Ask the Author: A.A. Frias
Answered Questions (8)
A.A. Frias
Thanks so much for the question! I have been looking into digital publishing and CreateSpace offers quite a good Kindle program for its authors, so while I can't give an exact date for when The Heaven Corporation will be available as a Kindle book, I expect that is something that will be happening in the not-so-distant future.
A.A. Frias
Oh I have a lot of favourite couples but I'll narrow it down to two couples. Briar and Evvy from Tamora Pierce's The Circle Opens quartet and Eragon and Arya from Christopher Paolini's Inheritance Cycle.
Briar and Evvy because they've both been through traumatic experiences that have left them emotionally scarred and they're both looking for a way to heal in all the wrong places (Briar in particular, which becomes clear in The Will of the Empress). I think with those two, it's a case of looking for comfort in all the wrong places and not seeing that the right one has been standing right in front of you the entire time.
Eragon and Arya, which I realise is an unpopular pairing, because despite Eragon's infatuation with Arya's appearance when he was a young, naive teenager, he grew out of that by the end of the latest book, I think. I don't think he just sees her as a pretty face anymore. He views her as one of his closest friends and allies. He respects that she has a history that goes back a lot longer than his and doesn't try to be the replacement for anything she's lost in the past. He doesn't treat her like she owes him her affection for being kind to her. He cares for her romantically, but he cares for their friendship equally and values it for what it is. As for Arya, her life revolves around leading others and being an example to others. Everything she does is for the greater good or for the benefit of someone else. She rarely allows herself to indulge in anything that only serves her personal happiness and I think Eragon is the closest she's ever come to remembering what it was like to just be happy with someone for no reason other than personal contentment. She needs that, I think.
Briar and Evvy because they've both been through traumatic experiences that have left them emotionally scarred and they're both looking for a way to heal in all the wrong places (Briar in particular, which becomes clear in The Will of the Empress). I think with those two, it's a case of looking for comfort in all the wrong places and not seeing that the right one has been standing right in front of you the entire time.
Eragon and Arya, which I realise is an unpopular pairing, because despite Eragon's infatuation with Arya's appearance when he was a young, naive teenager, he grew out of that by the end of the latest book, I think. I don't think he just sees her as a pretty face anymore. He views her as one of his closest friends and allies. He respects that she has a history that goes back a lot longer than his and doesn't try to be the replacement for anything she's lost in the past. He doesn't treat her like she owes him her affection for being kind to her. He cares for her romantically, but he cares for their friendship equally and values it for what it is. As for Arya, her life revolves around leading others and being an example to others. Everything she does is for the greater good or for the benefit of someone else. She rarely allows herself to indulge in anything that only serves her personal happiness and I think Eragon is the closest she's ever come to remembering what it was like to just be happy with someone for no reason other than personal contentment. She needs that, I think.
A.A. Frias
I write anyway. I just slog through it in all my awkwardness until I'm finished. When I look back at what I've written later on after having a chance to refresh my eyes and my mind, what I usually find is that the stuff I've written while I had no desire to write is usually just as good as anything I've written while I was inspired.
A.A. Frias
Being my own boss, especially since I'm self-published. There's no one looming over my shoulder telling me to get back to work or I'm going to be written up. No one is monitoring my breaks and chastising me for using the bathroom too often or coming back to my desk thirty seconds late. I can begin working when I feel ready and stop when I feel worn out. I'm not forced to work through things like illness and exhaustion because I'm terrified of being fired if I take one more sick day. My experiences in the workforce have been nothing short of constant psychological torture. When I shed all of that and became my own employer, I felt like I had been liberated from captivity.
A.A. Frias
Don't take advice from writers, ha! More accurately, what I mean is don't worry about doing things right or wrong. Every writer has advice to give and that advice is just what works for them. It doesn't have to work for you. Go ahead, try out their advice, but if it's not working, toss it. Find something that suits you better. It's like shopping for clothes. Not everything in the store is going to fit you perfectly, but that's okay. Just keep trying on what appeals to you until you find the right fit. Eventually, you'll figure out your own style and have advice of your own.
When it comes down to it, the only thing you need to do as a writer is write. Write when you don't feel like it. Don't wait for inspiration. You'll be waiting for the rest of your life. Just keep writing.
When it comes down to it, the only thing you need to do as a writer is write. Write when you don't feel like it. Don't wait for inspiration. You'll be waiting for the rest of your life. Just keep writing.
A.A. Frias
I have an idea for a sequel to The Heaven Corporation kicking around in my head. It was originally intended to be a standalone novel, but it appears that Jacqueline and Raffi aren't quite ready to relinquish their hold on me, yet.
A.A. Frias
In all honesty, inspiration comes rarely. When it does happen, I couldn't tell anyone how or why. It just happens. I do my best not to worry about being inspired and just get on with it. If I waited until I was inspired in order to write, I'd never publish anything.
A.A. Frias
Two things; my past experiences working as a telemarketer and my desire to address some of the hypocrisy I felt was being promoted within the Catholic Church as an institution. I saw a number of similarities between how my coworkers and I were treated by the administration and how the institution of the Catholic Church conducted itself so I blended the two and wound up with The Heaven Corporation. Keep in mind, I stress the institution part of the Catholic Church when I talk about this because I don't believe there is anything inherently wrong with Catholicism or Christianity in itself. I just feel that the institution of the Catholic Church often does a great disservice to the faith it is supposed to protect. It's always been my belief that religion is a deeply personal matter and should not be indoctrinated by any supreme authority figure.
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Mar 10, 2017 02:14PM