Please welcome Toni for a tell-all :)
How did you first meet your writer?
My writer
initially thought I would look and act like her daughter, but as time went on,
I proved I was my own character. Nothing against the daughter, but I am just
not her.
Did you ever think that your life
would end up being in a book?
I love being
in a book. I can speak to the world. Sometimes it annoys me when my author
tells everyone what I’m thinking, however.
What are your favorite scenes in
your book: the action, the dialog or the romance?
I love all the action in my book. The shark
attack scene was pretty cool, except while we were fighting off sharks, I had
to watch my boyfriend take off with another girl. I admit I got a little
jealous.
Did you have a hard time convincing
your author to write any particular scenes for you?
My author
isn’t a big fan of guns. But one of our shipmates smuggled one on the boat, and
it has turned out to be pretty handy to have, even though the adults we meet aren’t
thrilled to have a boatload of kids with a gun living on their island.
Do you infiltrate your writer’s
dreams?
Ha! All the
time. She wakes up thinking about me. But I also love to speak to her when
she’s driving. It’s funny when she ends up missing her freeway exits because
she’s listening to me.
What do you like to do when you are
not being actively read somewhere?
I love to just hang out with Takumi, my
boyfriend. Alone time is hard to find when we are on the boat, so we will sit
up on the bow of the boat, and snuggle. On the island we sneak away.
Are you happy with the genre your
writer has placed you in?
Are you kidding? No! My world has turned upside
down. I should be a normal happy highschool student, waiting to be asked to the
Homecoming Dance. Instead I live on a sailboat with a lot of other kids while
the world around us falls apart. We’re crowded, there are no hospitals or
cities left. We depend on each other, but we also annoy each other. I’m angry
my writer put me here and things just seem to keep getting worse.
If you could rewrite anything in
your book, what would it be?
I would make one of the characters we meet on
the island, Kat, not so pretty. In one scene, Kat and my boyfriend Takumi go
off kayaking. Takumi gets stung by a stingray and almost drowns. When I find
them, Kat is holding him in the water. She is in her underwear. That was bad
enough, but did she really have to be wearing a pink bra? Really?
Do you like the way the book ended?
I’m very happy with the ending of Book Two. We
still have lots to do, but the author gave us some time off. Very cool.
Would you be interested in a sequel,
if your writer was so inclined?
Yes. I have to find my parents, the others
have to find their families, and I’m dying to know if Zoe, my brothers annoying
girlfriend, really is pregnant.
What is your least favorite
characteristic your writer has attributed to you?
I think I already mentioned this, but I get
jealous really easy. I’m not proud of it.
Do have any secret aspirations that
your author doesn’t know about?
Yes. I want to go back to Seattle someday. I
know it’s frozen over now, but I hope someday it will thaw, and I can go back.
What
is your greatest fear?
My greatest fear is I won’t find my parents.
And I couldn’t stand to lose any more of the crew. I fell apart when my brother
died in the first book.
What
do you wear when you go to sleep?
Lots and lots of layers.
Being chased by an ice age makes one cold.
What
is your most prized possession?
My parent’s sailboat is by far my most prized
possession. In a world gone crazy, being able to travel with the wind, and
having a home, is beyond valuable.
Who was your first boyfriend and
what do you like most about them?
Takumi is my
first boyfriend. He is handsome, (of course) and he knows so much stuff. But
the best thing about him is he is calm. All the time. He’s my rock.
What do you think your greatest
weakness is?
Well, this
is hard. I’ve been growing. At first I was terrified to leave Seattle on our
sailboat without my parents. I let my brothers make all the decisions. But now,
I’m co-captain of the boat and very little scares me. I’m mostly afraid I’ll
make a wrong decision and one of the crew will be hurt.
What do you think is your strongest
attribute?
I’m pretty good at listening and finding ways
to get things done. And I diffuse conflicts pretty well.
What are you proudest of?
I’m proud
that we are all still alive! I think we handle ourselves pretty well. Nature
has thrown everything at us. And it seems the adults we meet want to steal our
boat, take our guns away, or criticize how we’re caring for the little girl on
our boat. It gets exhausting.
What embarrasses you?
It is hard to be with Takumi with my brother
around, but I’m getting used to it.
What is something no one knows about
you? Why do you keep it a secret? And what would happen if everyone found out
about it?
