Monday, May 6, 2013

Today's Special - - Karina Cooper


One of the best parts of attending the RWA National Conference is the opportunity to meet new people.  At the 2011 conference in New York City, one of the nicest people I had the pleasure of meeting was a new Avon author by the name of Karina Cooper.  Quirky, smart, funny and friendly, she's the kind of person for whom you want good things to happen.  She also rocks a sexy dress and heels like nobody's business.  

Writing paranormal romance and steampunk urban fantasy, Karina's books have captured the interest of readers and brought her awards such as the RT Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Steampunk Novel of 2012.  Her most recent book, ONE FOR THE WICKED (April 30, 2013) is the much anticipated conclusion of her Dark Mission series and is garnering excellent reviews.  

Please give Karina a warm welcome as she blogs about working through the end.




Working Through the End

When you write a series long enough—when you write enough books, meet enough characters, spend enough time working them through all the trials and tribulations a good story brings out—you begin to feel like you know these people. They become ghostly friends, cropping up in your thoughts as you live your daily life.

I find myself eating something new and thinking, “I like it, but I bet Silas Smith would totally hate this.” I’ll watch a movie, and think, “That’s something Naomi West would do.” I find a problem and wonder how Juliet might handle it, or Simon might plow through it.

With the wrap-up of my Dark Mission series, I wasn’t sure how I was going to be able to let go of characters I’d turned into friends over the past couple years.

For a while before I started One for the Wicked, I didn’t know how I was going to pull it all together. The
balance comes in introducing the new main characters of the book, while still brining the stories of all the other characters to a final close. I really sweated it for a long time.

Now that it’s done, I think I might have been a little more worried than I should have.

Turns out, most of what the characters are doing—how they’re doing after their own books, what they’re feeling, how they are—is already laid out for me. The hard part wasn’t in writing what they’re up to, it was in simply following the guidelines they already set in previous books. I knew, right there on the page, how Jessie and Silas were, how Naomi and Phin had learned to cope with each other’s predicaments, and what kind of hell Simon was going through—and tried to hide from Parker.

One for the Wicked ended up being so much more than just Shawn and Kayleigh’s book. As twisted and complicated as their own story is, it’s also all about the resolution of the characters we came to know and, love or hate, felt strongly about in previous books. Balancing it all turned out to be easier than I expected.

Maybe because it was time to say goodbye? Maybe because I think of them like real people, with real choices—good and bad—and real consequences.

What are the series ends that you really remember? Did you love them, or hate them? And why?

PJ here.  One randomly chosen person leaving a comment on today's blog will win a copy of "Before the Witches," the novella that kicks off Karina's Dark Mission series.  This giveaway is open to all countries serviced by bookdepository.com.


18 comments:

  1. Aloha! Karina is a bright spot at romance gatherings! I am a historical romance junkie ... and just finished Cathy Maxwell's THE DEVIL'S HEART, Book 3 in the Chattan Curse series. The climax was unexpected but still delivered the HEA in Scottish style!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Karina is a bright spot at romance gatherings!

      I wholeheartedly agree!

      Delete
  2. As a rule, I am never ready to let go at the end of a series. If it is a particularly long running series I might be willing to let go for a while but I wouldn't mind a revisit down the road a ways.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Re-visits are lovely. I've been known to do that from time to time. ;-)

      Delete
  3. Congrats on the new book!

    I love the ending of Jo Beverley's Devilish, the final book of her Malloren siblings series. Seeing Rothgar happily married to his Diana at last, proving to himself that he has overcome the fears of the past, and all his brothers and sisters (except Cyn in Canada)there sharing in his joy--that's a perfect ending for me. but I also love the reminders that he and Diana are living out their HEA that Jo Bev gives in other books set in the Malloren world.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Right there with you on the Malloren series, Janga!

      Delete
  4. Hello and congratulations!!!

    I'm actually almost halfway through Lara Adrian's Breed Series. I've also recently started the Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer and I'm waiting for book 3.

    I love book series in general, but at the same time it's so hard waiting for the next installment. I also love it when series include shorter stories because I think they add a lot of information about the world in which the books are set. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love those novellas that bridge the books in a series too, Antonia. As you said, they bring us more information plus they help ease the frustration that comes with waiting for the next book! ::grin::

      Delete
  5. What a gorgeous red dress! :)

    Hmmm... That's a tough one... I just like HEA endings in general. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. She looks like she just stepped off the runway, doesn't she?

      Delete
  6. I always approach the end of a series with equal parts anticipation and dread. Anticipation because I can't wait to see how the author ties it all together and dread because I'm never ready to say good-bye to much loved characters!

    I feel that way about Christina Dodd's Wilder family. I just can't get enough of them!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Welcome to The Romance Dish, Karina! It's so great to have you with us today!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Yay! Karinna! :D Gorgeous picture! Loved meeting you at RT13

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi, Karina, and welcome! We're happy to have you with us today!

    One of the most memorable series conclusions for me is/was AS SHADOWS FADE by Colleen Gleason. Terrific series!

    ReplyDelete
  10. there haven't been any series finals that were disappointing though several series that finished that come to mind, the next to last story was often one of the faves of the series (perhaps the sadness of knowing the series was ending effected the enjoyment of that last book) :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Most memorable would have to be the ending to the Twilight series. I loved the ending of the book. Everyone got a happy ending and all my favs survived.
    Congrats on the new release. This book looks good. This is a new atuhor for me. I love to read and always looking for new authors to read. Love finding new authors. Thanks for the chance to win.
    christinebails at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete
  12. I generally hat the end of series. If I enjoy the series and characters, I want to continue to "visit" with the characters, plus you often get little updates on previous characters and when you love a secondary character you might get to read their story too. Congrats on the release & thanks so much for the chance to win a copy of ONE FOR THE WICKED :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. It must be hard to say good-bye to characters, but you have the advantage of going back when you want and revisiting them, even if you don't write it down. I know with books I read, I am usually sorry to see favorite characters go, but I get over it and find some new "friends." I can always go back and reread the books if I really miss the characters.

    I am in the middle of several series at the moment and looking forward to where they will take me. Book three of Julie Garwood's ROSES Trilogy tied the series up very nicely. It brought the last son his HEA and tied up several loose ends relating to the characters and the time period. Jennifer Blake's MASTERS AT ARMS series ran a bit longer. I wanted to keep the series going. The books followed the characters over time, giving glimpses of growing families. The series could have continued, since the society was a bit transient bringing in new characters. She let history end the series. Stella Cameron's COURT OF ANGELS series was well put together. It "finished," but there should be a spin-off series from characters introduced in this one.

    ReplyDelete