Welcome to the first episode of “Getting to Know You!” Today my guest is Krysten Lindsay Hager.

Krysten Lindsay Hager is an author and book addict who has never met a bookstore she didn’t like. She’s worked as a journalist and also writes middle grade, YA, humor essays, and adult fiction. Her debut novel, TRUE COLORS, will be out June 17th from Astraea Press. She is originally from Michigan and has lived in South Dakota, Portugal, and currently resides in Southern Ohio where you can find her reading and writing when she’s not catching up on her favorite shows.

Here are Krysten’s answers to my “Getting to Know You” questions:

Top five favorite movies or books:

I love the movie “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” I used to watch it all the time in high school and the first time I read a Gossip Girl book, I totally understood why Blair did that, too. I’ve read the book, too, but I prefer the movie.

Office Space is one of my favorite comedies. That scene with the fax/copier/printer represents everything I’ve ever wanted to do. There are so many great, quotable lines in it.

Just Friends: I stop what I’m doing when this movie comes on and just sit and watch. This sums up what so many of us have felt before. The scene where he has his mini freak-out in the car having no clue that she’s watching him? I laugh (and cringe) every time. Every. Single. Time.

Send Me No Flowers: I love Rock Hudson in this movie. He has such a charming wit about him.

Mr. and Mrs. Smith: Carole Lombard is one of my favorite actresses. She’s so funny and adorable in this movie. Her clothes are gorgeous in it, too. I really decompress with old movies. People always said my grandmother looked like Carole Lombard when she was younger and that’s how I first got interested in Carole’s movies. She’s a great comedic actress.

In 5 words, please describe your “Romance Writing Style.”

Funny, sweet, cute, crush, swoon.

What is your “girlie girl” thing? i.e. getting your hair done? Nails? Shopping? Gossiping? Chick flicks?

I love lipstick. I can’t leave the house without some on. Doesn’t matter if my hair is a mess, I have to have lipstick on. Shopping is my stress buster. There’s something about trying clothes on that I find relaxing. I have to say book shopping would be my pick over clothes shopping though. I also like purse shopping because I always say, “A purse always fits.”

This or That:
~ Wine or Beer? – I’d pick wine, but really neither.
~ Sex in the City or Caroline in the City? – Sex and the City. I love Charlotte’s clothes and Carrie’s apartment.
~ Perfume or Jewelry? – Jewelry. I always have at least one bracelet on.
~ Painted nails or Au Natural? – Painted. I love nail polish and I have a lot of colors, but I tend to go from extremes like super dark to super light. Right now I’m wearing pale opaque lavender, but I had on dark royal blue/purple last week.
~ Tall or Dark or Handsome? – Can’t I have all three? I’ll go with handsome if I have to choose.
~ Romantic Dinner at Home or Out? – At home. I’d rather make a nice dinner at home.
~ Roses or Lilies? – Roses, but I do like lily of the valley because they remind me of my grandmother. I love those roses that have red/pink on the edges.
~ Diamond or Emeralds? – Diamonds are a girl’s best friend! I like pink sapphires, too.
~ Pirates or Ninjas? – Hmmmm…I’m going to go with pirates because of Johnny Depp.

Do your leading men come from any place in particular? Dreams? Movie stars? Your partner? Past partners?

Some “might” be based on athletes, soap stars, and I “might” have used sweet things that guys I knew back in school did.

If your sweetheart wanted to sweep you off your feet, what would they need to do??

I’m a sucker for a nice guy. I never went for the bad boy type, but that was usually who asked me out while I was looking at their sweet, funny friend.

Do you ever daydream about people you see at the park? Airport? Train station? Mall? And build romance scenes around them while you daydream?

I do that a lot. I tend to see pictures or images of people on TV and online and imagine what they are really like. I do a lot of character sketches.

What do you do in your down time?

I love to read and I have a bunch of “can’t miss” TV shows. I have moved a lot, so staying in touch with friends is important to me. One thing I do with a couple of my friends is watch TV shows or games on TV at the same time and we Facebook chat or text about it. My friend April and I DVR and watch “Devious Maids” at the same time. During the playoffs I like to watch Tiger baseball games and chat/text with my friends Libby and Mandy and my brother-in-law and I watch Spurs playoff games with my friend Joi. It’s way more fun when you have someone to chat with while you watch. Joi and I were thrilled when the Spurs won this year.

When you go to Starbucks or Jamba Juice, what do you order?

I’m kind of boring, I always order bottled water.

When you walk into a book store, where do you head first?

Probably the YA or middle grade section, then regular fiction, then magazines and newspapers. I have to check out the journals, too, because I ALWAYS need a new journal or tiny notebook.

If we sneaked a peek in your purse right now, what would we find?

Lipstick, a small notebook (I’m obsessed with these), pens, and my phone.

In 4 words, describe yourself. – Crazy, loyal, funny, sensitive

Top ten snacks while writing:

frozen bananas dipped in dark chocolate, pumpkin seeds (so salty and addictive), dried blueberries, Enjoy Life rice milk crispy chocolate bars, dried cherries, Justin’s almond butter on dark chocolate, Stretch Island fruit strips in cherry, Udi’s chocolate-chocolate chip muffin tops, lime popsicles, and Enjoy Life chocolate chip crunchy cookies. Ok, now I’m hungry.

Thanks for answering these questions, Krysten. I think we may be sisters under the skin. I adore Send Me No Flowers, love nail polish and purses, and can never get enough journals or notebooks!

Krysten has a new book out called True Colors.

Landry gets pushed into trying out for the American Ingénue reality show modeling competition with her two best friends. She doesn’t think she stands a chance, but she advances to the next level in the competition and her friends ignore her when they get cut.

Enter the gorgeous Devon, who also makes the first cut and includes Landry in her clique. Devon becomes the perfect best friend, but can their friendship survive the competition?

Landry hopes her big break could come at any moment, but soon sees there’s much more to modeling than getting your hair done and looking pretty. She begins missing out on being with new friends like Ashanti, a girl who truly has Landry’s back. Landry also has the chance to have a boyfriend when she meets a boy named Vladi from another school.

Part of Landry wants to be famous (and have her hair look good for once), but part of her just wants to be accepted. She learns about friendships, being true to yourself, and that a good hair conditioner doesn’t hurt.

Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/True-Colors-Krysten-Lindsay-Hager-ebook/dp/B00L2G0YJS/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1403025172&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=Krysten+Lindsay+Hager

Barnesandnoble.com: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/true-colors-krysten-lindsay-hager/1119742726?ean=2940149747658

Stop back in next Tuesday for the next episode of “Getting to Know You.”