Author Interview with Colleen Hoover + a Giveaway!

Hello everyone! I have a very special guest here with us today! Like...very speshal! Recently, I just finished her two novels, Slammed and Point of Retreat, and guuuuys, they're BEmazing! I want all of you to read them! No joke! Okay, before I get carried away, please help me in welcoming Colleen Hoover! Hi Colleen! Thank you so very much for joining us here today!

BOB: I know most authors generally get asked, "What inspired you to write so and so...?" and you know, that's what the Book section and the FAQ on the author's site are for, right!? LOL, so instead, in one sentence, how would you describe both Slammed and Point of Retreat?

CH: Slammed and Point of Retreat are books that intertwine desires with ethics, heartache with humor and ultimately prove that the harsh reality of death can sometimes be overcome by the beauty of life.

BOB: Slammed is told from Lake's point of view and Point of Retreat is told from Will's point of view. How was it to switch mindsets and tell the story from another set of eyes?
CH: I really wanted inside Will's head the entire time I was writing Slammed. However, I chose to do the book in a single point of view because I thought it would add more to the surprise twists. So when I began Point of Retreat, I knew it needed to be from Will's point of view because I wanted to see what his thoughts and feelings were toward Layken. We already knew how Layken felt about him.

BOB: Aah, I totally enjoyed reading from Will's point of view! Whenever I read a book from a girl's point of view, I'm constantly wondering what's going through the guy's mind, haha, so thanks for doing the two different point of views!

BOB: Also, which character's point of view did you enjoy more?

CH: I honestly enjoyed both of their point of views. I think I had a little bit more fun writing Will's, because for some reason that whole book was much easier for me to write than Slammed. Maybe it's because Slammed was my first novel and while I was writing it, I also had to simultaneously learn HOW to write a novel which made it a lot more work. I had learned a lot during the process and felt better prepared while writing Point of Retreat.

BOB: And while we're on the topic of characters, which character did you like more? I know, that question is like...asking you which one of your children is your favorite, but if it came down to life or death, who would be your favorite!?

CH: Will. Hands down. I love that boy!

BOB: Oooh, this is a fun question that I always try to ask: What literary character would you snog, which would you marry, and which would you avoid?

CH: I'm assuming this can be from ANY book? :) Hmmm. Great question! I just finished Tammara Webber's novel, Between the Lines and am on the second sequel now. I would absolutely marry Graham. Love him! I recently read Double Clutch by Liz Reinhardt and would have to snog Saxon. And as for avoiding...I could go without a vampire love interest. As sexy as they are, I don't like to mix my snogging with my possible demise. ;)

BOB: Lately, I feel like there's a contest for weirdest fictional names so I'm curious, how do you choose the name of your characters? Do they come to you naturally or do you have like...a name bank where you lock away names and use them when you get the chance or...none of the above?

CH: I have three boys, so I had a couple of names picked out for them had they ended up being girls. Layken was one of them. My father's name was Eddie, so I thought it would be cute to name one of my daughters after him. So those two were sort of personal. As for Kel, that's a play on one of my own children's names. My middle child's name is Cale, pronounced the same way. I sort of wanted to give him a shout out because it was because of his love for theater that I got the idea to write SLAMMED. He auditioned for a role in our local community theater and while sitting at his auditions every evening, I came up with the idea for the book and actually wrote most of it during his rehearsals. I got the name Caulder by literally closing my eyes and pointing at a baby name book. That's what I landed on, so it's what I went with.
BOB: I really love the name Layken, especially after that explanation from the first page, lol! And Caulder - something about how it rolls off your tongue when you say it - love it!

BOB: Which story genre do you like to read or write the most?

CH: I honestly don't read a whole lot. I have three kids and a full-time job so I stay pretty busy. I'll read whatever my co-workers are reading most of the time. However, since writing SLAMMED and connecting with other similar authors, I've discovered an affinity for contemporary young adult romance.

BOB: Slammed and Point of Retreat are contemporary but if you were to write a paranormal story, which kind of creatures (angels, faeries, werewolves, witches, etc.) would you like to write about?

CH: I'd actually like to make up some sort of mythical creature. That would be fun and the imagination could run wild!

BOB: How do you know when to keep going or end a storyline? Often times, authors say the characters speak to them and it's kind of an "I just know!" moment, lol! So, how do you know? When does the moment feel right to you?

CH: I don't write outlines. I don't write outlines I stick to, anyway. So with these two books, I sort of figured out how I wanted them to end about 3/4 of the way through. In Point of Retreat, I actually stopped writing where I was at and went ahead and wrote the last chapter because I wanted to see how it played out so bad. Actually, come to think of it...I'm working on a book right now and am only 1/4 of the way through, but I already have the last chapter finished. For some reason, knowing the end helps me with the middle. However, I did change the end of Slammed when I got to it again, so a lot of what I write ends up going in the trash.

