New Adult Book Club discussion
This topic is about
The Butterfly Project
Author Q+A's
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Q&A with Emma Scott
If someone wanted to start reading your books, which book would you recommend starting with?
Hi Emma, thank you for taking the time to answer our questions.What are you currently working on, and what can I expect from your upcoming book?
Hi Emma! First of all, I really really love you & your books!! And my question is what brought you to write Full Tilt? Love u xx
Hi Emma! My question is: what was the inspiration behind How to Save a Life?
Is there any genre you haven't written in that you'd consider trying out?
Hey Emma! I really really wanna know what was the most difficult book for you to write?
Hi Emma :) have you ever been inspired by a song to write one of your books?
Hi Emma , i love your books . Do you listen to music when you are writing and what kind of music ?
Which book was your favorite to write?
Hi Emma! Do you ever experience writer's block? What do you do to avoid or pass through them? Do you have any rituals or whatnot? :)
Quirks wrote: "If someone wanted to start reading your books, which book would you recommend starting with?"Hi, Quirks! I would say the best place to start is RUSH. The vast majority of my readers found me with that one. Noah, the H (whose been blinded in an accident) is a reader favorite. Also, I feel it's with RUSH that I found the voice of my stories and that's carried through to all of them since. <3
Betul wrote: "Hi Emma, thank you for taking the time to answer our questions.What are you currently working on, and what can I expect from your upcoming book?"
Hi Betul!
I'm currently working on a mild PNR (along the lines of How to Save a Life) that features an H who can sense the emotions of everyone around him. This is the GR link for the full synopsis: http://bit.ly/2mKmsQQ
I'm pretty excited about it, as I love telling stories where the mysteries of the universe peek their head out and touch the characters in some way. <3
Putri wrote: "Hi Emma! First of all, I really really love you & your books!! And my question is what brought you to write Full Tilt? Love u xx"Hi Putri!
Thank you! And Full Tilt (along with All In) came to me with one line: "You are a universe." I had a flash of a guy, very sick, telling his love to promise to love someone else because she was a universe, with infinite supplies of love dwelling in her. From there, BOTH books were born and I just had to figure out the logistics. I'll keep from spoiling here, but the intention ALWAYS was for Kacey to take the journey she did in both books. They are one complete story in that sense.
Love you too! xo
M wrote: "Hi Emma! My question is: what was the inspiration behind How to Save a Life?"Hi M!
As with many of my books, the story is born with a flash of an image, or a line of dialogue, or--in the case of RUSH--an entire conversation I heard in my head on a jog one day, as if I were eavesdropping.
For HTSAL, I had a flash of a young guy, fully clothed, swimming in a local pool. Bruises colored his skin and were visible through the wet t-shirt. And dark-haired girl was in the pool with him, asking him "Why do they do this to you?" He answered, "Because I'm different."
And that was it. I had to know why he answered her question that way, and from there, the story morphed around his answer. (the answer was that he had a mildly PNR ability to dream the future.)
I really didn't want to make it a hugely overtly PNR "power". I wanted it to be subtle, not entirely useful, and--most importantly--had no clear cut reason as to how or why he could do what he did. His abilities were in service to his love with the h, and I know that was a little irksome to some readers, but I'm very happy as to how it turned out.
xox
Sweet Spot Sisterhood wrote: "Is there any genre you haven't written in that you'd consider trying out?"Hey, SSS!,
I would like to try rom-com, but I'm scared. Comedy is a billion times harder than drama, and I would want a full year to write something that I could be sure wasn't going to crash and burn, LOL. I'd also like to try a full PNR but again, I'd need more time than my publishing schedule currently allows, as I feel you have to really get the world-building right. I just don't have the time to devote to either of those genres yet that would make me feel good about publishing it.
xo
Aɤɩ wrote: "Hey Emma! I really really wanna know what was the most difficult book for you to write?"Hi Aɤɩ !
That's a great question. I would say How to Save a Life and All In are neck and neck. HTSAL really scared the crap out of me. It was the first book after RUSH which brought me so many readers, and I was super scared about letting them down. Add to that, the strangeness of the plot and whether or not I could pull it off...yeah, I was stressed out.
