Name: Elana Johnson
YA dystopian title: Possession (Simon Pulse, Summer 2011)
Short Plot: In a world where Thinkers control the population and Rules aren't meant to be broken, fifteen-year-old Violet Schoenfeld does a hell of a job shattering them to pieces. When secrets about her "dead" sister and not-so-missing father hit the fan, Vi must make a choice: control or be controlled.
Favorite dystopian/sci fi works: The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson. Candor by Pam Bachorz. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Scott Westerfeld's Uglies. And The Giver by Lois Lowry. Oh! And pretty much anything by Ursula LeGuin. I mean, she's like a genius, right? Right. As far as movies go, The Terminator is at the top of my list.
Why Write Dystopian? Dude, this could go anywhere -- which is exactly why I write dystopian! You can do anything! The world can be anything. The possibilities are limitless, and I kinda like that. Plus, I don't like to research, so anything I can do to just make stuff up brings me happiness.
Whimper or a Bang? Uh...I guess a whimper. I've never really thought about it much. I sorta think it's neither. It's like dirty laundry. The end of the world just sort of edges closer, ever closer. And no one really sees it, you know? Like all of a sudden you'll wake up and realize that you're living in a post-apocalyptic world. Like you walk by the hamper and realize there's this mountain of laundry. Yeah, I think the end of the world is gonna be sneaky like that. Like dirty laundry.
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I'm so excited, Elana, that you've joined the League Writers. :D
ReplyDeleteI was wondering what all that cryptic language about a mysterious fifth member was. I shouldve known, duh!
ReplyDeleteToo funny! Love the laundry comparison. Which reminds me . . . I have a pile waiting.
ReplyDeleteIt so makes sense you would be the hinted at person. LOVE it!
GO Elena!
ReplyDeleteSounds like an awesome story. I can't wait to see it on the shelves!!
ReplyDeleteI, too, have a penchant for dystopian fiction (though for some reason I can't seem to type that word this morning without difficulty!) This looks like a great blog. I'm so glad I followed your link here.
ReplyDeleteWoot! So cool. Congrats, girl!
ReplyDeleteThe Giver is one of my fave books. I admire this type of writing, but don't envision it myself. Write on!
ReplyDeleteWow your story sounds fantastic! I write dystopian/urban fantasy too. It's my passion! I would love to read your novel when it's in print! It sounds BEAST! (synonym for epic) :) haha. But then their is also FIERCE (another fav of mine) Fantasmic rocks my socks too. ahaha hope these help replace EPIC for you
ReplyDeleteCongrats! You do great work Elana!
Anything by Ursula LeGuin! I agree. I've read The Earthsea Trilogy so many times. And will again.
ReplyDeleteGee, I wasn't following before. I am now though. Love the dirty laundry analogy!
ReplyDeleteEnd of the world laundry pile = so appropriate. Your book sounds very cool. I'm looking forward to seeing it on shelves.
ReplyDeleteCongrats, Elana!
ReplyDeleteI'm following now.
Cynde
Cynde's Got The Write Stuff
YAY! You are here! :^D
ReplyDelete#1, I'm writing down the books you listed. #2, end of the world is like dirty laundry. I laughed so hard I cried.
ReplyDeleteI love dystopian. It is my current WIP and I LOVE the freedom.
thanks for starting this blog. I'll be back lots.
Congrats, Elana:)
ReplyDeleteAwesome! Good luck with your new blog, this should be fun.
ReplyDeleteWahoo, you AUTHOR, you!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you, my peeps! Glad you all clicked over. :)
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't until recently that I realized that The Giver falls under dystopian--because the genre wasn't really a full-blown genre then. LOVE that book--and I'm finding more and more dystopian books I fall for. (Never in a million years thought I'd like a book about zombies. But Carrie Ryan? BRING IT ON!)
ReplyDeleteI'm just here to offer a big congrats to you, Elana! I just read the news on Shannon O's fine blog. Much continued success to you!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on getting published!
ReplyDeleteBesides the more recent Uglies, City of Ember, and Giver YA series, looking back I have read more dystopian fiction than I realized - The Godwhale & Half Passed Human (TJ Bass), Clockwork Orange (Burgess), Logan's Run (Nolan), the Sunset Warrior series (Eric Van Lustbader), 1984 (Orwell), When the Sleeper Wakes (HG Wells), Brave New World (Huxley), the Abbey of Saint Leibowitz saga (Walter M Miller, Jr), Deus Irae (Roger Zelazny & Philip K Dick), and other Philip K. Dick novels which would probably fall under this genre all come to mind as I think about it.
I am sure there are others I have read that I am passing over, but I look forward to adding yours to this list.
I am glad I followed the link over from elanajohnson.blogspot.com.