When I was
riding my bike to the sailboat the morning we learned about the disaster
coming, I passed by a black dog that was tied to a post. I should have stopped
and brought it with me. It could have run alongside my bike. I was too scared
I’d be left behind I didn’t stop. I keep it a secret because it’s painful, but
also because I know the rest of the crew probably had similar decisions they
made and probably regret.
What do you find most appealing in men?
I like men that are strong enough to be
gentle. Does that make sense? Takumi is big and strong, wise, and lets me be
me.
What do you find most unappealing in
men?
I hate me,
me, me, people. My brother’s girlfriend is a me, me, person. Everything
revolves around her. I don’t’ know why my brother even likes her.
What is your vivid memory of your
mother and father?
I remember
building sand castles on Alki Beach one sunny day in Seattle. My mom, dad, and
brothers Cole and Dylan were there and we ate fish and chips from a take-out
place. Just a simple summer day. It’s hard to think that the beach is gone and
the city is covered in ice.
What word makes you the happiest? Family
What is your least favorite word? Not sure here. Tsunami? Dystopian?
What turns you on? Being warm and well fed.
What turns you off? Cold, saltwater showers.
What sound or noise do you love? The sound of gentle ways splashing
the shore.
What sound or noise do you hate? The voice of my brother’s
girlfriend.
What
would you not like to do? I am anxious to find my family, but
I don’t think I can go back to being the little girl, the daughter again. I
probably won’t live with them. Sounds harsh, I know.
Do you believe in ghosts/evil
spirits/mysticism? Would you spend the night in a remote haunted house?
This is easy. Yes. I’d give anything to spend the night in a house. Any
house. Haunted or otherwise. There’s nothing a ghost or evil spirit could do to
us that would be worse than what nature has done.
Are you a morning person or a
night owl?
We don’t even notice time anymore. When we are sailing, we sleep when we
can. Someone has to be on deck all the time. On the island, we kept up the
schedule. You can’t let your guard down.
Would you ever use a voodoo doll
to hurt anyone? No.
What is your most favorite
memory?
It’s strange. Although it has only been a month, memories of my life before
the tsunami are fading. But I still love recalling how my brother Cole kissed
the top of my head, and the look on Takumi’s face when he tried to get us all
to eat seaweed the first time was so funny.
If you knew a zombie apocalypse
was coming in one week, what would you do?
Exactly what I just did. Take off in a sailboat.
How do you react when people sing
“Happy Birthday” to you in a restaurant?
A restaurant? If I could go to a restaurant again, people could sing or
shout anything they wanted at me. What I’d give for a burger and fries. And
smoothies. I loved smoothies. Don’t get me started on food.
Have you ever gone alone to
either dinner or a movie? What about a vacation?
Going anywhere alone isn’t safe anymore, but someday. And it would feel
amazing.
What’s your favorite animal?
We rescued a little wiener dog. He’s
cute and has turned out to be a pretty good watch dog, although he also barks
at every dolphin and seagulls that passes by.
Have you ever thought about
getting a tattoo, what would it be and where? If not, what if you had to?
Humm. Not on my list right now, but maybe someday I will get a tattoo. If
there are still tattoo artists. I think I’d have an anchor. I’d like to find a
home for not only me, but our boat. Yes. I’d like an anchor, but also Takumi’s
name. We are going to be together forever. Do you hear me, writer!
Thanks again for visiting
with us today !!!!
* * * * *
BEACHED
(Knockdown,
book 2)
by
Brenda Beem
Released:
October 30, 2015
YA
Contemporary Suspense
Toni and the
young crew of the sailboat, Whistler, have just found a safe harbor. Or
so they thought...
They may
have survived a tsunami, but they’re racing ahead of an ice age as they continue
the frantic search for their families.
The island
they’ve anchored near is anything but safe. Dangerous men lurk nearby—along
with snakes, stingrays, and sharks. An island girl threatens to destroy Toni
and her boyfriend’s relationship, the youngest member of the crew gets lost in
a narrow dark cave, and Zoë is more annoying than ever.
Will Toni
and her crew survive the island and its treacherous waters?
14+
due to sexuality and adult situations
The first
book in the series, KNOCKDOWN, won first place at the Houston Writers Guild.
BEACHED
Buy Links: Evernight
Teen Amazon
Excerpt:
Makala
struggled in Jeremy’s arms and whimpered.
A young
couple standing at the edge of camp stepped forward. “We came here to make sure
the gun didn’t fall into the wrong hands.” The young woman stared at Jeremy.
