Siobhan Vivian and Morgan Matson Talk Books (& Giveaway)

Today, in true Book Smuggler spirit, we have a guest post… in epistolary format. <3

YA authors Siobhan Vivian, author of THE LAST BOY AND GIRL IN THE WORLD and Morgan Matson, THE UNEXPECTED EVERYTHING chat about books and their writing process – all captured LIVE via text messages!

Siobhan Vivian:
            MORGAN!!!! Are you there?
 
Morgan Matson:
            HEY SIO!!!!
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            where are you?
            i miss you
 
Morgan Matson:
            I’m in Virginia on book tour!
            I miss you toooooo!
            I much prefer book tour when we can travel together
            and talk about the event afterwards!
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            also, nice dinners together!
 
Morgan Matson:
            YES. Key.  
            Are you so excited not to be living in a hotel any longer? 🙂
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            Yes, but tbh I miss the daily maid service. 
 
Morgan Matson:
            hahahahaha
            And room service!!

Siobhan Vivian:
            I’m fighting through a first draft right now and you know…all extra responsibility is falling to the wayside. it’s like, can someone please come in here and vacuum and change the sheets?!?
 
Morgan Matson:
            UGH I KNOW
            I know so well
            How’s it going??
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            It’s good…for the moment! I figured out some key stuff on the plane and I’ve been charging through as fast as I can while I have some momentum. 
            I wish I wrote first drafts like you. 
 
Morgan Matson:
            NO YOU DON’T
            I’ve been so jealous of the way you write
            Really working the beginning as you figure out the characters. I love that process so much. I wish I did it.
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            no way. you’ve got it right. 
            i feel like you hear the *horn* and you’re off and running! pounding out words like BAM BAM BAM. 
 
Morgan Matson:
            I just charge through to the end, then have to do a LOT of work in revisions! *worried frown*
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            *Six charging horses*
 
Morgan Matson:
            Hahaha!!
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            i’m so sloooooooow. 
 
Morgan Matson:
            I think I’m slowing down!!
            I’ve been writing this book since NOVEMBER
            OVER IT. 
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            ummm, yeah, i feel you there. 
            BUT!
            won’t it be nice when our two BRAND NEW YA NOVELS come out in 2017?
 
Morgan Matson:
            YES!!
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            and we can go back on tour together?!?!
 
Morgan Matson:
            YESSS!!
            They will be all nice and shiny with lovely covers and we’ll forget about this part.
            Well – that’s what happened this year! We were on tour together, but it wasn’t that long before we were texting back and forth, both of us despairing
            You helped me SO MUCH with my title.
            I remember we had like a 2 hour brainstorming session about it.
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            🙂
            well, YOU helped me so much with my opening
            it had, like, zero dialog
            and you’re like, “Um, maybe people should talk!”
            GENIUS!
 
Morgan Matson:
            hahaha!!
            But the whole world was there on the page. On page one.
            I love reading your early pages!!
               
Siobhan Vivian:
            why is it always so much easier to work on someone else’s book?
            than it is to figure out what’s wrong with your own?
 
Morgan Matson:
            It really is!
            I think it’s kind of like how you can’t perform surgery on yourself.  Or cut your own hair. You don’t have perspective!
            Better to call in an expert!
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            in the case of surgery, absolutely

Morgan Matson:
            Hahaha
            I’m so ready to be done with drafting and begin the revision process
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            that’s my favorite part for sure
 
Morgan Matson:
            I might be sending you my first draft with a note that says SIOBHAN PLEASE HALP
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            i’ll send you mine with a bottle of aspirin
 
Morgan Matson:
            YES! Deal.
            I love your new book idea SO much. I’m so so excited to read it!
            I think it’s going to be the perfect summer read.
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            *four ice creams*
 
Morgan Matson:
            Exactly!!
            Are you having to stop yourself from eating tons of ice cream while you write?
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            ahem
            no!!!!
            research!!!!!
 
Morgan Matson:
            haha
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            i love that you are trying a new timeframe….spring break instead of summer!
            so so so so excited to read it!
 
Morgan Matson:
            EEK. We’ll see. People on tour have been saying, “I love how your books are all set in the summer!” and I’m like, “Well, ABOUT that…”
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            hahahahaha
 
Morgan Matson:
            It’s definitely fun to try something new
            I feel like you have to, don’t you?
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            totally.
            and i have no doubt that it will be very Morgan Matson-y, despite the change of season!
 
Morgan Matson:
            Hahaha!
            Well, there IS a dog.
            Naturally.
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            BOOM
            see?
            nothing to worry about girls!
 
Morgan Matson:
            Ha!
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            okay! well, good luck tonight!
 
Morgan Matson:
            thank you!!
            and you know i’m always here if you need to talk through anything
 
Siobhan Vivian:
            samey same same
            XOXOXO!
 
Morgan Matson:
            *kiss*
            xoxo!

Siobhan Vivian is the internationally bestselling author of the young adult novel The List, as well as Not That Kind of Girl, Same Difference, and A Little Friendly Advice, and the Burn for Burn trilogy, co-written with Jenny Han. A former screenwriter for The Disney Channel and editor for Alloy Entertainment, she received her MFA in creative writing at the New School. She teaches creative writing at the University of Pittsburgh. Visit her at SiobhanVivian.com.

Morgan Matson formerly worked as a teen book editor. Morgan is a lover of roadtrips, having crossed the USA three times … so far, and a huge music fan, both passions that fed into her first YA novel Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour. When not writing, she drinks far too much coffee, watches old movies, and plans out her next journey. She lives in California.

THE GIVEAWAY

We have one copy of Siobhan Vivian’s THE LAST BOY AND GIRL IN THE WORLD and one copy of Morgan Matson’s THE UNEXPECTED EVERYTHING to giveaway to one lucky winner. Use the form below to enter and good luck!

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