Chapter One of BURNED!

A New Line from Burned!

Our cool German publisher & author photos!

Today Kristin and I had a blast! Our cool German publisher, Fischer, sent a fab editor, Julia Schade and the mega awesome photographer, Jorg Steinmetz all the way to Tulsa to take author photos of us! The weather was perfect - sunny and in the 60's. Jorg is an incredible photographer. I think he managed to transform us into art! One of my friends was hanging around and she snapped a few pictures of Jorg taking our pictures, and Kristin and me between shots. Check us out! heehees!

Can't wait to see the real pictures Jorg took! We heart Germany!

XXXOOO
PC

Update Time!

I'm hard at work on the copy edit of BURNED (it's just another step before the manuscript is actually printed), and I took a break to go outside about sundown. The sky was amazing! Then I saw the moon! Wow! I had to take pics and share with y'all. (Clearly, I'm not in Tulsa right now. T-Town has cool stuff, but WE DON'T HAVE AN OCEAN.)

Oh, and I don't know when my publisher will post chapter one. Hopefully soon! When they give me the green light, I'll post it here, too.

Back to work so you guys can read BURNED on the 27th!

XXXOOO
PC

UK COVER FOR BURNED!

Y'all asked, so here it is - the UK cover for BURNED!

Yes, I like them both. I love seeing different interpretations of Zoey and the HoN world.

XXXOOO
PC

BURNED COVER REVEALED!

RELEASE DATE APRIL 27TH!

HERE IT IS! AND HERE'S THE COVER COPY:
When friends stop trusting each other, Darkness is there to fan the
flames....

Things have turned black at the House of Night. Zoey Redbird's soul has
shattered. With everything she's ever stood for falling apart, and a
broken heart making her want to stay in the Otherworld forever, Zoey's
fading fast. It's seeming more and more doubtful that she will be able
pull herself back together in time to rejoin her friends and set the
world to rights. As the only living person who can reach her, Stark must
find a way to get to her. But how? He will have to die to do so, the
Vampire High Council stipulates. And then Zoey will give up for sure.
There are only 7 days left...

Enter BFF Stevie Rae. She wants to help Z but she has massive problems
of her own. The rogue Red Fledglings are acting up, and this time not
even Stevie Rae can protect them from the consequences. Her kinda
boyfriend, Dallas, is sweet but too nosy for his own good. The truth
is, Stevie Rae's hiding a secret that might be the key to getting Zoey
home but also threatens to explode her whole world.

In the middle of the whole mess is Aphrodite: ex-Fledgling, trust-fund
baby, total hag from Hell (and proud of it). She's always been blessed
(if you could call it that) with visions that can reveal the future, but
now it seems Nyx has decided to speak through her with the goddess's own
voice, whether she wants it or not. Aphrodite's loyalty can swing a lot
of different ways, but right now Zoey's fate hangs in the balance.

Three girls... playing with fire... if they don't watch out, everyone
will get Burned.

DONE!

BURNED is done! It's super good and I can't wait for y'all to read it. Yes, the release is April 27th! I don't know when my publisher will start posting stuff, and I also don't know any tour (or movie) updates, but I'll post as soon as I know something.

Okay, off to rewrite...

XXXOOO
PC

Happy Full Moon New Year!

Tonight the full moon ushers in the new year! What a wonderful omen! A full moon is an excellent time for completion. I love to finish projects on the night of a full moon, whether they're small, like cleaning a closet (ugh), or major like typing "the end" on a manuscript. Sadly, I won't be finishing BURNED tonight, but I am working on completing a major scene. And there's always a closet that needs cleaning...

Here's hoping the close of this year brings a sense of completion to you, and also an excitement for adventures to come!

This lovely painting is called FULL MOON DANCER and it's by my good friend Allie Jensen (I own the original, and it's even more beautiful in person!). Allie's website is www.alliej.com. Please respect that this piece of art is copyrighted, which means if you'd like to post it you need permission from Allie to do so.

Happy New Year!
PC

I heart Scotland!

Check out who made the list - three times! Kristin and I are sending a big WE HEART YOU to Scotland (I mean even more than usual)!

