Interview and Giveaway with Liz Fichera

Liz Fichera

Liz is an author living in the American Southwest by way of Chicago. Her YA debut HOOKED releases in January 2013 from HarlequinTEEN. Its companion, PLAYED, releases in 2014.

Books

Hooked (2013)
◆ Goodreads ● Amazon ● The Book Depository ◆

Played (2014)
◆ Goodreads ◆

Reviews

Confessions of a Readaholic ● City of Books

Find Liz

Website ● Blog ● Twitter ● Facebook ● Goodreads

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Hi Liz! Thank you so much for stopping by for our Books That Glow: YA & MG 2013 event for an interview :D

Describe your book in 3 words.

How about two words? Worlds collide.

Where did you get the idea for Hooked?

I was driving down a long stitch of desolate desert road by my house that also happens to run parallel to the Gila River Indian Reservation. I got this image of a Native American girl and she was holding a golf club. Weird, I know. But that's how it started. I also did a HOOKED inspiration vlog about it:

How did you come up with Fred and Ryan's characters? Do you see yourself in any of our characters?

I came up with Fred first. Ryan developed later but he was everything Fred was now. I loved their differences.

We have Fred who's a Native American Girl and Fred who's a white boy. What was it like to write in two very different perspectives?

It was a lot of fun but getting inside each of their heads was challenging as they have very different backgrounds from me. Oddly, I find writing teenage boys easier than teenage girls. Girls, regardless of culture and background, are so much more complicated, particularly at that age, in my humble opinion.

That is pretty strange!
A lot of Native American symbols, stories and blessings are mentioned in this book– how did you go about researching the history needed for Hooked?

Well, fortunately I am neighbors to the Gila River Indian Community and have been for a long time. I did a lot of local research and I'm also fortunate to have some close Native American friends whom I consulter throughout the book. Arizona is rich in Native American influences and culture. We have over 20 tribes in our state.

PICK THIS OR THAT:

Cats or Dogs?

I love dogs but I am very allergic to both cats and dogs. How awful is that?!

Ice Cream or Frozen Yogurt?

Ice Cream! Vanilla, to be exact.

Drama or Comedy?

Drama, usually.

Early Bird or Night Owl?

Night Owl.

Sweet or Sour?

Sour, weirdly.

What (in your opinion) is the hardest thing about writing a book?
It's easy to come up with a great idea and get excited and hammer out the first few chapters. The hard part is staying motivated and determined and finishing that first draft.

What book(s) are you currently reading?

I'm currently reading John Green's THE FAULT IN OUR STARS and Louise Erdrich's THE ROUND HOUSE.

The Fault in Our Stars is one my my FAVORITE books. Hope you liked it!
If Hooked was to become a movie, who would be in your dream cast?

Oh, that is a wonderful thing to dream about. If those two models on the American book cover for HOOKED could act, I would pick them in a heartbeat. HarlequinTEEN was able to find cover models that perfectly matched the images in my head for Fred and Ryan.

Do you have any advice for aspiring authors out there?

Write the story that's in your heart. Don't write to chase a trend or mimic someone else's style. Find your own. And don't forget to read and write every day.

Your next book, Played, features two familiar faces from Hooked. Can you give us a little inkling on what it's going to be about? PLEASE?!? *batts eyelashes*

♥ I'm so please to hear you're anxious about PLAYED. Thank you!! Sam and Riley were two of my favorite secondary characters from HOOKED so I knew that I had to write their stories in the next novel. And, truth be told, Sam is totally the guy I would have crushed on in high school: smart, gentle, yet tough as nails. I heart him. :) PLAYED is less about golf and sports than it is about paling with people's emotions. And in the world of Teenagedom, that can be treacherous. Sam and Riley are going to have a very bumpy rise. ;-)

Thanks so much for inviting me to participate in your book event! I'm really excited about it.

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Thank you so much to Liz Fichera for taking the time to answer our questions for this event! I just wrote a review for Hooked yesterday, and if you've read it, you'll know how much I fell in love with it... here's a little bit about it:

Get hooked on a girl named Fred.

When Fredericka "Fred" Oday is invited to become the only girl on her boys' varsity golf team, she can't say no. This is her opportunity to shine, win a scholarship and go to college, something no one in her family has done. But Fred's prescensce on the team isn't exactly welcome – especially not to the played she's paired with, rich golden boy Ryan Berenger, whose best friend was kicked off the team to make room for Fred.

Sparks will fly as the girl from the Rez with the killer swing takes on the boy with the killer smile!

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Thanks to Liz, we have an ARC of Hooked plus some swag to giveaway to one lucky winner!

1 (one) winner will receive the ARC, a signed bookmark, a signed "postcard", and a Hooked bracelet.

The Rules:

• Open internationally!
• This contest will be open to entries until February 28, 2013
• The winner once emailed will have 48 hours to respond, or another winner shall be chosen.
• We are not responsible for any lost/damaged packages.

Enter in the rafflecopter below!


a Rafflecopter giveaway