Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver - Giveaway & nterview

Pandemonium (Delirium #2)
by Lauren Oliver

I’m pushing aside the memory of my nightmare,
pushing aside thoughts of Alex,
pushing aside thoughts of Hana and my old school,
push,
push,
push,
like Raven taught me to do.
The old life is dead.
But the old Lena is dead too.
I buried her.
I left her beyond a fence,
behind a wall of smoke and flame.

Author Interview With Author

Lauren Oliver

Can you tell us a little about yourself? 

Jeez, well....I live in Brooklyn with my fiance. I love cooking and food and reading and generally being cozy, although I also love high heels and travel and generally being fancy. :) That pretty much sums me up!

Do you recall how your interest in writing originated? 

It's hard! I thought writers were, I don''t know, supposed to lounge around drinking highballs. But I really find it's a lot of work to keep your books alive, to connect with fans and readers, and above all, to keep producing good work.

How do you develop your plots and characters? Do you use any set formula? 

No. I wish I had a set formula. I usually cycle through many, many book ideas before one "grabs" me. I have a cemetery of half-started books on my computer.

What, in your opinion, are the most important elements of good writing? 

 
Empathy. You have to really understand how other people think, feel, and behave. You must especially understand that people act in a way that belies their true feelings--i.e., they do the opposite of what they mean.

Can you share a little of your current work with us? 

Well, Pandemonium comes out in less than a week (February 29th), so I'm gearing up for the launch and the tour. And I'm about to start editing Requiem, the final book in the Delirium trilogy. In the meantime, I'm experimenting with a return to realistic fiction.

In Twitter Fashion use 140 characters or less, sum Pandemonium for us. 

 
A world without love. A society on the brink of revolution. Lena transforms.

How did you come up with a story that was such a whirlwind of events? 

 
Hmmm. That's a difficult question! With all of my books, I tend to just "write my way in"; kind of start groping around in the world, meeting and describing the characters, getting a sense of the setting. And then, eventually (usually), the plot unfolds.

How long did it take you to write it, and did you have any writer’s block along the way? 

 
It always takes me about a year to complete a solid first draft of a novel. And yes, I get writer's block almost every day! I really have to force myself to sit down and focus. Usually, once the first one hundred words come out, the rest is relatively easy--although there are certainly days when I sit at my computer, staring at a blank screen for hours before anything decent comes out. And there are some days where nothing I write is decent! But that's okay, too.

Will we be seeing a following book to this stories?

Yes! The last book in the series, Requiem, comes out in spring 2013.

How did you come up with the character Lena?

Her voice just kind of popped into my head! I know it sounds kind of weird and schizophrenic, but that's how characters appear. I heard Lena speaking to me, narrating her story.

I always must ask, If you could pick one actor to portray Alex on the big screen who would it be and why?

Yikes. I'm so much older than the audience, I'm not sure that I'm "up" on the newest actors. NOT Justin Bieber--even though I secretly kind of love his music. :)

Was there anything you find particularly challenging when writing this book? 

 
I found it challenging to conceive of the world and the rules--and to avoid using the word love, as well as think of all of the implications of a society that viewed love and passion as a bad thing.

What were your feelings when you first saw the cover of your finished book? 

The book has gone through several cover permutations. But when I saw the most recent cover version, I was thrilled; I knew it was perfect.

Please visit this author at:

Website: http://www.laurenoliverbooks.com

Blog: http://www.laurenoliverbooks.blogspot.com/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/OliverBooks

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/laurenoliverbooks

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2936493.Lauren_Oliver

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