Kissed by honu

When I learned that Karen Amanda Hooper was kissed by a sea turtle in Hawaii, I thought, "Well, of course. That is the natural order of things."

(picture source)

Karen's blog is one of my favorites--personable, fun, heartfelt. Lately, it's filled with all things mermaid with the upcoming release of her debut, TANGLED TIDES.

On Black Friday, she's doing a blogsplash, which I will participate in, but this is a pre-interview that I hope you'll enjoy. And be sure to come back Friday to join the fun.



Q: This being National Novel Writing Month, I believe you started a mermaid novel during that event a couple of years ago. Did that grow into Tangled Tides? Can you briefly describe how the story evolved?

Karen: I actually started writing my mermaid story in September, but yes, I wrote a good portion of it during NaNo a couple years ago. I think I finished in early January and then edited and revised for a couple months before querying agents. When it received no offers of representation I shelved it for a year. This past summer Michelle Davidson Argyle suggested I send it to Rhemalda, and POOF! A few months later we're celebrating its release. Crazy but true.


Q: If magic happened and you turned into a mermaid, what would be the best thing about being a mermaid? The worst?

Karen: Well, my merfolk can control water, so I would have a lot of fun experimenting with that ability. However, my merfolk can't tell a lie. That doesn't sound too bad at first, but imagine not even being able to tell tell those healthy white lies. Like when a friend asks if you can tell that she gained twenty pounds and asks if she looks bad. Silence is your only kind option, and silence speaks volumes.

Q: How did you do research for the mythological creatures? Did you invent your own mythology, as well?

Karen: I've had a weird love for Medusa ever since I was a little kid and watched the original Clash of the Titans upmteen times. I already knew her story, but I played off of it and gave it my own twist. All the other mythology in my story revolved around how I imagined things could have been if Medusa and Poseidon were in love and ruling their own world.


Q: Are you a water pixie or land lover in real life? Did you make any excursions into the watery depths?

Karen: I'm a mix of sea, land and air. I love everything from snorkeling to hiking to jumping out of airplanes. My favorite watery depths story is when I was in Hawaii and had the incredible experience of swimming with dolphins and huge sea turtles--in the wild. Not in an aquarium, or touristy encounter where you pay to swim in a pool or something. I was swimming off the Kona coast one morning and spinner dolphins came out of nowhere and decided to jump and play all around us. Then, later, we came across about ten honu (Hawaiian sea turles) and one actually glided up the front of me and his nose touched my chin. I call it the day I was kissed by a honu.


Q: How does it feel having your creation come to life on the pages of a book? To reach that goal?

Karen: It's very surreal. Exciting, but surreal. This time last year I was brokenhearted about having to shelve Tangled Tides, and now it's out in the world as a real book! Heck, six months ago I had nothing but tons of agent rejection letters. Just goes to show that anything can happen in this business. Never give up on a project you love!