C Lee McKenzie is Here!

Hey ya’ll! Another Debutante post coming your way! This time I’m *so* happy to introduce you to C. Lee McKenzie.

Lee and I are both WestSide writers: publishing sisters and kindred spirits, obviously, since we both write under our middle names, and it’s (gasp) the same one! (Though spelled differently.)

First up:

About Sliding on the Edge

Shawna Stone is a heartbeat away from making the worst mistake anyone can. She’s close to taking her own life. Kay Stone is a grandmother Shawna has never known, and at sixty-four Kay feels there is little left in her life to look forward to. When they are thrown together they circle each other in a crucible of secrets and distrust until saving a doomed horse unites them and gives each a reason to live.

(BTW, I’m reading Sliding on the Edge *right* this very moment. So far . . .So Awesome!)

About C. Lee McKenzie

A native Californian, C. Lee McKenzie has always been a writer, but to eat and make contributions to children's college funds, she’s also been a university lecturer and administrator. Lee’s written and published non-fiction articles, both in her field of Linguistics and Inter-cultural Communication, and in general readership magazines. For five years Lee wrote, edited, and published a newsletter for U.S. university professors who were managing global classroom issues. Since she turned in her academic hat and began writing for young readers, Lee’s fiction and non-fiction works have been frequently published in the award-winning e-zine, Stories for Children, and Crow Toes Quarterly has published her ghostly tales. Sliding on the Edge is her first young adult novel. Writing for teen readers keeps Lee in touch with the young members of her family, and allows her to re-visit those wonderful years in life when everything is possible. When she isn’t writing, Lee’s hiking in the Santa Cruz Mountains in Los Gatos, California.

On to the Interview!

Me: Without giving away too many spoilers, what is your favorite part of the novel/what was the part you had the most fun writing?

Lee: I love the scenes between Shawna (my young main character) and Magic (the horse). It was easy to write about them together and I enjoyed doing it. Hope others enjoy reading those parts half as much as I enjoyed writing them.

Me: I’m still early in the novel, so I haven’t met Magic, yet. Can’t wait! What kind of writing projects are you currently working on? Or, if you aren't working on anything new, is there a different demographic/genre you wouldn't mind tackling in the future?

Lee: I just finished (loosely speaking) another YA novel called Princess of Las Pulgas. It's "resting" on the editor's desk. I'm at the beginning of another YA, but it's so new I have little to say about it, except I like the idea and hope to wrestle it into some kind of shape over this year. I like writing YA with a bit of an edge to it, so I think I'll stick around here for a while.

Me: “Resting.” That seems to sum up much of this industry (lol). Finally: who is your writing hero and why?

Lee: Robert Cormier really grabs me. His books are always odysseys. Can I have two? I love E.B. White as well, especially his essays and of course Charlotte's Web.

Awesome!

You can visit Lee at her home on the web: http://www.cleemckenziebooks.com/

And . . . SLIDING ON THE EDGE is officially on sale. You can buy it here: http://www.amazon.com/Sliding-Edge-C-Lee-McKenzie/dp/1934813060/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1238386492&sr=8-1

*Lee and I are also release date sisters, so don’t worry that the Amazon link says “temporarily out of stock.” Pre-orders are filling at this moment, and Sliding will be “In Stock” and available very soon.

Lee will be chatting with Sydney Salter tomorrow at: http://www.mybignose.blogspot.com

Thank you so much for stopping by, Lee!