Author Insight: Caught in Character

Have you ever been caught having a conversation with a character, method acting as one, etc? How did you explain it?

"LOL  Not really.  I think I spend enough time with them on the page that I don't need to bring them into my real world, so to speak.  But never say never." - Kay Cassidy, author of The Cinderella Society.

 

"I did when I was younger! I have ridiculously long hair, and when I was younger, I'd make up dialog for stories in front of the mirror while brushing my hair. Bit Rapunzel, that. But every once in awhile, my mother would catch me doing it. I have NO idea what she really thought of me...." - Beth Revis, author of Across the Universe.

"All the time. I’ll frequently read dialogue out loud to see if it flows and sounds natural. Every so often, I’ll hear my wife, thinking I’m talking to her, call, 'What?' When I don’t respond, she realizes that it’s just me acting out scenes." - Ty Roth, author of So Shelly.

"All the time! My kids are so used to me having ‘out loud’ conversations with my characters that they don’t even comment on it any more. If I’m alone in the car and someone notices, I try to pretend I’m on the phone." - Cynthia Omololu, author of Dirty Little Secrets.

The Last Sacrifice Winner

And the winner of The Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead is...

Julie (my5monkey)

Congratulations! I will get your book in the mail to you shortly. Thanks to everyone who entered.

Mockingjay & Hunger Games swag winners

Random.org has been consulted. Winners have been chosen. Now, it's time to make it official!

The winner of Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins and one HG bagclip is...

Toria

The winner of a HG bagclip is...

Rahchelle

Congratulations! I will be sending your prizes out shortly. Thanks to everyone who entered.

Uncovered: Hourglass by Myra McEntire

The cover of Myra McEntire's debut novel, Hourglass, was revealed today! It's eyecatching, isn't it?  I like it a lot for reasons I can't quite explain and maybe it's because I have yet to read the book. I know that's lame to say but it just has a certain je ne sais quoi. It would definitely make me take a second look it it was face out on the shelves.

What do you think? Leave it in the comments!

Also visit Myra's blog and leave her some cover love. There's a link below.

Read Myra's post and the back cover copy on her newly redesigned blog  HERE.

Coming May 24, 2011 from EgmontUSA.

More Author Insight: Superstitions of a Scribe

  Do you have any superstitions that correspond to different phases of the writing or submissions process?

"Strangely, no. I'm not a very superstitious person, even though I was born on the 13th and have a black cat." - Lauren Destefano, author of Wither. 

 "I rarely speak about a book until a first draft is done. I find that even the best ideas fall apart if you dissect them too soon. When I'm writing a draft, I don't read anything similar to what I'm writing.  So if I'm writing a comedy, I only read dreary, depressing novels.  And when I'm on submission, I find that it's best to start work on something else.  Anything else.  Otherwise, the waiting can drive you mad." - Shaun David Hutchinson, author of The Deathday Letter.

"No - I'm not superstitious." - Andrea Cremer, author of Nightshade. 

"Surprisingly, no. I'm the kind of girl who won't walk under ladders or step on cracks, so if i DID have any superstitions about writing, I'd probably never write more than a page, much less submit anything!" - Robin Benway, author of The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May, and June. 

"No superstitions. But neuroses abound. :)" - Jackie Kessler, author of Rage. 
 

The Secret Year Giveaway

The paperback edition of The Secret Year by Jennifer Hubbard just hit shelves in late December and now, courtesy of Jennifer, one of my readers will win a beautiful paperback of her book along with a little something extra.
 
What is the bonus prize you ask? It's a miniature version of Julia's notebook, the purple and black striped one from the book! It was handmade by a local artist where Jennifer lives and she'll be sending it to the winner along with their paperback of The Secret Year. (There's a picture of it above the giveaway form. Scroll down!)
 

 
 
 
 
 
 

Take Romeo and Juliet. Add The Outsiders. Mix thoroughly.
 
Colt and Julia were secretly together for an entire year, and no one—not even Julia's boyfriend— knew. They had nothing in common, with Julia in her country club world on Black Mountain and Colt from down on the flats, but it never mattered. Until Julia dies in a car accident, and Colt learns the price of secrecy. He can't mourn Julia openly, and he's tormented that he might have played a part in her death. When Julia's journal ends up in his hands, Colt relives their year together at the same time that he's desperately trying to forget her. But how do you get over someone who was never yours in the first place?

Julia's notebook.