[Blog Tour] Interview with My Name is Rapunzel Author KC Hilton + Teaser + Giveaway

Hey there! Today is my stop in My Name is Rapunzel blog tour and I have here a teaser from the book and a quick interview with the author, KC Hilton.

Interview with KC Hilton

Q: How does [your] Rapunzel differ from the original Rapunzel?
A: My Rapunzel is different because she isn't forced to live in the tower and is cursed to live forever. We watch Rapunzel live many lives and understand where her bitterness comes from.

Q: What’s your favorite retelling?
A: Probably Cinderella.

Q: How do you deal with writer’s block?
A: I haven't experienced writer's block, yet. Fingers crossed!

Q: What do you do when you’re not writing?
A: I love to read (it's so relaxing) and watch movies.

Q: What are you working on now?
A: I've been doing some research for a new book, but I'm torn between a few ideas. So, I'm compiling information to see where it leads me. The information that I don't use, might end up in another book. I love doing research!

Q: Tell us 3 random facts about yourself.
A: I'm a Master Barber Stylist. I work a full time job. I'd rather listen to an audio book than listen to the radio, while I drive.

Teaser

Just go, Henry. Save yourself. I tried to shout, but my mouth wouldn't give way to sound. I was paralyzed. Was it with fear, or something else? The cackling witch at the tree line convinced me it was her doing.

I heard Henry continue to shout for me to flee, but I didn't respond. I didn't move. I didn't run. I was frozen like a lifeless statue in a cold museum. With only the movement of my eyes, I pleaded with him to help me. A tear escaped one of my eyes then rolled down my cheek. That single tear managed to do what my heart and body could not. Escape.

Fear, like unseen hands, gripped my lungs and tried to crush them slowly. My stomach churned and threatened to empty. Would we die here?

The gentle chill of night had turned into a mid-winter's frost. Tiny bumps rose on my arms and the small hairs prickled to attention. I opened my mouth to speak, but the words remained trapped in my throat.

About the Book

My Name is Rapunzel

by KC Hilton

Paperback, First, 302 pages Published November 22nd 2013 by Createspace

Synopsis:

My tale has been told again and again, and I’ve heard each one. Except for my hair, I barely recognize the pitiful renditions. Muddled versions, crafted to entertain laughing children…but the children wouldn’t have laughed if they’d known the real story. It wasn't their fault. They didn't know the truth. Nobody did.

My name is Rapunzel. I will tell you my story. I will tell you the truth.

About the Author

Born and raised in Aurora, Illinois I spent my childhood climbing trees and playing street games with the neighborhood kids. I was a proud tomboy, until the day I didn’t want to hike the land to an old graveyard. From that point forward I was considered a “girl”.

At the age of seventeen I moved to Kentucky and eventually began to raise a family of my own. Having worn several “hats” my life has been an adventure all on its own. Still, to this day, I yearns to be a mechanic and own a pink toolbox with pink tools.

I can usually be found updating my website, reading great books, watching awesome movies or creating videos for my YouTube channel. Most days I craves Diet Coke, pizza and chocolate, in no particular order.

I don’t read scary books or watch horror movies… I’m way too scared! Lol.

Twitter- https://twitter.com/kchilton1
Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/KcHiltonAuthor
YouTube- http://www.youtube.com/user/MrsKcHilton
Website- http://www.kc-hilton.com
Goodreads- https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4606082.K_C_Hilton
Tumblr- http://kc-hilton.tumblr.com/
Pinterest- http://www.pinterest.com/mrskchilton/

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Interview with Maurissa Guibord - Author of Warped

Maurissa Guibord is the author of Warped, released Jan 11th 2011 by Delacorte Press for Young Readers, and I invited her over to answer a few questions about her latest book.

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Author Bio:

Before beginning her writing career Maurissa Guibord worked slinging pizzas, alphabetizing things and practicing medicine. Now she writes teen fiction for people who love the same kind of stories she does: mysterious, romantic and with a touch of humor. Her short mystery fiction, published in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine has been nominated for the Agatha Award. She lives on the coast of Maine with her mysterious cat, romantic husband and three kids who make her laugh. Her debut novel, Warped, will be published in early 2011 by Delacorte Press.

Maurissa is represented by Ted Malawer of Upstart Crow Literary Agency http://www.upstartcrowliterary.com

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1. Your inspiration for Warped came from the unicorn tapestries in Cloisters Museum in New York. Were the other aspects of the book, such as the time travel, the Norns and the threads came with it or were they inspired by something else?

My initial (vague) idea was that someone was trapped inside the tapestry for five hundred years. I really wanted to construct a plot in which that could happen. If you think about someone being stuck inside a tapestry- it isn't a far stretch to image their life as a thread. And luckily for me- there was already a whole mythological support for that in the story of the Fates, the three women who spin and weave and cut the threads of life. In WARPED I used their Nordic cousins- the Norns, because I thought the name sounded a bit more creepy and mysterious.

2. What sort of modern day books do you think Will would like? Do you think he’d enjoy reading books about kids forced to kill each other? Or sparkling vampires?

I think Will would spend most of his time delving into the classics that he missed (being from the sixteenth century and all). I think he would really dramatic, adventurous stories like Around the World in Eighty Days or Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne. He would probably like Hemingway and Jack Kerouac too. Working up to more modern day fare- I think he would love Hunger Games. As far as paranormal love triangles? No- that wouldn't really appeal to him at all, LOL.

3. How did you decide on the characters’s personalities? Did they just come with the plot or did you consider them thoroughly?

I wanted there to be conflict between my two main characters- with very different personalities and backgrounds. Being from different centuries just wasn't enough! Will came from a very privileged lifestyle and was rather spoiled and carefree. Tessa is a more modern day girl- independent and worried about her future. She's a bit of a control freak too and is always trying to "fix" things. It really devastates her when things start happening that are completely out of her control.

