Chiseled Author Karen Duvall is Interviewed!

We’ve been asked, so today we’re offering answers to questions such as: Chiseled Staff? Are they really that chiseled? Are they completely off their Rockers? And what do they do behind that closed door?!

Over the next few months you’ll see interviews with our own Chiseled Staff, and today we’re talking to Karen Duvall.

Karen is a graphic designer and author, and her debut title with Harlequin Luna was Knight’s Curse, the first in her new urban fantasy series. It was released August 23, 2011, and was a Publisher's Weekly Top 10 Pick for Fall 2011. The second in the series, Darkest Knight, will be released on March 23, 2012.

CIR: Welcome, Karen! How do you describe yourself (the top three things that come to mind)?

KD: 1) Determined because I enjoy a challenge and won't give up until I've done what I set out to do; 2) Overwhelmed because I have too many interests and item #1 often kicks my @ss; 3) Dreamer because I love to make up stuff.

CIR: Please describe the path of your writing career.

KD: It's been like one of those melodies that builds to a crescendo, then slows down and builds back up again. That describes my life as well, and since my writing career is tied inextricably to my life… Okay, that's an obtuse answer. Sorry. I started out writing short stories, kind of cut my teeth on them, and then graduated to writing novels. I have eight completed novels, four of which are published, and one published novella with another novella in progress. I've gone from writing in my spare time to writing part time and actually making some income.

CIR: What are your current writing goals and challenges? (What are you working on?)

KD: I have a novella in the works, and I'm working on a proposal for a new series for Harlequin Luna.

CIR: What are the two toughest things about writing?

KD: For me personally? Like the weather in Colorado and Oregon, it's always changing. It depends on the story I'm working on and what's giving me the most headaches at the time. I write tight, so my stories tend to be on the short side, which means I have to fill them out in subsequent drafts. I write my synopsis before writing the book because I sell on proposal. Getting the plot down isn't especially difficult, but the characters are challenging because we haven't been properly introduced yet. Once I write the first 3 chapters for the proposal, the synopsis gets a little easier to put together. But not much.

CIR: Do you prefer igneous, metamorphic, or sedimentary?

KD: I prefer volcanic. I pumice you it's the best rock ever.

CIR: How has RMFW helped you advance your career?

KD: Are you kidding? I owe so much to this incredible organization. RMFW taught me how to write. I've been a member since 1994 and those have been the best 18 years of my life.

CIR: As we know, RMFW is an all-volunteer organization. Have you or do you volunteer elsewhere in the organization?

KD: I have and I do. I wish I could do more, but ever since moving 1200 miles away I'm a bit restricted. I still manage to teach workshops at conference and judge the Colorado Gold Contest. Before moving to Oregon in 2004, I did myriad jobs for RMFW and was the PAL rep one year. I also used to design the conference brochure and the RMFW brochure. I was the one who came up with the idea for door prizes of breakfast and lunch dates with agents and editors at conference that are given away at the annual WOTY panel. Oh, and I was the proud yet humble recipient of the wonderful Jasmine Award for 2004.

CIR: What writers inspire you?

KD: I'm always inspired by books that trigger a visceral response from me. If I cry or laugh or get angry enough to see red, those are the books and authors I remember. The one author who inspired me to try my hand at writing a novel was Armistead Maupin, whose characters come to life on the page. He wrote the Tales of the City series several years ago and is still my hero.

CIR: What genres do you read?

KD: I'm a mood reader so I read across all genres, each book chosen based on my mood at the time. My only criteria is characters who engage me. I won't read past chapter four if they don't. Yikes, I sound like an agent or an editor.

CIR: Do you ever get writer’s rock, er… block? If so how do you break through?

KD: With a chisel. Nah, I don't get writer's block. I do believe there is such a thing, I just haven't encountered it yet. Knock on rock that I never do.

CIR: What do you feel your stories are born of?

KD: Fear and wonder. I write urban fantasy and enjoy scary stuff, and I never have nightmares. This could be why.

CIR: What one piece of advice would you offer to new writers?

