MEN in YA: Interview + Giveaway with Nick James, author of Pearl Wars

I'm super excited to be joined today by a fabulous YA writer from right across the border from me, Nick James. He's the talent behind Skyship Academy: Pearl Wars! I'm extremely happy to be able to talk to him today and give away a copy of his wonderful book to one lucky reader - Internationally! :) If you missed my yesterday's review of Pearl Wars you should know: you're missing out! Make sure to check it out! :) 

Guys, please give a warm welcome to our fantabulous YA Galaxy Defender, Nick James!

E: Evie
NJ: Nick James

E: Welcome to Bookish Nick! I’m absolutely delighted to be able to talk to you today, thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to join us here for an interview! Your recent YA novel, The Pearl Wars, is literally a GEM (or should I say a PEARL?) of a book – I loved every page of it! Could you tell us where did you get the inspiration for the brilliant storyline?

NJ: When I first started writing The Pearl Wars, all I knew for sure was that I wanted the story to open with a scene of intense conflict (thus, the idea to have my main character hanging from the top of a building). I also knew that I wanted to tell the story through dual perspectives. I was interested in not only chronicling the journey of the protagonist, but also exploring what might make the antagonist tick and maybe causing readers to question their loyalty when it comes to these characters. As far as the world of The Pearl Wars, a lot of those details came as I was writing the story and revising. I borrowed from many different genres and sources that I’m a fan of. There are elements of science fiction, fantasy, steampunk and coming-of-age, just to name a few.

E: How long did it take for you to write it?

NJ: The very first rough draft took a couple of months. But that time doubled (at the very least) when it came to revisions and rewrites. All in all, I’d say the project took a solid six months.

E: Are any of your characters based on people in your own life? Which of your characters do you feel is the most like you?

NJ: More than people in my life, I’d say that all the main characters are inspired by parts of me. Jesse and Cassius, the two biggest characters, are opposites. Jesse’s self-doubting, sarcastic and klutzy. Cassius is self-assured, serious and athletic. Both are characters that I definitely have inside me. It was fun to explore these two opposing aspects of myself.

E: Have you always wanted to be a writer? At what point in your life did you decide that writing is something you want to do?

NJ: I’ve always written in some form or another, whether it was short stories, comics or scripts for Lego movies I used to make as a kid. When I got to college, I really started thinking about writing as more than a hobby. It was at this point that I finished my very first novel and went on experimenting with different projects until I found the one that fully clicked with me. I still can’t believe I’m lucky enough to have it published!

E: Have you ever thought about making the switch to Adult novels?

NJ: The thought comes and goes, but it would have to be the right project. My heart is really with YA and children’s books. They’re the majority of what I read and feel comfortable writing. I think the voice I use in my work is appropriate to this audience, and many of my ideas lend themselves well to YA. I think in a lot of cases, YA authors are forced to be more creative than those who write for adults. Kids are picky. They want to read about something new.

E: How do you approach writing a new novel? Are you a plotter or a pantser?

NJ: I’m a little bit of both. I don’t like to plot out every little thing in a manuscript. That’s boring for me. But on the other hand, I’ve learned that if you don’t know at least vaguely where you’re going, it only ends up being a lot more work in the long run. It’s all about striking the right balance between the two for me. I like to have wiggle room in case a great idea pops into my head while writing, and sometimes a subplot I wasn’t expecting will emerge in more of a natural way. A detailed, gotta-stick-to-it outline wouldn’t allow for this kind of thing.

E: Do you ever experience writer’s block? If so, how do you deal with it?

NJ: I definitely do. Writer’s block, and writer’s fatigue (ie: wanting to go do anything else but write). Honestly, the best way through it is just to force yourself forward. Even if it’s only a few sentences or paragraphs, getting past whatever scene or moment is blocking you usually does the trick and things start to flow again. Sometimes I’ll step away for awhile but that’s usually just prolonging the inevitable!

E:  If your book was made into a movie, who would you cast for it?

NJ: I’ve definitely thought about this a fair bit! Given that a lot of my main characters are around fifteen years old, I think I’d want to cast unknowns for most of the roles. They usually feel more “real” and honest, which is important to any story that has coming-of-age elements. I’ve said in the past, though, that Joel Courtney (from Super 8) would make an excellent Jesse and Madelaine Stowe (from Revenge) would be a great Madame.

E: What’s next in line for you? When can we expect to see the next book in Skyship Academy series?

NJ: The second book in the Skyship Academy series, titled Crimson Rising, will be out next fall. 2013 will see the end of the trilogy with the release of the third book. That being said, I’m always working on other projects as well!

E: What genre do you like to read in your free time? Which of your favorite books would you recommend everybody to read?

NJ: I primarily read YA, usually with a sci-fi or fantasy bent--though I like a good, contemporary coming-of-age as well. For sci-fi, I’d recommend that everybody read M.T. Anderson’s Feed, which I think is a complete masterpiece. Just the way he builds his world and characters is extraordinary. For contemporary, I’d recommend The Absolute True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie. I’m sure a lot of people have read both books already, but they’re two of my absolute favorites. In a lot of ways, they’re very similar as well.

Nick, thank you so much for joining us today!  

I can't wait to get my hands on the second book in the Skyship Academy series!

I hope you guys enjoyed the interview, for more information about Nick James and his books, please visit his website: Nick James or/and read my review of Pearl Wars.

Huge thank Nick James for the exclusive MEN in YA photo! <3

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Thanks to the fabulous ME ^___^ we have a copy of The Skyship Academy up for grabs today!

The giveaway is sponsored by me and so it's INTERNATIONAL as long as Book Depository ships to you!

To be eligible to win all you need to do is be a follower of my blog and enter through Rafflecopter below.

Ends: December 24th

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This interview and giveaway are posted as a part of the MEN in YA event (Nov 20th - Dec 20th)

For more awesomeness (reviews, interviews, giveaways, guest posts) please click the banner below!

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About the Author

Evie is the Blogger behind Bookish. She enjoys reading many different genres, especially YA, Paranormal, Contemporary Fiction and Fantasy.

She loves talking to authors and is always happy to welcome them for interviews, and guest posts. She also likes spreading the love for awesome books and  chatting with fellow book-worms.

You can find Evie here: Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Shelfari | The Library Thing