But that’s a lot of the fun of creating characters. When I was writing her there would be times I would stop and think, really, that ’s what you ’re going to do, Ivy? Because her choices were so different from the ones I would’ve made. Ivy, for example, isn’t based off anyone I know and is actually very different from me in a lot of ways. I rarely base characters, even loosely, off people I know in real life. Q: Did you have any specific people (yourself included) in mind when you were creating your characters?Ī: No. Work hard to develop your “voice” as a writer.

In order to write, you’re going to have to make some sacrifices with your time because there are only so many hours in a day. Write even when you don’t feel like it or aren’t inspired. Q: What advice would you offer an aspiring author?Ī: Read as much as you can. Once those are done, I plan to start something new, but I haven’t nailed down exactly what yet. It’s a gothic suspense novel and I’m working on edits for it right now. Q: Do you have any other novels (or ideas) you’re currently working on or planning to work on?Ī: I wrote an adult novel, The Roanoke Girls, which is being published in early 2017. There’s a lot more expectation with a sequel. I wanted to make sure I was true to the characters and their journey, and I didn’t want to disappoint fans of the first book. Q: What was the biggest challenge for you when writing The Book of Ivy and/or its sequel?Ī: The biggest challenge was just the pressure that came with writing a sequel. And I love dark, suspenseful books as well. Are there any other genres you think you’d be interested in writing?Ī: I think I’d like to try a YA contemporary at some point. Q: The Book of Ivy is a YA dystopian duology. I’ve always been really interested in family dynamics and the ways in which our families influence us, so that definitely had a big impact on the story. I just had an idea about a girl forced to marry a boy she was coached to kill and the rest of the story flowed from there. Q: What was your inspiration for The Book of Ivy?Ī: Honestly, I’m not really sure. Hello everyone! Today I’m happy to present an exclusive Q&A interview with Amy Engel, the author of The Book of Ivy and its sequel, The Revolution of Ivy! (You can check out my review on The Book of Ivy here.) Thank you Amy for accepting to participate in this interview!

The revolution of ivy amy engel