Interview + Giveaway: Jennifer Rush, Author of Altered

Well, here I am, talking about Altered again. Are you readers sick of me yet? Seriously, I've been raving about this book since January. I have trouble moving on, obviously. 

Anyway, here I am today with Jennifer Rush, who kindly agreed to answer my questions about the book and the writing process, as well as speaking a bit about the amount of sexy time between Anna and Sam. Wait, I mean KISSY SCENES. Not sexy time. I got a bit carried away.

Interview and Giveaway: Kasie West, Author of Pivot Point

Let's take a trip down memory lane, back to the start of the year. I was struggling to get through a book that I had previously thought would be a great read to kick off my reading for 2013. Honestly, it was terrible. But luckily I had a whole lot of other books (over 500, if I'm going to be honest) waiting to be read. I hadn't heard much about Pivot Point, but since it was one of the first books that I had been approved for on Edelweiss, I was excited to give it a try.

Now, six months later, Pivot Point is still one of my handful of favourite books of this year. And today I'll be giving a copy away, as well as interviewing the brain behind the entire operation!

Author Interview and Giveaway: Marissa Meyer, Author of The Lunar Chronicles

Marissa Meyer, author of the amazing series The Lunar Chronicles, is coming to London for her first ever UK signing. To celebrate, and to help pass on the word, we have an author interview and a giveaway today!

1. Cinder and Scarlet are both very well developed characters, and very different. If you could choose one trait from each girl to have for yourself, which traits would they be?

I would love to be as resourceful as Cinder. She's like a girl MacGyver - able to fix things with floss and a piece of gum, or whatever. I, on the other hand, am not mechanically minded at all!

As for Scarlet, sometimes I wish that I could be as frank as she is. I'm one of those people that has trouble sending food back at a restaurant even if it's not what I wanted, but Scarlet has no trouble saying just what she thinks and feels. Of course, that habit tends to get her in trouble sometimes, so if I was the same way I would hope for a bit more of an on/off switch...

2. You're going to Bromley very soon. What kind of state is London in in Cinder and Scarlet's world?

London has some scarring from the war, but I don't envision it being quite as damaged as Beijing and Paris had been, and what was destroyed has been rebuilt by 126 T.E. (when Cinder takes place). It's still the home of the United Kingdom's royal family, who have returned to ruling power but with some checks and balances from a Parliament, and all of the UK plus Canada are now under the same government. Population wise, the UK is by far the smallest country in the Earthen Union, but its history as a global power has earned it a great deal of respect from the other countries.

3. Scarlet is one of my favourite YA heroines right now because she's just so kickass. Do you have any favourites of your own?

Thank you! One of my all-time favorite YA heroines is Fire (from FIRE by Kristin Cashore). She's brave and daring, but also sensitive - especially as her "kind" (she's a ridiculously gorgeous Monster) are treated with such scorn and hatred. Often, beautiful characters are treated as ring-leaders in fiction (the lead cheerleader, etc.), so I loved what Cashore did by turning that trope upside down.

4. I feel the need to express my love for Captain Thorne. He is such a charismatic, attractive, and funny guy. He is AWESOME. I must ask, if you had any control over casting, who would you have portray him in Scarlet, the movie?

Well, writers aren't supposed to choose favorites, but... between us, he might be my favorite character in the series. (Don't tell anyone!) I'm really, really bad at choosing actors to represent my characters, though! Some people have suggested the actor who plays Hook in Once Upon a Time, but I think he's too fierce looking. This is the inspiration photo I used for Thorne, so maybe we can track this guy down?

Except Thorne has blue eyes, so I don't know. I'm so bad at this!

5. Do you have another favourite fairytale that you would have loved to have covered, but that wouldn't have worked with the story you wanted to tell with The Lunar Chronicles?

I originally planned on including "Puss in Boots," which was going to be the fifth book in the series, and the identity of the True Lunar Princess wasn't going to be revealed until then. Obviously, this did not work out! I didn't get very far into the planning process before I realized that Puss in Boots needed to be cut out of the mix. There are plenty of other fairy tales that I think would be fun to adapt outside of the Chronicles, though. We'll see...

