Interview with Karen Renee, Author of Foolish Riot

What can you tell us about your new release, Foolish Riot?

Foolish Riot is the fifth book in the Riot MC series, but it can absolutely be read as a stand-alone. It began as a short story, but Roll and Trixie had too much going on for a short story. It’s full of suspense, some angst, and readers tell me it gives them “all the feels.”

What or who inspired you to become an author?

Many people and things inspired me to become an author. I’ve always had a vivid imagination, and there’s nothing better than capturing it in words. My parents always said I needed to have a day job, but when I read the works of Lewis Grizzard and Erma Bombeck, I realized being a full-time writer was possible, it would just have to happen within the realm of journalism or advertising. As it turned out though, I only started publishing after leaving the communications industry, but that’s the funny way life works out sometimes.

What’s on your top 5 list for the best books you’ve ever read?

If I Ever Get Back to Georgia, I’m Gonna Nail My Feet to the Ground by Lewis Grizzard; The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner; Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling; Fire Inside by Kristen Ashley; and Beard Science by Penny Reid.

Say you’re the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask?

I would have to say Lawrence Block. I would ask what he thinks of the changes that have taken place in the publishing industry. Where he gets his inspiration for his plots, and whether the character T.J. is based on a real person he knows or not. {Mainly because I love T.J.!}

What’s your favorite thing about writing?

My favorite thing about writing is hitting the “writer’s high” or the zone where your fingers are not your own, your thoughts are pouring onto the screen or paper and you never know what the characters are going to do next.

What is a typical day like for you?

My days are anything but typical lately! I tore my ACL and my meniscus back in April, so I have physical therapy in the mornings twice a week, and I cram in as much writing as I can during the afternoons after that. Depending on the muse and/or where I’m at with a work in progress, I might get another thousand words in at night.

What scene in Foolish Riot was your favorite to write?

The scene in chapter 15 when Trixie gets away from Roll and the entire Riot Motorcycle club. I love a good chase scene, and there aren’t enough of those in romances. Trixie knew she would be chased, so she is forced to take numerous back roads to evade the men who want to protect her. The bonus is that it forces her to call on a close friend who is the heroine of my next book.

Do you have a motto, quote or philosophy you live by?

Not really, but if pressed, I would say “One day at a time, one thing at a time.” Very little about publishing {even self-publishing} is fast. Yet, there seems to be no end to the number of things I want to get done each day, so I have to pace myself and keep that perspective.

Karen Renee is the author of the new book Foolish Riot.

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