The Next Big Thing (Week 24)

The Next Big Thing (Week 24)

Today I'm part of a blog tag where writers talk about their work in progress. Last week I was tagged by Stacy Stokes, my blogmate and a friend of mine. This week, I'll talk about my work and then I'll pass the baton to another writer friend who will be sharing his wonderful work next week.

1.  What is the working title of your book?  Betty Noir

2.  Where did the idea come from for the book?  For years I’d watch some of my female students suddenly turn self-destructive and dark. Often I never knew what happened, but I always worried and wondered. I found that nothing I could say helped much until I started talking about the French concept of the Bete Noire – the darkness in us all, and how it’s always a struggle to fight back against it. They seemed to connect to the idea of the darkness being a separate voice/entity haunting them so I let my imagination run and wrote a book where it literally did.

3.  What genre does your book fall under?  YA novel in verse/prose, but from there it’s tricky. Maybe a darkly optimistic magic realism?

4.  Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

For Betty, how could I resist wanting Dakota Fanning? I could see her fabulously bubbly, then dark, and then a hopeful version of the two. For Holden, I’d like to resurrect James Dean or a young Johnny Depp, but I’d take Logan Lerman from today. As for Lindsay, I think Taylor Swift could be dork-a-licious and broken.

5.  What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?  Fifteen-year-old cheer captain Betty is literally raped and metaphorically "impregnated" with a dark voice that haunts her from the inside until Holden, a shy—and very appealing—artist, empowers her and stops her spiral of self-destruction by showing her the pictures he draws of the demon haunting her.

6.  Will your book be self-published or represented by and agency?  I would love to work with an agent. 

7.  How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?  Which one? The first draft was originally all in verse and took about three months, but then I re-wrote it in both prose (Betty) and verse (Noir), and that took about four months.

8.  What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?  One reader surprised me by saying that it reminded her a little of The Book Thief (I think because of its unusual narrative structure). Others have said Speak. I was reading a lot of Latin American magic realism short stories, John Green, and Sonya Sones when I wrote this; hopefully flavors of those brands of magic slipped in somehow.

9.  Who or what inspired you to write this book?  See question #1.

10. What else about your book might pique the reader's interest?  I guess I wanted to write a good love story. I suppose I thought about the kind of guy I wanted when I was a teen and blended it with elements of the great men I’ve met since then to create a bumbling and sweet little romance. And sometimes I try to be funny.

That's all I've got for now!

Tagged for next week (week 25) is one of my very talented writer friends. Check out his blog next Wednesday when it's his turn to post answers to these same questions about his own work in progress! 

James Matlack Raney

The Next Big Thing (Week 23)

Today I'm part of a blog tag where writers talk about their work in progress. Last week, I was tagged by Sakura Q. Eries, a friend of mine that I met through Agent QueryConnect. This week, I'll pass the baton to a few other writer friends. I've had the privilege of reading some of their work, and can attest to the fact that they are both wonderfully talented.  They will blog about Their Next Big Thing on November 14, but for now, here's the scoop on mine.

1.  What is the working title of your book?  Where the Staircase Ends

2.  Where did the idea come from for the book?  I had a dream and a girl walking up a staircase that lead into the sky. When I woke up, I had a compulsion to write the story down. I felt like I couldn't sleep until I did.

3.  What genre does your book fall under?  I originally thought it was YA Magical Realism, but I've since changed it to YA Supernatural Mystery following some advice from an agent.

4.  Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
For Taylor, my MC, I think Chloe Moretz would be perfect.

While she's probably a bit too old, Deborah Ann Wall is a nice match for Sunny, Taylor's best friend.

I'm still on the hunt for the perfect Justin Cobb (the love interest de jour).

5.  What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?  After an accident, high school student Taylor Anderson must climb a seemingly endless staircase into the sky; a journey that reveals the surprising truth about her best friend's betrayal and the life Taylor thought she wanted to leave behind.

6.  Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?  My hope is that I will be repped by an agency and/or publishing house.

7.  How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?  The first draft took me just under three months.  Revising took a lot longer, but largely because I was researching the publishing industry and learning about the process.

8.  What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?  I've often had it compared to Gayle Forman's IF I STAY and Lauren Oliver's BEFORE I FALL.  I sometimes say that if THE FIVE PEOPLE YOU MEET IN HEAVEN had a love child with the movie EASY A, it may have turned out a bit like my story.  :)

       

9.  Who or what inspired you to write this book?  I was inspired by friendships I had when I was in high school and junior high. No matter how good the friend, I remember that jealousy - over guys, over things, over situations - often caused tension in our relationships. Sunny and Taylor's relationship feels very real to me, and I wanted to capture that complexity in an honest and relatable way.

10. What else about your book might pique the reader's interest?  The story weaves two mysteries together - the mystery of the stairs and the mystery of why Taylor and Sunny's relationship crumbled. The scenes on the stairs are filled with magic and intrigue, while the contemporary portion of the story will hopefully have readers ripping through pages to find out what Sunny did to Taylor (and why) that ruined their friendship.

That's all I've got for now!

Tagged for next week (week 24) are some of my very talented writer friends. Check out their blogs next Wednesday, November 14, when it's their turn to post answers to these same questions about their own works in progress!

Tamara over at One Magic Bean Buyer
Lauren Monahan from right here at Thinking To Inking