Interview: Emma Trevayne, author of Coda

Today author Emma Trevayne visits The Hiding Spot to chat about her recent release, Coda. Read on to learn more about Emma, including her personal hiding spot (it might be obvious!), her favorite word, and the job she wishes she could have.

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Did you have trouble writing any of your characters or specific scenes within the novel? Or, were any characters or scenes particularly easy to write? 

 None of the characters were difficult, although there were times when I had to put them in sad or painful situations that were tough to write because characters become real people in my head. I do tend to find that if a scene feels really impossible in a certain way--and it is just a gut feeling--then it’s the wrong scene, and I have to go back and rethink what I’m doing. It shouldn’t always be a breeze, in fact it should be a challenge, but sometimes there’s a reason a scene just won’t come out. On the other hand, many of the scenes were really easy, to the point of nearly writing themselves. Those were the ones I had in my head before I started writing, the ones around which I really built the novel. My absolute favorite scene is one between Anthem and his best friend. I’ll say no more than that. 

Has the title changed or stayed relatively the same as your novel journeyed towards publication? 

I test-drove a couple very early on in the process, but it’s been the same for a really long time. Since I was about ⅓ of the way through the first draft, I think. Once it had the title it has now, no one ever suggested I change it, and two-and-a-bit years later, I still think it’s the best title the book could have. Also it made titling the sequel pretty simple. 

What book or author has most influenced you as a writer or in general? 

Ooooh boy.Um. I’m really not sure I can answer this, or if I can, it might be a bit of a cliche. I’ll say J.K. Rowling. Totally different books, of course, and I don’t for a second pretend I could write a series like that, but she is living proof that if you just sit down and write the book that’s in your head, you never know what might happen. That it is worth taking risks. 

What jobs did you have on your way to becoming a writer/published author? Is there a certain work experience that has shaped your writing? 

I’ve worn a lot of hats, none of them very exciting! And I wouldn’t say any of my jobs have ever shaped my writing, but reading has. Which I do seriously enough that it could be a job, I guess, if someone would pay me to do it. Where can I sign up for that? 

If you had to pick a favorite word, what would it be and why? 

Defenestration.It encapsulates everything I love about language...and yes, I know it’s about throwing something/someone from a window. How miraculous is it that we have a word for that? Such specificity in just a handful of syllables. 

My blog is dedicated to my personal hiding spot, books. Who, what, or where can be credited as your personal escape from reality? 

Well, on one hand I feel like I should agree with you that books are the best hiding spot, but actually for me it’s kind of a tie between books and music. Big surprise there, right? No matter what my mood is, I can escape into my headphones and there is music that will cheer me up, calm me down, get me pumped, or make me cry. I can lose myself dancing to it or almost fall asleep while it plays. And I am always, always inspired by it.

Find out more about Emma and her books here!

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