Reverse Author Interview - Jay Kristoff

This is an event the ladies over at Book Munchies came up with. The tables are turned - authors get to interview bloggers for a change!

This feature will be running Tuesdays and Fridays from now until May 7th. Several authors have provided some great questions for us bloggers. You can still join in, so check out the sign-up post HERE!

Today's questions are courtesy of author Jay Kristoff.

How do you hear about the books you want to read? Friends? Blogs? Goodreads? Telepathic powers? Telepathic powers would be nice :) Alas, I find most of my books in more normal ways.

Fellow bloggers are a main place I get recommendations. Every week, my TBR list grows and grows after checking out awesome suggestions from bloggers. I have no willpower! But, I've discovered some really great reads so far, so thanks to all my blogging buddies! <3

How do you acquire most of your books? Amazon? Local store? Library? At gunpoint? Since I bought my Kindle Fire a year & a half ago, just about every book I read comes from Amazon. I do get some from the library (we have an ebook lending program at our library).

There's also booklending.com, which is a fabulous site for books you may not want to own. It can be hit or miss, since some books don't have lending enabled, or people may not have listed them. But it's worth a look.

Do you prefer first person PoV stories (I did this) or third person (she/he did this)? I don't have a preference. Some stories are better told in first person, some in third. As long as the writing is good, I'm not that picky on PoV.

Want to get in on the fun? Sign up HERE! There are a few more interviews  - give it a shot!

Reverse Author Interview - Marissa Meyer

Here's the third edition of Reverse Author Interviews here at Phantasmic Reads!

This is an event the ladies over at Book Munchies came up with. The tables are turned - authors get to interview bloggers for a change!

This feature will be running Tuesdays and Fridays from now until May 7th. Several authors have provided some great questions for us bloggers. You can still join in, so check out the sign-up post HERE!

Today's questions are courtesy of author Marissa Meyer.

It seems that when I tell most bloggers that there won't be a love triangle in The Lunar Chronicles, they seem weirdly grateful for that. So what's the un-official blogger status on love triangles in YA these days? If you're not burned out on them entirely, then what do you feel makes a good love triangle?

Love triangles can serve a purpose in any genre - YA or otherwise. I realize they are useful in some plots, but there are others where I feel they are completely unnecessary. If I'm reading something that has a love triangle subplot that seems pointless, it detracts from the main storyline, and I get frustrated. There have been times I've thought the author just needed a higher word count so they threw in a love triangle. Maybe I'm just too picky. :)

What are your writing and/or author promoting pet peeves?

One of my biggest is lack of continuity. I realize when you've written lots of books in a series, things might get hazy. But there are a couple series that I enjoy where the bestselling author who wrote it makes stupid mistakes. That drives me nuts. Especially with authors who have publishers and editors who are supposed to keep track of things.

I realize typos and mistakes happen, I do. But when I see some of these NYT Bestselling Authors have more mistakes than a self-published author, there is a problem.

Is there anything you feel is missing from the YA genre right now, or anything you'd like to see more of?

The few YA I've read lately are heading in a better (IMO) direction. The characters are a lot stronger emotionally - not having crying fits and panic attacks every other page. Emotion is good, overly weepy characters are not.

Want to get in on the fun? Sign up HERE! There's still time to join in!

Reverse Author Interview - Kim Harrington

Welcome to the second Reverse Author Interview here at Phantasmic Reads!

This is an event the ladies over at Book Munchies came up with. The tables are turned - authors get to interview bloggers for a change!

This feature will be running Tuesdays and Fridays from now until May 7th. Several authors have provided some great questions for us bloggers. You can still join in, so check out the sign-up post HERE!

Today's questions are courtesy of author Kim Harrington.

How do you find out about new books? Blogs, browsing a physical bookstore, chatting with friends, etc.

I do a lot of browsing. My library, Goodreads, and Amazon are dangerous places for me (and my credit card!). Fellow bloggers have become a major source of additions to my TBR list lately. There are just SO many fantastic-sounding books out there.

When I first bought my Kindle Fire, I was a frequent visitor to the Top 100 freebies list on Amazon. I've found some pretty good books there, too. :)

Do you prefer series, standalones, or a mix of both?

I tend to lean toward series. I love watching characters grow and evolve over several books. I don't object to stand-alones, though. There have been many stand-alones I've read that I wished were a series, since the characters and story were so enjoyable.

Want to get in on the fun? Sign up HERE! The more, the merrier!

Reverse Author Interview - Kristen-Paige Madonia

I'm so excited to be participating in the Reverse Author Interviews, an event that the ladies over at Book Munchies came up with. The tables are turned - authors get to interview bloggers for a change!

This feature will be running Tuesdays and Fridays from now until May 7th. Several authors have provided some great questions for us bloggers. You can still join in, so check out the sign-up post HERE!

Today's questions are courtesy of Kristen-Paige Madonia.

Do you feel more inclined to read a stand-alone novel or a book series when picking your next read?
I enjoy stand-alone novels, but for me nothing beats a great series. If it's a new series to me and I really enjoy it, I end up putting aside whatever my next read would be so I can catch up (or finish) the series. That's part of the reason my TBR list is so long - I get sidetracked!

Another advantage with a series is once you get through the first book where you learn all about the world and get to know the characters, you don't have to learn everything all over again in the next books. With stand-alones, every one you pick up has different characters in a different world. Sometimes that can be a little frustrating as a reader. Or maybe that's just me. :)

Do you have any insight as to why certain books are chosen for book-clubs, and others are passed over? What specific attributes do you look for in a novel when deciding to use it for a group-read?
I'm not sure I'd call it insight, but from what I've seen most books chosen for book clubs or read-alongs are books that are very  popular. I've never seen anything chosen that was off the wall, or from some unknown, untested author. I'm no expert on the subject, though. :)

How important is the cover? When it comes down to it, how often do you chose a book to read/review based on the cover art?
The cover is important, but not the only factor in my book-reading decision. There have been many times over the years where I'd see a fantastic cover on a book and grab it immediately. If the blurb is as enticing as the cover, I'll definitely read it (or at least add it to my TBR list!).

I'm not saying if a cover is blah I won't read the book. It's just that, yes, a cover will draw me to a novel. If the synopsis piques my interest, I'll check it out. I've read books with covers and blurbs that were fantastic, and those were the best things about the book. On the flip side, there have been covers that did nothing for me, but the book rocked.

I guess the bottom line here is the cover is important, but it's what's inside that counts. :)

Endings: tied up neatly, or a more realistic ambiguous open-ended conclusion?
With series, I enjoy open-ended conclusions between books. There are some authors who really know how to write a cliffhanger, though. Many times, I read the last page, and then frantically flip pages to see if there's more. If the next book in the series is available, I'll pounce on it.

The ones where the next book isn't so available are ones that have almost gone flying across a room. I have also been known to scream, sob, curse, pout, and rant when a book has 'too good' of a cliffhanger.

Do you feel a YA novel must have some kind of love-interest plot-line (or subplot) to engage readers?
I don't believe any book has  to have a love-interest plotline. There are lots of books where romance never enters into it, and that's not a bad thing.

I enjoy romance in a story, but only if it works with the story. There have been times I've wondered if the author just tossed in a romance subplot so they could classify the book as 'romance'. And sometimes I feel the romantic subplots actually detract from the main part of the story.