The Secret Adventures of WriterGirl

Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now): Time Only Knows by Stuart Chatwood (Prince of Persia video game soundtrack)



Oh my GOODNESS!!! I glanced at my followers today and saw I had gone up to 35 (made me terribly happy. Did a little dance and everything). Then I decided to go over and say hello and see who had found my little blog. It’s only good manners, after all. So I was holding my little cursor over each of my new friends when a name flashed up: Jordan Mechner. I stopped. My heart did a little flip flop. My thoughts went “either that is a very strange name coincidence or…” I clicked on it. I was right. It was THE Jordan Mechner, writer of the Prince of Persia video game franchise!

How did he know? Can he possibly know that I love Prince of Persia with every fiber of my being? How did he even know I existed? Let me tell you – I love Prince of Persia. I cannot tell you how much, especially The Sands of Time (and The Two Thrones). All-time favorite game. No exaggeration. And now he’s a follower of my blog. I may die and go to heaven right now. The game was impeccable, the concept brilliant, the bantering dialogue between the hero and heroine priceless. And he made such believable characters of the prince and Farah that I fell in love with them both. Loved it. So in love with it. I will even admit, I once even harbored the fangirl notion of writing a novelization for The Sands of Time. Far-fetched and basically impossible I know, but it was the first time I ever considered something like that (the little girl inside of me still wishes for it). That’s how much I am in love with this game, and consequently, the writer. Put another way, I’m the kind of girl who knew there was going to be a movie made of The Sands of Time three years ago, when it was first announced (and that it will star Jake Gyllenhaal. That’s just cool).

I don’t know how he found my blog, but if he ever told me, I may swoon and die of happiness (you can take that as a cue anytime, dear Mr. Mechner) :D I do apologize, but I needed to share my moment of pure rapture at finding one of my writing/video game idols in a place I would never ever expect. Thank you Mr. Mechner for all your wonderful work. I’ll stop screaming now.

Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now): Lord Willowbies Welcome Home by Elizabeth Farr.



Today I am ecstatic to tell you that we have the fantastic and wonderfully talented Cindy Pon here on The Secret Adventures of Writer-Girl. Cindy is amazingly sweet and so open to her fans, which I love. Her novel, Silver Phoenix, is an Asian fantasy, which I think is pure awesome because it combines two of my favorite loves. She graciously agreed to do an in-depth interview, but she did request that I mention that this interview contains SPOILERS, so please be warned. (I thought I had done a great job of avoiding spoilers, turning a phrase just the right way, but no. I see how there are plenty of SPOILERS to be had. Sigh). However, there is a really cool hint about what her next book is about (second to last quest for the non-spoiler readers). So without further ado, here is Cindy Pon with her debut novel, Silver Phoenix.


P.S Beth over at Writing it Out has informed me that she has posted her review of Silver Phoenix on her blog. Isn't that pleasantly happy? :)


CONTAINS SPOILERS (but if you don't care, or have already read it, read on! Tis an awesome interview).


[ME]: Silver Phoenix - will we ever get to hear her story more fully? I was totally taken in with her character, even if she was mentioned so little.

[CP]: Yes! You'll learn more about Silver Phoenix in the sequel!


[ME]: What made you think to defeat Zhong Ye how you did? It was a way I had never thought of before, but perhaps the greatest deception of all.

[CP]: The climax scene was always there in my mind, along with the kiss. I just didn't know how the story would wind itself there to make sense. Thankfully, it did. I liked the irony that Ai Ling left home to avoid a betrothal, only to walk straight into another. It also made sense to me that Zhong Ye's guard would be down, that'd he'd equate Ai Ling to Silver Phoenix, and assume their love and connection would be instant.

Of course, he didn't suspect his past lover's (Silver Phoenix's) motivation either.


[ME]: Besides the Life-Seeker, what monsters were your own creation?

[CP]: Ha! was the life seeker obvious? But what she did is pretty much in line with Chinese folklore. Alluring women seduce men only to turn into something monstrous (like the snake demon).

With the exception of the snake demon and the one-armed tribe, all other monsters and demons were from my own imagination.

[ME]: You have mentioned that you felt this story was about unrequited loved and that it felt complete to you as a stand-alone title (despite people pleading with you for a sequel. Screaming, in some cases) :) What made you want to decide to write a story about unrequited love? It certainly isn't an approach most authors take. Were you ever afraid of the risk of how it would be received?

[CP]: I felt it was fitting to the story. Chen Yong isn't at a place to wed--he's still
searching for his identity and also recently lost Li Rong. That doesn't make it a place for him to be open to love. I felt that the ending stayed true to the storyline as well as my characters--that Ai Ling would be too fearful to let her feelings be known. That Chen Yong's mind isn't exactly on romance.

I wanted to write about unrequited love because it's all I knew as a teen and in college. Ha! Seriously.

I never realized how unusual it was, and I'm very thankful that my editor allowed me to keep it as is.

For those who read the novel and were not happy with my ending, take heart, there's always the sequel. Tho honestly, if the book was stand alone, the ending would have remained exactly the same.


