The Next Big Thing

Last week, I had a total squeee-worthy fangirl moment when I got a message from the amazingly talented Hugh Howey that he had tagged me for his The Next Big Thing blog post. I’ve seen these questions going around other blogs lately and was even tagged by my fabulous friend Roxanne Ravenel, but hadn’t yet gotten around to answering. Now that I’ve been tagged twice, I have to answer or be shamed forever.

First of all, let me say that if you haven’t read Hugh Howey’s WOOL series, you need to stop what you are doing right now and read it. Seriously, RIGHT NOW! It’s freaking brilliant and will have you turning pages late into the night. Hugh is one of the nicest Indie authors out there, always paying it forward and interacting with the community. I have admired him from afar for a long time, but his recent decision to turn down two 7-figure deals and hold out for a print-only deal from Simon & Schuster totally won my heart. He’s my hero and someday, I want to be just like him. Except a girl. Of course.

The purpose of this internet meme is to talk about your next book. As most of you know, technically my ‘next’ book hits the virtual shelves in just 2 days (OMG!). I figured it was kind of cheating to write about that book since 1) All of you already know what it’s about and have been waiting for it for a while and 2) It’s coming out in 2 days. Instead, I’m going to write about what’s next after Demons Forever and the Peachville High series is over.

What is the title of your next book?

Pestilence.

Where did the idea come from for the book?

I have always been a huge horror fan. Particularly when it comes to zombies. I read The Stand by Stephen King a few years back and loved the way he actually took you through the breakdown of society during a pandemic. I thought it would be cool to do something like that, but with zombies 🙂 And witches.

What genre does your book fall under?

Young Adult Paranormal, of course! There are some definite similarities to the Peachville series in that it will have a strong romantic core and ties to witches/magic. However, the main difference (besides the zombies) is instead of being told from one point of view, this story will be told from at least six different points of view.

What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie?

This is always such a difficult question for me!! I have a clear picture of these characters in my head, but I can’t always think of actors who fit the part. Especially age-appropriate actors. So, if I can’t think of a teen actor, I’ll cheat and use adult actors and actresses and just put “a young” in front of their names.

Parrish – Lily Collins was my original inspiration for Parrish. Only a goth version of her. However, I recently learned that she was snagged by Cassandra Clare to play Clary in the City of Bones movie. I’ll have to think of someone else!

Noah – A young Ryan Phillippe. Definitely.

Crash – A teen Takeshi Kaneshiro. Possibly slightly more unkempt.

Karmen – Ashley Benson, the girl who plays Hanna on PLL. She’s perfect for Karmen!

Those are the main 4 in the story. There’s also a little boy, but I don’t have a good idea of who could play him in the movie!

What is the one sentence synopsis of your book?

PESTILENCE, the first book in the Eternal Sorrows series, is a Young Adult Urban Fantasy about a group of teen heroes who must come to terms with their new magical abilities while trying to survive the zombie apocalypse.

They are about to find out that zombies are the least of their problems.

*Okay, that’s two sentences. I couldn’t bring myself to cut the second sentence because I love it too much. Hey, I’m an Indie, I can break the rules!

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

Self-published for sure!!

How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

I wrote the first draft of this book during NaNo 2009, so it took me one month. However, I eventually went on to add another 40,000 words to the book, so overall, the first draft probably took more like 3 months.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I honestly can’t think of any great books to compare Pestilence to in the YA genre. Like I said, it’s definitely influenced by Stephen King’s The Stand, but also there are hints of I Am Legend by Richard Matheson and Heroes (the TV show they never finished, which broke my heart).

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

This just goes back to The Stand. (Can you tell I’m obsessed with that book and love it so so much??) A lot of apocalypse-type stories start way after the apocalypse began, showing you what society has become years in the future. I am fascinated by the idea of how it all unraveled. What happened when the first few people started dying of a strange flu? How did the average teen handle watching their friends and family die? What would you do if the dead started rising from the grave? Those questions inspire me!

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

Readers who loved the Peachville High series will see a lot of similar theme in this book/series. The idea that most people are neither all bad nor all good, but somewhere in between. The longing to find a group of people you can trust and love. The realization that when faced with the most difficult situations imaginable, we often find great strength and magic deep within. Also, there are two great romances in this series.

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So, that’s Pestilence! I don’t have a release date or even a cover to show yet, but I am planning to start rewriting the draft I wrote in 2009/2010 as soon as Demons Forever is out! (FRIDAY!!!!)

Now, it’s my turn to tag five writers. I haven’t checked to see if they were already tagged because I’m too lazy and in the middle of pre-release day craziness, but here they are:

Megg Jensen

RaShelle Workman

H.M. Ward

Karen Amanda Hooper

Karly Kirkpatrick

Magan Vernon

Oops, is that 6? *bats eyes* There goes that breaking-the-rules thing again. Check their blogs in a week to see if they answered!!

Thanks again Hugh and Roxanne for tagging me. This was fun!! Oh, and don’t forget you still have some time to enter my Peachville High Demons t-shirt giveaway!