Welcome to the blog tour for Arrows by Melissa Gorzelanczyk! I am so excited to share my interview with Melissa. There is an excerpt of the book, and a neat giveaway too!
Meet Melissa Gorzelanczyk!
Alyssa: Hi, Melissa! Thank you so much for joining me today on my blog! And happy debuting!
Melissa: Aww, thank you, Alyssa. I’m thrilled to be here.
Alyssa: What was the first “thing” to inspire you to write Arrows?
Melissa: My husband’s best friend Nate had the idea of a story centered around the idea of “cupids among us.” He decided not to finish his book, and when I asked how he felt about me using the premise for a teen novel, he encouraged me to go for it.
Alyssa: What’s another YA contemporary novel that has similar themes as those in Arrows?
Melissa: One that immediately comes to mind is The Girl Who Fell by fellow debut Shannon M. Parker.
Alyssa: Arrows is a standalone? Or will there be companion novels? Or sequel novels? :D
Melissa: Right now, it’s a standalone, though I *may* have written a sequel, just in case.
Alyssa: Ooo! I'm on board with that. ;) I know that most authors have zero control over the covers, but I must ask – how do you feel about the cover of Arrows? Did the design team accurately portray the novel, in the cover? (Personally, I think the cover is lovely!)
Melissa: I did have a say in my cover—my agent worked that verbiage into my contract—so when my editor Wendy Loggia was presenting Arrows at the art meeting, she asked me to send her all of my ideas for the cover. Sort of a wish list.
I’ve always loved simple, striking things in general, so you might say designer Ray Shappell hit the mark dead center.
Alyssa: How about the title? Did you choose it? Your editor? Were there other titles in contention?
Melissa: Arrows has been Arrows since I started the first draft.
Alyssa: Is there anyone you’d like to mention, any critique partners or family members or friends, anyone that played a unique or special part in the creation of this story?
Melissa: My journey to becoming published has been a group effort from day one. My husband Shea is the biggest supporter of my work, even now. He’s known to scour Google for any nice reviews and posts about Arrows (or mean ones, which he thankfully avoids sharing with me).
Way back when we started dating (about 12 years ago), he said one of the things he liked about me was that I was a writer. In other words, he’s a rare gem.
When I told him I wanted to quit my day job and try writing books, he said, “Okay, I think you can do it.” With his support, and wise critique from my beta readers, along with a wealth of knowledge I’ve gained from joining the SCBWI, my dreams have come true. Obviously my agent Carrie Howland and editor Wendy Loggia deserve to be listed here, too.
Alyssa: A wonderful team and support system. :) And that’s it from me! Thank you so much for stopping by, Melissa, and best of luck with the release!
Melissa: This has been lovely. Thank you!
About the Author:
Melissa Gorzelanczyk is a former magazine editor and columnist who believes love is everything. She is a proud member of the SCBWI, The Sweet Sixteens and the Class of 2k16. She lives in Green Bay, Wisconsin, with her husband and family.
About the Book:
Arrows by Melissa Gorzelanczyk
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Publication Date: January 26, 2016
Summary (from Goodreads):
People don’t understand love. If they did, they’d get why dance prodigy Karma Clark just can’t say goodbye to her boyfriend, Danny. No matter what he says or does or how he hurts her, she can’t stay angry with him . . . and can’t stop loving him. But there’s a reason why Karma is helpless to break things off: she’s been shot with a love arrow.
Aaryn, son of Cupid, was supposed to shoot both Karma and Danny but found out too late that the other arrow in his pack was useless. And with that, Karma’s life changed forever. One pregnancy confirmed. One ballet scholarship lost. And dream after dream tossed to the wind.
A clueless Karma doesn’t know that her toxic relationship is Aaryn’s fault . . . but he’s going to get a chance to make things right. He’s here to convince Danny to man up and be there for Karma. But what if this god from Mount Olympus finds himself falling in love with a beautiful dancer from Wisconsin who can never love him in return?
This fast-paced debut novel explores the internal & external conflicts of a girl who finds herself inexplicably drawn to a boy who seemingly doesn't reciprocate her feelings, touching on the issues of love, sex and responsibility, with a heroine struggling to control her destiny--perfect for fans of Katie McGarry's novels and MTV’s 16 and Pregnant.
The Excerpt:
Read the excerpt HERE!
The Giveaway:
Nice interview
ReplyDeleteYay :D Awesome blog tour post Alyssa. <3 Thank you for sharing about this one :) But yeah. I really don't think it would be for me, lol. But I am starting to like that cover a bit :)
ReplyDeleteI have to say, the cover of this book doesn't really speak to me BUT the premise is like WOW! I love the name for the characters too! Karma?? YASSS! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this epical review, love! <3
You know, some years ago I wrote a "book" a little like this one, so when I read about this I thought "My idea!" but not at all, lol! I'm really curious to read it. I love your interview!
ReplyDelete