Please help me welcome Jordan K. Rose to my blog today.  Jordan is giving away a $5 Starbucks card to one lucky commentor, so be sure and leave her a comment.

What is your favorite part of writing?

Believe it or not, I love editing. Don’t get me wrong. I enjoy writing the first draft, but the editing process is my favorite part. I like to add the little bits of detail that make the story come to life and add depth to the characters and the conflict. I love to re-write!

Do you have critique partners?

I do have a critique partner. The wonderful and talented Kat Duncan. We met at a meeting for the New England Chapter of RWA a couple years back and have been together ever since. She’s been a gift. I highly recommend getting a critique partner to any writer. Of course, the key to a good critiquing relationship is not being afraid to say something doesn’t work and not getting offended when you’re told something needs tweaking.

How likely are people you meet to end up in your next book?

Very unlikely. My characters are all organic and happily  grown in my imagination. To put someone I know in my book would be to force the story around a character and I just can’t do that. There are certainly traits from people I know in some characters or maybe a character acted exactly the same in a specific situation as someone I know, but that’s the extent of it.

What is most difficult for you to write?  Characters, conflict or emotions?  Why?

Wow. This is a good question. I think the answer varies. I write character-driven stories so I think I do fine with the character development piece. Sometimes I question if my conflict is working. (That’s where having Kat around helps loads.) But I recall my editor asking me lots of “how does s/he feel about this?” questions when we edited Perpetual Light. And sometimes I knew how to demonstrate that very easily. Other times I didn’t have the slightest idea and struggled to get it onto the screen!

Tell us about your hero.  Give us one of his strengths and one of his weaknesses.

Vittorio is a vampire who’s tormented by the idea that his wife’s soul has never been at rest because of him. He struggles to keep from slipping over the edge and losing his own humanity while he tries to find a way to help her rest. One of his greatest strengths is devotion. He is eternally devoted to Lucia. He will find her and help her rest. Devotion is also a weakness for him. He is blinded to the reality of what she is and what she has done to him.

Tell us about your heroine.  Give us one of her strengths and one of her weaknesses.

Lucia is a woman who is forced to realize she’s not just a human. She is a reincarnated vampire slayer who’s ordained to bring lost souls to The Light. She’s left with no choice but to kill her husband, Vittorio. One of her strengths is her ability to stand behind what she believes. She’s repeatedly reincarnated to get the job done. In this life, when she’s finally face to face with Vittorio, she actually accepts her fate and with his help begins to work toward an ending. Her weakness is her denial. She has not wanted to kill him. From the first moment she met him she no longer wanted to do the job she was tasked with and thus set her destiny to spin.

What genres are you drawn to as a reader?

Definitely paranormal, in particular vampire stories. I love to read in the genre I write. I love a good romance no matter what subgenre, but any vampire story will catch my eye.

Do you prefer to read in the same genres you write in or do you avoid reading that genre? Why?

I love to read in my genre because it makes me feel like I’m in the right place. That may sound odd, but when I read the stories of other writers, I feel like I’m part of a group, where I belong. Plus, I just love reading vampire stories.

Perpetual Light Back Cover Blurb

Fate is cruel. Especially when the one you’ve sworn to love for all eternity, the very soul who changed your destiny is the last person you should trust.

After more than three hundred years of running, Lucia Dicomano must make a choice.

Forced to take her place as a Pharo of Redemption, the divine slayer needs to master her forgotten powers. Lucia turns to Vittorio, the one vampire she’s failed to deliver from eternal damnation. But overcoming smoldering remnants of love, lust and anger aren’t their only obstacles.

Samuel, who may know Lucia better than she knows herself, hunts her with a fervor stoked by a thousand years of vengeful hatred. His plan—capture and enslave the weakened Pharo then take control of her elusive power.

Can Lucia trust Vittorio long enough to reclaim her powers? Or will she have no choice but to kill him and battle Samuel alone?