Children’s Top 10 Scottish Titles 2009

1. Eclipse, by Stephanie Meyer.

2. New Moon, by Stephanie Meyer.

3. Twilight, by Stephanie Meyer.

4. Breaking Dawn, by Stephanie Meyer.

5. Broons Annual 2010: Scotland’s Happy Family That Makes Every Family Happy.

6. Broons/Oor Wullie: v. 14: The Glory Years.

7. Marked – House of Night Bk. 1, by P. C. Cast/Kristin Cast.

8. Stick Man, by Julia Donaldson/Axel Scheffler.

9. Betrayed – House of Night Bk. 2, by P. C. Cast/Kristin Cast.

10. Hunted – House of Night Bk. 5, by P. C. Cast/Kristin Cast.

Chart based on sales of Children’s books in Scottish stores of Waterstone’s.

Happy Holidays to All!

I'm deep into BURNED (yes, looks like the release will be April 27th), but I wanted to take a moment to wish y'all happy, happy holidays! Here's hoping you receive the gift of your heart's desire.

Merry Yule!
PC

ELPHAME'S CHOICE

Lovely MIRA is the Mills & Boon (that's Harlequin for the US folks) imprint that's releasing all of my Partholon novels in the UK. Thought y'all would like to see their version of the cover, and this nice review from Night Owl. Oh, and the next novel in the series, BRIGHID'S QUEST will be released in March.

Happy reading!
PC


Title: Elphame's Choice
Young Adult Parthalon Books

Authors: P.C. Cast

Genres: * Young Adult - A YA Insider Review, * Sci-Fi / Fantasy - A SFF Insider Review

Available: Dec 16, 2009

Online Link: http://www.nightowlreviews.com/nightowlromance/reviews/Review.aspx?daoid=5415

Score: 5.00 / 5 - Reviewer Top Pick

Review:

There is s much I want to say about this book I don't even know where to begin. First off, I LOVED the Parthenon series and P.C. Cast is quickly becoming my favorite author of all time. I loved her Goddess Summoning series as well, anyway...This book fits in perfectly with the Parthenon series, it is actually set a hundred and some years after Rhiannon. The characters in this book are so vivid and so devoted to their faith it almost makes me jealous, and wish that I could also have that kind of faith in something, anything really. P.C. Cast makes you feel like you are in the book and you are actually there with the people and apart of everything. While reading (even up to 25 hours without sleep) it was like I was watching a movie and you know one of the characters is about to do something stupid and you are yelling at the TV "DON'T GO IN THERE" but they don't listen to you, of course. While reading this book I squealed, I laughed, I cried (yes, I actually did), I yelled, and I absolutely fell head over heels in love with Lochlan. Wow, what a character...I love him, and adore him absolutely. I know I can get an older copy of Brighid's Quest but...I want to wait so my whole series will match the re-release from Mira. I can't get enough, I have to go read the Parthenon series again, just because I don't want to let this world go just quite yet. Oh yes, and P.C. Cast doesn't disappoint, her signature sexy steam is in this book as well.

OKLAHOMA TODAY INTERVIEW

As you guys know I'm working working working on BURNED so that it can make the release date of April 27th (stressssss), and I'm really not giving interviews right now, BUT when OKLAHOMA TODAY contacted me, well, I had to say yes. Cool home state magazine - absolutely! So first they sent over the photographer, Evan Taylor, and even I had fun during the photo session (I hate to get my picture taken. Seriously.) I'll post some of the pics he took when he gives me the okay. Oh, and for you Okies, the interview will be in one of the spring issues, probably right around the release date of BURNED. But check this out - Evan gave Kristin and me his business cards, and on the back of each of them he has printed different mustaches! That you can stick on your lip and act goofy about! Naturally, Kristin and I had to play and take pictures ourselves. So, see, even while I'm in my writing cave I still have SOME fun!

XXXOOO
PC

My Amazing Agent

Many of you have asked about my agent, so I thought I'd post this excellent interview with her she recently gave on a literary agent blog. As an intro, Meredith Bernstein has been my agent since 2001. Since then we have also become close friends. If you've read many of my interviews about the House of Night you'll know that Meredith came up with the idea for the series (Yea Meredith!). Meredith's sense of commercial timing is always impeccable. She is honest, forthright, and savvy. If you want to know more about her and what kind of authors she is interested in representing you need to do your homework. A good place to start (after reading this interview) is THE AGENTS MARKET. Basically, go to the writers' resource section at your local bookstore or library and begin taking notes. Finding an agent is as important as it is difficult - but you need the right agent for you and your work. For all you aspiring authors out there: BEST OF LUCK!



Agent Advice: Meredith Bernstein of the Meredith Bernstein Literary Agency
Posted by Chuck

Agent Interview by
contributor Ricki Schultz.

"Agent Advice" is a series of quick interviews with literary and script agents who talk with Guide to Literary Agents about their thoughts on writing, publishing, and just about anything else.

