Today I’m delighted to welcome Jayce Carter to my blog. She’s touring with her new release Hell Raising and Other Pastimes, but has taken time out to chat with me.
Lisabet Sarai: Which character in your current book did you relate to the most and why?
Jayce Carter: I honestly connect a lot with Ava. I wish I could say I was as funny, but sadly it’s mostly just the anxiety and feeling I don’t fit in that I relate to. Ava is constantly looking to fit in, to find a place where she belongs. This has been a lifelong desire for her, and it is one I understand. I have often been a person who hasn’t quite measured up to the norm. As a kid, I often played alone or felt like I didn’t quite get things the way a lot of my peers did. While I’ve understood myself better as I’ve gotten older, I still get the desire and drive to be accepted, so when Ava suffers with that, it hits home.
LS: How important was professional editing to your book’s development?
JC: I don’t use much in the way of help when it comes to writing. I am a solitary person in that endeavor. When it comes to editing, however, that is a different matter. My editor is indispensable. I am the first to admit I am a writer, not an editor. I have a grasp of some basic grammar, but beyond that? My brain refuses to play nice and remember anything. My poor editor has probably aged ten years from all the times she’s had to correct “lay” vs “lie”. She’s even sent me the same graphic over and over until giving up, probably realizing that despite my best attempts, my brain just will not learn it.
LS: What was your hardest scene to write?
JC: I don’t want to go into this too deeply, to avoid spoilers, but there is a scene where Ava deals with the grief of loss. It was gut wrenching for me to write that, to put her through it and to experience those feelings along with her. I’ve written things that were hard before, but loss has to be the most difficult.
LS: How long did it take you to write this book?
JC: I spent about a month writing the rough draft of this book before editing and then sending it off to my publisher. After that point, there was more work to be done, edits to go over, revisions to be made, but those were sporadic and harder to put a timeframe on.
LS: What part of this book was the most fun to write?
JC: I loved the world building. This was the first truly ‘other’ book I got to write. Even book one in the series was more of an urban fantasy, so while there were paranormal aspects, it was built in a contemporary world. With this book, I was able to get creative, to make hell the way I saw it, and I wasn’t bound by the restrictions of the real world. It was so much fun to have that sort of freedom!
Blurb
Lots of people have told me to go to hell—I guess they finally got their wish.
I’ve finally accepted the fact I might not be entirely human, so you’d think life could give me a minute. Instead, I find myself sucked into hell at Lucifer’s demand, and I realize death is even more complicated than my life was.
I’m still searching for how to stop the missing spirits before it’s too late, and with no suspects other than Lucifer, I have to survive hell—where everything wants to kill me—so I can confront the devil himself. Not even my love life can be simple, though. Troy is terrified of his werewolf side hurting me, Kase and Grant are lying to me, and Hunter is keeping his own secrets. I know better than to trust anyone, especially the men who have taken over my life.
Get to Lucifer’s Court, find out the truth about the missing spirits, figure out exactly what I am, and try not to die along the way. Oh, and don’t fall in love with the men who will for sure break my heart and possibly get me killed.
Easy enough, right?
Excerpt
Why was it that men walked out of quickies like some sort of victory lap, but women felt like we had whore tattooed across our foreheads?
Troy had already headed downstairs after dressing. He hadn’t said a lot, had regained a little of that distance he’d had before. I chalked that up to the awkwardness of the moment.
Besides, I had needed a moment to get myself ready. I’d cleaned up as best I could, using a tiny bit of the water Kase had left for me. No one wanted to walk while still sticky…
Still, as I went down the stairs, as all four sets of eyes swung toward me, I felt like each of them could see what I’d done.
They’ve all seen you naked. They’ve all been inside you. There isn’t much mystery.
My cheeks burned as I tucked my hair behind my ear and tried to look as if I didn’t care.
Men could screw everything that walked. Why not me?
No one spoke at first, and I had a moment of thinking everyone would pretend nothing happened. We didn’t need to address anything, right?
“So what did you think of a knot, shadow-girl? Always wanted to try it myself, but I’m a chicken.” Hunter paired the words with a grin so wide, he looked like some sort of jester.
So much for pretending…
About the Author
Jayce Carter lives in Southern California with her husband and two spawns. She originally wanted to take over the world but realized that would require wearing pants. This led her to choosing writing, a completely pants-free occupation. She has a fear of heights yet rock climbs for fun and enjoys making up excuses for not going out and socializing.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaycecarterauthor/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JayceCarterAuthor/
Website: https://www.jaycecarter.com/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jayce-carter
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Jayce-Carter/e/B07Y4T7CHH
Buy Links
Amazon Buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Hell-Raising-Other-Pastimes-Concerns-ebook/dp/B092JPHT6B
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/es/ebook/hell-raising-and-other-pastimes
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hell-raising-and-other-pastimes-jayce-carter/1139226451
Publisher: https://www.totallybound.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=71321
One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.
8 comments:
interesting book
bn100candg at hotmail dot com
Thanks for hosting!
Hello, Jayce,
Thanks for being my guest and answering my questions. I hope your tour is going really well.
Sounds like a good read.
Enjoyed the Q&A!
Thank you so much for having me! I loved getting to answer these questions <3
LOL! Loved the excerpt! Yes, guys pretty much strut out of one-night stands like they're kings. Women are supposed to slither out on their bellies, trying not to be seen. I never did that--I strutted right out the door, with a shit-eating, I-just-got-laid! look on my face. That's the kind of books I write also. And that's what I like to read. Yours sounds yummy.
As for Lie/Lay--me faither was from Glesga (Glasgow) and used to school me in things he felt the public schools here in the colonies neglected. When I was a teen he'd ask me where I was going. "I'm gonna go lay down."
"Lay what doon?" he'd ask. See LAY needs an object. I can lay my book down, I can lay my body down. But if I'm going into my room to get horizontal (alone of course--if he was home! LOL) then I'm going to go LIE down. That's how I've taught it to kids for many years. The best way to get something to stick is attach it to a funny anecdote. I hope this helps.
I enjoyed the author interview!
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