Make Me Cry

It's funny, I have just spend the last 3 days marathon writing whilst sitting at my kitchen table in the most uncomfortable chair I have and what is the first thing that I do? I sit back the heck down and write a blog at the kitchen table in my godawfully uncomfortable chair. And then I'm gonna write something else. Why? Because it's all I know how to do.

Now that I have that out of the way, give me a moment, please, to express my elation one last time.

I completed Camp Nano session 1 last night. I crossed the 50,000 word finish line and I completed the novel that had been scratching away at my mind like a rodent for some time.

High fives and slurpees all around.

Yes, this is going to be another blog about the book that has been plaguing me for months. Deal with it.

I feel like I have had a great weight lifted from my body.

I have written 10 books to completion, one film script, three television scripts, several comic scripts and a multitude of short stories but never have I felt anything to rewarding as finishing this book.

This book has been an extension of my life since I came up with the idea just after November of last year. It has been slowly eating away at my brain for months and I finally sat down to write it.

I am very proud of this book. This book has been a difficult thing to write. I started out doing research for it by checking all sorts of gross medical stuff and learning about the doctor side of things. When I sat down to write, I realized that I didn't actually need all of that stuff, and the book really began to take on a life of it's own.

Finishing it now, I can tell you that it is the same story that I originally set out to tell, but it's not presented the same way that I had originally wanted. It sort of evolved as I sat down to write it, in a good way.

I've said it before, I am usually a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of writer. USUALLY. I'm perfectly happy to sit and plan a story and write down all my plot points and blah blah blah. This time I did a little bit of both and I am really happy with the way it turned out.

This book was extremely difficult for me to write. It deals entirely with my main character contracting an illness and suffering in the hospital. I'm not going to tell you much more than that.

When I set out to write it, it was told from the first person point of view of my main protagonist as she was getting treated in the hospital. As I wrote, I suddenly developed this character into more than what I had originally set out to do. And her relationships with people. Her parents suddenly became thse fully fleshed out characters, as did her doctor. I didn't originally set out to write it that way, but it just felt to be the natural progression of the story.

The scary thing I found, is that I got amazing attached to my character "Zero". As I was writing the final chapters, I found myself crying more than once. I had to stop and remove myself completely from the story before I could go on.

I really hope that my passion and that level of commitment to "Zero" shows and I hope that I can illicit the same response from my readers.

It's been a really emotionally draining month.

And now that it's done?

I couldn't be happier with it.

So now it's off being critiqued and beta read by my friends and I want all the feedback I can get.

I'm taking this one all the way.

But for now, I need a nap.

Kai Kiriyama is going to spend the next three days sleeping.
If you need to reach her, email her at thekiriyamaheir@gmail.com or find her on Twitter @thekiriyamaheir

A moment to ramble...

No. It's definitely a weird day.

I tried to write this blog a couple of different times. I had a different topic for each one. I've lost count of how many it was now, three or four at least.

And nothing seemed to be what I wanted to write about.

I had some interesting points to make but every time I sat down to write one of these topics, the idea and the words just dissipated like fog in the sunlight. I figure that it's a good thing because if I was passionate about any of the topics that I was about to blog about, then I wouldn't have forgotten them, and I would be writing about those topics instead.

So I'm sitting here feeling all weirded out by the fact that today has been a strange day for me. Just in general. Nothing specific.

I suppose that it's partly from the frantic drive I've instilled in myself to hammer out my novel. I'm still working on it, and I'm still loving every word of it. I hammered out 11,000 words yesterday in about 4.5 hours. Today, I have not written that much (as of me posting this blog, I'm sitting at a less impressive but no less shabby 4500 or so words) but I did do some reading and light editing for content and continuity on this story. While it's usually a no-no, I'm gonna chalk it up to productivity, and the need for it as I have not been writing in a linear fashion.

This novel has been weird for me too. I mean, it's a hard topic to write about. I'm in love with my character and I have essentially been slowly murdering her, which is really hard for me.  I've killed characters off in stories before, but that was usually in a fight. Never in a slow deteriorating way like a disease before. This is a new, horribly painful experience for me.

And I haven't been writing it the way I usually do, which adds to the weirdness.

On the other hand, writing whichever chapter inspires me at the moment has really given life and substance to my writing that I otherwise wouldn't have had. It's kind of nice that way, actually. I have some characters who have arrived and become fleshed out creations where originally, they weren't going to be much more than one-dimensional fillers.