This installment features Meredith Bernstein of Meredith Bernstein Literary Agency. Meredith has been an agent for over 25 years and has run her own agency for most of that time. (She has no agency website.)

She is looking for: both literary and mainstream fiction, with a focus on psychological suspense, medical and legal thrillers, and love stories. In terms of romance, she's looking for contemporary, historical, paranormal, and suspense. For nonfiction, she seeks authors who are leaders in their field with strong commercial ties. She does not accept e-mail queries. Please query with SASE: Meredith Bernstein Literary Agency, 2095 Broadway, Suite 505, New York, NY 10023.


GLA: How did you become an agent?

MB: It happened organically. I was working for another literary agent as a Gal Friday (not to date myself), and I really did basic secretarial-type things. A friend called and suggested we meet the following weekend at a writer’s conference in Long Island—and I asked my boss if he would “send” me.
As it happened, I met a writer who seemed like another Anne Frank incarnate, and she had written a book about the impact of keeping a journal. She gave me her “book” to read on the train ride home—and I fell in love with it. I knew one publisher because he was also a client of my boss, so I told him about the book, messengered it over, and he called me the next day to make an offer.

GLA: What’s the most recent thing you’ve sold?

MB: Because I have been doing this for a long time, the things I have most recently sold are new deals for existing clients. That said, the most exciting “new” thing is the House of Night series by P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast, which is in the YA category. It’s about a vampire finishing school and has been near the top of the New York Times bestseller list for well over a year now—and going strong with the latest title, Tempted. I have also just sold another parenting book in the bestselling No-Cry series by Elizabeth Pantley to McGraw-Hill.
And, I’m just completing an audio deal for my 2009 National Book Award nominee, David Carroll, for Following the Water: A Hydromancer’s Notebook from Houghton-Mifflin.

GLA: What are you looking for right now and not getting? What do you pray for when tackling the slush pile?

MB: I am always looking and praying for very compelling narrative nonfiction; and an unforgettable love story; and fiction that has a voice that you not only never want to walk away from—but that begs you to turn the page. If you are writing any of these—send them my way! I am also looking for literary fiction that has a haunting effect.


GLA: You represent a wide array of categories in both fiction and nonfiction, but I didn't see anywhere online listing you as accepting juvenile literature—yet the House of Night series is huge. Are you currently seeking young adult or middle-grade lit?

MB: Because of my success with the Casts, I am now getting and seeking more YA. As for middle-grade, I still don’t feel confident I really know enough about it.

GLA: Do you notice any trends in what you tend to represent? Subgenres or
elements that particularly grab you?

MB: I am extremely eclectic by nature, so whatever I represent that is of a “genre” is because I have responded to some element of that author’s creativity more than anything else.



GLA: Any topics that don’t capture your interest?

MB: Military history.



GLA: How do you prefer to be queried?

MB: Snail mail, please.


GLA: If you were teaching a class on nonfiction writing and submitting, what would be item number one on your syllabus?

MB: An inside-out knowledge of one’s subject matter. I also think that when one loves what they are writing about, it shows—and the reader can feel it. For example, when I read Jon Krakauer’s Into Thin Air, I was simply transported. I look for a writer who can transport me.



GLA: What would writers be surprised to know about you personally?

MB: That I am extremely artistic—and I do a mean “Hokey-Pokey.”



GLA: Will you be at any upcoming writers’ conferences where writers can
meet and pitch you?

MB: RWA (July 28-31 2010) in Nashville is the next one.



GLA: Best piece(s) of advice we haven’t talked about yet?

MB: I respect people that work really hard at what they do. If you want to stay successful in this business, you have to understand that there is always someone else ready to move into your limelight. If you look at some of the names on the bestseller lists that have been there for years, I assure you—it is no accident. These writers deliver the goods that the public wants. It is their job to keep the readership wanting it!

This agent interview by Ricki Schultz,
freelance writer and coordinator of
Shenandoah Writers in VA. Visit her blog
or follow her on Twitter.


Want more on this subject?

* How can you improve your query letter?
* Need to write your query to Meredith and want some guidance? Check out The Writer's Digest Guide to Query Letters.
* Have some questions on your road to landing a literary agent? Ask me! Join me for my "How to Get a Literary Agent" webinar on Thursday, Dec. 17, 2009 - and learn about queries, proposals, synopses, submissions, research and much more.

Back in the US!

