CORRINE JACKSON INTERVIEW AND TOUCHED GIVEAWAY

Hi Everyone! I hope that all of you who celebrate Thanksgiving had a great holiday. We had a nice quiet one, which was just what we needed.

Before I get to my awesome interview today, I need to announce the winner of ROOTLESS. The winner is BECCA FOWLER!

Congrats! E-mail me your address so I can send me your book. Please e-mail me before the end of Wednesday or I'll have to pick a new winner.  

Today I’m excited to interview Corrine Jackson about her new paranormal book, TOUCHED, which releases tomorrow. Corrine’s first book, IF I LIE, was released August 28, 2012. In TOUCHED, I really enjoyed the contrast between Remy’s healer powers and Asher’s inability to sense much. And Remy is such a strong character, especially given how much she goes through. That compelled me to keep turning the pages to find out what happened to her.

Here’s a description from Goodreads: 

Remy O’Malley heals people with touch—but every injury she cures becomes her own. Living in a household with an abusive stepfather, she has healed untold numbers of broken bones, burns,and bruises. And then one night her stepfather goes too far.

Being sent to live with her estranged father offers a clean start and she is eager to take it. Enter Asher Blackwell. Once a Protector of Healers, Asher sacrificed his senses to become immortal. Only by killing a Healer can a Protector recover their human senses. Falling in love is against the rules between these two enemies. Because Remy has the power to make Protectors human again, and when they find out, they’ll becoming for her—if Asher doesn’t kill her first.

This is Book One in the Touched trilogy.

 

Hi Corrine. Thanks so much for joining us.

1.  Tell us a bit about yourself and how you became a writer.

I drink way too much coffee, am a complete slob, and read books in a single sitting. And I’m addicted to Kraft Mac and Cheese and puppies, though not in that order. I was a shy, quiet kid who wrote short stories as a kid. I wanted to write, but never considered it a viable career so I went another direction career-wise. However, I couldn’t get rid of the bug. I have a master’s in English and a professor told me I had talent, which led to me applying to an MFA program. That was in 2008 and it was the first time I started taking my writing seriously. I wrote three novels over the course of my MFA program – TOUCHED, IF I LIE, and TOUCHED 2. The writing thing definitely has a hold on me now.

2.  I totally love that you're a coffee drinker like me. One of the things I enjoyed was the intention that went into creating the powers of the Healers in contrast to the experience of their enemies, the Protectors, who have little sensory experiences. Share a bit about how you developed this into your story.

Remy came to me with her Healer powers in tact. Touching people can cause her great pain, and she hasn’t known a lot of kindness. When I tried to imagine her counterpart, the hero had to have a depth of experience that would mirror hers so that they would have a kind of kinship. And so I imagined, what if he couldn’t feel anything at all – the opposite of feeling too much as Remy does? Using that as a base, the rest of their world started to come together.

3. That's so awesome that you thought of this. Because it's fascinating to watch the interaction of Remy and the hero. I really liked Remy. She’s had to deal with an abusive family situation, a mother that didn’t protect her, and starting a new life with the dad she never knew. What were some of the challenges in developing her as a strong character rather than a victim and how did you overcome them?

I had read a few novels where the heroine had an ability, but her power didn’t come with a high cost and – WAY too often – a boy came along to save her. I thought it would be more interesting if the heroine were someone who saved others. And what if it cost her something every time she made the decision to save someone? Would she still choose to use her powers? These questions and their answers led to the creation of Remy. She wants to save others because, deep down, she really wishes that someone had saved her when her stepfather started hurting her and her mom. The thing that makes her strong comes from a place that she considers her greatest weakness – her inability to save herself. She can’t see herself as a hero, but she refuses to be a victim. It’s a balance that she is always fighting.

4.  I always love a strong heroine like Remy who can save herself instead of rely on a guy to do it. You deal with the touchy subject of abusive families and there are some graphic scenes of this in your story. What advice do you have for the rest of us thinking about writing about such sensitive topics in a realistic fashion?

Research, research, research. I read up on what it is like to be a victim of domestic violence, and then did a gut check to ensure Remy’s reactions were in line with what I’d learned. I also had a trusted friend read the manuscript. She’d grown up in an abusive household and offered me a unique perspective. Mostly, I trusted my instincts, imagining how a girl like her would respond to the people around her. At the end of the day, Remy desperately wants to be loved, even though she’s learned to never trust the people around her. Her reactions are driven by that.

