Any reader who is on the internet these days cannot help but notice the growing number of e-books and e-publishers appearing all over the web.  And with all the e-books out there it is only natural that there are plenty of e-book authors around the internet too.

Katriena Knights is one such author.  Her time travel romance TIME AND TIME AGAIN is available in the e-book format from Dreams Unlimited and has already been added to the list of e-books I must buy.  It is a pleasure to welcome Katriena to be the very first e-book author interviewed for the Magical Romance Website.
 

LB    Firstly, could you tell us a little bit about yourself as an introduction to the visitors to the Magical Romance Website?

KK    Let’s see--I was born in Atlanta, Georgia and raised in a podunk town in east central Illinois.  I’ve been married 12 years and I met my husband in church (for any of you single folks out there who want to know where to go to meet people).  :-)  We live in the Colorado mountains with our two adorable (?!) children, three Siberian huskies, a ferret and some really stupid fish.  (I know fish aren’t known for their intelligence, but these fish are *really* stupid.)

I’ve been writing since I was 3 years old, when I started reciting poems to my mother and rewriting fairy tales.  I planned to make a career writing science fiction and fantasy until I started reading romance after my son was born.  I was really taken by the positive nature of the genre, and since all my books had some element of romance in them already, it seemed like a natural choice.  Right now I’m concentrating on contemporary romance as well as
paranormal, and I have a few fantasy projects on various back burners which I’d like to return to in the near future.
 

LB    For those who don't know, your first time-travel novel is Time and Time Again, a romance e-book available from Dreams Unlimited.  For the benefit of those of us who have not read it could you tell us a little about this novel?

KK    The heroine of Time and Time Again, Britt Keane, lost her husband Adam five years ago.  Since then, she’s been obsessed with his death and the possibility of getting him back.  So she tracks down a Russian scientist who builds her a time machine.  Then she hires Jesse Branson, a PI, as muscle to help her defeat her husband’s murderer.  Things get complicated after that when the time machine creates an empathic bond between Britt and Jesse.  As they work toward saving Adam, secrets are revealed which will change Britt’s life forever.
 

LB    E-books are a growing business in the world of paranormal fiction.  However for many readers e-books are not an easy method of reading, and potential buyers are reluctant to purchase novels that are not in the format of a normal book.  Have you found this restricting when promoting your novel or do you believe that the e-book format opens the door to a new area of the public?

KK    Both.  A lot of people still can’t quite get their heads around the idea of an electronic book, but others are willing to embrace it enthusiastically.  Unfortunately, the people who can’t get their heads around the idea tend to be the people who could really help the industry get its feet under it, like bookstore owners and writers’ organizations.  But things are happening in the industry, and some of them are happening very quickly.  People who haven’t taken e-pubbing seriously are going to have to start doing so very soon.  It’s been an interesting ride so far, and it’s going to get even more interesting in the near future.
 

LB    What type of novels do you like to read for inspiration and who are your favourite authors?

KK    I read a lot of different kinds of books.  Just to give you an idea, right now I’m in the process of reading Designer Passion, by Dar Tomlinson (small press romance); The Origin of Satan, by Elaine Pagels (non-fiction); Flirting with Danger, by Jamie Denton (Harlequin Temptation); The Lions of Al-Rassan, by Guy Gavriel Kay (fantasy); Honest Illusions, by Nora Roberts (mainstream); Falling Star, by Karen Weisner (e-book romance) AND the Koran, the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, and a commentary on the life of King David.   These all have bookmarks in them and are in various stages of completion, and that’s the way I read * all the time *.  (I also write more than one book at a time, in case you’re interested…)   :-) I’d say I read all these for inspiration, and depending on what kind of inspiration I need at that particular moment, I’ll pick up a different book.

Favorite authors--I have a boatload.  Guy Gavirel Kay and Nora Roberts, mentioned above, have to go on a list of all-time favorites along with Diana Gabaldon, Roger Zelazny, Anne Rice, and Clive Barker.  In non-fiction, I’ll read anything by Elaine Pagels or Joseph Campbell.  Basically I read a lot of romance, some science fiction/fantasy/horror, and a lot of books about religious issues, comparative mythology, ancient history, and things like that.
 

