Jennifer Wilson's Blog - Posts Tagged "interview"
Interview with the author
1. What does your writing process look like?
I am a chaotic writer. As much as I would love to plan my books out in an organized manner, my brain tends to flicker on at inconvenient moments— in the car, in the shower, at the grocery store or while lying in bed at 2am. I always have the main storyline running in the back of my mind, but I tend to let my imagination run free, taking my characters on twist and turns even I didn’t see coming.
2. Do you have any strange writing habits (like standing on your head or writing in the shower)?
I write in the shower all of the time! A dear friend bought me a waterproof notepad and I use it almost every day. Mid shampoo an idea will cross my mind and I jump, “Oh! I have got to write that down!” I also have a bad habit of writing on anything when inspiration strikes— napkins, paper bags, the backs of receipts— really anything will do.
3. What book do you wish you could have written?
I am sure this is cliché, but Harry Potter. Not because of the fame or money, but this was the first series I fell in love with and because of how many lives she touched with her books. To reach that many people and inspire them to dream and read… that is a true gift.
4. Just as your books inspire authors, what authors have inspired you to write?
Obviously, J.K. Rowling is at the top of that list, but there are many other authors I look up to: J.R.R. Tolkien, Rick Yancey, Dan Brown, Suzanne Collins, Cassandra Clare and Diana Gabaldon, to name a few.
5. If you could cast your characters in the Hollywood adaptation of your book, who would play your characters?
Now that’s a tough one. Alex Pettyfer would make a great Triven, just think a little more blonde. Young Johnny Sequoyah would make an ideal Mouse, with her innocent face and deep eyes, she would fit the shoes just right. Give Henry Cavill a set of dark contacts and you have your Maddox. Arstid is a no-brainer, Cate Blanchett of course. Then there’s my wild card. While there are many talented young actresses out there, I would want to see Phoenix played by a new face, someone who could rock the screen and do a fierce girl like her justice. Suggestions anyone?
6. How important are names to you in your books? Do you choose the names based on liking the way it sounds or the meaning?
Names are very important to me. Your readers have to read them over and over again so I want to pick ones that stick. Oddly enough, in my book, my main characters’ names aren’t revealed until after you get to know their personalities, so it was even more important that they fit. I generally spend a lot of time on meanings, but sometimes it is also just about what feels right.
7. What do you consider to be your best accomplishment?
Learning to stop saying “I can’t.”
8. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Living in Colorado with my husband and writing everyday while snuggling our dog.
9. Were you already a great writer? Have you always liked to write?
Of course not! Every writer has room to grow and gets better the more they write. I always had the spark for creativity but my grammar and spelling was appalling for years. Only with practice and determination did I grow.
10. What writing advice do you have for other aspiring authors?
Write because you love it. Not to make money or to be famous, write because you’re passionate. Because if you’re passionate it won’t matter what anyone else says, you are doing something you love and that’s more important than a stranger’s opinion.
11. Do you read your reviews? Do you respond to them, good or bad? Do you have any advice on how to deal with the bad?
Yes, but I take each one with a grain of salt. The beautiful part of being human is that we are all entitled to our own opinions. So I must respect that not everyone will like my work. If you get a bad review, see if anything can be learned from it and move on. You can’t please everyone.
12. What is your best marketing tip?
Friends and bloggers, they are your best chance at success.
13. What is your least favorite part of the publishing / writing process?
Rejection letters are never fun, but for me each one was a driving force to try harder.
14. Is this your first book? How many books have you written prior (if any?)
This is my first published book, but the second novel I have written. I have another collecting digital dust, but I will get that series out soon too. One thing at a time.
15. What are you working on now? What is your next project?
I am currently writing like mad on the next book in the NEW WORLD series, NEW WORLD: ASHES. Trust me, you won’t want to miss it.
New World: Rising
I am a chaotic writer. As much as I would love to plan my books out in an organized manner, my brain tends to flicker on at inconvenient moments— in the car, in the shower, at the grocery store or while lying in bed at 2am. I always have the main storyline running in the back of my mind, but I tend to let my imagination run free, taking my characters on twist and turns even I didn’t see coming.
2. Do you have any strange writing habits (like standing on your head or writing in the shower)?
I write in the shower all of the time! A dear friend bought me a waterproof notepad and I use it almost every day. Mid shampoo an idea will cross my mind and I jump, “Oh! I have got to write that down!” I also have a bad habit of writing on anything when inspiration strikes— napkins, paper bags, the backs of receipts— really anything will do.
3. What book do you wish you could have written?
I am sure this is cliché, but Harry Potter. Not because of the fame or money, but this was the first series I fell in love with and because of how many lives she touched with her books. To reach that many people and inspire them to dream and read… that is a true gift.
