Me. Tell us a little about yourself and your background?
Cory. I like your more specific questions and will answer them with too many words.
Me. What were you like at school?
Cory. Like many teenagers, I thought I had it all figured out in school, and I used my editorial section in the school newspaper to prattle on about things I had no real clear views on, which I proved with over-flowery description and a thesaurus. Some years, I was hyper-involved in clubs and extra-curriculars, other years I was not and had less fun.
Me. Were you good at English?
Cory. The only English teacher I ever had that didn't love me was the one in whose class I mercilessly knotted my best friend's shoe strings around his desk legs. I'm a firm believer that movies in school are a waste of time and invitation to such shenanigans. I could remember English rules that even the straight-A students forgot and my creative writing assignments always brought sparkles to my teachers' eyes.
Me. What are your ambitions for your writing career?
Cory. Other than a halfhearted desire to be great, I strive to keep writing until my stories are all told. I don't have the luxury of inspiration until I actually sit down to write, and the words and stories that come out seem beyond my ability to foreordain. The plus side is that the story is as exciting to me getting it written as it is to the person reading it for the first time. The less plus side is that I'd really love to write a high fantasy adventure, but none have come out yet.
Me. Which writers inspire you?
Cory. All. Even if their stories or their methods don't do it for me, there is something to admire in any writer getting it done. For instance, I keep longing for the dream that will drive me to awaken the next day and pen a popular trilogy the way Twilight came to Stephenie Meyer (even though I couldn't bring myself to finish reading said trilogy). And, though I could wrap myself eternally in the diverse perfection of Hemingway's word choice and storytelling, the idea of getting drunk and scribbling the next great American novel makes me realize greatness is not in the cards for me if that is how greatness is written. I've never read a book that completely lacked something (no matter how minute) to appreciate; I learn something important about writing every time I read.
Me. So, what have you written?
Cory. "Swamp Song" is the only published title to my name. I have rough-drafted its sequel "Swamp Song Reprise" and another young adult story which is set in high school and revolves around a socially outcast psychic and the popular girl of his dreams called "She Likes:". He predicted the day she would move to his high school and knew he would fall in love at first sight. He can read her mind and knows every little thing she can't stand about him. He has seen the future and knows his love for her goes unrequited. I call it an anti-love story. It deals a lot with fate and the mutable nature of the future. Are things set in stone regardless of the choices we make today, or do we actively shape our destinies? There is a lot of humor and it fills the bleachers with fans waving flags for the underdog.
Me. Give us an insight into your main character (*Swamp Song). What does he/she do that is so special?
Cory. Jonathan Preen, the thing he does that is so special and earns him the attention of the life-changing, adventurous spirit of this novel is...nothing. At least nothing when compared to his potential. He is a classically-trained violinist who began instruction when he was four years old. When he was five, he met his uncle for the first time who, by way of introduction, unleashed some serious Cajun fiddling on the boy, forever changing the way he wanted to play music. By the time Jonathan is in his early twenties and the novel begins, he is off-track of all the dreams he had as a youth, estranged from his family, and trying to get that same uncle back into his grave after just attending his funeral. Yeah, that's probably what makes Jonathan so special: his uncle's undying interest in his potential and his future.
Me. What genre are your books?
Cory. There is a subsection of Young Adult books which narrows the genre further called New Adult. These books feature a protagonist that is 18 to 25 years old, facing the kinds of decisions and challenges of young people also this age. Considering Jonathan does a lot of growing in this book, is a college drop-out, and is haunted by a lot of the same questions as this age group, I consider this a good fit. But Swamp Song has a lot of elements: mystery, romance, paranormal, and strong themes of the importance of family.
Me. What draws you to this genre?
Cory. I didn't set out writing for a particular genre. When I began writing Swamp Song in 2011, I was a new mother and just getting back into reading. I have a mantra: "you can't unread something you have read," and I was coming across a lot of books that were engaging and told with incredible language, but had parts that offended me deeply. The kinds of things you find stuck, rolling around in your head during down periods throughout the day and when you can't sleep at night. I wanted to write a story that was a little quirky, off the beaten path, and full of great imagery and words, but bereft of the kinds of things that separate people from their happiest thoughts. Not to say that Swamp Song doesn't deal with some heavy issues, but it does so from a place of hope and a higher road.
Me. Which actor/actress would you like to see playing the lead character from your most recent book?
Cory. My mom says Swamp Song needs to be a movie...moms are supposed to say that kind of thing, right =) She has suggestions for who I need to get for certain roles, but I see people in the community sometimes who I think would be perfect. There was a boy at a corner booth the first time I went to Arby's who was Jonathan, come to life off the pages. Jonthan's uncle Perry has always been the step dad of one of my grade school friends (with a couple of extra parts). Jonathan's grandmother Na'an is the only one I've cast in Hollywood: Judi Dench.
