It’s my birthday! + The Next Big Thing Award

First and most importantly, today is my birthday! Woooo! I turn 24 today, which kind of makes me wince, because I assumed I would be doing great things by my near-mid-twenties. That being said, I have a decent job, good friends, and my first book is nearly published, so I guess that’s not too shabby, right? Plus, sushi tonight! Sushi makes everything better.

Right. Now that the main event is over, let’s move on to the other reason for this post: The Next Big Thing Award.

When it rains, it pours, and I have been nominated for this award three times in the past week. So thank you to Mike Akin, The Living Notebook, and Mari Wells for the nominations!

Without further ado, I shall now answer the 10 Next Big Thing questions. Read at your peril.

1)  What is the working title of your novel?

Imminent Danger And How to Fly Straight into It

2)  Where did the idea for the novel come from?

I was taking an Astronomy class in my first year of university, and as I sat listening to my professor regurgitate the contents of our textbook, I thought to myself, “Wouldn’t it be funny if someone who didn’t believe in aliens got abducted by aliens?” Originally the main character was going to be a college Astronomy professor, but then I realized that I would far rather write about someone more my age (plus I have no idea what goes on in college professors’ heads), and thus Imminent Danger was born.

3)  What genre does your novel fall under?

Imminent Danger is YA sci-fi/humour/romance.

4)  Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

I imagine my characters with different faces every day, but here are my current (slightly impossible) picks:

Young Keanu as Varrin

Source: http://www.myspace.com/forourkeke

Emma Watson as Eris

Source: http://www.celebsdirt.com/page/4/

5)  What is the one sentence synopsis of your novel?

Abducted by aliens and stranded light-years from home, a teenage girl is rescued by a handsome mercenary who puts her planet, her life, and her heart in the clutches of imminent danger.

6)  Will your novel be self-published or represented by an agency?

Self-published all the way, baby!

7)  How long did it take to write the first draft of your manuscript?

I finished the first half-ish of the book during the 2006 NaNoWriMo, and then wrote the rest of it over the next six months. I then proceeded to revamp and revise it for approximately six years. I’m sensing a “6” theme here …

8)  What other novels would you compare this book to within your genre?

The humour in my novel is similar to The Princess Bride, and the feel of the story is very Star Wars.

9)  Who or what inspired you to write this novel?

As I said, my Astronomy teacher. Because he basically re-hashed everything we’d already read in our textbooks, I had lots of time in his classes to dream up the plot for Imminent Danger.

10)  What else about your novel might pique the reader’s interest?

Other than the fact that it’s awesome? Well, it has dashing space pirates, six-armed lizard men with an obsession for the colour blue, fluffy-haired gurus, laser-repellent monsters, spiffy spaceships, evil laboratories, sentient balls of light, and much more. It’s got romance, action, comedy, tragedy, danger (of the imminent variety), and a multitude of abductions. Oh yes, and did I mention it’s awesome?

Right! Now I’m supposed to nominate people. I hate this part, because there are so many awesome writers out there on WordPress that I don’t want to snub anyone by not nominating them. Ahhh, the pressure! Okay, here’s what we’re going to do. Everyone who gave editing suggestions on my recent post about Imminent Danger’s back cover text get nominated. Ready?

• Eric John Baker
• The Misanthropic Muse
• Tania L Ramos
• SJ O’Hart
• Celeste DeWolfe
• Mary J McCoy-Dressel
• Keri Peardon
• Sahm King

If I missed you, then my eternal apologies. I officially nominate you in my capacity as birthday girl.

Unrelated link of the day:

Fun with words:

http://imgur.com/a/hBZjh