Tuesday, 18 June 2013

Author Interview: Megan Joel Peterson

Megan Joel Peterson has written The Children And The Blood.

1. What is your name and where do you call home?
My name is Megan Joel Peterson and I live in central Illinois.

2. What is the name of your most recent book and if you had to sum it up in 20 or less words, what would you say?
The Children and The Blood is the name of my most recent book. And to sum it up, I would say: The Children and The Blood is a fast-paced urban fantasy adventure filled with twists and turns till the very end.

3. Do you have plans for a new book? Is this book part of a series?
The Children and The Blood is the first book of a trilogy. Beyond that, I have plans for other fantasy books as well.

4. What or who inspired you to start writing? And how long have you been writing?
I have loved to read since I was a child, and told stories to my friends long before I ever put anything to paper. But the first time I considered that writing could be my passion and my career was eighth grade. I’ve been writing off and on ever since.

5. How did you come up with the cover? Who designed the cover of your book?
My husband and I designed the cover of this book. We came up with the idea through brainstorming sessions over the course of a few months.

6. Did you listen to any particular songs whilst writing your books?
Oh my goodness, I’ve listened to so many great songs over the course of planning and writing this book! Even with just my ‘favorites’, it’s hard to know where to begin. Linkin Park’s songs and albums would have to be on the list, though, including their A Thousand Suns album, “What I’ve Done” from Minutes to Midnight, “New Divide” from Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, and “Numb” from Meteora. Other songs would have to be “Injection” by Hans Zimmer from the Mission Impossible II soundtrack, “Comptine D'un Autre Été: L'après Midi” by Yann Tiersen from Amelie, and “Song for Bob” and “What Must Be Done” from Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’ soundtrack to The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.

7. Would you have different book covers for different countries?
I haven’t really considered this, honestly. At the moment, I don’t and unless there was a good reason, I’m not sure I would. But then, I haven’t heard arguments for or against doing so, and thus I’m not really sure!

8. How did you come up with the title for your book?
I was in the process of planning the book, and the title just popped into my head one day. I considered it over the course of many months, but nothing ever seemed to sum up the story the way this title did.

9. Are you a self-published / Indie author?
I’m self-published, yes.

10. Have you ever read a book more than once? And if so what was it?
I’ve read many of the books I own more than once. As a child, I read Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card so many times that the cover fell off the paperback! I love to reread books, because I’ve often found scenes and descriptions that are so powerful to me on the second or third or tenth reread of a book that didn’t quite hit me the same way the first time through.

11. Have you ever read a book just based on its cover?
I may pick up a book because of the cover, but I don’t read it unless the description of the book catches me too. And sometimes, I couldn’t care less about the cover (or even the description) if the book comes recommended by a friend. A combination of these factors leads me to a book, usually.

12. What book are you reading at the moment? And in what format?
I’m reading The City and the City by China Mieville and also A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens on my e-reader. I seem to be on a ‘city’ theme right now, for some reason!

13. Do you have any advice for other writers? And what’s the best advice that you have been given when it comes to writing?
Don’t give up. If writing is your dream and your passion, then it was given to you for a reason. Believe in that, and not in what anyone else might say.

One of the best things I’ve read, though it doesn’t necessarily relate solely to writing, was a quote by Carl G. Graves, founder of Black Enterprise Magazine. It got me through many of the ups and downs on the road to publication. He said: “We keep going back, stronger, not weaker, because we will not allow rejection to beat us down. It will only strengthen our resolve. To be successful there is no other way.” I love that quote.

14. Where can your readers follow you?




Goodreads author page: www.goodreads.com/meganjoelpeterson





Thankyou so much for taking the time to do this interview and allowing us a glimpse into your writing world!

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