Fresh New Voice of YA- Anastasia Hopcus Interview

1) How did you get the idea for Shadow Hills?

I saw a 60 Minutes segment about a gifted savant, named Daniel Tammet, and it made me wonder---what if there was a whole society of people with these kinds of abilities? And what would happen when an outsider started digging into their history, looking for answers? The idea just grew from there.


2) What was The Call like? Tell us all about it.

I actually touched on this the other day when I did a blog post about how awesome bloggers are. During the time my wonderful agent was submitting Shadow Hills, there were many editors who were staying away from paranormal YA because the publishing industry was unsure if it would continue to be popular. So by the time I got the call, the main thing I felt was relieved. I was, of course, very happy---Egmont USA was a company I was really excited about and hoping for---but I was also just emotionally exhausted. It didn't truly hit me that I was going to have a book published and other people were going to read it until bloggers started WoWing Shadow Hills. That was the most amazing feeling, and it's just one of the many reasons I love bloggers so much.


3) You were at BEA this year. Did you have time to wander around and pick up some books? Which ones were you excited for, and were you able to get them?

I got Paranormalcy, which I'm reading now, though I've hardly had any time to read. That was actually a present from a blogger, though. I really wanted Beautiful Darkness, but I missed the first drop. Luckily I got a copy of it on the second drop. I've taken a peek at it, but I'm trying to hold off on reading it until after my release date. I know from reading Beautiful Creatures that I will shirk all my responsibilities as soon as I start it. ;) Unfortunately, two of the books I really wanted, The Replacement and Nightshade, were ones they put out while I happened to be doing Egmont business-y type things. Luckily, another generous blogger sent me a copy of Nightshade, which is now sitting on my bedside table, also vying for my attention. Sadly, The Replacement continues to elude me.


4) What book(s) are you working on now? Can you tell us anything about it?

I have a couple of projects in the works. One thing I'm interested in is continuing Phe's and Zach's story, but I also have in mind a YA paranormal set in the 1800's.


5) What book(s) are you reading now, or are about to start?

I just finished Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready, which I loved. Now I'm enjoying Paranormalcy----I just wish I had more time to read it!


6) What is your favorite Jelly Belly jelly bean flavor?

Pina Colada!


7) Shadow Hills deals a lot with science and history. What kind of research did you have to do for that? What made you decide to incorporate those aspects?

I've never been a big history buff, but I was always fascinated by the Salem witch trials. While Shadow Hills doesn't really have anything to do with the trials, that setting intrigued me. It seemed the perfect place to have the ancient cemetery that is central to the book's plot. Most of the historical research involved not only early Massachusetts, but also the kind of epidemics that were common back then, where large groups of people died at the same time. The scientific research was really interesting, though pretty dense and technical at times.