Featured Interview With K.B. Jensen
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was raised in snowy Minneapolis, Minnesota and currently live in Chicago in a little neighborhood called Hyde Park near the lakefront. It makes living in the city feel like living in a small town sometimes. I love my neighborhood.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
The reading obsession started in second grade. I used to stay up all night reading books when I was a kid.
I got my first journal when I was seven years old. It was blue and plastic with ringed pages that you could refill. I wanted one with a lock on it but my mom was pinching pennies at the time. I wrote a short story in third grade and won a guinea pig named Patches in a writing contest. My teacher used to send me to the principal’s office to read my stuff. I’ve been lucky. I had so many good teachers over the years.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Some of my favorite authors include J.R.R. Tolkien, Paolo Coehlo and William Goldman. I love a lot of different genres, whether it’s literary, science fiction or a good mystery, and I don’t limit myself to any one genre when I’m writing or reading.
I grew up reading Agatha Christie novels and they’ve definitely influenced me. I like laying out a cast of characters and giving the reader the option to pick one. But I also tried to break out of the murder mystery formula with Painting With Fire, to get away from the mold. It’s told from the perspective of the neighbors rather than a traditional detective or sleuth. Other authors inspire me, but mostly it’s the people in my life who I love, people I’ve met along the way and interesting characters.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
Painting With Fire is an artistic murder mystery with a hint of romance. It took me four years to write it. It was like arranging a giant puzzle.
It’s a tale of murder in the Windy City, reckless justice and love without trust. It all starts with Claudia Wilson, a woman down on her luck living with a stranger, an artist named Tom. After the two of them discover a body on the street corner, buried in a snow bank, Claudia becomes obsessed with the murder and the fact that her roommate is not telling her everything about his past. While police search for the killer in her building, she wonders if she should be searching for a new roommate.
Claudia learns everything she can about the neighbors, as well as Tom. In the end, she makes a startling discovery. When art and violence collide, the results can be explosive.
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