Ask Colleen

[Imasha]

Hi Colleen! Remember me? I asked quite a few question earlier. I was just wondering about the amazing new Egyptian series you are currently working. How many books do you think it'll have? Or are you just going with the flow and seeing where it finishes.

[Sharon711]

I don't know about anyone else.............but I can't wait for the new series to start. Any ideas when that may be?

[Colleen]

Tawney wrote: "Your books are epic and I can't wait for the Egyptian one! Did you get to do any research pertaining to that book? Like maybe a cool trip to Egypt or museums?"

Lots of research but it was boring! Mostly books. The only really cool thing I did was attend the Mummies exhibit at OMSI (The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry). Saw lots of cool things there including real mummies.

[Colleen]

Imasha wrote: "Hi Colleen! Remember me? I asked quite a few question earlier. I was just wondering about the amazing new Egyptian series you are currently working. How many books do you think it'll have? Or are y..."

Planning on three and a novella.

[Colleen]

Sharon711 wrote: "I don't know about anyone else.............but I can't wait for the new series to start. Any ideas when that may be?"

First book is heading to bookstores Aug 2015.

[Shay]

Is there any truth to the story of two princes named Dhiren and Kishan?

[Imasha]

Thank you for answering me Mrs Houck!! :)
Is it possible for you to tell us if in your new series, if the story is written in a female or male's perspective?

[Imasha]

Thank you for answering me Mrs Houck!! :)
Is it possible for you to tell us if in your new series, if the story is written in a female or male's perspective?

[Hannah]

Random question for you: What kind of paper are your books made from because I love it!! (I said it would be random.)

[Colleen]

Shaylee wrote: "Is there any truth to the story of two princes named Dhiren and Kishan?"

The original idea came from a story I found where a real prince of India was torn apart by tiger claws so that story that Mr. Kadam first told Kelsey at the circus was based on a true story.

[Colleen]

Louise wrote: "Is it possible to get an idea of what the main character for the new Egyptian series will be like prior to the release of the new book, or is it closed captioned at present."

I'm sure there will be little teasers and hints as we get closer to the release date.

[Colleen]

Injust Ampora wrote: "Have you started reading Homestuck?"

Nope. Haven't heard of that book.

[Colleen]

Imasha wrote: "Thank you for answering me Mrs Houck!! :)
Is it possible for you to tell us if in your new series, if the story is written in a female or male's perspective?"

This series is in first person the same as the tiger series and it's in Lily's perspective.

[Colleen]

Hannah wrote: "Random question for you: What kind of paper are your books made from because I love it!! (I said it would be random.)"

I have no idea! This is a great question for my publisher.

[Colleen]

Louise wrote: "Colleen wrote: "Louise wrote: "Is it possible to get an idea of what the main character for the new Egyptian series will be like prior to the release of the new book, or is it closed captioned at p..."

Thank you! I think you'll like it.

[Tawney]

Thank you for answering me. Too bad it was all boring books but yay on mummies. I just went to Universal Orlando and they have The Mummy ride. I couldn't help but think of your new book! Which made me want it more!

[Colleen]

Tawney wrote: "Thank you for answering me. Too bad it was all boring books but yay on mummies. I just went to Universal Orlando and they have The Mummy ride. I couldn't help but think of your new book! Which made..."

I've been on that Mummy ride. It's really fun. It made me think of my books too =)

[✿LANEY✿]

In Tigers Curse you incorporated things such as culture, history, mythology, and poetry whether nonfiction or fiction. What types of things can we expect to see in your new series? If you're able to answer with that information at this time that is. :)

[Imasha]

Dear Mrs Houck,
I have come to notice that the reason i love your writing and your stories are because of 1) your unique story ideas 2) the Lexile measure.
I have two questions this time :)
How do you come up with brand new amazing ideas for your stories?
Will your new series have a higher Lexile measure than Tiger's Curse?
Btw love your series xx
Honestly i've read each book more than 15 times :D

[Colleen]

✿LANEY✿ wrote: "In Tigers Curse you incorporated things such as culture, history, mythology, and poetry whether nonfiction or fiction. What types of things can we expect to see in your new series? If you're able t..."

You'll see a lot of the same actually. This time my main focus is Egypt instead of India but I add in mythology elements from around the world.

[Colleen]

Imasha wrote: "Dear Mrs Houck,
I have come to notice that the reason i love your writing and your stories are because of 1) your unique story ideas 2) the Lexile measure.
I have two questions this time :)
How do ..."

