Interview with A.E. Rought

Today, I have another author visiting my little blog.

*21-Gun Salute*

A.E. Rought

*Applause and balloons released into the air.*

I met A.E. Rought through YALITCHAT and on Oasis for YA. And of course I started to follow her on her blog, Love, Light and Shadows. And we know I'm stalkerish, *Insert evil laugh*, so I follow her on twitter.

A.E. Rought has published paranormal romances. Here is her webpage http://www.aerought.com/index.html.

But we are going to concentrate on her YA book career. She is represented by Gina Panettieri of Talcott Notch Literary Services. And she and Gina are hard at work shopping around FORESIGHT, which is sitting on some editors desks, and they are about to start shopping RESONANCE--on proposal.

Squee! For her.

I've had the pleasure of reading FORESIGHT, and it is a great read. Her MC, Echo, is not a just-lay-down and take it type of person. And I like that....Alot. It adds a nice edge to the story. A definite addition to my shelves when it is published.

I've also had the privileged of reading the first part of RESONANCE, and this one should have no problem hitting the shelves either. The story is new and fres,h and certainly to add a thrill to its readers. I'm in love with her character River.

Yeah. I can love a character if I want to.

Let's meet A.E. Rought

Tell us a little about yourself...

Let’s see… I’m married to a real life sword-swinging, gun-toting, martial-arts master of a hero. Our kids are too pretty and smart for my mental health. In college a psych proff once told me I’m so extremely right-brained I should be handicapped. Hence, I write and craft (jewelry, baskets, quilts, Renaissance dresses) compulsively and suck rocks when it comes to anything logical, like math or reordering prescriptions for my Rheumatoid Arthritis.

What is your favorite genre to read?

I’m a paranormal and dystopian junkie. I like the edge, the hint of darkness, the threat of death or at least teeth, fur and claws in the shadows. My favorite series right now is Lili St. Crows Strange Angels. I <3>

Within the last year, what was a title of a book that completely whisked you away and you just couldn't put down?

Paranormalcy ruled my world for a day and a half. Hush, Hush was addictive while reading. I love love LOVED Beautiful Creatures for the total immersion aspect.

We know you write in the romance genre, what made you turn your creativity toward YA?

I love the feel of an ‘at first blush’ romance, and all the different aspects you can put in a YA plot and not have to deal with “adult” situations, etc. Hell, I am an adult, when I write I don’t want to write about that. >_<>

Do you prefer writing one over the other?

They both have their benefits. Right now I’m really loving the YA genre HARD.

Can you give us a teaser of both books?

FORESIGHT:

Echo Miller sees dead people. Well, they're not dead yet. She sees how people are going to die, by means of what she calls 'deatholograms', draped like a ghostly second skin over their bodies. Gun shots, stab wounds, burst aorta. Which might seem weird if Echo weren't the daughter of a Fate, one of the Moerae, and Daddy Darkest weren't Hades himself. Echo's just trying to make it as a normal teen flying under the radar, but that's getting harder and harder every day. Daddy's just Branded Echo as an Oracle, basically a 'pointer' for Reapers hunting for newly-departing souls. And the two Reapers planted in Echo's school just happen to be two of the hottest, most alluring guys she's ever encountered. Which might be amusing if all the signs didn't suddenly start to point to something very, very bad happening in the school with Echo at the center.

RESONANCE:

When an epidemic grips Harmony Ridge, and “hearing things” drives local teens to the local psych ward, Faith Summers is sure her swan song is next. After all, Faith sees things no one else can—music dancing in visual light, misty faces stalking her friends, and River, a gorgeous boy who appears out of thin air and uses music as magick, playing her emotions like a finely tuned instrument.

Everything Faith knows about sight, sound, dimensions, and her own heritage are thrown into question, and suddenly, “seeing things” is the least of her worries. The Harmony Ridge attacks are not random—they are points in a search pattern that is moving closer and closer to her. With her life in jeopardy, Faith has no one but the mysterious River to turn to.

River tells her she is the “Balance” Resonants like him fight to protect, but if Faith can’t connect with the music she feels inside, both of their dimensions will fall to the Dissonants.

BONUS! I have a blurb for the as-yet-untitled dystopian I’m playing with: YAY!!!

