Interview with Laura Bickle

Hi, and welcome to Friday! Today I'm interviewing multi published author Laura Bickle, so I hope you enjoy today's post, and please, do leave a comment, letting us know you stopped by!

Hi Laura! I'm so glad to have you here today! Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. It's always fun learning about authors :) 

  

Tell me about yourself, and your writing.

My professional background is in criminal justice and library science. When I’m not patrolling the stacks at the public library, I’m dreaming up stories about the monsters under the stairs (I also write contemporary fantasy novels under the name Alayna Williams. I live in Ohio with my husband and a herd of mostly-reformed feral cats. THE HALLOWED ONES is my first young adult novel.

How long have you been writing? How many published books do you have, and what genres?

I’ve always been scribbling, since I was old enough to hold a crayon. I didn’t believe, until recently, that other people would want to read what I wrote. It’s incredibly exciting to hear from folks who’ve enjoyed the stories I tell.

Writing as Laura Bickle and Alayna Williams, I wrote four urban fantasies. Two are best summed up as “Ghostbusters in Detroit with dragons and arson” (EMBERS and SPARKS). The other two, DARK ORACLE and ROGUE ORACLE, are about a criminal profiler who uses Tarot cards to solve crimes.

      

My newest release is THE HALLOWED ONES, a YA thriller. Katie is on the verge of her Rumspringa, the time in Amish life when teenagers can get a taste of the outside world. But the outside world comes to her when a helicopter falls out of the sky near her house. Katie must confront not only a massive disaster unfolding in the world outside her community, but also the threat of darkness in her own increasingly fragile society.

Do you write in multiple genres or just one? If just one, do you ever consider straying outside your genre?

I always have a lot of fun writing fantasy. There’s something special about writing YA, though. I think it’s because there are fewer ‘rules’ about the structure of the story and the path the characters need to take. It feels easier to spread my wings and explore ideas in ways that I wouldn’t necessarily be able to do in a book for adults.

Are you a plotter or do you write from the seat of your pants?

I’m a total plotter. I love building a skeleton of a story and then adding flesh to it. Staring at the blank page scares the daylights out of me, and the outline is my security blanket.

What is a typical writing day like for you?

I do my best to keep a writing calendar and to commit to writing a certain number of words a day. My favorite place to write is out on the patio, where I can hear the frogs and the crickets. I can’t write very fast or well in front of the television…I have to really shut the door on distractions to get focus. I know a lot of writers who can write in busy coffee shops, but that’s not me. Too much going on, and I can’t get immersed in the work if there’s the constant temptation of chocolate…

Who do you love to read? Favorite authors, favorite books?

I love FEVER by Lauren DeStefano. Her voice is so incredibly powerful - I can't wait for the third book in the Chemical Garden trilogy. Both WITHER and FEVER were books that lingered with me for a long time after I finished - I love it when a story takes up real estate in my head and haunts me like that.

My all-time favorite is Robin McKinley’s HERO AND THE CROWN. I read it when I was a pre-teen, and fell in love with fantasy ever after. It was the first book I’d read that had a female protagonist who slew her own dragons. I was hooked.

What is something you'd like to accomplish in your writing career next year?

Though this is entirely too ambitious, I would someday like to see action figures made of my characters. My life would then be complete! *laughs*

If you could have one paranormal ability, what would it be?

Invisibility. Hands-down.

If you could keep a mythical/ paranormal creature as a pet, what would you have?

In EMBERS and SPARKS, I wrote about a fire salamander who was the familiar of an arsonist. Sparky was a lot of fun to write – cranky, petulant, and snuggly. I’d love to see how having a salamander would translate to real life. If he didn’t set my microwave on fire. There would have to be some rules…

Tell us a little about your latest release.

Katie is on the verge of her Rumspringa, the time in Amish life when teenagers are free to experience non-Amish culture before officially joining the church. But before Rumspringa arrives, Katie’s safe world starts to crumble. It begins with a fiery helicopter crash in the cornfields, followed by rumors of massive unrest and the disappearance of huge numbers of people all over the world. Something is out there…and it is making a killing.

