#PodcastersForJustice The #1 New York Times bestselling author of paranormal fiction, Laurell K. Hamilton, took a break to talk with me about why her first fantasy novel nearly tanked her career, some of the systems that go into her world-building, and why writers need to stay off the internet and protect their writing time. "I am very much a believer that if my characters have a better idea then that's magic. They've become alive enough to argue with me, to have an opinion. And I don't squash my own magic." — Laurell K. Hamilton The trailblazing, genre-bending author of the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series, and the Merry Gentry series, is considered an influential pioneer to the urban-fantasy genre. Laurell has sold more than 20 million books worldwide. The 27th novel in her wildly popular Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series is Sucker Punch, a mash-up of her signature blend of mystery, magic, horror, and romance. Fellow #1 New York Times bestselling author, Charlaine Harris, said of the author, "Hamilton remains one of the most inventive and exciting writers in the paranormal field." Stay tuned for a clip from the Sucker Punch audiobook at the break, “... excerpted courtesy [of] Penguin Random House Audio ... read by Kimberly Alexis.” Please help us learn more about you by completing this short 7-question survey If you’re a fan of The Writer Files, please click subscribe to automatically see new interviews. In this file Laurell K. Hamilton and I discussed: How she found her trailblazing, genre-busting style Why you have to be passionate to sustain a series How her characters take over the plot if they have better ideas On what unsettles her and how it "goes into the soup" And how to make more pages! Show Notes: LaurellKHamilton.com Sucker Punch (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter) by Laurell K. Hamilton [Amazon] Laurell K. Hamilton on FaceBook Laurell K. Hamilton on Instagram Laurell K. Hamilton on Twitter Kelton Reid on Twitter #PodcastersForJustice