Join us beginning July 30th - August 3rd on this forum as [b]AMY GARVEY[/b] visits and answers your questions all week long! Post your questions here and you'll be automatically entered to win copies of her books: [b][i][url=http://www.epicreads.com/books/cold-kiss/9780061996238/]Cold Kiss[/url][/i][/b] and [i][b][url=http://www.epicreads.com/books/glass-heart/9780061996245/]Glass Heart[/url][/b][/i]! Don't forget to log back in during Amy's visit to read her responses! [img]http://www.harpercollins.com/harperimages/isbn/medium_large/8/9780061996238.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.harpercollins.com/harperimages/author/160/37008.jpg[/img] http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,406#msg-406 Wed, 19 Jun 2013 17:00:01 -0400 Phorum 5.2.16 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,599#msg-599 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,599#msg-599 MirandaDoores Epic Reads Book Club Wed, 08 Aug 2012 13:02:55 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,594#msg-594 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,594#msg-594
I dont know if its to late to get a questioned answered but I'll try anyway, by changing your life, I meant did you learn anything new about yourself that showed up in your characters? Sorry, I have a terrible habit of thinking people can read my mind =]

Also, I can NOT wait for Glass Heart, I'm super excited! Thanks again for answering my question, you're awesome!]]> stegosaurusrawr Epic Reads Book Club Tue, 07 Aug 2012 20:10:25 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,540#msg-540 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,540#msg-540 -------------------------------------------------------
> My question would have to be, what was your
> favorite part in writing Cold Kiss? And have the
> characters changed your life in anyway? Do you see
> a part of who you are in any of the characters?

More great questions!

Some of my favorite parts to write in Cold Kiss were Wren's memories of Danny. He was already dead (well, undead), so it seemed okay if her memories were slightly rose-colored. That meant I could really play up the magic of being in love for the first time, and discovering another person in such a new and intimate way. I really love Danny, in case it's not clear. ;-)

Have the characters changed my life? Well, in the sense that the wonderful people at HarperTeen responded so well to them, and gave me the chance to share the book with people like you! That's huge. And I definitely see bits of myself in Wren, although I have to say it's ... mostly the cranky parts. ;-)]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 13:07:42 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,539#msg-539 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,539#msg-539 -------------------------------------------------------
> Did you get the final say in the cover art or did
> the publisher?
> Did you have any alternate titles for the books or
> did you always know these were the perfect titles?

The publisher has the final say on cover art, and that's a good thing! I'm a writer, not an artist, or a marketer, and all of those aspects go into the cover.

Cold Kiss was my original title, and it surprised me that I got to keep it! That doesn't always happen. I had a few other vague ideas for Glass Heart, but now I think Glass Heart is perfect for the book.]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 13:02:56 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,538#msg-538 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,538#msg-538 -------------------------------------------------------
> How long did it take for your first book to get
> published?

That's a complicated question! I was ghostwriting before I ever published a book of my own, and the first book I did write and publish happened fairly quickly. But I also had a partial novel tucked away that I loved and had never been able to figure out what to do with, and that took almost twenty years to find a publisher.]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 13:01:17 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,537#msg-537 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,537#msg-537 -------------------------------------------------------
> I'm a middle school English teacher, and I'm
> always curious about how much you wrote at that
> age. Can you share a little? :) Thanks!!!

What I loved about writing then was that it was completely pure. No thought to marketability or plot structure or the right point of view, just whatever putting whatever I needed to on the page. That's a gift that doesn't really last, or at least it didn't for me, but I've always felt some of the best ideas come out of that absolutely free writing.]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:58:59 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,536#msg-536 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,536#msg-536 -------------------------------------------------------
> i love the relationship between Wren and her
> mother it is so realistic, did you/do you have a
> similar relationship with your mother?

Not really! My mom is fantastic, but she's nothing like Rose. We have a great relationship now, but we certainly had our battles when I was a teenager. I have a daughter of my own now, and I'm just hoping we get through her teen years with everyone intact. ;-)]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:57:15 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,535#msg-535 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,535#msg-535 -------------------------------------------------------
> My name is Miranda. I've wanted to be a writer for
> a while now, and it's pretty hard. Did you
> struggle also in the beginning? What inspired you
> to write these books?


