very dry sense of
humor.
5.
One
word to describe your book.
Sarcasm
6.
What
would we find in Caymens top 5 playlist? What about Xanders top 5?
Caymen likes the classic rock vibe. So she’d probably have
some The Who, Rolling Stones, Grateful Dead, the more modern but still classic
sound of Heartless Bastards, and for her hidden romantic side, some Journey.
I imagine Xander as a romantic at heart, and maybe a little
more contemporary so I think he’d have some Walk the Moon, 21 Pilots,
Parachute, Bruno Mars, and he’d share Journey with Caymen.
Bonus:
1.
Favorite
TV show?
Favorite?
I can’t pick a favorite. Okay, I love Arrow. And others. But I’ll go with that
for now.
2.
Rock,
Paper or Scissors?
I’m a writer. Paper, always paper.
3.
Last
book/movie you cried on?
The Book Thief. I had read the book years ago but just watched
the movie last week.
4.
What
are you currently reading? What’s on your TBR list?
I just finished Girl On A Train—intriguing. My TBR pile is
pretty high right now but because we just moved it’s also packed in boxes. In
the mean time I should probably buy more books, right? That sounds like a
reasonable solution. I could unpack the boxes, but I don’t have my bookshelves
up yet…you see the dilemma. More books it is.
The Distance Between Us
Goodreads Description:
Seventeen-year-old Caymen Meyers studies the rich like her own personal science experiment, and after years of observation she’s pretty sure they’re only good for one thing—spending money on useless stuff, like the porcelain dolls in her mother’s shop.
So when Xander Spence walks into the store to pick up a doll for his grandmother, it only takes one glance for Caymen to figure out he’s oozing rich. Despite his charming ways and that he’s one of the first people who actually gets her, she’s smart enough to know his interest won’t last. Because if there’s one thing she’s learned from her mother’s warnings, it’s that the rich have a short attention span. But Xander keeps coming around, despite her best efforts to scare him off. And much to her dismay, she's beginning to enjoy his company.
She knows her mom can’t find out—she wouldn’t approve. She’d much rather Caymen hang out with the local rocker who hasn’t been raised by money. But just when Xander’s attention and loyalty are about to convince Caymen that being rich isn’t a character flaw, she finds out that money is a much bigger part of their relationship than she’d ever realized. And that Xander’s not the only one she should’ve been worried about.
