Author Kathryn Leigh Scott (Guest Post & Giveaway)

Good morning, I hope that everyone is enjoying the weekend! Today I'd like to welcome actress and author Kathryn Leigh Scott over! She is joining us with a guest post and a giveaway for her new release, Dark Passages, enjoy!

What a joy to be writing for Reading Between the Wines… I look forward each evening to pouring a good glass of wine and settling back to read over what I’ve written that day, usually with Daphne, my cat, curled in my lap.

Nothing ever seems real until I see it on the page. Often I’ll change the vanilla font I write in to something exotic before I print the pages because I find it (literally) gives me a fresh perspective. Also, perhaps because I’m an actress as well as a writer, I read my work aloud. And always with a pencil handy! Most of the time I’m striking out words or transposing order to give easy flow and a clean finish to a sentence. If it’s a mouthful as I read it, then I’m overwriting. I try to make my verbs do the heavy lifting; good action verbs that eliminate the need for qualifiers.

I’m not a literary writer. I don’t like dense, convoluted sentences that stray from telling a story and moving the action forward. I have my own private list of words that I try not to use. When I see one pop up in a sentence, I know I’m struggling, working too hard, and need to simplify.

I’m a storyteller. I take my cues from the lessons I’ve learned as an actress playing before audiences. Acting is doing, a physical act incorporating all the senses. I think in terms of scenes, setting them up so specifically that the reader feels present as the action unfolds. What’s happening? Why? Where are we going? I want to be there.

I never forget another lesson I’ve learned as an actress… there’s usually a flicker of humor in even the most tragic situations. A moment of levity, a wry observation, an unexpected occurrence in what would otherwise be a solemn occasion provides a sense of reality and a poignant, human touch.

I love writing. I can’t not do it every day. Whether I’m writing fiction or nonfiction, or simply a note to a friend, a lot is revealed to me about myself. Where did that come from, I wonder? How did I know that?  It’s all there, waiting to flow into the written word.

Kathryn Leigh Scott is best known for creating four characters, including Josette du Prés, vampire bride to Barnabas Collins, on the cult soap opera "Dark Shadows." Kathryn's first work of fiction, Dark Passages is an affectionate nod to her years on that ‘60s series. Dark Passages is a coming-of-age story encapsulating the romance and innocence of JFK’s Camelot era and the tumultuous “dark passages” of Meg Harrison. Arriving in New York City to pursue acting, Meg is a beautiful ingenue who also happens to  be a vampire. She joins the cast of the cult hit “Dark Passages” only to face her nemesis who is bent on destroying her and those she loves. Kathryn is also the author of The Bunny Years,  a memoir covering her years as a bunny in the New York City club. It has been optioned for potential use for the NBC series "Playboy Club" and Simon & Shuster released the paperback version Fall 2011. As a publisher, Kathryn founded Pomegranate Press which offers non-fiction and entertainment titles. 

www.kathrynleighscott.com

Dark Passages

by Kathryn Leigh Scott 

Paperback, 320 pages

Published August 9th 2011 by Pomegranate Press

ISBN 0938817833

Courtesy of author

Dark Passages is a coming-of-age story encapsulating the romance and innocence of JFK’s Camelot era and the tumultuous "dark passages" of Meg Harrison, a vampire raised by her mother to resist the temptation of human blood. Meg arrives in New York determined not to use her vampiric gifts to fulfill her dream of becoming an actress. She joins the cast of the cult hit Dark Passages, only to face her nemesis, a beautiful 300-year-old witch bent on destroying her. Their rivalry leads to a final confrontation as the telekinetic vampire and spell-weaving sorceress engage in a spectacular battle for supremacy. It takes all of Meg’s wit and tenacity to defeat the witch and win the affections of a handsome young mortal with a secret life of his own. In the end, Meg realizes that the powers she always denied within herself are not a curse, but a blessing.

~*GIVEAWAY*~

Kathryn is graciously offering one copy of Dark Passages to give away to one US reader! To enter, just leave a comment on this post and fill out the rafflecopter below!