It is hard, but so is everything when you start! I think the key to writing, like anything, is the passion to do it, and to keep writing, which is essentially what practicing is to a musician. You just need to keep learning how to use language and refine your thoughts, and it can take a while. But keep at it!]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:55:04 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,534#msg-534 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,534#msg-534 -------------------------------------------------------
> Hi Amy!
> I am from Germany and just read Cold Kiss in half
> a night and half a day! I love it!! Awesome
> story!
> But now I am selfish too: Is Danny really gone for
> good now? I would so love to read more about him.
> I especially enjoyed the extra fighting scene in
> the end.
> Can't wait for Cold Heart anyway!
> Greetings from Germany!


Hi from the U.S.! I'm so glad you liked Cold Kiss -- it's a book that means a lot to me. You'll have to read Glass Heart to find out about Danny, but remember, what Wren was learning was how to let go, and that just because love might not last doesn't make it less meaningful.]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:44:33 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,533#msg-533 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,533#msg-533 -------------------------------------------------------
> Hey Amy!
>
> What are your top 10 recommended reads for people
> who are just getting into young adult books?

Wow, excellent question. It's so hard to choose -- there are so many good books out there for all different interests. But good writing and a story that really hits home emotionally is always the most important for me, so I'm going to say ... the books I voted on in the NPR survey, which are:

13 Reasons Why, Jay Asher
Speak, Laurie Halse Anderson
The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton
A Northern Light, Jennifer Donnelly
I Capture the Castle, Dodie Smith
the Hunger Games trilogy, Suzanne Collins
How I Live Now, Meg Rosoff
The Fault in Our Stars, John Green (or any John Green)
the Gemma Doyle Trilogy, Libba Bray
Code Name Verity, Elizabeth Wein]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:42:39 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,532#msg-532 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,532#msg-532 -------------------------------------------------------
> How did you become an author?


Same way everyone does! I wrote and wrote, and read everything I could get my hands on, and found out what I could about the publishing industry (which was a lot harder pre-Internet), and was lucky enough to get a job in publishing. Now, not everyone does that, or needs to, but it certainly helped demystify the process for me.

For anyone who wants to be a writer, the most important thing to remember is simply to write as well as you can, and to keep learning your craft. Focusing on the writing is much more valuable, in the long run, than focusing on the tangential things.]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:37:40 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,531#msg-531 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,531#msg-531 -------------------------------------------------------
> Hi, Amy! Did you cry at all while you wrote this
> book? I can't imagine not crying--it's such a
> heartfelt and heartbreaking story!


I did, a little bit! I definitely got choked up writing the ending scene -- it was so hard for Wren to say to goodbye! I also gave myself goosebumps in the scene at the park, when Danny starts to remember. The whole process was pretty emotional, actually. I think I need to write a funnier book next time. ;-)]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:35:21 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,530#msg-530 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,530#msg-530 -------------------------------------------------------
> Have you ever had to cut a character in the middle
> of your work in progress?
>
> Which character is the most frustrating to write?
>
> Would you write from a male POV?


Great questions!

In terms of character ... yes, I think so? It's hard to remember, especially when you work so long on the finished book that the drafts tend to fade into the background. But sometimes you realize that three secondary characters could be rolled into one, or that a character isn't really serving a concrete purpose, sure.

Which character in Cold Kiss? Probably Wren! I was closest to her, and I wanted to make sure that her voice was clear and that I was really portraying her the way I saw her in my head. Danny was easy to write, and a lot of fun, and I was crushing on Gabriel a little bit, so he was pretty easy, too.

I have written from a male point view before, when I was writing romance. Many romances are written in third person, so you can get the male and female points of view, and I always liked writing men. They're people, too!]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:33:38 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,529#msg-529 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,529#msg-529 -------------------------------------------------------
> I have a hard time explaining what I want to say,
> how do you explain things when writing?

