Transitory Existence, Fighting Spirit

How do you live your own life, when it was never truly yours to begin with?

After the untimely death of her mother, 18 year old Rose Blakely spent the past two months of her life in the dark, living recklessly, and bringing everyone around her grief. Now that the storm has passed, Rose is hoping to find the light, and live a normal life. But when a mysterious new guy named Birch Balman enters the picture, along with a crazed woman hell-bent on killing her, things take a drastic turn for the worst.

Keeping up appearances in front of her friends at Halfmoon Bay High and also her father will serve to be a difficult task for Rose, but it's a small price to pay—when death is now in the equation.
{Introductory Blurb for Everlife , Book One of the Nyx Series }

Please welcome Kyani Swanigan, YA author of the Nyx Series...

Kyani was always passionate about writing. Even as a child she loved creating characters and writing stories although she considered it more a pastime rather than something that she would make a career out of especially through high school, when Kyani aspired to be a stylist and go to FIDM (The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandizing). It wasn't until a year after graduation that the memory of two fictional characters she had thought up six years earlier resurfaced and began buzzing around in her mind. From there a story just had to be written.

Now, one year after completing her first novel, Kyani is still hard at work telling her character's story by finishing the rest of the series. She lives in Tustin, California with her mom and fat Blue Russian cat, Pouncer.

Kyani agreed to participate in a "rapid-fire" type of interview, to help us learn a little more about her.

Hot drinks or cold?
Cold, like I could really go for a smoothie right now.

Your worst bad habit?
I have a few, but the worst is messiness. And my room reflects on that!

Favorite "big" word to use in conversation?
Actually I don't really use them, keep it simple :)

For sudden inspirations: pen and paper, or keyboard?
Blackberry

Revisions: enjoy them or loathe them?
I enjoy it the first time around; don't mind it the second, after that it gets tedious.

Favorite almost-cuss-word?
Nucking futs (See Dickie Roberts, lol)

Which character from your book would you most want to be best friends with?
Besides the main character, it would definitely be Ayame, the ocelot hybrid. She is just way too awesome.

Which one would you get in the most trouble with?
Probably my heroine's "frenemy", Pilar Cummings.

What's the first thing you notice about a person you've just met, in person?
Style, only because I'm a huge Fashionista, and gestures.

What's the first thing you notice about a person you've just met online?
Personality, I do think that it can reflect in the way that someone types. Or it can just be masked by professionalism :)

A food you've never tried, but want to?
Sushi!

The emotion you most want your readers to feel when reading in the middle of your book?
Amongst the other emotions that they may feel, curiosity is definitely first.

Your favorite sentence from your novel?
It's hard to choose just one sentence, lol! But this is one that I like:"A Nyx is nature's best kept secret—I would honestly be shocked if you have heard of any record of one in existence." Sparrow began.

Did anything you wrote make you laugh out loud as you wrote it?
One of my favorite parts is in Chapter Eleven, when the main character, Rose, is in class along with her love interest, and some friends. Pilar is just being too catty for words, and it is pissing Rose off.

If your main protagonist was an animal, which one would she be?
I would say a tiger, because throughout the book she has to be strong in a way that she never expected.

If your antagonist was an animal, which would they be?
I actually think that she would be a python. Although that is a reptile, I just
feel like it fits my antagonist perfectly.

What song had the most powerful impact on the writing in this novel?
"Cosmic Love" by Florence and the Machine. I listen to her music a lot, and that song helped me write a few key scenes in book 1.

One actor or actress you'd love to cast, if your book were to go to film?
Ha! It's kind of ironic that this question is being asked, because since day one of writing this book I've constantly cast and re-cast people in my mind (although I do love the idea of new talent). But one person I would love to cast possibly as my antagonist would be Evan Rachel Wood. She would play her perfectly.

Who would you want to direct it?
Could it be a joint project? Lol Because I'd love for Sofia Coppola and Zach Snyder to make a genius collaboration. Looking at their film history the two of them together would be perfect.

Famous author you'd love to have read your book?
Suzanne Collins, since she is my author of choice right now.

If you could live anywhere, any time: where and when?
Right now I'd like to live in Seattle. I really enjoy the cold, grey weather.

Biggest fear?
I really dislike Barbie dolls.

If you could have any one supernatural ability or superpower, which would you choose?
Mind reading, I think that would be fun!
Before we let Kyani get away, she generously provided us with a peek into her novel, Everlife, with the following excerpt:

He began dragging me by the root of hair effortlessly, and I decided to scream. I screamed as loudly as I could, not even recognizing my own uneven voice. My throat stung badly, and it was hard for me to catch my breath, but I needed help. Suddenly we stopped, and I heard a man's yell join mine. I twisted around to look up, and there was Birch. His hand was wrapped firmly around Luke's fist. His face was strained with anger; I had never seen someone look so threatening.

"Let go." Birch growled in a low and steady voice.

Luke was sweating heavily, and he was shaking, but he wouldn't let go of my hair. He just let out a maniacal laugh, and tugged my hair harder. A small cry slipped through my lips. Birch blew out a hard breath and tightened his grip. He repeated his demand one last time; his tone was still subdued, but threatening. I even felt a chill race through my body, thinking that Luke would be crazy not to let go. But he was proving to be just that as he once again yanked my hair.

That was the last straw for Birch Balman. His face tightened, and then I heard the disgusting crackle of Birch crushing Luke's hand. He released my hair and recoiled, staring horrifically at his now mangled fingers. He tried to run the other way, but it was too late, and this time I was able to see what was going to happen.

You can watch for the release of Everlife on February Twenty-ninth, from Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly Publishing !

Find Kyani on her Facebook Fan Page and Twitter.