Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Interview with Anna Carey & Signed Eve Giveaway!

Today I'm super excited to welcome Anna Carey, author of Eve, to Stories & Sweeties! She's here to give us the scoop on writing Eve, some words of wisdom for those taking on NaNoWriMo, and of course, her cupcakes of choice. :) Welcome, Anna!!


What kind of research went into building the world of Eve?

I wasn't as interested in building a completely new world as I was in reimagining our world in the wake of an unfathomable tragedy. As grisly as it sounds, when I was writing the first Eve book I found myself watching old youtube videos of natural disasters. I read a lot of survival stories of people alone in the wildness, as well as stories about the bubonic plague. Eve's world is our world without us in it, so I was constantly looking up random information. How long does canned food last? Are there wild boar in the Northwest? How long does it take to walk from Oakland to Marin County?

Tell us a little about your ideal writing space.

I usually write at a cafe about ten minutes from my place in Los Angeles. They have delicious curry chicken sandwiches, a "quiet study" where people aren't allowed to talk, an outdoor patio and electrical outlets next to every table. It's a writer's heaven.

Who are your favorite authors? What are you reading right now?

There are probably too many to name here. I read a lot of adult fiction, and have always loved Toni Morrison, Dave Eggers, Aimee Bender, Amanda Davis, Lorrie Moore, Michael Cunningham and Jonathan Safran Foer. In terms of young adult fiction, I love Gayle Forman and Suzanne Collins (though I'm waiting to read Catching Fire and Mockingjay until I finish the final Eve book). I'm currently reading Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher.

What kind of books did you like to read as a teenager?

I mostly read what was required for class (if I had some of the YA books that are out now, I'm sure things would've been different). I loved Song of Solomon, Frankenstein and Jane Eyre. My favorite book was Lord of the Flies though. I still scream "I've got the conch!" if people aren't listening to me.

Best advice for those tackling NaNoWriMo this year?

When you're trying to write a first draft in a month, I don't think you should be too hard on yourself. Don't obsess over every line. It's just a first draft. And sometimes first drafts are really the preliminary musings on a book you've yet to write. When I was in grad school I spent a lot of time working on a book about a girl who was living in a walled in compound. Her sister escapes, and slowly she learns that she's part of a government experiment. The book was all kinds of messed up, but it was invaluable when I wrote Eve. I kept thinking: I was never supposed to write that book. It was just the training I needed to write this one.

And everyone who visits Stories & Sweeties answers this one: Do you like cupcakes? :) Frosting or Cake better?

I'm a huge fan of lemon cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, red velvet and the classic vanilla/vanilla combo. It depends on the cupcake, but I usually like the cake part better. Sidenote: are there people who don't like cupcakes?!?! Bring them to me, I will talk some sense into them.

Thanks for the interview, Anna!

Find out more about Anna Carey & Eve:


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And now...who wants to win a lovely signed copy of Eve!?

To enter, just comment below and answer this question: Do you have anything in common with Anna Carey?

  • Include your email so I can contact the winner!
  • Open to US only, must be 13 years or older.
  • Entries welcome until November 25th, 2011

Good luck, everyone!


21 comments :

  1. loved the intrview
    goodluck all

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'm the cupcake baking queen! Seriously. I just recently made Lemon Cupcakes with Raspberry Frosting (from scratch of course!). I recently loved these brownie cupcakes with white chocolate frosting. Delish. And who doesn't love pumpkin muffins with cream cheese filling?

    Vivien
    deadtossedwaves at gmail dot com

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  3. I love red velvet cupcakes! They are so yummy!

    Thanks for the awesome giveaway!

    jadedlittlegirlx AT gmail DOT com

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love the cake part better too! I thought I was the only one! Great interview, and thanks for the giveaway!
    Somer

    somer28@live.com

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  5. I love going to cafes and just relaxing and reading! They are so quiet and zen. You literally have everything you could possibly need there: food, book, and quiet time. I also very much love Jane Eyre, though it took me a minute to get into it

    shae_carcar(at)yahoo(dot)com

    Thanks for the awesome giveaway
    P.S. I love cupcakes too, but then again who doesn't?

    ReplyDelete
  6. I am also a big fan of Suzanne Collins! I even use the girl on fire as my alias! And Vivien(commented above) actually made me girl on fire cupcakes for my birthday this year! They were amazing!

    thegirlonfire27 at gmail dot com

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  7. Lemon cupcakes with cream cheese frosting sounds SO amazing. I think everyone loved the cupcake question/answer! :)

    Can't wait to read this book. Thanks for the opportunity!

    mcrs_venin(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  8. We love a lot of the same authors! Dave Eggers is one of my favfavfavorite authors. And of course I adore cupcakes!

    This book looks so good, and I'm so happy I might win it!

    Thanks!
    --Elisquared

    eliweibley AT gmail DOT com

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  9. Great interview! Eve is next on my list on my Kindle. It sounds great. All the best, Ms. Carey.

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  10. Yes! :D We love the same YA authors, we both write in a cafe, we share similar opinions on NaNoWriMo, and we both love red velvet cupcakes. Red velvet in any way shape or form is heavenly.

    Awesome interview!

    ReplyDelete
  11. @Lexie

    Wow, sorry, I'm a failure. I forgot to include my e-mail. It's nerdfighterwriter@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  12. I to have read Thirteen Reasons Why! awesome book.

    peachandblue29at)aol(dot)com

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  13. I don't have anything in common with Anna but I would love to steal her writing spot. A place that has a 'quiet' area would be amazing to use to read a book, such as Eve!

    Thanks for the great giveaway
    apk1princess(at)live(dot)com

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  14. Loved the interview. Anna is a funny,nice person. We really do have to talk some sense into the non-cupcake lovers. Hey, we're reading Lord of the Flies this week in class, hope I like it, too.

    kennedycrazidraw@yahoo.com
    Kandee

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  15. Well, we disagree on Jane Eyre, but I, too, am a huge fan of cream cheese frosting!! I'm not big on cake of any sort so I kinda-sorta-maybe like to lick the icing off and sorta slip the cake part into the trash when no one's looking...

    whatinabox at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  16. I love this interview! The coffee shop I often go to sounds a lot like the one Anna goes to! I can't wait to read Eve.

    Thanks,
    Jenna
    jenna.valdespino(at)gmail(dot)com

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  17. Frankenstein and Jane Eyre are two of my favorite books.

    Thanks for the giveaway,
    Erika
    letstalkaboutbooks.erika(at)gmail(dot)com

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  18. I love cupcakes and I kinda like the cake better than the frosting, most of the time.

    Thanks for the giveaway!
    -Tanya
    bookcaseTanya@gmail.com

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  19. I don't really have anything in common with her, though her answer about cupcakes amuses me.

    jlynettes @ hotmail . com

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  20. Wellll...apparently we both live in L.A.! So I'm definitely going to try to find out which cafe has this quiet space she's talking about.

    And I'm also a cupcake purist - vanilla on vanilla baby, all the way!

    sophiathewriter at gmail

    ReplyDelete
  21. I think there's only one thing I have in common in with Anna Carey: we both love telling stories.

    escapethefate1369(at)yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete