Welcome, Jamie Grey

Thank you so much for being here, Jamie.

1: What genre do you write? I usually write YA Fantasy, but I’ve been known to branch out into Sci-Fi as well. 2: How long have you been writing? Since I could read. I used to make up little books for my mom with illustrations and everything. But I finally got really serious about writing three years ago, found some critique partners and started working on craft. 3: What do you like the most and least about writing? I love first drafting – I love the feeling of getting the words on paper, of building a world and getting to know my characters. My least favorite thing about writing is revision. I’m a perfectionist, and it takes me forever to get through the story and get things just the way I want them. 4: What do you for fun and relaxation when not writing? I’m a Henna artist – also known as Mehendi. I paint designs on people’s hands and feet with henna paste. It stains the skin and leaves a beautiful design for a couple of weeks. I’m also a gamer – so I spend plenty of time online or on my favorite console shooting at aliens and killing dragons. 5: Which authors do you like to read? Such a hard question – I’m a bookworm, so I love to read everything and anything. I’ve been on a YA Kick lately, so I’ve been devouring books like The Hunger Games and Across the Universe. But I’m also a huge romance fan – Sarah MacLean is my new favorite author there. And of course I’m a huge fan of anything paranormal or Urban Fantasy – Ilona Andrews and Seanan McGuire are my favorites. 6: Tell me about your current novel, where I can find it? Here’s a short blurb about my short story, Princess for Hire: After winning his kingdom in a legendary poker game twenty years ago, Princess Mina’s father loses the kingdom just as easily. Now alone and penniless, Mina must rely on her sword to support them both. When the princess-turned-mercenary is offered a contract to save a prince that will pay enough to keep her father in luxury for yet another year, she and her business partner snap up the deal. Dragons and all. It will be available from MuseItUp Publishing on March 1st 7: Do you have any tips for aspiring authors? I think the biggest thing is getting your butt in the chair and getting something on paper. I know it has been said before (I think by Nora Roberts) that you can’t fix something if it isn’t there. Get your story on paper, and then find some good critique partners to give you feedback on what you come up with. Every piece of feedback will help you grow as a writer. 8: Do you base your characters on real-life people? I’ve never based a character on someone I’ve known in real life. They usually come to me already formed. Which some days is a blessing, other times, not so much! 9: How did you come up with the idea for this book? I wanted to write something that was a bit of a twist on the typical Prince rescues beautiful, helpless Princess story so often seen in Fantasy and that dealt a little with changing gender roles and expectations. Somehow, Princess for Hire was born from that. 10: What are you currently working on? I am working on a full length YA novel set in Japan. It’s a contemporary fantasy about a Dragon, and the two girls from two different eras who must save him. 11. Where can we find you? Website? Blog? My website is http://www.jamiegreybooks.com and I have a blog as well – http://www.jamiegreybooks.com/blog Thanks so much for having me on Roseanne!