Interview with Kiera Cass, author of The Selection

The Selection

For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the gamble of a life. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a earth of glittering gowns and invaluable jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon .
But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a peak she doesn ’ metric ton want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent insurgent attacks .
then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she ’ s made for herself—and realizes that the life she ’ second always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.

Reading: Interview with Kiera Cass, author of The Selection

1. OK. Let’s get this show on the road. Everyone’s wondering: When you started writing The Selection, did the characters or plot come to you first?
The characters come inaugural for me about all the time. The inhalation behind The Selection was thinking about the what ifs of other stories, chiefly Esther and Cinderella. I wondered if Esther happened to like the boy adjacent door before she got shipped off to a palace to become the wife of a king. What if she had to slowly let that love die ? And Cinderella never asked for a prince, she asked for a night off. What if that person and that job were means excessively much for her ? For some argue, those two things meshed in my head, and I knew I wanted to write about a female child who was poor people and would catch the attention of a prince, but she wouldn ’ thymine want him because she was already in love. It took a while to figure out where this would all take seat, and that was the main hiccup. I knew the people long before I knew anything else .
2. Love how that “what if” scenario was the spark for your protagonist! So what about your journey to publication? Care to share some details?
well, lots of people know that The Selection international relations and security network ’ thyroxine my first book. In 2009, I self-published a book called The Siren. I spent about 6 months querying it, getting rejected by over 70 or 80 agents and minor publishers in the process. But I had fans, so I decided to put it out for them on my own. And I ’ m very glad I did, it was a great learn know .
The Selection was the next idea of a couple running through my mind, and it barely happened to be the inaugural one that demanded I finish it. The others are distillery waiting. It was a wholly unlike narrative this time around. I sent out about 13 queries in under 2 months and had 2 agents interested ! golden me ! I went with Elana Roth at Red Tree Literary, and she got me a fantastic home with Erica Sussman over at HarperTeen .
And now I can tell you that the bible might be moving past the page and head to the small shield ampere well. The CW is shooting a pilot program, and it seems like I hear modern news about it every day. not sure if or when it will actually make it to TV, but it ’ s an stimulate travel all the same .
3. We saw that news about the CW! We’re keeping our fingers crossed for you! But first—Which one of your characters would you most want to kiss?
Oh my gosh, I SO need to tell you this. My main character America has a boyfriend named Aspen, and the prince she ends up meet is Maxon. There is one of them that has a slenderly tighter have on my heart…But I ’ ll never tell !
4. Ah! Way to leave us hanging. *pouts* So what’s your next writing project?
presently, I ’ molarity in the center of another polish of edits for Book 2 in The Selection Trilogy, and I ’ molarity working on a rough in draft of Book 3. I have a confidential project on my kernel for when this is over, but I ’ megabyte pretty sure I ’ thousand sworn to secrecy on that one .
5. Secret project? How exciting. So when you’re not working on the trilogy (or secret projects), what are you reading?

just today I picked up Chopsticks by Jessica Anthony and Rodrigo Corral. Looking advancing to diving into that one .
6. Uh-oh! Pub Brawl!!!!! What weapon are you wielding?
A cupcake. That I would probably end up eating myself .
7. We can get on board with cupcakes. Yum. Speaking of yummy, got any good (preferably literary) pick up lines?
I ’ m a sucker for a good lame pickup wrinkle ! My favorites are the Harry Potter ones like “ You don ’ t have to say Lumos to turn me on ” or “ Are you using a Confundus Charm or are you barely naturally mind blowing ? ” …stuff like that .
I would decidedly swoon at either of those pickup lines. Or credibly any Harry Potter pickup line, if we are being honest .

In honor of The Selection ‘ mho upcoming passing, Kiera was kind adequate to offer up some swag : buttons and signed bookmarks ! We ’ re besides throwing in one finished copy of the fresh, but it doesn ’ thyroxine release until April 24th, so be prepared for a short wait if you ’ re the lucky winner !
To enter to win a finished copy of The Selection, plus some swag, equitable leave a comment telling us if you ’ five hundred ever consider participating in a Bachelor-esque competition ! then fill out the handy form below. We ’ ll announce a winner adjacent week, but please note : this giveaway is US only .

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KIERA CASS is a graduate of Radford University and presently lives in Blacksburg, VA with her family. The choice is her debut YA fresh, though she self-published a paranormal fresh, The Siren, in 2009. Kiera has kissed approximately fourteen boys in her life. none of them were princes .
You can visit Kiera around the interwebs, chiefly on her blog, Twitter, or Youtube .