Carrie Arcos Author Interview

Photo Content from Carrie Arcos

Carrie Arcos is a National Book Award Finalist for Young People's Literature for OUT OF REACH; her second novel is THERE WILL COME A TIME. CRAZY MESSY BEAUTIFUL will be available soon. She lives in Los Angeles with her family. For more information, check out her website: carriearcos.com

        

Publisher: Simon Pulse
Published: 15 April 2014
Format: Hardback 315 pages

Praise for THERE WILL COME A TIME

Libraries looking to diversify their collections might want to pick this up, as will those looking for thoughtful, character-driven stories. ―School Library Journal

Was there a defining moment during your youth when you realized you wanted to be a writer?

I don’t remember a defining moment, but I think it was always there. It must have slipped in when I first started reading, in between the pages, inside the lines. The dream somehow grabbed hold of me through my love of stories. Recently I found a letter I wrote to one of my HS English teachers. I was seventeen, graduating and reflecting on my life. My dream was to become a writer and a teacher. My biggest fear was that I wouldn’t be good enough. I became both.

Beyond your own work (of course), what is your all-time favorite book and why? And what is your favorite book outside of your genre?
It’s always difficult to answer the question, what is my all time favorite book because that changes. There are books I read when I was younger that were my favorite and now they are no longer. Even books I read five years ago have risen and fallen. I’d say my all time favorite is one I haven’t read yet. (Yes, I know, sneaky way to avoid answering.) A favorite book outside of my genre is Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich.

In your book; There Will Come a Time, can you tell my Book Nerd community a little about it?

There Will Come a Time is essentially about a teen boy’s struggle to overcome the grief he feels at the loss of his twin sister. Mark Santos is a Filipino American, bass playing, skater seventeen year old who is angry and hurt and doesn’t really know how to handle it all. He tends to think he’s the only one who has lost someone because of the whole twin connection. He finds a journal that lists top five things his sister Grace wanted to do for the year and so he and their mutual friend, Hanna, decide to complete the list. Mark’s journey is learning not only how to grieve, but also how to work through painful experiences with his relationships and making right what he needs to. Ultimately it’s a story of forgiveness.

What are some of your current and future projects that you can share with us?

I’ve just finished a draft of what’ll hopefully go on to be my third YA Contemporary novel. It’s always a little unpredictable to see how it all plays out. I’m also interested in telling a story set in Zambia about a girl who finds something she’s willing to die for. We’ll see what happens.

What was the most surprising things you learned in creating Grace?

I didn’t have a handle on who Grace was when I began the novel. I thought since she really wasn’t in it, that it was Mark’s story, I didn’t need so much of her. But this was wrong. So much of who Mark is depends on Grace, and his loss of Grace makes her a more present force in the novel. She absent and we catch glimpses of her, but they are so important in telling Mark’s story.

If you could introduce Hannah to any character from another book, who would it be and why?
I would probably introduce Hanna to Rachel, the main character of my first novel, Out of Reach. They would get along and Hanna could be very helpful to Rachel and what she’s dealing with in terms of her own relationship with her brother Micah.

When asked, what’s the one question you always answer with a lie?

The question I always answer with a lie? My height. I say 5’2.” I’m really 5’1 3/4” 

What's the most memorable summer job you've ever had?

My most memorable summer job was running a small summer camp for kids. We took them all over the place. I basically got paid to play full time. It was awesome.

Who was your first boyfriend?

My first boyfriend was a guy named Kurt. He was a senior, and I was only a freshman. This is why my parents didn’t know about it. We both ran cross country and it was short and sweet. I think we lasted two months.

Tell me about your first kiss

My first kiss was at a friend’s birthday in the eighth grade. Someone had the lovely idea to play spin the bottle. I had to go inside a closet with one of my friends, a guy who I also had a huge crush on. It was awkward and we just kind of stood there, but he gave me a quick peck before the time was up. I left the closet triumphant.

When was the last time you cried?

I watched The Dallas Buyers Club recently. I teared up at that. A hard movie to watch, but powerful and illustrating the pain, ugliness, grace and beauty of humanity.

