The Next Best Book Club discussion

Hey there everyone!

June's Author/Reader Discussion novel is Alma Katsu's The Taker!

She's giving us 10 paper copies to give away in order to stimulate discussion around the book that will take place between June 15th and the end of the month.

Click here to comment to win a copy http://thenextbestbookblog.blogspot.c...

(US and CANADA residents only! Sorry!)

If you commented for a copy, you're a winner! Confirmation email on its way.

http://thenextbestbookblog.blogspot.c...

And we've got one more copy to give. If you're in the US or Canada, be the first one to comment here, right here, and agree to participate in the discussion this June, and the copy is yours!

WOo hOO!

I'm in!!

OK Amy, it's yours! Can you send me a message here with your shipping address?

I read chapter 1 on the author website and I can't wait for the book to show up!!! I'm addicted already!!

So good to hear!!

good book would love hi get a copy of it:)

Crystal, the giveaway has ended. All copies of the book have been accounted for. Will you be joining our discussion?

Got my book today!!! Being a cover junky I think I'm in love!!! :) gotta go to bed and read!

Got my book today, very excited to get started. Thanks Alma and goodreads!

yes yes.i will join the discussion.i have started reading.

I got my book too! I'm reading already!! YEAH!

Got my book! Looks good :)

Got my book last week and can't wait to get started.

Hi Julie, just so you are aware, you don't have to wait for the discussion to start in order to dive into the book! Go ahead and read it as early as you like!!

Brace yourselves TNBBC, Alma joins us in just three days!!!!

I finished reading a few days ago. Can't wait to ask Alma some burning questions! ;)

Good morning everyone! It's time to start our discussion of THE TAKER, with author Alma Katsu!!


I want to thank Alma for making copies of her book available, and also for taking time out of her schedule over the next two weeks to hang here with us. We are thrilled to have her here!

She'll be popping in and out, taking your questions and joining in the conversation.

So....what questions do you have for her?


I'll start with this one:

Alma, in your opinion, what's the best part of being a published author?

Hi Lori! First, thank you for having me here and giving me the opportunity to get to know the folks in the group. And thanks for the kicking it off with the first question! The best part, hands down, has been hearing from people who have read the books and love the characters and who feel as though Lanny, Jonathan and Adair are real people. It took 10 years for me to write this book, and the characters became real to me, of course, but it's a bit like having imaginary friends and suddenly there are other people who can see and hear them, too.

The other thing is that I tried to target some pretty complex feelings--it's not just about losing someone you love, as terrible as that is, but feeling this mix of things, some good but some bad--and it is immensely rewarding to see that I was able to pull it off. Maybe not for all readers, but for some.

The big surprise is how well the book is doing overseas, that there are readers in Spain and Italy and Brazil and France who like going on the same twisty, emotional rollercoaster. Boy, Brazilians are crazy for this sort of thing. It's been quite gratifying.

Btw, I wanted to let you know that today I'm at a horror convention and will be traveling back the second half of the day, so my attendance here will be spotty, but I'll be checking in more regularly after that. Feel free to ask anything, including questions on the publishing business. And thanks for reading the book!
Alma

I'm half way through the book and love it! (had a little misshap losing it then having to get it for kindle)!!! KIDS!! My question is Did you write the book in order or did you write the past parts all at once then the present times all at once? I had trouble with the time changes in the beginning but am use to it now and enjoying it. Thank you for doing this!!!

Hi Alma,

I really admire the way you created a rich world. Adair's mansion and the goings on there were particularly vivid for me. I want to ask about narration. The pov switches three times--first person for Lanny, third for Luke, and third (told by Lanny?) for Adair. At times, I wondered if Lanny was a reliable narrator. I sometimes expected her to betray Luke in some way. I wasn't sure she was telling him her whole story. Even he doesn't quite trust her, senses she is manipulating him. Was that your goal, for the reader to question Lanny and her intentions? I especially wondered this after she figures out--or thinks she does--Adair's big secret. What was your thinking behind writing the different narrators?

Thanks!

Olivia

Hi Alma - First I must say historical fiction is my favorite genre, and The Taker is the first I've managed to read (& enjoy) in this past VERY BUSY year. It was a breath of fresh air & happily reminded me of high school when I had time to devour my favorite books.