[ME]: Why is it the demons never tried to attack Ai Ling before her journey started?

[CP]: Because she wasn't a threat until she started to make her way to the palace. In my mind, the giving of that jade necklace catapulted her from the normal world into a fantastic one.


[ME]: Since you weren't originally planning on a sequel - how did you originally foresee the rest of Ai Ling's life being like?

[CP]: Oh, but I did have the seeds of a sequel in mind. I didn't write toward it, but after I finished the novel, I realized there could be more. I just never started it because I knew how much I had emotionally invested into the novel, not to mention the work and time. I couldn't bring myself to write the sequel unless I knew I could sale the first book!

There's a dream sequence Chen Yong has of leaving home and traveling on a ship. Then at the end, I knew he would go abroad to find his birth father. it naturally lent itself to another book.


[ME]: What is your favorite scene, personally?

[CP]:The scene in the bamboo forest. The climax is a close second.



[ME]: Did you have to cut out anything you didn’t want to cut out? (editors or otherwise?)

[CP]: Honestly, not really. There were some phrases and prose I thought was genius on my part, but more likely over-written. Ha!


[ME]: Where is Jiang Dao? You say it is across the sea. Is there any real-life counterpart to it? (like in Lord of the Rings?) :)

[CP] Nope. I may draw on a culture for inspiration, but at this point, I'm really just making stuff up. =D


[ME]: Any hints as to what happens in the sequel? Just a little?

[CP]: The sequel will be a pre-sequel. At least, that is my hope. The prequel is Silver Phoenix and Zhong Ye's story three centuries prior. the sequel follows Ai Ling and Chen Yong to Jiang Dao. And somehow, the storylines will merge. *crosses fingers* =)


[ME]: Everyone in the blogosphere seems to be raving about the descriptions of food in your book (it's something I love about Ai Ling, by the way. What a unique trait to have! And that you modeled it after yourself is the best part of all). :D Can you share a simple Asian recipe with us that we could make ourselves? (it would be amazing if it was something from the book, but anything would be wonderful). You just tantalized us too much.

[CP]: Ha! Thank you! Unfortunately, I'm a eater, not a cook. =( My mom is a wonderful Chinese cook, but I never learned anything from her. One of my favorite dishes, however, is mapo tofu. Bean curd in a spicy sauce with minced pork. Soooooo good!!



Thank you so much Cindy, it was blast talking with you. But you know, I was still itching after all that mention of food you gave. So I took the liberty and found a recipe for Mapo Tofu (courtesy of the Washington Post). I hope it is as good as your mother's. Thank you again and we're greatly looking forward to your next installment.



"The Best" Mapo Tofu

--
Silver Phoenix : Beyond the Kingdom of Xia
Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins, April 28 '09

cindypon.com

Current Theme Song (aka what's on my ipod right now): I Still Love You by Stuart Chatwood (Prince of Persia video game soundtrack).


I really like Brandon Sanderson's work. From what I've seen, he is among one of today's best fantasy writers. There are very few writers where I have believed so much in their world and characters as I have in his. I am absolutely in love with his Mistborn series. They are so good, they deserve the honor of being labeled in the YA section (you can tell I think very highly of YA, and guess what? So does he). :) So when I found out that his newest book, Warbreaker (a standalone) was coming out, I rushed out and gleefully (dancing around Barnes and Noble with no shame, mind you) bought it. And then I found this video. Oh. my. goodness. Have you ever wanted to see how a cover for a book was made? The painter, Dan Dos Santos, has done a time-lapse of how he painted the cover for Warbreaker, and let me tell you, it is an absolutely gorgeous cover. I know that not all book covers are made this way (I found out some are even just stock photos. That made me cry inside a little). But that makes this all the more special. You will be astounded what he is able to do with this. Purple for a face? It really works. And is it simply incredible. Have a great weekend everyone!

Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now): Viva La Vida by Coldplay.


We are now winding up my week of what I did on my humanitarian trip to Thailand. Thank you so much for letting me share these with you. When I was over there, I took over 2,000 photographs. This last batch are just some that I love for the artistic value of them (as well as some fun ones of me). As you know, photography is one of my passions, and one of my secret abilities as Writer-Girl. :) I've been trying to keep my commentary to a minimum and let the photographs speak for themselves. Next week is going to be very exciting. We've got an author interview set up (which is totally tying in with this Asian theme, if that is any clue for you) ;) as well as announcing next month's contest. And keep a look out for Feature Fun Friday tomorrow, I found something incredibly awesome.





























Annnnnnnnnnnnnd... ELEPHANT! ^_^



Thanks everyone. This has really been the adventure of a lifetime being able to go over and serve the people of Thailand. I will never forget that place or the people there. But tomorrow is as much an adventure as today, and I don't want to miss any of it. See you tomorrow. :)

Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now) Clocks, cover by Twelve Girls Band (with ancient Chinese instruments. It's awesome).


Here is a taste of just how beautiful Thailand is. It is a place truly beyond words.