I
mentioned at the end of my last review that my next post would be today, yes I
was very specific about that which is abnormal for me, but this one is
special. A couple of posts back I did a cover reveal blog for an upcoming book, Shattered
Secrets by Krystal Wade. I got the
pleasure of doing my very first author interview with the one and only Krystal
Wade, herself. She is a brilliant author
and totally cool person on her facebook, who already has a trilogy under her
belt and is promoting the release of her brand new story, out today, Shattered Secrets.
I
have had the pleasure of getting to ready some pieces of this book so far, and
as I post this I am downloading my e-book now to torment myself with while I am
at work today. Yes it is a slow kind of
torture but I shall be home and reading in no time. I fell in love with her series Wilde’s Fire, which recently got a cover
make over, see below. I’m conflicted as
to which I like better because both sets are similar but different in a way
that I find it hard choose. So when I
heard she was near putting out her newest book I was more than thrilled to read
it, and the start of it…hold on tight.
First I
have to say you know I adore your first trilogy, Wilde's Fire. Having 3 books
published, how has it changed your way?
Well, having three books (almost four)
published has definitely changed my outlook. I used to want something out there
RIGHT NOW. Now, I take a little more time, edit deeper, don’t rush into things.
So you have
a new book coming out March 3rd, Shattered
Secrets, so in your own words, what is this book about?
Shattered Secrets is about a
young girl who’s been deceived her entire life. Everything’s been a lie, right
down to her name. When she discovers the truth about these beings that
influence human emotions—and that she’s one of them—she hates it and tries to
run away to be with the only person she trusts. But problems follow wherever
she goes, and until she learns to trust in herself, her life hangs on the line!
Shattered Secrets the title is
interesting and as someone who struggles with a title for my own WIP, I wonder
how you came up with it?
Err. Well. Umm. There was a lot
of head scratching. Then I started playing around with what themes were in the
story, like secrets being kept, and lies being told at every turn. And then I
began thinking about how the main character overcame those things. She broke
through the issues. She knocked down barriers. And broken things can
sometimes be shattered? Err. Let me go with I DON’T KNOW?!
Is this a
new idea or something you've been playing around with for a while?
The idea for Shattered Secrets
actually came to me in 2011, right after I’d finished writing Wilde’s Fire. I
wrote down a very rough opening scene, then jotted down some plot points, then
proceeded to close the Word document that wouldn’t be opened again until late
2012. So, it’s kind of an old idea.
How do you
get your ideas? Do you start with an
idea, a character, or some other random way?
What inspires you, for Shattered
Secrets in particular?
Various things inspire me,
whether it’s music, the clouds, trees, birds, videos I see on Facebook.
Shattered Secrets came to me right after I read Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater (or
one of those books). There was a scene where Maggie’s main characters go into a
candy shop and close their eyes and smell chocolate and fall in love. That
inspired me to actually write the opening scene of my book, where Derick and
Abby first kiss—and then he proceeds to ignore her for three months. ;-) I’m
evil. I know.
I love the Shiver trilogy! I know just what scene you’re talking about,
awe Sam and Grace, such a sweet love story.
Speaking of love, I feel the beginnings of a pretty great love story
going on with Abigail and Derick. Is
there anything you can share without giving to many spoilers for us romantics?
Things won’t always be easy for
them. They’re young and will make a lot of mistakes, but I’m hoping they always
find a way to come back together. I hope. You never know.
In my WIP
and my fanfiction, I have a tendency to cast my characters to some extent. For my fanfic it's for my readers to be able
to visualize better with me and for my story it helps me keep them solid and
not constantly change little things here and there and be consistent. Do you cast your characters, and if so who
are our leading roles? As a side note if
you do and want to also share who you visualized as Arland ;)
For Derick Crawford, I chose
Chace Crawford (yes, the last names are the same so that I could never forget
the actor). For Abigail Nichols, I chose
Kaya Scodelario. Will Banaan is Andrew Garfield,
Megan Bartlow is Blake Lively. And for Arland from Wilde's Fire…well, that was
Henry Cavill!
Do you have
a favorite type of scene to write, and can you get an example from the
book? Romance, suspense, action, comedy,
back story, heroes, villains, etc.
My favorite scenes are
always action. Where fear and fighting
and lots of things going on are, you can bet that was my favorite!
Okay,
here is a scene from one of the later chapters in Shattered Secrets. This is the ONLY place I will share
this. And I hope you enjoy!
"Who wants to
dance?"
Anything to break the
attention away from the runaway status of me and Derick.
