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Author Harley Jane Kozak Rob Holden: Harley Jane Kozak, welcome to ReadersRoom.com. It's a pleasure to have you with us here today. Harley Jane Kozak: Glad to be here, Rob and Rochelle! Rochelle Krich: Great to see you! Harley Jane Kozak: You can see me? I should've worn makeup. Rob Holden: Let's start this off with your latest novel, Dating is Murder. Can you tell our readers a bit about it? Harley Jane Kozak: Dating is Murder is a sequel to my debut novel, Dating Dead Men. Both books feature Wollie Shelley, an L.A. greeting card artist, who, in Dating is Murder, is also a serial dater and recovering fiancée who finds herself on a reality show called Biological Clock. Tired of experiencing life as a series of odd jobs, Wollie decides to go back to college. But when her math tutor disappears, Wollie finds herself on a missing person search that plunges her into a world of wealthy toddlers, German babysitters, dead boyfriends, designer drugs, and bad TV. Rob Holden: So, where did Wollie -- who is one of the most unique characters I have come across in a while -- come from? Harley Jane Kozak: Wollie, like most characters, is a melting pot of my friends, total strangers, wish fulfillment, and the Inner Harley. She was initially inspired by a letter I received from my best friend from 4th grade in Lincoln, Nebraska, who was pursuing her lifelong dream of owning a greeting card shop. That's what Wollie's obsessed with at the opening of Dating Dead Men. She's also the Inner Me in that she'd rather be indoors reading a book than outside at night tripping over dead bodies. Rochelle Krich: I loved Dating Dead Men. Harley Jane Kozak: Thanks, Rochelle! Rob Holden: Knowing a perfect segue when I see one, let's talk about Dating Dead Men for a moment. It is coming out in paperback at the same time Dating is Murder comes out in Hardcover. Could you tell our readers a bit about that? Harley Jane Kozak: Dating Dead Men introduces us to Wollie, who is dating 40 men in 60 days as part of a scientific research project in order to raise money to buy her greeting card shop. She's meeting men, but not falling in love, not until she runs into a dead body on her way to the mental hospital where her brother, a paranoid schizophrenic, lives. Taken hostage for ten minutes by a charismatic doctor, Wollie finds herself embroiled in the mystery of the body in the road and on the run from a collection of thugs only slightly less sinister than the men she's dating.

Rochelle Krich: Harley, you're a mom living in suburbia. How do you come up with such zany characters and situations?

Harley Jane Kozak: Before I was a mom in suburbia (not so suburban: we have rattlesnakes and bobcats in the back yard) I was single for a very VERY long time and an actress living out a life of action and adventure onscreen and dating everyone and their dog offscreen. I have enough material for the rest of my life, I think.

Rochelle Krich: What about Margaret the ferret? Where did she come from?

Harley Jane Kozak: Margaret was originally a small pig (I worked with a pig in a TV series called Harts of the West and while they're cute, they're a little . . . mean)! Anyway I needed a small, offbeat pet that could fit in a doctor's pocket. But a year into the book, the movie Babe came out and I thought well, that's it. Pigs are over. So I called my brother, told him my needs, and he told me a ferret was what I needed. Then I had to research them -- not easy, as they're illegal in California. Alas. But not forever, we hope. Governor Schwarzennegger, are you listening?

Rochelle Krich: He's busy taking his foot out of his mouth re closing the borders. What was the biggest challenge in making the transition from the hype of the acting world to the book world?

Rob Holden: The opinions expressed by our guests and staff is not a reflection ....

Harley Jane Kozak: Writing and acting have a lot in common, but one way in which they're different is that acting is a communal activity. It's very tough to act in a closet on one's own whereas a whole lot of writing gets done in the closet, in my house. I don't have a real "office" so. Writing is a solo affair, and therein lies its appeal and also its challenge. It's very easy to call in sick! And Rochelle, I'm with you on the political front. Oh -- did I address the hype question? Hype is hype! I felt right at home re hype in publishing, after decades spent in the movie and TV industry.

Rob Holden: I'd like to explore that a bit. A lot of the writers we've talked with -- particularly those who have made the transition from a different career to writing have told us that what they miss MOST is the interaction with people, as writing is a solitary occupation. Do you find this to be the case?