LB    What do you find to be the most challenging aspect of writing a time travel romance?

KK    Paradox.  No matter how hard you try, there’s no way to eliminate all elements of paradox from a time travel novel.  You just have to pick the most glaring paradoxes, work your way around them, and then let the rest go, because if you try too hard to fix them all, your head will explode.  I think it’s a little easier to get around these issues in a more traditional time travel (e.g., heroine is thrown back in time to medieval Scotland), but in Time and Time Again it was a definite challenge.
 

LB    Do you have any tips for all the hopeful romance writers out there?

KK    Patience is a virtue.  Seriously, one of the most important things you can learn is how to use “down time” when you’re waiting for a publisher to get back to you about a proposal or a manuscript.  When response time drags out to a year or more, you can’t afford to waste that time.  Just keep working and honing your craft.  Also, find something you love to write, because if you don’t love it, it’s not worth it.
 

LB    What do you believe has been the highlight of your writing career so far and which aspect gives you the most enjoyment?

KK    I’ve had a couple of highlights.  Receiving a 5-star review from Affaire de Coeur was one.  This was for my contemporary romance Dealing With David (Hard Shell Word Factory).  It was particularly cool because Nora Roberts had a book reviewed in the same issue, and it only got a 4.  :-)  I’m sure that didn’t bother her a bit, but it gave me a little thrill.

The other highlight so far was winning third place in the 1999 PRISM Awards with Time and Time Again.  This was the first year electronic books were considered for the awards, and two e-books finished 3rd in their respective categories.  The other book was Time Rider, by Rickey Mallory.  She’s not only a fellow Dreams Unlimited author, but she also designed the cover for Time and Time Again.  And another friend of mine, Kathy Greyle, won best of the best with her futuristic Oracle.  So that was a pretty neat contest, result-wise, all the way around.

Which aspects gives me the most enjoyment--  I’ve been very lucky in that, for the past five years, I haven’t had to hold down a “real” job.  Instead, I work my buns off at home, homeschooling my kids and basically keeping the household together.  I really appreciate the fact that I can pursue a writing career and still be able to give my family what I feel they need for a quality life and education.  It’s a win-win situation all the way around (except maybe for my poor husband, who still has to work to pay the bills…).  Aside from that, just being able to do something that I love so much, and to be able to share that with other people, and maybe entertain them for a few hours, or make them think, is
wonderful.
 

LB    Where do you see your career heading in the future, or where would you like to see it heading?

KK    I would very much like to break into series romance, which I really enjoy writing and reading, and go from there into single title and mainstream contemporary, maybe throw in a historical here and there.  I’d also like to pursue a career for my sf/fantasy alter-ego, K.C. Myers.  Then I have this idea for a TV series…  It just goes on and on. :-)
 

LB    Could you tell us what you are working on at the present time, and what can we expect to see on the shelves in the coming months?

KK    I’m working on quite a few things right now--a fantasy romance, a couple of contemporaries, a ghost romance, a futuristic and a vampire series.  (I told you I write more than one book at a time.)  Coming in January is a futuristic from Dreams Unlimited.  It’s called Starchild, and it’s a special sort of book for me because I wrote the first version when I was in high school.  Obviously the book has changed a lot since then, but the main characters still have the same names.  It was a blast to write--or re-write, as the case may be.  The hero, Harrison Fairfax, is one of the best characters I’ve ever written, I think, and I have a huge crush on him.  :-)
 

LB    And finally, do you have a message for all your readers out there?

KK    A big Thank You to anybody who’s read any of my books or short stories, or this interview, for that matter.  I appreciate your time and hope I haven’t wasted any of it.  :-)  Also, if you’d like to drop by my website, I’d be happy to have you.  It’s at
http://www.bewellnet.com/dknights/kkpage.html
 

I would like to thank Katriena for doing such a great interview for us and as soon as my own problems with e-readers are sorted out I look forward to reading Time and Time Again.
 

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Books by Katriena Knights:  Time and Time Again