Monday, March 19, 2012

Interview + Giveaway with Deborah Coates; the author of WIDE OPEN

I'm joined today by Deborah Coates, the author of the gorgeous and heartbreaking Fantasy/Mystery/Paranormal novel, Wide Open. The fabulous writer is here with us to talk about her book and her passion for writing. Enjoy the interview and don't forget to enter to WIN a copy of Wide Open for yourself!  The giveaway is located at the bottom of this post! (US/CANADA).


Wide Open
304 pages
Published March 13th 2012 by TOR

    
      When Sergeant Hallie Michaels comes back to South Dakota from Afghanistan on ten days' compassionate leave, her sister Dell's ghost is waiting at the airport to greet her.

The sheriff says that Dell's death was suicide, but Hallie doesn't believe it. Something happened or Dell's ghost wouldn't still be hanging around. Friends and family, mourning Dell's loss, think Hallie's letting her grief interfere with her judgment. 

The one person who seems willing to listen is the deputy sheriff, Boyd Davies, who shows up everywhere and helps when he doesn't have to. 

As Hallie asks more questions, she attracts new ghosts, women who disappeared without a trace.  Soon, someone's trying to beat her up, burn down her father's ranch, and stop her investigation.

Hallie's going to need Boyd, her friends, and all the ghosts she can find to defeat an enemy who has an unimaginable ancient power at his command.


About the author: 

DEBORAH COATES lives in Ames, Iowa and works for Iowa State University.  Her short fiction has appeared in Asimov's and Strange Horizons, as well as Year's Best Fantasy 6, Best Paranormal Romance, and Best American Fantasy.




