Today, I am happy to have my very first interview on my blog with the amazing author, Rebecca Maizel!
Thank you so much Rebecca for joining us!
Rebecca Maizel is the debut author of Infinite Days, the first book in the new young adult series, Vampire Queen.
Having graduated from Boston University and the Rhode Island College master’s program, Rebecca currently teaches community college in Rhode Island and is studying to receive her MFA from Vermont College.
Her debut book is scheduled to be released on August 3, 2010.
Check Rebecca out on her websites! Blog - Twitter - Facebook
OUAR: If you had to describe Infinite Days in one word, what would it be and why?
RM: That’s a really hard question. I’ll pick a bunch of words: exciting, unexpected, sexy, scary, supernatural…
OUAR: In Infinite Days, vampires are portrayed completely different than the sparkling vampire in Twilight, how did you come up with the idea for the book?
RM: I connected to my main character, Lenah’s voice. It was so strong; and sinister and tragic. I wanted to tap into that sorrow and darkness. I wanted to bring this person, whoever she was back out to light. It turned out that she was a vampire and thematically, it worked. Every person out there has done something they aren’t proud of. And whatever that thing is, they have to live with it - forever. That’s Lenah but times about a million! I just started writing one day and there she was with a motive, a purpose, and some really scary enemies.
OUAR: How long did it take you to write Infinite Days?
RM: 8 months not including revisions. Coffee, coffee, coffee!
OUAR: What is your writing process like?
RM: A lot of whining. A lot of handwriting. I tend to fill up notebooks with handwritten musings, and then I try to piece them together in a word document. I always try to sludge through one full draft on the computer. Then, I print out the word document and write allllll over it, edit the living hell out of it. Then I go back to the word document, implement my edits and start again…and again…and again…
I also improv my characters. Seriously! I try to do this when no one is home but I improvise scenes as a character. That way, I am acting the scene through that character’s eyes and my behavior, my reaction, my word choice is inevitably indicative of that character. Anyone with an acting background might want to try this out.
OUAR: Do you ever get writer's block, if so what do you do to help it?
RM: I try to listen to music, which is similar in tone to what I am writing. I go for long walks, I put the project down for a few days. Sometimes what helps is writing a letter from one character to another character within the story, writing from their point of view. For instance, in Infinite Days, I might write a letter to Lenah from Justin or vice versa. I usually do this with a character or situation I am having trouble pushing through.
OUAR: Besides from Infinite Day's sequel, are there any other projects you are working on?
RM: Yes! I am working on a realistic novel set in present day. But I must remain mum!
OUAR: What got you started writing?
RM: I’ve been writing since I was a little girl. When I was a kid most people were playing with Barbies, I was using my sister’s video camera to make movies starring my Barbies. I guess I was thinking in a narrative format even when I was really little! Also, I loved dance. I was in recitals and danced competitively until I was an older teenager. There was a connection for me between a choreographed dance and a choreographed scene. I haven’t gotten to the bottom of this yet - but I will!
OUAR: Are you currently reading anything?
RM: I am reading SUCH good stuff right now. Sophie Jordan’s Firefly knocked my socks off. Seriously, if you can get your hands on an ARC you are lucky. Erin Bow’s Plain Kate was wonderful and literary and she made me hate my own writing. She’s SO good. I just finished Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver, which made me cry for about an hour. I feel so lucky to be on the shelves with these incredible women.
OUAR: What would you say is your all time favorite book?
RM: Hmmm. For Young Adult I absolutely loved Looking For Alaska by John Green. He’s my superhero of YA lit. I heard he was going to be at bookstore one afternoon in DC when I was there shopping I saw a poster with his name: John Green signing tonight! I literally stopped in my tracks and was like, “JOHN GREEEN IS GOING TO BE AT POLITICS AND PROSE?” I did this really really loudly.
But my favorite of all time? Amy Hempel’s Collection of Short Fiction. She is hands down the most brilliant writer in history. Please run SERIOUSLY RUN and find “The Most Girl Part of You” or “In the Cemetery Where Al Jolson is Buried.” She’s a master.
OUAR: Do you have anything special planned fpr Infinite Days' release date?
RM: I am having a book launch party on Friday the 13th – I thought Lenah would appreciate that! I am also singing books on Cape Cod at the Yellow Umbrella Book shop August 7th. If you are going to be in Chatham, stop by!
UOAR: Thank you so much Rebecca for stopping by and doing an interview! Look out for Rebecca's book, Infinite Days, which comes out on August 3, 2010 (My birthday!)
When Lenah Beaudonte, a 500-year-old vampire queen, wakes up a human teenager at an ultra-cliquey prep school, she must choose between embracing the humanity she’s always craved and saving her new friends from her vicious coven. The first in a sizzling new YA series.
Lenah Beaudonte is, in many ways, your average teen: the new girl at Wickham Boarding School, she struggles to fit in enough to survive and stand out enough to catch the eye of the golden-boy lacrosse captain. But Lenah also just happens to be a recovering five-hundred-year-old vampire queen. After centuries of terrorizing Europe, Lenah is able to realize the dream all vampires have -- to be human again. After performing a dangerous ritual to restore her humanity, Lenah entered a century-long hibernation, leaving behind the wicked coven she ruled over and the eternal love who has helped grant her deep-seated wish. Until, that is, Lenah draws her first natural breath in centuries at Wickham and rediscovers a human life that bears little resemblance to the one she had known. As if suddenly becoming a teenager weren’t stressful enough, each passing hour brings Lenah closer to the moment when her abandoned coven will open the crypt where she should be sleeping and find her gone. As her borrowed days slip by, Lenah resolves to live her newfound life as fully as she can. But, to do so, she must answer ominous questions: Can an ex-vampire survive in an alien time and place? What can Lenah do to protect her new friends from the bloodthirsty menace about to descend upon them? And how is she ever going to pass her biology midterm?
Infinite Days Trailer!
3 comments :
Thanks for hosting a contest!
Great interview! The book sounds good! And thanks for the contest!
BTW- Love your blog! Thanks for displaying my button on your blog!
Great interview! I'm so excited to read this book - it sounds like a completely new take on the vampire genre!
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