Chatting with Jaycee DeLorenzo

GUYS! Today I welcome my NA sisters, Jaycee DeLorenzo, for an interview during her blog tour. Her debut, The Truths About Dating and Mating, a NA contemporary romance is out now!

Nicknames:  Teeny-Weenie Bikini (based on a pic of me as a fat baby in a teeny-weenie bikini – the name has stuck).

Where do you live:  In Tucson, part of the Sonoran Desert.

Your favorite dessert: Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food Ice Cream

Your favorite TV series: It’s a tie:  The Walking Dead and Sons of Anarchy

Last book you read:  Just finished re-reading On The Island.

Last movie you watched:  Breaking Dawn Part 2

Last song (or album) you bought:  I don’t even remember, but it’s been years.

A book/series you could read over and over again:  Harry Potter Books

Coke or pepsi?  Coke (Make mine a Diet, please)

Day or night?  Night

Pen or pencil? Pen

Summer or winter?  Summer, because I get more time to write.

Cat or dog?  Dog

Tea or coffee? Coffee

Plotter or pantser? Plotter

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? In high school when I started writing a story every day in my required journal (for English class) and started sharing it with my classmates on Fridays.

What are you working on now? The next story in the Riordan College universe, with two of the characters we met in The Truths about Dating and Mating, and a short story about a new character at the same school.

If you decided not to be a writer, what would your other dream job be? Why? If I had the time to learn, I would love to be a cgi animator for movies.  I wish I had the time to go back to school to learn how to do animations, but I just don’t.  Another thing I’d love to do is be a chef.  I really love cooking.

What is the scariest thing you’ve ever done in your life? I love scuba diving during the day because I can see my surroundings.  Diving at night was horrific.  I couldn’t see much, I got stung by jellyfish, and I almost put my hand in the mouth of a huge moray eel on that trip.  Never again!

Who is the one person that has singlehandedly inspired you the most in your life? My mother because she really gave a lot of herself to make us happy and support us in everything we did.  Lately, though, I’m really in awe of my Nonni, who gave birth to eight kids in ten years.  Sometimes I feel like I can barely manage two.

What is one talent that you’re hopeless at, but you wish you had? Singing.  I love to sing around the house and pretend I have a great voice, but I’m really flat and off key.  At least my daughter likes my voice.  :D

What is one trait or physical characteristic that you are proud of/love about yourself? Oh, man, really?  Okay, I really like the shade of my eyes.  They look brown from far away, but up close they’re really a greenish-brown.  I find it fascinating how they change with my emotions, becoming more green when I’m angry.  They’re like mood rings.

Do you have any suggestions for aspiring writers? This is the best advice I ever received: Write the story you want to write, and do the best you can, without worry about market trends.  The rest will fall into place later.

Bio: Jaycee DeLorenzo hails from Tucson, Arizona, on the outskirts of the Saguaro National Park – which she believes to be the most beautiful spread of desert in the world.  By day, Jaycee is an English language teacher to elementary students. By night, she’s a wife, mother, writer, cover artist, website designer, and blogger.  In her spare time, she enjoys reading, cooking, singing (very poorly), catching up on her favorite T.V. shows, and researching.

The Truths about Dating and Mating is Jaycee’s debut novel, and the first in a series centering around students of the fictitious Riordan College.

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The Truths about Dating and Mating
Author:  Jaycee DeLorenzo
Release Date:  November 21, 2012

Spunky Italian coed Ivy Rossini likes to talk and push the boundaries. She gets to do both as she co-hosts Riordan College’s radio program, The Truths about Dating and Mating, alongside her lifelong best friend, Ian Hollister.

Being the only girl who cares to see beyond Ian’s bad boy reputation has its advantages, especially when he’s scaring off the jerks who just want to nail the campus sex-guru. It’s when he’s “protecting” her from the advances she welcomes that she wants to lob him over the head and tell him to butt out. But Ivy’s feels like she’s the one who’s taken a hit when Ian almost kisses her at a party. She knows she should feel relieved when he pulls away, so why is she disappointed instead?

What’s worse, Ivy’s now getting aroused by Ian’s slightest touch and can’t stop entertaining thoughts of a romantic future. But Ian doesn’t do relationships, and she’s not interested in anything casual. In the end, Ivy decides it’s best to keep her growing feelings a secret and hope they’ll pass. However, when Ian begins hinting at wanting to take things to the next level, she’s forced to decide if a chance at something more is worth risking everything they’ve built.

With their friendship and her heart hanging in the balance, can Ivy follow the advice she and Ian give their listeners – to communicate, be honest, and trust in themselves – or will insecurity, stubbornness, and pride ruin any chance of their relationship getting off the ground?

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Cheers,