I had the opportunity to ask the author of Young Power about her experience writing and I really enjoyed asking these questions and reading her amazing answers! Make sure to check out her book too as well as my review too! Read further on if you’d like to meet the author.

What is your writing Kryptonite?

I have two:

1. Starting. That’s truly the hardest part! Sitting down and figuring out the outline or just beginning to write a scene or chapter in general – but once you power through and break the ice, it gets easier (and then harder to stop!). 2. Bridging plot points. My favorite scenes to write are the dramatic ones or the ones where there’s a lot of progressing movement, character development or action. My least favorite scenes to write are the ones where I have to figure out how to bridge one big scene to another fluidly, while making sure there’s still a point to that bridging activity, and that it remains compelling.

How did publishing your first book change your process of writing?

There are a lot more responsibilities associated with Young Power now (marketing, sales, customer service, bookstagram), which has been an incredible experience, but also reduces the time I would otherwise have for writing. With this in mind, I’m planning to take two weeks of PTO this year to specifically spend on writing the next books – whereas before I would write for about 1-2 hours daily over a course of 4 months.

What was the best money you ever spent as a writer?

This is a tough one! Investing in Young Power and self-publishing the book would have to be the top – I knew I had an incredible story to tell and wanted it to become accessible for other readers to enjoy. It’s been amazing connecting with fans of Young Power and seeing all of the positive responses the book has received since launch last month!

Aside from that, I would say buying books has been very beneficial. Reading is just another way you can improve your own writing skills, and seek inspiration for a future story!

What was an early experience where you learned that language had power?

I remember reading The Great Gatsby in high school and being entranced by F. Scott Fitzgerald’s writing. His words were beautiful, and the way he described small details was mesmerizing – it was the first time I had seen writing as a work of art.

If you had to do something differently as a child or teenager to become a better writer as an adult, what would you do?

Write more and learn more (a never-ending fulfillment) J. But seriously, doing all that you can (and figuring out what works best for you and your goals) to become the best writer possible. Specifically, I probably would have enrolled in creative writing courses while I was at university. I majored in Journalism so took grammar and a couple literature classes, but would have benefited from creative writing instruction.

Oh and what inspired you to write the young power series?

I’ve always been a fan of reading and writing, that’s primarily why I chose a career in Public Relations. After establishing my career, I was commuting 2+ hours each day into San Francisco and not making the best use of my time – I was passively on my phone and not really achieving anything. I wanted to seek inspiration and fill a creative gap in my life. So, after binge-reading a handful of incredible Young Adult novels, I decided I wanted to take a stab at writing a novel.

With this notion in mind, I knew I wanted to write a novel, but wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted it to be about – so I challenged myself to seek inspiration, look around and find something I would enjoy writing and reading about. One morning, I looked up to find a flock of black birds in the sky. For whatever reason, this struck a chord and I felt like it was a sign, and immediately noted it for an idea within my novel.

I knew I wanted to write a romance novel with a layer of fantasy and action – these are the story lines I am most drawn to and enjoy. So, when I thought about an ex-boyfriend one morning and went to check his Instagram to see what he was up to, I paused, realizing we hadn’t spoken in years and truthfully, I had no right to know what he was up to. That enactment clicked, and I knew that it could be a compelling, emotional arc that would formulate the story line for my two main characters.

Young Power all came together when I was listening to Halsey’s Badlands album and a song titled, “Young Gods” played. Something clicked inside me. The lyrics were so dark, seductive and powerful – the entire plot and mood for the book unfolded as the song played.

Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions Andrea and I hope everyone may have learned a thing or two from this post!