Meet Jennifer Bosworth, Author of Struck

Welcome The Debuts, a series of posts introducing you to brand, spanking new authors you really should get to know.

Meet Jennifer Bosworth!

Byrt: If one of the top Hollywood voice-over guys was narrating your book trailer (in a hammy Hollywood way), what would he say?

JB: In a world ravaged by natural disasters . . . a girl addicted to lightning . . . must defeat a
fanatical cult leader . . . to prevent the ultimate APOCALYPSE.

Byrt: So what’s the story behind your story?

JB: A few years ago, I learned some interesting factoids about lightning, and that got me obsessed with the strange things that happen when people are struck by lightning. The aftereffects are unpredictable. Some people walk away without a scratch. Some people have holes burned through them, or lose their memory. Sometimes it leaves Lichtenberg figures on the skin of the person struck, so it looks like they have red lightning etched on their skin. And then there are the human lightning rods, people who attract lightning for no discernable reason. That’s how I came up with my main character, Mia Price, who is one of these bizarre human lightning rods.

Byrt: If you like ________, you’ll like my book.

JB: If you like Stephen King’s The Stand, the British TV show Misfits, or the movie 2012, you’ll like my book.

Byrt: The silliest/craziest author moment you’ve had so far?

JB: A blogger went after me on Goodreads for reviewing my own book and giving it 5 stars. This was back when the book had first sold, so no one had read it, and I just wrote the review for fun. But I managed to anger this blogger with my silliness, which taught me a very important lesson early on: don’t piss off bloggers!

Byrt: Book you own with the most tattered, scotch-taped cover, the most battered spine? (And why you love it)

JB: The Drawing of the Three, by Stephen King. The copy is over twenty years old, but it has the original illustrations, so even though it looks like it’s been dropped in a garbage disposal, I’ll never replace it.

Byrt: Book you’re reading right now?

JB: Anna Dressed in Blood, by Kendare Blake. It’s fantastic! Spooky, great writing, great voice.

Byrt: Biggest Fangirl/boy moment you’ve ever had?

JB: A librarian contacted me on Goodreads to let me know she had made the cover of STRUCK the backdrop on her computer, and that she spent a lot of time wondering what it felt like to be my character. She hadn’t even read the book yet, so I hope she still likes it once she’s read it.

Byrt: The TV show/movie you feel guiltiest admitting you love?

JB: I got hooked on The Voice this season. I’m so ashamed! I’ll make up for it by watching every episode of Game of Thrones twice.

Byrt: First song lyric that comes to mind right now. Go.

JB: Oh, it’s a good one. I have the song “Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings” by a new band called Father John Misty stuck in my head. “Jesus Christ, girl. What are people gonna think, when I show up to one of several funerals I’ve attended for Grandfather Sweet? Someone’s gotta help me dig. Someone’s gotta help me dig.” The music video for this song will explode your mind with its twistedness.

Byrt: What’s up next for you?

JB: I’m working on three different novels and a screenplay (oy). The first is a ghost story set in southern Utah, a mashup between Big Love and The Ring. The second is a post-apocalyptic fantasy western. Third, a supernatural thriller that features a hippie commune gone horribly wrong. The screenplay is based on a short film my husband and I produced called Followers, which we want to adapt to feature length. You can view the short film on my website, but I warn you to watch it with the lights on, and prepare for nightmares.

Thanks again to Jenn for stopping by the Yurt!

For more on all things Bosworth, you can find her website here.

And you can watch the book trailer for Struck here.