Interview with Kim Askew and Amy Helmes

Today I am fortunate enough to host the very talented authors of the new series Twisted Lit. These ladies put modern spins on some of Shakespeare's greatest works. You've already heard my opinion on both books (Tempestuous and Exposure), so now let's hear it from the ladies themselves!

Interview with Kim Askew and Amy Helmes, authors of the Shakespeare-inspired YA series Twisted Lit, featuring Tempestuous and Exposure (Merit Press). Both Kim and Amy think Shakespeare understood the young's true love and pain like no other, from Hamlet's sorry stepdad to Juliet's trauma drama, hence this literate farce, based on "The Tempest."

For more information please visit Twisted Lit Books and http://www.adamsmedia.com/merit-press-books and follow them on Facebook.

How did you make the move from writing about book-to-movie adaptations on your joint blog Romancing the Tome to retelling such classic stories yourselves?
We enjoyed writing the blog together, and decided it would be really fun to collaborate on a novel. We spent some time each day brainstorming book ideas, and finally hit upon the concept of putting a modern-day spin on our beloved Shakespeare. We immediately saw the series potential. It's perfect, because we're both former English majors, our blog is about adaptations, and we can't imagine anything more fun than thinking about Shakespeare all day long!

How do you choose the Shakespearean works you retell?
We liked the idea of choosing two very different works for our first titles, and we wanted to start with something unexpected. The Tempest is lighthearted -- there's this violent storm and a shipwreck, yet all the main characters survive. Meanwhile, Macbeth is one of Shakespeare's darkest plays, and we knew it would be fun to play off the conceit of the quest to become “prom king and queen.” It was a fun challenge to interpret the spirit of both those plays, but in our own unique way.

So far you've retold The Tempest & Macbeth, what other works can we look forward to seeing retold in the future?
We're currently writing a modern-day spin of the classic Romeo and Juliet, but we've also thought about adapting King Lear, Henry IV, and Hamlet, to name but a few. Shakespeare wrote 37 plays, and we'd love the opportunity to adapt them all!

Do you have a favorite line or quote from any Shakespearean work?
It's hard to choose just one, but given all the teen angst in The Bard's plays, we adore this tongue-in-cheek quote about adolescence from The Winter's Tale: "I would there were no age between ten and three-and-twenty, or that youth would sleep out the rest; for there is nothing in the between but getting wenches with child, wronging the ancientry, stealing, fighting."

Is there any chance you may choose a different author at some time?
As classic literature buffs, we've definitely considered the idea of twisting some other favorite authors, which run the gamut from A to Z . . . or, in literary parlance, Austen to Zola.

If you could become any character in a book you've written, who would you be & why?
We adore our two heroines Miranda (Tempestuous) and Skye (Exposure), but if forced to choose, the good girls in us would love the chance to be mischievous Miranda for a day to experience firsthand her Ferris Bueller-like ability to stir up fun and mayhem wherever she goes.

© 2012 Kim Askew and Amy Helmes, authors of Tempestuous: A Twisted Lit Novel

Kim Askew, coauthor of Tempestuous: A Twisted Lit Novel, whose work has appeared in Elle and other magazines as well as the anthology The May Queen, is a content manager for the Webby-winning teen site www.FashionClub.com and the FIDM/Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising. Follow Kim on Twitter.




Amy Helmes, coauthor of Tempestuous: A Twisted Lit Novel, is coauthor of Boys of a Feather: A Field Guide to American Males, also is a weekly contributor toThe Rundown, a daily e-mail service that keeps subscribers informed on what's new and cool in LA. Follow Amy on Twitter.

Exposure (Twisted Lit #2) by Kim Askew and Amy Helmes review

Double, double, toil and trouble. Sometimes, the quest for high school royalty can be deadly! 

In this emotionally-charged twist on Shakespeare’s Macbeth, a self-conscious shutterbug named Skye Kingston navigates a treacherous school year in Alaska fraught with unspoken secrets and tragic twists of fate. Along the way she encounters three strangely prophetic BFFs; one social-climbing, sociopathic cheerleader; and a heart-stopping hottie named Craig McKenzie: the man who would be Prom King. 

Can Skye save the boy she loves — and herself — before they get caught in the crosshairs?

From Goodreads

Skye has mostly coasted through high school on the fringe of every social group. She knows who to talk to & who to avoid in order to make as few waves as possible. Having spent the majority of her high school years in the art room's darkroom developing photos the "old way" while pining after her could-have-been-her-boyfriend acquaintance Craig, Skye never really got to know much about anything outside of her own little world.

All of that changes when she is suddenly thrust into the middle of a tragic accident. While not directly involved, she knows the truth about what happened that night at the party. Even worse, she knows that she should do something about it, but her paralyzing fear of doing the wrong thing prevents her from not only doing what's right, but doing what could have saved them all.

We all know I am a big fan of retellings. See my previous love of Jackson Pearce or Stacey Jay's work. This one is another great book to add to that list. While it says "Twisted Lit #2" that's just a loose relation for the other books. Kind of like Jackson Pearce's. If you've read the other books, great, you'll have a more in depth understanding of the relationships. If you haven't read the other books, no biggie, it's not necessary at all!

These women have done a fabulous job in updating the story of Macbeth for the new generation. They seamlessly blended the language of Shakespeare with modern vocabulary. This book strikes a fine balance between the story we all know (and some of us love) and the one that they are presently telling.

The characters are terrific updates to the classical characters. My personal favorites are the three native Alaskan girls as the three witches. I also loved how these characters seemed to embody the original characters not just in their behavior, but in their speech and physicality as well.

The tempo of the book is just right so that you can fully appreciate the work that went into creating this multi-faceted dream of a Shakespearean retelling. I never felt like it was too wordy or that not enough was going on, so it was a fairly quick and enjoyable read.

Please give it a shot! I'll have my review of Tempestuous (Twisted Lit #1) up in a few days. I can't wait to tell you about that one too!