Author Interview & Giveaway with Maggie Stiefvater

Today is a very special day for me as this is my very first blog tour stop! To make things even sweeter, my blog tour is for Linger, the incredible sequel to Shiver, by the ever amazing Maggie Stiefvater. If you haven't read Shiver, then be sure to read my review here first and be forewarned that there are first-book-ending spoilers below. Other than that, this is a spoiler-free interview!

Be sure to check out the Shiver series micro-site for all the up-to-date information about the wolves of Mercy Falls, the gorgeous trailers for both Shiver & Linger and the Linger Twitter Party tonight starting at 8:30 EST. Also, this afternoon I'll be posting my thoughts on the novel, but for now, enjoy the interview!

1. Did you intend for “The Wolves of Mercy Falls” books to be a trilogy or did the story just pan out that way? If you needed to, could you write more?

Well, as I wrote it, I thought it would be a standalone. Then when I was done, I thought I
could really use another book to tie up loose ends. But as I started to plot out what I was
doing in book two, I realized I needed three. And that seems to be pretty true; FOREVER
is a pretty definitive ending point. I’m sure with all the characters in that world, there
would always be more to tell, but I don’t think I will be. Best to leave readers wanting
more rather than overstaying your welcome.

2. How did you come up with the idea of wolf-change due to cold? Any particular reason they “burn-out” after so many transformations?

Through a dedicated process involving whisky and reality TV. No, I’m kidding. I wanted something that was cyclical and natural and predictable and longer than a month. And I can’t tell you about the second bit. It’s spoilery.

3. What’s your opinion on fanfiction in regards to your own work? In regards to others’ work?

I’m pretty ambivalent. As long as folks aren’t making money off it and are crediting me,
why not? The only time it burns my biscuits is when I get a google alert for one and can
see that it’s basically a chapter from my book, word for word, but with just the names
changed. That’s just plagiarism, not the spirit of fan fiction, I don’t think.

4. Do you find that your music (both what you listen to and what you play) influences your writing?

Definitely. Have you heard that poem about the blind men and the elephant? It is a bunch of blind men all on different sides of an elephant, and they’re all touching a different part and guessing what it is. One’s got the tail, the other an ear, the other a foot, and they’re all guessing different things. I feel like music, art, and writing is like that. They are all just different sides of the elephant. Different ways of describing the same thing. I will often use music to get unblocked on my writing.

5. So, you write, you play musical instruments, you have amazing artistic skills… what is a skill you wish you had?

Oh, there are too many to list here. I’m never happy with how much I know. I’d like to
learn cello and the uillean pipes. I’d like to take karate. I’d like to get better at dressage.
I’d like to get better at speaking German. I’d like to fly a plane. I’d like to play the
electric guitar. I want to learn how to do barre chords better. Also make tortillas. There
are a million things I want to learn to do. And I’m gonna do them.

There you have it folks! A big thanks to Maggie for taking the time to answer my questions & for stopping by. Now on to the really fun part.

Giveaway Time!!!

Thanks to the WONDERFUL people at Scholastic, I've been authorized to give away ONE copy of what will surely become the hottest book of 2010! All you have to do to win is fill out the form below. That easy; no muss, no fuss. Good luck!
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