All In was SUPER hard too because it had to follow up Full Tilt. Readers have REALLY connected to Jonah in FT in extremely meaningful, deeply personal ways. So to do justice to him AND make it believable where Kacey was going, freaked me out to NO END. I was sure readers would hate it and--worse--feel as if I'd betrayed Jonah in some way. So I'm beyond grateful (relieved) that the vast majority of readers felt All In was believable and that the message I was trying to convey (without giving spoilers here) came through.
All the love for Theo was an added bonus. :)
Hi Emma! I loved FT, AI & TBP. Even though FT & AI made me cry so much, and binge on junk food while reading. Lol!
So, my question to you is, do you have a secret stash of junk while you write? Or you have others waytot youthrough the emotional journey while writing those particularly devastating scenes? I know a lot of authors do, especially when they are writing a really emotional book or scene. I am always curious about writers habits, weird I know. Lol!
☆Tweety ☆ wrote: "Hi Emma :) have you ever been inspired by a song to write one of your books?"Hi Tweety,
Not an entire song, per se. I know that How to Save a Life might seem like it since it bears the same name as the Fray's fabulous song, but that title had nothing to do with the song, necessarily. I was more interested in how these characters saved each other through incredible trust, and I added the song to the playlist at the end of the process because the mood of it seemed to fit.
I love song lyrics tho. I love pillaging them for potential book titles and Sugar & Gold, my next release is a direct result. That title comes from the lyrics of HandClap by Fitz and the Tantrums, which is on the soundtrack to my Butterfly Project. When I think about what the H of Sugar & Gold can do with his senses and how he views the h, it made perfect sense to name the book after those lyrics.
xo
Esther wrote: "Hi Emma , i love your books . Do you listen to music when you are writing and what kind of music ?"Hi Esther,
Thank you!
And no, I listen to nothing at all when I write. I get too distracted and can't concentrate if there is music or a TV on. But I love listening to music to become inspired by a particular mood or scene in a book. Most of the time, I'll be in the car listening to the radio and a song will come on that just FITS what I need for a scene (even if the scene itself has no music in it) and then I have to stop and make a note. For instance, in Full Tilt, Kacey plays Snow Patrol's "Chasing Cars" because I was driving somewhere, heard that song and the lyrics, "lie with me and just forget the world" was exactly what I wanted for them in that moment.
It's very strange how and when inspiration strikes, and it doesn't always manifest how I think it will. lol
xo
Katrina wrote: "Which book was your favorite to write?"Hi Katrina,
Strangely enough, as hard as it was to take the plot where I needed it to go, Full Tilt was the easiest, most favorite to write. Every scene seemed to lay out in front of me, all in a perfect row, and all I had to do was write them down, instead of agonizing over What Comes Next? I've never had an easier writing experience, even though I had to do the hardest thing in it.
xo
RentasticReads wrote: "Hi Emma! Do you ever experience writer's block? What do you do to avoid or pass through them? Do you have any rituals or whatnot? :)"Hi Ren!
I don't have writer's block. I have writer's extreme procrastination. I've never sat at the laptop and just stared, not knowing what to write. Instead, I sit and stare and know exactly what I need to be doing and i just can't muster the will to actually TYPE. It's as if the story has to percolate in my brain for X amount of time before I'm able to get it out. And when I finally do, the deadline has raced up to meet me. So that's my process, the Three Ps...
Percolate
Procrastinate
Panic
LOL
xo
Where do you like to write? Where do you get your ideas of cities/ towns, Country choice to use to create your stories. Do you visit the cities you put in your Novels? Thanks!
Michelle wrote: "Hi Emma! I loved FT, AI & TBP. Even though FT & AI made me cry so much, and binge on junk food while reading. Lol!
So, my question to you is, do you have a secret stash of junk while you write? ..."
Hi Michelle!
I don't eat junk food until the most stressful time of all--release week. Then I eat however much chocolate I want, when I want. LOL
During the process itself...IDK, to get through the emotional scenes I just try my hardest to make sure they're pure and authentic. So sometimes I'll dictate so that the feelings are directly channeled from my head to the screen with no stops. And if the scene that is playing out in my head makes me cry while I'm typing (or dictating it) then I know it's true to what it should be.
For Full Tilt, although it was the easiest book to write in many respects there was one scene, toward the end if you know what I mean, that was VERY hard to write. I wrote the entire book first, and then went back and wrote that scene. So for a long time, there was a chapter header with one sentence under it "You are a universe."
