Author Interview: Renegade by Debra Driza (Blog Tour & Giveaway)

 

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Renegade (MILA 2.0 #2)
by Debra Driza
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Release Date: May 13th 2014
Find It: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

Summary
There is no one left for Mila to trust. Except for a boy she barely knows.

But Hunter has no idea who—and what—Mila really is. She can’t bear to reveal her secret, even though he’s unwittingly joined her search for Richard Grady, a man who may know more details of Mila’s complicated past.

Yet the road to the truth is more dangerous than ever. With General Holland and the Vita Obscura scouring the earth for her whereabouts, Mila must rely on her newfound android abilities to protect herself and Hunter from imminent harm. Still, embracing her identity as a machine leads her to question the state of her humanity—as well as Hunter’s real motives.

Perfect for fans of I Am Number Four and Divergent, this action-packed and heart-wrenching second installment of MILA 2.0 will leave readers breathlessly awaiting the series conclusion.

  

Jennifer: What were the best and most challenging parts of writing Renegade?

Debra: For me, one of the best parts of writing is always getting those scenes that play like movies in my head onto paper. Sure, the words might not be pretty at first, but it’s such a relief to FINALLY give life to a scene that has been plaguing me for days. For Renegade, that included the garage scene about three-fourths of the way into the story, and part of the climactic scene near the end (reamining vague so as not to spoil!)  Also, I loved writing some silly banter between Hunter and Mila! These books tend to be quite a bit more serious than my typical WIPs, so I always jump at the chance to add some humor. 

Challenging? Well, the MOST challenging part of writing Renegade is a total spoiler, so that’s out. Luckily, there are always plenty more challenges to chose from.  J   I struggled quite a bit with the dreaded Sequel Blues...trying to plot a book that must stand alone yet also serve as a bridge between books one and two was way more difficult than I had ever imagined!

 

Jennifer: What is your favorite part of the process of writing a book?

Debra: The deadline hovering over my head?   Wait, scratch that.  I really enjoy revising when it’s not a huge overhaul, but more a matter of making ugly early draft words pretty and more meaningful, fleshing out characters and scenes, adding in setting, etc.  Also, as I mentioned above, I love when I get a chance to translate those scenes that play like mind-movies onto paper. I enjoy exploring how characters grow along the way. I also love showing how characters recover from bad choices because let’s face it—we all make mistakes in life. I believe that facing challenges is what really makes you grow as a person, and I like guiding my characters through that journey.

 

Jennifer: If you were going to come up with a theme song for Renegade, what song would it be?

Debra: Okay, my knee-jerk reaction is to say Renegade Master by Wildchild and Fatboy Slim, for obvious ( literal) reasons. A song I listened to a ton while I wrote RENEAGDE (thanks to the fantastic rec by Kathleen Peacock) is Weapon by Matthew Good.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOee1xTUubc along with Titanium by David Guetta and Sia (although, it’s relaly hard to hear that song and not think of Pitch Perfect, right?)

 

Jennifer: Can you tell us a little about your experience in getting published?

Debra: Sure!  I started out trying to write a (really bad) Harlequin romance, but it tended to focus more on the secondary dog character than the human main characters, which as it turns out, is rather problematic. Maybe if I’d tried my hand at a canine romance?  Anyway. I took a baby-making hiatus and started up again several years later. By then, I was into YA and had just finished reading about Bella and Mr. Sparkle Pants, and as you might guess, my next book was heavily Twi-inspired, only set in college and without vampires. My next story was an urban fantasy that helped me land my wonderful agent, Taylor Martindale. We recieved several R&Rs but alas, no contract.  MILA 2.0 was the next book I wrote after that.

 

Jennifer: Can you tell us three surprising facts about yourself?

Debra: Oh, dear. Surprising?  Is the fact that I sometimes do The Worm in public places surprising?   Also, I’ve never taken a formal writing course, and I pinch really freaking hard...with my toes!

 

Jennifer: Finish this sentence: I cannot write without...

Debra: ....a penguin. Okay, that was the first thing that popped into my head and clearly it’s a fail (though, CUTENESS).  I’d say...caffeine (via iced tea or chai lattes) and moral support.

 

Jennifer: What's your funniest (or weirdest) moment as an author?

Debra: Well, one time, when I was doing an event with Shannon Messenger and we had to read from each other’s books, I accidentally gave her the book our Ridgeback puppy peed on....

 

Jennifer: I can't thank you enough for taking the time to answer a few of my questions. Is there anything else you would like to mention before we part ways?

Debra: Just, thank you so much for the interview and being part of the MILA 2.0: RENEGADE blog tour!

 

MILA 2.0 Series

(click pics for my reviews)

 

Author Bio

I'm the author of the MILA 2.0 series and the owner of the messiest purse on the planet, aka: the black hole of doom. I think bow ties are cool and when I grow up, I want to be Veronica Mars.

 

I rarely check my account at Goodreads, so if you need to get in touch with me, try twitter or Debra at debradriza.com.

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