Book info:
Title: Kiss Cam
Author: Kiara London
Published by: Swoon Reads
Publication date: October 18th, 2016
Genres: Romance, Young Adult
In Kiss Cam, teen author Kiara London asks, what’s a little harmless kissing between friends?
Juniper, Jasper, and Lenny have been friends forever and co-own a vlog channel called WereVloggingHere. Their fans are huge “shippers” who believe that Juniper and Jasper are perfect for each other, and, despite warnings from friends and family, a simple Truth-or-Dare inspired kiss soon spirals out of control into a whole new world of making out and surprise kisses.
Juniper and Jasper’s relationship begins to shift. But as fan requests for different “Kiss Cam” segments keep pouring in, Juniper puts her worries aside and convinces herself that it doesn’t mean anything. After all, it’s just kissing… right?
Author Interview:
1.
What does your writing process look like? Do you know the whole story when you
start? Or do you just start writing and
go with it (seat of the pants writing)?
If you plan it out, how do you do that?
Outline, note cards, post-it notes, etc.?
Honestly, I don’t really have a
process. I really do just wing it. I’ll start with an idea and think about how
I want to begin the story, the way I want it to end, and then hope and pray
everything just falls into place while I’m writing. I keep a notebook handy. If
I don’t have that I’ll type little things into my phone. I write on little
bursts of inspiration. I quickly write down bits of imagined dialogue and
setting and then look for places to incorporate that as the story progresses.
Sometimes I never use some of the stuff I write down.
2.
How do you come up with your ideas for your stories?
By observation. Kiss Cam was
born from observing loads of fangirls on Youtube and Tumblr. I take ideas from
what I see or from what I feel. For Kiss Cam I didn’t have a real issue
I wanted to discuss or elude to in the book, I just wanted to tell a story the
ultimate fangirl would want to read. For other stories I’ve written, I’ve taken
inspiration from personal experience. It’s pretty circumstantial.
3.
How long have you been writing?
I wrote my first complete book when I
was around thirteen or fourteen. But, I would always write little short stories
even as a kid. I’ve always had a story to tell, that’s for sure. But, as far as
how long I’ve taken writing more seriously? It’s probably been about six years
now.
4.
What tips do you have for aspiring writers?
I always seem to say this but:
1. Write what
you want to write. So what if it’s cliché, risky, or unheard of. If it makes
you happy, write it.
2. Don’t expect the first draft to be perfect. The longer you dwell on
perfection that the longer it’s going to take you to even get the story out.
3. Read. Never
stop reading. Read tons of different books by different authors in different
genres. But never compare their writing to yours. Learn from them. Find what
you like in terms of style. Study their diction, character development,
introduction of conflict. It’s all good learning material.
4. Not a
professional? Neither am I. Fake it until you make it.
5. Be open to
advice.
6. Stop worrying
about the word count. Not every chapter needs to be a perfect 2,500 words.
7. Daydreams are
fuel. Imagination is fuel. If you’ve got a story to tell, do it. You never know
how many people have wanted to read a book like yours until it’s written.
Favorites:
Books/authors/genres
Time-Period specific books &
Adventure with a swoony love affair
Movies/TV Shows
Friends & Stranger Things (Unlimited movie loves)
Music
Anything by Marianas Trench &
Troye Sivan
Food/writing snack
Popcorn & Mayan hot chocolate
Social Media Site
Tumblr stole my life
and I can’t get it back.
About Author:
Kiara London is the internet savvy, hopelessly romantic alter ego of Bethany Novak-Tveten, who in real life is part of the US Air Force. She started writing on the online writing site Booksie when she was thirteen and then transferred to Wattpad where her debut novel Kiss Cam was originally posted. She spends most of her time scrolling down Tumblr, attempting to read everything she can get her hands on, and drooling over fictional men.