Unsure why they haven’t yet been attacked, the Amish Elders make a decree: no one goes outside their community, and no one is allowed in. But when Katie finds a gravely injured young man lying just outside the boundary of their land, she can’t leave him to die. She refuses to submit to the Elders’ rule and secretly brings the stranger into her community—but what else is she bringing in with him?

What is something that you absolutely can't live without? (Other than family members)

Coca-Cola. It’s the breakfast of champions.

Could you ever co author a book with someone? If so, who would you choose, and what would you write?

I honestly don’t know if I could do that. I like having control of the story too much, and it feels too fragile to show anyone at the first stages, very easily bruised.

I do have cat help with all my books, though. They stomp all over my keyboard. Does that count as co-authoring?

If you could spend a day with anyone from history, dead or alive, who would it be, and what would you do? What would you ask them?

Nefertiti. I’d ask her to tell me everything – from her philosophy on war to what kind of shoes she preferred.

What are some of your other hobbies outside of writing?

In my day job, I work in a library. I get to pet all the new books and come home with armloads of books to read for research and pleasure.

My husband and I are amateur astronomers. We were excited to finally get a break in the cloud cover to see a bit of the Perseids meteor shower this year.

If you were on the staff to have a book adapted to movie, what would you pick?

I so much want to see Melissa Marr’s WICKED LOVELY in film. It’s a lovely story, and the characters are so vivid in my head – I’d love to see them on the big screen!

What is a talent you wish you had, but don't?

I wish I had some coordination and muscle memory. I did belly dancing for a couple of years, but was really trying very hard not to trip over my own feet. I would love to be able to really, really dance.

Favorite color?

Red.

Weather: Hot or cold?

Hot enough to set up a kiddie pool in my backyard and relax in it with a good book.

Favorite place to read?

In bed.

Favorite meal

Any time it’s my husband’s turn to make dinner. He’s an amazing cook.

Favorite non-alcoholic drink.

Coca-Cola.

If you could travel anywhere and do anything, no limits or money holding you back, where would you go?

I’d want to start an animal sanctuary – have my own little farm to take care of animals. Someplace green, with meadows and trees.

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THE HALLOWED ONES

By: Laura Bickle

Reading Level: Ages 12 and Up

Paperback: 320 Pages

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Graphia

Release Date: September 25, 2012

ISBN-10: 0547859260

ISBN-13: 978-0547859262

THE HALLOWED ONES is available from Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Powell’s, and Books A Million.

If your home was the last safe place on earth, would you let a stranger in?

Katie is on the verge of her Rumspringa, the time in Amish life when teenag- ers are free to experience non-Amish culture before officially joining the church. But before Rumspringa arrives, Katie’s safe world starts to crumble. It begins with a fiery helicopter crash in the cornfields, followed by rumors of massive unrest and the disappearance of huge numbers of people all over the world. Something is out there...and it is making a killing.

Unsure why they haven’t yet been attacked, the Amish Elders make a de- cree: No one goes outside their community, and no one is allowed in. But when Katie finds a gravely injured young man lying just outside the bounda- ry of their land, she can’t leave him to die. She refuses to submit to the Elder’s rule and secretly brings the stranger into her community—but what else is she bringing in with him?

"This is a book to make you fear the shadows--a horrifying and gruesome tale of faith, and things that blink red eyes in the night. I began reading in the daylight, and read on into the late hours, leaning close, biting my lip. I could not look away; I was obsessed. Katie is an unbreakable soul."

--Lauren DeStefano, New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author of the Chemical Garden Trilogy

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A free excerpt of THE HALLOWED ONES is available here: http://laurabickle.com/the-hallowed-ones/?action=excerpt

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For more info about Laura and her books, please visit her website at www.laurabickle.com. She’s also on Facebook and Twitter, usually exclaiming over cute cat pictures and nerdy things.