So there's that, too.

And speaking of editing while I'm still working on it, I discovered that my pacing and story telling structure have still remained relatively familiar. And the pacing is really quite good, in my opinion. That's the goal, yeah? To have a pace that doesn't make it boring? My subject isn't terribly interesting -- who wants to read a medical drama? (House got canceled, remember!) And I'm definitely no Michael Crichton. It's not my strong suit, but damn it all if this wasn't a story I wanted to tell.

Sorry this blog is weird. I just need to ramble a bit. Because right now, I'm looking at a 13.5 k word deficit to make up the 50k minimum to complete my novel and my goal and I am stuck. I've lost my drive, I've lost my inspiration. I figured I just needed to let some thoughts out to make room for the novel.

And to share my frustration with you all.

Also, I should thank the JuNoWriMo guys over on twitter. (@JuNoWriMo) for running word sprints and really putting that support out ther ein real time and motivating me to get my word count up in an excellent and timely manner.

Right, well, thanks for reading this ramble. I'm gonna get back to my book.

xoxoxo
-Kai

More about the Battle of Camp Session 1

I am going insane. If I wasn't already insane, I'm at least a few steps closer.

This Camp NaNoWriMo book is going to be the death of me! Ha! Funny that I'm writing a book about a person in a hospital and I'm claiming that it's gonna kill me. Is that irony? Or just coincidence? Probably the latter. I think irony would be if I actually did die. And that would suck.

Okay, linguistic stuff aside, I'm really having a hell of a time with this thing! I just can't find my motivation to go on with it, to keep plugging away. I mean, I'm motivated, but the words don't wanna flow as nicely or as easily as usual. And it's frustrating me to no end.

But I think that I've figured out why it is that I'm struggling so hard.

In my area, when November rolls around and we all sit down to do the usual NaNoWriMo session, there are all sorts of wonderful plans and events made by our intrepid MLs, Xanateria and Naiya. We go have food and fun and hang out together and support each other and we do word wars and earn prizes and stuff. Plus, there's an online chat room for just us in Calgary. Plus, there's the NaNoWriMo forums open too.

There's just so much support!!

I find that Camp NaNo, while it's still technically in it's infancy, lacks that support. And it's not because of anything, aside from the fact that it's only the second year that they've run a Camp session.

And this isn't to say that there are literally no supports. One of the girls in Calgary has chosen to take on the responsibility of running a weekly meet-up. Unfortunately for me, this meet-up is on the other side of the city, in a restaurant. I don't like to sit in restaurants and not order anything, even if there's a group of people eating. Especially then. As it is, I can't afford to drive across the city every week and I certainly can't afford to eat out (because it wouldn't just be me, the boy-thing would be joining me.) And, as much as I love the group, I have a few issues I need to work out on a personal level, with some of the members of the group.

(I wonder if the other parties involved realize that I have a few issues with them?)

And the internet chat room for just us Calgary wrimos is still open, but I find that it's a lot more distracting than helpful. My iPhone is distracting enough! I have games and twitter on that thing, I don't need a chat room too.

But on the other hand, maybe I DO need that chat room? Maybe I DO need that little push and that support to complete my 50,000 word goal by the end of the month?

I'm going to finish this novel. That isn't the question and it's not up for debate.

The question is am I gonna make the 50,000 word goal by month-end?

I think that regardless of if you THINK you need it, having the supports of other people working towards the same goal as you and being able to talk it out and get the cheers and tears from your friends and peers, it really does make a big difference.

Would I change my experience this month? No. Do I think I miss the meet-ups and stuff that we have in November? Yes. But do I need that support all the time? In some ways, definitely. And I sincerely recommend building a bit of a circle of people who will support you in all of your writing endeavors because it does help.

And if you want it, email me or find me on twitter. I'll support you while you write!

Take her up on her inivitation!
Kai on Twitter: @thekiriyamaheir
Kai's email: thekiriyamaheir@gmail.com

Vote of Confidence

I'm struggling today. It's never a good feeling.

I feel like I've lost all motivation, all drive and all determination to write anything.

So I decide to blog, go figure.

I think that if I get my thoughts out of my head and into the aether of the Internet, maybe I will motivate myself somehow to get back into the swing of writing.

