Atty's Attic: Jennifer Parr visits my attic.

I was doing a little rearranging up here in the attic when Jennifer Parr came knocking on my door. I'll put her to work but first, ice tea and Cheez-Its.

Who are you and where did you come from?

My name is Jennifer Parr and I am a proud military brat. I was born in England, moving around the UK before coming to the US at the age of three. Following tradition, I too joined the military, then my husband did as well. Right now, I live in California, but even as we speak I am in the process of moving. To Utah.

Obviously you’re a writer, what is the name of your book and the general plot?

The first book in my Avalon Valley trilogy is Tortuous Shadows, in which outcast Aria Morgan is faced with the grim reality that if she does not find love and bear a child, she will soon die. She has accepted this fate many times over, but she doesn’t expect village newcomer Liam Trey to walk into her life and turn her world, and her future, upside down.

Where did you come up with the idea?

Unable to fall asleep, of course - isn’t that just the way it is? So as I lay there I wondered what the world would be like if there had never been a set of twins before, and what their lives would be like – would they be cherished, or hated? – and the concept grew from there. Halfway into it, I decided there had to be something special in place of the word twin, and after some research, I chose to go with Dviinu (which is simply twin in Latvian).

Which of your characters do you like the most and why?

All of my characters, even the mean and nasty ones, hold a place in my heart, but I’ve always identified with Aria the most, from not having a father to feeling invisible to wishing for a future so bright it rivals the sun. My brother actually had to stop reading my book because I reminded him too much of Aria that it made certain scenes a bit…awkward.-- I bet!

Which one do you hate the most and why?

There’s a particularly menacing character, Everett, that is just plain creepy. He’s not so much a presence in the story as an idea, and the idea of him is chilling all on its own.

You’re stranded on an island and you are granted three things;

An IPod with only one song loaded, what is it?

Really, anything from Mumford and Sons and I’d be a happy little islander.

A book with the last chapter missing, what is it and who wrote it?

The Scorpio Races, by Maggie Stiefvater, that way I can keep the story going in my head and it never has to end. (Read it if you haven’t)

And a lunchbox with a sandwich and a full thermos, yummy, what kind of sandwich and drink would you appreciate?

I’ve always said I can’t live without milk, so what’s better with milk than PB&J?

What is the biggest mistake you have made in your life? Not writing or publishing mistake – any mistake. Even if it happened in 3^rd grade, I wanna know about it.

Don’t laugh…Are you ready for this? I didn’t learn how to drive until I was almost thirty. I know, it’s crazy, but something always kept me from learning and I really regret that I waited so long. (If my husband were here, he’d be nodding his head in that I-told-you-so sort of way)

Thirty? Really? Wow, after all those years of studying I sure hope you got 100% on the test.

What would you do for a Klondike bar?

Why does wrestling a polar bear come to mind? But seriously, I’ve never had one, so I can’t say I’d necessarily go to any extremes for one.

You’re still stranded on that island and two people show up, the character you love the most, and the one you hate the most, and they both know what you said about them. What do you do?

Grab Aria’s hand and run!

That's a scary answer - you're on an island, there are only so many places you can hide.

Flash round favorites:

Color: RED Yeah, I just thought I'd mess with ya.

Sound: RAIN

Season: FALL

Animal: HORSE

Smell: RAIN

Food: CHICKEN PARMESAN

Place to visit: AUSTRALIA

Place to live: MY HUSBAND AND I DID A TOUR OF ITALY LAST SUMMER AND AS WE DROVE THROUGH THE HILLS OF TUSCANY, WE DAYDREAMED ABOUT A LIFE THERE.

Movie: A WALK TO REMEMBER

Alien: JAR JAR BINKS --- To all my readers/Star wars fans, I don't want hate mail about this. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion

Number: 7 or 28

Writing spot: SOON, AN OFFICE, WHICH I CANNOT WAIT TO PAINT AND DECORATE.

Texture: DOES A CHINCHILLA COUNT? yup

Planet: WAIT, WHICH PLANET DOES JAR JAR BINKS LIVE ON?

And last of all, favorite memory:

My wedding day, nearly fifteen years ago. Awwwwww.

Anything else you would like to add?

This is a bit random, but I am terribly claustrophobic. Once, I was locked in a walk-in freezer at work. It wasn’t fun. Also, I love horses. I used to ride in gymkhanas (barrel racing, pole bending, that sort of thing). And that’s it for my facts of randomness. Unless you want to hear more…

We always want more but you ate all my Cheez-Its so I'm kicking you out!