Author Crush Friday: Julie Reece
Glitter girls, you have pressing questions for your favorite authors and we have their answers. Welcome to our weekly segment, Author Crush Fridays.
We love asking questions and we love the answers from some of our favorite authors. Today we’re talking to Julie Reece, author of The Artisans (May 12, 2015; Month9Books). Thank you for talking to us today, Julie! We’re honored! As an added bonus, Month9Books is offering 3 ebooks internationally so make sure to post in the comments below to enter to win!
GLITTER: How did you come up with the plot for The Artisans?
JULIE: I grew up reading the classics. Nerd alert? Fine. Books like Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Edgar Allan Poe, Bram Stoker’s Dracula were some of my favorites, as well Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. For a long time now, I’ve wanted to write a contemporary story with that same sort of vibe—thrilling, sexy, and mysterious. Also, I secretly want to be a Brontë sister, but that’s an issue for my therapist.
GLITTER: Is it true that The Artisans is loosely based on Beauty and the Beast?
JULIE: Yes it is, though stressing the word, ‘loosely’ here. And the crazy thing is that I didn’t start out with that goal in mind. The story seemed to evolve on its own. I’m typing along, minding my own business, and wham! A few chapters into writing the book—it struck me that I was retelling the story of Belle and the beast. So yeah, once I realized what the heck I was doing, I tailored the plot more along those lines.
GLITTER: What kind of research went into writing this book?
JULIE: Will you still respect me if I say very little? 🙂 Ha ha. I was already super familiar with the geographic location, tons of books from the same genre, and the plotline of Beauty and the Beast. This novel pretty much wrote itself. It fell out of my head and on to the page like magic, if that makes any sense. Probably not. But that’s what made it so much fun! This book was 100% pleasure to write. Some of my novels aren’t like that and make my eyes bleed cutting them out of my imagination.
GLITTER: Would you describe your book as a gothic romance?
JULIE: Oh yeah. Gothic romance and horror are technically subgenres of Gothic fiction, but in The Artisans, it’s all stuck together. Wikipedia—the source of all true and faithful sayings—offers this observation: “Gothic fiction feeds on a pleasing sort of terror.” I actually really like that description. It separates gothic from straight-up horror, the former having more humorous, seductive, and sensual elements.
My book is a bit of a parody really (which is also a characteristic of true gothic novels). Despite the definite creepy vibe in any gothic story, this genre has a sense of humor and laughs at itself just a little, too. In The Artisans, that’s partly evidenced by the fact that our heroine is completely aware that she’s a ‘goth girl’, existing within a gothic romance. Fun right?
GLITTER: If you could collaborate on a new book with anyone, who would you collaborate with and why?
JULIE: Anyone? Cruel question! I’m doing the ‘sit and stare’ because there are so many authors I fangirl over admire. My head is now shifting into fifth gear because to answer your question, I’d have to assume they’d want to work with me, and that I’d have the talent to keep up with them! *shrinks into shell of massive insecurity*. Okay, I know … shut up and answer already. Ask me tomorrow and it might be different. Today? I’d have to say Harper Lee because I named my cat after her and because her writing blows my mind. But so does John Green, and Maggie Stiefvater, and Claudia Gray, and Michelle Hodkin, and A.G. Howard, and Cassandra Clare, and, Wendy Higgins, and Veronica Roth and …
GLITTER: What are you working on now?
JULIE: I have three different novels started because my writing brain is ADD and it’s hard to focus. Also, I’m working on edits for the sequel to The Artisans. Remember the part above where I said writing certain stories make my eyes bleed? Yup, the sequel did that to me. 🙂
Thanks so much for having me today!! XOXOX
Born in Ohio, I lived next to my grandfather’s horse farm until the fourth grade. Summers were about riding, fishing and make-believe, while winter brought sledding and ice-skating on frozen ponds. Most of life was magical, but not all.
I struggled with multiple learning disabilities, did not excel in school. I spent much of my time looking out windows and daydreaming. In the fourth grade (with the help of one very nice teacher) I fought dyslexia for my right to read, like a prince fights a dragon in order to free the princess locked in a tower, and I won.
Afterwards, I read like a fiend. I invented stories where I could be the princess… or a gifted heroine from another world who kicked bad guy butt to win the heart of a charismatic hero. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of that? Later, I moved to Florida where I continued to fantasize about superpowers and monsters, fabricating stories (my mother called it lying) and sharing them with my friends.
Then I thought I’d write one down…
Hooked, I’ve been writing ever since. I write historical, contemporary, urban fantasy, adventure, and young adult romances. I love strong heroines, sweeping tales of mystery and epic adventure… which must include a really hot guy. My writing is proof you can work hard to overcome any obstacle. Don’t give up. I say, if you write, write on!
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