I just now learned what a Lexile measure is thanks to you. I would assume my new series would be approximately the same. I keep a notebook of all the ideas I have and try to incorporate them into the story. If they don't fit, I save them for the next book. I get ideas from reading. I read a lot! Especially mythology books.

[✿LANEY✿]

What mythology books would you recommend? Or books in general.

[Colleen]

✿LANEY✿ wrote: "What mythology books would you recommend? Or books in general."

Check out my goodreads recommendations shelf and the mythology shelf.

[Christine]

Colleen how are you?

[Katie]

Hi! First off I would like to say that I am a huge fan and I loved your books so much that I told my best friend she HAD to read them and now all we do is obsess over Tiger's Saga.

I've been wanting to ask a couple of questions. First: How did you know you wanted to be an author? Did you always know you wanted to write? And Second: How do you like to organize your writing? Do you type, or use multiple notebooks, etc.? Thanks so much!!!

[[deleted user]]

Hi, thanks for letting me join. I was wondering. I have a letter I would like to send you. Do you have an email that I could send it too?

[Colleen]

Christine wrote: "Colleen how are you?"

I'm great thanks. And you?

[Colleen]

Katie wrote: "Hi! First off I would like to say that I am a huge fan and I loved your books so much that I told my best friend she HAD to read them and now all we do is obsess over Tiger's Saga.

I've been want..."

Well, I always was interested in writing but never thought I had the talent. It wasn't until I read about J. K. Rowling and Stephenie Meyer that I got up the nerve to give it a try. They were two typical women like me that just got up one day and wrote a book. Reading about them gave me the courage to give it a try. As far as organizing goes, I use Word and I keep a long list of notes. What I don't use in one chapter, I move down to the next and if there's something I didn't use in a book, I move it to the next one. I keep a list of all my ideas and strange dreams.

[Colleen]

Lucy wrote: "Hi, thanks for letting me join. I was wondering. I have a letter I would like to send you. Do you have an email that I could send it too?"

Yes. You can email me at contactme@colleenhouck.com.

[Colleen]

Horrorterror wrote: "What do you think of the new movie coming out called The Pyramid, or was it Ammit? well anyways tell us what you think."

I haven't heard of this one. I'll have to check it out.

[Ashley]

Is it true?????
Shekhar Kapur is directing Tigers curse movie???!!!!
I'm so excited!

[Ashley]

Who was Kishan dreaming about in Tigers Quest on page 292? In the Grove of Dreams?

[Elizabeth]

Hello! I was looking through some of the questions you have already answered and I realized after reading one of them that I have mispronounced Dhiren's name since I started reading this series. That's a long time. I feel so stupid now. But I do want to clear this up just in case. How do you pronounce Kadam, Nilima, and Lokesh?

[Colleen]

Alison wrote: "Is it true?????
Shekhar Kapur is directing Tigers curse movie???!!!!
I'm so excited!"

It's true!

[Colleen]

Alison wrote: "Who was Kishan dreaming about in Tigers Quest on page 292? In the Grove of Dreams?"

Ah good question. You won't know until Tiger's Dream ;)

[Colleen]

Hannah wrote: "Hello! I was looking through some of the questions you have already answered and I realized after reading one of them that I have mispronounced Dhiren's name since I started reading this series. Th..."

Well I say it Ka like cut and dom. Then Ni like nick, lee, ma. The last one is Low ke like kettle and shh.

[Imasha]

Dear Mr Houck
I'm overjoyed that a director has been chosen for filming Tiger's Curse! :D :D
He seems the perfect man to do it! Especially since has produced films for hollywood that have won awards all while having experience with indian movies!
In school, for English I am going to explore why nowadays, directors produce movies that are book-based. My question is what is your opinion as to why directors choose books to film and what part do the authors have in this process?
Also, if it is possible, could you please tell us the possible actors that could take the roles of Ren, Kishan, Lokesh and Kelsey as soon as you find out yourself?
Thank you so much for reading this! :) xxx

[✿LANEY✿]

Hello! I have a few more questions for you. You don't need to answer all of them. They're just all things I've been wondering!

1. Where within your life do you draw inspiration from? Is it from a book you once read, a person you once met, or a place you once visited, etc.?

2. Within your writing there's a lot of small pieces of information from books within the series that tie together in certain places. For example, Kishan ended up being Durga's tiger all along and the prophecy was a letter that he wrote to both Kelsey and Ren. While you were writing, did you have those pieces of information in mind or was it something you thought up along the way?

