The Sea of Tranquility Blog Tour! Interview with Katja & Signed Giveaway

SUMMARY

I live in a world without magic or miracles. A place where there are no clairvoyants or shapeshifters, no angels or superhuman boys to save you. A place where people die and music disintegrates and things suck. I am pressed so hard against the earth by the weight of reality that some days I wonder how I am still able to lift my feet to walk.

Two and a half years after an unspeakable tragedy left her a shadow of the girl she once was, Nastya Kashnikov moves to a new town determined to keep her dark past hidden and hold everyone at a distance. But her plans only last so long before she finds herself inexplicably drawn to the one person as isolated as herself: Josh Bennett.

Josh’s story is no secret. Every person he loves has been taken from his life until, at seventeen years old, there is no one left. When your name is synonymous with death, everyone tends to give you your space. Everyone except Nastya who won’t go away until she’s insinuated herself into every aspect of his life. But as the undeniable pull between them intensifies, he starts to wonder if he will ever learn the secrets she’s been hiding—or if he even wants to.

The Sea of Tranquility is a rich, intense, and brilliantly imagined story about a lonely boy, an emotionally fragile girl, and the miracle of second chances.

It’s no secret around here that we love and adore Katja Millay and we are lucky enough to get to be a part of her blog tour to celebrate the release of The Sea of Tranquilty!!

If you’ve followed this blog then you may have seen our flaily reviews about this incredible story back when it was posted… if not, go back and read it – then check out our top 5 reasons you need to read The Sea of Tranquility.

I don’t even know what to tell you about him that I haven’t said before. How about this? He’s amazing.

“Not my fault that you’re distractingly pretty.” I have to take a minute to confirm to the pissed off part of my brain that still works that, yes, in fact, I did just say that.”

Did I mention that Josh makes furniture? No? Well… he does and you know I’ve been looking for someone to make me some bookshelves so… I also hear he smells like sawdust, and that just screams perfect to me. LOL

While this story isn’t all swoon there are some wonderfully sweet and swoony moments. I completely fell in love with them!

Then he shifts just slightly and I’m not kissing him anymore. He’s kissing me. And when does, part of me is lost. But it’s the part that’s twisted and mangled and wrong, and for just that moment, with his hands in my hair and his lips on my mouth, I can pretend that it never existed.

You will feel everything while reading this story – the ups and the downs, the highs and the lows… the love and the hate and I promise you will love every single second of it.

The writing in this story is spectacular. After reading this I found myself wondering where Katja has been all my life, and the story is one that will stick with you days after you’ve finished.

“The lightning is flashing incessantly outside the window, taunting me every time it lights up the sky. My phone is on my bed, whispering in my ear like a bottle of scotch to a recovering alcoholic, while the rain continues cackling at me through my window.”

The amazing journey that this story will take you on is hard for me to explain. This story has a bit of everything… There are light, and sweet moments and there are parts where I found myself laughing out loud at a passage and then turned the page and found myself rubbing that spot over my heart because it hurt and then gasping at the sadness that I experienced. There is incredibly written dialogue and so much emotion in this book. At times I felt overwhelmed by the story, but by the end it was almost like a deep breath of fresh air. And when I got to the last page… I knew I was in love.

We here at Fic Fare had the opportunity to chat with Katja and ask her a few questions and we want to share it with you!

Introduce us to Josh & Nastya

Josh is a loner. He may be a little abrasive at first, but don’t take it personally. He’s just used to most people ignoring him and he’s convinced himself that that’s the way he wants it. He’s been woodworking for a decade and spends his time alone in his garage workshop building furniture. He loves antiques and hates sanding and finishing. He’s not classically romantic. He doesn’t like long walks on the beach and reading poetry out loud while watching the sun set; but he can cook you dinner and he’ll never ask you to fold his underwear.

Nastya is a former pianist and a survivor. Three years ago she was planning to spend her summer at a music conservatory and the rest of her life in concert halls. Now she likes to run, hit things and eat ice cream. She dresses provocatively and intimidates people with her attitude and appearance in order to distract them from the real issues and make them uncomfortable enough to stay away. Obsessively determined in anything she sets her mind to, she can bake you a cake, knock you on the ground and tell you what your name means.

If you could introduce one of your characters to another character from any other book, who would it be and why?

I love that question! I would introduce Nastya to Darla from Ashfall. Darla is a survivor who did what needed to be done but kept her humanity in the process. I think Nastya would respect her. I also wouldn’t mind introducing Margot to Roar from the Under the Never Sky series. I figure if I have to live in reality and I can’t have Roar, then at least one of my characters should get him.

Do you have any interesting writing quirks or rituals? Tell us about your writing space.

I write by hand, out of order so that’s probably the most unusual thing. My writing space for TSoT was anywhere I could find a pen/pencil/crayon/eyeliner and something to write on. I stash paper and pens everywhere now, especially in my car. My family has been relegated to eating at the coffee table because I use my kitchen table as a home base and that’s where the paper ends up piling up for when I eventually have to wade through and make sense of it all.

After I finished TSoT, I swore that if I ever wrote anything again, I would do it in order, on a computer but apparently that isn’t happening because I’m already drowning in paper. This time it’s mostly legal pads. I recently wrote one of the pivotal scenes from the book I’m currently working on, with an orange crayon. The sad part is that I was sitting in front of my computer when I did it. I actually pulled paper out of the printer and pushed the keyboard out of the way so I could write. I’ve come to the conclusion that there’s no help for me.

What’s the best piece of advice you ever received from another author?

I apologize in advance for the profanity. 🙂

Obviously it’s not advice I personally received, but of all the writing quotes I’ve read by authors, one of my favorites has always been from Stephen King — “When asked, ‘How do you write?’ I invariably answer, ‘One word at a time,’ and the answer is invariably dismissed. But that is all it is. It sounds too simple to be true, but consider the Great Wall of China, if you will: one stone at a time, man. That’s all. One stone at a time. But I’ve read you can see that motherfucker from space without a telescope.” I try to keep that quote in mind when the unwritten story stretched out in front of me seems daunting and I don’t know how I’m going to get to the end or connect the dots. One word at a time.

I also appreciate this one from Hemingway – “The first draft of everything is shit.” Not technically advice, but a good thing to keep in mind in terms of maintaining perspective. As a writer it’s easy to get paralyzed by the obsessive quest for a perfection which doesn’t exist.

What is the last book that completely hooked you and you couldn’t stop raving about?

The most recent would probably be The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater which I found utterly unique and haunting. The world and the characters are richly developed. The pure innocence and simplicity of the subtle romance is beautiful to witness; not to mention that the writing is exquisite.

I also tend to rave unabashedly about the Fever series by Karen Marie Moning. I tore through all five of those books in under a week going from one to the next without pause. I rec them to everyone.

The Sea of Tranquility comes out tomorrow – make sure go out and get your copy!!