So I wrote that one last and then shot the whole thing off to my editor without reading it again. And I recently listened to it on Audible, and it was surreal. Like it wasn't even my own words anymore. I cried buckets. BUCKETS.
...And then ate a bunch of chocolate. ;)
xox
Sophie wrote: "Where do you like to write? Where do you get your ideas of cities/ towns, Country choice to use to create your stories. Do you visit the cities you put in your Novels? Thanks!"Hi Sophie!
Ooh boy, that's a lot of good questions.
I usually write in my office, or if I'm dictating, I curl up under the covers in bed and talk at my laptop, lol
The ideas for towns or cities are integral to the story. Sometimes they make themselves obvious, (Vegas, NOLA) and sometimes they come to me through research. All the places that Evan and Jo travel to in How to Save a Life fell in line like cosmic dominoes. I was researching American landmarks and the three I found fit with my narrative so well it was uncanny. My main goal is that it MUST serve the story. Every element, including location, must be integral.
I have been to most cities I've written about (I live near SF) NYC, Vegas, etc. and others I rely on friends, readers and research to give me the added details, though I much prefer actually visiting the city in question when possible.
xo
Hi Emma!Would you consider collaborating with another author? Why/why not? If yes, do you have any author(s) in mind?
warhawke wrote: "Hi Emma!Would you consider collaborating with another author? Why/why not? If yes, do you have any author(s) in mind?"
Hi Warhawke!
Great question. I have thought about it, mostly in a "how does that even work???" kind of way. The actual logistics of two people writing one book is confusing, lol. But I'm open to it if the idea, the other author, and the stars aligned to make it the right thing to do. Suanne Laqueur, author and my editor, comes to mind first. We've discussed it in the same vague "How does that even work???" way too, LOL
I've seen readers on FB comment to the question "Which two writers do you want to see work together?" and Mia Sheridan and Mariana Zapata have come up, which is a tremendous honor on both counts. But the actual act of a collaboration is a mystery to me, and my schedule is so crazy right now anyway.
xo
@Emma Thanks! Will be reading RUSH very soon.
What other books have you got in the pipeline? <3
Hi Emma. What's your ideal workday like? And what's your ideal day off like?
Caroline wrote: "What other books have you got in the pipeline? <3"Hi Caroline,
I have Sugar & Gold coming this June (possibly May) about a young man who can sense the emotions/memories/thoughts of those around him. It's a mildly PNR new adult romance. The synopsis is here: http://bit.ly/2mKmsQQ
xo
Irene wrote: "Hi Emma. What's your ideal workday like? And what's your ideal day off like?"
I take too many days off, so I can't answer that one, LOL. My ideal work day would be 10 hours of distraction-free, inspired writing where there are no stops, doubts, or considerations, and where the words just fly onto the page. That is writer heaven, though few and far between. ;)
xo
Hi Emma!How long does it usually take for you to write a book? And which one did it take you the longest to write, and what was the fastest you wrote one? It's kind of more than a one question, sorry. ;)
*peeks out of a bush, stalking*Hoe do you name your characters? When someone materializes in your head, you see them with a name, or you get to know them first, decide their role in the book, then give them a name?
Thank you for hanging out here :)
Andie Lovesbooks/Readsbooks
Hi Emma, which one of your books means the most to you?
Hi Emma! You've got some gorgeous covers for your books, I'm curious how much input you have when they're being designed? Thanks!
As a writer, what would your spirit animal be?
Zeljka wrote: "Hi Emma!How long does it usually take for you to write a book? And which one did it take you the longest to write, and what was the fastest you wrote one? It's kind of more than a one question, so..."
Hi, Zeljka!
I think it takes me about a month to do the actual writing of the book. Not the research, editing, notes and such but the actual blood-and-guts writing. Then comes all the stuff after, but if I'm really excited about a story and get my butt in the chair, I can do the rough in a month. Because I'm a grade A procrastinator, it usually takes longer.
The longest book was my first. I wrote Love Beyond Words in 2009 and then stashed it away for 5 years. Then spent four months reworking it. That's the longest.
Full Tilt was the shortest. That book flew out onto the screen. I think I had the rough in a little less than a month and it was finished two weeks later. It was the heaviest, emotionally, and shortest to write. Go figure. ;)
xo
Andie wrote: "*peeks out of a bush, stalking*Hoe do you name your characters? When someone materializes in your head, you see them with a name, or you get to know them first, decide their role in the book, the..."
