The Thirteenth Chime - Emma Michaels

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I am PLEASED to have Emma Michaels here today for our interview!  Emma is a bright and talented young author whose debut novel, The Thirteenth Chime, is getting favorable reviews from readers everywhere!  If you haven't heard about this book I highly suggest you research it.  It might be your next great read.....

Please tell me a little about yourself. When did you know you wanted to become an author?


My name is Emma Michaels and I am an author, book blogger (http://EmmaMichaels.Blogspot.com) and all around literature addict. It took me a long time to realize how much books could mean to others. I wasn’t used to the people around me reading and I was given guff for reading instead of going out and acting like every other child. Looking back, I don’t regret it in the slightest. I realize that a lot of the people who had been in my life hadn’t been interested in the same books as me or even reading as a whole, but now I have seen how many people there are out there who share that interest. Once I started to see how many others book lovers were out there I didn’t feel as alone or like I needed to fight my constant need to write. Instead I started embracing it. Now I am happier than I have ever been!

Please tell me a little about your novel.

Well, The Thirteenth Chime was quiet an adventure to write and to get published. It is about David and Destiny and the end of a journey for one of them but the beginning for the other as they find themselves caught in a fifty year old trap.

How did you become published?

I have heard a lot of authors say that it is luck, but to be perfectly honest, it is also a LOT of bull headed stubbornness. Being an author is something that is widely thought of as a pipe dream so you really have to be willing to invest everything you can into something that may never happen. I did and I am so happy. Even if nothing truly spectacular ever comes of it like a full career where I can quit my day job, it is worth it to get your work out there and meet the people whose lives it changed.

What was the publishing process like?

Well, there was a lot of tea, chocolate and my fiance comforting me involved since I received so many rejections from agents. Then I finally started to query publishers who would accept an author who was not represented (known as being unsolicited) and started hearing positive feedback. I am still searching for an agent but now that my books are getting out there I don’t mind the waiting in line part as much. Here is a great post about how it feels to be in that line: http://kierstenwrites.blogspot.com/2011/03/you-cant-cut-in-line.html

What is something you wish you would have known about the publishing business?

All the things I still don’t know! I am still learning and every time I learn something new I try to help someone else find his or her answers too. I think the big thing I would have wanted to know was how important conventions could be. I had no idea that e-queries had such a low response rate compared to in person meeting at conferences or classes.

What has been your best author experience so far?

I got an e-mail from the librarian at a local high school library who told me about a young girl who had stopped reading because of something that happened in her life (sorry it is not something I feel I can share because it is her story) and the librarian thanked me for writing The Thirteenth Chime because she had been trying to find books to help get the girl interested in reading again. After what I hear was at least dozens of tries, mine had been the one that finally worked. She came back the next morning asking for the sequel. It felt amazing to know that I could help someone by doing what I love to do.

What is the least thrilling/attractive part of being an author for you?

Okay, this ALWAYS happens to me. I will go to a signing and everyone will keep looking at the table then looking around and ignoring me until they finally get the nerve to step up. Guess what they say? “So where is the author?” It never fails that at every signing there are a large number of people who don’t think I am the author because of how young I am. I will admit though that while it is frustrating I kind of also enjoy it because of the shock value when I reach out my hand and say, “Hi, I am Emma Michaels.” I love signings though, especially when bloggers I know show up and we hang out afterwards. I always have so much fun getting to know new people and talk about books! If I had a larger publishing contract with one of those publishers that have huge funding I would be up for year round touring. I just love it!

Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?

Never give up. Absolutely never take no for an answer but always, always, always keep learning and getting better, because without getting better, the never giving up might not mean what you want it to.

This is your debut novel! Congratulations! What was it like to see your debut novel in print?

Unreal. I know it has been six months or so but it still hasn’t quite settled in. I just love it though and I think slowly it is changing my outlook on a lot of things. Especially, since I never want to stop reading my own work as a reader. I have read so many books where as a reader something happens that can ruin a story for me, like my favorite character dying when it wasn’t needed for the plot and wasn’t used for emotional fuel for another character. I never want to do that. I want to always write like both an author and a reader so that I can fall in love with my own books along with my fans.

How did you decide to write in this genre? Have you written any other genres?

I have been an almost life-long YA addict. It was what I first read and probably always will. I also like that I don’t have to be as afraid of extremely adult content. There are a lot of gore filled adult books out there and it isn’t something I particularly like reading. YA is a good balance for me. Plus, I think the thing that is so special about YA books is that the characters are, more often than not, still learning about themselves. There are so many adult novels where the character has a firm and unchanging view of who they are but in YA books they are still searching and I never want to stop searching for who I am or I might let too much of who I could be pass me by.