It depends on what you're writing! Sometimes you want to paint a really specific picture of a setting, for instance, and sometimes you just want to give a hint of the general atmosphere. The only advice is to keep reading, keep writing, and keep revising. Good luck!]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:29:24 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,502#msg-502 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,502#msg-502 stegosaurusrawr Epic Reads Book Club Sat, 04 Aug 2012 01:07:24 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,486#msg-486 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,486#msg-486 Did you have any alternate titles for the books or did you always know these were the perfect titles?]]> elizabethhurlburt Epic Reads Book Club Thu, 02 Aug 2012 20:02:41 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,473#msg-473 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,473#msg-473 NerdyGirl88 Epic Reads Book Club Thu, 02 Aug 2012 08:05:05 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,471#msg-471 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,471#msg-471 jillfoltz Epic Reads Book Club Wed, 01 Aug 2012 20:01:48 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,469#msg-469 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,469#msg-469 Emily @ Falling for YA Epic Reads Book Club Wed, 01 Aug 2012 17:17:12 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,468#msg-468 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,468#msg-468 MirandaDoores Epic Reads Book Club Wed, 01 Aug 2012 16:35:54 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,466#msg-466 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,466#msg-466 I am from Germany and just read Cold Kiss in half a night and half a day! I love it!! Awesome story!
But now I am selfish too: Is Danny really gone for good now? I would so love to read more about him. I especially enjoyed the extra fighting scene in the end.
Can't wait for Cold Heart anyway!
Greetings from Germany!]]> Kayla Epic Reads Book Club Wed, 01 Aug 2012 13:38:20 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,465#msg-465 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,465#msg-465
What are your top 10 recommended reads for people who are just getting into young adult books?]]> EpicGirl Epic Reads Book Club Wed, 01 Aug 2012 13:27:32 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,464#msg-464 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,464#msg-464 juneluu Epic Reads Book Club Wed, 01 Aug 2012 12:12:56 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,463#msg-463 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,463#msg-463 not crying--it's such a heartfelt and heartbreaking story!]]> megrue Epic Reads Book Club Wed, 01 Aug 2012 09:54:37 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,462#msg-462 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,462#msg-462 -------------------------------------------------------
> If you could bring any person back to life, who
> would it be?


Such a hard question! If there was a guarantee that it would work, and the person would really be alive again (not a zombie), I would bring back the husband of a good friend, who died much too young, when their son was still very small.]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Tue, 31 Jul 2012 22:56:32 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,461#msg-461 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,461#msg-461 -------------------------------------------------------
> Cold Kiss is on my "have to read" list and I'm
> very excited to try it. It sounds like a great
> story. Do you have any songs that you would say
> influenced your writing?

Music is always a huge inspiration when I'm writing, and I always listen to different things from project to project. For Cold Kiss, my playlist was pretty varied, with "Honey" by The Hush Sound as the initial inspiration. The whole list is right here on the site, too: [www.epicreads.com]]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Tue, 31 Jul 2012 22:48:50 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,460#msg-460 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,460#msg-460 -------------------------------------------------------
> What helped you decide to become an author? If
> you could give one piece of advice to aspiring
> writers, what would you say?


I guess I never felt that I had a choice, not in terms of writing anyway, whether I was ever published or not. I've always written, and I always will, even if I don't publish anymore -- it's just what I do. As for aspiring authors, if I had to pick only one piece of advice it would be, "Keep writing." (There are a lot more, like read everything you can, and question everything, but the most fundamental one is to keep at it. No one writes a great novel on the first try.)]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Tue, 31 Jul 2012 22:12:53 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,459#msg-459 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,459#msg-459 -------------------------------------------------------
> I am in the middle of reading Cold kiss and I was
> curious are you turning the books into a trilogy
> or is there only going to be a sequel?


Just the sequel! One day I'd love to maybe explore something from the family's history, like the first woman with power, but for now it's just Cold Kiss and Glass Heart.]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Tue, 31 Jul 2012 22:09:29 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,458#msg-458 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,458#msg-458 -------------------------------------------------------
> I love love loved Cold Kiss and cannot wait for
> Glass Heart! I have kind of a random question.
> When you're writing, is there anything that you
> just HAVE to have or do? Do you have a scene that
> is your favorite or that was the most fun to
> write?


I'm so glad you enjoyed it! I think one of the scenes that was my favorite to write is the one where Wren is dreaming about Danny and Gabriel -- the creep factor even made me shiver.

When I'm writing, I usually have tea (either hot or iced), something to munch on, and the most comfortable clothes I own. Writing is a no-bra endeavor for me. ;-)]]> Amy Garvey Epic Reads Book Club Tue, 31 Jul 2012 21:59:10 -0400 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,457#msg-457 http://www.epicreads.com/forum/read.php?38,406,457#msg-457
Which character is the most frustrating to write?

Would you write from a male POV?]]> deadtossedwaves Epic Reads Book Club Tue, 31 Jul 2012 20:40:49 -0400