YA
paranormal romance author Amanda
Meuwissen is with me today and we’re chatting about her new urban fantasy, Life as a Teenage Vampire.
virtual book tour, Amanda will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble
(winner’s choice) gift card. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your
chances of winning, feel free to visit
her other tour stops and enter there, too!
Amanda has a
Bachelor of Arts in a personally designed major from St. Olaf College in
Creative Writing, and has been posting content online for many years, including
maintaining the blog for the digital marketing company Outsell. She spent a
summer writing screenplay script coverages for a company in L.A., and is an
avid consumer of fiction through film, prose, and video games. Amanda lives in
Minneapolis, MN, with her husband, John, and their cats, Helga and Sasha (no
connection to the incubus of the same name).
little bit about your current release.
despite being a lifelong vampire fan, it’s my first vampire focused novel as
well. My previous titles include the adult paranormal romance trilogy The
Incubus Saga. This novel is special to me because it incorporates many true
stories and tidbits from my own high school years, as well as some from friends.
I joke that everything in this book is true – except the vampires.
What inspired you to write this book?
much of the novel is taken from my own life, that did in part inspire the book,
but I was first spurred on to write this tale after finally finishing a young
adult trilogy I loved when I was younger: Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez. The
final novel, Rainbow Road, the TV show Teen Wolf, one of my favorite movies
growing up My Best Friend is a Vampire, and what was a recent film when I
started writing Captain American: The Winter Soldier, all played a role in
where this story went.
Excerpt from Life as a Teenage Vampire:
Number Sleven,” he said. “Lucy Liu is totally the romantic lead in that
one.”
action move, not rom-com.”
Con-Man. Admit it, without looking it up or doing an impressive online search,
you can’t think of any mainstream American romance movies with Asian leads. It
doesn’t happen! I am forever shunned to the stereotyped role or cute Asian best
friend.”
my best friends.”
face, but he took advantage of the gesture to snap his jaws and swipe it from
her fingers. She snorted and shook her head. “If this is your romantic comedy,
Connor, you are doing something terribly wrong. Your leading man is completely
unaware of the plotline.”
through him. “You think you have it
bad never being cast in leading roles? Where’s the gay romance box office hit
I’ve been waiting for all my life? And if you say Brokeback Mountain to me, I will punch you in the boob.”
hurt. She was freakishly strong for someone so tiny. “Anyway, that isn’t even
what we were talking about. I said I hate how half the time female roles are
only written in to be romantic interests. No substance. No purpose. Just a
tight ass and a pretty face to dress up the movie poster and give the guy some
arm candy. Where’s the action film with the girl as the kickass sidekick or
partner—or hey, as the hero herself—without needing to make it about sex? Why
does there have to be romance in everything? Girls are just shoved into the
supporting role, Asian girls even more so.”
his feet on the seat he should have been sitting in. They were seniors; if they
wanted to sit on the tables, they were allowed. Unless a teacher walked by.
“It’s kind of funny, right?”
Frankly, I’d trade spots with any girl in this school to have some of those
stereotypes instead of my own.”
them, having come dangerously close to getting ketchup in the long braid over
her shoulder as she gestured. “You want to be an object?”
What exciting story are you working on
next?
I think I
feel this way with every new story I work on, but the novel I’m writing now,
Lovesick Gods, is something I am more excited about than anything I have ever worked
on before. It will be adult again with an M/M romance focus, but rather than
paranormal, it’s a superhero story. While the romance aspect is important, and
the world of superpowers, heroes, and villains I’ve created, the heart of the
story is actually the hero’s struggles with bipolar depression, and how his
nemesis (also love interest) overcomes past traumas of physical abuse and trust
issues. While it can be heavy and heated and heart-wrenching, it’s been one of
the most healing experiences for me as I work on this book, which I hope to
have out later in 2017.
When did you first consider yourself a
writer?
school. I had a profound experience with a reader at a young age, back when all
I knew and wrote was fanfiction, and it made me realize how much writing can
affect people, change people, mean to people. Ever since then I’ve known I had
to write, and considered myself a writer, long before I had a real novel under
my belt.
Do you write full-time? If so, what’s
your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find
time to write?
day job, but over the last couple of years I have been aggressive about finding
time to write. It started with NaNoWriMo 2015, and hasn’t slowed down. I
commute to downtown Minneapolis for work, and do a lot of writing and editing on
the bus. I also dedicate an hour at home most nights after dinner. I have a
very supportive and understanding husband. I work in marketing for a customer
engagement company for auto dealers, which can often be filled with non-fiction
writing tasks. I find this aids in my desire to write creatively at the end of
the day.
What would you say is your interesting
writing quirk?
writing style is a bit like a screenplay writer. I’m very visual, I like to set
the scene for people, especially what my characters look like, and my strengths
tend to be in action and dialogue.
As a child, what did you want to be when
you grew up?
things. A doctor, a vet, an FBI agent, but as I got a little older I knew I
would either choose to become a writer or an actress. I still miss acting, but
I’m happy with my decision.
Anything additional you want to share
with the readers?
something that fits that YA vampire romance mold with none of the clichés, this
is the novel for you. It’s young love, heartbreak, discovering one’s sexuality
and place in the world, with fun action, humorous discussions, and memorable
moments that even if you haven’t been a teenager yourself in years, will remind
you of your own high school days too.
Links:
Thanks for hosting!
congrats on the tour and thanks for the chance to win 🙂
Sounds like a great book, I want to see what happens next. I will definitely check this one out! Thanks!
Oh sounds so good! I love that you are from Minnesota too…I always wanted to go to St Olaf!
Thank you so much for this great stop! The interview and chance to show off one of my favorite scenes was a blast, and I wish all the readers stopping by good luck with the drawing!
Thank you, Lisa, good luck!
Thank you, Melinda! Scenes like the one here are some of my favorite aspects of this story, even when not dealing with the vampire theme directly. I hope you enjoy it!
And thank you, Laura. I loved St. Olaf. It's where I met my husband, and was a wonderful experience, with tons of study abroad and other great opportunities. If you're around in the Spring, I'll be at the State Fair grounds for Spring Con May 20th and 21st with all of my books.
Sounds like a great read.
this book sounds awesome! I love vampires!
Sounds like an excellent book – thanks for sharing 🙂
What books are you looking to read in 2017? Thanks for the giveaway. I hope that I win. Bernie W BWallace1980(at)hotmail(d0t)com
I really enjoyed reading your interview, thank you!
Shared on G+ to help spread the word, have a great day! 🙂
Congrats on the new book and good luck on the book tour!
Hope you are having a fabulous weekend! Looking forward to checking out this book!
I really enjoyed reading the excerpt and look forward to checking out this book!
And shared on facebook today, just in case somebody missed it! xoxo