Harley Jane Kozak: I do miss people, a bit, but I have a crowded and chaotic household, so it's not like I'm wasting away in that closet, starved for human company, and then there's research, which gets you out of your pajamas and out of the house, and of course, once the book comes out it's a COMPLETELY different life, for a month or two, involving public appearances and trying to sound as witty in person as you occasionally manage to be in print. But yes, it really does come back to that lonely computer, in the end, with just you and the people you made up in your head and when everyone else in the house goes to bed and I'm still up, or it's 4:30 a.m. and I wake myself up to write, and even the dogs won't come hang out with me, then it is in fact a little lonely.

Rochelle Krich: Until the twins wake up...

Harley Jane Kozak: Yes. And they do not approve of my multi-tasking habits.

Rob Holden: Which leads me to my next question. Are you able to maintain ANY kind of firm writing schedule with young children, or is writing pretty much catch as catch can time wise for you these days?

Harley Jane Kozak: It is completely catch as catch can now, and always has been for me. Dating Dead Men took me 8 years to write and in that time I had various day jobs which had very individual schedules, and I found out early that unless I could bring myself to write on airplanes, in trailers, between scenes, while sitting in Hair & Makeup, at 4:30 a.m. or at midnight, and yes, even on my honeymoon (I did have a rule about not bringing my laptop on blind dates) that I'd never finish my novel.

Rochelle Krich: Your husband must be very understanding. Harley, a recent discussion on DorothyL focused on Otto Penzler's comments about cozies and mysteries that aren't hard-boiled. What's your opinion?

Harley Jane Kozak: Okay, as I was saying, my husband is a doll. But he did realize what he was getting into, being one of those blind dates I bored stupid with the story of the novel I'd been writing for 5 years. On the cozy-hardboiled continuum, I'm probably a 3, veering toward the cozy side . . .

Rochelle Krich: 3 out of 10?

Harley Jane Kozak: Yes . . .

Rochelle Krich: Yet there's considerable action and danger in the books.

Harley Jane Kozak: But I love reading hard-boiled and I love reading cozies and I don't draw big distinctions in my head as a reader. Yes, there is danger and action in my books, and violence and sex too. But still, I think I'm a 3. Okay, maybe a 4 . . .

Rochelle Krich: Inflation...

Harley Jane Kozak: Okay, possibly a 4.5 -- but this is a question for writers and booksellers and publishers, I believe, more than readers. I could be wrong. I was surprised at how many people got really upset with Mr. Penzler, but we're a contentious bunch!

Rob Holden: Harley, since we announced this chat we've had a number of questions from our readers. Will you answer a few of those for us now?

Harley Jane Kozak: Yes!

Rob Holden: Emily J., Portland, OR: I am a huge fan of your acting career, and am wondering if you found it hard to switch over from being in front the camera to creating scenarios in your head. What are the similarities between the two careers?

Harley Jane Kozak: The similarities are that writing and acting both involve imagination, above all. And a certain ability to set aside the critic that lives in all of us. And a certain way of looking at the world and hearing a narration in your head, or putting yourself in the shoes of a stranger . . . and as far as the lifestyle goes, and this is very important . . .the ability to tolerate rejection on an almost daily basis. Rejection of very sensitive parts of yourself. That's the hardest part.

Rob Holden: Carolyn Q., Los Angeles, CA: I like your writing a lot, but you don't have enough books out! Write more. I am wondering who YOU admire as a writer. Who are your favorite authors?

Harley Jane Kozak: Well, there's Rochelle Krich, for one! I'm now trying to read everyone out there writing today, so I limit myself to one book per author. But in the past . . . I started out with Nancy Drew, moved onto Georgette Heyer and Mary Stewart and then discovered the Guys: John Le Carré, John D. MacDonald, Nelson DeMille, Robert Crais . . . and at this VERY moment I'm reading the Agatha Award nominees for Best First Novel. I just finished I Dreamed I Married Perry Mason -- a GREAT book! And thanks, Carolyn, and I'm writing as fast as I can. Come babysit!

Rob Holden: Mark P., Edin, OK: Do you ever have any intention of acting in films again?

Harley Jane Kozak: I'm actually supposed to be doing an independent film in Texas, if they can get their funding together -- it's two days work, two short scenes (my dream job) and my head implodes. It doesn't get much better than that. But the reason I'm doing it is they tracked me down via my website. To go back to the cycle of auditioning which is what a professional actor's life really requires, is too much for me right now. And I can't do a series, or relocate, as my kids are too small, so for the moment, I'm out of the game.

Rob Holden: Erin J., Deer Park, TX: I'm an aspiring author who really appreciates your writing style. What advice would you offer someone wanting to break into the business?