As my mom would say, "I have lost my na-na" (because na-na is the quicker way to say "je ne c'est quois" in an anglophone family of chronic insomniacs!)

I'm not gonna lie. Part of it has been brought on by myself. I have been taking on extra responsibilities. I've been slacking, I've been less than motivated to write anything. I have gotten in too deep within my character's psyche and have spiraled into a depression. I was depressed beforehand.  I let video games hold my interest longer than I should have. I've been really under the weather, struggling with my joints and migraines. All sorts of things have come between me and my project.

And yet I see all of these reasons and to me they are just excuses.

I take full responsibility for it, however. These excuses? They're all just excuses. I didn't HAVE to play video games for three hours. I could have written the 1,667 words every day, that's usually about 30 minutes of work for me. I could have sat down first thing in the morning, written my words, done my exercise and had breakfast before I got started on my other responsibilities for the day. But I didn't. And I fully accept that. I have brought this all upon myself.

This isn't to say that I'm stressing out about it at all.

On the contrary.

I choose to do the NaNoWriMo events as an exercise for myself, for my mind, for my creativity and for my discipline. It takes 30 days to make something a habit, and the goal of NaNo events are not only to write a 50,000 word novel in a month, but also to reinforce the idea that if you write a little bit every day, it will soon become a habit, and that habit ideally will stick with you throughout the year.

Anyway, I am so far behind to make up the 50,000 words. I'm still just over 13,000 and I have 10 days to make up the 37,000 words and finish my novel.

Am I going to do it? I don't currently know. I want to do it. And I am damn well going to TRY to do it. I have the utmost faith in myself and in my novel. I know that it'll be worth it when I'm finished. I just have to pull up my skirt, and put my writer pants on. It's usually easy for me to just go and write. But this is different. Still, I know that it's something that I have to do. Not just for myself... actually, yeah, it's mostly for myself. It's about my pride and my creativity.

I'm going to be selfish and greedy about it. It's about MY work. MY pride. MY creativity. MY motivation. MY future career. ME ME ME ME.

To Hell with the critics. To Hell with people wanting to edit/beta for me. To Hell with the subject matter. To Hell with it all.

This is about me. This is about the book I want to write, about the story I wanna tell. This is about finishing the story that I think is interesting, greedy and selfish as it may sound, I'm not writing for anyone else this time 'round.

Realistically though, is there anyone else that you should be writing for in the long run?

On Shameless Self-Promotion & Networking

Today has been a pretty boring day. But interesting nonetheless.

I've gotten up and left my house, for once, ha! I was invited to my mom's place for a hangout and stuff. I of course bring my laptop, knowing that I have some work to do and that I will likely have a better chance to work at my mom's house.

Ha. I should know better than that.

I spent my day -- from 10:30 this morning -- helping my mom and her business partner learn the ins and outs of social media and networking. It's now 4:15 p.m. as I'm writing this.

It's been a very long day. Not because I've been sitting at the computer, I'm used to this. What I'm not used to is teaching others how to use the computer in ways that I'm so used to doing already.

I've always been a little bit critical of myself as a teacher. I'm not very good at teaching to start, and I'm nowhere near as patient as I should be.

But I taught them how to use Twitter, how to get a Facebook for their business and how to host their website/blog thing. It was productive.

What's really difficult, however, is telling them HOW to promote them selves. HOW to make their Facebook work. and HOW to make their Twitter useful.

And that's not really something that you can teach, is it?

You need  to figure out the focus of what you want to present. You need to decide what it is that you want to get out of your social networking. For me, I want to promote my writing, promote my blog, and to talk with like-minded individuals as we all make our way into the world of being published as writers.

It's a scary journey, but when you figure out what you want to get from your social networking, it makes the journey that much more bearable, right?

And of course, it's really not something that you can teach. It's something that you have to figure out for yourself.

Thinking About Writing...

I'm currently in the middle of Camp NaNoWriMo session 1. If you're familiar with me, then you already know what NaNoWriMo is.

If you're not, let me sum it up: NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month. The goal is to produce a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. In November. It's a free program, you can find the info at the NaNoWriMo website.  

Camp NaNo is the same thing, just in June. Session 2 begins in August. You oughta try it. Really.

