Welcome to our weekly special feature post, Author Of The Week!!

Each week we will be interviewing a different YA author and highlighting their upcoming release!

We will also be hosting a giveaway of the book we are highlighting!!

Introducing Kristin Cashore, YABC's Author of the Week!

Meet Winterkeep!

The highly anticipated next book in the New York Times bestselling, award-winning Graceling Realm series, which has sold 1.3 million copies.

For the past five years, Bitterblue has reigned as Queen of Monsea, heroically rebuilding her nation after her father’s horrific rule. After learning about the land of Torla in the east, she sends envoys to the closest nation there: Winterkeep–a place where telepathic foxes bond with humans, and people fly across the sky in wondrous airships. But when the envoys never return, having drowned under suspicious circumstances, Bitterblue sets off for Winterkeep herself, along with her spy Hava and her trusted colleague Giddon. On the way, tragedy strikes again–a tragedy with devastating political and personal ramifications.

Meanwhile, in Winterkeep, Lovisa Cavenda waits and watches, a fire inside her that is always hungry. The teenage daughter of two powerful politicians, she is the key to unlocking everything–but only if she’s willing to transcend the person she’s been all her life.

Amazon * B & N * Indiebound * Penguin Random House

YABC:  Who is your favorite character in the book?

I don't have a #1 absolute favorite character in Winterkeep. But I will say that one of the characters is a telepathic fox who's lying to practically everyone, has a very aggravating family, and is in the middle of an existential crisis. I had a lot of fun getting inside his little head! All he wants is to sit by the warm fireplace and eat treats, but he keeps finding himself caring about people. His empathy creates so many obstacles to an easy life.

      YABC:  Which came first, the title or the novel?

The novel. I agonized over the title! I even made a big whiteboard with options once, while on a writing retreat with friends. The difficulty was that the book is told in multiple points of view. With my prior Graceling Realm books, I found a way to name each novel after the main character. I couldn't do that with this book… so finally, I settled on naming the book after Winterkeep, which is a place. 

YABC:  What scene in the book are you most proud of, and why?

I'm really proud of the last chapter of the book, and the transformations that happen to my character Lovisa Cavenda there. She starts to think about herself and the world in completely new ways, and then she acts on it. I also think, and hope, that my final scene contains a sense of magic that will leave the reader feeling happy and hopeful.

YABC:  Thinking way back to the beginning, what’s the most important thing you've learned as a writer from then to now?

It's easy to get distracted by things outside the book. Reviews, "buzz," wondering what people think of the books, etc. But what really matters — what's truly and deeply sustaining — is the act of writing. The reason I love my job is the time I have to myself, alone in a room, wrestling with a challenging but rewarding artistic project. 

YABC:  What do you like most about the cover of the book?

Oh, everything! The colors, the layers. The feeling I get from that young woman, who's ready to take on the world. The blue fox! I got really lucky with this cover, which was created by artist Kuri Huang, and designed by Theresa Evangelista and Jessica Jenkins. 

YABC:  What’s up next for you?

I have another Graceling Realm book in revisions, and I'm also writing something contemporary, YA, and magical. 

YABC:  Which part of the writing process do you enjoy more: Drafting or Revising?

Oh, revising, definitely! Drafting can be such a slog sometimes, and it can be hard to keep up your faith. You know, as you're doing it, that you're creating something full of flaws. Whereas revising is your chance to fix up those flaws and make things better. There's an objective point of view that comes with revising, too, that's really refreshing. You can stand outside the book and look into it, and see it more clearly. It's hard to see clearly when you're drafting!

YABC:  What would you say is your superpower?

I have wacky and vivid dreams, almost every night. If there were only a way to harness them and use them to… solve people's problems creatively? make people laugh?... they could definitely be a superpower. 

YABC:  Is there an organization or cause that is close to your heart?

We Need Diverse Books. They're advocating for changes in the publishing industry so that all kinds of diversity can be better represented in books for young people.

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