Harley Jane Kozak: Do whatever it takes to write the best manuscript that's in you, whether that be taking classes, getting into a writers' group, writing 6 or 7 "practice" novels and do this prior to looking for an agent or publisher. Often you have only one shot with any one person in the industry, so you don't want to show them anything but your best. Other than that, if you believe this is your destiny, keep at it and don't listen to gloomy people. Hang with people who believe in you. And as soon as you finish one thing, go onto another writing project, so that you have something to do other than sit by the mailbox, waiting to hear if your last thing sold.

Rob Holden: And our final Readers' Question ... Lissa P., Ontario: Do you relate to your characters a lot? Are they like you, because they seem so real and believable.

Harley Jane Kozak: THANKS! That is a really lovely thing to hear. I do relate to my main characters -- not the minor ones, so much, as some of them are just for fun. But with my main characters, I try to use as much of my inner life as possible because that's the thing I want to explore in my writing. I usually go through a phase where things get really serious in my books, and then in the next draft, the seriousness gets undercut with humor, or overlaid with humor or something, but at heart I'm a romantic. I'd love to make people weep. That's my dark secret.

Rob Holden: Thanks for answering those. I have been holding Rochelle back from interrupting the readers questions but now ....

Harley Jane Kozak: Hit it, Rochelle!

Rochelle Krich: There's an element of zaniness, a la Evanovich, but more heart. At Left Coast Crime a fan came up to you with a video of one of your earliest works in film. Can you tell us about that?

Harley Jane Kozak: Uh-oh. I'm trying to remember. Can you get more specific? I just finished touring, where I was handed two DVDs of old TV stuff, so now I'm blanking out.

Rochelle Krich: Me, too!

Harley Jane Kozak: No clues at all?

Rochelle Krich: As Emily Latella would say...Never mind.

Harley Jane Kozak: Was it a cheesy cover?

Rochelle Krich: I think it was in the horror genre...

Harley Jane Kozak: Aha! Wait! . . .The House on Sorority Row? The Android Affair?

Rochelle Krich: That's the one! Do you feel more vulnerable because people have seen you in film? Do you think they assume they know "the other or the real Harley?"

Harley Jane Kozak: The House On . . . was my first feature. Really scary, and I don't mean that in a good way. . . Scary for me to revisit, not scary for the audience to watch, necessarily. I was killed by a cane, with a pointed end which came through the sun-roof of the mini-van I was driving and I was the 4th of 7 sorority girls to die (I think) and so if that's the REAL Harley, I guess I'm in big trouble!

Rob Holden: You mentioned earlier that you were reading this year's Agatha Award nominees. Sizing up the competition?

Harley Jane Kozak: Yes! And it's daunting, because they're darn good, every one. I'm on #3. The good news is, if my book doesn't win, I won't feel I was robbed!

Rob Holden: And the book that is nominated is ...?

Harley Jane Kozak: Oh! My first, Dating Dead Men, which is up for best first novel. It's sad that only once in your career can you be in that category. From now on, I have to go against the Heavyweights. Rochelle, e.g.

Rochelle Krich: Good luck, Harley! I'll be rooting for you from L.A.

Rob Holden: And is there somewhere on the web where our readers can find out more about that, as well as you and your touring schedule?

Harley Jane Kozak: Thanks! Oh -- yes. My website is www.harleyjanekozak.com . Oh, and not that Rochelle is overweight. She's a toothpick.

Rob Holden: So -- what is next for Harley Jane Kozak -- writing wise, that is?

Harley Jane Kozak: I'm working simultaneously on Wollie #3, and also a new series, a spin-off, to use a TV term, with one of Wollie's friends as the protagonist. And I just finished a short story.

Rob Holden: Before we wrap this up, I would like to thank Rachel Pace at Random House Publicity for all her help making this happen.

Harley Jane Kozak: Me too. Rachel Pace is a doll. The unsung heroine of the entire publishing industry.

Rob Holden: Finally Harley, is there anything you would like to say to your fans who may read this at ReadersRoom.com?

Harley Jane Kozak: Wow. This feels like an Oscar speech. Or a State of the Union address. . .

Rochelle Krich: If I win...

Harley Jane Kozak: ... or a campaign speech . . . Yes . . .Good grief! What can I possibly say that won't make me sound like a publicity machine? Um, hope you like my books, and buy lots!

Rob Holden: Harley Jane Kozak, thanks for joining us here today -- and best of luck with the Agatha, and all your future projects!

Harley Jane Kozak: Thanks!




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