Interview with Daniel Waters

1. What inspired you to write about zombies? Here's the thing: I don't really think I'm writing about zombies--I think I'm writing about people! Zombies are really just the device that allows me to write about people in ways that I couldn't if they were "just" people. Zombies work in the Generation Dead series because they underscore the one thing that every person truly has in common on the planet. We don't have the same eye color, or skin tone, or the same beliefs or preferences, language or culture--but we all die. By making that commonality front and center in the stories, it allows me to write about our difference in a way that is interesting to me, and I hope, to readers.

Plus, BRAAAAAIIINS! Zombies are just cool. Even though mine don't eat brains or entrails (except one, maybe?). They do shamble though so maybe that counts.

2. At what point in your life did you decide to be a writer? Very early on in life I was trying to write and draw comic books, and there was a progression of experiences from there that led me down that path. This may sound a bit pretentious, but I think most writers don't "decide" to be a writer--you either are a writer, or you aren't. I was a writer long before I was published.

3. Where do you go to get inspiration? Inspiration is everywhere; I just try and tune in to it. Books, loud music, running and time spent in the pool are very reliable sources for me.

4. Which is your favorite zombie movie/tv show? For more traditional zombie fare, my favorite is Return of the Living Dead. For a broader definition of zombie, I would go with the original movie of Ira Levin's The Stepford Wives. Though I have to mention if the Generation Dead television show actually gets made (it was recently optioned) it will be default become my favorite.

5. Which are your favorite books? I've thousands! Some of the ones that I reread every few years are Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace, all of J.D. Salinger including the uncollected work, The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, Stephen King's The Shining, Life After God by Douglas Coupland which sounds irreligious but isn't, Hemingway's A Moveable Feast, Orwell's 1984, Miss Lonelyhearts by Nathanael West, all of Raymond Chandler--well, you get the general idea.

6. Can you tell me about any new projects you are working on right now? Break My Heart 1000 Times is a ghost story/thriller and will be released this October, and it is very, very scary.

7. Which is your favorite character in you Generation Dead Series? My usual and truthful answer is that whoever I'm working with at the time is my favorite, but now that I'm not writing any GD stories at the moment I would have to confess great love for Karen and Phoebe. And also Tak. And Margi, and Adam and Tommy and...yeah, I love them all. Just talking about them makes me want to write one of the thousand stories I have for them floating around in my head.

8. If Generation Dead was made into a Tv Show which actors would you chose to be the main characters? Well, I probably wouldn't get any say in the casting, and I have to confess I don't know many young actors, but I'm a big, big fan of Modern Family and Sarah Jane Hyland and she really would be a perfect Phoebe. I also think January Jones would be perfect as Angela Hunter, but beyond that I've no idea.

9. What advice would you give to young writer who are just starting their careers? Write. Write, write, write and then write. Read, and read outside of your usual preferences every so often. Learn how to take a punch--everyone is a critic, and not all criticism is accurate or even well intentioned--and learn not to throw one. Keep ya head up. Not everyone you meet, even friends and family, will understand or be supportive of your efforts. To thine own self be true. Go outside. Take a walk, take a rest, taste the rest. Breathe.

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Interview with Suzan Battah

 

1) Your book BaSatai: Outside In has such a peculiar name, tell us more about the story behind it.

BaSatai is referring to the supernatural people from the parallel world

H-Trae. The main character in the book Armani is a BaSatai hidden away on earth. Outside In refers to the way Armani feels like an outsider, different, singled out in the book there is a section where Rafael tells her 'why are you always looking from the outside in?'. This book is mainly about Armani's struggle with looking from the outside in.

2) Tell us in your own words what the book BaSatai: outside in is about?

Armani is plagued with a curse in her blood designed to break the parallel divide between H-Trae and earth when her blood spills and she dies. As she comes closer to turning 18, the elite BaSatai warriors and her Guardian have come to train her and take her home where she can be better protected. Yet Armani does not accept the curse in her blood nor does she accept the BaSatai and her Guardian giving up their lives just to protect her. Armani is suffering from human emotions and struggles to understand her purpose and identity in life. Her Guardian Karhl also arrives to guide her through the process of crossing over with Rafael, an elite BaSatai Warrior, who stirs up more confusion, emotions and guilt in Armani. She refuses to fall into line and doesn't want to go back. She's a walking target for her enemies crossing the divide to find her as the blood curse matures, the Supernatural's are following the scent and willing to kill her to fulfill the curse.