Hi Guys!
Well, I've returned to beautiful, sunny, but cold Oklahoma. My Scotties mauled me, but now aren't speaking to me. My cat, Patchy Poo the Pud, is disdainful and actually being nice to Kristin (who he's hated for more than a decade) just to show how annoyed he is at me.

Of course I'm already missing Scotland! But I'm a lucky woman to have two countries I love so much. Speaking of - here's a picture right out the back door of the cottage I stayed at. This is what it looked like for, oh, about five minutes:


This is what it looked like for the rest of the time (when I could actually take a picture through the rain). SERIOUSLY. It rained for almost three weeks. Sigh. But it was good for writing.


I did go to Dublin for a couple days (loved it!). Popped into this great bookstore and signed stock:


Then I got my amazing tattoo from incredibly talented Alan who owns the Art House Tattoo Studio in Monaghan. No, I'm NOT showing you a picture of it on my body (jeesh, nosy people!), but this is the gorgeous sketch Alan did of it. Yes, it's a great big bull with a goddess within it. Oh, and it's on my thigh.


Okay, back to working hard on BURNED now. Looks like the release date will be April 27th, if I get it in on time. Wish me luck!

XXXOOO
PC

Cool interview! Check it out!

Hi Guys!
I'm still in Scotland until next week, and mostly without internet access (can you believe it?!), but I thought I'd post this lovely interview Kristin and I did for The Author Hour on line. Below is the transcription, but you can listen to us if you go to:
http://theauthorhour.com/p-c-cast/

I'll catch up with y'all when I get back to Tulsa. I'm working away on BURNED. It looks like it might have a release date of April 27th! Fingers crossed that I finish in time.

Oh, and what else have I been doing over here?? Hum...well...I did take a quick trip to Dublin (I popped in to a great bookstore called Dubray Books in the city centre and signed stock) AND GOT A TATTOO! Oh, baby!

XXXOOO
PC




YOUR GUIDE TO FANTASTIC FICTION
Hosted by Matthew Peterson

Listen to interviews of your favorite authors every Thursday at 9 a.m. pacific / noon eastern on the VoiceAmerica.com Variety Channel.


Listen to the interview for free!

Where: VoiceAmerica.com Variety Channel
Date: Thursday, November 19th, 2009
Time: 9 a.m pacific / noon eastern

If you missed the live show, don't worry. You can always listen to it in the archives.
Vampires
P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast (NYT bestselling authors of the House of Night series)
Charlaine Harris (NYT bestselling Sookie Stackhouse series / True Blood on HBO)
Laurell K. Hamilton (#1 NYT bestselling author of Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter & Meredith Gentry)
L. J. Smith (#1 NYT bestselling Dark Visions, Night World and The Vampire Diaries, now a TV series)
Note: The following interview has been transcribed from the radio show. Please excuse any typos, spelling and gramatical errors.
Interview with P. C. Cast

Font Size: Small Normal Large Largest
Matthew Peterson: Hello and welcome to The Author Hour: Your Guide to Fantastic Fiction, which can be found at www.TheAuthorHour.com. I’m your host, Matthew Peterson. Last week I interviewed Anne Rice, Ursula K. Le Guin, Brian Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson, and Orson Scott Card. This week I’ve got a vampire-themed episode with P. C. and Kristin Cast, Charlaine Harris, Laurell K. Hamilton, and L. J. Smith. So sit back and enjoy as we talk about The Vampire Diaries, House of Night, Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter, and Sookie Stackhouse, which is the basis for True Blood on HBO. I’ve got P. C. and Kristin Cast on the show today, #1 bestselling authors of the House of Night, which is a vampire young adult series. P.C. is also known for her Goddess Summoning, Partholon, and Divine series, which have won prestigious awards like the Prism, Holt Medallion, Daphne du Maurier, Booksellers' Best, and the Laurel Wreath awards. Thanks for being on the show today ladies.

Kristin Cast: Hi! Thanks for having us.

P. C. Cast: Yeah.

Matthew Peterson: So you guys are a mother and daughter team. What made you decide to start writing together?

P. C. Cast: Well, as you said, I had already written several adult series and I got this idea for this vampyre [note: in their books, they spell “vampire” as “vampyre”] finishing school series, actually from my agent. And I didn’t think I’d have any trouble writing it, because I had been teaching high school for about a decade at that time. But when I actually sat down and started the first three chapters . . .

Kristin Cast: She realized she was OD.

P. C. Cast: [laughs] I wasn’t THAT OD. What I realized was my inner 70's teenager started to creep out.

Kristin Cast: Scary, very scary.

Matthew Peterson: [laughs] Uh oh.

