Ramblings From This Chick: Interview with Author JC Emery and Giveaway

Sunday, October 6, 2013

Interview with Author JC Emery and Giveaway

Meet JC Emery, author of The Switch.

As a child, JC was fascinated by things that went bump in the night. As they say, some things never change. Now, as an adult, she divides her time between the sexy law men, mythical creatures, and kick-ass heroines that live inside her head and pursuing her bachelor's degree in English. JC is a San Francisco Bay Area native, but has also called both Texas and Louisiana home. These days she rocks her flip flops year round in Northern California and can't imagine a climate more beautiful.

JC writes adult, new adult, and young adult fiction. She dabbles in many different genres including science fiction, horror, chick lit, and murder mysteries, yet she is most enthralled by supernatural stories-- and everything has at least a splash of romance.

Places to find JC:

| Site | Facebook | Twitter |

First off, I want to tell you how much I enjoyed this book. Your writing never disappoints me.

I read your book Marital Bitch and it was easily one of my all time favorite books. This book is fabulous but it has a very different feel to it. Is this something you planned or did it come about as part of the writing process?
Thank you! I don’t know that I’ll ever be able to recreate the absolute ridiculousness that is Marital Bitch. I don’t know that I intentionally wrote The Switch to be different from Marital Bitch, as much as the plot called for it. Usually, I have a plot idea in mind and then develop characters. The characters determine the tone of the story, for sure.

You seem to write characters that have a sarcastic side to them.. Is this a reflection of your own personality?
You caught me. :) I’m a huge smart ass to the point that I’m always having to scale it back in my writing. I find myself saying, “Wait, this character is supposed to be serious.” Every one of my female leads has a piece of me (sometimes intentional, usually not).

How did the creation of the MEN WITH BADGES series come about?
I have a writing project spreadsheet that I use to keep track of all the stories I want to tell. I realized one day that I had three hero cop, and one hero firefighter stories. That’s four books that feature a man with a badge. I figured I might as well make a series out of it.

You always create gorgeous alpha men for your lead male characters. Did you have anyone in mind as you wrote Chase's character?
Chase is based, in part, on a few people I met when I lived in New Orleans. Being a very blue collar guy, I think his appeal is in his heart, not his looks (though he isn’t hard to look at!) There’s just something about a Louisiana man with a pick-up that makes me goofy.

This is more of a statement than a question. Thank you for writing female characters that are smart and capable of taking care of themselves. The women in your book are spectacular. They don't sit around waiting for someone to save them but kick some butt themselves.
Gosh, that makes my day. I come from a long line of strong women. I don’t really know anything else. Most of them may be legally insane, but they’re definitely not weak.

Why did you choose this particular setting for this book?
I lived in New Orleans for three years. The city is uniquely gorgeous. I totally fell in love. The people of the Gulf Coast are so genuine, and full of life. They just do as they do and aren’t really worried that you’ll think they’re backwards or strange. The culture is very different from where I grew up in California, and I think I’ll always carry a little bit of the spirit of the city with me.

If this book was ever made into a movie, I have an idea as to who I would like to see play Chase and Shelby. Is there anyone who you could see doing justice to these characters?
Chase is very fit because he puts in the effort. He’s also young and charming—and he knows it! I think Kellan Lutz could do the part justice. He has the smile and the physique for it. Emma Watson fits Shelby physically and I know she has the ability to pull our little troublemaker off perfectly.

Will there be any more books in this series?
Absolutely! I have book three outlined and an idea for book four. :)

What is your favorite book of all time that you recommend that everyone should read?
What a tough question. My first reaction was Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger. That book was epic for me as a teen. My favorite book now is The Witching Hour by Anne Rice. It’s so dark, haunting, and beautifully written. That book made me fall in love with New Orleans. I can’t even properly describe how romantically gothic the whole thing is. It’s really long, but so absolutely worth it.

Favorite movie?
Of all time? Reality Bites (1994) was new adult long before the term existed. I was just a kid when I first saw Reality Bites, but something about the struggle of new adulthood, the mistakes, the intensity of it all spoke to me. One of Ethan Hawke’s lines in the move is, “The only thing you have to be by the age of 23 is yourself.” Even at thirteen, I “got it”. The only thing you should ever try to be is yourself.

Favorite TV show?
I’m a total sucker for Sons of Anarchy. I can’t get enough of it.

You are stranded on a desert island and can only take 3 items. What would they be?
Assuming I don’t need food, I’d take a futuristic Kindle that never needs to be charged. Do desert islands have wifi because I’m going to need to buy new books on the regular. The second thing would be my best friend. She’s amazing. She’s also a total screamer so in case there’s some big scary animal on the island that’s trying to kill us, it’ll probably go after her first (sorry, dude. You know I’m all about survival.) Third would be the stuffed bear that one of my closest friends gave to me years ago when she moved across the country.

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer these questions. I loved the book and wish you every continued success.

Thank you for having me. This was a ton of fun. =)

Shelby Brignac has gotten herself into some trouble. From her awful taste in men to her poor choices, she just can’t catch a break. After stupidly helping her boyfriend with his loan sharking business, Shelby has decided she wants out. It’s just too dangerous for a waitress, in her opinion. But just when she thinks she’s free of the headache, she’s offered up one last job– one last job she can’t refuse: retrieve a precious antique gem and she’ll get her best friend back alive.

Hiding out in New Orleans’ French Quarter with the rare purple diamond in tow, Shelby thinks she has no way out of the seemingly hopeless situation– that is until Chase Guilliot, an off-duty cop intervenes, saving her life. Too bad for Chase that the gunman who’s hot on his tail doesn’t care if one of his targets carries a badge– he just wants Shelby’s head and that diamond back. And he’s not above killing a cop to get it.

On the run with a hot rare diamond and a beautiful hot-headed woman, Chase’s oath to serve and protect is pushed to the limits. Unsure if he can trust the one person he wants to more than anything, Chase swears he’ll get both he and Shelby out of this mess alive, but then he’s done with her for good– or is he?

THE SWITCH is a thrilling contemporary romance that likes to live on both sides of the law.

Purchase: | Amazon |