Monday, February 14, 2011

Interview with Pam Bachorz

Today I'm welcoming Pam Bachorz to my blog. She is the author of Candor and her latest release is Drought.

Hi Pam, Welcome to Anna's Book Blog! It's a pleasure to have you here today.

Drought is your latest release, can you tells us a little about it?
DROUGHT is the story of a girl named Ruby who’s trapped in the woods of upstate New York as a slave to the evil Darwin West. Ruby has a big secret: her blood has been keeping the members of her Congregation alive for two hundred years, while they collect water for Darwin. Ruby wants her Congregation to fight, but they’re waiting for their savior (and her father) to return and free them. When she falls in love with one of Darwin’s guards, she has some big decisions to make about how to help the Congregation… and be happy.

What is your writing day like?
Well, I work a full-time job and I’m also the mother to a kindergartner, so I have to schedule my writing time. I set aside at least ten hours every week to write, and the times vary depending on what else is going on. Most often I start the day with an hour of writing, and also write during a few evenings after my Little Dude is in bed. When I can, I’ll steal a few hours during the weekend to write.  

When your not writing what kind of books do you like to read?
I pretty much exclusively read YA and middle grade novels. I tend to favor scary/fantastical/sci-fi stories but I’ll pick up anything with good writing. I love to be sucked in and surprised by something that I never would have thought I’d be intrigued by.

What are 3 things that are "must haves" for you when you sit down to write a book?
First, I’ve got to have music—sometimes I make playlists and sometimes I listen to what I call “brain music”: the kind of stuff you might hear in a spa or uber-granola gift shop!

Second, must have my outline and character profiles. That’s where I start before I write any part of my story. I return to them every time I sit down to write, just to refresh my memory.

Third, tea and chocolate.

How did you come up with the idea for Drought? Were there any particular inspirations?
 As hokey as it sounds, a vision started this story. I was driving along a country road in upstate NY and I passed a dilapidated barn. In a flash, I imagined there was a table in the middle of that barn—with a cup of water in it.  A drop of blood fell into that cup.

For a long time, I didn’t know whose blood it was, or why it was going in the water. I made a lot of false starts before I got into the story that DROUGHT became.

Since becoming published, what has been your favorite part of the process?
I love hearing from people who have enjoyed my work. It’s a great reminder of why I make that writing schedule, and stick with it, even when the world is banging on my door. I’m doing this to entertain people and pull them out of their own worlds, if only for a little while. So when I succeed at that, it’s very rewarding.

What is your favorite thing about writing YA books?
You can’t waste ink with YA: you have to start strong and keep the reader hooked. That’s a fun challenge and it’s my favorite kind of story to read, too.

If Drought was optioned to be made into the film who would you like to see playing the parts of Ruby and Ford?
I am a huge TV and movie junkie, but I have not yet seen any actors who really fit my idea of what Ruby and Ford are like. I do know I’d cast Kim Raver to play Sula, and Neal McDonough (of Desperate Housewives villain fame) to play Darwin West.

What is up next? Is Drought the beginning of a series?
If I had the opportunity to write another DROUGHT novel, I’d be thrilled to do it. But for now I’m working on an entirely new YA concept—a new world and new characters who are very different from what I’ve done before. That’s been a lot of fun and just scary enough to make me think I’m going in the right direction!
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Drought
By Pam Bachorz
Out Now! 

 Ruby dreams of escaping the Congregation. Escape from slaver Darwin West and his cruel Overseers. Escape from the backbreaking work of gathering Water. Escape from living as if it is still 1812, the year they were all enslaved.

When Ruby meets Ford--an irresistible, kind, forbidden new Overseer--she longs to run away with him to the modern world, where she could live a normal teenage live. Escape with Ford would be so simple.

But if Ruby leaves, her community is condemned to certain death. She, alone, possess the secret ingredient that makes the Water so special--her blood--and it's the one thing that the Congregation cannot live without.

Drought is the haunting story of one community’s thirst for life, and the dangerous struggle of the only girl who can grant it.

Where to Buy:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Borders | The Book Depository

To learn more about Pam and her books check out her  

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