Who's Your Lucky Charm? With Guest Blogger: Kinley Baker

Win a copy of Ruined and meet author Kinley Baker today at the Book Boost!

Here's what she had to say...


My Friend, Doctor Who: The Influence of Television Extends Beyond Story Ideas

I grew up obsessed with television. When I found Charmed, a show about witches, I thought I’d died and gone to imagination heaven. While I wasn’t a fan of scary movies, and the idea of real-life ghosts terrified me, I loved the idea of the supernatural. The bond between three sisters attempting to learn about their powers caught me from episode one. Once I devoured all the episodes, I cried through the season finale. One, it was sad in that happy-sad kind of way. And two, what was I going to do for my magic fix? This was about the time the paranormal genre exploded. Harry Potter was gathering steam, but I don’t think Twilight had hit the mass public radar yet.

Within weeks of finishing the last of the Charmed episodes I found paranormal romance. I went to college for creative writing, and graduated with a degree, but throughout school I never really found my voice. Then, I began to read paranormal romance, and what an experience. Now, suddenly, they had series about everything I’d imagined wanting to read about with the happy endings I coveted. Amazing.

Television eventually caught on and began to create shows. Underworld: Evolution came out around this time, and suddenly we had a movement. Thank goodness. But all of this is a round-about way of confessing my favorite television show. Doctor Who. Season 5 and 6 on BBC. I think the idea is genius: to have a doctor regenerate so that several different actors could play the same character. Talk about ahead of its time. And while I can’t really get into the original version, the moment I watched the first episode of the new version, Season 5 on BBC, I was hooked. By this point, I had read over 300 romances, with the majority paranormal, so my ability to be fascinated with television had waned because books have so much more vivid details. But a show about an alien who gets himself into trouble with time is a show everyone should watch.

And while I’m sure every book I’ve read, including the literary works from my college days, and television shows throughout my lifetime, have influenced me to some extent, nothing has been quite the same as Doctor Who. I wrote Ruined in 2009, long before I found Doctor Who. But I recently found I used the help of Doctor Who on a manuscript. Doctor Who came for a visit, played with time, and a few of my characters touched the crack in the wall, and their entire existence disappeared. Thank you, Doctor. The story is much better, and I felt more comfortable rewriting an entire book when I could justify in my head that I had the help of a friend.

I enjoy watching television. But I don’t hang out with television characters in my mind. Usually. There are too many imaginary characters in there taking up space. But I make an exception for the Doctor. Watch Season 5 and 6 on BBC, then tell me you wouldn’t want to have the Doctor as a friend.

Who is your favorite television character? What show is the character from and would you want to be friends with them in real life?

A Note from the Book Boost: You've really struck a nerve with me here, Kinley. Anyone who knows me also knows that I'm a television show addict. In recent years, I've missed so many great shows because of all the new babies in my life but that's when I discovered TV on DVD and Netflix and Roku and Hulu! Yay technology! How could I ever narrow it down to one character? Impossible. So, I'll name 3 from 3 different genres. Paranormal: Buffy Action/Mystery: Sydney Bristow Contemporary/Romance: Carrie Bradshaw. Thanks for joining us today, please tell us more about your book.


Blurb:

Jessa is one healing away from death. Under the thrall of her gift, the Court's Senior Healer risks giving her life in exchange for her patient's.

Vale is a rebel ruler. When his brother is killed, he's given the throne and the decree from the Court to produce an heir or lose his family's hold on the land--and his deceiving advisors aren't afraid to use murder as a weapon if their directive to stay away from the Senior Healer goes unheeded.

But Vale burns to possess Jessa. The heat between them leaves a wake of smoke, and even the powerful forces above want to bind them in a union that lasts forever. Vale taking another would be a betrayal neither could survive.

Their enemies fear a child born of such a powerful Healer and Warrior, but the true threat lies in the bond forged in shadows and fused in fire.


Excerpt:

"You.” Fury burned hot under Jessa's skin as she glared at Vale. “Who do you think you are, demanding I come live in this castle? You can’t just order your guards to enter a woman’s home and pack up her things.”

“Well, I did.” Vale came around the desk and propped one hip against it, more of a threatening than casual movement. “Someone tried to kill me. It makes sense that I have my Healer close by.”

She released a pent-up breath. “Why couldn’t you have explained that instead of mandating?”

Silly. Her imagination had run away with her. The king needed his Healer. But the realization he didn’t want her made her angrier.

“Because I didn’t want to give you the option of saying no.”

She most definitely would have said no.

“If you would have explained your reasoning, I would have complied. Your safety and health come first, even if I—”

“Even if you what?”

“Loathe you.” She bunched her fingers into two fists, seriously tempted to hit him. For all the nonexistent pain it would inflict upon him.

“Do you?” His tone deadened with calm. “Because I can’t stop thinking about you.”

“That’s normal.” She brushed off the claim. “I saved your life.”

He moved in a blur. A true Shadow Shifter. One second he stood near his desk, the next he had her in his arms, one locked around her waist and one hand tangled in her hair. Their lips almost brushed.

“I can’t stop thinking about you.” His murmur played down her spine, leaving a tingling trail.

His scent invaded her. His voice embraced her like bare skin against satin sheets.

Her heart beat fast, her pulse jumped.

She disliked him, but didn’t want him to let her go.

“Have you been thinking about me?” His soft tone feathered over her flesh.

“Only how much I dislike you.” Lust pulsed in her belly.

He pulled her head back gently by her hair, so they looked straight into each other’s eyes.

Their bodies pressed tightly together. “Liar.”

Want More Kinley?

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