Thursday, May 31, 2012

Behind The Pages #3: Interview with Lauren Oliver + GIVEAWAY


Lauren Oliver is one of my favorite authors, so it's no surprise I sought out getting an interview with this awesome lady. Thankfully, she not only granted me some of her valuable time, but she's also contributing signed copies of her Delirium series to one lucky reader. Check out Lauren's interesting answers below, and find out how you can win her cool prizes!

1. Tell us about your life growing up in New York. Were you compelled
to become a writer due to the fact that your parents both taught
literature?
That was absolutely a huge source of inspiration to me. I was certainly raised in a very literary household. I started telling stories at a very young age, and started writing them down as soon as I physically knew how to!

2. How long did it take to establish the story in Before I Fall?
Before I Fall was an interesting process. I basically started hearing Sam's voice in my head, and I needed to start writing it down. It also deals with a lot of themes that had been interesting me, such as peer pressure. 

3. Your debut is more on the contemporary, realistic fiction side, while
your new series is focuses on a post apocalyptic fantasy world. What
inspires your versatility as an author and do you think it’s important
to be able to take on different genres?
I try to just focus on telling the specific story I want to tell, and not on "oh, I'm telling a dystopian story now... what does that mean I have to do?"

4. What makes the Delirium series different from other dystopian
books out now?
I think it has very distinct characters, and hearing the story through their voices would differentiate it, no matter what the genre is. 

Delirium (Delirium, #1) Pandemonium (Delirium, #2)

5. And what inspired you to write a story where love is classified as a
disease?
There's an essay by Gabriel Garcia Marquez where he says that all stories are about either love or death. Since my first book was about death I wanted to write a story about love. At the same time I was watching something on TV about pandemics. I guess the two ideas got mixed together in my head and I started thinking about a world where love was a global disease. 

6. Pandemonium is a mind blowing sequel, picking up beautifully the
momentum left by the first. Can you give us some details about the
third, Requiem, and where you’re hoping to take the characters
next?
All I'm going to say is that it's told from two different points of view, and that it includes characters that the readers haven't seen since Delirium.

7. Let’s put writing on the side for a bit. What do you do for fun outside
of creating these intriguing stories?
I like doing most artistic things, singing, dancing, cooking.. I love seeing my friends, and watching movies with them, and doing physical activity.

8. Why do you hate bananas? I’m just curious to know.
Because bananas are evil!! Their little yellow smiles disgust me.

9. If you lived in a post apocalyptic world where you were only allowed
to keep three things from the past, what would those three things
be?
Libraries, the power grid, and prospect park. And the heinz tomato ketchup factory. 

10. Thanks for taking the time Lauren. Please leave a message for your
readers, and any tips for aspiring writers.
I would love to give a huge thank you to all my readers, and a reminder to all aspiring writers to write write write every day!

~GIVEAWAY~
Sorry, for the US only.



20 comments:

  1. I haven't read many dystopians but I like the ones I have because they give us an idea of what could happen with each decision that mankind has made throughout history. And it's not pretty.

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    1. ah yes, when I entered I could find where to leave my GFC name: Ana Lucía Arroyave

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  2. I love dystopian books! they're kind of my favorites!
    I really love them!
    BTW: I couldn't put my follower name. So, GFC: Lis
    Thanks for the chance!!!

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    1. Me too! Sorry about the screen name issue i just fixed that.

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  3. I like that there is such a long history of dystopian books. Authors have been imagining bleak future worlds since H.G. Wells' The Time Machine and probably before that.

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  4. Great interview! I love the Delirium series, and I have Before I Fall on my shelf, waiting to be read. I like how she keeps changing up the POVs in the Deliriums series. I'm usually left wanting after a sequel, but Pandemonium really delivered! I can't wait to read Requiem. I bet it will be my favorite yet!

    No bananas? Reminds me of an ex. I might like her a little less now. :P J/k. Thanks for the giveaway!

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  5. I love Dystopians b/c they take real people and throw them into unbelievable situations...I love to see how the characters develop and grow from that!

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  6. I hadn't really read much dystopia until I read Divergent, then I was hooked. I love it when it's done well and feels like a really chilling version of the future, also the technology is always awesome. Plus you always get kick-ass characters is dystopia books. This book sounds awesome, I have heard such great things about the authors work. Thanks for the interesting interview & giveaway. I have entered but if it's not international count me back out again lol, sorry I couldn't find out anywhere. :)

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    1. You can enter the MYTHOS ACADEMY GIVEAWAY. That one is open to everyone, international & beyond!!

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  7. Hi Shane! Nice to meet you! Thanks for visiting my blog. I have a couple of Lauren's books and sadly haven't had a chance to read them, yet. She sounds like a fantastic writer. You did a great job on the interview. I liked the question about what she would keep...The Heinz Ketchup factory..huh? Bananas are evil. Really!? I love them. I like dystopian books because they make me think and put me in situatiins that are so foreign. Oh one more thing, you need to go into your rafflecopter and type in a message to tweet. I made one up when I tweeted.

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    1. LOL! I love bananas so it really baffled me to learn why Lauren hates them. Thanks for stopping by. I like your blog!

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  8. Great interview. I really like Lauren Oliver. I haven't had a chance to read Pandemonium yet. I love dystopian novels - and they are really what got me interested in reading YA books, The Hunger Games series, and Divergent were the first I read. Since then, I have read quite a few and I am always partial to anything dystopian. Thanks for the giveaway!

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  9. I love Lauren Oliver! Haven't picked up Pandemonium yet - looking forward to reading it this summer! Great interview!

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  10. Awesome interview! It's so cool that you got the opportunity to talk to her. I haven't read these books yet, but I've heard great things about them!

    I like dystopian books because they're so different and have entire worlds that are differnt from ours - not just one fantasy element, etc. The characters have to be strong to overcome huge obstacles and esentially save their societies.

    Thanks a lot for hosting this great giveaway! Wish me luck. ;)

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  11. I'm not sure what it is about dystopian books that appeals to me... it might be that the threat to the characters feels more immediate and real and it's so much fun seeing them triumph in the face of that.

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  12. I haven't really read much dystopian yet, but I do like the idea of a vastly different future...and it's always interesting when the future seems believeable! It makes it more creepy, I think.

    -Lauren

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  13. I've only read Before I Fall, but the other two are on my to read list.

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