Do you have a novel in the works?

Quite a few. I have finished the ‘Sense of Truth’ series and am working on a new series. Add to that another novel I am in the process of writing the first draft for and you have 3 done, four in rewrites and one in first draft. Like I said, writing is what I love to do so I find it a bit difficult to ever stop.

What is your favorite book?

I have a lot of different favorites depending on what I have read recently but the book I owe the most to is In the Hand of the Goddess by Tamora Pierce because it was what started and fueled my reading addiction even if it wasn’t the first in the series.

What is the last book you read?

Paranormalcy. Wait no, I finished another one that night so I guess it was Hex Hall. I have a hard time keeping track without my Goodreads and blog because when I am on a roll I average a book or two per day once I finished my work. (Yes, when I say addiction I mean it. I would never be able to fund my addiction. I buy some but borrow the rest from the library or I would be in the poor house. I try to review all of the novels I like so that the author still gets something out of my library reading.)

What are you currently reading?

I have a huge stack I just got the library and Vesper by Jeff Sampson is on top.

Do you have a pet?

Yes! My little Chihuahua named Hope. I absolutely adore her. She is my writing companion. She sits on my shoulders when I am at my desk and watches the screen as I work or goes to sleep. But she helps my fiancé remind me that eating is a necessity by attacking my face with doggy kisses when she wants me to stop and eat or give her a good petting.

Do you have kids? If so, how do you balance writing and parenting?

I am 21. And only just turned 21. So… no. I don’t have kids yet and am not planning on having them for a while though I do absolutely adore children so one day I just might!

Name three things you couldn’t live without.

God
My fiancé
My lap top for writing and reading… I guess that means internet too. (Pink lap tops are always a bonus.)

If you were given the opportunity to invite any 5 people to dinner who would you invite?

AGENTS! I would invite the top five agents I want so I could finally have their full attention for a pitch! Or at least that is what my first thought was. If it could be anyone throughout history though then my ideas for who change often. Today I am in a bit of a Tesla mood, with Jane Austin, Abraham Lincoln, Henry Grey and my fiancé so that he could meet them too. (Yes, I do realize that would be chaos; A man with severe OCD, a woman who spent most of her life imagining what real life could be like, a man in politics with extremely firm beliefs and one of the men who helped advance the medical field and fueled learning for so many doctors. Sounds like a bad bar joke.)

Name three things on your bucket list.

Going to Asia
Going to Europe
Writing at least 100 books for my use or the public’s, either way.

Are you a night owl or early bird?

I am a night owl in early bird training. Lol. I used to be a night owl but the day goes by too fast when you sleep in, so my fiancé and I have been getting up a lot earlier now and trying to change out sleeping habits.

Who is your favorite author?

Wow. This could be a long list but I will leave it at Tamora Pierce. Every book she releases reawakens my love of reading. There are a lot of my fellow tenners though that I am loving!

What is your preferred writing atmosphere?

It changes. I can write just about anywhere. I actually found out recently that I do my best writing while traveling because I am in such a state of constant flux that I find it really easy to pull out the emotions I need to write out the more thought evoking scenes in my novels. Other than that, though, I like to be at my nice wooden desk with some natural light from the window. Comfy chairs are always appreciated after I finally look up three hours later and realize I was supposed to get up and stretch every hour.

What do you do with your time when you’re not writing?

When I am not writing? There is a time when I am not writing? What? Just kidding. Well, sort of. Okay, maybe not. I don’t ever really stop writing but when I take my brakes for the day so that I am not permanently glued to the computer screen and give my eyes a break I read, draw, study random things that might come in handy one day for future novels, spend time with the people and pets I love or play a game. Oh yes, and I work but I don’t really count that as time just as a job.

Do you have a favorite reading/writing snack?

Does Tea count? I drink a lot of Green Tea or Earl Grey while writing.

Which question in this interview was your favorite?

There have been a few! I love more unique questions like you’re asking about my bucket list or if I am an early bird or a night owl, My favorite snack, etc. Great questions!

Thank you so much for having me here!!! <3

Thank you Emma! This interview has become one of my top 5 favorite interviews!  So many wonderful answers and interesting additional resources!  I hope everyone enjoyed this interview as much as I have.  My favorite question was Emma's best author experience so far.  What a beautiful story!  Very uplifting!