AccessRomance interviews author Jackie Kessler.
AR: Your newest book, THE ROAD TO HELL, will hit the shelves
on November 6th. Can you give us a quick introduction to this story?
Jackie: Sure! Jesse may no longer be a succubus, but she's got
a Hell of a past. She wants to come clean about her infernal history with Paul
Hamilton, her white-knight-in-training lover, except he'd never believe her. Just
like some people are worth being (shudder) monogamous for, some secrets are worth
keeping. So Jesse keeps mum her into returning to the Pit. Now, unless Jesse faces
off against the King of Hell, she'll lose Paul's immortal soul. If she'd known
love was this tough, she never would have turned her back on Lust...
AR: How many more books do you plan on writing in the
Hell on Earth series?
Jackie: There's a total of eight or nine books in the series.
(The "or nine" part is because one of the stories may be too big for
one book, but I won't know until I actually write it.) God willing, my publisher
will buy all the books. And then some. :)
AR: With HELL'S BELLES, you had no idea you'd written
a romance novel until your publisher decided to market it as such. Has the romance
label changed the way you're writing the series in any way?
Jackie: Heh. I've been learning a lot about romance in the past
two years (insert the obligatory husband-is-gleefully-supportive joke here). This
really helped me write the the third book, HOTTER THAN HELL, and the novella A
HELL OF A TIME: I focused on the romance aspect while still developing the fantasy/Hell/demon
part of those stories (and advancing the overall series arc).
AR: Why did you decide to write a series with a succubus
for a protagonist? What were your inspirations, and was HELL'S BELLES your first
attempt at writing and selling a full-length novel?
Jackie: Nope, HELL'S BELLES isn't my first novel, just the first
one that got published. When I started tinkering with the idea for the book, I
knew I wanted to write about a demon no longer in Hell. And I wanted the demon
to be female. That just automatically meant "succubus" to me. And so,
Jezebel the (former) succubus was born.
Lots of inspirations, most notably Neil Gaiman. I loved what he
did with Lucifer and Hell in his SANDMAN series, and that got me thinking about
Hell, and the reason for Hell in the first place, and what would happen with a
management change. And that wound up being the springboard for the Announcement,
the big reason why Jezebel runs away from Hell in HELL'S BELLES.
I'm going to be meeting Neil at the Fantasy Matters conference
in November, and hopefully I won't vomit out of sheer nerves. Or faint. :)
AR: You have written numerous short stories that have
been published on various websites and in magazines. Can you tell your readers
a bit about these stories?
Jackie: There are a lot, so I'll just mention the newer stories.
(Less risk of boring people that way.)
A Hell story, "When Hell Comes Knocking," will appear
in the upcoming LILITH anthology by Popcorn Press (edited by Elaine Cunningham).
That shows how Lillith (yes, three L's) went from the First Woman to a demon.
Regular HELL ON EARTH readers will recognize other characters in the story. (Plug!
Plug!)
"Red," a re-imagining of "Little Red Riding Hood,"
was published in REALMS OF FANTASY (April 2007). This one's literary dark fantasy.
"To the Core" is humorous dark paranormal about a magic
user who wants to achieve her heart's desire -- which is to lose her magic forever.
It was published in the Freya's Bower anthology, DREAMS AND DESIRES (February
2007) both in hardcover and in softcover. All proceeds go to a battered-woman's
shelter. Excellent cause. Buy lots of copies.
Lastly, the dark comedy "Why Monsters Don't Do Group Therapy"
features Melpomene, the Muse of Tragedy, who is stuck speaking in cliches. She's
a regular on Jezebel's blog, Cat and Muse. This story was published in FROM THE
ASYLUM (December 2006).
For a full list of all my published short stories, check out the
bio section on my website.
AR: Let's face it: you're only getting started. With just
two published books and those short stories, I'm guessing Jackie Kessler fans
are dying for more. Who would you recommend they read while they're waiting for
your next book? Finish this sentence, "If you love Jackie Kessler stories,
you might also like..."
Jackie: ...Richelle Mead, Rachel Caine, Elaine Cunningham, Jaci
Burton, Colleen Gleason, and Michelle Rowen, all of whom have numerous books out
now. Caitlin Kittredge's debut novel comes out in March, and it's also terrific.
Mark Henry's upcoming zombie comedy also comes out early 2008. And there's Cathy
Clamp/CT Adams, MaryJanice Davidson, Gena Showalter, Kat Richardson, Martha O'Connor,
and Cornelia Read. If you're looking for something dark and funny but for a younger
audience, try the new YA vampire book EIGHTH GRADE BITES by Heather Brewer. When
you're done with all of those authors, let me know and I'll recommend more. :)
AR: So, how did a suburban mom end up owning thousands
of comics?
Jackie: More like, How did an avid comic book reader end up a
suburban mom? Heh...
I grew up reading comic books. My dad and I would buy them every
week, and we'd spend our Saturday afternoons reading them. Good times. I stopped
reading them when I went to college (damn, the things were EXPENSIVE. Then again,
at my peak I was reading about 20 titles a week), and then my roommate introduced
me to Neil Gaiman's SANDMAN series, and a friend showed me the Matt Wagner MAGE
series, and I was hooked all over again. I really don't read comics any more,
more's the pity...but once my Precious Little Tax Deductions are less about Pokemon
(shudder) and the Power Rangers (shoot me now) and are more about comic books,
then I'll break out the old collection and will spend many a Saturday reading
with them.
AR: Other than writing, your family, and those thousands
of comics, do you have any secret hobbies? Anything you like to do in your spare
time, or would like to if spare time weren't in short supply?
Jackie: Other than plotting to take over the world, you mean?
I actually have painfully little spare time; when I'm not with
my family (I'm a soccer mom! No, really, I am!) or doing my day job (senior editor
for a management consulting company) or writing my novels (HELL'S BELLES and THE
ROAD TO HELL! Buy early and often!) or other projects (shhh, can't tell) or doing
writing-related promotion (blogging, interviewing other authors, conferences,
mailings, contests...the list goes onnnnnnnnnnn), I'm reading (a lot), snuggling
with my husband while watching THE DAILY SHOW (Jon Stewart for President!), and
maybe catching up on some desperately needed sleep. Ah, the glamorous life of
a new author...
AR: Finally, is there anything else you're dying to tell
the AccessRomance readers about?
Jackie: Here's an ambition of mine: I'd love to be able to teach
creative writing at colleges -- and not just the craft. I'd love to teach what
I've learned about the industry. That's something you don't learn when you're
taking all those writing workshops: how to SELL your work. If I could help aspiring
writers by equipping them with the tools that will improve their chances, I would
be very happy indeed.
Barring that, Matt Damon dipped in chocolate would make me a very
happy camper. :)