KD: Balance! It's so easy to concentrate mainly on one craft direction or another without paying enough attention to all parts of the whole. Do NOT write a lopsided story. I will come after you.

CIR: What’s your favorite rock and roll song?

KD: I go weak in the knees for Nickleback. Every song they do stirs me up. Love them!

CIR: When did you first consider yourself a writer?

KD: When I was three and recited a story to my mom so she could make the letters because I didn't know how. Then I drew the pictures.

CIR: Do you also have a “day” job? Other interests or hobbies?

KD: I do. I'm a graphic designer. I don't do as much of it these days, but that's not for lack of trying. It's a tough industry and there's less call for it than there used to be, and more competition for what work there is.

CIR: What books have most influenced you?

KD: I already mentioned that Armistead Maupin is my literary hero, but I'd say the writers in my genre are the greatest influence. Clive Barker is often misunderstood as a horror author, but I've read and reread several of his brilliant fantasy novels. He has a compelling literary style that sticks with you. Neil Gaiman is fabulous and I'll read anything he writes. I used to enjoy Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series up until the ninth book, so she was a powerful influence on me for a while.

CIR: Do you recall how your interest in writing originated?

KD: As a child, as soon as I learned how to make my letters, I got busy writing the stories that lived inside my head.

CIR: Do you like rocking chairs?

KD: I'm not a cat with a tail at risk, so yes, I do like rocking chairs. I have one in my office.

CIR: If you could time travel, when and where would you go?

KD: Not far, I can assure you. I'm rather attached to my creature comforts. I might go back to the fifties because my mom told me it was the golden age.

CIR: What do you predict for the future of the publishing industry and where you fit into that?

KD: I predict there will be more readers because technology is making it easier and more fun to read books. The ebook revolution is a boon to education, and good stories that are well written will be in demand just as they always have been. I want to be one of the authors writing those good books.

CIR: And lastly, what did you dream of doing when you were twelve years old?

KD: Oh, dear. This is embarrassing. I suppose I could lie, but… Le sigh. I wanted to be, a uh *cough* uhm… A model. There, I said it. I dreamed of wearing the latest fashions and parading them down the runway, having my picture on the cover of Seventeen Magazine, and traveling the world doing fashion shows. And of course I'd be writing stories on the plane while flying from country to country. There. Happy now? (Turns crimson and, head down and shoulders hunched, trudges out of the room)

CIR: Yes, we’re happy – happy you joined us today! Thank you again. Hope to see you back in Colorado soon!

You can learn more about Karen and her writing on her website or blog, on Facebook, and on Twitter @KarenDuvall.

by Janet Fogg

Author Mario Acevedo's Thoughts on Machine Guns, Vampires, and the Writing Life

Interview conducted via e-mail by Pat Stoltey

Mario, thank you so much for consenting to this interview for Chiseled in Rock blog. For those readers who haven’t met or heard of Mario before (and I’m sure there must be one or two), he is a handsome fellow with a dry sense of humor, author of the Felix Gomez vampire mystery series, and currently president of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of Mystery Writers of America.

Your website bio is fascinating, Mario, but our readers can go here to check you out. I’d like to dig a little deeper with my first couple of questions if I may.

Pat: At the time you requested a machine gun for Christmas, what did you plan to do with it?

Mario: Shoot holes in things, what else would you do with a machine gun? However, I didn’t shoot a machine gun until I was 17 and the experience was orgasmastic.

Pat: You flew attack helicopters for the Army. Was flying something you always wanted to do (like shooting machine guns)?

Mario: I was fascinated by flying machines since I can remember. I did become a pilot in the army where I flew Cobras. While I was a good pilot, I wasn’t a great pilot since I had a lousy sense of direction. I kept confusing up and down.

Pat: Let’s talk a little about one of my least favorite subjects: vampires. When did you develop the idea for the Felix Gomez series?

Mario: My big reveal: I’m not much of a vampire fan either. In fact, growing up, I didn’t like watching vampire, zombie, or supernatural movies. The special effects were cheesy and I never found them scary. I also didn’t read vampire novels and Charlaine Harris’ Dead Until Dark was the first vampire book I ever read cover-to-cover. Loved it and learned I could reinvent the fantasy tropes to my liking.

