THE BOOK
AMY has left the life she loves for a world 300 years away
Trapped in space and frozen in time, Amy is bound for a new planet. But fifty years before she's due to arrive, she is violently woken, the victim of an attempted murder. Now Amy's lost on board and nothing makes sense - she's never felt so alone.
Yet someone is waiting for her. He wants to protect her; and more if she'll let him.
But who can she trust amidst the secrets and lies? A killer is out there – and Amy has nowhere to hide . . .
Ooh, Razorbill is sneaky! Not only did they slightly alter the tagline; they have "fixed" up the male figure, just like with the US release. While this is more aesthetically pleasing, I'm still a bit urked by this progression. Your thoughts?
THE MINIVIEW
Miniviews are tiny interviews. These are for when I'm lazy, or when the book has not yet been released, or if there have been many, many interviews already and I have not got many new things to add on to the table.
Q: The story in Across the Universe is told in dual perspectives. I've been curious as to how you made it work so well. Tell us your secret, and will this continue on to the next books?
A: I didn't have any secret in making the dual POVs--it's just the way the story *had* to be told. I don't mean that in any sparkly, metaphysical way--I mean that for the story to be told, I absolutely needed to have both characters telling the story from their points of view. I guess, my short answer is: necessity is the mother of invention (or in this case, writing).
And yes--the alternating POVs will continue in the next two books!
Q: It is not uncommon that a book cover changes since its ARC release. However, with your debut, Across the Universe, the cover change also involved "beautifying" the male figure. Did you have a say in this, and what do you feel about it?
A: While Penguin marketing did ask my opinion on the book covers and were extremely gracious in working with me, I'm nowhere near creative enough to be given free-reign on book covers!
Q: The famous question-- "What was your journey to publication like?"
A: Long! I wrote for ten years--and I wrote ten trunk novels--before I wrote the right manuscript at the right time that enabled me to find the right agent and right publisher.
Q: Is there anything you can tell us about the next book/s in the series? Can we expect more shocking deaths and mysterious occurences?
A: Not really! My lips are pretty sealed on the topic--I don't want to ruin any surprises. But I'll officially confirm: more people are gonna die. That's just how I roll...
Last message from Beth:
Thank you for the questions! And I am *so* glad that you liked the book. And dude--I just saw a hard copy of it, and the embossing in the hardback is...stunning. I can't wait to share it with the world!
Going to launch the December contest on the 11th 9th! Penguin's made sure that it's epic!!
Thanks again,
Beth
THE AUTHOR
Beth can’t help but blog about writing, grammar, and publishing at Writing it Out. She is the founder of the new popular dystopian blog, the League of Extraordinary Writers and blows off steam by trying to come up with something witty in 140 characters or less, lusting after books on GoodReads, or wasting time on Facebook. Beth is represented by Merrilee Heifetz at Writers House.
