Rose Phillips, a good friend and great writer, recently published her first novel, CUTTING TO THE CHASE.
How do you fix something you didn't break? Lizzy certainly doesn't have the answer. All she knows is that she needs to survive senior year, then get as far away from her dysfunctional family as possible. In the meantime, when she can't take the pressure, she eases it with the sharp edge of a razor blade. But, she's been cutting deeper and her thoughts are growing darker. Until she meets Michael. With him she finds relief. Now, maybe—just maybe—she can make it.
It was a great read and I found it really got into the mind of a teenager struggling with some grown up issues.Well, on to the interview.
When I first met you, you wrote historical fiction.
How did you get from there to writing contemporary YA?
When I was focused on historical fiction, I was
working in education. It was a wonderful distraction, so different from my job.
I wore many hats as an educator including literacy consultant for at-risk
adolescents and principal. While I’ve
left that career behind, I guess it didn’t leave me. The kids I worked with,
their stories, their raw honesty are part of the fabric of who I am. One day,
Lizzy started talking to me. Just in snippets at first.
It was the fall of 2015, and I decided to take a break
from historical fiction and fully participate in NaNoWriMo without worrying
about research. So it made perfect sense to explore Lizzy’s story. She was
hurting, and I wanted to find out why. Cutting
to the Chase poured out in less than a month, surpassing the required word
count for NaNo. While it underwent many revisions, including a full rewrite of
POV, the story has essentially remained the same.
Once you signed with your publisher, was there any
part of the publishing process that surprised you?
I’ve been pleasantly surprised that my opinion has
been considered. I have read so many horror stories—from incompatible editors
to disastrous covers—that I was fully prepared for frustration. But I was
assigned a terrific editor and my input was considered for the cover and
included a preview of it for approval. Working with the EvernightTeen team has
been all positive.
Do you have a favorite character that you’ve written?
That someone else has written?
I’m still a little in love with my main character,
Brandan “Raven” Murray, in my historical fiction Raven’s Path. Since I feel I have again grown as a writer, I want
to comb back through that manuscript and, no doubt, tighten it up. I’m looking
forward to spending time with him again.
Do you have a book you love but are embarrassed to
admit you enjoy?
I can’t think of any.
I know you have two dogs you love very much; can you
tell us about them?
Ginger and Spice are little Lhasa Apso sisters.
They’re now ten years old. Lhasas, historically, were raised to be Tibetan
guard dogs inside the palace (Chows were outside). So, instinctively, they are
calm quiet dogs, always nearby, listening. They will bark up a storm when
someone arrives but stop as soon as they recognize the person. They do
everything together. So much so that we call them the two-head beast because
we’re convinced they don’t know they are two separate animals. They bring plenty
of laughter and pure joy into our lives.
Favorite color?
It’s a tie between blue and purple.
Favorite food?
Anything without meat but with lots of cheese. I mean
LOTS of cheese.
What are your hobbies, past and present? I know you used to sing and act….
Performing has always been a part of my life. My
husband and I met doing musical theatre. A group of us founded our own theatre
company, which ran for over 20 years. We wrote our shows, a mix of song and
dance and comedy. Lots of comedy. All profit for these cabaret style shows went
to charity. It was a wonderful way to contribute to our community and scratch
our collective creative itch at the same time.
For a few years, I also sang in a trio with my husband. That was good
fun.
Two years ago (this July), we gave our lives a good
shake and moved to Vancouver Island. While my husband is enjoying participating
in a choir, I haven’t found a performance niche yet. I must admit, I haven’t
looked too hard. So far, the writing seems to be feeding that side of my brain.
And gardening. I’m loving the novelty of gardening.
Where can we find you online?
Oh, in far too many places these days! This two-persona
approach to an online presence is keeping me hopping!
YA
Me:
I’ve just started a series of interviews with YA
authors. Do drop by and check out the fun I’m having playing with formatting.
It makes for a great distraction from writing. ;0)
Website/blog: http://rosephillipsya.blogspot.ca/
Adult
Me:
Website/blog:
http://rosephillipsrambles.blogspot.ca
I hope you enjoyed getting to know Rose a bit, I know you'll enjoy her book!