3. When I write I tend to place my own experiences within my writing whether it be a person, from a name to a personality, or a place I've once visited. Is there anything in your book that holds a very special meaning to you that happens to be something from your own experiences?

4. What made you want to write about India?

5. From your own series, what's your own favorite piece that you've written? Whether it's a chapter or a quote. If you have one that is.

6. What exactly made you want to write about tigers and an ancient curse? Are Tigers your favorite animals?

I apologize for all of the questions. Your series is my favorite and I tend to rant and rave about them all of the time to everyone. If I could sit and ask you questions all day, I probably would.

I also wanted to tell you that putting a discussion guide in the back of your series was the best possible decision. I was able to use your books for my needed reading in English as a grade. I'm sure not many people can say they got to read their favorite series while getting a grade for it! Also the recipes provided was wonderful. The small extras that you tie into your books are added onto my list of reasons why this is my favorite series and you are my favorite author.

[Colleen]

Imasha wrote: "Dear Mr Houck
I'm overjoyed that a director has been chosen for filming Tiger's Curse! :D :D
He seems the perfect man to do it! Especially since has produced films for hollywood that have won award..."

No actors have been cast at this time. Authors don't have as much a role in the film as you would guess. Certainly they are involved somewhat but this depends on the film producer and the contracts. Honestly, I have no idea how directors are chosen as I am not a part of that process. I'm as curious about it as you are.

[Colleen]

✿LANEY✿ wrote: "Hello! I have a few more questions for you. You don't need to answer all of them. They're just all things I've been wondering!

1. Where within your life do you draw inspiration from? Is it from a ..."

1) I draw inspiration from books and television and people I talk with. This is why its so important for aspiring authors to read. Read everything! I still read and, in fact, I read more as an author than I ever did before beginning this writing career.

2) Both. I have a general idea of the direction I'm headed but a lot of things come together at the end too. An example was when Ren and Kelsey were walking on the beach and talking about sharks. I knew book three would have sharks so I put in a lot of foreshadow. Luckily, books are usually two behind in production so I can contact my editor if I want to add something before it goes to print.

3) Absolutely. The whole date with Artie was an actual date I went on in college. There are always things you draw upon as an author. That's what makes a book feel real.

4) I didn't want to write about India. Not at first. The research on the white tiger led me to India and the story came from that.

5) I am partial to Tiger's Voyage simply because I love the ocean and stories about it. Character wise, I really like the novella about Yesubai. It was fun to explore her character and learn all those secret things about her that I didn't know when I began writing the series.

6) Tigers are just the best things to shift into. I considered a bear and a lion but bears are cumbersome and lions sleep all the time. I even thought of a bird but a small bird can't really fight a villain. Tigers were the best combination of an animal that can rip your head off but that you also want to cuddle. ;)

[Natalia]

Hello, Colleen!
Could you open a secret =) In the 4th book Kishan took an egg from the Phoenix. And no one word about this egg later. What happened with it after all? =)
Thank you so much!

[Shandrie]

Hi! Colleen I LOVE your books you are an amazing author!!

[Colleen]

Natalia wrote: "Hello, Colleen!
Could you open a secret =) In the 4th book Kishan took an egg from the Phoenix. And no one word about this egg later. What happened with it after all? =)
Thank you so much!"

You'll find out more about that in Tiger's Dream.

[Colleen]

Shandrie97 wrote: "Hi! Colleen I LOVE your books you are an amazing author!!"

Thank you!

[Katie]

Do you have any teensy estimate on a possible release date for Tiger's Dream?? I am so excited to find out what happens next!! Thanks!!

[Imasha]

Hi there Mrs Houck! I know that your books are a mix of many genres. Such as Adventure-Romance-Thriller. But i was wondering if you will ever write stories with a theme on music or a theme on time-travel?

[Erica]

Your books are very good. I love reading them and can't wait for your Egyptian series. Is it a for sure thing that Tiger's Dream is going to be published? And have you heard anything more on a possible movie for Tiger's Curse?

[Ashley]

I can't wait for Tigers Dream! Re-reading old comments makes me so excited! So many secrets will be revealed. :D

[Ashley]

I can't wait for Tigers Dream! Re-reading old comments makes me so excited! So many secrets will be revealed. :D

[karlipagemaster]

hi Colleen! I just wanted to ask if a cover reveal for tigers dream will be coming soon?