Truth Be Told |
| Interview with Cynthia Leitich Smith: Countdown to Blessed! Posted: 12 Jan 2011 09:27 PM PST Hi Cynthia, thank you for joining us on Truth Be Told. Let's get started!
1.) Throughout all of Eternal, Tantalize, and Blessed there are heavy references to the classic novel Dracula. It seems pretty evident that this novel served as one of your main sources of inspiration. Can you take us back to that point when inspiration struck? What were your first thoughts on the novel, what where some of the main ideas you wanted to include?  In re-reading, it struck me that his vampires could take the form of wolves, and I thought it might be interesting to write a murder mystery in which the central question was whether the killer was a werewolf or a vampire in wolf form. Beyond that, I wanted to touch on some of Stoker's classic themes-the "dark" foreigner, invasion, plague and gender-power dynamics. All of them seemed so timely. After all, I'm living in the southwest, where illegal immigration from Mexico isn't as hotly contested as in many other parts of the U.S. but remains in the news. This was on the heels of 9-11, at a time when Arabs/Muslims were suddenly cast as the "dark foreigner" (as opposed to in Stoker's day, when it was Eastern Europeans). Reports of an emerging super flu (or two) were on the rise. And it hadn't been many years earlier that I'd been involved in founding a women's rights law journal and focusing on gender conflicts. Stoker's Mina Hamilton is a strong, modern woman for her day. But Stoker's mythology still embraced the idea of assault victims as damned. Really, I thought? But then again, isn't that what we so often do with date-rape victims? And isn't it a dynamic faced by too many YA girls today? I couldn't do all of it in one book, and none of it in execution is nearly as straightforward as the thoughts I've laid out. Ultimately, I came at all of that from a slant, crafting a handful of suspense-mystery Gothics with a dose of humor and strong romantic elements. But those are the ideas that started my mind spinning. 2.) Other than novels, was there anything else that helped inspire the creation of this story? Was there any music you enjoyed listening to while writing? Joss Whedon's "Buffy: the Vampire Slayer" was a definite influence-the multi-monster-verse, the humor, the take-back-the-night themes all touched my creative soul. I listened to a lot of older music-Eartha Kitt, Frank Sinatra, some ambient tunes on the Music Choice channels, and from more recently, the soundtrack to Coppola's "Bram Stoker's Dracula." 3.) Out of the three novels, which would you say you enjoyed writing the most? Which one was the most difficult to write? It's hard to say in those terms. Tantalize required the most world building. Eternal was my first crack at a male point of view, albeit alternating. Probably the biggest challenge of Blessed was blending the casts and seamlessly (I hope) integrating only what back-story and fantasy elements were necessary. 4.) I love that the third novel, Blessed, interweaves the story of two characters. Zachary from Eternal, and Quincie from Tantalize. What made you realize you weren't done writing about both of these characters? Both of the previous novels end with calls to action, either express or implied. Loose ends, if you will, that I wanted to more fully address, and I felt that both of those characters deserved the chance to reach their full potential. That said, Blessed is more of a sequel to Tantalize, focusing on Quincie. And a fourth novel-still untitled-will draw more from events in Eternal. 5.) How many books can we expect in this series? At least four prose novels and two graphic novels-Tantalize: Kieren's Story (Candlewick, Aug. 2011) and Eternal: Zachary's Story (Candlewick, TBA), both of which are in progress and will be illustrated by Ming Doyle. Beyond that, I'm keeping my eye on the ball, taking it one book at a time.  However, unless inspiration strikes the fourth prose novel will the last that is an express tribute to Dracula, though I may do more stories set in the same universe. I also should note that there are two short stories set in the universe: (1) "Cat Calls," which is available as a free e-book download for Kindle readers and in Sideshow: Ten Original Tales of Freaks, Illusionists and Other Matters Odd and Magical, edited by Deborah Noyes (Candlewick, 2009) and (2) "Haunted Love," which appears in Immortal: Love Stories with Bite, edited by P.C. Cast (BenBella, 2009). 6.) Did much research go into creating the restaurant menu in Tantalize and Blessed? All of those meals sound oddly appetizing. Quite a lot. My husband, who's the resident chef, offered his enthusiastic assistance, and we poured over Romanian, Texan, and Italian cookbooks-especially historical recipes. It was great fun, and I've been served Sanguini's-style meals, recreated by teens from all over the country. 7.) What were some of your favorite characters to write about in each novel? There's a tendency to talk about the protagonists, but I'm a sucker for secondary characters and antagonists. So far, Brad, the vampire chef is my fave baddie. He's seriously evil. This isn't just some cute, misunderstood guy who was cursed with fangs. He does some real damage. But he also has a devilish charm that's oddly addictive. Beyond that, I adore Clyde, the comedic wereopossum, and Meghan, the hybrid werewolf five-year-old, from both Tantalize and Blessed. I also enjoy the cheeky twins, Harrison and Freddy, who were raised by human servants to vampires, and Brenek, the werebear from Eternal. 8.) What was the best advice someone offered you on your journey to becoming published? It takes ten years to become an overnight success. Get to work and keep working! If you commit to the craft of writing, the only way to fail is to quit. 9.) Can you give us a small teaser of what we can expect in Blessed?  Kieren didn't answer. His arm circled my waist, and we moved to reclaim the small dance floor of my family restaurant. I relaxed into his embrace, his body warm and damp against mine. I knew what Kieren was thinking. If we had only three --- two?--- minutes, we wanted to make the most of them. Then he shook his head and took an uncertain step backward, and I tightened my hold. He could hardly stand. "We don't have to do this," I told him. "You should--- " "Hush," he said, running a fingertip from my temple to my chin. "Can I lean on you?" A huge question coming from Kieren, who'd always thought of himself as the strong one. 10.) What is one debut you are looking forward to for this year, other than your own of course? New book: Sass and Serendipity by Jennifer Ziegler (Delacorte, summer 2010). 11.) What is one thing you require to help you write? Cats: Mercury, Bashi, Blizzard and Leo. 12.) What is one book you wish more people would read? The Agency: A Spy in the House by Y.S. Lee (Candlewick, 2010). Thank you so much for taking the time to join us on the site, I truly appreciate it. 
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