Authors are Rockstars - Kristen Simmons

Kristen Simmons – ARTICLE 5, BREAKING POINT, THREE

Kristen Simmons is a rock star because of her creativity with this amazing series, her book boyfriend (aka Chase Jenninngs) and her amazing skills of writing. I got to know Kristen through one of her giveaways and she is one of the most nicest authors to get to know! She know how to capture an audience with the futuristic vibe that everyone knows and loves. A lot of people can relate to Ember to themselves in certain ways. Kristen Simmons YOU are a Rockstar! 

How do you develop your storylines. I am very excited to read the last book in this series Three which comes out soon!! 

Kristen Simmons on Storylines:

Storylines are generally the last things that come to me when I’m brainstorming a new book. Almost always I “meet” the characters first. They’ll pop up at random times – when I’m people watching, or listening to the radio, or just about the fall asleep. Usually I will envision them in some sort of situation, for instance, the first time I met Chase Jennings (my hero in the ARTICLE 5 series) he was sitting beside Ember in the cab of a truck, watching her sleep. He was completely agitated by the fact that she’d made these peanut butter sandwiches – that she’d done something nice and completely normal when he didn’t feel that he deserved it. I thought of how conflicted he’d feel as she curled up beside him with her head on his thigh. How that would change something in him. It took some time to realize what it changed in him and how he’d gotten there, but that was the beginning of Chase. That scene made it’s way into ARTICLE 5, and can be found on my website in it’s original form, from Chase’s perspective, under Extra Scenes.

Once the characters are established, I think of them in terms of growth. I ask myself what challenges they must face. When I’d met Chase and Ember, I’d already been dealing with this idea of Moral Statutes replacing the Bill of Rights – an idea that had come to me after witnessing a book banning outside a local bookstore – and I began to put together what kinds of conflicts they would face within a world that had accepted this major overhaul to the political system. After I understood where the characters started, what conflicts they would face, and how they changed as a result, I began to fill in the pieces with the plot. Then I layered in worldbuilding. I took enough notes to fill a dry erase board and a notebook or two (or three), and then I began to write. Wa-la! Story!

Thanks for having me!

About Kristen Simmons

Kristen Simmons writes young adult fiction- the kind that's dark and scary but generally involves some kissing. The final book in the Article 5 trilogy, THREE, will be published by Tor Teen in Winter, 2014. Words cannot describe how happy this makes her.

Giveaway:

Kristen has been kind enough to giveaway a SIGNED copy of Article 5 and a hardcover of Breaking Point (not sure if signed) and 3 bookmarks to one winner!! 

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