I'd like to add to Olivia's question. We see inside the mind of Lanny, Adair, and in a way, Luke. The only other main character missing is Jonathan - the most mysterious mind of all! Did you purposefully keep him a cryptic character to enhance Lanny's emotions & viewpoints? I would have loved to read a page from his diary.....
Talk to you soon!

Karly

Shannon wrote: "I'm half way through the book and love it! (had a little misshap losing it then having to get it for kindle)!!! KIDS!! My question is Did you write the book in order or did you write the past parts..."

So glad to hear that you're enjoying the book. Sorry about that mishap though... As for your question, it's a little hard to answer because I rewrote the book many times--about 13 major revisions over the 10 years it took to get to the book that was published. There was always the present day story weaving in and out of the past. Originally there was less of the present day story, though. But I'd write huge chunks at a time of the story that takes place in the past.

Olivia wrote: "Hi Alma,

I really admire the way you created a rich world. Adair's mansion and the goings on there were particularly vivid for me. I want to ask about narration. The pov switches three times--firs..."

Hi Olivia,

Thank you for the kinds words! Juggling the narrators was tricky. One earlier of the book was written in multiple third person POVs, including Jonathan's (which is why the short story, The Marriage Price, is in Jonathan's POV: it was lifted from that version of the book.)

Yes, I wanted readers to suspect that Lanny was trying to manipulate Luke. I think of Lanny as a survivor and she's definitely cunning. To get by for 200 years, she's learned to be a bit manipulative in order to survive. That's what she's thinking when she's in the hospital. She needs Luke to help her get away from the police. But then she realizes that he's a good man--the kind of man she should be with. Luke is right to suspect her, and he's smart enough to suspect that she is manipulating him, but what she represents is so tempting--dangling this great mystery in front of him--that he can't let her go.

The reason the narration changes is that there were some things that had to be revealed but could only be known by the different characters. For instance, Adair's story would've been too tedious to read entirely in scene, with Adair telling his story to Lanny, I think. As I mentioned, I'd originally written the historical part in multiple third person POVs, but it was a bit too detached. I couldn't explain why Lanny did the things she did, how she felt and what motivated her so I rewrote it in first person, which worked much better for that.

The present day frame is from Luke's POV because I wanted Lanny's story to be introduced to the reader as a mystery, so that the reader asks what the heck is going on here? I wanted the story to be really complex and tempting but a little surreal, so that the reader is a little off-balance, just like Luke.

(I hope that answers your question. My brain is definitely a little slow from traveling today. Maybe I should be waiting until tomorrow morning to answer questions.)

Karly wrote: "Hi Alma - First I must say historical fiction is my favorite genre, and The Taker is the first I've managed to read (& enjoy) in this past VERY BUSY year. It was a breath of fresh air & happily re..."

You might be interested in reading The Marriage Price. I just realized it's not really Jonathan's POV. It's Evangeline's POV but it shows a bit more of Jonathan's mindset. (Tired brain. Apologies.)

I found Jonathan interesting to write, but I'm afraid readers might not enjoy getting inside his head, at least, not until he grows up a bit. He wants what he wants, and as a young man he doesn't have much reason to behave any differently. His parents didn't discourage him from thinking of himself as exceptional--although they made pretty clear to him what their expectations were (that he'd remain in St. Andrew and run the family business and take over as leader of the town).

Yup, you are right: by keeping Jonathan a bit of an enigma, it makes Lanny's frustration more pointed. She didn't really understand him, so it's probably fitting that we don't understand him, either. I meant for him to be infuriating. I've met some infuriating young men like him in my time--have you?

Alma, I loved the book! I'm a bit curious on what your inspiration for the setting was --- both in Maine/Boston with Lanore and Jonathan, and with Adair in Hungary. Also, what would you say was the hardest hurdle you had to overcome in the publishing of your first novel?

hello. I loved The Taker. I've told several of my friends about it. what I found refreshing was how you made Adair immortal. what inspired you to do that?

Ashley wrote: "Alma, I loved the book! I'm a bit curious on what your inspiration for the setting was --- both in Maine/Boston with Lanore and Jonathan, and with Adair in Hungary. Also, what would you say was the..."

