Ask the Author: Kristin Ward
Answered Questions (10)
Kristin Ward
Great questions! In a very general sense, YA can be defined by the age of the characters. The main character or characters are teens. Other components of YA books are things like themes and perspectives of the world or events.
Science fiction books contain elements that often involve technology in such a way that they can mirror true science advancements lending realism to the story. Fantasy, on the other hand, doesn't reflect true science. In fantasy, you could have magical powers and mythical beings. In science fiction, you could have space travel or robots.
I hope that sheds some light on how to interpret those things. I truly appreciate the questions!
Science fiction books contain elements that often involve technology in such a way that they can mirror true science advancements lending realism to the story. Fantasy, on the other hand, doesn't reflect true science. In fantasy, you could have magical powers and mythical beings. In science fiction, you could have space travel or robots.
I hope that sheds some light on how to interpret those things. I truly appreciate the questions!
Kristin Ward
Thank you for reaching out and sharing about yourself! I truly appreciate it and will definitely keep you in mind for future projects. If you happen to pick up my new series and are interested in joining my ARC team for book four, please let me know!
As for becoming an author, I've dreamed of it since seventh grade. My literature teacher was the catalyst when she compared my writing to an author I enjoyed. Years of writing terrible poetry ensued along with some short stories. The big shift into writing seriously came when I wrote a graduate course in environmental education. The research I did for the course design spawned an idea that became my award-winning debut!
As for becoming an author, I've dreamed of it since seventh grade. My literature teacher was the catalyst when she compared my writing to an author I enjoyed. Years of writing terrible poetry ensued along with some short stories. The big shift into writing seriously came when I wrote a graduate course in environmental education. The research I did for the course design spawned an idea that became my award-winning debut!
Kristin Ward
That's a tough question! I have such an eclectic taste in books that I'd be hard-pressed to choose a favorite author as my reading habits ebb and flow with regard to the genre. My typical go-to is YA and I really enjoy Sarah J. Maas' books. However, I don't stick with one genre. LOL. Plus, I'm a huge rereader of my favorite books. It's like visiting old friends and places I've grown to love. One book that I reread every couple of years is The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet.
Kristin Ward
Barbed legs anchor themselves to flesh, gouging soft skin as they scramble for purchase, leaving tiny puckers of raw flesh and needle-sharp pain. She swats frantically in the darkness, clawing fingers fumbling over bed-coverings laying askew, until her hand, groping blindly, latches onto the a hairy thorax hovering on the edge of the bed.
Kristin Ward
The moment I reader tells you they enjoyed your book. My goal as a writer is quite simple. I want to have written someone’s favorite story.
Kristin Ward
I am not sure that I have truly experienced writer’s block. What I have experienced is writer’s procrastination. I may sit down and write a few hundred words and find myself becoming distracted. At that point I will often fall into the Internet rabbit hole under the guise of research. I’m really good at wasting a lot of time!
Kristin Ward
Just write! I was inspired to write back in middle school by my English teacher who likened my writing to Saki, the author of The Interlopers. That moment was quite defining for me. I began to write a lot of poetry, most of it really bad, but I didn’t stop. Today I find that I can craft a piece of writing just by letting the ideas flow. In the end, as a writer you need to do what you were meant to do and that is to craft a story.
Kristin Ward
I am currently writing the sequel to After the Green Withered. This book, Burden of Truth, continues and Enora’s story as she delves into a part of her society she has never been exposed to. This book will conclude her story (coming out this fall) but a few readers have asked if I’d write a prequel about how the DMC came into power. It’s exciting to hear that some readers would like to understand how it all began and I am definitely exploring this idea. However, I do have quite a few story ideas that have been spinning through my mind lately and I am not sure which of those I will end up pursuing after I finish the sequel.
Kristin Ward
That’s a great question! I draw inspiration from the smallest things that happen in my life. My book is born from my own passion for the environment and I’m in the midst of writing the sequel. However, I have lately been posting numerous poems on Twitter that are inspired by a single word and this really gets the writing flowing. I have to admit, that singing along to music is also somewhat inspiring. I’m not sure what it is but there are some songs that just really get me in the mood to write.
Kristin Ward
I was inspired to write this book while writing a graduate course in environmental education. As I read numerous topics regarding the history of the earth to the present, I couldn't help but be struck by the incredible responsibility that humans have to the future of our planet. Within this idea is that water, an essential resource, is finite in many areas of the world that struggle with drought. From this was born the idea of a world in which water is the global currency. What would a global drought look like? How would that happen? How would such a disaster impact future generations?
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