SYNOPSIS
Dom is the youngest person ever to arrive in the Necropolis, the 'waiting place' between death and what comes after. And it isn't long before he catches the attention of Satarial, a cruel Nephilim from the beginning of time, who has grim plans to use Dom as entertainment in his vicious gladiatorial games. When Dom's still-living sister, Kaide, appears in the Necropolis too, Satarial has the leverage he needs, and the stage is set for the biggest shake-up the afterlife has seen in centuries.
Dom's only option is to compete in the Trials and attempt to win the chance to enter the Maze. In his favour he has an enigmatic young Guide, Eva, and a Guardian, Eduardo, who may not be what he seems. But will they be enough?
Afterworld released 1st February 2014.
Published by Allen & Unwin.
Michelle: What five words describe Lynnette Lounsbury the AUTHOR?
Lynnette: Fast, determined, unstructured, erratic, imaginative.
Michelle: What five words describe the person behind the author?
Lynnette: Traveller, fighter, mother, teacher, free-spirit.
Michelle: If you were to walk up to somebody in the street and tell them about Afterworld, what would you say in a paragraph that is deeper than your blurb?
Lynnette: The book is about death, but it is also about discovering that life is incredibly valuable BECAUSE it if flawed, dirty, dangerous and brief. It is about realising that there is a huge amount of power in belief. It is about conquering the fears we all have about taking action – about actually doing the things that need to be done to change the world.
Michelle: What is your favorite quote from Afterworld?
Lynnette: “Choose again. Choose the part of you that is vibrant with desire to change your world. Choose to be black. And white. Grown, and still young. Interesting. Talented. Brilliant. Choose it. If you do I will promise you the one thing you have always wanted. I promise you that you will love yourself. And with that comes everything.”
Michelle: What ten words best describe Dom?
Lynnette: Serious, sensitive, empathetic, loyal, honest, naïve, depressive, deep, complicated, brave.
Michelle: Who was the hardest character to write in Afterworld and why?
Lynnette: Deora. I find it very difficult to empathise with those people who “just want to watch the world burn” (to quote some Batman). She has no empathy and no desire whatsoever to understand anyone else, just an incredibly sense of entitlement. I’ve met people like this and I’ve certainly studied them as a historian, but I just don’t understand the way they think, so she was very hard to write.
Michelle: Where were you and what were you doing when you first had the seed of an idea for Afterworld?
Lynnette: I was sitting on the side of my bed trying to rock a very vocal and unhappy newborn to sleep. This activity was filling a great deal of my day at that time and I used to go off into complicated daydreams to pass the time. At that point I was thinking about the power of the tragic ending – the death of your main character – and I thought it might be interesting to do that at the start of a novel instead of the end. And it built from there.
Michelle: Is Afterworld the first in a series or is it a stand-alone read? If it is stand alone, can you tell us anything about your next project?
Lynnette: At the moment it is a standalone project, though quite a few people have asked me about Eduardo’s back story and I’d quite like to write that. There is also some unfinished business with Deora that I wouldn’t mind returning to. At the moment though I am working on a novel that is a bit of a modern retelling of the Russian revolution – the working title is The Anarchist.
Michelle: What has been the best advice you have received from anyone in regards to your writing?
Lynnette: Don’t spend time worrying about getting something published. That is actually the easy part. The hardest part is sitting down every day and getting your book written. It was absolutely true.
Michelle: Did you have a particular song or piece of music that inspired you in your writing or the writing of a scene? If so, what was it?
Lynnette: Two actually. The old Faithless song God is a DJ has a line in it that says “This is my church… this is where I heal my hurts.” It’s one of my favorite songs and while it was originally about dance, it inspired the arena where Satarial is trying to deal with all of the anger and resentment he has against the humans. It’s his church.
I was also listening to Eminem’s album Relapse and then later Recovery and I always find his absolutely brutal honesty inspiring as a writer. I gave Dominic his last name out of appreciation.
Michelle: Is there anything you have learnt from readers’ reviews of Afterworld?
Lynnette: Ha – what a great question! Yes. I’ve learned that what one person will love and find inspiring, another will find too serious or boring. I’ve learned that it’s okay for someone who loves quirky romance novels not to like my book, it’s not an insult, that’s just life. I’ve had a lot of guys tell me they loved the book, which I was really happy about, especially as a female writer creating a male protagonist – you hope you get it right!
Michelle: If you could choose four people, alive or dead, fictional or real to have dinner with, who would they be and why?
Lynnette: Ramses II – he was an incredible leader, wrote cheesy poetry to his wife, fathered over one hundred children and built several incredible temples including my favorite Abu Simbel.
Julius Caesar – brilliant orator, fighter and eternal optimist.
Jack Kerouac – his writing woke me up and inspired me to travel.
Scarlett O’Hara – my favorite literary character. She knows what she wants and does what needs to be done. She doesn’t care about what people think and she doesn’t fold under pressure. And of course she is confrontational and rude and that would make for great conversation.
Michelle: To close out the interview, if I gave you a plain T-shirt to write a quote on that meant something to you, what would it say?
Lynnette: “The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars.” (Jack Kerouac – On the Road)
Michelle: Thankyou for your time Lynnette and best wishes with your writing.
Lynnette: Thanks Michelle – an absolute pleasure, these questions really made me think.
Awesome interview! Can't believe I'd never heard of this book before now!!!! Adding it to my TBR pile as we speak
ReplyDeleteThanks Rachel xxx
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