3) Which are some of the most common methods that you use when writing a book?

I listen to music loudly. Within Temptation is my favorite band to write this style of book to. I have a very eclectic taste in music and depends on what I'm writing. I also go to the gym to clear my head before writing.

4) What inspired you to become a writer?

I've always wanted to be a writer. Finding a second job to maintain my lifestyle while I build my career as a writer was a lot harder. I've worked in retail, childcare, beauty therapy and currently work as an Executive Assistant. As for my writing, my wild imagination is what keeps me inspired.

5) Which is your favorite Character of a book and why?

I always get asked this question in many interviews and probably answer differently every time. Right now, my favorite character is Rose from Vampire Academy Series. She is one tough cookie and so real in her emotions and purpose.

6) What advice would you give to young writers and independent authors?

Keep writing, learn your craft, laugh lots, have a thick skin, please don't plagiarize other writers work - its illegal and morally wrong from my pov, just use your imagination and write, write, write. Also get used to the fact that not everyone will like what you write but others will. Never respond to negative feedback and be grateful someone read your work. All reviews are great even the negative.

7) If your house caught on fire and you could only save 3 books, which ones would you choose? (I always ask this)

Easy - my hardrive would be the first thing I take with me, it has a library of books on it, but the 3 physical books I would grab are

1. Vampire Academy - Richelle Mead

2. Twilight - Stephanie Meyer

3. A Secret Love - Stephanie Laurens

8) What song do you think describes best the relationship between the main characters of your book?

Ooooh, I love this question. All I Need by Within Temptation is the song for Rafael and Armani.

9) If your BaSatai was made into a movie witch actors would you choose as your main characters?

Firstly yay BaSatai is being made into a movie, *little dance*, I do have an idea of who would play everyone, in fact I've kept pictures of all the characters in my book, of roughly what they would look like but here is my final cast for the main- main characters.

Armani - Emma Rose Roberts (with dark hair obviously)

Rafael - Caleb Danvers

Karhl - Xavier Samuels

Jayani - Demi Lovato

Lily - Katie Leung

Sipherion - Richard Armitage

Valko - Douglas Booth

Evander - Adam Beach

Reina - Natalie Dormer

10) Are you thinking about writing another book, novel or story soon?

BaSatai: Outside In is book 1 in a series, so yes I'm already onto the second book in this series which is going to be full of adventure, romance and confrontations. The first book is already full of surprises. I'm not giving away any spoilers :)

 

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Interview with Jessie Harrell

 

1.When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?

-I’m not sure it was ever really a conscious decision and I still don’t necessarily identify myself as a writer. My day job (the one that pays the bills) is as an attorney, and it’s only since Destined has gotten out into the world that I also consider myself an official author. I recently went to an out-of-town wedding where I hardly knew any of the other guests and I told myself that if anyone asked what I did, my answer was going to be that I was an author. It was time to embrace that role too. But nobody asked.

2.Which is your favorite place to write?

-My favorite place to write is in a Starbucks with my headphones plugged in, but that hasn’t happened in longer than I can remember. Generally, you’ll find me writing in my comfy desk chair in my living room. But if I know I’m going to have some down time, me & my laptop are good to go.

3. Are you thinking about writing another novel soon?

-Yes! In fact, I’ve already co-written a modern day paranormal/Greek mythology-based novel with Nikki Katz. It’d called Beneath the Surface and we are editing it now in hopes of getting it published soon. Basically, the book is about: A timeless love. An endless curse. Which one will survive the summer?

I’m also plotting a companion novel to Destined. It won’t involve the same characters, but it will be set in ancient Greece and have a similar writing style.

4. What inspired you to write your book “Destined”?

-I was a Classical Studies major in Undergrad, and I fell in the love with the myth the first time I read it. It has a similarity to Beauty & the Beast (my favorite fairy tale), although it predates it by centuries, and when I took a folk tales class, one of my papers was on the maiden-beast relationship that surfaces in folklore. I don’t know why, but that premise really just captures my attention.

