YA authors share their most influential YA authors
With the release of Time magazine's top 100 influential people of the year, HEA asked some of our favorite YA authors who have new books out either this week or next to name their most influential YA author. We talked with Amy Plum, author of Until the Beginning; Amanda Hocking, author of Ice Kissed; Rachel Hawthorne, author of Trouble From the Start; Sharon Cameron, author of Rook; Kimberly Derting, author of The Replaced; and Sabaa Tahir, author of An Ember in the Ashes.
Amy Plum, author of Until the Beginning
Who's your most influential YA author?
Amy: My most influential YA author would be Madeleine l'Engle. Her Wrinkle in Time books sparked my teenage creativity, and her works on writing and art still affect me today. When I was 21, I met her "on accident" (I had heard where she usually wrote, and visited on a whim), and she was incredibly generous and encouraging. I would choose Madeleine l'Engle both for her stories and for who she was as a person, both of which influenced me greatly as a writer.
Please tell us about your latest release.
Amy: Until the Beginning (May 5) is the second book in the After the End duology. In book one, 17-year-old Juneau learned that her life in a post-apocalyptic Alaska was a lie, and that her clan was actually living in isolation from today's world. In the thrilling conclusion, Juneau must figure out for herself what is truth and what is a lie in order to escape the people hunting her and rescue her clan.
What are you currently working on?
Amy: I am currently working on an adult thriller set in Siberia as well as a Young Adult horror series that is like Flatliners meets Nightmare on Elm Street.
Amanda Hocking, author of Ice Kissed
Most influential YA author: It's probably cliché, but I would have to say Judy Blume. Her books were the first ones I read that I can remember really seeing myself in them, and for a weird loner kid like me, that was incredibly important. As a person, and as a writer, Judy Blume has been immensely influential on me.
Latest release: Ice Kissed is the second book in the trilogy, so it delves deeper into the beautiful but dangerous world of the Kanin. Determined tracker Bryn Aven is still hunting her sworn enemy Konstantin Black, even though she's no longer certain of his guilt, and she's struggling with her complicated feelings for her smart and wickedly handsome boss, Ridley Dresden. Bryn's journey takes her to the icy world of the allied tribe, the Skojare, who are harboring a secret that threatens to shatter her world forever.
Current project: Right now, I'm currently working on a stand-alone YA novel set in the 1980s called Freeks. It follows 18-year-old Mara Besnick, who is part of a traveling carnival, with Pretty in Pink meets The Lost Boys flair (minus the vampires). It's a lot of fun to write, and it should be out next year.
Rachel Hawthorne, author of Trouble From the Start
Most influential YA author: That is a good — and challenging — question. I read so many YA authors who I admire and whose books I enjoy immensely: Richelle Mead, Sophie Jordan, Marissa Meyer. But as far as being influential, I would have to go with Catherine Clark. When I first became interested in writing Young Adult, I read her books to get a flavoring for the YA genre. Then I was reading her simply because I enjoyed her stories so much.
Latest release: Trouble From the Start is a story about perceptions — the way we tend to judge people without knowing the complete story. Avery is a cop's daughter who is very smart and believes in following the rules. Fletcher is known for getting into trouble, often comes to school bruised and brags that people should see the other guy. Avery thinks he'll end up in prison. Fletcher thinks Avery is too good for him. But when Avery's dad offers Fletcher a room over their garage for the summer, Fletcher and Avery discover they have more in common than they ever would have thought.
Current project: I'm working on a Young Adult proposal that could be classified as realistic fiction. But right now I'm just tinkering with it and I'm not really ready to start talking about it.
Sharon Cameron, author of Rook
Most influential YA author: I would have to say Ruta Sepetys, author of Between Shades of Gray and Out of the Easy. Not just because she's a fabulous writer (which would be enough) but because we've walked the writing journey together for 10 years now, and I think Ruta has taught me more about the craft than anyone. She's one of my biggest cheerleaders, and vice versa!
Latest release: Rook is set in a distant, non-technological future where the Sunken City that was once Paris is in the grips of the second French Revolution. But the condemned are disappearing from their prison cells, and Sophia Bellamy, teenage daughter of a family in financial turmoil, soon realizes that her wealthy new fiancé may have secrets to hide. Which is totally fair, because so does she.
Current project: With today's release of Rook, a lot of my work is interviews and blog posts right now. But I've got a new novel percolating as well. As per usual!
Kimberly Derting, author of The Replaced
Most influential YA author: I grew up during a time when YA wasn't a clearly defined genre, but I remember reading Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird and being struck by what clearly drawn characters Lee had created (Scout may be one of the best female characters of all time!), and forward-thinking she was, and how deftly she'd dealt with issues of race and rape and coming of age. I still read TKaM every decade or so, just to be reminded what a powerful and enduring work it is.
Latest release: The Replaced is the second book in The Taking trilogy, and will answer the burning question readers were left with after the first book: What happened to Tyler?
Current project: Right now, I am knee-deep in revisions for the third (and final) book of the trilogy, and then I'll be jumping into a brand new project I've been dying to start — something contemporary and gritty, and darker from my other books but in a completely different way. And, shockingly, this new book will be a stand-alone!
Sabaa Tahir, author of An Ember in the Ashes
Most influential YA author: Hands down, J.K. Rowling. I feel like her books are so magical, so incredible, that they brought Young Adult literature to a wide audience, which created a broad interest and hunger for more books in the age range. If it wasn't for her, I don't think that Young Adult lit would be exploding like it is.
Latest release: An Ember in the Ashes is a Young Adult fantasy about Laia, an orphan who is fighting for her family, and Elias, a soldier fighting for his freedom. The two live under the iron-fisted rule of the Martial Empire. When circumstances cause their paths to cross, they realize their fates are intertwined, and that their choices will change future of the Empire itself.
Current project: Right now, I'm focusing 100% on Ember! I'm about to start traveling to promote the book, so there's lots of packing and planning and list-making going on.
Jessie Potts, also known as Book Taster, adores books in all forms. She also does reviews for RT Book Reviews magazine and works in the submissions departments at Dreamspinner Press and Entangled YA. You can follow her on Twitter (@BookTaster).