Happy Easter everyone!
As some of you might know, I live on the wonderful island of Cyprus (near
Greece), and Easter is a very big deal over here, so it’s time for us to
celebrate! For me, there’s no better way to celebrate than to tell you all
about the release of my close friend’s (and CP’s) debut book: THE CASTAWAYS by Jessika Fleck. First
off, just look at that cover.
Isn’t that the most gorgeous thing you’ve seen? It reminds me of Aslan from Narnia, and you can’t not fall in love with that. So, go ahead, read the blurb below, and be super lucky and pre-order. Trust me, this book will whisk you away (and I’m not just saying that because Jessika’s my friend. Her book is actually really good).
BLURB
The Castaway
Carnival: fun, mysterious, dangerous.
Renowned for its infamous corn maze…and the kids who go missing in it.
When Olive runs into the maze, she wakes up on an isolated and undetectable island where a decades-long war between two factions of rival teens is in full swing.
Trapped, Olive must slowly attempt to win each of her new comrades’ hearts as Will—their mysterious, stoically quiet, and handsome leader—steals hers.
Olive is only sure about one thing: her troop consists of the good guys, and she’ll do whatever it takes to help them win the war and get back home.
Renowned for its infamous corn maze…and the kids who go missing in it.
When Olive runs into the maze, she wakes up on an isolated and undetectable island where a decades-long war between two factions of rival teens is in full swing.
Trapped, Olive must slowly attempt to win each of her new comrades’ hearts as Will—their mysterious, stoically quiet, and handsome leader—steals hers.
Olive is only sure about one thing: her troop consists of the good guys, and she’ll do whatever it takes to help them win the war and get back home.
You can pre-order Jessika's wonderful novel at:
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-castaways-jessika-fleck/1125955437?ean=9781633759183
Right, we all want to
know the juicy details from an author, but we want extra special questions
since it’s Easter, right? Of course we do. So, let’s see what we can rustle up.
Welcome to the blog, Jessika! Thank you so much
for joining us. What we want to know is why did you choose YATopia. I’m sure
some people think it’s simply promotion, but I know that isn’t true (see, I
told you I know her). How is it we managed to entice you here?
First
off, I’m so thrilled to be here and to have my lovely and talented friend,
Fiona, interviewing me! Talk about win, win! I’ve been following YATopia for
years now. I love the interviews (I’ve found some amazing books for my TBR list
here!) as well as the posts on everything from craft to inspiration to editing
to query etiquette!
Well shucks, we’re happy you picked us.
Alright, dual questions: Why did you write the Castaways? And what does it feel
like to be pulled into such a dramatic world full of intrigue and danger?
I
wrote The Castaways when I had two ideas come together in a struck-by-lightning
sort of moment (Sometimes, cheesy as it sounds, it really does happen like
that!). Part one was the story of a girl being bullied. At the time, I had a
friend whose daughter was being brutally bullied at school and their struggle
was heartbreaking. I knew there was an emotional and important story there.
Part two happened when, around the same time, we took our daughters to a
pumpkin patch for Halloween and, of course, we went into the corn maze. We had
to have been the only ones there because it was dead silent and when we decided
to split up and race to the finish, my youngest daughter and I silently roamed
the corn stalks. As we twisted around corners and hit dead ends, I was struck:
what a perfect place to run away or hide. And then, inevitably, the what ifs began to spiral and the
beginnings of The Castaways was born. As for what it’s like to be thrown into
this dangerous fantasy world... I suppose I’m used to it. I definitely tend
toward telling darker tales in strange settings. So, I was quite at home.
What’s your favorite moment in the book? Why is
it your favorite?
This is
hard (especially without giving away spoilers), but I’d have to go with when
Olive is tasked to take Bug to bathe in the springs. It was a fun, sweet scene
to write.
Since it’s Easter, I’m going to ask…do you
think the time of year you set your plot in helps mold your plot? Would the
plot be different in Christmas/Easter/Thanks Giving/the summer holidays? Why or
why not?
Definitely.
The Castaways is set in the fall when carnivals and festivals are most frequent
in the US. Also, I’m pretty sure corn, as a crop, grows in the summer, is
harvested, and then, in some instances, the left overs are made into mazes in
autumn. This book WOULD NOT work without the corn maze. If set in Easter, it’d
have to be a tulip maze – not near as creepy. Thanksgiving might work, but the
maze would be pretty dried out by then. Christmas would be too late (Pine tree
maze? Probably not.). The summer is too hot, I needed a bit of bite in the air
(even if set in Texas). Yeah, The Castaways had to be set in the fall.
