"The Next Big Thing"

Amy Sonnichsen tagged me last week for "The Next Big Thing," for which I was very grateful as my blogging well has been running a little dry... ;)

Anyway, here are my answers! Enjoy.

What is your working title of your book?
CIRQUE

Where did the idea come from for the book?
This is officially the most evolved of all my stories as it first began when I was 14 or 15 years old and decided to write a Cinderella retelling set during the French Revolution. The melodrama was worthy of Anne Shirley’s writing club--even after the main characters escaped to England, they died bravely and tragically at the end.
It didn’t take me long to laugh at how ridiculous it was, but I still loved the settings: Paris and London, and the basic idea: nobles must escape from the revolution.
Then I came across a mention in Jane Austen of a place called Astley’s Amphitheatre--and a bit of research later I discovered that Astley’s was the world’s first circus. Also, a perfect place to run away to if you happened to be an endangered noble...

What genre does your book fall under?

Upper middle grade historical fiction

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
Um... I’m going to have to be loose with ages here. How about a young Audrey Tautou as my mc, Juliette, and an equivalently aged Sean Biggerstaff (Oliver Wood in Harry Potter) as her friend Zander. And David Suchet as the illustrious Mr. Astley.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
While the French Revolution brews around her, 15-year-old Comtesse Juliette de la Marche is concerned only with finding her missing diplomat father, a quest that takes her from the center ring of London’s first circus to the edge of the guillotine’s blade.

Will your book be self-published or be represented by an agency?

I plan on taking the agent/traditional publisher route.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
I started (officially) in November 2011. After getting halfway through, I decided to make some major changes and start again. I did that one more time, and finally wrote “The End” somewhere around July, I think.

May we see an intro?
Well, you asked so nicely...here is the first paragraph:
If common blood is red and noble blood is blue, then what runs through my veins is the clear purple of a fresh spring violet. I’ve always considered this a great advantage.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
I think it would appeal to the readers of the novels of Laura Amy Schlitz and Karen Cushman, though my setting is very different. It has something of the intrigue and adventure of The False Prince by Jennifer Neilsen, the fun and fancy gowns of regency novels like Keeping the Castle by Patrice Kindl, and the high stakes you see in any book set during a great war. Honestly, though, it reminds me most of old-school historical fiction like The Witch of Blackbird Pond or The Scarlet Pimpernel (of course).


Who or what inspired you to write this book?
Mostly it was reading the stories of real people from the French Revolution. I sobbed over the history of the young prince, Louis XVII, and wanted to give some of the worthy nobility a happy ending. And of course Mr. Astley and his circus, once discovered, just begged for a story of their own.

What else about your book might pique the reader's interest?
Hints of romance, daring escapes, a mysterious clown, pickpockets, a family of Gypsies, and lots of delicious food all play a role. I personally think the food is the best part.

Now to tag some other writers so I can peek into their stories:

Paula McLaughlin
Vijaya Bodach
Anne Marie Schlueter

Yes, I know this is only three. It just seems, from browsing through my Google reader, as though a lot of writers have already been tagged, possibly multiple times, and it's hard to keep track. So if you want to be tagged, leave a comment and I’ll write you in! (And if the tagged authors don’t want to play, I have a standing rule that they’re free to ignore the nudge.)

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Rules of The Next Big Thing:

*Use this format for your post
*Answer the ten questions about your current WIP (work in progress)
*Tag five other writers/bloggers and add their links so we can hop over and meet them.

Ten Interview Questions for the Next Big Thing:

What is your working title of your book?
Where did the idea come from for the book?
What genre does your book fall under?
Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript? May we see an intro?
What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
Who or what inspired you to write this book?
What else about your book might pique the reader's interest?