Hi Ashley, Is it okay to say thank you for loving the book? Definitely thank you for reading it.

About the settings: growing up in the Boston area had a lot to do with it. I grew up near Concord, Massachusetts, or Colonial ground zero as I like to call it. I wasn't a bit American revolution fan growing up, probably because it was all around, all the time, but that stuff seemed to seep into my subconscious.

As for that remote part of Maine, it came from a trip to another remote part of the state, similar to the Allagash area, when I was a teenager. My family got lost and ended up on a logging road. We got swallowed up by the forest, which seemed to go on and on forever. When I needed to an isolated place cut off from the rest of the world--a little kingdom unto itself, where Jonathan could be the crown prince--I thought of Maine.

As for Hungary, well, there's a bit of the Dracula influence. But also I am very fond of Hungary. One of my favorite novelists, Sandor Marai, is Hungarian. I did some work with the Hungarian government for my job and got to travel there and get to know Hungarians and learn a bit about their history. I've been to Szentendre, the village where Adair's family eventually settles, when he finds them at the end of his section. There's something about the spirit of the country: soulful, sad, noble, proud and incredibly clever and resourceful.

The hardest hurdle to publication was rewriting and rewriting until I got it right. And then you're only close to right, because your agent and editor will have suggestions to help make it even better. Impatience is probably the toughest thing to deal with: writing only to the point of being 'good enough'. It has to be beyond 'good enough': it has to shine.

Amy wrote: "hello. I loved The Taker. I've told several of my friends about it. what I found refreshing was how you made Adair immortal. what inspired you to do that?"

Hi Amy,

So glad you enjoyed the book and thank you so so much for spreading the word to your friends.

I might be a bit more morbid than most people, but I think a lot about the question of what happens when we die. It's 'the' big question, isn't it? Whether everything ends at death or if our consciousness continues on, which would make us immortal. I think that's what makes humans interested in immortality.

The other thing is that while most of us fear death, all we know of life is consciousness from our own perspective, kind of making us feel as though we are immortal--nothing came before us, and so it's hard to imagine life going on after we die. At some point, though, we realize that we're NOT going to live forever, which again, makes the idea of immortality pretty appealing.

But mostly, I think the idea of being loved until the end of time is irresistible. Is it even possible? Love is hard enough to sustain over the course of one adult's lifetime--think of all the divorces, bitter heartbreaks. Imagine how hard it would be to find someone who would love you forever--and thusly, how rewarding.

Alma, it's nice to "meet" you - thank you so much for giving us copies of your book AND letting us pick your brain about it! I'm still reading, and am enthralled enough that it's hard to attend to my other online activities like this one. Until I finish, I have more a comment than a question, but maybe you can comment back: My bilingual co-worker asked me about the book when I was reading it on my lunch break. As I started to tell her about it, she remarked on how interesting it was that "Alma" means "soul" in Spanish. Interesting, indeed!

Hi Alma,

Great book, finished it quickly, it was hard to put down. But I did find it very dark, particularly Adair's story and the story of those in his household. What made you want to explore our ability to hurt and betray the ones closest to us?

Lori wrote: "Hi Alma,

Great book, finished it quickly, it was hard to put down. But I did find it very dark, particularly Adair's story and the story of those in his household. What made you want to explore ou..."

I have a dark nature, I suppose. Funny, I was at World Horror Con this past weekend and it reminded me that there are plenty of people who like dark fiction, some even a bit darker than mine.

The book was originally titled The Fallen (my agent suggested changing the title because of the Lauren Kate book Fallen, even though that's YA). But the story is about people who do bad things and lose their humanity, but get their comeuppance from someone who is even worse than they are, and can't be appeased, someone who is absolutely merciless.

I'm afraid I have a very long-winded answer to your last question. But the short answer is: because it happens all the time in real life, and even though there is this big fantasy element to this book, I'm not interested in portraying fake emotions in my writing. Life is complex and messy and that's what I'm interested in capturing.

Leslie wrote: "Alma, it's nice to "meet" you - thank you so much for giving us copies of your book AND letting us pick your brain about it! I'm still reading, and am enthralled enough that it's hard to attend to ..."

