Kelley Armstrong answers our burning questions…   mmj023622800001.gif

1) How many books will be in the Otherworld series?
I’m currently contracted to ten. Whether there will be more depends on the readers and the publishers! I’m just about to start writing #9, so I’m reaching the end of the contract, with many more ideas still in mind.

2) Who will narrate the next book?No Humans Involved (Women of the Otherworld)
Bit of a trick question actually. There are two narrators. While I’ve experimented with multiple narration, it’s always been one major first-person narrator plus minor third person narration (as in No Humans Involved)   This book required something different. There were two major points of view that I needed to explore and it made the most sense (creatively) to do them both in first-person. I’d done that in one of my online novellas, but never in a published novel, so I was a little worried about what my editors would say. While dual first-person narration is nothing new, Dates From Hellit’s not a common form. Fortunately, they’re thrilled with the manuscript and have no issues with the narrative form.

The main narrator is half-demon Hope Adams (which usually leads to another FAQ…who is Hope?). Hope was first introduced in a novella I wrote for an anthology (Dates from Hell) . I gave her a “test run” there and enjoyed her character so much that I brought her back for No Humans Involved. She plays a major role there, which sets her up to narrate book 8, Personal Demon.

Dime Store Magic: Women of the Otherworld The secondary narrator (getting about 1/3 of the book) is Lucas Cortez, who’s been in the series since book 3, Dime Store Magic.  I’ve written from his point-of-view before (again, in an online novella) and really enjoyed it. So, finally, we get to hear from one of the guys!

3) What ever happened to the Bitten movie?
The movie rights to Bitten were bought in 2001, and got a lot of publicity…which probably had something to do with having Angelina Jolie signed to star! The project stalled and was Bitten (Women of the Otherworld)abandoned a couple years ago. Currently no one holds movie rights to any of my books, so there won’t be movie versions any time soon.

4) When will Elena narrate again?
Elena will return. I have a backlog of narrators for the novels right now, so she’s taking a rest. But she’ll return in “guest” appearances and short stories, and will definitely get her turn at narrating a novel again if the contract is extended beyond ten.

5) Why did the series return to hardcover with No Humans Involved?Stolen
The decision to publish in a certain format (mass market, trade, hardcover) lies with the publisher. There may be writers who have some input, but I’m not one of them! The first two books (Bitten and Stolen) were initially released in hardcover, and Bitten didn’t come out in mass market paperback for three years, so I’ll admit to viewing the format change with a bit of trepidation…and a lot of hope that it goes better for me this time or my publisher may not be too quick to renew that contract!