Alison Goodman Author Interview

Photo Content from Alison Goodman

Alison Goodman’s most recent novel is The Dark Days Deceit, the third and final book in the Lady Helen trilogy of supernatural Regency adventures. The first book in the series, The Dark Days Club, is a 2017 CBCA Notable Book for Older Readers, a 2017 Bank Street Library Best Book and an NPR Best Book of 2016. The second book, The Dark Days Pact, won the 2016 Aurealis Award for Best YA Novel. Alison is also the author of the award winning and New York Times bestselling duology EON and EONA, Singing the Dogstar Blues and her very adult thriller, A New Kind of Death.

Alison can dance a mean contra-dance, has a wardrobe full of historically accurate Regency clothes and will travel a long way for a good high-tea. She lives in Australia and is currently working on her PhD at the University of Queensland.

        

What was the greatest thing you learned at school?
To read! So by my reckoning, the height of my schooling was done by the time I was six.

What’s one thing that readers would be surprised to find out about you?
My middle name – Merroll – is actually the name of a candy that my mother liked when she was pregnant with me.

How many books have you written?
Four and a quarter.

Do you feel any competitive pressure from YA books? Why and why not?
The real pressure, I think, is for a writer to keep writing what she wants to write and maintaining the highest possible standard that she can. There can sometimes be pressure from publishers and readers to write books very quickly – one or more a year – and that, I feel, can sometimes lead writers to compromise quality. So the pressure that I feel is to maintain my own schedule so that I can write at my very best. If I know that I have published the best book I can at that time, then I don’t feel competitive pressure. 

What was your first introduction to YA literature, the one that made you choose that genre to write?
It is a toss up between The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton and Tunes for a Small Harmonica by Barbara Wersba.

Why do you feel you had to tell this story?
Essentially, EON and EONA are stories about the desire for power, and the use and abuse of power. Power is something that I find fascinating and I like to explore these themes in very active, exciting stories where my characters come up against big questions about right and wrong. The books are also about male and female power and that is another theme that I find intriguing. In EON, the idea of Eona being disguised as a male is an essential part of the story, but it also allowed me to dramatize my own interest in the similarities and differences between male and female power, and how such power is expressed.

Aside from Eona, which of your characters do you feel has grown the most since book one and how have they changed?
Probably Lady Dela. At the start of the book she is a courtier who is only interested in her own survival but as the books progress she gradually becomes a fearless member of the Resistance. She also loves Ryko – her eunuch guard – and that relationship changes her too.

If you could introduce Eona to any character from another book, who would it be and why?
I think it would be fun to introduce Eona to Joss Aaronson, the main character in my first novel Singing the Dogstar Blues. They are – in a sense – cousins of my imagination and I think they could have some monumental adventures together. Of course, they might end up hating each other too. Neither gal gives up easily, so their stubborn natures could cause a bit of friction, which would be fun to see!

What chapter was the most memorable to write and why?
The chapter in EONA where Lord Ido and Eona save the ship from being torn apart by the cyclone using their dragon power. It is memorable for me for two reasons: first, it is where Eona and Lord Ido act on their dark attraction to each other, amidst a whole lot of exciting dragon action, so it was challenging to write that fast-paced balance of emotion and action. Secondly, the chapter is also where Lady Dela and Ryko act on their love and I wanted that to be a very tender scene to be a kind of mirror opposite to the wild scene between Eona and Ido.

Can you share a little of your current work with us?
I am SO excited about my new series – it is historical adventure with a touch of fearsome supernatural. The main character is Lady Helen Wrexhall – another strong-willed cousin of Eona and Joss – who is about to make her debut into society, and unbeknownst to her, into a whole world of danger. I am having a ball doing the historical research, and I’m even getting a whole wardrobe of historically accurate clothes made for me (including stays!). I’ll be modelling the clothes on my website when they are finished so keep an eye out for yours truly in my new gowns and hats. All in all, I am having an obscene amount of fun researching and writing this new trilogy.

You have the chance to give one piece of advice to your teen readers. What would it be?
Keep on reading – anything and everything - especially if you want to write fiction.

When asked, what’s the one question you always answer with a lie?
Are you NinjaMinx, superhero extraordinaire whose alter ego is the mild manner author, Alison Goodman?

Naturally, I always lie when asked that question.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
Read, walk my dog (or more precisely have my armed pulled out of its socket by my Jack Russell Terrier), travel overseas, catch up with friends, check out Facebook, see movies, shop online and off-line, watch TV, go to the gym. Most of these activities include a very important part of my life – coffee.

What was the first book/story you remember reading?
The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton

What do you normally eat for breakfast?
Breakfast is one of my three favourite meals of the day. Lately I have been having muesli with freshly picked strawberries from our own strawberry plants, topped with milk or yoghurt. And many, many cups of black coffee.

Who was your first boyfriend?
Patrick at kindergarten (preschool). He gave me a plastic fried egg on a keyring and won my heart.

What’s the worst job you’ve had?
Pulling apart up to 50 roast chickens in a department store café every day. Ugh.

List 3 of your all time favorite books?
Okay, this list changes all the time, but at the moment:

Cross Stich by Diana Gabaldon (also known as Outlander)
Jhereg by Steven Brust
The Crystal Singer by Anne McCaffrey

The New York Times bestseller and stunning companion to Eon!

Once she was Eon, a girl disguised as a boy, risking her life for the chance to become a Dragoneye apprentice. Now she is Eona, the Mirror Dragoneye, her country's savior - but she has an even more dangerous secret. She cannot control her power. Each time she tries, it twists into a killing force. And more destruction is on her trail - High Lord Sethon's army. She and her companions must find Kygo, the young Pearl Emperor, who needs Eona's power if he is to wrest back his throne. But to help him, she must drive a dark bargain with an old enemy, which could obliterate them all. Eona, with its pulse-pounding drama, unforgettable fight scenes, sizzling tension - and many surprises - brings to a close an epic story.



Wow! There is nothing but good things I have to say about Alison Goodman’s Eona. Now that Eona is no longer disguised as a boy, she can now truly be herself. As a member of the resistance, she must set the kingdom to its rightful place after High Lord Sethon came into control.

The characters are very unique. In Eona, the characters are darker, mainly due to the falling of the Empire. They realize that times have changed as they are being hunted by rebels.

Eona is a beautiful story, thanks to Goodman’s brilliant writing approach. Fight scenes are so vivid that you feel all of the fueled emotions being poured out by the characters. The way she tells the story was so natural and every breathtaking scene, conversations, and adventures came to life right before your eyes. Goodman engages the reader easily that I couldn’t believe I was already half way through in such a short period of time.

This amazingly inventive series is so addictive. With every turn of the page, you feel like a part of the story and you can’t help but to invest more time with Eona to find out what is going to happen next. The book delivers everything you expect after reading Eon and then some. The ending gives satisfaction but Goodman leaves a few things to the imagination. It is a great followup to an already amazing book and I’m sure the next ones will even be better. 

You can purchase EONA at these following Retailers: 

    

And now, The Giveaways.

Thank you ALISON GOODMAN for making this giveaway possible.

1 Winner will receive one Signed Copy of EON by Alison Goodman (this can be personalized).

1 Winner will receive one Signed Copy of EONA by Alison Goodman (this can be personalized).

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