What decade during the last century would you have chosen to be a teenager?
My own, late 80s, early 90s. I loved it. And you can’t beat the movies or the music we had. Depeche Mode anyone?

What is your greatest adventure?

Raising kids is my greatest adventure at the moment. They are 11, 7 and 5. I love them, but it’s kind of crazy, especially around dinner and everyone wants to talk. Sometimes I want to fast forward to when they are teenagers and see how fun that’ll be. But by that time, I’ll want to rewind because it’s all happening so fast. Kids are awesome.

TEN THINGS YOU WOULD CHANGE ABOUT YOUR HIGH SCHOOL YEARS IF YOU COULD TRAVEL IN TIME

• The amount of time I worried about what other people thought of me
• I would have run for class president
• I would have sang in the choir and tried out for drama
• Not worried so much over getting As
• Worn a bikini
• Let that boy know I liked him
• Talked to and get to know people I was afraid of
• Not dated until senior year
• Broken up with my boyfriend senior year
• Taken more risks

Mark knows grief. Ever since the accident that killed his twin sister, Grace, the only time he feels at peace is when he visits the bridge on which she died. Comfort is fleeting, but it’s almost within reach when he’s standing on the wrong side of the suicide bars. Almost.

Grace’s best friend, Hanna, says she understands what he’s going through. But she doesn’t. She can’t. It’s not just the enormity of his loss. As her twin, Mark should have known Grace as well as he knows himself. Yet when he reads her journal, it’s as if he didn’t know her at all.

As a way to remember Grace, Hanna convinces Mark to complete Grace’s bucket list from her journal. Mark’s sadness, anger, and his growing feelings for Hannah threaten to overwhelm him. But Mark can’t back out. He made a promise to honor Grace—and it’s his one chance to set things right.

Inseparable twins, Mark and Grace, were looking forward to their senior year in high school. However, plans are altered when the twins are involved in a car accident. Grace is killed but Mark, who was behind the wheel survives. Mark has a difficult time with the grieving process. When he and Grace’s best friend, Hanna, find a bucket list in one of Grace’s journal entries, the two embark on a journey to fulfill the top five things that Grace planned to do in the upcoming year. It certainly helps Mark with the grieving process but still feels guilty for being the survivor. Losing his twin sister has brought on so much weight on his heart.

Carrie Arcos’ There Will Come a Time tells the emotional process of losing someone really close to you. It is rather a very difficult course for young adults to go through especially when it involves a sibling. For Mark, it was his twin sister and there were so many emotions that he was going through. Arcos’ approach on giving the book a male’s point of view is a nice shift to the norm. It gave readers a different aspect on the pain and suffering once goes through when losing a sibling. Males tend to be less emotional that their counterparts, but Mark certainly went through a lot.

Arco’s writing gave a realistic tone to Mark’s voice. She is able to describe in detail on Mark’s conflicted grief over the loss of his twin sister. Mark is an intriguing and highly dynamic character. He wasn’t all sad and down throughout the book and at times showed frustrations. There is a sense of balance in the story with coping the loss of a loved one and Mark’s relationships with people and especially with Hanna. There Will Come a Time is an amazingly written novel that goes deep into the emotional stages of grieving over the loss of someone, and the healing process one must face to overcome their guilt.

You can purchase There Will Come a Time at the following Retailers:

And now, The Giveaways.

Thank you CARRIE ARCOS for making this giveaway possible.

3 Winners will receive a Copy of There Will Come a Time by Carrie Arcos.

WEEK ONE

APRIL 30th WEDNESDAY JeanBookNerd REVIEW & TENS LIST
MAY 1st THURSDAY Gone with the Words MUSIC PLAYLIST
MAY 2nd FRIDAY Spiced Latte Reads REVIEW
MAY 3rd SATURDAY Such a Novel Idea REVIEW & INTERVIEW
MAY 4th SUNDAY Oops! I Read a Book Again REVIEW & GUEST POST

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MAY 5th MONDAY Misinterpreted Unrepresented REVIEW
MAY 6th TUESDAY Once Upon a Twilight REVIEW
MAY 7th WEDNESDAY Fiction Fare REVIEW & RANDOM THINGS
MAY 8th THURSDAY Fiction’s Our Addiction DREAM CAST
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