My idea for Felix Gomez began like this. I tried for years to get a novel published and after my sixth manuscript was rejected--a hard-boiled noir story--I decided to write the most ridiculous story I could think of: A detective-vampire investigates an outbreak of nymphomania at Rocky Flats. The concept was different and loony enough to get both an agent’s and editor’s attention.

Pat: Why vampires and werewolves instead of regular old people?

Mario: Nymphos was accepted on the condition that I write a series so I had to become an expert of the supernatural and weird--not a stretch as it turns out.

Pat: Is Felix the protagonist in all of the novels you’ve written since?

Mario: All the published ones. The other protagonists were ordinary guys in over their heads, much like me--minus the goons and gunplay.

Pat: How long did it take to write the first draft of The Nymphos of Rocky Flats, and how many times did you revise it before you made the sale?

Mario: It took me about 2 1/2 years to write Nymphos. I can’t say how many times it was revised because the manuscript was in a state of constant revision as I wrote it. Maybe a gazillion.

Pat: Your bio says you have “six unpublished manuscripts gathering dust” under your bed. Do you plan to revisit any of those early projects, or are they hopeless?

Mario: Hopeless, I’m sure. It’s easier for me to start a new story than rework those valiant if failed crash landings. But the manuscripts do serve a purpose. My pet silverfish find them yummy.

Pat: You tried submitting them to agents or publishers with no luck. Did anyone give you feedback that helped in later projects?

Mario: Ironically, it was when I was first sending queries that I got the most productive feedback. Later on, the replies were more terse: Dear writer. You suck.

Pat: Were your earlier novels mysteries? Who were the characters you developed and why didn’t they work out?

Mario: I was all over the place with my characters. Lots of failed heroes and femme fatales. I guess the stories didn’t work because they stank.

Pat: (Wondering if Mario's first works are really that bad and wishing I could take a peek at one to see...) What's the title and subject of your most recent publication?

Mario: I have a short story, “No Soy Loco,” in the YA anthology, You Don’t Have A Clue, and my graphic novel, Killing the Cobra is available from IDW Publishing. I also have, ‘Cowboy Up” in the collection of essays on writing, An Elevated View.

Pat: What are you working on now?

Mario: A variety of top-secret proposals, that if they succeed, will make me filthy rich and insufferable.

Pat: You partnered with another vampire expert, Jeanne Stein, for the blog the biting edge. Please tell our readers, especially those who don’t love vampires, why they should follow your blog anyway.

Mario: Because we have the most awesome blog in the world. At least when I post. You’re taking chances when Jeanne writes something. (Thinking we need to interview Jeanne and see what she has to say about that...)

Pat: In addition to your other talents, Mario, you’re an artist. Your military paintings are my favorites. Do you paint from photographs or memory?

Mario: My memory is not that good and I’m not that good of a photographer, so by combining the two, I manage to paint a decent image.

Pat: As a combat artist during Desert Storm, did you have the freedom to paint what you wanted, or did the Army give you specific assignments for the Center of Military History?

Mario: I had the freedom to paint what I wanted. But whatever I did, it was going into the Army’s archives to hang with the work of many outstanding artists, so I had to not suck.

Pat: What led you to Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers and how did this organization help you in your writing career?

Mario: An agent said I needed to work on my synopsis. Shortly after that, I found a class for synopsis writing sponsored by RMFW, which I attended. There I met Jim Cole who invited me to attend his critique group. Belonging to RMFW has been a great help and taught me to be wide-eyed about the batshit-crazy publishing business.

Pat: What’s the most important thing you’ve learned about the writing life and the best piece of advice you can give to unpublished writers?

Mario: Read, read, read. Write, write, write. Grow a thick skin and above all, be completely delusional.

Mario, thanks again for being here today.

Thank you. You had great questions and I hope they helped. Happy fanging.

As part of the faculty for RMFW’s Colorado Gold Conference September 9-11, 2011, Mario will team up with Jeanne Stein and Warren Hammond for two workshop sessions, one on Writing Paranormal Worlds and the other on How to Keep Your Story on Track.