BooksChatter: ℚ♫ When Planets Fall: Stars Fall Circle [1]

Today we have the pleasure of meeting up with debut author Abby J. Reed to talk about When Planets Fall (12 April 2017, Soul Mate Publishing, LLC, 420 pages), a Young Adult Sci-fi Fantasy, book one of the Stars Fall Circle series.

“In this richly imagined start to a new sci-fi series, Reed brings optimism to the goal of solving entrenched violence in a galaxy far, far away . . . A propulsive, sharply crafted tale about a planetary war.” -Kirkus Reviews

|| Synopsis || Teaser: KCR Preview || Author Q&A || About the Author || Giveaway & Tour Stops ||

A very warm welcome to Abby Reed; thank you for joining us on BooksChatter!

To start, do you have a music playlist that you used in When Planets Fall, or which inspired you whilst you were writing it?

"WHEN PLANETS FALL theme song: Theme from Defiance by Bear McCreary

Breaker theme songs: Splinter Cell Conviction by Kaveh Cohen and The Maze Runner by John Paesano

Malani theme songs: Blackheart by BrunuhVille and This Close by Flyleaf

Luka theme songs: Ninety-Niners by Bear McCreary and I’m Still Here (Jim’s Theme) by John Rzeznik"

What was the inspiration for When Planets Fall?

"I’ve had migraines my whole life. They slowly got worse and worse and more and more frequent until they finally turned into Chronic Migraine when I was 17. (It’s way more complicated, but basically I’ve had a 24/7 migraine since I was 17.)

At the time I was writing WHEN PLANETS FALL, I was coming to the realization that my disorder really is a disability and truly might never go away. I wanted this story to be more reflective of what I have to live through daily—that I have to deal with my body in order to reach my goals."

How much of yourself is reflected in this book, and how?

"Oh gosh. There’s waaaay too much of myself in here. You can really see it in Breaker’s humor (we don’t have the same type, but we use it similiarly) and in his relationship with Brody, his little brother. Oldest Sibling Syndome, anyone?

What actually surprised me was how much of my husband was in the characters. That was a complete accident!"

The first thing that draws me to a book is its cover. Can you tell us about your cover for When Planets Fall - why you chose that concept and who the artist is.

"Different authors have different levels of input for their covers. I was lucky in that a) my artist is really talented and has done a lot of big bestselling novels. And b) I was able to make suggestions.

I wanted something more simple and gender neutral with red as a strong bold color. And the artist did an amazing job!"

Why should we read When Planets Fall and what sets it apart from the rest? What makes your book unique?

"Great question! WHEN PLANETS FALL is different from other books because the main characters have different types of disabilities (amputation, mental-illness, migraines) and the author (me, ha) has a disability. But this is not an issue book. It’s not about disability. This book is about real, flawed people in a real, flawed world (at least, real in terms of fiction 😃 . . .), who just happen to be disabled."

Can you tell us something quirky about When Planets Fall, its story and characters?

"Here’s a funny tidbit—I really like the way words are spelled, but I don’t care how things are pronounced. I didn’t actually have a way to pronounce Malani or Elik until after I sold the book. I kept going back and forth because it wasn’t that important to me. What eventually stuck was Muh (as in mud)-law-knee and E (like easy)-lick. So if you ask me how to pronounce something, I might not have a real answer for you!"

Who would you recommend When Planets Fall to and what should readers be aware of (any warnings or disclaimers)?

"WHEN PLANETS FALL is meant for a little older YA audience. It does touch on harder topics—like torture, rape, pain—and doesn’t give easy answers for them. If you like characters to be 100% good or 100% bad, then you might not connect with the characters 😃"

What do you like to write and read about? Do you stick to a particular genre or do you like to explore different ones?

"I really like to explore darker topics in my YA books. I have several other YA ideas—they don’t have easy answers and characters tend to be more gray than black and white.

I’ve been slowly working on a MG fantasy project. It’s so different in tone—funny, whimsical, ridiculous. I love being able to explore a different side of myself in this way and to have the contrast in project tone.

For reading—I read a lot of YA and MG and sci-fi and fantasy. Those are my favorites 😃"

What is your writing process?

"I am a hardcore outliner, but I also like to be flexible in case a new idea arrives. But outlining helps to cut back on editing time.

I tend to write in layers as well and I like to work with each POV by itself so it stands alone and is distinct. But mainly—my process is: “HEY PAIN ISN’T TOO BAD SO WRITE! Wait. Dang it. Head aggravated. WAIT! LOOK! YOU’RE OKAY! WRITE, WRITE NOW!”"

What is in store next?

"I am currently working on book 2! I have some potential titles, but nothing for certain yet. Writing takes me a long time (thanks Chronic Migraine), so I work a lot slower than most. But, I think it’ll be worth waiting for. I’m really excited for where the characters are headed! "

And as a final quirky thing, to get to know you a little bit better... do you have a pet or something that is special to you that you could share with us?

"I have two fur babies. Apollo [on the left] is an Irishdoodle, my therapy dog, and the most snuggly ever. He’s the one that will actually take pictures with me. Athena
[on the left] is a goldendoodle and only responds to popcorn bribes."

Hello Apollo and Athena! Lots of head-scratches to both of you, beautiful babies! p.s. Athena, I am also partial to popcorn ;-)

Abby, thank you so much for sharing them with us :-D