Sunday 25 August 2013

Interview with Christine Brae over debut novel The Light In The Wound

The Light In The Wound is the newly published debut novel by Christine Brae, and it is vastly garnering a diverse international fan base following. Since reading the emotive, debate provoking and feeling evoking  TLITW last July, I’ve watched and been a part of the responses, ratings and rantings on both Goodreads and Facebook, and had to give Christine a good old formal interview about the whole shebang.
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Author: Christine Brae
Work: The Light In The Wound  
Alisha: Christine, tell us 3 interesting or unique facts about yourself.
Christine:
Birds and anything with feathers freak me out.
I have a photographic memory; I can picture a page I just saw in my head. I know everyone’s number by heart.
I have a hard time getting close to people but once you’re my friend, I will do anything for you.
Alisha: I am so interested in knowing, if you could cast anyone as your three main characters, Jesse, Isa and Alex, who would you cast?
Christine: Ian Somerhalder, Jessica Alba and Paul Walker.
  
Alisha: Which authors or novels have been your source of inspiration to write?
Christine: I’ve been reading and writing all my life – so many books, so many inspiring authors. It really has only been a year since I decided to take a stab at writing a novel and self publishing it. I guess it was spurred by the explosion of Indie books and the emergence of a few specific authors who have inspired me. Tarryn Fisher and Willow Aster have been great mentors and friends. I also love the writing style of Tiffanie De Bartolo and actually want to one day write just like her. Before Indie books, there were mainstream authors like Anita Shreve, Alice Hoffman and Colleen McCullough who were a part of my growing up years.
Alisha: It’s fantastic that all of the new Indie authors are linked through general fan base and the Indie NA reading community which I’m thrilled to see expanding. How did the ideas and concepts of the book spring to mind?
Christine: I had a story to tell and I went ahead and told it. :)  
Alisha: When you began the pitching, planning and writing for this book, was the plot and characters set in stone or did they develop and change?
Christine: No, the plot was never set in stone. I know I had a main character named Isabel who loved two boys in her life for two different reasons. The rest just flowed as I was writing the book. They developed as the characters developed. I let them lead the way.
Alisha: Through Facebook polls and the general consensus on Goodreads, there is evidence of a lot of Alex fans however surprisingly, the #TeamJesse fan base is increasing, competing them as key rivals. Did you specifically plan for and expect this reaction from your readers to be this way, and who do you personally side with?
Christine: Alex is perfect. So I had no doubt whatsoever that he would be the main character of choice. I am however, surprisingly pleased that so many readers are also connecting with Jesse. I wanted the latter chapters of the book to show them how human and vulnerable he really was, and to understand why he did what he did during the time he was with Isabel. He is a good guy, just like Alex. Alex and Jesse are very different in personalities but essentially good. I am actually happy that people are asking about him and wanting to know what his future looked like after the end of Book 1.
Alisha: Okay, this leads us to the next question: Which character do you feel you portrayed yourself in the most? Who is you’re favourite and who do you relate to?
Christine: If I told you, I’d be opening myself up to the whole world! Let’s just say that the people in this book are real. Let’s leave it at that. For now. The Street Team knows. :)
Alisha: Well I can certainly relate your characters to people I’ve had past experiences with, particularly Jesse as the possessive, controlling boyfriend. Did you use anyone who you’ve ever known as a template for any of your characters?
Christine: I think that’s the reason many women have sent me messages about how the book has touched them and evoked so many memories of their own experience with men like Jesse. Let me tell you that all of these characters are real people. One of my friends actually put it so eloquently when she said, “you just can’t make this s**t up.”
Alisha: I love that! It makes everything completely authentic. It’s also clear that readers respond and appreciate a storyline and characters that are realistic and relatable. So, how long did The Light In The Wound take to write?
Christine: It took me six months from start to finish to come up with a book that I was happy to release into the world. I kept on asking my author friends, how do I know I’m done? And just like that, I knew I was done.
Alisha: Reading you book for the first time, I noticed that your style of writing is very structured and polished. Have you always been writing or is it a skill you recently discovered?
Christine: I have always loved to write. This is my very first book so I guess I recently discovered how much I really needed to do this.
Alisha: What message do you think resonates throughout the telling of your story? What is the overall moral?
Christine: I think that there are so many messages in this story whether you look at it from the perspective of first love, true love, family or relationships. What is most special to me about this story is the fact that just because we are inclined to become a product of our early life, we have the power to change things for the better and avoid the mistakes that were committed in the past.
Alisha: TLITW seems to come to the perfect conclusion, but is everything really said and done, and do you plan to compensate Jesse in Mystery Book 2?
Christine: To be completely honest with you, TLITW was supposed to be a stand alone book. I am writing Book 2 because I feel that Jesse still has a lot to say about what has happened over the years. So I will tell you that I have temporarily placed my originally planned second book to finish his story. The words are flowing and so I know that I have made the right decision.
Alisha: I’m sure getting inside Jesse’s head will be a much anticipated journey. Finally Christine, do you have anything to tease us with to keep us hanging until Book 2’s release next year?
Christine: I have an awesome Street Team that will be privy to all of the inside information on Book 2. People need to join it if they want to be in the know.
For more The Light In The Wound gossip and inside book 2 teasers, visit Christine’s page on Goodreads or join the Street Team group on Facebook.

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