Welcome Back Joy Preble to MCBF 2014

Welcome Back to MCBF, Joy Preble!

Joy Preble is Texas girl who was born and raised in Chicago and a former high school teacher who now writes full time, which means she gets paid for making up stuff. Joy’s THE SWEET DEAD LIFE series (THE SWEET DEAD LIFE and the forthcoming THE A WORD (May 2014), both from Soho Press) is part of the new Soho Teen imprint. Kirkus hailed THE SWEET DEAD LIFE with “Hallelujah! A paranormal tale of angels…that breaks the mold.” She is also the author the DREAMING ANASTASIA series (Sourcebooks) that combines paranormal romance with Russian folklore. DREAMING ANASTASIA was nominated for a Cybil Award in the Teen Sci-Fi/Fantasy Category in 2009. It was named a Best Book for Children, Teen Category in 2009, and was featured in Justine Magazine. Joy also has a contemporary mystery/romance on the way: FINDING PARIS will be out in Spring, 2015 from Balzer and Bray/Harper Collins When she’s not writing, you can find Joy eating guacamole and unsuccessfully battling her Bravo channel addiction.

 To learn more about Joy, visit her website: http://joypreble.com/.

Joy took a few minutes to do an interview with us.  Read what she said here:

 

Do you outline before you write or just dive in?

I used to just start writing when a character or idea came to me. But now I am an outliner, although a rather loose-ish, bullet-point type outline. Partly this is because I tend to write stories with mystery elements and you really do have to know where you're going. Partly this is because I need to see if there's actually a story under there to work with. Writers -- or least this one-- tend to have these brilliant-sounding ideas pop into our heads, but sometimes there really isn't enough to the premise. Like I might think, hey! I'm going to re-imagine Goldilocks and the The Three Bears as a YA novel! And then I realize, hmmm… not so much plot here. (Although now that I think about it, maybe it could be a NA novel… okay, no.) And I also outline because my editor at Soho Press wants to see one for each project. That's the thing when they pay you for books-- you do what you're told, particularly because it helps develop a collaborative partnership and allows us to create better books. Honestly, I can't imagine NOT outlining anymore.

 Why do you write for Young Adults?

 

I write for young adults because that is the age where everything is new and fresh and emotional. First loves, first losses, first taste of independence… these things happen earlier and later, but there is just something about 14-17 and the intensity of what we feel that is often diluted as we get older and our responsibilities grow greater. You know lately I've been joking that I must have a huge amount of issues to work out still from when I was 14 because Jenna Samuels, my protagonist in THE SWEET DEAD LIFE series, has been my easiest and favorite character to write so far! Think about it: when you're fourteen, you're starting high school and it's a hugely important time in your life so far, but you are totally powerless about so much, including driving a car. I think it's been easy and fun to tap back into that angst!

 What is one thing you would like your readers to know about you?

In junior high, I wrote Star Trek fan fiction, often focusing on getting Mr. Spock a love life. Yes, J.J. Abrams, I thought of it first! Also in high school, I dated the first marching band chair bassoon player. Amazingly, I emerged unscathed from this. 

Do you have a pet (pets)?  Tell us about it (them) and how they help/hinder your writing.

We have a boxer/basset mix named Lyla. We rescued her 2 years ago and now she is queen of the house, which she totally deserves since whoever had originally had her had just kicked her out onto the street! She is VERY long and very funny and very verbal and is also the first dog I have ever had! When I write, she lays next to me in whatever patch of sunshine is available. Often she snores--loudly. Occasionally she heaves a huge sigh, as if to say, "Oh! I'm here where it's warm and happy and there is kibble in my bowl."

What books or authors have most influenced your writing most?

Everything I read influences me in some way or another, but a few that come to mind right now are: Sarah Dessen, Libba Bray, Maggie Stiefvater, and F. Scott Fitzgerald.

It’s the dawn of the zombie apocalypse, what 3 things are a must to take with you when you flee your home for refuge from the undead hordes??

Zombieland, the movie, because it has the survival rules mapped out. (Double tap! Check the back seat! Cardio!)

Antiobiotics and water purifier because I read Ilsa Bick's ASHES series and I know I'll need some.

At least 3 weaker, slower friends.

 

Meet Joy as she joins us again at the

2014 Montgomery County Book Festival

on February 15th at Lone Star College - Montgomery.

Happy Holidays Giveaway!