P. C. Cast: And it was really scary. So that’s when I called in Kristin. And I kept calling her and asking her like just little word choices and then I decided, “You know what? This would just be easier if we co-authored and I wrote it and then she went back through it and made sure that I didn’t sound like an old woman.”

Matthew Peterson: Yep. So how old were you, Kristin, when this began?

Kristin Cast: I was nineteen.

Matthew Peterson: Nineteen years old.

P. C. Cast: Yes, you were nineteen. [laughs]

Matthew Peterson: [laughs] So were you excited that your mom said, “Hey, will you co-author a book with me?”

Kristin Cast: Yes, because in my nineteen year old mind I thought it would be my platform to fame.

P. C. Cast: [laughs]

Kristin Cast: So, I was very excited. Being with these people that are famous, it’s going to be fantastic.

P. C. Cast: And then she found out that fame isn’t really as exciting as you think it is, when you’re nineteen.

Matthew Peterson: [laughs] Sometimes it’s a lonely experience.

P. C. Cast: Yeah, it’s better because we’re in it together. We like that part, though.

Kristin Cast: Yes.

Matthew Peterson: Now, P.C. I do understand that you serve in the United State Air Force, and of course you taught English. Has that played a role in your writing at all?

P. C. Cast: Oh sure. Everything from my past impacts my writing all the time. Yeah, the Air Force, I joined the Air Force when I was 18, so that was really during my formative years. I think it still stands me in could stead with a foundation of discipline, you know, ‘cause writers are procrastinators.

Kristin Cast: Yes!

P. C. Cast: [laughs]

Kristin Cast: Yes we are!

P. C. Cast: Kristin’s over at my house right now, finishing a story for Harper Teen.

Kristin Cast: Because I can’t write it at my house because I end up cleaning or something.

P. C. Cast: [laughs]

Matthew Peterson: Oh no. [laughs]

P. C. Cast: But my military background really helps me, and then of course, I ended up teaching for 15 years, I just stopped teaching last November, and that really impacts my young adult books.

Matthew Peterson: What’s the best thing about writing together?

P. C. Cast: Well, I know for me, I do the writing and then I do the entire first draft and then I send it to Kristin and what it allows me is to just really write, to focus on plot, and character development and put anything I want on the page because I know she has my back. I know that I can send it to her and that if I’ve messed up some teenage words or if I’ve sounded a little too mature some places, I know that Kristin can catch that and she can weed that out for me.

Matthew Peterson: Ah, okay. And Kristin, what’s the worst thing about writing together? [laughs]

Kristin Cast: [laughs] She thinks she right all the time.

P. C. Cast: I am right almost all the time, though. [laughs]

Kristin Cast: She really isn’t. [laughs] However, that is kind of like two sided, because also one of the best things about writing with her is that I have proven her wrong so many times, that she kind of acknowledges that now.

P. C. Cast: I’ve actually had to say, [sigh] “Yes, Kristin, you were right.”

Kristin Cast: On more than one occasion!

P. C. Cast: [laughs]

Matthew Peterson: How funny! You said you were a teenager in the ‘70s, P.C.?

P. C. Cast: Yes.

Matthew Peterson: You need one of those younger whipper-snappers to keep you in line. [laughs]

Kristin Cast: [laughs]

P. C. Cast: [laughs] I do indeed. But I had hundreds and hundreds of them for fifteen years when I was teaching.

Matthew Peterson: Yeah. Well, so let’s talk a little bit about the House of Night series. Kristin, can you give us a little summary of what the House of Night series is all about?

Kristin Cast: Well, it’s pretty much about high school if you were a vampyre and sucked people’s blood and had affinities for different elements. Other than the supernatural part, it’s just, you know, the angst of going through school and saving the world.

P. C. Cast: [laughs]

Matthew Peterson: Oh, just a little bit . . .

Kristin Cast: Just a little added.

Matthew Peterson: Just a little added there. And vampyres are just a normal part of life, though, aren’t they? They’re not in the closet or anything. Everybody knows about them, right?

P. C. Cast: Yeah. Everyone knows about them. They’re not really well integrated into our supernatural world, though. They’re powerful and they’re beautiful and then tend to dominate the arts and that makes humans jealous.

Matthew Peterson: Oh, okay.

P. C. Cast: So it’s kind of an uneasy alliance that’s fun to play with in the plot dynamics.

Matthew Peterson: And so, how do the vampyres and the humans co-habitate? Are there pitch forks and stakes and are the humans completely scared of these vampyres or have the vampyres found a way to drink blood without affecting humanity?

