Werewolf June: Karen Kincy

Feathers unfurl from my skin. My plummet curves into a swoop, and I tuck my talons beneath my body. From girl to great horned owl in about a second. Pretty good, huh?

Gwen Williams is like any other modern teenager with one exception: she's a shapeshifter. Never having known her Pooka-spirit father, Gwen must struggle with the wild, wonderful magic inside of her alone—and in secret. While society may tolerate vampires, centaurs, and "Others" like Gwen, there are plenty of folks in Klikamuks, Washington, who don't care for her kind.

Now there's a new werewolf pack in town, and Others are getting killed, including Gwen's dryad friend. The police are doing zilch. In the midst of terrible loss and danger, Gwen meets a cute Japanese fox spirit who's refreshingly comfortable with his Otherness. Can Gwen find the courage to embrace her true self and find the killer—before she becomes the next victim?

I'm guessing this will be a read like no OTHER. I can't wait to get my copy! Karen Kincy kindly answered my Werewolf June, brain-picking questions:

1. What is the most challenging thing about writing shifters/werewolves?

Imagining their animal natures, both mentally and physically. I love writing transformation scenes after researching the different bone structures of say, wolves vs. humans, and how they might melt into each other during a transformation. My pooka protagonist, Gwen, often shapeshifts into an owl, so I read up on the take off and landing mechanics of owls to inspire my descriptions.

Great research, Karen! Owls are fascinating raptors...so "wise", but deadly. ;)

2. Would you ever consider getting fangs or a special tat to show some wolfy love?

Not fangs, though a tattoo might be cool… probably not a werewolf, but a pooka. That would be a wild black horse rampant, with fiery golden eyes. Wonder if anybody else has a pooka tattoo? Must resist urge to Google that!

A pooka tattoo...very cool. Perhaps you could get a designer to create some temporary ones for you (and your fans!). Then we could all share the pooka love.

3. What's the most gothic / paranormal thing you own?

Hmmm. Does a copy of my book count? Okay, okay, I don’t know that I’m a very gothic/paranormal person. I own this spiderwebby black cardigan. But that’s probably more granny gothic than anything. Also, I found a creepy gnome-with-a-squirrel figurine outside of a dumpster in downtown Olympia, WA. I’ll admit it. I fail paranormally.

Granny gothic....HA! There's a new fashion trend for the masses - perhaps originally started by the Big Bad Wolf. Karen, you don't fail paranormally, I suspect you keep your inner goth....inner...and only let her out to play when writing. ;)

Thanks for joining us this week, Karen. Follow Karen on Twitter and check out her spiffy website. We LOVED Werewolf June and can't wait to shift with you again next year. We hope to actually meet our pack of loyal shifter authors someday. But for now we have to content ourselves with following them online.

You too can follow the Werewolf June pack:

Follow Karen on Twitter and check out her spiffy website.

Jordan Deen is very active on Twitter, her blog and other social media sites. Her "werewolf dating tips" tweets are hilarious. But you have to follow her to read them! (www.twitter.com/Jordan_Deen)

Check out Shannon Delaney's blog for exciting info on her book launch plans.

Sarwat Chadda and his role-playing pics shouldn't be missed! Check out his blog.

Kitty Keswick can be found on Twitter and her awesome website.

And me, can't forget my own fine self, Judith Graves.