Usually, I will write a 50,000 word novel is about 8 days. Assuming I have allotted myself the time to do it, and have built a bit of an outline, it can take less time. I write a lot. I write fast. My average is normally 1400 words in 15 minutes. That's 5200 words in an hour. Not that I can actually write that much in an hour. After a bit, the words start to taper off and it becomes a matter of making the plot work. (My record for a day is 20,000 words in 8 hours of writing interrupted by the Internet, chats online and food.)

But this time is different.

I have allotted myself the same time to write this month as I have in November. I've stopped most of my other hobbies. I don't have 3 separate jobs. I'm not getting ready for a convention. There's no reason why I shouldn't be done the novel already.

However, I'm sitting at 12,000 words when I should be at at least 25,000 to be on track to finish on time.

I sit down at my computer and am unable to write. I stare at the words and they don't want to flow from my fingers like magic, like they usually do.

It's frustrating.

I'm not usually a planner. Usually, I have a vague idea and then I sit to write it and the words begin to flow. Usually I'm what we NaNo'ers call a 'pantser', one who flies by the seat of one's pants. Last year During November, however, I planned my works. I ended up writing over 150,000 words.

And this brings me to my point.

I wrote my first novel in 8 days or so. I have since gone back to reread and edit it. I love my story. It's unique, it's spunky, it's amazing, it blends genres you wouldn't expect to blend... And I hate it. There is nothing really salvageable about it! The entire thing needs a rewrite. A major, massive rewrite. And I'm pissed off about it!! Why did I write so many words last year? Because I was competing with someone else who ended up writing 300,000 words.

I pity that person. If my perfectly planned, plotted and outlined works suck that hard, I can't imagine what HERS must be like.  I'm pissed because I basically wasted an entire month. The story needs a complete rewrite. Why did I bother then? I have to rewrite it anyway, I might as well have taken my time.

I'm not gonna lie either, I'm suffering a little bit of self-doubt. I had a very bad experience with a critique group earlier in the year. I was kicked out because I had familial duties to attend to and my loyalty was to helping my mom and my sister -- who was sick at the time and looking at surgery -- one night instead of attending the critique group. I offered to email or to meet with them another night but I got a email telling me that I was unwelcome if my priorities were not to the group.

In retrospect, it's a damn good thing I was kicked out because my writing style is not what they want in their group. In retrospect, the critique group is essentially trying to make all their novels sound the same. And that's not the point. The point is to improve your skills, not to sound like everyone else.

Coming away from that now, I'm VERY comfortable with my writing style. I love the way my words sound. I love the way my story flows. My NaNo novel that needs to be rewritten? Yeah, it's partly because I was using it in the critique group and their standards significantly changed the way my story flows.

But I'm a little off my point right now. (Thank you for indulging me in that rant.)

The point is about the speed writing that I'm usually really good at, the need for rewrites and the flow of words.

If you remember about four months ago (maybe six? I can't remember anymore.) I wrote a blog about how to deal with a story that was emotionally draining to write etc. Well, that's what I'm writing now. I've completely started over. Not that there was much to start over from. Just a few sentences and an idea.

Now I'm writing this book and the words are less flowing than I usually like. But I think that's okay.

This story is gonna be 50,000 words. I don't think that I can draw it out any longer than that. It's written from the first person perspective and drawing it out any longer is going to make it become repetitive and boring. If it wasn't my intent to submit it later, I'd make it shorter and plug it as a novella. It might end up as a novella, not gonna lie. And I'll start a second book to get to the 50,000 word mark for Camp NaNo.

The point of this all is that I went back to read my 12,000 words of this story.

I love them.

Like, love love LOVE these words. They are amazing, well thought out, well put together words. Editing is going to be a breeze when it's done. I've never felt this way about a book. Everything just fell together so well thus far. I'm amazed. And impressed with myself.

Is it because of my slow and steady attitude? I dunno. Is it because this book is so hard and so emotionally draining to write? Maybe. I think that subconsciously I know that the less time I have to spend picking at this wound of a book I've created, the better it'll be for my mental health in the long run. So the words are flowing slowly but beautifully and eloquently.

I just hope that my editors and beta readers feel the same way!

If You Can't Say Anything Nice...

Before I begin, I'm gonna warn you that my language may not be the most civil right now. I'm very angry, need to rant and I don't give a good goddamn about cussing being the "crutch of the inarticulate." Sometimes, cuss words are just what you need to utter to express yourself because "sugar" and "darn" don't work.

Also, free speech. Deal with it. On to my rant.