4. Just as your books inspire authors, what authors have inspired you to write?
Obviously, J.K. Rowling is at the top of that list, but there are many other authors I look up to: J.R.R. Tolkien, Rick Yancey, Dan Brown, Suzanne Collins, Cassandra Clare and Diana Gabaldon, to name a few.
5. If you could cast your characters in the Hollywood adaptation of your book, who would play your characters?
Now that’s a tough one. Alex Pettyfer would make a great Triven, just think a little more blonde. Young Johnny Sequoyah would make an ideal Mouse, with her innocent face and deep eyes, she would fit the shoes just right. Give Henry Cavill a set of dark contacts and you have your Maddox. Arstid is a no-brainer, Cate Blanchett of course. Then there’s my wild card. While there are many talented young actresses out there, I would want to see Phoenix played by a new face, someone who could rock the screen and do a fierce girl like her justice. Suggestions anyone?
6. How important are names to you in your books? Do you choose the names based on liking the way it sounds or the meaning?
Names are very important to me. Your readers have to read them over and over again so I want to pick ones that stick. Oddly enough, in my book, my main characters’ names aren’t revealed until after you get to know their personalities, so it was even more important that they fit. I generally spend a lot of time on meanings, but sometimes it is also just about what feels right.
7. What do you consider to be your best accomplishment?
Learning to stop saying “I can’t.”
8. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Living in Colorado with my husband and writing everyday while snuggling our dog.
9. Were you already a great writer? Have you always liked to write?
Of course not! Every writer has room to grow and gets better the more they write. I always had the spark for creativity but my grammar and spelling was appalling for years. Only with practice and determination did I grow.
10. What writing advice do you have for other aspiring authors?
Write because you love it. Not to make money or to be famous, write because you’re passionate. Because if you’re passionate it won’t matter what anyone else says, you are doing something you love and that’s more important than a stranger’s opinion.
11. Do you read your reviews? Do you respond to them, good or bad? Do you have any advice on how to deal with the bad?
Yes, but I take each one with a grain of salt. The beautiful part of being human is that we are all entitled to our own opinions. So I must respect that not everyone will like my work. If you get a bad review, see if anything can be learned from it and move on. You can’t please everyone.
12. What is your best marketing tip?
Friends and bloggers, they are your best chance at success.
13. What is your least favorite part of the publishing / writing process?
Rejection letters are never fun, but for me each one was a driving force to try harder.
14. Is this your first book? How many books have you written prior (if any?)
This is my first published book, but the second novel I have written. I have another collecting digital dust, but I will get that series out soon too. One thing at a time.
15. What are you working on now? What is your next project?
I am currently writing like mad on the next book in the NEW WORLD series, NEW WORLD: ASHES. Trust me, you won’t want to miss it.
New World: Rising
Interview with It's a Book World
I had the complete honor of being interviewed by the fabulous Vienna of It's a Book World. If you haven't found her blog yet, swing by. She has read so many epic books and shows great insight into every story.
Here's a sneak peek at the interview:
1. How did you come up with the story? What books inspired you to write this series?
''I have always had a bit of an overactive imagination. My mind tends to wander and being a very visual person, I generally get these flashes of scenes¬—a girl on a rooftop, an action-packed fight sequence or an impassioned kiss. From there, my mind melds around these moments and a basic plot begins to develop. As the plot matures, so do my characters. I tend to have a really loose technique when it comes to writing. I always have an idea of where my story is going, but often the journey getting there is just as unexpected for me as it is for my readers. I jot notes on everything and anything within reach when inspiration strikes, old receipts, paper bags, or on my hand. I find these moments of epiphany are where some of my best ideas originate—not forced but inspired.
New World: Rising was born out of an epiphany moment for Phoenix. I could see this girl racing on rooftops, hiding in the shadows, being kind of a badass. The opening scene in the first book is the moment Phoenix was born in my mind, a dark shadowed figure standing on the ledge of a building as her hair whipped around her face in the wind, the city below her in ruin. The world just spiraled out from there, shaping around her.
I am sure this is cliché, but Harry Potter inspired me to write. Not because of the fame or money, but this was the first series I fell in love with and because of how many lives J.K. Rowling touched with her books. To reach that many people and inspire them to dream and read… that is a true gift. So obviously, J.K. Rowling’s books are at the top of that list, but there are many other authors I look up to: J.R.R. Tolkien, Rick Yancey, Dan Brown, Suzanne Collins, Cassandra Clare and Diana Gabaldon, to name a few. Alexandra Bracken and Marie Lu are also recently added to my author crush list—I love that they too write about strong female leads, who are imperfect and vulnerable at times.''