5.  That was nice of your friend to read the manuscript because it probably brought up painful memories for her. Your book, IF I LIE, was your debut book. It released on August 28, 2012. Tell us a bit about it.

IF I LIE is about a girl who is condemned as a traitor by her small military town when they think she is guilty of cheating on her boyfriend, a Marine who has gone MIA. What they don’t know is that she could clear her name, except she’s protecting someone. 

6.  Sounds like an awesome story, especially because it's set in a military town. Your agent is Laura Bradford. How did she become your agent and how did you get two book deals with the books being released a few months apart by different publishers?

I queried Laura with TOUCHED, and she made me an offer. The funny part of the story is that I followed her on Twitter and she was tweeting about my manuscript as she read it. That’s how I found out I was getting an offer from her. After we made some edits to the manuscript, we went on submission. Sadly, I didn’t sell right away, but while on submission, I wrote IF I LIE. IF I LIE sold quickly and a month later TOUCHED sold in a three-book deal. That time on submission was hell, but it taught me a valuable lesson – always keep writing. 

7. That would be a reason to join Twitter. How are you marketing your two books, especially with their release dates? And what’s it been like having TOUCHED release first in Germany?

I can’t really complain too much about having books release three months apart, but I won’t say it’s been easy. For instance, my first pass pages on TOUCHED were due the day of my launch party for IF I LIE, so I was rocking serious bags under my eyes that day. I’ve tried to take it one book at a time, focusing on IF I LIE and then TOUCHED. There’s some crossover, especially with events, but I do the best I can. And when I start to get a little ragged around the edges, my friends and family step in to help. 

As for TOUCHED releasing first in Germany, a lot of people ask me why the series is releasing about ten months earlier over there. It comes down to contracts and publishing schedules, nothing more. The German fans have been so lovely, and I even got to visit them in Stuttgart in July, which was a dream come true. It was surreal to see my book in German bookstores. 

8.  Wow! That's cool that you got to visit with your German fans. Not all authors get to do that. I know you work full-time. You’re my hero juggling two book releases with that. How do you do it and what advice do you have for us aspiring authors who need to keep their full-time jobs too?

It’s difficult to manage two careers. When you add in the fact that authors must market their books, too, it’s almost like three careers. I’m still trying to figure out how to find the right balance, and I fail some days. Sometimes, I find my creative reserves depleted. I’ve had to learn to say no to certain opportunities or to step back from social media from time to time so that I can focus. Basically, there’s no magic formula. I have to be disciplined and make the most of every hour. I schedule my days to ensure that I have time to work everything in, and I prioritize the best that I can. And I go without TV sometimes. Thank goodness for Netflix.

9.  Darn it, I want a formula. Just kidding. But I can definitely relate to going without TV. What are you working on now?

I’m working on the third book in the Sense Thieves trilogy (TOUCHED #3). Plus I’m working on a new contemporary. 

Thanks Corrine for sharing all your great advice. You can find Corrine at her website and at Twitter: @Cory_Jackson.

Corrine's publisher generously offered an ARC of TOUCHED for a giveaway.   To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follow button if you’re not a follower) and leave a comment by midnight on December 8th. I’ll announce the winner on December 10th. If your e-mail is not on Blogger, please list it in your comment.

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. International entries are welcome.

And don't forget to enter my giveaway contests for RENEGADE, PASSION BLUE, and WRITING IRRISSISTABLE KIDLIT by Mary Kole. The links are at the top of the blog.

Here's what's coming up:

On Wednesday, I'm participating in Lisa and Laura Roecker's  blog tour and giving away a copy of their new book, LIES THAT BIND.

Next Monday I'm interviewing  debut author Kasie West and giving away a copy of PIVOT POINT, a fascinating dystopian novel I couldn't put down.

Next Tuesday, I'm doing my annual Holiday Hop Book Giveaway. I can't wait for you to see all the great choices. 

And don't forget our Tuesday Tips and Casey's Thursday agent spotlights.

Hope to see you on Wednesday!