Interview & Giveaway - Emma Michaels

Everyone help me welcome Emma Michaels, author of The Thirtheen Chime & Anasazi!

With her second book release tomorrow I thought it would be a great time to introduce everyone to her. So here we go!!

Was it easier to write the sequel since you know the characters better now, or was there still a lot of bumps in the road?

I think there always bumps when writing but I think there were fewer bumps. I already knew it was rewarding and how much writing means to me now so the big different was I wasn’t scared anymore of letting myself share my work and I knew I was growing. My main goal with writing is always to grow with each and every novel and I knew that in order to do that I had to keep going! Plus, I was writing with a new main character for this one! So it was new territory all over again. I  had to introduce the other lead in the series before book three!

Who are some writers you look up to and why?

This is an incredibly long list. So I will try to summarize. I have always been a big reader and found people who I look up to in novels or characters who are very unique and I tend to look up to anyone who has those characters because I know those characters were a part of them or their imagination. I love Tamora Pierce because meeting her was really wonderful. She is very grounded and caring and she made me feel really special at the signing when I was younger. Stephanie Meyer and J. K. Rowling I have to give props to because they opened up this genre to so many people. It felt so weird to finally actually have my friends be READING! I wasn’t alone anymore. I had been one of three people at my school (a VERY large one) who was notorious for enjoying books. Then suddenly everyone was walking around with books in their hands or bags. A lot of my fellow Tenners I really look up to and a lot of the ‘09 releases. Some of my all time favorites that have kept me going are Peter S. Beagle, Patricia C. Wrede, Lloyd Alexander, Meg Cabot (Mediator series), R. L. Stine, Gail Carson Levine, Carolyn Meyer, Sharon Shinn,  Elizabeth Moon  and The Forgotten Beast of Eld by Matricia A. McKillip was a big life changer for me. There are more of course. Like I said, a long list.

Are you a calm collected writer, or like me, you write things in sticky notes, napkins & paper plates?

I am a little bit of both. I get ideas all the time and always have to write them down but I also always keep a notebook or laptop with me. If I don’t have one then you never know where it will end up!

If you were taking a LONG car trip and could take any character, yours or another, with you, who would it be?

I have actually thought about this because doing signings normally means a LOT of car and plane time. I think it would be Lupin from Harry Potter. I love talking to teachers and getting to learn new things and he is a character full of knowledge. Or Tonks because she seems like a blast! (Can you guess who my favorite HP characters were? )  If I had to choose from my own characters then I would probably choose Megan from Anasazi. While she and I are extremely different I have a feeling we would get along really well.

How long did it take you to write Anasazi compared to The Thirtheen Chime?

It actually was a lot faster. I think with The Thirteenth Chime I was kind of holding back because I was still a bit scared but now I realize that I am writing because it is a part of me so there is no real reason to hold back. Any reasons I could give myself now are things I am not afraid of.  I got the bad review, the people acting differently towards me and everything else I could have been afraid of. I also got the chance to meet fantastic people I look up to, get to have something I was deeply proud of having accomplished, get to effect the lives of others and hear their stories. Overall, all of the good always outweighs the bad for me.  Now that I know that, it would be pretty difficult to stop me from always continuing to write.

Where’s your favorite place to write?

Anywhere. I tend to write everywhere. I will be walking with Mike around the area we live and be 30 minutes away from the house when I make him stop for a few minutes while I write down an idea. I just sit down cross legged where ever I am when I get an idea and jot it down.  Unless there is a bench but I normally don’t get ideas at logical moments. My main writing home is my desk though. That is where I expand those ideas into novels, short stories or plot outlines for the future.

Quick Shots:

Inside or outdoors?

Outdoors.

Unicorns or dragons?

BOTH! When I was younger I was obsessed with The Last Unicorn by Peter S Beagle and Patricia C. Wrede’s dragon novels.

Crunchy Cheetos or Puffs?

Neither. I can’t stand them. I am one of those people who likes to make all my food from scratch. I wasn’t always but Mike, my fiancé, converted me and now I am addicted to homemade food.

Bad Boy or Sweetheart?

Sweethearts (like my fiancé) though it is always fun to read about a bad boy.

Tattoos or piercings

Neither. I go through too many phases when it comes to clothes. I almost never buy them but when I do it takes HOURS for me to decide and a few weeks later I wish I had gotten a different item or outfit. It would be a thousand times worse with either tattoos or piercings. I would get one and be asking for laser or taking the earrings out by the end of the week. When I was ten I wanted a tattoo that would loop around my ankle and say “It is better to be hated for who you are then loved for who you are not.” though. So if I had to choose then probably tattoo.

Thank you so much for the interview and for having me here on Taking it One Book at a Time! The questions were a blast!!! <3

Now that you've learned all about Emma, here's your chance to win a copy of Anasazi!

Leave a comment telling me which character YOU would want to take a long road trip with.

Make sure to include:

• Name
• E-mail

Contest ends Wednesday, August 10th, and the winner will be announced Thursday morning.

**Sorry, this contest is US only**