Jus Accardo **author interview**

Jus Accardo is the debut author of Touch, an exciting, YA paranormal romance novel, where protagonist, the feisty Dez, learns that her father is perhaps not quite who he seems to be, and that there is much more to the world than she first imagined. With the help of the naive, but bad-ass and sexy Kale, they work to take down Denazen and free those trapped in its disastrous web. We are lucky enough, here at Pen to Paper, to have the opportunity to speak to Jus herself, and ask her a few questions! So without further ado, I would like to welcome Jus to the blog!

First of all, would you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Hmm. Well, I'm married to an awesome guy and we live in upstate NY with our three kids--four-legged ones :D I'm a lover of cheese and llamas, fearer of planes and clowns, and a total World of Warcraft junkie.

What kind of books do you usually enjoy reading?

I love anything with complicated characters and a killer plot, but I'm a sucker for the dark stuff. Give me an anti hero with a jaded past and add in some chaos and I'm a happy girl.

What is your all-time favourite book, and why?

This is a tough one. I don't know that I could ever pick just one. A few of my all time comfort reads though, are, The Heavenly Horse from the Outermost West (Mary Stanton) Bitten (Kelley Armstrong) and Nightlife (Rob Thurman) As for why...I could read these three books over and over and over (and I have) and never get tired of them.

Which author(s) would you say are your biggest influence in your own writing, and why?

S.E Hinton, Mary Stanton, L.J Smith, Rob Thurman, and Kelly Armstrong. The one thing they all have in common? They created characters and worlds that even after I'd finished reading, I couldn't stop thinking about.

Have you always wanted to be an author?

Sort of. It was always a tie between fiction and food. My grandfather was a master chef, so I grew up in the kitchen. When I wasn't helping him, I was reading. It was a tough call--I was accepted to the Culinary Institute of America but ended up passing on the spot last minute to pursue writing. I've never once regretted it.

What inspired you to write Touch?

Would you believe me if I said coffee? Seriously. I was sitting in the drive through line at Dunkin Donuts. We live in the middle of nowhere so pretty much everything is surrounded by woods. I got this picture in my head--this scene. It was a girl running through the woods barefoot. With every step, the ground beneath her withered and died. (in the first draft of the book, Kale and Dez's roles were reversed) I didn't plot or stop to think. I just wrote and wrote like crazy. Three weeks later, the first draft was done.

From looking at your website (http://www.jusaccardo.com/), I see that you have a selected music playlist for Touch; what made you choose these songs in particular?

Music is a huge deal for me. Every song on the playlist inspired a specific scene. For example, Lady Gaga's Poker Face was the opening of the book. My characters personalities are defined in my head by music. Each one has his/her own playlist in addition to the actual book/scene playlist.

When writing Touch, did you set yourself a writing schedule?

Nah. Not consciously, anyway. Once I started TOUCH, I couldn't stop. I got up when my husband went to work and started writing. Most days I'd take a few hours in the early afternoon to run errands, but then it was right back to the computer till usually around midnight most days. I was obsessed!

Where is the best place for you to write?

I'm a creature of habit. When I started writing with the intention to make it my career, I set myself up at the dining room table because, at the time, I was still doing small catering gigs on the side for extra cash. This made it easy for me to run back and forth to the kitchen. A few scenes here--a pie crust there. It started out as convenience. Now though? If I try to write anywhere else, I find I can't focus as well. I can do it, but the stuff written away from my little corner of the table tends to flow rougher and need more editing. My husband even redid one of the rooms in our house so I could have my own little corner, but I still prefer the dining room table.

Are you planning on continuing the Denazen series?

There are three books in the series now--about Dez and Kale. As for more...let's just say there's a very good chance...*grin*

For our non-American readers, will Touch be available for purchase outside the USA?

The short answer, is yes. I don't have specifics yet, but as soon as I do, I'll have the information on my website.

And finally, what are the simple things in life that most make you happy?

This is an awesome question. Music makes me happy. Any and all kinds. Cartoons, too! My favorite thing to do after a long day is snuggle up with my guy and our three dogs and watch cartoons. Oh, and chocolate. Chocolate makes me VERY happy...

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you again for dropping by Pen to Paper! It's been a real pleasure having you, Jus and I can't wait to read more from you in the future!

Thanks for letting me hang out. I had a blast ! :)

Touch will be published in the US on November 1st 2011.
Click here to pre-order from Amazon.com

Also, you can click here to view my review of Touch.

I will update this post when I know the publication details for outside of the US, particularly publishing dates for the UK.

Let me know what you thought of this interview in the comments! And be sure to check out Jus' website, and of course Touch!