Four Hours of Fright: Q&A With Gretchen McNeil

By - August 23, 2013

This day is speeding by, but we're in the midst of FOUR HOURS OF FRIGHT, and it's time for our next guest: YA suspense author Gretchen McNeil!  So sit back, relax, enjoy this great interview with a fun author, and don't forget to check the bottom of this post for details on how to win two additional giveaways of action-packed books in this segment from Pushcart Prize-nominated thriller author Marjorie Brody and Scholastic Book Club member, MG author Dee Garretson!

 

Now, let's give a warm welcome to Gretchen McNeil and have a chat with her about her books and more!

CM:  What scares you most?

GM:  Drowning.  I don't know why, but somehow that's the death that haunts my nightmares: going down with a sinking ship.

CM:  In Ten, teens are being killed off on an island where they are cut off from the world during a killer storm. If you were in a slasher story, what would you do to make sure you weren’t the next victim?

GM:  Kill everyone else?  BWAHAHAHA.  No, that's horrible, and presupposes the killer is one of the people in your group.  There are, however, certain rules you can follow to make sure you're not the next victim in a horror movie: (1) Don't get separated from the group.  (2) No sex.  (3) Don't volunteer for anything.  (4) Under no circumstances should you answer that phone!!!

CM:  Who would be your ideal sidekick in a story where you were fighting something evil?

GM:  Father Santos in POSSESS: smart, experienced with evil, and a priest.

CM:  In your newest upcoming book, 3:59, your main character Josie discovers she has a doppelganger living in a parallel universe who seemingly has everything Josie wants. If you started seeing a doppelganger of your own in a parallel universe, what might she have that you don’t?  What do you think you’d find out wasn’t so great about her perfect life?

GM:  Well, hopefully doppelganger Gretchen is 5'8" and a size 6.  Two things I will never, ever be.  As for her life – nothing is ever as perfect as it appears, right?  Maybe tall, skinny girls have problems too?  ;)

CM:  What has been your favorite of your books to write?

GM:  My 2014 release GET EVEN.  I pitched it as "John Hughes with a body count" and I've had so much fun writing a comedy suspense novel, I couldn't even believe it! 

CM:  What’s something readers would be surprised to know about you after they read one of your books?

GM:  I actually don't like horror movies.  They scare the crap out of me.

CM:  What book or author has influenced you the most and why?

GM:  Agatha Christie, for sure.  The way she crafts a mystery is second to none.  She also was brilliant at characterization.  With just a few lines of description and a word or two of dialogue, you know exactly who each of the characters are.  It's amazing.

CM:  What’s the best book you’ve ever read and why?

GM:  Gah, so impossible to say.  But the book I ripped through the fastest in the last ten years or so was Diane Setterfield's THE THIRTEENTH TALE.  Literally could not put it down.  Her follow up novel comes out in November.  I already have it on preorder.

CM:  If your house caught fire, what are the four things (rather than people) you’d save?  (Because everyone asks “three,” and I think you should get four!)

GM:  The pets are a given, so I won't mention them.  After that:

1. the Miró
2. my Grandmother's rosary beads
3. laptop
4. however many photo albums I can carry

CM:  What is your favorite word?

GM:  Fuck. 

CM:  Least favorite word?

GM:  Commensurate.  

CM:  What is the one question you’ve always wanted to be asked that no one has ever asked in an interview?

GM:  "What is your favorite pair of shoes?"  The black satin Betsey Johnson peep toes with the giant bows on the back.

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Thanks so much for joining us, Gretchen! I'm so glad you finally got to talk about those shoes!

ABOUT GRETCHEN:  Author of YA horror novels POSSESS, TEN and 3:59 (Fall 2013) as well as the upcoming YA mystery/suspense series Don't Get Mad, beginning in 2014 with GET EVEN and continuing in 2015 with GET DIRTY. Gretchen also contributed an essay to the Dear Teen Me anthology from Zest Books.

Gretchen is a former coloratura soprano, the voice of Mary on G4's Code Monkeys and she sings with the LA-based circus troupe Cirque Berzerk. Gretchen blogs with The Enchanted Inkpot and is a founding member of the vlog group the YARebels where she can be seen as "Monday." She is repped by Ginger Clark of Curtis Brown, Ltd. Find out more at www.gretchenmcneil.com.

 

With An Additional Giveaway From

MARJORIE BRODY

 

***One person who comments on this post will win a signed copy of Pushcart Prize-nominated Thriller Author Marjorie Brody's new thriller, Twisted.***

ABOUT TWISTED: Sarah Hausman must hide a secret-even from herself. If she acknowledges the truth, it will destroy everyone she loves.

Timid fourteen-year-old Sarah wants her controlling mother to stop prying into what happened the night of the freshman dance. Confess to the police? No way. Confide in her mother? Get real. The woman is too busy, too proud, and too jealous of Sarah to really care if her life disintegrates. Besides, her mother will say Sarah is totally to blame for what the boys did-which Sarah believes is true. So she doubly needs to shield the truth. Not just from Momma. But from everyone. Including herself.

Beautiful, confident, eighteen-year-old Judith Murielle lives the ideal life. She has college plans, respect from family and friends, and a fiancé she adores. But as a mysterious connection pulls her toward Sarah, Judith's perfect world unravels. Acting as Sarah's sole confidante, Judith gains the power to expose her secret. Will the truth be worth the sacrifice? Or will Sarah stop at nothing to keep Judith quiet? 

Find out more at www.marjoriespages.com.

 

With Another Giveaway From

DEE GARRETSON

 

***One person who comments on this post will win a signed copy of Wildfire Run by Dee Garretson.***

ABOUT WILDFIRE RUN:  The president's son, Luke, and his friends Theo and Callie are constantly being watched by Secret Service agents at Camp David. But when things spiral out of control, Luke and his friends are suddenly on their own, racing to escape a raging wildfire threatening their lives. They urgently need a plan: to override the security systems, to save those who were supposed to save them, to get through an impassable gate, and to escape Camp David. 

Debut author Dee Garretson delivers a heart-pounding survival thriller--an action-packed adventure with undeniable suspense.

WILDFIRE RUN  has been nominated for seven young readers' state awards lists: Louisiana Young Readers Choice 2013, Nebraska Golden Sower 2013-2013, Nevada Young Readers' Award 2013, Mississippi Magnolia Award 2012-2013, Hawaii NeNe Book Award 2014, Connecticut Nutmeg Book Award 2014, Tennessee Volunteer State Book Award 2014-2015.  Find out more at www.deegarretson.com.

 

Comment for your chance to win both Marjorie's and Dee's giveaways- leave an e-mail address so we can contact you if you win!

What scares you the most?