All three of them shot up, and
we made our way to the deck. We danced, and we laughed, and we twirled, and we
drank. Blue and red globe lights spun around and blurred in my vision, meshing
with the sounds of bass and drums and guitars. People bounced beside me,
giggling and singing, their half-naked bodies covered in water, sweat, and
beer.
Derick jumped in the pool,
fully clothed, and motioned for me to follow.
I shook my head.
"Go on, Abby!" Megan
shouted from near the diving board.
"No way. I'm not wearing
that bathing suit!"
Will broke away from her, ran
over and pushed me in. "Live a little, gorgeous."
I sank into the chilly water,
the blue light filtering through my eyelids, then kicked my way back to the
surface, to the sounds of cheers.
Laughing, Derick swam to me.
The depth of his blue eyes seemed endless, enchanting with the lights of the
pool reflecting in them. "You look sexy."
"Oh yeah, I hear soggy is
a great look." I wrapped my arms around his neck and my legs around his
waist, ready to dunk him. "And now—"
The ground shook, and
everything around us exploded into flames. Kids screamed and took off running
toward the beach. The house burned, filling the sky with smoke, glass exploding
from the heat.
"Derick?" I flailed,
heart pounding, treading water and spinning in circles. "Derick!"
What the hell?
Where'd he go?
"Abby," he shouted
above the chaos of screams and thunderous booms all around us, "I'm behind
you, at the edge of the pool. Take my hand. We have to run."
"Run where?" I
grabbed hold of him, and he pulled me to my feet.
Another rumble shook the
concrete, cracking the pool in two.
He stared at the water
cascading through the lawn, his eyes wide, panicked. "Anywhere."
"What's happening?"
An older man ran by us, hair
disheveled, skin gray, screaming Will's name. Not angry, but afraid.
Flames licked the side of the
house. I glanced to our left. Every
house burned.
"I don't know, but let's
follow him."
We ran down to the beach and
found a crowd huddled around something. Derick squeezed through the people,
keeping a tight hold on my hand, tethering me to him.
He broke through the last of
the guys and girls, who didn't appear to notice us, and stopped.
Will and Megan lay on the
sand.
Arms and legs sticking out at
odd directions.
Covered in blood.
Dead.
My very
only exclusive snippet. Score! And I have to say you sure do know how to
tease us! On the flip, what is your least
favorite type of scene to write, and any example?
Hmm. Least favorite scene to
write? I’m not sure I have one. Maybe kissing? I like kissing, but I don’t like
to write too much description in it. And I never know what that line is that I
don’t want to cross. So, maybe these scenes cause me the most confusion? I’m
not sure.
As you know
I am not the most patient reader in the world.
I see this is listed as a series, Book
of Red #1, do you have a number of stories in mind for the story arc at
this time or is it more open ended and up to the characters?
Well, Shattered Secrets could
very easily stand alone, though I can’t imagine anyone not wanting to read more
about her life. The thing is: everything will be very different in the next
book. New conflicts, new characters, new LOTS OF THINGS. This really
gives me a ton of freedom. At this point, I’m only planning two more works in
the series, but each book will end with a full resolution (at least that’s the
plan). If the readers enjoy them, I might write more.
What other
projects do you have kicking around, aside from the sequel *wink, wink*? I believe I seen something on your blog about
Charming.
Ahh, Charming. I love Charming, Charming, Charming,
Charming. Wait until you see the cover
to this thriller. It's dark, it's
gritty, and it's very real. No fantasy
in my plot at all. This book is set to release
October 6th. I should be starting a
marketing campaign for it pretty soon.
I'm
also planning to release Shattered Secrets 2 and LOST next year. LOST is a Sci-fi that I'm really excited
about. Alien cats. Lots of dead people. A fight for dominance. Wee!
Final
question, what do you want readers to take away when reading your newest story?
I want readers to take away a couple
lessons: One, trust yourself. If you have a bad gut feeling, trust that
feeling. Don’t wait until the world is on fire to realize you could have
prevented it all. Two, love fiercely. You never know when the family and
friends you’ve surrounded yourself with will be taken from you, so make sure
you show them how much you care on a daily basis. Hug often. Kiss often. Fight
less. Forgive easily.
Thank
you so much for the interview, Krystal.
It was such a pleasure getting inside your head on these things. I hope you all have enjoyed this and are as
ready as I am to check out this intriguing book. Shattered
Secrets on sale now!
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| Wilde's Fire new covers! |
"To cure fear, you must use fear."
