Kimberly Pauley » Interviews

On teenage me, not writing, and whatever else my brain spews out

Kimberly Pauley — Thu, 19 May 2011 10:09:31 +0000

This week has turned into the no-nanny week (though I might get a respite on Friday). Also a big week of visits. Yesterday, The Max and I had a coffee break with our landlord, who is an actual LADY…which I mean in the noble English sense, not in the…wait, no, she’s nice and everything too. So, okay, I suppose she’s a lady in every sense of the word. Which Tony attempted to explain to The Max in terms he would understand, so now The Max thinks she’s “amost” a princess. Which is pretty cool in his book. And we had dinner with a former co-worker of my husband’s, which was nice. She’s vegetarian, so Tony made homemade pizza.

Anyway, all of that has meant that I’ve really gotten almost no writing done so far this week. A bit here and there, but nothing major. Which means that my brain is about to melt out of my ears. Hopefully I’ll get in some today. I can actually sometimes go for ages without writing, but if I’ve got a project stewing in my brain, it’s hard not to write.

My current WIP which *still* has no code name is very much stewing. It’s in me, and it’s gots to come out (if you don’t know who John Lee Hooker is, you should look him up).

I did have one other thing going on this week. My Dear Teen Me letter posted up yesterday. That was a little hard to write. Honestly, I think if there were time travel, I’d want to only go forward. What about you? Which way would you go?

Um. I have to go now. The Max just said “I can’t get the spoon out of my pants.” And I turn around to see him with his pants and underpants hanging around his ankles. I am not asking why there is a spoon in his pants, nor do I want to know where exactly it has been in there.

The Real Cameron Speaks!

Kimberly Pauley — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 15:04:53 +0000

Here’s Cameron’s answers so far (he hasn’t read the book yet, so he’s going to answer later on some of them):

* What are your favorite hobbies?

I like to play xbox live, bmx, play basketball and football.

* What’s your favorite book?

my favorite book is hatchet by Gary Paulsen (Good choice!)

* Who’s your favorite band?

my favorite band is the devil wears prada

* How old are you?

I’m 11 il be 12 in september

* Do you like Mina?

I like Mina. She is an interesting person.

New interview, reviews, & other stuff

Kimberly Pauley — Tue, 18 May 2010 18:29:52 +0000

So, my editor (the lovely Nina Hess, who also happens to be an author herself of the fantastic Practical Guide to Monsters) and I interviewed each other recently and you can see the first half up now. Bonus time: if YOU have a question you’d like one or both of us to answer, just go ask it! Anything goes!

And I’ve seen some more Still Sucks to Be Me reviews (which I don’t think I’ve mentioned before, so here you go…

I know what everyone is thinking, “Oh no not another teen vampire book”. This is far from the typical teen vampire book that seems to be hitting the shelf recently. This book is filled with humor, great characters, and a fast moving plot that doesn’t revolve around teens falling in love and having forbidden love….read more over at Fantasy Top

Mina’s back! She’s all vampire, and she’s all pissed. There were a few things her parents and the vampire council left out– like she’d be faking her own death and moving pronto….read more over at Biblio File

In personal news, a big Woot, Woot! today for The Max! He used the potty for the first time today! That is HUGE news in the Pauley household. Next up? Probably some Lightening McQueen underpants. The boy loves his cars.

I’m also continuing to work on my new book, Cat Girl Saves the Day (working title). It’s coming along. Some days have been slow lately, but others aren’t too bad. Writing is like that. The middle, of course, is always the toughest part and that’s the bit I’m smack dab in the…er, middle…of. This will be an interesting one for my relatives if…wait, I should think positive and say when…it gets published because I’ve named a bunch of the characters after my nieces & nephews.

Still Sucks to Be Me also introduced a character named after a nephew of mine — Cameron. I’ll have to see if he’ll do an interview with me sometime for the blog to see what he thinks about having a character named after him.

All kinds of shiny new-ness…

Kimberly Pauley — Wed, 12 May 2010 16:24:24 +0000

So…around a book’s launch there will suddenly be a flurry of things posted online. That’s just the way it goes! I hope you’ll bear with me. And if I’ve missed something that you’ve seen (relying on Google isn’t always foolproof), let me know!

Five Tips for Writing Funny Fiction by Nina Hess, my lovely editor, wherein she talks about me and Still Sucks to Be Me and other awesome authors like Debra Garfinkle and Lukas Ritter.
Even MORE stuff from Novel Novice, including some interviews with me, a great contest, and much more (a guest blog will be coming soon)!
The Other Side: Still Sucks to Be Me – a nice review from Tim, including a bonus! Stats for Mina if you wanted to play her in any D&D style game!
Another review from MangaManiac Cafe
And a review on Revish

In other news…

My lovely and very talented artsy neighbor, Bob Stotts, helped me out by turning some of my empty Sucks to Be Me wine bottles into vases! Now these are truly one-of-a-kind and VERY limited edition (as in, there were only 24 bottles ever made and I’ve given some of those away…and right now there are only 4 vases). I’ll be giving two of these away as part of the Launch Contest (you’ve entered, right?) and one is part of the Do the Write Thing for Nashville auction (which I think ends today at midnight). So, check it out:

A bloody cool Sucks to Be Me vase

It was Bob’s idea to add the bloody top! Aren’t they cool? Don’t you WANT one? Be sure to enter the contest or bid on the auction (though the auction winner would have the choice of taking a regular bottle vs. a vase too…)!

All kinds of cool Still Sucks stuff! (including notes on the launch contest…and other ways to win a copy)

Kimberly Pauley — Mon, 10 May 2010 15:18:36 +0000

Woot! Still Sucks to Be Me comes out TOMORROW! Wow, you know, it feels like this stuff takes forever and then all of a sudden, BANG! There you are. Ha, just like the rest of life, I suppose.

