I’m not able to talk about it specifically for a while, and will be divulging more through my upcoming newsletters. But I can say it’s another Young Adult series, and will be a high fantasy ensemble story, centering on a teenage girl forced to become a hero when she doesn’t believe heroes exist. I’m having a great time writing it, and I’m very nervous/excited to publish it in the future. More info to come!
About Victoria
Where do you get your inspiration?
It honestly depends. I’ve found stories or catalysts for stories in everything from a plain old brainstorming session at my desk to a museum exhibit in another country. But largely I ruminate on what I love and what I don’t love – how can I embrace the former and shift the latter? And this is a tactic from my screenwriting education, but I like to distill stories into easy, pitchable parts. Something I can say that another person would automatically get. It’s this meets that. For example, for Red Queen, I say it’s Game of Thrones meets X-Men meets Hunger Games. That usually works best, and quickly, to communicate what the story is to potential audience.
Cool. How did you decide to become an author?
I wouldn’t say I ever decided to be an author. I still struggle defining myself as such, because it doesn’t feel real. I’ve been telling stories since I knew what a story was, and have always felt a deep, internal need to build worlds and characters. This is what I’ve wanted to do for most of my sentient life and it’s a privilege to live this reality. I know I’d be writing stories even if no one else was reading them, but it’s nice that people do. I decided to pursue screenwriting in college because I did and still do love movies more than most people love anything. Applying to film schools was a scary choice, and every step afterwards seemed even scarier, but the risk has been worth it so far. Luckily, screenwriting and prose-writing are pretty interchangeable in my mind. The bones are the same, the elements of story remain constant. The difference is largely format, and I’m lucky to be able to work in both.
Who the heck are you?
Hi, I’m Victoria Aveyard. I was born and raised in a small town in Western Massachusetts, but I moved to the West Coast to study screenwriting at the University of Southern California. As of Fall 2019, I’m a 29-year-old writer based in Los Angeles. I’m the author the RED QUEEN series, which includes 4 #1 New York Times Bestselling novels and the NYT Bestseller BROKEN THRONE, a collection of short stories set in the world of RED QUEEN. Currently, I’m drafting a brand new YA fantasy series set for publication in the near future. I’m also a working screenwriter and dog mom to Indy, the world’s best Lab.