When I was home on maternity leave some 10 years later, I read the Eros & Psyche story to my infant (ok, myself - but I read out loud anyway). So when the time came to sit down and learn how to be a writer, I knew I wanted to do it with this story. I just felt like if a tale can stick with you for a decade, then there’s a connection you can’t deny. And it was a good thing I picked something I loved so much, because the story and I spent years together!

5. If you had to pick a favorite character from your book, whom would you pick and why?

-I’ve got to say Psyche. As the heroine, I got to make her everything I wanted her to be. She’s feisty and strong, but also vulnerable and rash. While she and I are FAR from the same person, if I ever got stuck with a gesture or an emotional reaction for Psyche, I would look at myself. What would I do there? For that reason, a lot of her nervous quirks (picking at the skin around her nails, chewing on her cheek) are things that I do. Plus, I just love her because she’s not the ditzy beauty that she was made to be in the original myth. I gave her a brain and I love that about her.

6. How long did it take for your book to get published?

-You’d think that’d be an easy question to answer, but it’s not. I spent a really long time learning the craft of writing YA novels, going to conferences, getting critiques, having teens and adults beta read for me, and then began the querying process. After maybe 6 months of querying various agents, I set Destined aside to write Beneath the Surface. Nikki and I worked with that for several months, queried it for a bit, and then we both had other writing distractions. I’d entered Destined in some contests and gotten “close” with an agent and the comments were starting to be cohesive enough that I knew exactly how the book needed to be edited. I spent several more months making major edits, and then decided to try self-publishing rather than going through the long and painful querying process again. So from start to finish, I’d say 4 years or so, but I wasn’t also working on Destined or seeking publication during that entire time.

7. Do you have any tips you would like to share with young writers and independent authors?

-Everyone tells you not to query too soon and newbie authors do it anyway (like I did), because you just don’t know what “too soon” is. If you can afford the investment, I’d recommend hiring a professional editor before querying (if having an agent is something you’re serious about doing), because once I got a “no” from a given agent, I didn’t feel like I could go back to them with my book, even though I had changed it so much. If I’d had an editor tell me in the beginning about the changes it needed, who knows what would have happened.

8. If your house caught on fire and you could only save 3 books from your shelf which ones would you take?

-No question about it, I’d take my daughters’ baby scrapbooks (the oldest has 2 and my younger daughter has 1). Not only did I work so hard putting those albums together, but the imagines in there are precious and irreplaceable. Even though my girls only are coming up on 6 and 7, sometimes their baby years feels like forever ago. I never want to lose those images.

9.If Destined was made into a movie which actors would you pick to represent the main characters? (Psyche, Eros, Aphrodite…)

-Well, when I was writing the book, I had the image of a young Leonardo DiCaprio in my head for Eros. But since I can’t reverse the clock for him, I’d want someone like Alex Pettyfer(yeah, who wouldn’t?), Lucas Till or Aaron Johnson (minus the facial hair). For Psyche, I think someone like Imogen Poots, Shenae Grimes, or Keira Knightley would be good fits. When I was writing Aphrodite, I pictured her as Heidi Klum (who could still do a wonderful job), or maybe Nicole Kidman or Charlize Theron.

10.Which song you think represents better the relationship between Eros and Psyche?

-I’ve always said that “Crack the Shutters” by Snow Patrol is Eros & Psyche’s signature song. Going back to the movie idea, if the book were ever made into a movie, that song would be rolling during the end scene and into the credits. If you’ve read the epilogue to Destined, then the words of the chorus will make perfect sense to you.

Crack the shutters open wide

I want to bathe you in the light of day.

And just watch you as the rays

Tangle up around your face and body.

I could sit for hours

Finding new ways to be awed each minute.

‘Cause the daylight seems to want you

Just as much as I want you.

 

 

Hello guys, I hope you enjoyed this interview I was able to get, I wanted to know more about Jessie and I hope that so did you. Jessie Harrell is a very nice person and her book Destined is just amazing!! check it out here.  My review of the book will be up soon so stay tuned :) bye!!

To see Jessie’s website click here.

-Dani