Me. Where do your ideas come from?
Cory. Life, tempered or enhanced by my imagination. It is natural for me to turn norms on their heads, then a character is born. I've never had the luxury of starting a novel with more than the spark of an intriguing character--but I'll take even that!
Me. Do you work to an outline or plot or do you prefer to just see where an idea takes you?
Cory. Outlines are necessary...eventually. Not having a clear idea, when I begin, where a story should go makes outlining impossible. The outline comes later to straighten out the kinks. It's fun when the ending is as much a surprise for me as it will someday be for a reader.
Me. Do you read much and if so who are your favorite authors.
Cory. I like to always have a book going, and sometimes it piles up to two or three. If I'm entertaining children, the first thing I always test is their receptiveness to books. I'm currently teaching my four-year-old to read which will probably be the coolest thing I ever give her--that and a steady supply of books. Most of the authors I like, I like for their command of the language: Ernest Hemingway, Scott Fitzgerald, and Charles Bukowski. I've been lucky enough to find a few who tell a tale to forever impact my heart and mind, and who do it with absolute style: Neil Gaiman, Diana Wynne-Jones, and William Gibson. My current tippy-toppest most favorite book of all time is The Chronicles of Chrestomanci Vol. I by Diana Wynne-Jones.
Me. How do you relax?
Cory. Biting my nails. Finding those moments to read that last longer than an hour. Putting my children's hands in mine and putting my husband's head together with mine (we do our best thinkings together).
Me. What is your favorite quote?
Cory. My favorite quotes come in those moments in life--call them epiphanies, they could even be moments of personal revelation when God speaks directly to me--and something I've been pondering becomes so precise, simple, quotable, clear. I write them down in my journal and sometimes in my stories, but I won't share anything specific here. I'll just say: my favorite quotes come from God and there are whole books filled with them--some absolutely sacred and some simply divinely inspired.
Me. Where can you see yourself in 5 years time?
Cory. Surrounded by family, full of love, and still very much hard at work at that simple thing called "inspiration."
Me. How can readers discover more about you and you work?
Cory. www.facebook.com/corymartinwrites
amazon.com/author/corymartinwrites
Me. What were you like at school?
Cory. Like many teenagers, I thought I had it all figured out in school, and I used my editorial section in the school newspaper to prattle on about things I had no real clear views on, which I proved with over-flowery description and a thesaurus. Some years, I was hyper-involved in clubs and extra-curriculars, other years I was not and had less fun.
Me. Were you good at English?
Cory. The only English teacher I ever had that didn't love me was the one in whose class I mercilessly knotted my best friend's shoe strings around his desk legs. I'm a firm believer that movies in school are a waste of time and invitation to such shenanigans. I could remember English rules that even the straight-A students forgot and my creative writing assignments always brought sparkles to my teachers' eyes.
Me. What are your ambitions for your writing career?
Cory. Other than a halfhearted desire to be great, I strive to keep writing until my stories are all told. I don't have the luxury of inspiration until I actually sit down to write, and the words and stories that come out seem beyond my ability to foreordain. The plus side is that the story is as exciting to me getting it written as it is to the person reading it for the first time. The less plus side is that I'd really love to write a high fantasy adventure, but none have come out yet.
Me. Which writers inspire you?
Cory. All. Even if their stories or their methods don't do it for me, there is something to admire in any writer getting it done. For instance, I keep longing for the dream that will drive me to awaken the next day and pen a popular trilogy the way Twilight came to Stephenie Meyer (even though I couldn't bring myself to finish reading said trilogy). And, though I could wrap myself eternally in the diverse perfection of Hemingway's word choice and storytelling, the idea of getting drunk and scribbling the next great American novel makes me realize greatness is not in the cards for me if that is how greatness is written. I've never read a book that completely lacked something (no matter how minute) to appreciate; I learn something important about writing every time I read.
Me. So, what have you written?
Cory. "Swamp Song" is the only published title to my name. I have rough-drafted its sequel "Swamp Song Reprise" and another young adult story which is set in high school and revolves around a socially outcast psychic and the popular girl of his dreams called "She Likes:". He predicted the day she would move to his high school and knew he would fall in love at first sight. He can read her mind and knows every little thing she can't stand about him. He has seen the future and knows his love for her goes unrequited. I call it an anti-love story. It deals a lot with fate and the mutable nature of the future. Are things set in stone regardless of the choices we make today, or do we actively shape our destinies? There is a lot of humor and it fills the bleachers with fans waving flags for the underdog.