2. To which character do you relate the most?
''Phoenix, for sure. While a little of myself goes into every character I write, Phoenix holds the largest part of me. She and I think similarly, we are very calculated. While she is colder than I am, there is a comradery I feel between us. She is fiercely realistic about every situation, but also has this can-do attitude that she can take on the world. She is not perfect and at times a little unlikeable, but that’s what makes her so human. She is not your average hero, and I like her even more for that fact.''
3. What is your favorite part about the books and what is your least favorite?
''Great question!
I love seeing Phoenix’s relationship with Mouse and Triven. They both bring out a side of her that is more likeable. She grows and blossoms under their influence, and it was nice to see her experience love for the first time. I also thrive on the action scenes. I nerd-out on action movies, so getting to write these epic fight scenes is heaven for me. It’s like my mind sets on fire and I can visualize the whole thing as it’s happening.
The worst parts for me were the scenes with Maddox in the first book. Even as his creator, he made my skin crawl. Just writing the shower scene made me extremely uncomfortable, but that was the point.''
4. How long did it take you to write the first two books in this series?
''New World: Rising was written in about six months, not including all of the editing. Once the story came into my mind it flowed easily. New World: Ashes took me a little longer, about nine months. It was a challenge to decide where to end that book and how much I wanted to give away. Plus, an entirely new city and cast had to be developed and take on a life of their own. I found the second book more challenging..."
Check out the full interview on It's a Books World
Here's a sneak peek at the interview:
1. How did you come up with the story? What books inspired you to write this series?
''I have always had a bit of an overactive imagination. My mind tends to wander and being a very visual person, I generally get these flashes of scenes¬—a girl on a rooftop, an action-packed fight sequence or an impassioned kiss. From there, my mind melds around these moments and a basic plot begins to develop. As the plot matures, so do my characters. I tend to have a really loose technique when it comes to writing. I always have an idea of where my story is going, but often the journey getting there is just as unexpected for me as it is for my readers. I jot notes on everything and anything within reach when inspiration strikes, old receipts, paper bags, or on my hand. I find these moments of epiphany are where some of my best ideas originate—not forced but inspired.
New World: Rising was born out of an epiphany moment for Phoenix. I could see this girl racing on rooftops, hiding in the shadows, being kind of a badass. The opening scene in the first book is the moment Phoenix was born in my mind, a dark shadowed figure standing on the ledge of a building as her hair whipped around her face in the wind, the city below her in ruin. The world just spiraled out from there, shaping around her.
I am sure this is cliché, but Harry Potter inspired me to write. Not because of the fame or money, but this was the first series I fell in love with and because of how many lives J.K. Rowling touched with her books. To reach that many people and inspire them to dream and read… that is a true gift. So obviously, J.K. Rowling’s books are at the top of that list, but there are many other authors I look up to: J.R.R. Tolkien, Rick Yancey, Dan Brown, Suzanne Collins, Cassandra Clare and Diana Gabaldon, to name a few. Alexandra Bracken and Marie Lu are also recently added to my author crush list—I love that they too write about strong female leads, who are imperfect and vulnerable at times.''
2. To which character do you relate the most?
''Phoenix, for sure. While a little of myself goes into every character I write, Phoenix holds the largest part of me. She and I think similarly, we are very calculated. While she is colder than I am, there is a comradery I feel between us. She is fiercely realistic about every situation, but also has this can-do attitude that she can take on the world. She is not perfect and at times a little unlikeable, but that’s what makes her so human. She is not your average hero, and I like her even more for that fact.''
3. What is your favorite part about the books and what is your least favorite?
''Great question!
I love seeing Phoenix’s relationship with Mouse and Triven. They both bring out a side of her that is more likeable. She grows and blossoms under their influence, and it was nice to see her experience love for the first time. I also thrive on the action scenes. I nerd-out on action movies, so getting to write these epic fight scenes is heaven for me. It’s like my mind sets on fire and I can visualize the whole thing as it’s happening.
The worst parts for me were the scenes with Maddox in the first book. Even as his creator, he made my skin crawl. Just writing the shower scene made me extremely uncomfortable, but that was the point.''
4. How long did it take you to write the first two books in this series?
''New World: Rising was written in about six months, not including all of the editing. Once the story came into my mind it flowed easily. New World: Ashes took me a little longer, about nine months. It was a challenge to decide where to end that book and how much I wanted to give away. Plus, an entirely new city and cast had to be developed and take on a life of their own. I found the second book more challenging..."
Check out the full interview on It's a Books World
Jennifer Wilson's Blog
Author of the New World series and The Chosen series.
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