Well, I’ve got all kinds of stuff to report today.

First off, I’m happy to report that I was interviewed by Captain Jack over on CJ Redwine’s blog. Yes, *that* Captain Jack. It was awesome, but he totally wouldn’t let me borrow his hat. I don’t know why. I’m really very trustworthy. Maybe if I’d brought him some rum…

Not only was the interview fun, but CJ’s husband made a vampire suitcase cupcake in honor of it! Is that not the most awesome cupcake ever?

Of course, even better for you guys…if you comment on CJ’s blog, you get a chance to win either a hardback set of Sucks to Be Me AND Still Sucks to Be Me (signed) or a pack of book swag (bookmarks, tattoos, etc.).

So get thee forth and comment! And follow and what not.

Okay, and over at Novel Novice they’re still celebrating the Sucks to Be Me series as their novel of the month! Woot! If you haven’t checked it out, you really, really need to. Besides a great contest, they’ve got free desktop Sucks to Be Me and Still Sucks to Be Me wallpapers, an interview with me (with more stuff to come), and you can even learn more about Dracula and Bram Stoker. How cool is that?

And some more reviews of Still Sucks to Be Me are popping up…like this one from MangaManiac’s Cafe: “This sequel to Sucks To Be Me weighs in every bit as good as the introductory novel…Still Sucks To Be Me wraps up some of the lingering story lines from the first book, and the ending was much more satisfying. There’s lot of action and danger, and even a hot new guy to drool over. Though I was left content at the conclusion, I would be more than happy to spend more time with Mina again in the future.”

And let’s see…what else did I have to tell you? OH YES.

The Still Sucks to Be Me Launch Contest. I am absolutely LOVING the entries I’ve gotten in so far. You guys are awesome. You rock. So I’ve got some more stuff to add to the prize packs…so go check it out! (I’ll be editing the launch contest post). Please do spread the contest around (Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, your blog, your friends, your family)…if I hit a certain number of entries…there’s a good chance I’ll give an extra prize…(hint, hint).

Have you been to the Fort yet?

Kimberly Pauley — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 02:45:41 +0000

So Myra, who’s one of my writer peeps, invited me over to The Fort.

What? You haven’t visited The Fort yet? You don’t know what you’re missing! Besides a kind of tongue-in-cheek interview with me, she’s got an EPIC giveaway going on. Seriously. You need to check it out. By Sunday, March 28th. Because then it will be too late.

Well, for the giveaway part, anyway. Which includes an ARC of Still Sucks to Be Me as one of the prizes. Just saying.

I'm on NPR! I'm on NPR!

Kimberly Pauley — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 20:15:14 +0000

Ack! Hyperventilate! Where’s a paper bag when you need one?? So, remember a while back I recorded an interview with Margot Adler for NPR? Well, I wasn’t sure if/when they’d be able (or want) to use it. And I have this vague fear that I said stupid things. BUT…

It’s going to air tonight!

It’ll be the last segment of All Things Considered, probably around 6ish. It’ll also be posted on their website later (that URL to follow, once it’s up). It’ll be me and other authors, like Whitley Streiber (which totally freaks me out a little, but hey!). Anyway, keep your fingers crossed for me that I don’t sound stupid!

UPDATE: Here’s the link to the NPR interview, as well as the news article text that goes with the aired interview — and Margot said my book was her favorite! I <3 Margot!

My NPR Interview (or, trying not to sound stupid on the air)

Kimberly Pauley — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:49:56 +0000

So today I was interviewed by the very cool Margot Adler for NPR. I went down to the local NPR station in downtown Chicago at Navy Pier (she’s in NY, so I was just connected via the studio). It was very cool and somewhat daunting to be talking to someone you’ve heard on the radio. Because I could immediately recognize her voice.

I babbled a bit, but hopefully said at least some slightly intelligible things. We’ll find out! I’m not sure when it is going to air yet, but I’ll post as soon as I know.

Here I am with The Max outside the offices:

Outside the Public Radio offices

He loves his fireman’s hat. Can you tell? He got to walk around Navy Pier with Daddy while Mommy was busy and had a blast. We ate lunch there too and let him go on a little train ride (his very first solo ride!).

In other news, I just finished (yesterday) proofing the galley copy for my editor. Mostly just made some minor changes to Still Sucks to Be Me, nothing major. My editor also sent me a file of all of the new chapter header doodles and they are INCREDIBLY cute. You are going to love them!

And I got in the new batty tattoos. Now, whenever you send off for a free signed bookplate, I’ll also include a batty tattoo. I’ll also give them away at school visits and other events. Right now? I’m wearing one on my hand.

Batty Tattoo!

New Q&A & review at My Overstuffed Bookshelf

Kimberly Pauley — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:28:12 +0000

Amy over at My Overstuffed Bookshelf has posted a Q&A with me as well as a review. Check it out!

http://myoverstuffedbookshelf.blogspot.com/2009/11/sucks-to-be-me-by-kimberly-pauley.html

In Mina's Words…

Kimberly Pauley — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 04:20:31 +0000

Okay, yes, I’ve been in a revision-tunnel. But I soooooo should have posted about this before. Bad author. Diana over at Stop, Drop & Read has a guest post from Mina up (yes, you read that right — it’s from Mina, not me) and if you comment before the end of the month (I know, I know, this is why I should have posted about it before…) you have a chance to win either a t-shirt or a signed book. I was honestly thinking I had posted about it, but heck if I can find the post, so I must not have. *sigh*

So get over there and find out what Mina thinks!! (not to mention you can enter to win other great prizes too!)

Also…if Diana gets a 100 entries (she’s close now), I’ll give away TWO prizes instead of one.