P. C. Cast: Well, here in Oklahoma, there are some pitch forks and that kind of thing.

Matthew Peterson: [laughs]

P. C. Cast: [laughs] There are Houses of Night all over the world and the vampyres have, most of them, have a very high ethical standard. They do drink blood and they do imprint with human beings and then the human being becomes the vampyre’s consort.

Kristin Cast: There’s not running around killing people.

P. C. Cast: No, they’re not running around killing people, although we do have some rouge vampyres.

Kristin Cast: Yes.

P. C. Cast: And of course, it’s playing on fear of the unknown.

Matthew Peterson: Yeah.

P. C. Cast: And fear of what’s different. And because vampyres have become very secluded in their little pockets of success in House of Night, that really plays into the fear that people have of someone being different and more powerful, and add the supernatural element and everything gets messed up.

Matthew Peterson: And this is a young adult novel, I mean, your main character is 16 years old: Zoey Redbird.

P. C. Cast: Yeah, she gets marked at the beginning of. . . at the beginning of Marked, [laughs] . . .

Kristin Cast: Well . . . [laughs]

P. C. Cast: . . . coincidentally enough, and it’s a physiological change that happens within some teenagers. Modern science doesn’t know why. They do know how it starts happening, but they don’t know why with some kids. And there’s a process that happens then over four years where the teenager’s body either accepts the change and really metamorphosizes or evolves into what essentially is a higher being, a vampyre, or the body rejects the change, and many of them do, and then they die terribly.

Matthew Peterson: Oh, that’s not fun.

Kristin Cast: Very unfortunate.

Matthew Peterson: So this marked business, I’ve seen lots of different ways of people becoming vampyres, and usually it deals with being bit and drinking blood from the vampyre itself, but in your universe that you’ve created, someone becomes a vampyre in a little bit different way.

P. C. Cast: It’s biologically based.

Kristin Cast: It’s more like evolution.

P. C. Cast: Yeah. And that’s because my dad’s a biologist.

Matthew Peterson: Oh! Okay.

P. C. Cast: And so, he and I sat down and we talked about junk DNA and physiological response and evolution and change and we decided to base it all on evolution, and that’s also why all the magic in the House of Night books is all based on earth magic too. It’s not like Harry Potter magic, which you know, we love Harry Potter though, but you can’t like zap someone into a mouse.

Matthew Peterson: Yeah.

P. C. Cast: It’s more shamanistic than that.

Matthew Peterson: Well, I’m a big fan of magical powers and things like that. So what are some of your favorite powers that the vampyres have?

P. C. Cast: I love that the affinity for elements. Zoey’s the only fledgling who has ever had an affinity for all five of the elements. And there’s a group of her friends who each have an affinity, like one of them has an affinity for air, one has an affinity for earth, and so then they can manipulate their element. But of course there’s costs for that. In my world, in our world, you don’t get magical powers and you don’t get these gifts without paying a cost for them too.

Kristin Cast: And not everyone has something.

P. C. Cast: Right, not everyone has them, yeah.

Matthew Peterson: Oh, that would be a bummer. [laughs]

Kristin Cast: [laughs]

P. C. Cast: [laughs]

Matthew Peterson: You’re going to this school for people who are vampyres and like, “Yeah, I’m just a normal vampyre.”

P. C. Cast: [laughs] But they all get really good hair.

Matthew Peterson: Ah! Okay.

Kristin Cast: Yes.

P. C. Cast: And they tend to be very pretty too because, you know, as my dad said, “Evolution-wise, if you’re a predator and you want to draw prey to you, you have to look a certain way. So as you become a vampyre, you get more attractive.

Kristin Cast: Right, ‘cause our society likes pretty people.

P. C. Cast: Yeah!

Matthew Peterson: Yeah, yeah, that’s true.

P. C. Cast: And it’s matriarchal, so the girls are really, really pretty.

Kristin Cast: Yes.

Matthew Peterson: Ah. Okay. I was reading through various clips of your books and your main character, she has boyfriends. [laughs] She might have one, she might have two, she might have three at a certain time.

P. C. Cast: She might!

Matthew Peterson: I mean, is this like a normal thing for a vampyre to, “You know, I’m pretty, I can get the guys.”

