I pray that I continue to get this lucky on interviewing my favourite authors this year, because my luck so far has been *chef’s kiss*. Now, if you haven’t read Sky In The Deep and The Girl The Sea Gave Back, you need to get these on your radar.
Today I get to talk to Adrienne about Fable, which is this beautiful nautical fantasy where a young woman is desperate to get back home and make a name for herself out on the water. She’ll need help to get across though, which might not be as easy as she thought it would be. Please go out and put this on your list, especially because you’ll be able to read the sequel a lot sooner than you think!
Hi Adrienne! Can you tell us a bit about yourself, and about Fable?
Hi! I’m Adrienne Young, a young adult fantasy author of SKY IN THE DEEP and THE GIRL THE SEA GAVE BACK. FABLE is my third book, the first in a new duology. It’s the story about a girl who was abandoned by her father on a dangerous island and her journey to find him and her own place in their treacherous world.
Fable feels so different from Eelyn and Tova, how was it writing from her perspective?
I really loved writing from Fable’s perspective. She is so tough and resourceful, but she also really wants to belong. I really identified with her.
You taught me quite a few terms about ships while reading, did you have to do any historical nautical research while writing Fable?
I did a ton of research and I actually enlisted the help of a sailing expert who was an incredible help to me. She consulted on both FABLE and NAMESAKE, reading early copies and helping me with the very detailed nuance of ships, currents, winds, and a million other things I couldn’t have known without a lot of experience.
Your stories all resonate with this feminist strength that is very contagious, do you have any women who inspire the characters within your stories?
I feel like all of my characters take on many different facets of people I know, characters from stories I love and even myself. I’m not even totally aware of it when I’m doing that, but when I look back over a project once it’s finished, I often find evidence of that throughout the books.
Fable is a duology, but it’s publication is on a slightly different track than usual duologies. Can you talk about what this experience has been like for you?
I was really excited by the idea of doing a faster release schedule for this series and when I pitched the idea to my publisher, I wasn’t sure they would go for it. But Wednesday Books is a really innovative and collaborative team and they were totally down to try this experiment with me. So far, the experience has been wonderful and there has been great reader feedback about the prospect of getting the sequel six months faster than usual. It’s built a lot of great momentum that I hope will keep people excited about the series.
Can you give us any hints for what Namesake might have in store for your readers?
I’m already so excited about NAMESAKE! While FABLE explores a lot of Fable’s relationship with her dad and the parts of herself that mirror him, NAMESAKE focuses on Fable’s mother, Isolde. That’s pretty much all I can tell you right now.
Who did your covers? They are absolutely stunning!
The covers were designed by the amazing Kerri Resnick! She has designed all of my covers thus far and I’ve been really lucky to have her talent on the covers.
Finally, will you be doing a virtual launch for the release of Fable? Do you have a preferred place to pre-order?
You can order a personalized copy from Malaprop’s.
Please stop by any of the following tour stops this month! You can also order signed copies at any of these stores:
– Anderson’s Bookshop with Shelby Mahurin – 9/3
– Books & Books: Instagram Live w/ Isabel Ibañez – 9/6
– Books Inc: “Lost at Sea” Panel with Adalyn Grace and Maggie Tokuda Hall – 9/10
There will be more virtual events in October. Please keep up with virtual tour dates this fall via Instagram at @adrienneyoungbooks or at adrienneyoungbooks.com/events.