“You’re the wrong hands. Put the gun down before someone gets hurt.”
“Enough!”
Jeremy turned in a slow circle, the pistol still pointed at Makala. “Listen up!
I’m going down to the beach and tell the kids on that boat that if they want
their friends back, they’ll have to give us the sailboat. Anyone who helps me
can come with us. If you try and stop me, the girl gets hurt.”
The young
couple shook their heads and backed away.
“Help us!” I
pleaded.
A man with a
beer belly shook his finger at me. “This is your fault. You brought the gun to
our island.”
My mouth
dropped open. “The convicts brought a gun here. If we hadn’t shown up, they
would have made your lives miserable.”
A young man
with a beard stepped toward Jeremy. “Come on, bro. Hand over the gun.”
Jeremy aimed
at the sand in front of the young man and pulled the trigger.
I held my
hands over my ears.
Makala and
Sophia screamed.
Jeremy
turned the gun on the young man. “If you aren’t with me, you should leave.”
The young
man raised his hands in the air. Most of the group gathered on the beach
followed his example. After a few minutes, one by one they left.
Kat, her
father, and six of the younger guys stayed. The young guys shifted from one
foot to another. I wanted to scream. We’d saved these people from the convicts.
We’d risked our lives for them.
Jeremy signaled
for us to start moving. “Head to the beach. I’ll follow with Makala… Anyone
makes a wrong move, the girl gets a bullet.” Kat and her father started down
the path. Four island guys followed after them. Two held tightly onto Nick’s
arms. Angelina stayed close to Jeremy and Makala.
Sophia clung
to her father’s leg.
“You!”
Jeremy pointed the gun at me. “Take my daughter’s hand and make sure she
doesn’t fall.”
I reached
for Sophia. She screamed, “Mommy!” and darted off into the woods before I could
grab her.
“Stop her!”
Jeremy yelled at me.
“No!”
Sophia’s mother arrived back in the clearing. “I heard the gunshot. I’ll find
her. We’ll meet you on the beach.”
Jeremy
stared at his wife. “If you don’t show up, I’ll come looking for you. Don’t let
that happen.”
She took off
after her daughter. “Sophia, it’s Mommy. Where are you?” Her cries grew faint
as she moved farther and farther away.
While we
hiked down the steep path, we peeked through openings in the trees and brush,
and watched Whistler’s progress. I kept shaking my head. How had my
plan failed so badly?
When we got
to the beach, I couldn’t take my eyes off Whistler. It was sailing
too fast. It should have lowered its sails and needed to drop anchor.
I limped
faster. “Kat, they aren’t slowing down. Something’s wrong.” Kat and I began to
run. The others followed close behind.
“Slow down!”
Jeremy yelled. I didn’t know if he was talking to me or to the boat. I ignored
him and moved as fast as my ankle would allow. When we got to the shore, I
stared in horror. The sails were still up. The boat was headed straight for the
beach.
Without
thinking, I limped into the water and headed to the spot where Whistler would
crash. Kat and her dad pulled me back. “You can’t stop the boat!”
“It’s going
to hit the beach! We have to do something.” I screamed. “Dylan! Takumi! Drop
the sails!”
No one
answered. I could see people on deck, but it was so dark, I couldn’t tell who.
Whistler was only a few yards off the
beach.
A shot rang
out from the boat.
Loud voices
began arguing.
Dylan
yelled, “Grab the day anchor!”
Whistler kept coming.
The sails
were still up.
The hull of
the boat hit the rocky shore.
There was a
terrible crunching sound. The bow was held fast.
Whistler was beached.
Author bio:
Brenda has
always lived in the shadow of Mt. Rainer, a rumbling volcano, and the many
waters of the Pacific Northwest.
Her idea of
heaven is a book in one hand and a glass of wine in the other.
She now
lives on Lake Washington, close to Seattle, with her husband. She loves to
kayak and watch the resident eagles soar. Her sailboat, Whistler, is in a
marina a short ways away. Summers are spent sailing the inland seas of
Washington and Canada.
Website: http://www.brendabeem.com
Giveaway: $25 Amazon Gift Card
Hello Brenda Beem!
ReplyDeleteI'd love to know what's on your bookshelf?
Everything from Shakespeare to J,K. Rowling. I was an English major in college.
DeleteWho is your inspiration?
ReplyDeleteMy writing group keeps me inspired.
Delete