The shift in human evolution finally happened. It didn’t create mutants with super powers, but heightened the psychic powers that some humans have. The Speakers, Seers, Movers, and Manipulators are in power, though their numbers are small. The vast majority did not evolve and are now ruled by the unforgiving iron fist of the Mentalist Guild.

I’m a Shifter capable of transferring a Mentalist’s powers to a Commoner…or to myself. In essence I can change the shape of our entire society.

I am an outlaw by birth.

I am the hunted.

I love that blurb. Sounds awesome!!!!

If either book was turned into a movie, who would play the heroes?

Oy! The characters are so solidly who they are to me, it’s hard to pick people. Let me see…

Echo: a young Jessica Biel

Chael: a young Channing Tatum, like in Step Up

Daddy Darkest: Morton Downy, Jr.

For RESONANCE, I’m thinking maybe the lead pair in Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief:

Faith: Alexandra Daddario

River: Logan Lerman, but bigger, more muscled, with some tattoos :D

Quick but Oh, so satisfying. First thing that pops into your mind...

Favorite food?

I’m a chicken strip dipped in sour cream addict. I order it everywhere we go. Or a steak from Texas Roadhouse.

Dessert?

Pumpkin crisp with vanilla ice cream (recipe available on request *wink*)

Um... you know I want it.

Hayden Christiansen or Robert Pattinson?

Neither. Taylor Lautner! :P Hoooowl Good grief, you're not even kidding there. Nice!!!!

Favorite paranormal being?

In literature and film now…the werewolf. However, I am very fond of my Resonant Warriors… just sayin. And as I said above, <3>

First thing you notice on a male?

Eyes.

An embarrassing moment that happened to you.

Once, when I was a teen at a pool party, my friend and I giggle our butts off about people walking into the screen door. Fine mesh screen from top to bottom, and with the evening light, it looked like an open door. That’s my story about why, after giggling about others, I feel prey to the same damn mistake of believing my eyes instead of the door handle. BANG. No giggle. *_*

Okay, now to what unpublished writers want to know....

What did you do to make sure FORESIGHT was the best that it could be before you started to submit to agents?

I already had my agent by the time I started Foresight. I sent her the first couple chapters, then the synopsis. She was on board enough to go with that.

Did you compose a list of dream agents?

At one point in my life I sure did. The Knight Agency, Colleen Lindsey, The Greenberg whoseywhatsits. Gina is attentive, gives great input and is enthusiastic, that’s what sold me.

When did you know your query was as perfect as it was going to get and decided to send it out?

When I wrote my very first YA, which I decided to take back to the mattresses for another round, I actually posted the query on my blog on the YAlitchat Ning group. There was so much feedback that I started the Query Kick-Around Group there. Sadly, that particularly book is still waiting revisions.

I have to ask you… What did it feel like to find an agent? What was the feeling when Ms. Gina Panettieri offered you representation?

I was squeeing all over myself. I think I burned up the phone lines calling everyone. But, most of all, I have to say I felt validation, that deep seated feeling that Yes, someone does think my work is good enough.

Can you tell us what happened after you and Gina decided to work together?

We batted a couple adult books around for a while. I realize now that my writing needed to mature, and I needed to give her better books to work with. Years later, we are sitting on four request from big house to review Foresight. It’ll be interesting to see how things go with Resonance going out.

How many revisions before your book was ready for submission to a publisher?

Um… hard to say, I write a chapter, then revise, then write a chapter, etc. Then, I send 50-ish page chunks to Gina to review, and I revise those. It’s not like I write the entire thing, then revise. I do have betas and CPs who tell me mine are the cleanest manuscripts they get. I think that comes from being edited, and learning what works and doesn’t, and applying that as I write.

Any advice you'd like to share for us aspiring writers?

First of all, separate yourself from your work--don’t take anything personal, especially the rejections that come. Find a good critique group. Join YAlitchat. Stalk…er, I mean follow writers like Alyson Noel, Michelle Zink, etc on Twitter, follow agents and editors--you can learn a lot by what they say. Stay out of the way of your characters--let them speak, don’t speak for them. Most of all, never stop believing in yourself and your story.

And there you have it, right from an agented author.

Thank you so very much for visiting my little blog, A.E. Rought. I hope you'll let me interview you again when your book hits the shelf.

I’m yours anytime you want me!