Inside the Writer's Studio with Jolene Perry

We’re back in the studio today, this time with one of the quickest readers I’ve met in a long time, Jolene Perry. Whether she’s talking about the many books she’s reading or the heart of the story she’s writing, her love of fiction shines.

Jolene grew up in Wasilla, Alaska. She is also the author of The Next Door Boys and the upcoming Knee Deep.

Her latest book is Night Sky.

After losing Sarah, the friend he’s loved, to some other guy, Jameson meets Sky. Her Native American roots, fluid movements, and need for brutal honesty become addictive fast. This is good. Jameson needs distraction – his dad leaves for another woman, his mom’s walking around like a zombie, and Sarah’s new boyfriend can’t keep his hands off of her.

As he spends time with Sky and learns about her village, her totems, and her friends with drums – she’s way more than distraction. Jameson’s falling for her fast.

What was the hardest part of writing this book? The hardest part about writing any book is not giving your characters what they want, when they want it. But seriously, if Bella got Edward as soon as she wanted him, Twilight would have been a really short book. So, yeah… torturing my characters is the hardest part of writing any book.

Was there an easy part or any part of writing the book that surprised you? Sky surprised me. Initially Jameson ended up with the OTHER girl – the girl he didn’t end up with once I started writing. Sky had so many more layers to her than I expected, and she was also a walking contradiction until the end.

What advice would you give you aspiring or first time novelists? The advice I give to everyone is to remember that writing should be fun. Of course there are times when you’re editing that it might not be so great, and no matter how long you’ve been writing, rejections still sting, but it’s still so important to relax and enjoy the process.

What book(s) are you currently reading? I read REALLY fast, so I’ll just give you my last few that blew me away. I FINALLY read Jennifer Echols Going Too Far, and really loved that one. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer was a bizarre ride, and I loved that I had NO idea where the book was going. I’m in the middle of North to Beautiful right now and just loving it – though, it did take me a while to get into it. Now I know I’m going to be sad when it’s over.

Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character? Who? Hands down Cricket from Lola and the Boy Next Door. I have a thing for shy, slightly nerdy boys with a quirky sense of style. Yum 😀

What was your first favorite book? When I was a little kid I read Black Beauty over and over and over. Then I got a little older and read Jane Eyre. I still have a huge love of that one. Black Beauty is honestly pretty depressing for my taste…