An Interview with Heather Killough-Walden

Heather Killough-Walden

Today I have the great pleasure of interviewing Heather Killough-Walden.  Heather is the author of books such as Big Bad Wolf series, The Game, The Chosen Soul, and Redeemer. This month she has a new book releasing, The Vampire King!

1. Pretend no one reading this has heard of you. What do you want them to know about you as an author, and subsequently, about your books?

I write the fantasies that so very many women have but are afraid to voice. I write the bad guys with solid hearts and the good guys with bad attitudes. I write shades of gray, plots that twist more than a pretzel, and settings straight out of your wildest dreams. I put my soul into my work, and you can tell.

2. Have you always wanted to be an author?

Yes, I just didn’t know it. But writing has been in my blood since I was a little girl and was unwittingly penning romances in my Hello Kitty journal:

Michael tried to kiss me today on the playground. So I slapped him. Aint I a stinker?

Words always seemed to come out so much better when I wrote them down than when I tried to speak them. On paper, they were my friends, earning me a Get-Out-of-Grounding card or a financial apology from the airline who destroyed my luggage or even a second chance at college. I might not have been aware that it was so, but I have always been an author.

3. Ok, here it is. Werewolves. Assassins. Angels. Single moms. Witches. Daughters of Demons. Teenage girls. Fairy tales. Sci-fi. Gods and Goddesses. And now vampires. You have such a crazy amount of subject matter – and they are all fabulous. But which one is your favorite to write about (and why)?

That’s a very difficult question to answer, LOL. Each subject has its appeal or I wouldn’t have written it. I would never attempt to write something that bored me; that would be a huge mistake and my readers would know right away.

I will say this, though. Writing paranormal characters takes a bit of the challenge out of making them tough. Everyone automatically knows that a werewolf is strong and fast and could kick the crap out of a human. Writing a human who could kick the crap out of another human, however, forces me to delve deeper into that character’s personality and pull out all of the delicious three-dimensional details that make a hero truly well-rounded. So, writing Jack Thane and Adam Night is fun. Very fun. J

4. I am so excited to see that your next release, The Vampire King, is coming out this month! What can you tell us about this new series?

Sure! Here’s a brief synopsis:

It was immediate for Roman. In three thousand years, he’d never lost control of his emotions, or his heart. But the moment he laid eyes on Evelynne Farrow, he knew she was the woman who haunted his dreams. And everything changed.

Everything.

Evie Farrow has always loved a good vampire romance.  In fact, she makes a living writing them. While sitting in a coffee shop and working on her next mega-hot book, Evie is approached by a tall, dark, and handsome man who could have been pulled directly from one of her novels. 

Unbeknownst to her, Roman D’Angelo is exactly what he appears to be – a vampire, and not just any vampire, but the king of vampires.

Unfortunately, while Roman is both ancient and invulnerable, Evie is flesh and blood. Just as Roman decides that he and Evie have a date with destiny, for reasons of their own, an ancient god and a homicidal vampire take an equally strong interest in her. To make things more complicated, there’s something very special about Evie. Something not quite human.

Can Roman fight off the incredible forces that would have Evie as their own long enough to win her heart, or will destiny betray him, and destroy everything he has ever dreamed of?

5. And since it is a spin-off from the Big Bad Wolf series, does that mean we will see some of your wonderful wolves making an appearance?

Absolutely! You know those characters are too hot to just leave behind. J

6. I’ve read almost all of your books, and something that is wonderful about them is these complex relationships between the men and women. It’s never a cut and dry situation of “hey you are the male lead, so I am going to be with you la la la”. There’s outside issues to deal with, and sometimes even another person who thinks they should be the one in the relationship. A lot of times you really wonder which way the story is going to go, and who is going to end up with whom. So who is your favorite couple, and why?

That’s really, really hard to answer. I love all of my couples. They all have their special and different aspects that makes them strong, cohesive, and wonderful. Some of them have real issues – marital, financial. Some of them seem to engage in constant power struggles. For a few of them, the sexual tension is so strong and constant, it’s just plain distracting. It really depends on what kind of mood you’re in, which of the couples you would be drawn to at any given point in time. They’ve all got their own magic.

7. And also, your female leads often have these wonderful relationships with other women. They aren’t your typical heroine who is basically alone and facing the world. I think it’s wonderful to project the fact that yes, you can have it all. A lot of novels don’t integrate all of the friendships into the story. How do you go about building a character’s past and connecting it to her future?

I write what I know, so I incorporate a lot of experience based on my own friendships into my stories. Other than that, it’s really the characters themselves who dictate their past and present relationships. If the characters are strong enough, the writing comes easy because it’s like I become a vessel through which these entities create their own stories.

8. One of my favorite books from you is Hell Bent. This book is different from the rest of your books because it isn’t paranormal. The sequel, Mean Business, comes out at the end of this year (yay!!!!) Is it a difficult process for you to keep within regular human parameters when trying to tell this story?

Not at all. In fact, as I mentioned before, it’s almost easier and certainly can be more fun to explore the boundaries of human capability. When writing Jack Thane, I see the ultimate man – strong, confident, skilled, but also very human and a little flawed. There’s something so perfectly sexy about the way life sometimes rattles him, despite his incredible efficiency and fortitude. I think that it’s not the inherent power of a man that makes him desirable, exactly, but the way he utilizes that power – whether it is inhuman or not – to overcome the obstacles that cross his path. Jack Thane handles it all with incredible strength, steadfast resolve, and more than his fair share of impressive acumen.

9. And in the same vein, what can you tell us about Mean Business?

You’ll have to wait and see. ;) But suffice it to say, there will be more of the stuff you loved from Hell Bent, but with the thermostat turned up a notch.

10. And lastly, what can we expect from you in this coming year?

I’ve never had a busier schedule planned for myself than I do for 2012. If all goes according to that plan (I’m not holding my breath here, as life happens), I will be releasing no fewer than seven books and as many as nine. Look for sequels to The October Trilogy’s Sam I Am, Hell Bent, Forever Neverland, and a host of other titillating reads. Be sure to sign up for my newsletter through my website at www.killough-walden.com and follow me on Facebook and via Twitter for updates on the releases, chances to win free copies of the books, sneak peaks at teasers and tidbits, and lots more. J xoxo


Thank you so much, Heather, for taking the time to come by Fictional Candy today.  It was a lot of fun interviewing you.  I just got Drake of Tanith, sequel to The Chosen Soul, so I can't wait to read that!  And of course, coming out also this month - The Vampire King, which sounds fabulous!  I wish you the best of luck for continued success, and here's to a wonderful upcoming year!


Heather is the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author of the Big Bad Wolf series. Check out all of Heather's novels, including the upcoming Lost Angels series, at Amazon and on Barnes and Noble Nook: Amazon - Heather Killough-Walden and Barnes & Noble - Heather Killough-Walden