Today, I'm posting an interview with NA author and blogger Juliana Haygert.
Tell us a little about yourself
Hi! I’m Juliana, NA author and all around nice girl. I laugh easily, but I’m also very irritable – you don’t want to be on my pissed off side ;)
I’m a lover of books, video games (World of Warcraft ftw!), chocolate, coffee, wine, jeans, high heels, family and friends – not necessarily in this order.
You write in multiple NA genres. Which is your favorite write? Why?
Why do you focus on NA. I started writing NA way before it had a name – eight years ago or so.
It was quite hard because agents and editors didn’t want NA.
My fave genre? I guess it depends on my mood.
When I’m deep into contemporary, I’m craving fantasy, when I’m deep into fantasy, I want to write contemporary.
Tell us something about yourself that's not in your author bio.
I met my husband when I was 17 (he was 22) – we started dating right away and we got married when I was 20. And I became a mommy at 24.
What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?
Toughest criticism = that I had to work on my narrator inner dialogue.
Best compliment = “Your voice is so rich, and your worldbuilding absolutely lush. I enjoyed the tension and the stakes in play here”
– it came from a known traditional author and it was about the short story I have on Wattpad.
If you could have dinner with anyone- fictional or real, past or present, dead or alive- who would you pick? Why?
This is a hard one.
Fictional, Zuko from The Last Airbender. Or Korra from Legend of Korra – love these two TV shows.
You will be stranded on a deserted island and bring 3 items.
Another hard one, jeez!
My toothbrush + tooth paste (that’s combo so it counts as one), my kindle, which would be loaded with great books (and it’s charger), and a warm blanket.
Have you always aspired to publish a novel? Which writers inspire/influence you?
Not really. I’ve been writing since I was 13, but I only thought about trying to get published when I was 26-27.
I love Richelle Mead – her prose is simple and yet, it involves you. She creates rich worlds and fun characters. I like to think her writing influences mine ;)
Which actors/actresses would you like to see playing Hannah, Eric & Leo in Breaking The Reins?
Bah, I don’t know. I try not to think about it much.
One reviewer posted pics for Hannah and Leo on goodreads and I love it – she chose Krystal Reed as Hannah, but I don’t know who the guy is. Want to help me find out? Click here.
But honestly, Leo and his family would have to be Brazilian – maybe Marlon Teixeira or Pedro Arnon as Leo ;)
If you could be on one reality TV show, what would it be?
This is (was?) sort of a secret: my biggest dream is to be one of the celebs on Dancing with the Stars. But first I need to become a celebrity right? lol
Tell us about NA Alley
In the end of 2011, I met Victoria, Jaycee and Carrie online – they wrote NA, like I did, so we bonded over it immediately. Then around Jan/Feb 2012, I was thinking about contacting them and pop a question like what do you guys think of creating a group blog dedicated to NA?
However, Victoria beat me to it. She had already talked to Jaycee and they sent out the email inviting the rest of us.
NA Alley is a fun place where we try to inform and promote New Adult as a category.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Hopefully I’ll have moved back to the Carolinas, I’ll have published a dozen novels, and I’ll be making a good living out of it.
My hubs will still like the challenge of his line of work, and my daughter will be too big for me to even imagine.
I don’t envision getting filthy rich or hitting the NYT Bestseller list or
things like that. As long as my books find a couple of readers and they like what they read, I’m happy!
The craziest/wildest thing you ever did.
Moved out of my parents’ house in a small town when I was 16 to live alone in a city of 1.5 million people? In Brazil, education is very different than here. The good schools are in the big cities and, to be accepted into college, you have to get a good education, so I moved out to finish high school in a better school.
Or, spent two months on Rio de Janeiro alone when I was 12 – I participated of a ballet workshop with the best dance company of the country.
Which of your characters do you relate to the most? Are any of them based on people you know?
Mirella from Gypsy Heart. I need to rewrite that manuscript and publish it because I love that story, but I wrote it back in 2010 (or 2009?). My writing improved so much since then, and I had a couple of ideas to make it better …
Mirella has a lot of me on her.
I try not basing my characters on any people I know, though I’m sure some relate to the people in my life.
Are you going to write a continuation for Breaking The Reins? I'd like to see what happens to the rest of the gang.
It is a possibility – I’ve been getting lots of requests. I know Bia’s story and I have an idea for Hilary’s, but I know readers want to see Ri, Pedro and Gui too, so I’ll have to think (aka plot) for them too.
What is one talent that you’re hopeless at, but you wish you were good at?
Singing. I would love, love, love to sing.
Do events in your life influence your book/Are your life experiences included in your books?
No, not so far. I do have a notebook with major events and past experiences written down, so I can look over them and try to plot a story around them, but so far it didn’t happen.
What is the best book you’ve read recently?
I was working on a UF the last 2 months, so I’ve been reading a lot of UF and PNR. The ones I liked the most are The Archers of Avalon series by Chelsea Fine, and the Crescent Chronicles by Alyssa Rose Ivy.
What is the best advice you have been given?
Do not give up! Simple like that ;)
What’s next for you? Any works in the making that you want us to know about?
I’m working on edits of Soul Oath and Cup of Life (both UF), and soon will finish writing Playing Pretend, a contemporary romance
.
Random
Vanilla or chocolate - chocolate
Fave Season of the year - fall
Fave Dessert – hmm, Cookie Cookie Sundae from ColdStone
Fave Name – Isadora (my daughter’s)
Fave Book you wrote – Breaking the Reins
Favorite word - LOVE
Weirdest food combo – none.
Random Fact – I went to Architecture School
The Author
Juliana Haygert is a New Adult author and contributor at NA Alley blog.
While Juliana dreams of being Wonder Woman, Buffy, or a blood elf shadow priest, she settles for the less exciting—but equally gratifying—life of a wife, mother, and author.
Thousands of miles away from her former home in Brazil, she now resides in Connecticut and spends her days writing about kick-ass heroines and the heroes who drive them crazy.
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Read my review of "Breaking The Reins" here
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“Step into the secret lives of 25 writers . . . and witness the stories that shape us.
Lloyd was born in Oakland in 1961, a first-generation American child to Jamaican parents. As a child his trips to Jamaica in the 60's and 70's shaped who he became.
