Q and A with Kersten Hamilton and Giveaway!

As part of Kersten Hamilton's Teen {Book} Scene tour for her debut YA Tyger Tyger, I have an interview with Kersten as well as a giveaway for her book!  So without a further ado....

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What are the top three reasons why teens or adults should consider picking up Tyger Tyger the next time they see the book online or in stores?

Wow. That is a hard question. Not because think that teens and adults won’t love Tyger Tyger, but because I have I really, really hard time talking about my books.

Writers are supposed to have a great ‘elevator pitch’ telling all about their book in thirty seconds. Mine is something like this: Um. I wrote a book. Want to read it? I am just not. Good. At. This. I can talk about the process of writing, the characters, my own life…but when someone asks me why I think they should read my book, my tongue sticks to the top of my mouth. My typing fingers freeze. And I look around for help. So, if you don’t mind, I’ll step aside and let three people who know how to do this take over:

Pick up Tyger Tyger for Action and Adventure: “Laced with humor, packed
with surprises and driven by suspense, the plot grabs readers from the start using the stylistic tactics of the best fantasy writing.” – Kirkus Reviews

Pick up Tyger Tyger for Characters and World-building: “I loved the
characters, the dialogs that had that witty and querky feeling I adore, the world-building; it's just not the goblin book you expect! I loved it because it was so utterly different from other YA fantasy novels. It was all at once touching, hilarious, action-packed and fast-paced.”— Roxane, The Honeyed Knot

Pick up Tyger Tyger for Romance and well, you know. Romance: “Ah Finn.
How do I describe him? Finn is one of those dreamy, charismatic and completely self-sufficient kind of guys. The type of literary boy (dare I say hunk?) that I can totally fall in love with. From the very beginning when he asks Teagan if he can kiss her, I was sold! Who doesn't love a boy who can not only charm you, but can handle himself in a fight? Ah Finn, you have my heart sir… Finn and Teagan have this deliciously tense relationship that keeps you on your toes. From the first moment they meet, there is this spark between them that refuses to let go. It was refreshing to see a "love" that wasn't instantly perfect. Does anyone believe in an instantly perfect love? A love that takes effort, compromise, and time? That is a love that I can be invested in!”—Jessica, A Fanatic’s Book Blog

What was your favorite part about writing Tyger Tyger? Also, do you have a favorite scene or line in it that you would like to share with us?

My favorite part of writing is always creating characters, and my favorite scenes are those which reveal character. My favorite scene in Tyger Tyger is Finn’s fight in the alley. Because if you understand what he does there, you understand Finn.

I absolutely adore the title of Tyger Tyger. So would you mind sharing with us how it came to be? Was it always the title or did it come later on?

As a child, I loved poetry. The Tyger by William Blake was one of the very first poems I memorized: http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/~keith/poems/tyger.html It haunted me.

Even so, Tyger Tyger wasn’t the original title. The first book of the Goblin Wars actually started out as a picture book called Loveleaves and Woodwender. I was re-writing the story and it took a turn for YA when Teagan met Finn. Things started to sizzle. The book got longer. And older.

It wasn’t until I’d written the poem into the book that I realized it fit the theme and mood of the whole story arc. Tyger Tyger was the perfect title!

If Tyger Tyger had a theme song what would it be?

Run by Snow Patrol: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQbgihHWNGo “Light
up, light up as if you have a choice…even if you cannot hear my voice.”

What are three things that most people would be surprised to find out about you?

1. I can’t remember ever getting a grade higher than an ‘F’ on a spelling test. Ever. No matter how hard I tried (and I tried really, really hard). This was because:

2. I have severe dysgraphia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Dysgraphia#Dyslexic_dysgraphia:

3. I am carrying a couple of pieces of shrapnel that I never bothered to have a doctor remove. It was just a flesh wound. Meh.

What’s up next for you book wise?

I just finished In the Forests of the Night, book two of Goblin Wars. I’m working on a realistic young picture book -- nitty-gritty for the itty-bitty if you will. I’m almost finished with the first book of a MG steampunk series, and putting the finishing touches on a “Holes”-esque, older MG which deals with suicide, Catholicism, immigration issues and one undead school administrator. After I wrap those up with buttons and bows, it’s back to the YA world for the third book of the Goblin Wars...

As you can see, I follow any story at any level that makes me happy. So far, the Goblin Wars is making me very, very happy.

I hope it makes your readers happy, too.

Thank you for interviewing me, Lauren!

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Thanks so much Kersten! I loved finding out more about you and Tyger Tyger,  and I hope others did as well! :) To find out more about Kersten and her books be sure to check out her website.
And now the part you've all been waiting for.... THE CONTEST!

Though, before we get to that, let me tell you some more about a different contest that's going on at each tour stop during the tour:

•Each stop will be posting a letter that, when unscrambled, will form a word related to Kersten Hamilton.
•At the end of the tour please visit the link here and enter your name, email address, and the unscrambled word for a chance to win a KINDLE!
•My letter is...

 S

Kersten has also offered up a preordered copy of Tyger Tyger for one lucky ready as well. Though, as with any contest, there are rules:

~This contest is open internationally!
~This contest will close on November 9, 2010!
~ You must be 13 years or older to enter!
~ To enter please fill out the form!

*THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW OVER.*

*This post was brought to you by The Teen {Book} Scene. To see all tour stops (as well as contest posts and other tours!) head on over to its offical page.*