Jeri Smith-Ready

Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit Tour - Elana Johnson - Now with Giveaway!

[EDITED TO ADD: Simon Pulse has generously offered to donate a signed copy of POSSESSION! See details below.}

Happy weekend again! Unlike last weekend, when I went to a wedding and did a booksigning, this Saturday finds me at home working hard on SHINE revisions. Right now I'm rereading SHADE and SHIFT. This helps in three ways:

1. I find loose ends that must be tied up in the final book.
2. Small details introduced in earlier books can turn out to be a plot or character key in later installments.
3. I avoid embarrassing continuity errors.

Most authors hate reading their old books because they find things they wish they could change, but I enjoy it. Once a book is published, it's final, so what's the point in wanting to change it? And the way I let my perfectionist-freak flag fly during page proofs, the novel is truly the best I could make it.

Besides, if you can't enjoy your own books, which are written about the subjects you love and in the style you love, what books CAN you enjoy?

Enough about me. This week's guest on the Girlfriends Cyber Circuit is one of my fellow Simon Pulse authors, Elana Johnson! Her debut novel, Possession, just came out this week.


Vi knows the Rule: Girls don’t walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn…and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi’s future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.

But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they’re set on convincing Vi to become one of them….starting by brainwashed Zenn. Vi can’t leave Zenn in the Thinkers’ hands, but she’s wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous: everything Zenn’s not. Vi can’t quite trust Jag and can’t quite resist him, but she also can’t give up on Zenn.

This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.

Reviewers are loving this latest addition to the YA dystopian genre!

"Possession held me completely captivated from beginning to end. And what an end! I fell in love with the characters and had countless moments of 'Wow.'"
--James Dashner, bestselling author of The Maze Runner and The Scorch Trials

"Who Should Read This: Anyone who wants a challenge: This plot is so twisty, I had to read the last chapter twice before I could believe what happened. There's also a very nice balance between badass action and romantic tension for readers who like a good mix of the two."
--MTV.com

“Most [readers] will be drawn in by the love triangle, revelations about Vi and her family, and a dark twist ending that maintains the faintest glimmer of hope.”
--Publishers Weekly

"This debut dystopian succeeds at suspense and tension.... Revelations come hard and fast." --Kirkus

“Emotion pumps through every scene of this thriller. Given all the urgency and action, the novel’s ending may surprise readers as the heroic adventure turns into a tragic love story.” –School Library Journal

“An intriguing dystopia…A good choice for fans of Pam Bachorz and Ally Condie.” --Booklist

Read the first two chapters at the Possession website.

And now, my interview with the fascinating Elana Johnson!

Which moment(s) during the writing/rewriting/editing of this book made you tear your hair out?

There’s this one scene in POSSESSION that I had to write like, 50 times. It’s the part that deals with the simulators. I seriously could not figure it out. At one point, I deleted something like 30 pages and started completely over from blankness.

Which moment(s) made you think, "ah, THIS is what carries me through the hair-tearing bits"?

There is a point in the book where my heart cracks a little every time I read it. That’s the moment when the baldness is worth it.

Turn to page 99 of POSSESSION. Which word on that page best evokes your story or main character?

Ache.

Which book/movie/TV show have you recently discovered that made you want to kick yourself for not reading/watching sooner?

Modern Family. It’s hilarious!

If your house was on fire, what object (not including living creatures, human or non-human) would you grab on the way out?

My 72-hour-kit. That thing has all the essentials in it! Food, important papers, fuel, money, everything.

Is there anything most people are able to do (such as drive a car, swim, ride a bike) that you can't?

I can’t whistle. Like, at all.

Is there anything YOU can do that most people can't?

I’m double-jointed, so I can bend the first knuckle on all my fingers without bending any of the others. It’s creepy.

Have you ever been starstruck when meeting another writer? If so, by who?

Absolutely! I was a little star-struck when I met Sara Zarr, and definitely when I met Scott Westerfeld!

Do you have any recurring dreams or nightmares?

I exhaust myself so completely that I can’t remember my dreams. Back when I used to get a decent amount of sleep, I used to consistently dream about being chased through an airport.

---

Possession sounds amazing, doesn't it? I've been hearing so much about it, but I think the time has come to read it myself. And so should you.

[Edited to add: And now you can! Just comment on the interview (a comment on the questions and/or answers, not just "Great interview!") by Friday, July 1 at 11:59pm eastern. I'll draw a winner using a random number generator and post it in the comment thread. So PLEASE subscribe to the thread or check back here on Saturday to see if you won. US addresses only. Copy will be signed but not personalized, since it's coming from the publisher, not Elana herself.]

Congrats to Elana on her fabulous debut! See the rest of you next week...maybe with some more Ireland pictures? Maybe? No pressure, though. Can't take the pressure.

Labels: Contests, GCC

• posted by Jeri @ 8:50 PM
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