Yes! One funny thing about my name is that it seems to be a word in just about every language on the face of the earth. Wherever I go, I learn new meanings for it. It means apple in Hungarian, for instance.

Alma, what's the writing process like for you? Do you have a routine you follow? Specific place or time to write?

Alma wrote: "The book was originally titled The Fallen ..."

Personally, I think The Taker is a much better title. When you finally use the term "the taker" in the book it makes so much sense. Did you put that language in after you knew the final title, or was that in there already?

Another question: I've seen The Taker compared to both Twilight and 50 Shades of Gray. How do you feel about those comparisons?

Alma,
Did you always intend to write a trilogy? Might you write the story beyond the three books?
Thanks!
Olivia

Still reading, but I love the story of the old man. I couldn't help but think about King's Quest III where your first action is to try to escape the wizard who has made you his personal servant. Similar type of character. If you try to escape while he's away on a trip, despite how far you made it from his house, he suddenly appears and tells you how foolish you are thinking you could escape, and he kills you on the spot. You have to go about out smarting him by learning his secrets and how to use it against him.

Alma wrote: "It took 10 years for me to write this book"

Hi Alma,

Did it take you ten years to write "The Taker" alone? The second book was published relatively soon after the first, was the story already completed when the first novel was published?

Lori wrote: "Alma, what's the writing process like for you? Do you have a routine you follow? Specific place or time to write?"

Nowadays I write around my full-time job, so it's usually 3 hours in the evening and then as much time as I can take out of my weekends. When I was crashing on revisions recently, it was 12 hours a day, every weekend, for months. Not saying this to whine, or to elicit pity, but just to give you an idea. I thought I was a fast writer but I see now that I need to get much better at this :-)

I'm lucky in that I don't have children and I have a reasonable commute, which is rarer than hen's teeth in the DC area. And my husband can be left unsupervised for long periods of time :-)

Leslie wrote: "Alma wrote: "The book was originally titled The Fallen ..."

Personally, I think The Taker is a much better title. When you finally use the term "the taker" in the book it makes so much sense. Did ..."

When my editor decided we needed a different title, it was my agent who came up with The Taker. I'm a little on the fence about it, because it seems more like a thriller title, or mystery or suspense.

This book resisted having a title the entire time I was working on it. I could NOT find a satisfactory title and I'd thought of The Fallen as a temporary thing, hoping a publisher would come up with something better. If anyone has suggestions, feel free to write to me!

Leslie wrote: "Another question: I've seen The Taker compared to both Twilight and 50 Shades of Gray. How do you feel about those comparisons?"

The 50 Shades comparison came about because of the darker nature of the relationship between Adair and Lanny, but really, it's not the same thing at all, is it? As for the Twilight comparison, that came up in one of the first reviews (in Cosmo UK) and for the marketers, it was too good to pass up. I haven't read either series (I've read a few passages of 50 Shades) but I doubt stylistically the books are much alike at all :-)

It's hard to say whether readers of one would or would not like the Taker. Hopefully readers have diverse tastes and don't read only one specific type of book. I'm curious: what do you all think? any comparison?

Olivia wrote: "Alma,
Did you always intend to write a trilogy? Might you write the story beyond the three books?
Thanks!
Olivia"

No--originally the Taker was a standalone and it was sold as a standalone. While I was waiting for things to get off the ground, I came up with an idea to expand the story and was lucky that the publishers (US and UK) bought it right away.

Dylan wrote: "Still reading, but I love the story of the old man. I couldn't help but think about King's Quest III where your first action is to try to escape the wizard who has made you his personal servant. ..."

Hi Dylan,

Interesting. I bet there's something in folklore or fairy tales that makes this a sort of motif with wizards. I'm not a huge reader of fantasy or games, so I wasn't aware of King's Quest. I see in the Wikipedia entry that the game was based on fairy tales, so I bet that's where I got it. I was a huge reader of fairy tales as a kid.

The moral of the story: avoid wizards.

Rachelle wrote: "Alma wrote: "It took 10 years for me to write this book"

Hi Alma,

Did it take you ten years to write "The Taker" alone? The second book was published relatively soon after the first, was the stor..."

