Interview with Jo Anderton & Giveaway - October 5, 2011

Please welcome Jo Anderton to The Qwillery as part of the 2011 Debut Author Challenge interviews.

TQ:  What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?

Jo:  I listen to music while I write and I have a tendency to dance along, still sitting in my chair, while I type. It's extremely embarrassing when someone walks in on me...

TQ:  Who are some of your favorite writers? Who do you feel has influenced your writing?

Jo:  My list of favourite writers tends to change. Whatever I'm enjoying right at the moment becomes a new favourite! But I'd have to say that authors like Sara Douglass and Elizabeth Bear have influenced me, particularly with the way they blend science fiction with the fantastical. And Robin Hobb because she's just amazing.

TQ:  Are you a plotter or a panster?

Jo:  A little of both. I do some vague plotting using timelines and different coloured pens. I always know the beginning, the end, and a few major events along the way. I enjoy discovering the rest of the story as it happens.

TQ:  Describe Debris (The Veiled Worlds 1) in 140 characters or less.

Jo:  It’s about Tanyana, how she copes when her life and career are devastated by a terrible accident, and her fight to find the truth behind it.

TQ:  What inspired you to write Debris?

Jo:  There were three main inspirations for Debris. One was a anime called 'Planets' -- set in the future, it followed crews collecting space debris. My brain asked "what if the debris was magical instead?" and the magic system in Debris became the answer. The second was a fascination with the interplay of technology and magic. Basically, I wanted to know what an industrial revolution would look like in a world where magic was commonplace? The world in Debris grew from that. The third, and perhaps strangest, was when my husband lost his job. What we went through -- emotionally and financially -- fed into the book, and inspired a lot of what Tanyana has to deal with.

TQ:  What sort of research did you do to create the world of Debris?

Jo:  Ah, the research I did was many and varied. The magic system is loosely inspired by particle and quantum physics, so I did a lot of reading into that and found it really exciting! I also played with things like architecture theory and Russian cooking (I love researching food, it makes me so hungry).

TQ:  Without giving anything away, what is/are your favorite scene(s) in the novel?

Jo:  Without giving anything away? Oh that's hard. Well, I do enjoy the opening scenes. Stripping my main character of her power and leaving her penniless and scarred was a fun way to start.

TQ:  In Debris, who was the most difficult character to write and why? The easiest and why?

Jo:  One of the members of Tanyana's debris collecting team is a strange, childlike man named Lad. He was both the easiest, and the hardest to write, and I love him dearly. On the surface Lad is slow but loving, and quite innocent to the world. Actually, Lad hides some of the biggest secrets of the book, and he suffers a lot because he doesn't really understand them, and can't communicate them. I loved writing his innocent, genuinely lovely voice, but I found his undercurrent darkness and the injustice of his situation difficult.

TQ:  How many books are planned for The Veiled Worlds series?

Jo:  Definitely three. Plus a few short stories. And I've got this really cool idea for a graphic novel, involving one of the secondary characters...

TQ:  What's next?

Jo:  I'm currently working on something I call a "post-apocalyptic romantic comedy, set in Sydney in the not-too-distant-future, with ghosts". It's great fun!

TQ:  Thank you for joining us at The Qwillery.

Jo:  Thanks for having me!


Read Jo's guest post about Genre here.


About Debris

Debris

The Veiled Worlds 1
(Angry Robot Books, October 2011)

In a far future where technology is all but indistinguishable from magic, Tanyana is one of the elite.

She can control pions, the building blocks of matter, shaping them into new forms using ritual gestures and techniques. The rewards are great, and she is one of most highly regarded people in the city. But that was before the “accident”.

Stripped of her powers, bound inside a bizarre powersuit, she finds herself cast down to the very lowest level of society. Powerless, penniless and scarred, Tanyana must adjust to a new life collecting “debris”, the stuff left behind by pions. But as she tries to find who has done all of this to her, she also starts to realize that debris is more important than anyone could guess.

Debris is a stunning new piece of Science Fantasy, which draws in themes from Japanese manga, and classic Western SF and Fantasy to create this unique, engrossing debut from the very exciting young author Jo Anderton.

FILE UNDER: Science Fiction [ Sentient Matter | Cast Down | Cruel Betrayals | All Is Lies ]

Amazon : Barnes & Noble : Book Depository : Books-A-Million

About Jo

Jo Anderton lives in Sydney with her husband and too many pets. By day she is a mild-mannered marketing coordinator for an Australian book distributor. By night, weekends and lunchtimes she writes dark fantasy and horror. Her short fiction has recently appeared in Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine, After the Rain and Dead Red Heart. She was shortlisted for the 2009 Aurealis Award for best young adult short story.

Her debut novel, Debris (Book One the Veiled Worlds Series) is out now from Angry Robot Books, and will be followed by Suited in 2012.

Jo's Links

Website
Facebook
Twitter



The Giveaway

THE RULES

What:  One commenter will win a copy of Debris (The Veiled Worlds 1) generously provided by Angry Robot Books.

How:  Leave a comment answering the following question:

Science Fiction or Science Fantasy?

Please remember - if you don't answer the question your entry will not be counted.

You may receive additional entries by:

1)  Being a Follower of The Qwillery.

2)  Mentioning the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter. Even if you mention the giveaway on both, you will get only one additional entry. You get only one additional entry even if you mention the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter multiple times.

3)  Mentioning the giveaway on your on blog or website. It must be your own blog or website; not a website that belongs to someone else or a site where giveaways, contests, etc. are posted.

There are a total of 4 entries you may receive: Comment (1 entry), Follower (+1 entry), Facebook and/or Twitter (+ 1 entry), and personal blog/website mention (+1 entry). This is subject to change again in the future for future giveaways.

Please leave links for Facebook, Twitter, or blog/website mentions. In addition please leave a way to contact you.

Who and When: The contest is open to all humans on the planet earth with a mailing address. Contest ends at 11:59pm US Eastern Time on Wednesday, October 12, 2011. Void where prohibited by law. You must be 18 years old or older to enter.

*Giveaway rules are subject to change.*