Hi guys we have Naomi MacKenzie stopping by today with her debut novel Lodestones, we chatted briefly with Naomi, we have a great excerpt and there’s a brilliant giveaway so guys enjoy the post and click that Rafflecopter link <3 ~Pixie~

Lodestones

Naomi MacKenzie

On the eve of a new school year, several groups of college students cross paths as they seek out a secret end-of-summer lake party—including Robin and Charlie, two inseparable friends who discover of the course of the twenty-four hours that their relationship is something much deeper than simple friendship.

Interludepress | Amazon US | Amazon UK | Smashwords | Indiebound

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Interview

Today I’m very lucky to be interviewing Naomi MacKenzie author of Lodestones.

Hi Naomi, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself, your background, and your current book.

Hi! It’s lovely to be here.

I’m a Canadian gal from the east coast, currently living in the Toronto area and pining for the sea. I’ve been writing for myself since I was very young, mostly poems and short stories. I have several novels on the go at all times, but Lodestones is my first completed novel.

What’s the best line you ever wrote?

I don’t know if it’s the best line I’ve ever written, but I like it the sound of it. It’s from one of my works in progress, which is probably bad luck or something, but here goes…

People don’t really change. We either make peace with our demons, or we don’t.

Do you listen to music while writing? If so, what kind?

I don’t always listen to music. For me, it depends on the scene I’m working on. If it’s more fast-paced I like background music, mostly film soundtracks that fit the mood. If it’s a quiet scene with a lot of dialogue, I usually forgo music. It interferes with my thought process too much, especially if there are lyrics. And I’d only be talking over it anyway. I tend to speak dialogue aloud while writing it. Unless, of course, I’m in public. Although I have caught myself doing just that a few times.

If your book were made into a movie, what actors would you like to see star?

That’s a tough question! I usually find pictures online to use as character references, but most tend to be models as opposed to actors. The easiest Lodestones character to cast would be Charlie Katz, who looks a lot like Dane Dehaan in my head. And maybe Sophie Turner as Kate Zimmermann.

What genres do you write in?

I enjoy writing YA. Contemporary, romantic, character-driven stories. A little of the supernatural is sometimes fun as well.

Where and when do you prefer to write?

I find I am most productive when I write outdoors or in coffee shops. This is probably due to the fact that I’m not online in those spaces and therefore cannot be distracted by the Internet, but I get in the zone more easily when I’m not in my home surrounded by other things I could be doing. I don’t have a particular time of day that I prefer—although I sometimes suffer from insomnia so late night/very early morning writing sessions are not uncommon.

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Excerpt

Larry holds up the flyer to study the map Florence drew. Barry is leaning to look at it, too, when it’s ripped from between Larry’s fingers.

A greasy man in a campus security uniform stands over them with a pinched expression. His faded nametag reads: Ron Anderchuk. “Another one,” he all but growls. “Where in heck did you get this, boys?”

Barry tries his best to look innocent. Which isn’t all that hard, since he knows nothing.

“Found it on the ground,” Larry lies.

“Uh-huh, uh-huh,” the security guy says. “Extra trouble for littering.” He glares hard at the paper for nearly a minute before looking back at them. “You do know parties like this are illegal, don’t ya, boys? And frowned upon by this here establishment.” He raps his knuckles on the table. “I think it best you stick around here this weekend. That would be best, don’t ya agree?” He widens his beady eyes while he waits for their assent.

Barry looks to Larry. Seeing him nodding, he mimics the gesture.

The security officer’s answering grunt sounds disbelieving. He mutters as he walks away; the flyer with their map is gripped in his fist.

“What are we—”

Larry holds up his hand, stopping Barry’s question in its tracks. “Not to worry; I have a photographic memory. I’ve got the map in here.” He taps a fingertip against his temple.

“Even after all of that? And we do have another problem, if Florence is to be believed.”

Larry hums and strokes his chin. He picks up Barry’s tray and they walk to the windows. The orientation officers are indeed spread across the entire expanse outside, handing out pamphlets and organizing games of lawn bowling and oversized croquet. The entrance to the student parking lot is completely blocked.

Barry should throw in the towel, admit defeat and convince Larry to do the same. And he would, if not for one thing. The one detail that has roped him into the excitement over the lake festivities fully and completely is Kate Zimmermann, captain of the Dicaroon Seadogs field hockey team. Barry was looking through the school’s website while Larry was plotting behind him and he caught sight of her picture. He informed Barry that she was one of the girls who was carrying the van’s bench seat into her dorm room and invited him to the party early that morning.

Barry is in love with Kate Zimmermann. He has been since seeing her on the Dicaroon University website the previous summer. Well, he’s in love with the image of her and her red hair and blue eyes and adorable freckles that are so voluminous that they connect on her face. He has dreamed of red-haired kids calling him Daddy and hitting balls with sticks. Possibly. And she’s throwing the party, so even if Barry will never get up the nerve to speak to her should he live for a thousand years, he has to go. For his future dream-wife.

“Well, then,” Larry says. He sets Barry’s lunch tray down on the bussing station and rubs his hands together. “I guess we are in need of a foolproof plan.”

“A stratagem,” Barry says. He feels immediately foolish for being such a huge dork.

But then Larry grins at him. “Ooh, yes, I like that. A stratagem.”

About Naomi

Naomi MacKenzie is a writer and photographer from the eastern coast of Canada. She considers herself a Maritimer first and a Canadian second, or so she told the standardized testing people in essay form during the eleventh grade. She enjoys vegan baking, walks in the woods and, contrarily, hiding from the sun. Lodestones is her first novel.

Where to find the author:

Connect with Naomi MacKenzie at http://naomimackenzie.com/; on Twitter at @_naomimackenzie and on Facebook at Naomi MacKenzie.