Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have been publishing for a few years now but previously under a pseudonym. With my most recent novel, my daughter persuaded me to publish under my own name. (Visualized Reality is the first time I’ve dabbled with young adult fiction. Because of the fact that I teach high school students, I never wanted them to read my adult fiction and question any violence, profanity, or sex that may occur in my work. But with this shift to the YA genre, I decided that I could comfortably have my own child or my students read the story and know that it is my own creation.)
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Driven by the anxiety that my daughter and students experience with the unending and profit-motivated standardized tests in American schools, I began to shape the idea of an Academy more concerned with the profitability of children than their own emotional and mental welfare. It is an issue that I have come to care deeply about as federal and state government officials continue to require the repetitive testing of children at the expense of the children, their education, and even their emotional health. Tests, pre-tests, test booklets, and testing tutorials are provided ad nauseam—for a nominal fee. And while our kids lose sleep over their ability to correctly fill in bubbles, these corporations are patting themselves on the back for building a multi-billion dollar industry that doesn’t seem to be going anywhere soon. Government officials have preached the need to collect data to evaluate the broken educational system, but its necessity is a fallacy. (And multiple investigations have revealed testing corporations lobbying and donating to any number of political officials.) Any teacher with a couple of years experience can tell in short time whether a student is falling behind grade level or working far beyond it. For the professionals who are tasked with the responsibility of educating these children, they don’t need the data. They only need an opportunity to work with these kids in an educational setting. Consider that other nations with proven educational systems are out-performing ours and only require a single standardized test at the end of high school. The only real benefits of standardized testing are the billions of dollars flooding the corporations who have cornered the market and demonstrate ironically absolutely no concern for the education and health of our children.
And these frustrations and feelings of being powerless have prompted me to create the world of Pierce Academy, an institute responsible for building an empire to create billions of dollars off of the creativity and imaginations of children. Visualized Reality is a dystopian novel that really serves more as a metaphor for the disturbing trend of placing business interests above the safety and well-being of our children.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I have a lot of unusual writing habits. I’m fairly psychotic, actually. My best scenes tend to come to life when I drive, which is why I am a huge fan of cruise control. I also develop maps, character sketches, detailed outlines, pacing documents, and song playlists prior to beginning a novel. The ideas often stew for months before I begin. The most frightening part is that I get immense gratification from each of these steps in my process.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Tons of authors and books have influenced me. I have been an avid reader of Dean Koontz since I was thirteen. I own 80% of what he’s written (and am ashamed that I haven’t yet completed my Koontz Library). I also have really been digging the dystopian and feminist lit genres that have ballooned in recent years.
What are you working on now?
I am working on another dystopian YA novel. It is not related to Visualized Reality at all. I am particularly proud of my deliberate efforts to take the dystopian formula and flip it on its ears a bit. Plus I’m paying tribute to Pearl Jam within the pages. I don’t feel one can go wrong with referencing Pearl Jam in daily life as often as possible.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I am trying some new promotional ideas these days. I guess that my plan is to simply diversify as much as possible. I have Visualized Reality on Kindle, Nook, iBooks, and others (through Amazon and Smashwords) and plan to promote through at least ten sites, beginning with Awesome Gang, of course.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Very simply…enjoy the ride. Write because you love it. And when you don’t become an overnight best seller, don’t invest in obscene amounts of brownie bites. Instead, invest in the next project.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I am ridiculously stubborn and tend to only hear advice when they tell me what I want to hear. This isn’t bragging. It’s a very serious and mortifying character flaw.
What are you reading now?
I am currently reading four books. I’m wrapping up The Female Brain by Louann Brizendine, which is fascinating! I’ve just finished reading the third book in Dean Koontz’s Jane Hawk series (The Crooked Staircase). Jane Hawk is pretty kick-ass. The challenge is that I’ve learned that the fourth book is out on paperback and crying for me to order it. But then I have to wait until May for the fifth book. So I’m trying to parcel out my reading months to make the wait more bearable.
I’m also reading a book by Tony Buzan about speed reading in an effort to learn some tools to help my students perform better on ACT Reading test. (Read 4 passages and answer 40 questions in 35 minutes? For years, we’ve recognized how obnoxious this expectation is. But they don’t change it. So we try to find strategies to work within the confines that they create.)
And I’m re-reading Huck Finn for the twenty-third time. I adore that little rascal! (Plus I’m teaching the book and wanted a refresher.)
What’s next for you as a writer?
My new dystopian book. I am still in the development stages but am getting close to being ready to begin writing. And I think that I’ve settled on The Dissidents as a title. I expect it will be the start of a trilogy, as is done these days. And I should mention that the title of the book is a throwback to a Pearl Jam title.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
I would bring the 3-4 that I’m currently reading. I suffer borderline panic attacks if I leave a book unfinished. (Except for the one time I started reading The Tommyknockers in 8th grade and simply couldn’t do it any more. I discovered Koontz in the midst of this crisis and officially converted. Sorry, Stephen.)
Author Websites and Profiles
Chenoa Franz Website