I have ranted about the childish nature of the Internet before. And I can't seem to get out of this habit of bringing it back to the forefront of my mind.

But a friend of mine is having an issue with childishness and stupidity through interactions on the Internet.

Basically, she writes a blog about her job, which is unconventional in the sense that she is a PSO. She's a lovely woman, I admire her very much and I think she is brilliant. She also puts my blog writing to shame because she edits hers and makes her thoughts far more coherently than I do.

Anyway, she got an unsolicited critique and generally had a negative interaction with someone on the Internet. She blogged about it and for you to understand why I'm ranting, you need to go read her story in her own words. 

This is the blog post.

Go read it or else you won't understand why this has pissed me off so much.

All right, so I love Twitter. I love the Blog-with-ADD aspect of it -- I only get 140 characters at a time to rant with, so I have to be more concise, or write 10 Tweets to get the point across. Ha ha! I love the community it (can) build(s). I love that I can interact with people all over the world in "real time". I love the public aspect of it. It's great.

I ESPECIALLY love the fact that it is used 99% for shameless self promotion.

Why do I love that part the most? Because I can shamelessly promote myself. I got a job writing for Zombie Training Magazine because I used Twitter, first to promote myself, secondly to find people with my interests, third because SOMEONE ELSE MENTIONED IT and I began to follow the magazine. You probably found your way here because of one of three reasons: you know me in real-life, or through one of the various Internet forums that I frequent, because you found me/saw me on Twitter or Facebook either on your own or through a mutual acquaintance, or because of the reply I posted on the aforementioned blog.

If you're here because of that third reason, hello. Welcome to my little corner of the Internet. I hope you're reading this and actually paying attention because I don't like repeating myself.

As you can see if you've read the blog I've posted (with permission from the author, thank you) there is a sudden interest in the contents of said blog. And the comments beneath attempt to devalue one person's feelings, demonize one, if not both of the parties, and generally cause an ubiquitous amount of arguing over who is right.

And this is what pisses me off.

The comments begin as civilized conversation but quickly devolve into shit-slinging and childish name-calling. Some (if not most) of the parties are actively trying to devalue the blog writer's feelings and perceptions by claiming that the context was lost in a TEXT ONLY comment. Then they go on to say that the same TEXT ONLY conversation was a misunderstanding and that this whole thing was an overreaction.

I'm not sorry. You're a goddamn idiot.

Meanings behind words in a conversation without the subtleties of facial expression, body language and tone of voice is very difficult to comprehend a lot of the time. Especially through text, email or forum posts. And that is doubly true on Twitter. (With only 140 characters I'm surprised that I haven't offended more people constantly!) Living as a normal person and being attuned to those subtle clues, and knowing how to read them in person, is what makes having a conversation an art form. When you lose all of those things, you are left with only the words, and only words can be manipulated, misconstrued and misunderstood, depending on the PERCEPTION of the person reading them. Not to mention the context of the words, and other outside influences.

For example. If I was to say 'fuck' right now (kind of like I just did) how would you take it? I was just writing a word. You don't know if I'm exhausted, angry, sad, exasperated... I could have just hurt myself and cussed to alleviate my own pain. I could have been "multitasking" and just got some bad news. I could be outright trying to insult you with my vulgarity.  Or I could just really like to say that word.

The point is that you don't know what my mood and meaning is behind the TEXT you just read and without my own personal subtle clues in my voice and body language etc. you are left with your own PERCEPTIONS. And that's okay.

If you choose to leave a comment and say "Kai, you really offended me when you said f*ck just there. I think it's vulgar and you should choose a different word to express yourself in the future." I'll accept that. But my initial response is usually "fuck off" followed by, "I wasn't TRYING to offend you. I just like saying fuck when I'm trying to get a point across. It's as good a word as any."

If you are offended by it then that is what you are PERCEIVING. There's no reason for me to vilify that. There's no need for me to demonize you for being offended. And there is certainly no reason to go on a rampage in the comments section. I wasn't attacking you and I wasn't directing my cussing at you. It's a word. It's my way of expressing my thoughts. It's also very easy to take out of context. Cuss words are ESPECIALLY easy to take out of context in our society where cussing is as much a part of everyday life (to some people) as breathing is.

Interactions online can't become a he said/she said situation. When it does, and when it devolves into a general witch hunt because of words that may or may not have been misinterpreted, we have a problem as a society.

