Jodi Meadows lives and writes in the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, with her husband, a Kippy (cat), and an alarming number of ferrets. She is a confessed book addict, and has wanted to be a writer ever since she decided against becoming an astronaut. Read more below!
Synopsis for Incarnate:
NEWSOUL
Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why.
NOSOUL
Even Ana’s own mother thinks she’s a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she’ll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are suspicious and afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame?
HEART
Sam believes Ana’s new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana’s enemies—human and creature alike—let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else’s life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all?
Jodi Meadows expertly weaves soul-deep romance, fantasy, and danger into an extraordinary tale of new life.
Could you tell us 5 random facts about yourself?
1. When I was a little Jodi, I collected unicorns. Everyone gave me unicorn things all the time. Now people give me butterfly things, because they match my book cover.
2. I swear to punctuation. Oh my commas!
3. Before I wanted to be a writer, I wanted to be an astronaut. I thought it would be just like STAR TREK. Imagine my disappointment when I realized a) you had to be good at math, and b) it’s not just like STAR TREK.
4. In INCARNATE, Ana’s hands get badly burned. While I’ve never had burns that bad, I do have a long history of burning my own hands at various food service jobs, both from French fry grease and grabbing a hot fajita skillet. It wasn’t fun. I don’t want to do it again.
5. I like shiny things.
Tell us a little bit about your process and how you became a writer.
I’ve always told stories. It didn’t occur to me until I was eleven or twelve that some people wrote stories as a job, but that’s when I decided I would be a writer. I started immediately, writing terrible rip-offs of my favorite books. In spite of the uncanny similarities to the story we’d just read in class, my 7th grade English teacher was supportive and encouraged me to keep going. My parents encouraged me to keep writing. When I got married, my husband insisted he would work a difficult full-time job so that I could stay home and write, even knowing it might never end up being work that paid.
I have the best job in the world, and I’m incredibly fortunate to have been surrounded by supportive and encouraging people my whole life.
Why do you feel you had to tell this story?
The urge to be creative is universal, whether the creativity comes out as music, art, photography, dance, stories, inventions — there are so many things. We’re a creative species. I had to tell this story because it’s what I do: I tell stories. This story was where my heart led me.
What was your favorite chapter/scene to write and why?
They’re all my favorite chapters. I don’t write chapters I don’t enjoy. I figure if I’m not loving it with all my heart, neither will my reader. This is totally the “good parts version.” (PRINCESS BRIDE reference!)
What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?
I’ve been very fortunate in that I’ve never had truly awful criticism. I LIKE useful criticism; it’s how I know where I need to improve.
Any time someone says they love my book and couldn’t bear to put it down — that’s probably the best compliment.
Where’s your favorite place to write?
I have a desktop computer, so I’m limited in choices. My computer currently lives in the ferrets’ bedroom. It’s been here for a few years now, and everything’s gone just fine. So I guess this is my favorite place!
What character do you relate most to?
Tough question! I don’t think I can give a firm answer on this, either. I’ve neither been reincarnated a hundred times, nor have I been born into a society where that is normal. Those two options describe the basic existence of my characters. I’m not sure it’s possible to sit down and bond with them about either of those things!
Aside from that, I can certainly relate to Ana’s feelings of newness and inadequacy, or Sam’s struggles with following his heart when society tells him to do otherwise. I can relate to both their love of music, coffee, kissing scenes . . . Mmm, kissing scenes. Wait, what was the question again?
If you could have lunch with one of your characters who would it be and why?
Ack! I wouldn’t want to have lunch with any of my characters. I’m afraid they’d yell at me. Being a character is tough.
What is easier to write: The first line or the last line?
That completely depends on the book. The first line for INCARNATE came right away. The first line for books two and three? Not so much. The last line for books two and three have been there almost from the beginning, but not the last like for book one.
What one YA novel do you wish you had when you were a teen?
I wish I had ALL of the YA novels when I was a teen.
Do you have things you need in order to write ie. coffee, cupcakes, music?
Just a bottle of water! I don’t like the idea of having rituals while I’m writing, just because what if one day I’m not allowed to drink coffee anymore? (God forbid!) I like having coffee while I’m writing in the mornings, and I wish I had a never-ending supply of cupcakes, but the truth is I can (and should be able to) write without any of that.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on both a secret project and revisions for books two and three in the Newsoul Trilogy. I like keeping busy. Very busy.
Incarnate releases on January 31, 2012. In celebration of its release Jodi is planning give aways of the fingerless gloves that Ana wears in the book. You can find out more by visiting Jodi on her website or following her on twitter.
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