Jennifer Laurens Interview and Giveaway

This is my first interview ever and I am so excited to have Jennifer Laurens here today. Not only is she an amazing writer she is also a wonderful person. If you haven't had the chance to read Heavenly, I strongly recommend that you do. However, Jennifer has given me a signed copy of Heavenly and some swag to give away to one lucky winner. This is a book that I highly recommend to everyone! You can find my review for heavenly if you scroll down a bit to the next post. 

I've written since junior high school. An only child, I grew up writing big stories about big families. I also write YA under the name of JM Warwick. My hometown of Palos Verdes, California figures in much of my work, as does my current home of Pleasant Grove, Utah and other favorite places. I love to travel.

They say "write what you know" and I do. I am a mother, I have six children, five cats and a huge doberman/dane dog. I have a supportive husband and we've been married 25 years. Our lives, though challenging with a handicapped child who has autism, are centered in our family.

My life experiences have worked into all of my novels. Some more heavily than others, but parts of me are in each story. I love stories rich in family drama, where family members overcome obstacles through love and miracles.

1. Who are what influenced you to become an author? I’ve always enjoyed writing. I wrote as a teenager, always creating stories about huge families ( I’m an only child ) and mysteries ( loved Nancy Drew )

2. What inspired you to write about angels? Having a handicapped child forces you to ponder. A lot. I’ve always believed in life after death, and thought: what happens to the people who die too young, or without love, or are handicapped and never have the opportunities the rest of us have here on Earth? I imagined my beautiful daughter with autism  in the next life without the physical handicap of autism, meeting someone and finding the love she didn’t have here. That nutshell idea is part of what created the idea for Heavenly.

3. When you were writing Heavenly, did you envision it as a trilogy? No.Once Matthias’ father came into my head, I knew the story had more.

4. Are any of the characters or situations in Heavenly based on real events? Most of them are based on actual events that happened in our family. Zoe, Luke and Abria are based on three of my children.

5. What’s coming up next for you? I’ve got another YA  novel out in Feb 2011 – a coming-of-age story about a girl trying to break free of her overbearing father in OVERPROTECTED.

6. Chocolate of vanilla? Chocolate—always.

7. Elvis or the Beatles? Beatles.

8. Favorite book? Honest Illusions by Nora Roberts

9. Craziest dream? Something involving Justin Beiber—who I know nothing about!

10. Favorite movie? So many: The Holiday rates up there.

You can also find out more about Jennifer Laurens and her books at: 

http://www.jenniferlaurens.com/
http://www.heavenlythebook.com/

Now for the giveaway: As I mentioned Jennifer Laurens generously donated a signed copy of Heavenly plus some swag to give to one lucky winner.
The Rules:
1. Please visit my giveaway/contest rules page
2. Must be over 13 years old
3. You DO NOT have to be a follower, it's appreciated but not necessary
4. Leave a comment with your email address. If you are not comfortable leaving your email in the comments, please email me @ loves2read54(at)yahoo(dot)com, please put "Heavenly Giveaway" in the subject line.
5. One entry per person. Any duplicate entries will be deleted.
6. Contest ends Nov. 1, 2010
7. US addresses only

*picture taken from Jennifer Laurens Facebook page, Bio taken from jenniferlaurens.com