I believe that the beginning of each new week must be special. In order to do that today, I invited author Alicia K. Leppert for an interview, and she was happy to participate. Now if you're wondering who she is, here's what she says about herself...
I always knew I wanted to be a
writer, ever since Career Day in first grade when I walked around
carrying a notebook and pencil. Twenty-some odd years later, after a
short stint in high school where I dreamed of being an actress, a
whirlwind Internet romance including a blind proposal that led to a
fairytale wedding and two pretty-near perfect kids, my lifelong dream
came to fruition with my first novel, Emerald City. I live with my small
brood in my beloved hometown of Pasco, which is located in the only
part of Washington state that isn't green. When I'm not writing, I can
be found decorating novelty cakes and taking naps--my other two
passions.
If you want to know more about her, please visit her site, where she shares odd things about herself, her books and giveaways.
www.aliciakleppert.com
And since I was so swiped by her debut book, "Emerald City", I couldn't hold it in me and asked her the following questions:
How did you come up with the
idea to write Emerald City? Did it have something to do with the
movie City of Angels at all?
My main goal was
to write a powerful love story. Outside of that, I didn’t know what
to make that love story be about. I tried and failed several
different stories before one night having the idea to add a
paranormal/fantasy aspect to it. I’m not a huge fan of vampires and
werewolves and didn’t want to jump on the Twilight train anyway, so
I tried to think of something different, something that was more
“good” than “evil.” And that was when I had the idea of an
angel. It had nothing to do with City of Angels at all. In fact, I
never intended it to be anything like that movie and hoped people
wouldn’t draw comparisons to it. Unfortunately, the way I ended up
taking the story did resemble that storyline.
2. Did you
take special classes to learn how to write so well? I mean, seriously
– your style is amazing!
Well first of all,
thank you for the incredible compliment! No, I took no classes other
than your typical high school English and writing classes and a few
community college ones as well. That’s it. Writing is just
something that has come naturally to me my whole life. I write how I
think and I write what I feel and it seems to work!
3. How did
you know what depression felt like? You've described it so well that
one can only wonder. Any personal experiences you might want to
share?
Yes, I’ve made
it no secret that I am speaking from personal experience. I know
depression and anxiety all too well. I’ve suffered from an anxiety
disorder and a chemical imbalance my entire life and seen more
doctors and tried more meds than I care to admit. It is something I
struggle with every single day. It was important to me to tell
Olivia’s story and paint a realistic picture of depression and the
havoc it wreaks on those who suffer from it. I hope it opens people’s
eyes to the very real pain it can cause.
4. I felt
connected with each one of your characters on a very deep level. I
wonder how you managed to make them sound so real. Were they taken
from real life models?
There weren’t
really any specific individuals I modeled my characters after, more
like different pieces of different people I put together to make each
one. Olivia, as stated above, was modeled primarily after myself, but
other than that, they were all just products of my imagination.
5. I know
that many people experience extreme tragedies in their youth, but
somehow you've made Olivia's sound unique. What made you write about
this girl and present her case as something special?
I knew Olivia’s
history would have to be pretty bleak to bring her as low as she was
at the start of the book, so I tried to think of the worst things
that could happen to a person without getting too grizzly (like rape,
for example). I knew she needed to be alone in the world, so that
made it easy to come up with her father’s abandonment and her
mother’s death. The time between those two events sort of filled
itself in naturally, as the things that would realistically happen,
in my opinion.
6. One
thing I absolutely loved about this story was the growth that Olivia
underwent. She started out as the absolute loner, but with the help
of Jude, she was able to make some friends. Do you think that in real
life, such drastic changes are possible to accomplish?
It’s hard to
believe that such a drastic change is possible. But I’ve seen it in
other people and I believe that it can happen. At least I have hope
that it can.
7. What is
the message you're trying to convey through Olivia's character?
Basically that
same thing—that change for the better is possible, that there is
always hope. No one should have to live life alone and miserable and
loveless. That people should never give up on each other, should
never stop trying to reach out and befriend one another. And that
those who find themselves in a position like Olivia did where they
feel there’s no hope and no way out, to GET HELP. There will always
be someone, somewhere, who cares enough to help.
8. And now
about Jude. Oh, dear! That guy got me hyperventilating every time I
saw his name on the page! He was simply amazing! How on earth did you
manage to portray someone like him so well? I mean, his attitude, his
thoughts, his feelings... they're perfectly thought out!
I’m so glad you
fell in love with Jude as much as I did! I intended for him to be
that guy that got your heart rate going, and I’m so glad to hear I
succeeded! What can I say about Jude? Basically, I just created my
dream guy, the guy that every girl wants. Gorgeous, sensitive,
caring, but with an intensity and passion that gives him the sexy
factor. I didn’t want him to be so sensitive that he didn’t seem
masculine, or so tough-guy that he seemed angry and abusive. I tried
to find that perfect balance right in the middle.
9. What do
you feel for Jude? Both as an author and not?
Hmmm…interesting
question. As an author I love Jude’s character because he has a lot
of depth, a lot of inner turmoil caused by feelings of right versus
wrong and his feelings for Olivia that he knows he shouldn’t have.
As a human, and a more specifically a woman, I have a serious
fictional character crush on him!
10. I'd
really love to know how you came up with Hal's character. That guy
was both hilarious and serious, and extremely helpful.
Hal was pieced
together by various characters I’ve seen over the years on TV and
in movies. The interesting thing about Hal is that until about ¾ of
the way through writing the story, he didn’t exist. Jude and Olivia
were the only two characters, and one of my editors thought I needed
to add some more. Enter Hal. Now it’s hard to imagine the story
without him, and he is hands-down the favorite character in my book,
according to my readers.
11. The
message of this book was pretty strong. I don't know whether you'd
written it so it would hold a message, but still. There was hope to
keep us strong and there was love that conquers all. What else should
the reader see between the lines?
I actually didn’t write Emerald City with the purpose of giving a
message, other than “love conquers all” as you stated perfectly.
I really had no idea the message that readers would take away from it
until I started getting feedback from them. Now I am thrilled and
proud of the message it conveys in regards to finding hope, finding
happiness, and overcoming darkness.
12. And
last one I promise. Is there going to be book 2? I mean, the ending
of Emerald City suggested so, but I would like to know for certain :)
Yes!! There will
definitely be a sequel, which I am in the beginning stages of
writing. It will be called Sin City and will take Jude and Olivia to
Las Vegas. The books will be part of a series, although I’m not
exactly sure how many books in the series there will be. Right now
I’m thinking 4.
Thank you for this
interview and for loving my book!
And I thank you for participating in this questionnaire! It was an honor to have you on my blog!
You guys, if anyone has a question for Alicia, you can post them as comments and I'll forward them to her! Have an awesome week!