P. C. Cast: You field that one, Kristin. Go ahead.

Kristin Cast: Well, in a matriarchal society it is not untypical for a woman to have more than one companion. However, they each serve a different role like protector and all that kind of different jazz, but in like the teenage world, I think it’s more than healthy for girls to date more than one person . . .at one time. [laughs]

P. C. Cast: [laughs] Uh, oh, be careful.

Matthew Peterson: [laughs] You know, I do agree, that it is good to date more than just one person, especially as a young person, because you can get to know . . .

Kristin Cast: Exactly!

P. C. Cast: We don’t like the whole ideology of Zoey’s 16 and 17 and she’s going to meet the guy that she’s going to love for the rest of her life! She can’t even vote yet, come on.

Matthew Peterson: I know. [laughs]

P. C. Cast: I mean, she should be dating and vetoing a whole bunch of guys.

Matthew Peterson: Yeah. I totally agree. I think that’s a healthy thing to really know what’s out there. Instead of just the one person.

P. C. Cast: Yeah.

Matthew Peterson: So the latest book, Tempted, Kristin, tell us a little bit about the latest book.

Kristin Cast: Well, the latest book is told from multiple characters points of view. It’s not just Zoey . . . so you get Stevie Rae and Heath and Stark and of course Zoey and Aphrodite, and you get a mystery character. Yeah, so it’s a little bit different. We did that mainly to kind of start a spin off series to follow the red vampyres, but it makes it really cool. You get to find out a lot more about each character especially Aphrodite. I cried, you know, three times, some in happiness, some in sadness.

P. C. Cast: Yeah, I made her cry three times in this book. I love that.

Matthew Peterson: Oh.

Kristin Cast: Oh. [laughs]

Matthew Peterson: You made your daughter cry. [laughs]

P. C. Cast: [laughs]

Kristin Cast: [laughs]

Matthew Peterson: So these books have been widely successful, I mean, Hunted just came out this year as well, I mean, that came out #1 bestseller on the USA Today and Wall Street Journal. So I’m excited to see that you are doing an off-shoot, a spin off series, or have an idea of doing that.

P. C. Cast: Yeah, we set that up books ago. We kind of seeded that through all the back in Chosen. Yeah, we’re excited too about that. And I really have a good time being able to delve into the other characters and fans are going to love that because we have some huge fans of like Stevie Rae and you know some of the side characters that you couldn’t get if everything was just from Zoey’s point of view. Still doing from Zoey’s point of view, too.

Matthew Peterson: Yeah. Well, that’s great. Thank you so much ladies. So, I’ve been speaking with P.C. and Kristin Cast, New York Times best-selling authors of the House of Night series. Thanks so much for being on the show today, ladies.

Kristin Cast: Thank you.

P. C. Cast: Thank you. It was fun.

Matthew Peterson: Alright, so make sure you go to www.TheAuthorHour.com to check out the bonus questions that didn’t make it onto the live show. Don’t go away, I’ve still got Charlaine Harris, Laurell K Hamilton and L. J. Smith, coming up next.

Bonus Question(s) that Didn't Air on the Live Radio Show

Note that you can also listen to this while you read it.


Matthew Peterson: Let me ask you a bonus question.

P. C. Cast: Okay.

Matthew Peterson: Okay, I’m going to ask you a personal question, this is just kind of a fun question. Kristin, what’s the best thing you love about your mom?

Kristin Cast: Oh.

P. C. Cast: Oh no! [laughs]

Kristin Cast: [laughs] I love that she is an independent woman and has taught me to be one as well, and that’s important.

P. C. Cast: Ah, that’s really nice.

Kristin Cast: Oh, you’re welcome.

P. C. Cast: [laughs]

Matthew Peterson: Now, P.C. your chance. What’s the best thing you love about your daughter?

P. C. Cast: Best thing. That’s hard because there’s so many things that I respect and appreciate about her. I love that she is her own person. That she surprises me a lot by who she’s becoming as a woman, and I really like and respect who it is that she’s becoming.

Matthew Peterson: Let me ask you another question, real quick, too. Oh, P.C. just real quick, are you working on another Goddess Summary book as well?

P. C. Cast: Goddess, yes. The Goddess Summoning book, Goddess of Camelot, will be out on 12/10 in December of this next year.

Matthew Peterson: Of the next year, okay, okay.

P. C. Cast: Yes, I’m also working on Burned, the seventh book in the House of Night series.

Matthew Peterson: In the House of Night series, okay. And now this is a fun question. If you could have a vampire power, what would it be?

P. C. Cast: I would want an affinity for earth.

Matthew Peterson: For earth, okay.

Kristin Cast: I would want all of them.

[Everyone Laughs]

Matthew Peterson: Typical, typical!