BOB: Oooh, that makes me wonder how Slammed originally ended!

BOB: Both of your books have to do with poetry and I am so in love with all of your poems! Oh, and this isn't a question, just an "I have to let her know" type of statement, hahah! I also love all of the little moments that make the bigger picture, if that makes any sense! Sigh, it's hard to explain but man, you're a genius! MAD genius!

CH: Oh my word. Thank you! lol. Consider this an answer to your non-question. ;) I have never written poetry before. I've been a huge fan of slam poetry and would youtube it a lot which gave me the idea to include it in Slammed. I was so afraid (still am) that I wouldn't do the art of slam poetry justice in these books, so I'm ecstatic when people have a positive response to it. I knew that reading it on paper couldn't possibly compare to seeing it in real life, so I really tried to portray it best I could.

BOB: Speaking of, which poems from both books are your absolute favorite? Also, were any of them a bit harder to write than others?

CH: I absolutely LOVE Will's poem to Lake in Point of Retreat called "Because of you." I think with that poem, he was able to convey a lot of his emotions from Slammed, which made it even more special. I also love "The Lake." Mostly because it was actually slammed by a poet named Marty Schoenleber, so I was able to see it come alive in a sense. And none of them were really harder to write than others. In fact, I think the poetry was the easiest part for me out of the entire book writing process. Each poem probably takes me about an hour from idea to finish. I've definitely developed a new love for it since writing these books.

BOB: Omg, NO WAY!? Those two are my favorite too! When Will performed "Because of you" my heart was all over the place! I became goo and melted straight into nothing! And "The Lake" - oh man, special place in my heart! Speaking of, READERS LISTEN UP! WATCH THIS:

BOB: Eh!? I know, right!? That was all sorts of beautiful and I'm kinda, sorta obsessed with his performance - perfection!

BOB: The Avett Brothers - I've never heard of them before but goodness, they sound amazing and they're oh-so very inspirational! Whoo! So, if you could spend a day with them, how would your day go?

CH: I would make them throw me a concert and play every single song they know! That would be incredible. I respect them as artists and absolutely love their lyrics--but as for actually meeting them in person...I think that would be a little strange for me.

BOB: Slammed and Point of Retreat are companion books or something like that but since Lake and Will's stories are done, what are you working on now?
CH: Well, I actually have two things I'm working on right now. One of them I've already discussed, which is an Eddie and Gavin story. It's not going as smoothly as the other project I'm working on, so I've kind of put it on the back burner for now until I can cultivate a better idea.
BOB: EDDIE! Omg, she's totally one of my favorites from the series! I can't wait to read about her, eeep! LIFE. MADE.

BOB: Anything new in the works? And if so, could you elaborate a bit for us?
CH: I actually woke up at 4:00am this morning with an idea for a book. I immediately powered on my laptop and input the ideas. I'm super excited about it and almost want to start it immediately. I can't really say what it's about because, like Slammed, it's got a major plot twist that I don't want to reveal. But I will say that it's a young adult contemporary romance with a lot of emotion!

BOB: Omg, you must keep me updated on this! Aah, I'm excited for you!

BOB: And lastly, fill in this blank: "And I'll state something rash. He had the most amazing...__________!"

CH: "And I'll state something rash. He had the most amazing, expansive collection of albums I'd ever seen. And not a single one of them was Nickelback!"

BOB: I told myself I would only ask you like...five questions but I got carried away. Really carried away but thank you SO much for taking the time to answer my absurd questions! And five questions my butt! I have like three questions in each of them, lololol! But no seriously, thank you SO much for stopping by BOB; it was an enormous pleasure having you here with us today!

CH: Thank you sooo much for these amazing questions! This was a blast. I'll come back anytime!

BOB: No, thank YOU! None of this would even be happening if you didn't write your fantabulous novels! Thank yooooou!

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Like I mentioned above, I want everyone to read this amazing series so I have an awesome giveaway for all of you. But first, let's give Colleen Hoover a huge round of applause for being such a generous soul for donating to this giveaway!

Also, this is my very first time using Raffelcopter, *facepalm* I always type it out like that ← with the "e" and "l" switched. It's just one of those words that my fingers can't ever get right. ANYWAY, this is my first time using Rafflecopter, so if anything goes wrong, please let me know asap so I can get it fixed for all you lovely people! Well, I'll let you guys go and enter now! GOOD LUCK!

a Rafflecopter giveaway