E: Evie
DC: Deborah Coates
E: Welcome to Bookish Deborah! Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to join us here today! Your debut novel, WIDE OPEN is the first book in a trilogy full of romance, mystery and magic. Can you tell us who or what inspired you to write it?
DC: First, thanks so much for having me!  I'm so happy to be here today.
A couple of things were my inspiration for WIDE OPEN.  I'd written some short stories set on the High Plains, in South Dakota and Nebraska, and I was pretty sure I wanted to use that setting--the wide open spaces--in a novel.  WIDE OPEN itself began, as a lot of my stories do, with the two main characters, Hallie and Boyd.  Though--true confession--for a good long while, through a generous chunk of the first draft, anyway, Boyd was mostly known to me as The Boy Deputy because I couldn't figure out what his name was.  He finally got a first name--Boyd--then I had to do a lot of looking and scrambling for his last name.  In the final analysis, I think it fits him, but it took a long time to get there.
E: Are any of your characters inspired by people in your own life?  Which of your characters do you feel is the most like you?
DC: 
Almost all my characters have some piece of me in them. They do things I would like to do or have done or they think about certain things in a particular way. And everything they do or think is filtered through me--I guess that would be obvious. When they have to act, one of the things I think about is, how would I act? Most of the time the characters do something completely different than what I would do, but that first thought is often--what would I do? All that said, there are pieces of my father in Hallie's father, pieces of one of my brothers in Boyd, and definitely pieces of people I've known in characters like Brett and Lorie and even Pete and Martin (though not, I should add, either of the actual people I know who are named 'Pete' or 'Martin' :).
E: What was the most difficult part of the novel for you to write?
DC: I don't know that there was a most difficult part, per se, but there were several places, particularly about three-quarters of the way through the book that just seemed impossible, like the book would never be good, was so far from good, in fact, that it wouldn't ever even resemble a book-like object.  That point, where it all seems so horrible and you can't see how it will ever get to even the most basic level of verbs that follow nouns and periods at the end of sentences, that's a point where it's difficult to write the next word.  Because what good is it going to be to have a next word and a next and a next if they're all going to be equally awful?  And yet, it's probably the point where it's most important to keep going because if you can just write out to the other side, then you'll be able to go back and look at it and somehow figure out how to make it work.
E: Have you always wanted to become a writer? At what point in your life did you decide that this was the right career path for you?
DC: 
When I was a kid I wanted to be something difficult and vaguely scienc-y. An engineer or a doctor or a veterinarian or a microbiologist. I wrote things. My brothers and sister and I put on plays in the summer. A high school friend and I wrote this whole epistolary novel set in some sort of alternate future in Latin class when we were freshmen. But I never really thought about writing for publication. It didn't seem like a possible thing at that time. It wasn't until finished my Master's thesis and discovered the value of editing that I started to think about publication. Even then, I spent a lot of years moving around and earning a living and not writing that much. But it turns out that writing despite all the setbacks and frustrations and outright rejection is one of the things where I like to learn and I like the process and I really don't get bored. So I'm glad I finally did decide it was something I wanted to do and, though it's been slow for me, I'm delighted to be where I am.
E:  How do you approach writing a new novel? Are you a plotter or a pantser?
DC: I'm almost totally a pantser though I'm trying to become more efficient and less inclined to write a ton of drafts.  Because that takes a long time!  And it's almost entirely for the plot.  I am reasonably clear on my main characters, on my setting, and on the basics of the story when I start, but the specific causes and effects, the supporting structures, and the connective tissue takes a lot of trial and error for me right now.
E: Do you ever experience writer’s block? If so, how do you deal with it?
DC: This isn't writer's block per se, but one of the things I'm trying to figure out as I'm juggling writing and a full-time job, my dogs and the classes I teach, is finding time to let my back brain work out story problems.  My subconscious really writes my novels and if I don't give it time and space enough it becomes a real struggle.  Sometimes forcing myself just to sit down and write will lead to solving the problem, especially if I write fast.  Sometimes going for a walk or doing something completely unrelated to writing.  The trick, for me, is knowing which of those things is best at any particular time.
E:  What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
DC:  Read a lot.  Listen a lot.  Someone, possibly someone you know, will get a super, amazing deal with seemingly little effort.  You're not going to be that person.  And even if you are, you may not realize it because, inevitably, there will be someone else with an even more super, amazing deal.  Enjoy the journey.  Because that's the part, as it turns out, where you spend most of your time.
E:  If your book was made into a movie, who would you cast for it?
DC:
Oh, you have no idea how difficult this question is for me! So difficult, in fact, that I had to ask other people to help me. I don't know why I find it such a difficult question. I think it's because actors can look so different from one role to another. I wouldn't have picked Jennifer Lawrence to play Katniss Everdeen, but she looks pretty good. I would love to see Wide Open as a movie, though. Do you hear that Hollywood? A movie. So, for Boyd, one of the Hemsworth brothers, maybe? Chris or Liam. For Hallie, Gina Corano or Angela Scagliotti.
E: What’s next in line for you? Are you working on a new project now?
DC: I have two more books coming set in the same universe as Wide Open with Hallie and Boyd and some of the other characters from this book.  I've finished the second book, currently called Deep Down.  It's with my editor.  And I have a draft of book three.  I've also got some ideas for future books, including a YA shapeshifter novel set in Nebraska.
E:  Which three of your favorite books would you recommend everybody to read?
DC: Books I've enjoyed quite a lot recently include: Mistress of the Art of Death, a mystery set in medieval England, by Ariana Franklin; The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold, and The Passage by Justin Cronin.

Deborah, thank you so much for joining us today!  
I'm looking forward to reading your next novel!

I hope you guys enjoyed the interview, for more information about Deborah Coates and her book, please visit her website.


Huge THANK YOU to Alexis from TOR/Forge for organizing this fabulous blog tour and inviting me to take part in it! <3

GIVEAWAY 

TOR/Forge has generously offered to giveaway one finished copy of Wide Open!
(Thank you so much!)

Enter through Rafflecopter below!
Open to: US/CANADA
Ends: March 31st
(ENTER AFTER THE PAGE BRAKE -> click: read more!) 




a Rafflecopter giveaway

❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤
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

25 comments:

Carl Scott said...

Those are two very handsome dogs in that photo. It seems to take many people a while to get to the writing profession. Maybe we just need to acquire enough experience to feel good about pouring it out.

