Blog Tour Interview & Giveaway: Hooked by Liz Fichera

About Hooked & Liz

Get hooked on a girl named Fred…

HE said: Fred Oday is a girl? Why is a girl taking my best friends spot on the boy’s varsity golf team?

SHE said: Can I seriously do this? Can I join the boys’ team? Everyone will hate me—especially Ryan Berenger.

HE said: Coach expects me to partner with Fred on the green? That is crazy bad. Fred’s got to go—especially now that I can’t get her out of my head. So not happening.

SHE said: Ryan can be nice, when he’s not being a jerk. Like the time he carried my golf bag. But the girl from the rez and the spoiled rich boy from the suburbs? So not happening.

But there’s no denying that things are happening as the girl with the killer swing takes on the boy with the killer smile…

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Depository

Meet Liz

Liz is an American author living in the American Southwest by way of Chicago.

Born and raised in Park Ridge, Illinois, she moved to Phoenix, Arizona, after college, never expecting to live more than one year among cactus and people who’d never seen snow. She was wrong. It certainly didn’t hurt that she met her future husband in Phoenix too.

Most of her stories are set in the American Southwest because she thinks the desert is a cool place. Living in Phoenix, she’s surrounded by Native American culture and influences, not to mention intriguing Hohokam petroglyphs and centuries-old canals. There are over 20 tribes in Arizona and she’s lucky to be neighbors to the Gila River and the Salt River Indian Communities.

When she’s not busy writing her next novel, she likes to travel, visit museums, support local theater productions, hike, and pretend that she’s training for a triathlon. She posts a lot of photos from her desert and mountain hikes on her Facebook and Twitter pages. In no particular order, she has been chased by javalinas, rattlesnakes, coyotes, and even one curious black bear. She would love to connect with you there too!

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Interview With Liz

1. Hooked is a really unique story! I mean, Native American culture combined with golfing? I haven’t read any other books liked that! Tell us a little bit about your inspiration for this story.

I got the idea for Hooked when I was driving down a long stretch of desolate desert road near my home in Phoenix, Arizona. This particular stretch happens to border the Gila River Indian Community. The idea for the story popped into my head when I got the image of a Gila teenage girl waving a golf club at me, challenging me to write the story. Fortunately I did not swerve off the road. 🙂

Golf and Native American culture are plentiful in Arizona. Unfortunately, you don’t often hear them paired together in the same sentence, much less the same book.

2. Did you do a lot of research and outlining when writing Hooked?

Yes. It was a great opportunity for me to explore the Gila River Indian culture. Along the way, I made a number of new friends and new beta readers, including several Native American women who I now count as close friends.

Outlining? I don’t outline. I’m a total pantser. That said, I probably wrote and rewrote Hooked at least six times before it went on submission.

3. Do you have a killer backswing?

I wish. I suck. I love golf but I fear that I will never be any good at it. It’s a terribly frustrating sport. You have your good days and your really horrible awful humiliating bad days when you want to set your golf bag on fire but for some unknown reason you keep going back to the course. It’s tough love. It’s perplexing.

4. I think it’s AWESOME that the main character’s name is Fred! What made you decide on that name?

I knew that I wanted a strong-sounding name but one that would be fitting for this character. She was never going to be an Alexandra or Tiffany or Madison. Fredricka just kind of fit her. Fred, for short, was icing on the cake for me.

5. Did you experience any difficulties writing from both a male and female point of view?

In some scenes, it was easier for me to write Ryan’s POV then Fred’s. I think teenage boys are so less complicated than teenage girls.

6. There is a lot of Native American bullying in Hooked. Do you think the book is a fairly accurate representation of how Native Americans are perceived and treated in high schools?

Sadly, yes, at least according to my Native American friends. That said, I’m not painting any place with a broad brush. There are good and tolerant people everywhere you go. Unfortunately there always seems to be a loud-mouth in every room. You know That Guy or That Girl. They’re the people who always feel compelled to act out on their prejudices, consciously or subconsciously.

7. When reading Hooked, I came across a very clear message: it’s okay to stand out—with your culture, or your gender, or in any other ways. Can you tell us a bit about this message? Is this something you hope your readers walk away with after reading the book?

<3 I am so glad you *got* that. While I didn’t write the book originally with that intent, that message is certainly one of the themes that popped out as I wrote the story. What I hope most is that readers, particularly teenagers, walk away thinking that it’s okay to dream big dreams. Just don’t let anyone stand in your way, including yourself.

8. It looks like there will be a second Hooked novel called Played, which tells Riley and Sam’s story! Can you tell us anything about it? Will there be more golf involved (or another sport)?

Sam and Riley were two of my most fave secondary characters in Hooked so I was thrilled to pair them together in Played and write their story. Sam is the kind of guy I would have definitely crushed on in high school, although he’d probably never have known about it. Played is less about golf and sports than it is about playing with people’s emotions. And in the world of Teenagedom, that can be treacherous. 😉

9. Will Played be the final book in the Hooked series, or can we expect more companion novels in the future?

At this point, Hooked and Played are the only two books in this series.

Thank you so much for stopping by, Liz, and for answering all my questions! 🙂 You rock!

Thank you so much for inviting me to blog with you!
—Liz

Giveaway

There are three giveaways for this tour!

1) The first giveaway is a copy of Hooked by Liz Fichera! Enter via Rafflecoper.

2) The second giveaway is Harlequin Grand Prize Package, including 2 copies of Hooked, 1 copy of Speechless, 1 copy of Pushing The Limits, 1 copy of Indigo Awakening and 2 Harlequin Notebooks. The Grand Prize Winner is drawn from all entries throughout the tour!

3) Everyone who pre-orders Hooked between the dates January 7 – January 29 will receive an official hot pink Hooked wristband and autographed Hooked bookmark swag pack. Simply email your proof of purchase dated between between January 7 – January 29, to contest@lizfichera.com to receive your swag pack. US/Canada only.

For chances to win, simply enter via the Rafflecoper widget and get extra entries for tweeting (once per Tour Stop), following Liz on twitter, leaving your mailing address (for faster shipment of the prize) and for leaving a comment at each Tour Stops (one extra entry for each Tour Stop).

Visit KismetBT for full contest rules.

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Keep Up With the Tour!

Monday, January 7th – Books Complete Me
Wednesday, January 9th – I Like These Books
Friday, January 11th – Page Turners

Monday, January 14th – Coffee Books and Me
Wednesday, January 16th – Letters Inside Out
→ Friday, January 18th – Book Nook

Tuesday, January 22nd – Harlequin Blog