TERI: I haven’t read any of those! I’ll have to check them out, especially, The Diamond in the Window. The Diamond in the Window, by Jane Langton-My favorite book from childhood, which features a mysterious, magical house. Norrell, by Susanna Clarke-An impossibly clever, fabulously evocative neo-Victorian fantasy.Įight Cousins, by Louisa May Alcott-I adore stories about happy families. LUISA: The Soldier of the Great War, by Mark Helprin-Vivid, glorious writing dealing with universal struggles. Since we all love to read – What are a few of your all-time favorite books?

At the moment, I’m revising ZF-360, my fantasy retelling of Mozart’s The Magic Flute, set in modern-day New York among the Irish Travelers. LUISA: The Book of Jer3miah: Premonition is officially coming out March 4 th, though I’ve seen it already in stock at some online bookstores. What are you working on now? Do you have another book coming out soon? Maybe I’d choose a forgotten corner of an old library instead. But I wouldn’t want to drive business away. LUISA: Fun question! I would consider haunting a really good restaurant, since I think I’d miss food the most if I were a ghost. If you were a ghost who or where would you haunt? TERI: Nothing! I’ve always dreamed of that too. I’ve always dreamed of discovering an abandoned house in the woods. I saw the photo long ago, and it very much influenced the way I visualized Holly House. LUISA: Thanks! I adore the cover, which is Cali Gorevic’s photo of Ireland’s Moore Hall. TERI: I loved the old magical house in the story, Holly House, which is shown on the creepy-cool cover. The setting was a crucial part of my imaginative process.

The story is set in Manhattan and New York’s Hudson Highlands, both places that I’ve lived and that I love.

The rest are somewhat based on people I know and love in real life. Fawn and Mae are pretty much portraits of two of my younger sisters. LUISA: I once read an article about astral projection-the process of consciously sending your spirit out of your body-and my first reaction was, “That sounds fun, but what if someone got into your body while you were gone?” My brain couldn’t let the question go until I started writing.Īs far as the characters go, Richard is based on a dear friend of mine from high school who had spina bifida. Where did the idea come from, the characters, etc? TERI: Briefly tell us the genesis of your ghost story. I’m so excited to talk about your fabulous book, DISPIRITED, which is a young adult dark fantasy with one of the best ghost story premises I’ve read. Hi, Luisa! Welcome to my blog and thanks so much for being here. Perkins, author of young adult novel, DISPIRITED. PERKINS, AUTHOR OF DISPISITEDīY TERI HARMAN, I am very pleased to welcome author Luisa M.

Dissension by Adrienne Monson