Heather said...

Excellent interview and advice! Reading and listening are such important parts of writing. Best of luck with Wide Open Deborah, it sounds excellent.

Anonymous said...

I found Ms. Coates' definition of writer's block very interesting: a chance for the back brain to work things out. I'm going to start using that, and I bet it'll help me with my writing!

Thanks!

Anonymous said...

Also, because the Rafflecopter form wouldn't let me leave the info there, my GFC name is Ems, I 'liked' your blog as 'In Which Ems Reviews Books' on Facebook, and I added you to my blog roll: http://www.emsreviewsbooks.com/

:D

Jennifer @ A Librarians Library said...

This cover is still beautiful I am completely captivated by it! And I really enjoyed the interview with Deborah explaining a bit of the thought process. To think that she went through a good chunk of the book without knowing her character's name really attirbutes to her careful consideration of each detail in her story. I cannot wait to read this!

Giselle said...

Great interview Evie I only heard about this book a few days ago when I posted it in my new release post. It sounds pretty great!

YA Reader said...

Sounds wonderful!

Kayla Beck said...

The book sounds fantastic, and I love Deborah's advice for aspiring authors. Published authors' advice is always one of my favorite things to read, even though I'm not personally looking to get published anytime soon.

Thanks for the interview and giveaway!

Barbara E. said...

Wide Open sounds like a fantastic story and I'm looking forward to reading it.

GFC: Barbara E.

The Bookie Monster said...

I just saw this book on goodreads and I thought it didn't come out for awhile and so I freaked out when I realized it was already out! It looks so good!! Thanks for the giveaway!

Lexie said...

Lovely interview! :D For one, her dogs are absolutely adorable. And for another, I like how she said that all her characters have a bit of her in them; that's how I've always found it to be with me. Very few characters of mine are solely based off of others or myself, but little pieces tend to find their way in.

Unknown said...

Great interview! I thought about writing a book. Got several ideas but haven't started on it. Maybe I will now. :)

Unknown said...

Wonderful interview!!! She is very inspiring!! I might just have to try to write the book that's floating in my head now!

Asheley T. said...

Great interview ladies!

1) I didn't realize this is a trilogy! How exciting. ;)

2) YES, grab one of those Hemsworth brothers for the movie PLEASE.

3) I love to see Justin Cronin's name anywhere. YAY!!

Thanks for your thoughts Deborah! Also, your cover is Gorgeous. Congratulations!!

Thanks Evie!! <3

The Bookie Monster said...

I almost forgot to leave a link to my blog. It's here: The Bookie Monster

Alicia said...

Love her advise about writing: read a lot and listen a lot!!

Na said...

As a reader the plot can really make a story that much better. Even though the characters are the most important to me, the plot enables them to really get into their role. I can understand why creating the plot would be time-consuming.

Anita Yancey said...

This book sounds kind of spooky, but really good. I love the characters and the storyline. Thanks for having this giveaway.
ayancey(at)dishmail(dot)net

Anita Yancey said...

GFC Name: Anita Yancey
ayancey(at)dishmail(dot)net

PuttPutt1198Eve said...

I hadn't thought about a writer's subconcious writing the novel. If that's the case then taking a break from the actual physical writing to let your mind work on the book, really makes sense. I suppose you could throw in taking a nap as a viable writing technique!

Proserpine said...

Hi! Wow great interview, It's nice to learn more about the author and the book, I love to see that they will probably have other books after this one, so if I love it, the pleasure will last longer :P Thanks for this chance :)

Proserpine

proserpinecravedfor(at)hotmail(dot)com

Molli @ Once Upon a Prologue said...

I LOVE this interview. I really like Deborah's advice to aspiring authors - I bet it is 100% true. :D

Kelly said...

I visited South Dakota and it was SO beautiful! Glad to find some settings there. Thank you for the opportunity to win!

Jackie said...

Great interview! This book sounds really awesome and I really enjoy the cover. Crossing my fingers to you that it gets made into a movie!

Anonymous said...

This review was great! She sounds really nice.

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