Meet The Authors Showcase Edition #1 (1 of 3)

A showcase with @TheLlamaPope, author of Northwood

1 what inspired the idea of your story?

This book was initially inspired by Troye Sivan's album 'Blue Neighbourhood', as its themes of adolescence in a suburban setting fascinated me to no end, and I was really excited to explore a town I created from scratch, and get to know its inhabitants. Over time, it drifted from the main focus of suburbia when I started drawing from real-life experience and delved into other themes I felt were fitting. From a concept novel inspired by a singular album, it became about so, so much more. Essentially, I would say my two biggest sources of inspiration were music and past experiences, though.

 2 what is something you struggled constructing with your story? 

Multiple POVs are really, really difficult to work with. I constantly fear that my characters all sound very similar (which I think is every writer's nightmare). On top of that, working with different perspectives means a much, much larger word count, which is something that has always irked me about my writing. But over time, I've learned to accept that long doesn't necessarily mean 'bad', because I am essentially writing for myself! And if I'm enjoying the writing process, that's what matters.

3 what did you enjoy writing most of your story? 

Gosh, I really can't decide, it's been a huge pleasure overall ! But I'd say the first act of the book, where the characters are all initially meeting and the plot's falling into place. Their origins and how their group came to be, why and how the conflict directly affects them.

4 what's the overall response of your story from your readers?

I'm really grateful to say that the response I've received from readers has been almost nothing but positive! When it comes to feedback, it means the world to me, it's one of the things that keeps me going. And seeing such positive things said about Northwood, all of those comments my readers leave (even the smallest things) makes my heart happy. I'm so, so thankful for every person that has ever opened Northwood, I love every single one of my readers to the moon and back

 5 is your story a stand alone novel or a piece of a series ?

'Northwood' is the first book in the 'Descending Divine Trilogy', which is a series of three books that are all set in private schools in the same region. 'Northwood', 'Emerson', and 'Hannigan' make up the series respectively, and while all of them can be read as complete standalones, they have the same running themes, along with a few minor characters that appear in all three, making it continuative. If you read one and don't read the other two, it won't affect the reading experience at all, but there is a running storyline in all three that makes up the bigger picture!

 6 what would you like your readers to take away from your story?

I will never be able to describe just how much this book means to me, and I can only dream that one day, it'll be as important for someone else as it is for me. I guess, at the end of the day, ignoring every other theme, I'd say the main theme is that of remembrance. One day, everything you're doing now will be nothing but a memory. It's important to remember - especially if you're still in your teenage years - to cherish every single good moment in your life. Those few magical seconds where the passage of time itself freezes and you're suspended in a...surreal fantasy, and everything is perfect. Hold onto those feelings of perfection. They are what will get you through the hardest times, so you live to feel that way again.

 7 what advice would you provide to fellow writers, when it comes to focusing on their own story?

When it comes to advice, as cliche as it sounds, don't ever fish for reads. I know how painful it can be to write something and not have it be discovered, but the trick is to write something you're so passionate about that the reads, and other people's opinions of it, both become irrelevant. What matters is how much it matters to *you*. And if it matters to you, it'll show in your work, and it'll start mattering to others, too.

 8 does your main character share any similarities to yourself?

All six of the main characters in this book share many, MANY similarities with me. I guess it's unavoidable, as a writer, to not subconsciously base your characters on certain aspects of yourself (magnified, of course, for fictional purposes). Every writer does it, it just adds depth and raises the stakes, doesn't it?

 9 what is something about your story you believe would draw in new readers?

For one, I've chosen a very popular genre, and I feel like that's my biggest advantage. The demand for teen fiction (On Wattpad in particular) is huge, and the themes of murder in a high school setting have intrigued teenagers since...forever. And I don't mean to toot my own horn, but I do believe I've done a pretty good job of making Northwood an immersive reading experience.

 10 do you have any future projects?

Ah, future projects! I have so, so many lined up after Northwood (though this one isn't ending anything soon), and most of them are still in their planning stages. Once Northwood ends, full focus will be given to refining the other two books in the Trilogy, along with another series that I may or may not be publishing in the distant future! In short, I will never run out of random ideas, so I guess we'll just see where it takes us!