Hi Rachelle,

I wish it had been. They way timing is between books in the publishing business, I ended up having roughly 20 months to write The Reckoning and 6 months to write The Descent. We made it with the second book, with crazy intensive editing sessions with my poor editor, but alas, the schedule slipped with The Descent, which is why pub was pushed back about 8 months.

From this experience, I learned that I do not want to have a tight schedule written into a contract ever again :-) Luckily publishers are pretty understanding and flexible, but it makes for some tense months.

Alma,

First of all thank you for the copy of The Taker. I have enjoyed it immensely and look forward to reading the entire trilogy. The book jacket is beautiful, did you have any input on what the cover was going to look like? Also, do you every read books for pleasure and if so who are your favorite authors?

Julie wrote: "Alma,

First of all thank you for the copy of The Taker. I have enjoyed it immensely and look forward to reading the entire trilogy. The book jacket is beautiful, did you have any input on what the..."

Hi Julie,

Thank you for the kind words and I'm so glad you're enjoying the book. As for the covers, I have no say on any of them. Some of the foreign editions have been similar or even used the same artwork, too. My favorite so far has to be the first UK version, the black cover with the black edges. So gothic! You can see some of the foreign covers here (http://www.almakatsu.com/taker-intern...). The page needs updating, though.

I love to read and wish I had more time. Gosh, I have so many favorite authors it's hard to narrow the list. Of contemporary authors, I enjoy Emma Donoghue ("Slammerkin"), Sheri Holman ("The Dress Lodger"), Audrey Niffenegger, Diana Gabaldon, Sarah Waters, mystery writers Tana French, Denise Mina and Ruth Rendell. Right now I'm listening to the audiobook of The Last Policeman by Ben Winter--very good.

Alma,

I understand you are out and about, traveling and hitting up literary/writers conferences. Of all the conferences you attend, which do you enjoy the most? Which do you wish you didn't have to attend?

Lori wrote: "Alma,

I understand you are out and about, traveling and hitting up literary/writers conferences. Of all the conferences you attend, which do you enjoy the most? Which do you wish you didn't have ..."

I've been lucky to do a lot of events to promote my books. I've also gone to writers conferences for my own benefit. I'll talk about both kinds of conferences here, and if I haven't quite answered your question, let me know what I've missed.

On the promotional side, I've gone primarily (but not exclusively) to genre conferences, and I've gone to a variety of them because my books don't fit in just one genre. I've been able to promote the books at conventions for romance novels, but also horror, thriller, fantasy. They've all been wonderful, whether the regional romance writers chapter conferences, or the biggest, which was San Diego Comic Con (gigantic!) where I got to be on a panel with some big time screenwriters, and met Rachel Caine for the first time!

I've done some book festivals--Decatur, Maine, several of Virginia's annual book festivals--and these are pretty wonderful, too, because you get to meet people who might otherwise never hear of your book.

As a writer, I've gone to conferences to work on craft. Prior to being published, I went to Squaw Valley Community of Writers, which has week-long programs for fiction, poetry, screenwriting and non-fiction. It's juried, held at Lake Tahoe and was a wonderful experience. You get the opportunity to meet agents and editors, and work work work on your writing every day.

One of my favorite conferences every year is ThrillerFest, the annual convention for International Thriller Writers. Even though it has big, big name authors, ITW is a very inclusive group. They make everyone feel welcome. There are NYT bestselling authors teaching the craft portions of the program, and if you're looking for an agent, they have a speed-dating session with 60-90 agents. If you write commercial fiction, this is a great conference to attend (held in NYC every year).

All of these conferences are great opportunities to meet other writers, grow your network and learn about great new books. Even though I'm quite an introvert, I enjoy going to conferences very much.

Thanks, great question, Lori!

I finished the book today. I'm not a fan of romances, but I figured I would give the book a try.

I have to say, putting romance aside, it was a very intriguing book. I originally didn't think I'd bother following up with the rest of the trilogy, but after getting addicted to the plot and fantasy (and the excerpt to the next novel), I'm very eagerly awaiting for my the second book to arrive. I bet it will be just as fast a read as the first.