Note: Normally I wouldn't discuss a WIP with anybody (embarrassing), but when Shannen demands...
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| Wikipedia said I could use this picture, so I did. |
What
is the working title of your book?
The Sleeping Beauty Gift
Where did the idea come
from for the book?
That's quite a long story, so here's the
overview: This book is the third in a series (yeah, Shan, technically the one
you've got is the fourth). That makes it bizarre to try to explain how it came
about, since it's the continuation of a project I've been working on since
2008. It all started with an imagined conversation between Cinderella and her
prince at a ball, which eventually turned into a book . . . and then another
book . . . and then another book . . .
What genre does your
book fall under?
You can probably guess from the title, but it's
young adult fiction with a heavy dose of fairy tale.
Which
actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
An impossible question to answer. All of my
favorites are far too old. Since I'm supposed to answer, though, I might choose Lily
Collins as the main female protagonist. She's exquisite, but I don't know if
she could pull off blonde. Emma Roberts? Molly Quinn? For the male protagonist,
it'd have to be William Moseley from "The Chronicle of Narnia." He'd
be perfect, minus the fact that he's supposed to have dark, curly Josh Groban
hair. Curse you, celebrity hair gods.
What
is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
A prince
stuck with the unsavory nickname "Royal Loser" and minus a fairy gift
turns out to be more than he appears, and only one person knows about it—a
princess who's determined to tell the world.
Will your book be self-published
or represented by an agency?
Let's face it—everybody wants an agency. I'm no
different, but self-publishing looks more tempting each time I look into it.
How long did it take
you to write the first draft of your manuscript? May we see an intro?
It's still a rough, rough, rough work in
progress, which means it's unfit for human viewing. Honestly, it's almost too
painful for me to read at this point. That's not an excuse, Shan—it's just a
cold, hard fact.
What other books would
you compare this story to within your genre?
Ella Enchanted, by Gail Carson Levine
(one of my favorite books ever), The Ordinary Princess, by M.M.
Kaye (THE favorite book ever), and the Dealing with Dragons series by Patricia
C. Wrede.
Who or what inspired
you to write this book?
While I was in the process of writing my
Cinderella story back in 2008, I watched a bunch of different Cinderella movies to stay in
the proper fairy tale mindset. The Czech, Three Chestnuts for
Cinderella, or Three Wishes for Cinderella, (depending on which country you ask), instantly became my favorite. I loved it because the prince and
Cinderella interacted prior to the ball. I've always thought the Cinderella
story was a little fishy in that respect. She just walks into the ballroom and
he falls in love with her? No. That's just ridiculous. Once I wrote the
Cinderella story, I thought it might be fun to follow the children of
Cinderella and her two stepsisters, which eventually became retellings of
Rapunzel and Snow White. Sleeping Beauty will complete the set, even though I
should have written it before Rapunzel. Oops.
What else about your
book might pique the reader's interest?
All of the books tie in very closely with different versions
of fairy tales from around the world. It's one of the features I’m most proud
of. There are myriad versions of Cinderella, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty, and
Snow White, and they're all fascinating and beautiful in their own way. (Or
terrifying and scary . . . I'm talking about you, Russia.) I've tried to incorporate as many
as possible into the names, traits, and adventures of my characters. While
researching Cinderella, I kept reading different versions of the other fairy
tales too, and new characters and story lines began to develop almost against my
will.
Also, my Sleeping Beauty story might just have
hints of The Scarlet Pimpernel in it. Sir Percival Blakeney is just too amazing to
resist.
So, I'm supposed to tag five other authors in this post, but since I only know one other author and she's the one who tagged me...