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Enter to win a swag pack with bookmarks, stickers, temporary tattoos, and signed book plates!

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And, if you live in the UK, I hope you can make it to Marissa's signing at Waterstones Bromley on the 26th March!

Summer Book Talk: Day Four - Diana Peterfreund, Author of For Darkness Shows the Stars!

Today on the blog we have another author interview. Here is Diana Peterfreund, author of the new novel, For Darkness Shows the Stars! Diana also wrote the Killer Unicorns series, which I know lots of you adore, and the Secret Society Girl series.

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1. Can you describe your book For Darkness Shows the Stars in three words?

Post Apocalyptic Persuasion.

2. What inspired you to write a dystopian novel as your newest book?

I was very much driven by the idea of recasting Jane Austen's Persuasion in another time and place. I don't really think of it as a dystopian, since there's no all-powerful government telling people this is the perfect way of life. Still, it fits in well with those kind of novels and readers who like them.

3. When did you realize that you wanted to be a writer?

Always. But I didn't realize I *could* be a writer until my twenties. I didn't know any writers growing up, and in the pre-internet days, it wasn't like you ever interacted with them.

4. Do you base your writing on your own past experiences?

In the case of FOR DARKNESS SHOWS THE STARS, I set it in New Zealand. I visited New Zealand in 2004, and I was utterly enchanted by those islands. They were so beautiful, so remote, so unusual, so magical. I always wanted to set a book there, and for my post war, isolated survivors of English extraction -- well, it was perfect.

5. Where do you usually like to write or read?

I read in bed or on the couch. I write in my office or on the couch. I'm a big fan of my couch.

6. What are some of your favourite books you’ve read recently?

Ha! I have been secretly spending a lot of time reading books that aren't out yet, like the proofs for two anthologies I'm lucky enough to be in this fall: FORETOLD, edited by Carrie Ryan (The Forest of Hands

and Teeth) and including other writers like Meg Cabot, Simone Elkeles, Richelle Mead, Laini Taylor, and Michael Grant; and UNDER MY HAT: TALES FROM THE CAULDRON, edited by Jonathan Strahan and including stories by Neil Gaiman, Peter S. Beagle, Holly Black, Garth Nix, Ellen Kushner, and Delia Sherman.

7. Do you have any favourite movies or shows? Do these relate to the novels you write in any way?

Oh, lots. I'm somewhat of a TV addict. I love teen culture, which is why I'm a fan of shows like Skins and Veronica Mars; I love well-wrought fantasy, which is why I adore stuff like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Game

of Thrones (Amber: YES! GoT takes over my life in April and May each year), Avatar: The Last Airbender, and (if we're being totally honest) The West Wing; and I'm also a big fan of lush historical stuff like Downtown Abbey and any Austen miniseries the BBC puts out.

8. What is one thing that you can’t do without when you’re writing?

I try not to get too tied to rituals like that, hence I jinx myself if I can't fit something in. In the winter, I do like a cup of tea to start the day, but it's so hot right now and my AC is broken, so I have to find an alternative (and iced tea doesn't quite do it for me).

9. How is the writing process for you? Do you sit and write until you are out of ideas or do you set a schedule for yourself?

It's a fight for me to find the time and focus I need to write. The former, because I have a toddler who can be quite persuasive about getting my attention. The latter because I find I'm very easily distracted, especially by the internet.

10. What are your plans for the next book? Different genre? A standalone, or a series?

Alas and alack, I cannot tell you that. My next book is shrouded in mystery. But I can promise you this: it's completely frockalicious. I've never stuffed so many gorgeous gowns in one story before.

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Gowns, you say?! Anyone want to take a stab in the dark at what this could be about? 

Thank you so much for being so wonderful and answering these questions, Diana! Your newest book is one of the most talked about of the summer, which is exciting. It was a pleasure reading your answers regarding it and your writing!

For Darkness Shows the Stars was published on June 12, 2012, and has one of the most beautiful covers I have ever seen! Has anyone read this already? What did you think of it?

Don't forget to check out Maji Bookshelf and Kindle and Me for their posts for the Summer Book Talk!