Furthermore, unsolicited critiques and vague, dismissive statements like "not my cup of tea", are NEVER welcome. As a writer, I want to know what you think, that's why there's a comments section. But I don't need a breakdown of every sentence. I don't want your critiques if you're just reading in passing. I want thought-provoking conversation unless otherwise stated.

And really, If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. I'd rather live with the anonymity of who is reading my blog than have to deal with your PERCEPTIONS, even if they are mislaid.

 

Zombie Contingency 1

I am a fiction author. You probably already know that. I'm currently working on a couple of zombie novels. Zombie Apocalypse and survival-horror are a couple of passions of mine. I love it, I can't get enough of it.

So this awesome obsession of mine leads me to think about what I would do in a Zombie Apocalypse scenario. It's an interesting topic of discussion and debate, especially among my family and friends. I have heard the most bizarre ideas from friends and family alike - the most insane one so far being that one of my friends suggested strapping dynamite or IEDs to his party and putting them on dead man's switches so that if that party member was ever compromised or in an inescapable situation, they could suicide-bomb themselves and save the group by taking out their own infected self and hopefully a horde of zombies at the same time.

Insane, but interesting. I for one am not going to be on that team if I can help it.

Ideally you would be prepared for the Zombies and you would have a base and provisions and whatever else, just like they did in the wars. But despite that ideal situation, most of my friends have decided that they would scavenge after the fact. There's no debate among most of my friends about what weapons are the best or where they would go. They're all about the melee, blunted or sharp, doesn't matter, and no one I know of has ever actually shot a gun. Except me. Everyone seems convinced that nomadic lifestyles are the best in the Zombie Apocalypse.

And I guess that if I was going to be honest, I'm not well prepared enough (as of this posting anyway) to survive a Zombie Apocalypse if it were to happen within the next month. If it happened tomorrow (and with the way the news stories have been reading lately, I wouldn't at all be surprised if it did) I would be pretty screwed. For one, I'm not at home as I'm writing this. I'm on vacation and I don't have my weapons with me. Except for my brand new slingshot and my pocket knife. While I'm relatively good with them, I'd still prefer to have my other things as well. I don't have a tent or sleeping bag or any other camping gear with me. I have running shoes, but not hiking/camping/steel toed boots. I'm very ill equipped here.

But for me, that would be all right.

In case of a Zombie Apocalypse, I certainly wouldn't be out looting and shooting in the first 72 hours. I'm all about the dig in deep mentality. My first act would be to fortify my house.

I'm building a 72 hour emergency kit with enough food and water to last the first 72 hours of any emergency. The CDC and all other agencies similar always tell you to have one ready, in case of any emergency or natural disaster. Dried food, water, candles, flashlights, blankets, medical gear etc. are all supposed to be inside these kits. And I think that is a damn good idea for anyone to have! Even if the Zombie Apocalypse doesn't happen right away, if it does, then you've got enough of a stockpile for 3 days. And if there's a fire or earthquake or something else and the power goes out and you're stranded, at least you have the emergency kit to get you through the first 3 days.

I know that a lot of people will go insane when the Zombies start showing up, there will be riots, and a mass Exodus and people fighting and killing and getting eaten. The military will show up, things will essentially go to Hell in a handbasket. So why not sit still and gather your thoughts? Make a plan to move out AFTER the initial insanity. Then meet up with your family if that's what you feel you need to do. But if that's who you're going to go find, make sure that they are also provisioned well enough for at least the first 72 hours and that they are able to fortify their own place, or have an alternate safe house set up in advance so you can meet up there after the craziness dies down a bit.

Then, by all means, set up a supply run or six and get the looting and shooting out of your system.

Really though, shouldn't we all be preparing ourselves to dig in and stay fortified in one place as best as we can? Ammunition runs out eventually.

Good luck.

--

Kai Kiriyama is an author working her way towards publication. She writes fiction for books, film and television.  Kai currently lives in Alberta, Canada with her pet snake Rhaegar, her pet hedgehog Odin and enough caffeine to kill a small horse.

Kai loves to get feedback so feel free to leave a comment here. 
Or you can follow and connect with her on twitter: @thekiriyamaheir
Or, if you need more than 140 characters, you can email her at: thekiriyamaheir@gmail.com
And find Kai on faccebook: www.facebook.com/authorkaikiriyama