Happy Holidays from the Montgomery County Book Festival!

Happy Holidays Giveaway! Win a signed copy of Sophie Jordan’s Firelight and signed swag AND a copy of Joy Preble’s Dreaming Anastasia and signed swag.

Ends Friday, December 21.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

An Interview with Joy Preble

Q: Of which book are you the most proud? And why?

I'm proud of all of them for different reasons: DREAMING ANASTASIA because it was the first book I ever wrote and also the first book that I sold. HAUNTED because being asked to write it meant that book 1 had done very well. ANASTASIA FOREVER because I am so proud of how I brought Anne and Ethan's story to a fitting and romantic conclusion. And THE SWEET DEAD LIFE (forthcoming next year) because I think everyone is going to love Casey and Jenna as much as I do.

Q: Patty Campbell talks about the germ for a piece of writing being like the sand in the oyster.  What is your grain of sand?  Do you begin with character or setting or something else?

It varies, more often than not, I start with a character. Because once I know who the story is about - at least in a general sense-- it's easier to figure out where the story needs to do. Mostly it's sort of a combination: This is going to be a story about ______ who______ and then_______. So I guess for me, character and plot are tightly interwoven.

Q: What do you hear from your readers?

They like that Anne doesn't fall for Ethan right away. They love her loyal and funny best friend Tess. They appreciate that my witch, Baba Yaga, has layers and back story and that they find themselves sometimes sympathizing with her. They like that Ethan isn't perfect but that he is devoted to Anne.

Q: Why do you write for Young Adults or Children or Adult (whichever is pertinent)?

The best stories exist in the teen years. Everything is heightened then -- everything feels like life and death. All those wonderful firsts -- from love to loss-- so many of them hit us in those years. The emotional essence of my story telling always takes me to characters who are in that age group.

Possibly it also has to do with the fact that I spent a huge chunk of years teaching high school, so the drama is my norm. Every day someone was breaking up or being broken up with, someone was hurting or deliriously happy or angry at their parents -- often for good reason-- or getting kicked out onto the street or running into the room to show me a new tattoo or nipple piercing. And that's just the surface stuff. The adult world is nowhere near as interesting.

Q: Who is your favorite character you have written or read about?

We bookworms have so many answers for questions like this that it's hard to pick just one. Recently, though, I've fallen in huge love with DJ Schwenk in Catherine Gilbert Murdock's Dairy Queen. I adore this girl and her voice is so pitch perfect. If anyone hasn't read this book you must promise to do so immediately.

Q: What is one thing you would like your readers to know about you?

I love guacamole and avocados in general. So if you want to get on my good side, some killer guac and chips will do it. Yes, I can be bribed.

Q: In high school, where did you fall? (Prom Queen/King, Gamer Geek, Brainy/Book Nerd, Jock, Shy/Quiet Scholar, Skate Rat, Stoner, Class Clown, etc.)

Quiet/Bookish/Star Trek fan-fiction writing/viola playing in orchestra type who hated following the rules.

Q: Do you have a pet (pets)?  Tell us about it (them) and how they help/hinder your writing.

A basset/boxer mix, otherwise known as a 45 pound log of doom. She helps when she sleeps quietly, snoring while I work. She hinders when she leaps up while I'm on deadline and slams her paw through a pane in our leaded glass window because she wanted the squirrel who was walking by. I think that covers it.

Q: What is the hardest part of waiting for a book from the end of your writing to when it is released?

Waiting to see if it will sell through to the stores and waiting to see if it will be reviewed by the 'big' reviewers and what they will say.

Q: How often do you dream about the writing you are working on?

Rarely.

Thanks for your time, Joy. We look forward to seeing you at the Festival!
For more information about Joy, please visit her website.

Introducing 2013 MCBF Author, Joy Preble

Joy Preble is the author of the DREAMING ANASTASIA series (Sourcebooks), which blends paranormal romance with historical fiction. Another paranormal – about a sixteen-year-old stoner who returns from a fatal car accident as his sister’s guardian angel – THE SWEET DEAD LIFE – is set in Houston and slated for May 2013, from Soho Press. Joy grew up in Chicago, where she dreamed of being a back up singer but settled for becoming a writer so she could get paid for making up stuff. She now lives with her family in Texas, where you can find her eating guacamole, fighting her Bravo Channel addiction and insisting that Twizzlers are a food group. 

Find out more about Joy Preble at her website!