4. Did you also do some extensive research? Tell us a funny fact you learned that has nothing to do with the book.

Well, Norse mythology plays a part in the book- as I describe the Norns and their role in weaving the threads of life. Norse myths are something I knew very little about, all I remembered from school was Greek/Roman mythology. It's really fascinating and I predict that you'll see an explosion of Norse retellings in YA fantasy stories soon. There are so many rich tales to draw from!

A couple of fun things I learned but couldn't fit into the book:

1. How to pronounce Yggdrasil (the tree of the world, or life) - EEG-DRAH-SIL

2. The Norse god Odin, in order to gain power, decided to hang himself on the tree of life. (Yeah, different huh?) After nine days of hanging there, staring at the ground he noticed a bunch of twigs had fallen. Their strewn patterns spelled out words.* Thus the Runic alphabet was born.

* I believe they spelled "Cut yourself down from that tree dumbass!"

5. You’re currently working on a book that is not the sequel of Warped. Do you plan to publish it as well? Also, when do you plan to write Warped’s sequel? Have you got any ideas what it’s going to be about?

Yes I'm currently working on REVEL- it's a story of a girl who comes to an isolated island of the coast of Maine. She discovers that Trespass Island is home to two communities living side by side. One is human, the other is made up of demi-gods of the sea and their demon offspring. When Delia arrives she upsets the balance between the two groups. It's a little bit horror, a little bit romance. REVEL should be coming out late in 2012.

I do have some ideas for a sequel for WARPED. They involve Tessa time-traveling again to the past to fix something that got messed up in the first story- and meeting Will de Chaucy for the first time (again!). Only he's not the same...

But currently I don't have an idea when that book will happen. Someday!

Thanks a lot to Maurissa for answering my questions! I can't wait to read her new book AND the sequel to Warped. :)

You may also visit Maurissa on her website, blog, twitter and facebook.

Interview with Eilis O'Neal - Author of The False Princess

Eilis O'Neal is the author of The False Princess, released Jan. 25th 2011 by EgmontUSA, and I invited her over to answer a few questions about her latest book.

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Author Bio:

I’m a writer of fantasy and the Managing Editor of the literary magazine Nimrod International Journal. I started writing at the age of three (though the story was only four sentences long). My short fantasy has been published in various print and online journals, and you can find links to some of my stories here. I was born, raised in, and currently live in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
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1. Could you tell us about the world of The False Princess? I initially thought that it this was set in the real world, but I googled Vivaskari and Thorvaldor and only got results about TFP. And also, why did you choose the 12th century? Is there something special about it that’s not present in other early centuries?

You're right, Thorvaldor is a world of my own invention, but it bears a lot of similarities to medieval Europe. I wanted a world that would feel familiar to readers, but also one with some key twists: magic, a monarchy where a girl could inherit the throne without controversy, oracles who actually receive prophecies from their deity. As for the date, you have to remember that the dating system is also Thorvaldian. So it's their 12th century, not ours. But, again, there are some key similarities to our world.

2. Your characters have rather unique names. You also said on your blog that you had a hard time choosing them. Whose was the easiest/hardest? How long did it take for you to finalize them?

One of the easier names to come up with was Kiernan's. He walked onto the page and had a name almost immediately. Probably because he's so easy going in general! And, actually, Sinda's name was pretty hard to come up with. I had to brainstorm for a few days to find the right name for her. As my main character, she needed to have a name that was perfect for her, something that expressed some key element of her personality and situation. Interestingly, I know of some authors who are able to use "for now" names while they're writing if they aren't sure of the character's final name, and I have to say I envy them. I've never been able to do that. If I don't know a character's name, I can't write about them, and I have to brainstorm until I've figured it out to move on.

**(Click here and here to know more about the characters' names.)

3. You’ve been writing since you were three years old, so you’ve probably written tons of stories. What is it with The False Princess that’s so different from your other works?

I would say that The False Princess taps into a very central concern for many young people: the question "Who am I?" Basically, this is what we spend our teenage years trying to figure out. So to be told, at sixteen, that you aren't who you think you are at all, would be extraordinarily difficult. It was that difficulty, in fact, that drew me so strongly to Sinda. I wanted to know how she would react to being pushed out of her life, how she would succeed--or fail--in making a new one.

4. What’s you’re favorite among them, except for TFP? Tell us something about it.

That's a tough one, because I love all my stories for different reasons. One that I'm really fond of, though, is a story called "The Wizard's Calico Daughter." It's the story of a girl who lives with her wizard father in a magical house that's bigger on the inside than it is on the outside. It's a fantastic house, but she's never been outside it, never even talked to a person her own age . . . until her 16th birthday, when a boy from the local school walks by. "The Wizard's Calico Daughter", like TFP, is a coming of age story, and I've just always really liked it. Partially, I think, because I would love to live in her house. It has a library with all the books in the world in it, you see.

5. What are you currently working on? Do you plan to write a sequel for TFP? If not, why?

I'm working on a new novel, though it isn't related to The False Princess. Though I had intended for TFP to be a stand-alone novel when I started writing it, by the time I was done I knew that there was room for more stories in Thorvaldor. So I may very well write a sequel in the future, though probably with one of the secondary characters as the main character.

I really enjoyed The False Princess. Again, many thanks to A Backwards Story for recommending it. :) And thanks also to Eilis O'Neal for answering my questions! If you haven't read The False Princess yet, go to your nearest bookstore and buy it NOW! You won't regret it. :)

You may also visit Eilis O'Neal's website, blog, twitter and facebook.