*sees you in bushes stalking, is totally cool with it* :P
My stinkin' characters often name themselves and then there's nothing I can do about it. I know that sounds weird but it's true. I'll have an idea for a name in mind but if they sneak one in first, I can't change it. Prime culprits of characters who named themselves when I wanted something else: Alex from Unbreakable, Kacey from Full Tilt/All In, Zelda from The Butterfly Project, and BOTH Fiona and Nikolai from my upcoming Sugar & Gold. But the funny thing is, usually over the course of the book the name makes sense or becomes part of the story, so I guess the characters know what they're doing. 99% of writing is getting out of their way so that they can tell their story.
Other times, as in the case of Noah, Jonah and Theo, the name came first and we all (characters and myself included) agreed that they were perfect and must stay. :)
#writersbecrazy
xo
Ann wrote: "Hi Emma, which one of your books means the most to you?"Full Tilt, hands down. Jonah Fletcher will forever be special to me, and the story itself is exactly what I wanted to say.
RUSH would be a very, very close second. And both of these are most special in the sense that they have brought me my readers, and/or they have connected with people in such a way that is very profound. These two (and How to Save a Life to a lesser degree) have garnered me more deeply personal messages from readers who say the books resonated with them in a very meaningful way, and so I cherish those books--and the connections they've made--more than anything else.
xo
Mercedes wrote: "Hi Emma! You've got some gorgeous covers for your books, I'm curious how much input you have when they're being designed? Thanks!"Thanks, Mercedes! My PA is my cover designer from Full Tilt on out. Melissa is amazing and we work together to bring a cover out; mostly I tell her what I have in mind and then she works her magic and adds details and touches that I would never have thought on my own. I lurrve her ever so much. :)
xo
H.L. wrote: "As a writer, what would your spirit animal be?"Hi, H.L.
A turtle crossed with a tiger. A tigle? Turger? The turtle for resilience and a thick shell, and the tiger for best (rare) days where I just tear through the writing without stops or doubts, and really just get a good bunch of words down, and to viciously protect and defend my work from my most terrible critic--self-doubt--and keep going.
xo
Debra wrote: "What inspire you to become a writer?"Hi Debra,
I don't recall one particular person or moment, except that I would say--and his is probably true of many writers--that I was a big reader first. The words of other authors of my youth--Stephen King, Weiss and Hickman, Marion Zimmer Bradley--they inspired me to tell my own stories but the actual desire to do it feels like it was always there. I don't know which came first, the reading or the want to write, but they're both so tightly bound, I'd say they formed together. :)
xo
Would you like to see any of your books turned into a movie or television series?
who are some of your favorite authors?
Tanja wrote: "Would you like to see any of your books turned into a movie or television series?"Hi, Tanja,
Yes, all of them, LOL
But the one that readers seem to want to see as a movie more than any others is Full Tilt/All In. Hearing FT on audio recently made me hyper-aware of how surreal it is hearing other actors read my words. I think if one of my book were ever made into a movie or show, I'd be a total wreck. They'd ban me from the set on Day One lol
xo
Nicole wrote: "who are some of your favorite authors?"Hi Nicole,
My all-time favorites are John Irving, Stephen King, Carlos Ruiz Zaphon, Toni Morrison and Caroline Kepnes. I'm reading Liane Moriarty right now and she's killing it. I suspect she's going to be up there too.
In my genre, I love Amy Harmon, Mia Sheridan, Suanne Laqueur, Lauren Blakely, Tillie Cole (she can do ANYthing) and Penny Reid.
xo
Hi Emma, Did you get Inspiration from someone to write your character Noah (Rush)?
Hi Emma, I love all of your books! :) I truly loved the comic book pages in Butterfly Project. Where did the idea come from and how did you find the graphic designer who vivified exactly your amazing ideas?
New Adult Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
Full Tilt (other topics)All In (other topics)
How to Save a Life (other topics)
The Butterfly Project (other topics)
Hey NABC! This week we have a fantastic Q&A with the lovely Emma Scott! Emma is the author of Full Tilt, All In, How to Save a Life, and her newest release, The Butterfly Project. Please leave your questions for her below!