Paranormal romance author Katie Groom joins me today to talk a bit about her new urban fantasy, Fixed Moon.
During her virtual book tour, Katie will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn winner. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!
Bio:
Katie Groom grew up in rural Pennsylvania, where she received her bachelor’s degree in Business Management from PITT and her master’s in Employment and Labor Relations from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. In 2016, she decided to move to Alabama in order to avoid as much snow as possible.
When she isn’t working, Katie enjoys reading, writing, jokingly critiquing movies and TV, and campaigning that the plural of moose should be meese. She also loves to take in live music (especially Hanson) and traveling, with the goal of reaching each of the continents. Katie’s favorite pastime, however, is spending time with her beloved Shih tzu, Delta.
Welcome, Katie. Please tell us about your current release.
Nearly 200-year-old literature professor (and werewolf!) Hugh and 24-year-old Zoie are both content with living their lives alone, but when they meet, sparks fly. Hugh is desperate to make Zoie a part of his world — even willing to break ancient laws — putting their lives and the lives of their closest friends in danger.
What inspired you to write this book?
So there’s a couple things that inspired this, but the very, very first thing was that I wanted to write a story based on the song Werewolves of London by Warren Zevon! I have hilarious memories of my family riding in the car on the way to Myrtle Beach, squeezed too tightly into our car that didn’t have a/c or even a cassette player, all howling in unison to this song. But, eventually, the inspiration came when I started to feel very unsafe in a relationship and I felt like I had no escape. I created a world that I could escape to and characters that could protect me.
Excerpt from Fixed Moon:
“Use your spirit and pick where you want to go,” Stevie encouraged
Zoie started looking for different passageways and doors; she contemplated what her best options were. A big city? Or maybe a rural area where the people were nice and welcoming. But, these portals weren’t even marked. She didn’t know where she would be going. She didn’t even know why she would be going. Just for fun, sure. But why would she end up picking a place?
She started casually walking until she felt pulled somewhere. The first four or five paths just made her feel uneasy. The next one smelled of chocolate, and she felt like that was probably a trick. Hansel and Gretel style tricky. And then, she heard a saxophone playing and turned towards a large, yellow, bowstring bridge. At the end of that path was a steel door with three grooves etched into it. Two from the opposite corners at the top, wiggling towards the center of the door. The third came from the bottom of the door, curved to the right and came back to meet the others.
As she approached the door, Zoie hesitated. She didn’t know how to activate the door. She dropped her hand from Hugh’s and got closer to the door. She didn’t ask Hugh or her friends for directions. “You’re just going to have to figure it out,” she told herself, quietly. As she reached her hand towards the point where the three grooves met, water started to flow in each one, creating three little streams on the door.
She turned and looked at Hugh and jumped a little. Placing her hand at the center of the streams, knowing with absolute certainty where this door was going to lead, and pushed it open.
What exciting story are you working on next?
I cannot say much, but Hugh’s story is not over.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
Ooooh that’s a tough one. I know that I was supposed to start thinking of myself as a writer when I started writing — that’s the advice that I give everyone. (“Do you write? Well, then, you’re a writer.”) But it wasn’t until I was driving from Alabama to Pennsylvania in December 2021 to visit family for Christmas. “Cardinal Moon” (Hugh’s origin story) had just been published in the anthology A Cold Christmas and the Darkest of Winters. I was listening to the audiobook version. I got off the PA Turnpike in Bedford, PA, and Cardinal Moon started to play. André Santana brought Hugh to life in a way I didn’t know was possible for me, and that was the moment that it was real — that I felt like I was actually a writer.
Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I am not a full-time writer. By day, I work in Human Resources. It’s only me and my dog, Delta, so I’m able to find time to write in the evenings and on the weekends. I generally don’t write on Mondays or Tuesdays because those are my days in the office, but most other days, I write a gentle goal in my planner and work towards that. I also schedule time off from writing so that I don’t get burnt out. For example, I took the entire month of May off this year because I finished a big project.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
Not sure if this is actually a quirk, but I always pull my hair up into a bun as if I’m going into battle when I get ready to write. I also try to always have a Pittsburgh reference in each story. Additionally, sometimes I shove “the plural of moose should be meese” into my writing, even if it doesn’t belong.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Veterinarian. From the age of five all the way through my first year of undergrad, I was going to be a veterinarian.
Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
I really just am very grateful to anyone wants to read Hugh’s story. I never dreamed that anyone would ever read my work, so to have people choose to do so is really special to me.
Links:
Twitter | Instagram | Amazon buy link | Book links
Thanks for hosting!
Thank you for sharing your interview, bio and book details, I have enjoyed reading about you and your work and I am looking forward to reading Fixed Moon