I am happy to have Jon Merz here today to talk about his new book, The Kensei.

Who is Jon Merz? Give us the low down. Are you really a ninja? ;)

Well, to answer your question: technically, yes.  I’ve been studying authentic ninjutsu for over 20 years now and hold a 5th degree black belt in the art that I earned directly from the 34th Grandmaster during a trip to Japan in February 2003.  I continue to study with my teacher, Mark Davis of the Boston Martial Arts Center in Allston, MA and hope to train in the art until they cart my poor body away when I finally kick.  :) 

I grew up loving to read and devoured pretty much every genre imaginable.  Eventually, I started wanting to write, but it wasn’t until after I got out of the Air Force/government work that I had more time to devote to it.  So, while working in private sector security, I had the opportunity to use my downtime to start writing.  I took every advantage of it until they fired me for storing my 90,000 word novel on the company’s computer, heh heh…

Besides the fangs and the drinking of blood, is Lawson similar to you?

Lawson is definitely similar to me.  He’s got a lot of my personality: low tolerance for bullshit or pretentious people, respect for those who aren’t afraid to bust their ass on a daily basis in order to achieve their dreams, a love of risk taking, women, and a good strong drink.  But Lawson is also his own character and as he’s grown over the course of the series, it’s nice to see him developing his own unique slant on life that isn’t simply me injecting myself into the storyline.  Developing a character can be a lot like being a parent: in the early years the kids can mimic their folks, but eventually they develop their own personalities and hopefully contribute to society.

Although The Kensei has a romantic storyline, it is predominantly an action book. When writing The Kensei, did you think about appealing to the romance reading community? Why should readers of Smexy Books pick this one up?

I think romance readers might enjoy The Kensei because of the fact that Talya and Lawson have a very unique relationship.  It’s not a fairy tale type thing.  I strive for realism in my action scenes, but also in the way their relationship develops.  Talya is her own woman, every bit the equal of Lawson, and while she loves him, she still has her own agenda.  She doesn’t sell herself short for anyone and if that means they aren’t always together, then she’s okay with that.  I think she knows deep down that in the end, no matter the distance or separation, they’ll always have what they have.  And for Lawson, the reality of his life doesn’t permit him to simply say, "okay, that’s it, let’s get the house and white picket fence."  he’s got to deal with the ramifications of what he does and who he loves.  It’s a complex, variable relationship that I think speaks to readers on a lot of emotional levels.

Although Lawson is a vampire, his actions and thoughts are really quite human. What made you choose to create him as a vampire?

Lawson was born in the pages of a short story I wrote called "Past Imperfect."  When I had people read it and suggest turning it into a novel, I knew I had to do something different.  At the time (back around ’00-’01) there were already a LOT of vampire books out there.  So the task before me was to create a book that was different enough.  But Lawson, at the very start, wasn’t supposed to be anything more than an experimental short story.  Obviously, he’s so much more than that now.

I hear The Lawson series may be turned into a television series. This must be a very exciting experience – what can you tell us?

I’ve formed an independent production company with my good friend Jaime Hassett to develop the series into a TV show.  I’ll be writing all the episodes so there’s continuity between the books and TV – I want fans to be able to read the books or watch the show and not have to switch gears.  We’re hoping to shoot the pilot within the next month or so, although we’re still looking for some investors to help round out our pool of backers.  We have a terrific cast & crew and this is being produced entirely outside of the Hollywood system.  The entire production will be based in New England and once we have the pilot done, we’ll start shopping the broadcast rights.  We already have tentative interest from a number of places.  We just need to find a few more backer and we’ll be off!

Do you listen to music as you write?

All the time.  Usually when I write I switch on a lot of dance music.  There are no words so I won’t be tempted to sing (badly) along.  And as much as I love old school Rap, I can’t play that at all because the words get into my head and on to the page, lol…but yeah, I have to have music.  I love it.

Here at Smexy Books, I like to talk about my lust for fictional men. Is there a fictional heroine that has ever caught your eye?

I have a fondness for femme fatale types from the old hardboiled private eye novels.  Nothing like a classy beauty equipped with a pistol and thigh highs to get the old blood boiling!

In The Kensei, Lawson and Talya start to contemplate their future and maybe wanting a more sedate lifestyle. Is Lawson headed there? What is up next for him and Talya?

Lawson is very much an idealist, as much as a cynic as he is.  He always likes to imagine a brighter tomorrow.  But the real question for him is: if he suddenly found himself there, would he be able to cope with the lack of action?  I tend to think not.  And Talya is very much the same.  As fond as she is of children, I don’t know that she could ever switch off what she does.  But they certainly like to imagine they could.  So who knows?  We might find them living down in a retirement community some day.  But I doubt it.  :)

Do you have plans to write any other series? What’s up next for you?

I’m pretty much everywhere.  I write on the Rogue Angel series fro Harlequin/Gold Eagle.  I’ve penned eleven of those books and have a blast doing so.  I have a MG/YA boys adventure series I’m polishing up and I also have plans to spin Talya off into her own series.  I also have a fantasy sword & sorcery series called Ninja that I’d like to find a home for.  And I’m very active in the ebook publishing world now as well.  I just uploaded the entire Lawson Vampire backlist to both the Kindle and the Nook sites, so fans can go and read all of the adventures: five novels, a novella, and five short stories (so far).  Lots of fun!

Also, I’m running a contest for folks who pick up a paperback copy of THE KENSEI.  Forward me your receipt to: thekenseicontest@gmail.com and you’ll entered for a chance to win the sword we used in the book trailer as wielded by the actor who will playing Lawson in the TV series.  If you haven’t seen the trailer yet, please check it out here: 

Thanks so much Jon! Today, Jon is giving away a signed copy of the Kensei to one lucky commenter. To enter, just leave a comment. Giveaway open to US/Canada through February 5th. Please leave a valid email address.