Kristin Cast: I’d want all of them.

Matthew Peterson: Of course!

Extra Material That was Cut from the Show Because of Time Constraints

Note that you can also listen to this while you read it (you'll need to fast forward past the bonus questions).


Matthew Peterson: And, Kristin, are you still going to University of Tulsa?

Kristin Cast: No.

Matthew Peterson: Okay, but were you going to University of Tulsa at the time?

Kristin Cast: Yes.

Matthew Peterson: You were. Did that affect your schooling at all?

Kristin Cast: It actually didn’t affect my schooling at all until around the time Chosen came out because it debuted at . . .#2?

P. C. Cast: Yeah.

Kristin Cast: . . .on the New York Times list. And after that happened, now it’s been like this huge whirlwind of tours and deadlines and different promo things. And so not until after then did it actually impact anything I was doing.

P. C. Cast: And she’s still going to school; she just changed universities and focuses . . .

Kristin Cast: Right, I’m just no longer there.

P. C. Cast: . . . but she’s still here in the area and going to school. It’s a lot for her to juggle and you know that’s why sometimes when people want us for an event, they get ME.

Matthew Peterson: Yeah, yeah.

P. C. Cast: Because if she can’t miss a test or miss a particular class, I’ve said, “You have to be here for it.” You know, ‘cause I’m still the teacher/mom person.

Matthew Peterson: Yeah. Ten years teaching English. Well, I’m glad to have you both on the show.


* * * * * * * * * *


P. C. Cast: So, and I still, you know, teenagers are still scarily a pretty large part of my life. My ex-students won’t let me go very easily. So, I still have like my finger to the pulse.


* * * * * * * * * *


Matthew Peterson: And your first book just came out, I mean, not too long ago really: 2007.

P. C. Cast: May of ‘07, yeah.

Matthew Peterson: Yeah and it’s called Marked.

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Art Contest Winners!

Hey! Mom is in Scotland so I thought that I'd go ahead and post the winners of the Art Contest! Hooray! Thanks y'all for all of your entries and congrats to the winners!!!

Drum roll please...

FIRST PLACE: Emma from York!

SECOND PLACE: Amanda from England!

THIRD PLACE: Nur'Ain from Singapore!

FOURTH PLACE (yes, there's a fourth place since I'm in charge of the posting. Muahahahahahaha): Mariane from Brazil!

HONORABLE MENTION: Ana from Portugal!

HONORABLE MENTION: Poppy from the UK!

HONORABLE MENTION: Samantha-mean mom from the US!


Gracias to all!! Deuces!
Kristin

Still in my Scottish writing cave, but...

I'm still in the Highlands working away on BURNED, but I just got the new cover for WARRIOR RISING, one of my favorite Goddess Summoning Books for Berkley. Isn't Achilles totally hot!! This version will be available in March.

Back to my cave/cottage (where I have no internet or phone access...)

XXXOOO
PC

Into my writing cave...

Okay guys - tour is over (yea for the 500+ fans who came out to show us lurve in Tulsa today! We heart our hometown fans!!!) and now I'm going to retreat to my writing cave, better known as the Highlands of Scotland, and work on BURNED. So I won't be posting for a few weeks. My website, www.pccast.net, will be live soon - and that should be super cool. Camden and/or Kristin will be positing the winners of our art contest as soon as Kristin recovers from tour exhaustion. And I'll be back on line some time in December.

While you're waiting for BURNED (release date of May 27th), check out my newest YA, ELPHAME'S CHOICE, and (if you can watch R rated movies) my adult books which are listed in the archives here and on my website.

I'll miss y'all and be back as soon as I get a bunch of writing done! Thank you for your support and lurve.

XXXOOO
PC

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KRISTIN!

Guys - join me in wishing Kristin a great big HAPPY 23RD BIRTHDAY today! We're leaving sunny Atlanta and will be in Fairfax, VA at the Borders there tonight. See y'all there!

XXXOOO
PC

Kristin and moi

For those of you who can't come see us during our tour here's basically what you're missing. Me talking and being brilliant and Kristin being...well...Mama's Precious. Heehees. (These were taken in Palo Alto - shout out to all our awesome dressed up fans!)

Oh, we'll post the winners of the art contest as soon as Kristin and I are home from tour. Don't worry - we can't send prizes right now anyway.

And y'all might as well relax about BURNED. I'm not done writing it yet, and my publisher won't even be THINKING about posting any chapters until spring. No, I can't tell you what's happening in it or THEY WILL KILL ME DEAD.

XXXOOO
PC