De Nederlandse vertaling van Everlife (Eeuwige Leven), slotboek van een trilogie, verscheen eerder dit jaar bij HarperCollins Young Adult. We kregen de gelegenheid auteur Gena Showalter een aantal vragen te sturen. Hieronder ons mail-interview, in het oorspronkelijke Engels.
Q: Everlife is the third and last book in the eponymous trilogy. Are you done with Troika and Myriad now or can we expect to see more of this universe in future works?
GS: For now, I must say goodbye to the Everlife world. With Ten and Killian on the road to happily ever after, it’s time to turn my attention to a new series. The Forest of Good and Evil is a mix of fantasy and paranormal romance. The first book—THE EVIL QUEEN—is a modern retelling of Little Snow White, told from the viewpoint of a teenage evil queen. We see her life unfold as she morphs into Snow White’s greatest enemy…and crushes on Prince Charming. This book is fast becoming one of my favorites. There’s a creepy forest filled with all kinds of odd and fantastical things, magic, myths, prophecies, laughs, tragedies, and love. I am loving it!
Q: How was writing the closing book of the trilogy different from writing the first two?
GS: For Firstlife—book one—I focused on building the Everlife world as a whole. For Lifeblood—book two—I focused on building one of the realms (Troika). For Everlife—book three—I turned my focus to building Myriad, and tying up all the loose ends.
Q: What did you eventually leave out of the final product or drastically change during the writing process?
GS: From the time I had the first kernel of an idea (two afterlife realms warring for souls) to the final book, the Everlife series went through a lot of changes. Originally, I considered making the afterlife realms secret from mortals, the fight for souls a mystery. I also considered having Ten choose Myriad, and taking the realm to trial. I still wonder about what could have been, if I’d gone a different way.
Q: Did you wish you could go back and change parts of the earlier books when writing the conclusion?
GS: If I could, I would tinker with my stories forever.
Q: What character did you have the most difficulty writing and why?
GS: In the beginning, I struggled with Ten and her indecision. In the end, I struggled with Killian, and his betrayal. If I could go back, I’d probably make Ten pick a realm much earlier, and I would add scenes from Killian’s point of view, to show readers the struggle he battled on a daily basis.
Q: Do the characters from your different series influence each other when you are writing? Are there secret crossovers?
GS: I love secret crossovers! In my upcoming adult paranormal/fantasy romance series—Gods of War—the heroine is from a fictional town I made up for a completely different series of books (Original Heartbreakers.). I also love to sneak in mentions of other authors.
Q: Which of your works would you recommend next to those who read this series first and loved it?
GS: If you read and loved the Everlife series, I would suggest you pick up The White Rabbit Chronicles next. Both series are paranormal romances with a sassy, kick-butt heroine and the bad boy hero she brings to his knees.
Alice Jouanno, met medewerking van HarperCollins Holland.