Let me begin by saying Ms. Moning was an exceptionally gracious hostess. While we were standing in line Monday night for the signing, someone said she was taking a break once every hour – we thought it was to rest her hand, but apparently she caught a stomach virus on the flight to New Orleans and was very sick. Even so, she stayed to make sure everyone got their book signed, which is incredible. When Rachel and I left the signing it was almost 8:00 pm – she’d already been signing for four hours!!! The line:
Rachel and I had signed up to attend the 2nd Q&A session on Tuesday at noon. Karen showed up wearing black leather pants and a pretty gold sweater. I have to stop here and tell you - she’s gorgeous! Absolutely stunning – her covers do not do her justice. Her hair is cut in a short straight wedge, not the long curls on her covers. And her voice has an almost musical quality to it; she’s very soft-spoken. Her voice reminds me of her descriptions of the Fae’s lyrical voices in her books; even though we were in the 2nd row I was glad she had a microphone.
So, on to the questions:
How did the Fever series come about? She said the whole story – all 5 books – came to her in a dream one night. She knew it would be 5 books, knew the titles, and how it would all end. As she wrote each book, she would have to go back and check herself to make sure she wasn’t giving away things that the reader didn’t know yet. (Someone asked what she’d eaten the night before, and someone else asked if she’d had any “blooper” dreams about Barrons – to which she laughed and looked over at her husband, lol. She said, no, no blooper dreams – Barrons is too scary.)
After one audience member asked about writing the male POV, Phil Gigante (Barrons’ voice on the audiobooks) asked about *spoiler* Barron’s 5 days standing watch after his son died and Barrons' POV. She said she didn’t want to show his pain, that’s not the type of man he is – he wouldn’t show it; he did his five days and moved on.
Apparently she wrote a scene that’s not in Shadowfever *spoiler* where Mac meets Tullie, and that scene will be in the next book (more about her next series below).
Also *spoiler* the Isla and Peter scene is for the reader to choose. I think the questioner asked about the outcome of the scene, or whether Peter was good or bad? (I’m not sure, I didn’t hear the question.)
Something Ms. Moning mentions repeatedly throughout the session: *spoiler* There are no clear-cut heroes or villains in the series, it’s left to the reader to decide.
When asked about Mac’s wardrobe for the future (Mac 1.0 was pink, Mac 4.0 black), she said *spoiler* It’s confused and conflicted. The author said she dressed as Mac would have dressed at Monday night’s signing: Black leather pants, a goldish- St. John top, and pink panties, lol)
I asked about the relationship between her Highlander series and her Fever series: (Squee!!! I spoke with Karen Marie Moning!!! *faints*). She says that she doesn’t feel like she did justice to the Fae until around Immortal Highlander. She wanted to do more, and after her dream she knew she had the perfect format for her characters. When I asked which series she recommended reading first, she asked her audience to answer that question and it was a resounding “HIGHLANDERS!!” Into the Dreaming is not related in any way as it was for a different publisher.
Does she see herself in Mac? Yes, bits. Her husband laughed – apparently Karen loves fast cars. Her husband said she’s the best combination of Barrons and Mac (how sweet is that?!?)
What’s planned for the future? She says there’s still a lot more to explore and she’ll be here for a long time. She is planning on taking some time off, but the next series will probably be a three-book story arc. She is a firm believer in a story with a definite ending, not a never-ending series.
- We will see more of Barrons and The Nine in future books, as well as Danny, Christian, and Rhyodan. Also Mac, she added.
- She wants to do Dani’s story, but can’t decide if she’ll do Dani at this age and grow up with her (which is what she wants to do) or do Dani after she’s grown up a bit (which would be better for sales). This makes me wonder if she’s thinking about doing a YA series featuring Dani?
- She also feels like she has one more Highlander story in her – there’s another Keltar story that wants to be told.
- She mentioned her graphic novel coming out in 2012 – she’s seen some of the work and says it’s very sexy and she loves it; Al Rio is the artist.
- She said she was relieved that the movie options for the series expired and that there have been some TV inquiries (Sci-Fi Channel); she’s interested in that possibility.
A few people asked for advice on writing:
- First and foremost, get your butt in the chair and keep it there.
- Be true to your vision and don’t trend hop.
- She likes to write at 4:30 am at her home; she and her husband both do their best work there.
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We were also treated to Phil Gigante reading Shadowfever’s Chapter 8. It was mesmerizing!!! I haven’t heard his voice on the audiobooks but now I want them very badly – when I closed my eyes to listen, his voice washed over me and he was Barrons!!!
When someone asked about how well her husband's CD, Shadowsong, fit with the book, she explained it like this: When she was done writing for the day, she’d go over it with her husband and they’d talk about it. He’d have all this Fever stuff running around in his head as he’d go to the studio to create music, which is why it goes so well with the book.
Finally, when asked about how she felt about finishing the series, Karen said she was thrilled that now everyone else knew the ending she’d been holding on to for five (six?) years. Then she got teary-eyed and said the best part has been all the friendships she’s watched being forged over her books and how special that was for her.
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