Do you have any “Easter Eggs” hidden in your
plot? Can you give us a clue (no, seriously, we need a clue!).
I’m
the worst at planting Easter eggs! Sometimes, I’ll admit, they show up
unintentionally (that’s how truly bad I am at them). I do include Easter eggs
across books. You’ll find some seriously recurring items or mentions... things
like names and locations and pop culture references. Even sometimes made up plants from fantasy worlds. Hint: a plant from
the island on The Castaways will resurface in my next YA novel, THE OFFERING.
If you could add any one character from another
book to your book who would it be and why? Or would you choose not add anyone
else?
Hmm...
I’m a big fan of animal companions (as you know ;) and I love polar bears.
Now... I know, a polar bear would never work on an island, but you said ‘any
one character’, so I’d love to have had Iorek Byrnison from the His Dark Materials trilogy there on the island (inserted interviewer's note: I adore your choice!). The kids definitely
could have used a calm, voice of reason and a great big cuddle.
We always ask authors what one piece of advice
they would give an aspiring author (and of course we want to know that, too, so
spill it!), but we have another question, as well: if you could go back in time
before you wrote the Castaways, what would you have told your former self from your experiences?
My one piece of advice for
aspiring authors is to persist. I know it’s like the author’s rallying cry, but
it’s the biggest piece of truth I can offer: Don’t. Give. Up. As for what I’d
tell myself if I knew pre The Castaways what I know now... Probably to get to
the island sooner! I ended up cutting thousands of words from the beginning
that, in the big scheme of things, just weren’t necessary and definitely slowed
the pacing. I’d also tell myself to put my pantsing pants away and PLOT!
What was the hardest moment in writing your book? Why?
The hardest moment was
finding a balance between the two very different sections of the book. Part of
it takes place in modern day, small town Texas while the other is on a fantasy
island. Eventually, (thanks to my editor) I figured out I needed to cut the
beginning significantly and show more of Olive’s background throughout the book
instead of up front. This worked wonderfully in regard to getting into the real
action of the book as well as not bogging the reader down with erroneous
details. Those editors... They know their stuff!
Finally, how are you going to celebrate Easter (we want everyone to
get to know you, not just one book –
after all, you’re an author to look out for, as I know you have some very
special books coming up soon!)?
My daughters aren’t little
bitties anymore (they’re 10 and 12), but they still get baskets from the Easter
Bunny who always leaves a sneaky scavenger hunt for them (which, incidentally,
gets more and more difficult the older they get). Also, on Easter’s Eve, we’ll
dye eggs per tradition
Now that we know all your secrets, I’m going to
give you a tough one. Choose one of your characters (any one of them), and tell
us how they’d celebrate Easter?
Bug! She’d be sure to
trap a cave full of chickens and would gather piles of eggs herself. Then she’d
forage for different plants and berries to use as dyes and hand paint each and
every one, being sure to make a special egg for each of her fellow Lions.
(She’d also be sure to stash a basket out of sight from Tilly so she and
Charlie and Jude could have an extra-messy, secret egg fight!)
Thank you so much Jessika for joining us on
YATopia. It’s a pleasure to see such a great debut author about to make it big
on our blog, and we’re super excited to see how everyone will love THE
CASTAWAYS!
Wait, hold on a minute (oh come on, you can’t
get away from us that easy!). Bonus round: Give us a paragraph, one that’s not
in your book, that never made it in there, but you still love!
It’s been my pleasure
being here—thanks for having me! <3
Okay, this is fun!
Originally, I gave a glimpse into how Olive and her BFF, Tawny met. Here’s a
snippet of that elementary school meeting:
‘“I’m Tawny.”
”My name’s Olive.”
“Oh!” Her face lit up and I
braced myself for her to flee. Instead she zipped open her lunch bag,
ferociously dug through it, and pulled out a small container of black and green
olives, setting the jar between us.
“Want some?
They’re my faaavorite.” She smiled, removing her pink sparkly retainer and
setting it on a napkin.
We laughed, divided up the olives,
and have been sitting together since.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Just jumping in to say I LOVED this book! :)
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