I’m delighted to welcome debut author Annika James to Yorkshire today.  Hi Annika!  Sorry the weather’s so miserable here today : (  Never mind, let’s get ourselves a nice cup of tea and a couple of shortbread biscuits – that’ll cheer us both up a bit!  And congratulations on the release of your debut novel, Wanted.  That’s definitely something to smile about!

Where do you live, Annika?  I live in a small town in Southwest Wisconsin, a beautiful corner of the state. Although, right now, it is covered in snow and ice and is frigid. I can’t wait for it to be hot.

Where is your favourite place in the world?  Just one? :) I love to travel and discover new places. I guess Barcelona, Spain. It is a big city, but has so much charm and history, and a beach! I love it there.

Being a writer is a great job.  What’s the worst job you’ve ever had?  I honestly haven’t had too many bad jobs – I’m a firm believer in “if you don’t like it, change it” but I guess I would have to say when I worked in a factory that sewed pajamas for 5 weeks one summer during college. I went to work around 6 AM and was done around 4 PM, and worked all day in a windowless factory. I felt like I never saw the sun and the people I worked with were miserable and crabby. Not my ideal way to spend Summer.

What book do you wish you’d written?  I wish I’d written the Hallows series by Kim Harrison. I think the world she created is just awesome, and I wish my world-building was that good. Not to mention, I simply love her characters. I only hope I can write as well one day.

What’s your happiest memory?  It’s really hard to pick just one. I remember the day I found out I was getting a contract from MuseItUp. I cried, I was so ecstatic. Getting published has been, literally, a lifelong dream for me, and one that always seemed unattainable. I was afraid I wasn’t good enough, that I didn’t know how to go about doing it. But it happened – the feeling of having one of your life dreams realized is simply amazing! There are no words that can accurately describe what that moment felt like.

If you could meet anyone in the world, dead or alive, who would it be and what would you say to them?  Another tough one!! I would want to meet William Shakespeare or Queen Elizabeth I. I have loved them both since I was little. Say? After I got over being starstruck – I would probably ask Will about his inspiration and ask Liz about being a strong woman in power. As for living people – I want to meet the Milwaukee Brewers – just hang and talk baseball.

What would your superpower be, if you could choose one?  I would definitely be able to read minds. I want to know what people are thinking – all the time. That would be so awesome.

If you won twenty million in the lottery, what would you do with the money?  How much time do you have? Haha! I would first pay off all our debt and probably our families’ as well. Build our dream house somewhere, maybe buy a vacation home down in the Caribbean, give some to the Catholic school my son goes to, and definitely go on a shopping spree – clothes, shoes, books, etc. We would need to put some away to save for all the vacations we’d take every year with it too.

What’s the most important lesson life has taught you?  No matter how bad it looks or how hard you get knocked down -never, never, never give up. When a door gets slammed in your face, you are always able to find another one to open. It is never completely hopeless.

And finally, please tell us about your latest book, where we can find it, and where we can find your blog/website

Wanted is a YA paranormal romance. It stars Ashlinn, a witch, as the main character. She has a huge crush on hot vamp, Conor, and is best friends with vampire, Matt. When Conor senses how powerful she is and tells the Vampire Council, the Council decides she needs to be claimed as a vampire’s familiar in order to prevent vampire war. See, a witch’s powers can make a vampire more powerful. Ashlinn is deathly afraid of getting bitten and isn’t too keen with this plan. Both Conor and Matt volunteer to bite her and she is thrown into the hard position of deciding between her crush and her best friend.

You can buy Wanted at MuseItUp, Amazon, Barnes & Noble or AllRomance

You can find me on Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, or my Blog

…

Thank you so much for having me!!!

Thanks, Annika, it’s been fabulous.  I absolutely loved your happy memory.  Congratulations again on getting published.  Have a safe trip back to Wisconsin!

If you have any questions for Annika, please do let us know in the comments.  We’d love to hear from you!