An Interview with Kasie West
The Reading Cafe is happy to welcome Kasie West as our guest today.
She is here today to discuss her new book, Pivot Point, just recently released, as well as to tell us a little bit about herself.
Hi Kasie. Thank you for taking the time to answer some questions today. We are always looking forward to reading about the author behind the book.
TRC: Will you please tell us about yourself?
Kasie: I am a stay at home mom of four amazing kids. My oldest is 14 and my youngest 6. Which means I also answer to ‘hey you’ or ‘what’s for dinner’. I eat Jr. Mints by the bucketfuls and love listening to good sappy rock ballads. Of course I love to read and write, probably more than is good for me, so I counteract all that sitting by letting people kick my butt at the gym four days a week.
TRC: Have you always been interested in writing?
Kasie: No. I’ve always been a reader but never thought to write until about six years ago when I had an idea for a book and decided to give it a try. That book was not Pivot Point and it was pretty awful. But I liked writing so much that I kept at it and got better with practice.
TRC: Is there anything (in general) you find particularly challenging about writing?
Kasie: Writing with kids is quite challenging. The amount of times I’m interrupted can mess with my flow a lot. So I try to write when the kids are at school or asleep.
TRC: Pivot Point is your debut novel. Can you tell how you came up with the idea of this story? How many books do you plan for this series?
Kasie: Pivot Point was inspired by the movie Sliding Doors. But I also love the idea of alternate realities. It was fun to explore that part of the story. And as for now, Pivot Point has a sequel, but I’m playing with the idea of a third, perhaps with different main characters but set in the same world…..we’ll see.
TRC: Would you please tell us the premise behind Pivot Point?
Kasie: Pivot Point is about a girl who when faced with a choice has the ability to see both outcomes. That’s the simplest way to describe it, but of course, there is more. Boys and friendship, choices and heartache, murder mystery and past injuries.
Links to order Pivot Point: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / The Book Depository / Kobo
TRC: You have another Contempory YA novel coming in the fall of 2013, would you please tell us a little about this?
Kasie: Ah, yes. I love contemporary. This is the first one I have coming out and I adore it. Caymen works in her mom’s porcelain doll shop where she meets Xander, who is coming in to pick up a doll for his grandmother. He is beyond rich and therefore automatically uninteresting to Caymen. But between his persistence and charm, Caymen finds herself letting go of some long held beliefs and letting herself believe he is different.
Can you tell I haven’t had to explain this story as much as Pivot Point? Ha. I’m very excited about it though.
TRC: Besides the above new novel, what are you currently working on?
Kasie: I just turned in copy edits for the second book to Pivot Point where Caymen’s story continues, but some new characters and abilities are also brought into the mix. And I’m working on edits for my second contemporary which comes out in the summer of 2014. But I also have some new paranormal ideas that are in there very early stages.
TRC: Do you have any thoughts of writing in any other genres?
Kasie: Don’t tell my agent (I already jump all around within the YA genre) but I have a half finished middle grade that I love so much. We’ll see. It’s been half finished for a while because my other projects have been keeping me busy, but it’s my fun side project that I go back to every now and again.
TRC: What is your writing process? Do you like to write at specific times, in a special place?
Kasie: First I open a blank word document and start at the cursor for ten minutes, then I write one sentence, then I check twitter, then I eat chocolate, then I erase that sentence. Yeah, I have no process. Some weeks I’m super productive and write any spare moment I get. Other weeks, I’m very unmotivated. But I do have one very specific chair in my room that I always write in. It’s big and comfortable and green.
TRC: Many authors bounce ideas with family and friends. With whom do you bounce ideas?
Kasie: I’m lucky to have many writer friends that help me brainstorm: Jenn Johansson (Insomnia), Natalie Whipple (Transparent), Renee Collins (Relic), Candice Kennington, Sara Raasch. Plus my husband is very patient and supportive and humors me while I talk through ideas with him.
TRC: Would you like to add anything else?
Kasie: I just want to thank everyone for all the support they’ve given me. From friends to perfect strangers, I’ve been feeling a lot of love for Pivot Point and that means the world to me. Thank you!
LIGHTNING ROUND
Favorite Food: Mexican
Favorite Dessert: Chocolate in most forms
Favorite Author: Gah! That is an unfair question. Too many to name! 🙂
Favorite Novel: Again, impossible to answer. I love so many books.
Favorite Movie: Pitch Perfect
Milk or Dark Chocolate: Milk (Unless it’s mixed with mint—then dark)
Thank you Kasie, for answering our questions. The Reading Café wishes you the best of luck with Pivot Point.
If you would like to learn more about Kasie, you can visit her at the following links:
Website:
Twitter:
Facebook:
Goodreads:
