Meet Amy Bartelloni!

Please welcome our final author in our Dystopia month, Amy Bartelloni!

Amy Bartelloni is a reader, writer, & coffee addict who lives with her husband, 3 children, and various animals in the northeast US. When she’s not playing mom-taxi, you can find her with her nose in a book or her head in the clouds. A people watcher and science fiction junkie, she still believes dreams can come true. Some of her favorite authors include Neil Gaiman, Jasper Fforde, Paulo Coelho, and Stephen King she was also crazy cool enough to take our little interview and here it is…

So, when did you know that you wanted to be a writer? Was there a single moment of clarity or did the knowledge just creep up on you? 

-I’ve always wanted to be a writer, I just didn’t know it!  I’ve had these stories bouncing around my head my whole life – it took a long time to have the guts to actually get them out on paper!  I spent far too long worrying about what other people would think.  When I decided to write these stories for me – that’s when I was a writer. 

Tell us about your writing schedule. Do you write everyday? At the weekends? Or, like us, whenever you get the chance?

–I wrote my whole first book while my son was napping!  I was very protective of that time – the phone was off and I had to discipline myself not to do anything else.  I cried when he grew out of his nap!  But now my kids are all in school so I have time to write while they’re gone.  Nights and weekends I’m always shuffling them around, so I try to make time in the morning.

  What is it about the Dystopian genre that inspires you?

–I love the ‘what-if’s’ of dystopia.  There are a million different possible futures.  As someone with a huge imagination, that inspires me.  I also love the fact that human nature is still human nature, even if it’s in a post-apocalyptic environment.   You’re still going to have the people who panic, the people who are jerks.  The heros.  I love imagining that the best of human nature will survive ❤

 If you could step into any Dystopian future what would it be and why?

–Oh, that’s a loaded question, isn’t it?  LOL  I think I’d like to have a thing like that show Quantum Leap where I could pick a future, stay there a few days, solve a few problems, then bow out before things got intense.

 Zombies are busting down your door, what four objects do you grab?       

I’ll be honest, I probably won’t make it, haha.  I’d panic.  Let’s see – weapons, for sure.  Are zombies even affected by mace?? My car keys so I could get the heck out of there.  I’m not sure my kids count as objects but I’m not leaving them.  I’d like to take the dog and cat too.  See – I’m way too sentimental, LOL – I’d be a goner.

 How do your storylines evolve? Do you already have it planned where you want to go, or do you let the story take you along with it?

–I’m totally a pantser, i.e. I write by the seat of my pants.  Outlining doesn’t work for me, I have to go where the characters take me.  And when the characters go somewhere you didn’t see coming it’s the coolest feeling!  I usually have a general idea what the conflict is and where I want the story to go, then just ride it out.

  If you could choose any Dystopian book in the world to have written which one would it be and why?

–1984 because that was the novel that opened the genre for me, and made me realize how terrifying and entertaining dystopian could be – both at the same time!

  If you could be any character from a book who would it be and why?

–My all time favourite book character is Thursday Next from the Jasper Fforde series.  She’s a detective who can walk in and out of book world.  Aside from that being the coolest thing ever, she’s pretty awesome herself!

 What advice would you give to other writers of Dystopian fiction out there who are thinking of self-publishing their work?

–Make sure you run it by a ton of critique partners and beta readers!  You’re never going to pick out all your own errors, it’s just impossible.  And listening to other people’s feedback, even when it’s hard (especially when it’s hard) is how you learn and grow!  I’ve made some pretty awesome friends in the writing community that way, too!

  Who is, or are, your favourite author(s)?

–I have so many!  I love Stephen King (I’m a Constant Reader!) and I recently discovered his son Joe Hill is an author and his books are amazing, too!  I’m a huge fan of Neil Gaiman; American Gods is one of my favourite books.  Jasper Fforde is right up there, too!  And Paulo Coelho.  For YA, I really liked the Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, and the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series by Laini Taylor.

 Okay, some quick fire questions! Don’t think too hard. Just answer…

 Super Villain or Super Hero? Hero

 Ice-cream or chocolate? Chocolate

 Beach or the skiing holiday? Beach

 Keep the One Ring or throw it in Mount Doom? Keep it!

 Audio or book? Book-paperback

 Zombie Apocalypse weapon of choice: Axe or Shotgun? Shotgun for sure!  Crossbow if it came with Daryl Dixon! 

 

 Thanks so much for taking part in our Dystopia week  Amy ❤

To all you avid readers of dystopia and all those who have yet to try it, check out Amy’s novel…

 

Blurb

Ten years after a pandemic swept the globe, survivors were forced into factions and camps in order to survive…

Jade and Sera are two orphans who have found refuge in a government camp. It is there where Jade falls in love with a young soldier, Anyon. But Anyon has his own secrets, carefully guarding a past that involves Sera. But before Jade and Anyon admit their feelings to each other the camp is attacked and they’re separated.

Jade knows to lead Sera to Albany, the last free camp in the east, but the road is dangerous.

Not only must they dodge pockets of infection, but they are threatened by drifters and gangs. When they arrive in Albany, they find it deserted.

Anyon and his friend Malachi are close on their heels, but not close enough. The Provisional Government is on a mission, and no one is quite prepared for what lies ahead…ANDROMEDA

 

Amazon UK

Amazon US

And if you want to learn more about Amy or simply drop her a message here are some useful links:

http://www.amybartelloni.com
http://www.facebook.com/amybartelloniwrites
http://www.twitter.com/amycipwrites
http://www.pinterest.com/amycip