Me. Give us an insight into your main character (*Swamp Song). What does he/she do that is so special?
Cory. Jonathan Preen, the thing he does that is so special and earns him the attention of the life-changing, adventurous spirit of this novel is...nothing. At least nothing when compared to his potential. He is a classically-trained violinist who began instruction when he was four years old. When he was five, he met his uncle for the first time who, by way of introduction, unleashed some serious Cajun fiddling on the boy, forever changing the way he wanted to play music. By the time Jonathan is in his early twenties and the novel begins, he is off-track of all the dreams he had as a youth, estranged from his family, and trying to get that same uncle back into his grave after just attending his funeral. Yeah, that's probably what makes Jonathan so special: his uncle's undying interest in his potential and his future.
Me. What genre are your books?
Cory. There is a subsection of Young Adult books which narrows the genre further called New Adult. These books feature a protagonist that is 18 to 25 years old, facing the kinds of decisions and challenges of young people also this age. Considering Jonathan does a lot of growing in this book, is a college drop-out, and is haunted by a lot of the same questions as this age group, I consider this a good fit. But Swamp Song has a lot of elements: mystery, romance, paranormal, and strong themes of the importance of family.
Me. What draws you to this genre?
Cory. I didn't set out writing for a particular genre. When I began writing Swamp Song in 2011, I was a new mother and just getting back into reading. I have a mantra: "you can't unread something you have read," and I was coming across a lot of books that were engaging and told with incredible language, but had parts that offended me deeply. The kinds of things you find stuck, rolling around in your head during down periods throughout the day and when you can't sleep at night. I wanted to write a story that was a little quirky, off the beaten path, and full of great imagery and words, but bereft of the kinds of things that separate people from their happiest thoughts. Not to say that Swamp Song doesn't deal with some heavy issues, but it does so from a place of hope and a higher road.
Me. Which actor/actress would you like to see playing the lead character from your most recent book?
Cory. My mom says Swamp Song needs to be a movie...moms are supposed to say that kind of thing, right =) She has suggestions for who I need to get for certain roles, but I see people in the community sometimes who I think would be perfect. There was a boy at a corner booth the first time I went to Arby's who was Jonathan, come to life off the pages. Jonthan's uncle Perry has always been the step dad of one of my grade school friends (with a couple of extra parts). Jonathan's grandmother Na'an is the only one I've cast in Hollywood: Judi Dench.
Me. Where do your ideas come from?
Cory. Life, tempered or enhanced by my imagination. It is natural for me to turn norms on their heads, then a character is born. I've never had the luxury of starting a novel with more than the spark of an intriguing character--but I'll take even that!
Me. Do you work to an outline or plot or do you prefer to just see where an idea takes you?
Cory. Outlines are necessary...eventually. Not having a clear idea, when I begin, where a story should go makes outlining impossible. The outline comes later to straighten out the kinks. It's fun when the ending is as much a surprise for me as it will someday be for a reader.
Me. Do you read much and if so who are your favorite authors.
Cory. I like to always have a book going, and sometimes it piles up to two or three. If I'm entertaining children, the first thing I always test is their receptiveness to books. I'm currently teaching my four-year-old to read which will probably be the coolest thing I ever give her--that and a steady supply of books. Most of the authors I like, I like for their command of the language: Ernest Hemingway, Scott Fitzgerald, and Charles Bukowski. I've been lucky enough to find a few who tell a tale to forever impact my heart and mind, and who do it with absolute style: Neil Gaiman, Diana Wynne-Jones, and William Gibson. My current tippy-toppest most favorite book of all time is The Chronicles of Chrestomanci Vol. I by Diana Wynne-Jones.
Me. How do you relax?
Cory. Biting my nails. Finding those moments to read that last longer than an hour. Putting my children's hands in mine and putting my husband's head together with mine (we do our best thinkings together).
Me. What is your favorite quote?
Cory. My favorite quotes come in those moments in life--call them epiphanies, they could even be moments of personal revelation when God speaks directly to me--and something I've been pondering becomes so precise, simple, quotable, clear. I write them down in my journal and sometimes in my stories, but I won't share anything specific here. I'll just say: my favorite quotes come from God and there are whole books filled with them--some absolutely sacred and some simply divinely inspired.
Me. Where can you see yourself in 5 years time?
Cory. Surrounded by family, full of love, and still very much hard at work at that simple thing called "inspiration."
Me. How can readers discover more about you and you work?
Cory. www.facebook.com/corymartinwrites
amazon.com/author/corymartinwrites
Here is the link to her first novel, "Swamp Song."
http://www.amazon.com/Swamp-Song-Cory-Martin/dp/1493718487/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1402286145&sr=8-1&keywords=swamp+song+martin
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