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But every book starts as a paper outline, a stack of notecards, or scribblings on a chalkboard.
Check out that conversation below, along with dates and information for Reichs upcomingGenesisbook tour.
Credit: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers; Stephanie Girard
In Conversation: Brendan Reichs and Victoria Aveyard
BRENDAN REICHS:Good morning Victoria!
I get to see everything first.
Or, at least, I get to greet the day first.
G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers
I sometimes think Im wired for West Coast time but live in the wrong zone.
So maybe youre already up and about, writing up a storm.
That was clever of me.
Then I usual walk the dog for an hour or so, before settling in to work around 10/10:30am.
Oh, and Ive taken up bullet journaling, so that gets sprinkled into my morning as well.
So I spend most days careening between panic and triumph.
Its an odd feeling, being this close to the end.
Any advice on this?
I know youve got loads of experience with finishing up a series (and I am JEALOUS).
Help a young padawan out.
REICHS:I hear you on the puppy thing.
Shes come around on little Flip, though.
Except when he wants to go out at 6 every morning.
Thats all me, and I have no defense.
At least hes the best puppy on the planet.
Thats pretty much as long as I can sustain high-level concentration anyway.
Actually, at odds is a pretty tame way of saying, actively at war with each other.
I have a go at get to the heart of what being alive really means.
But I definitely feel you on the new series thing.
When I moved fromViralstoNemesis, it felt like Id forgotten everything I knew about writing.
Work inside out, and BOOM, youre flying again.
But I also have a SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: there will be athirdProject Nemesis book after this one!
The story will go on for one more chapter, so Ill be in your finishing-a-series shoes soon.
AVEYARD:Oh man, darker??
Dude,Nemesiswas pretty dark.
And twisty as hell.
You deserve many, many gifts for pulling that off.
And I dont care if your agent kills you, I want info on this book 3!
TELL ME TELL ME TELL ME.
Im interested into how it came into being.
Was it planned beforehand, or did the story require more space as it unfolded?
And by organizing, I mean shoving them on a shelf.
Its been kind of therapeutic though.
Clearing out my space to make way for the new project.
Speaking of notecards: its a story-structuring habit I picked up in film school.
Even though outlines give me hives, it really does help to have a cheat sheet to glance at.
You feel very intelligent in hindsight.
Do you have any outlining preferences or habits you use when drafting?
REICHS:Kids asleep.
I AM excited about the third book.
but there are new questions I want to explore.
Project Nemesis has a lot more wrinkles to unwind for sure.
As for my office, I keep it spotless, because cleaning is procrastinating in my world.
It looks like John Nashs garage inA Beautiful Mind, but I assure you Im not crazy.
(At least, I dont think so.
These emails and responses are with a real person?)
I honestly dont know any other way to write a thriller.
Im more interested in how you structure a giant epic fantasy like the Red Queen series.
I have one in progress, andYIKES is it a big task.
So many places, names, affiliations, and storylines.
How do you keep it all straight?
How do you decide which direction to send your characters?
How do you remember what you could and cant do in your world?
I get the shakes just thinking about it.
The only thing I feel like I already know how to do is kill everyone.
AVEYARD:I honestly dont know how anyone does our job with children.
The dog is needy enough.
So excited to hear were going to get more Project Nemesis twists and more ANSWERS, BRENDAN.
Of course Penguin would be all for it!
Working on the third installment plus gearing up for tour?
Unless youre like me, and you punk out when the publicity/marketing/tour side of the job kicks in.
I can NEVER get myself to write when that time of the year rolls around.
Its a pretty effective hard stop on any creative work for a few weeks at the very least.
Not to mention the skill set isnt exactly something we writers are good at.
Speaking engagements, panels, school visits, radio tours?
Let me just say Im not a writer because Im good at talking to other people.
c’mon come clean my office.
My roommates are begging you.
They call my office the UPS store because of all the boxes.
As for fantasy structuring, writing Red Queen has been a mixed bag.
I do keep lists and Excel sheets, as well as scraps all through Scrivener to keep them straight.
But still, I obviously wish I did more back-of-house work and planned out my series in meticulous fashion.
There are definitely some corners I painted myself into.
Of course, theres a lot of fun in figuring out ways around your own mistakes.
Which is good, because I forget to eat real food so often its not even funny.
At least twice a week I realize around 9 p.m. that I forgot to eat all day.
The glamorous writing life.
But this has been incredibly fun, and Ive learned some new tricks.
I wantWar Stormright now.
Dont make me wait until May!
Anyway, now I will bow to the rules of decoruma Red Queenalwaysgets the last word.
Ive got a ravaged world that needs further destroying.
Honestly, Brendan, what are you good for?
Cheers and see you on the circuit!
!
