Destiny Binds: Character Interview

Sometimes strange circumstances bring you into contact with people you would otherwise never have met.  One of those circumstances led me to Tammy Blackwell.  At that time, Tammy was working on a manuscript for a YA fantasy story.  I offered to read her story and provide some feedback.  When I received the computer file, I opened up the document and started reading.  Several hours later, I had finished the manuscript and was emailing her a message that basically went something like this - "there better be more or else".  Destiny Binds is the finished version of that early manuscript that I read.  I will be posting a review of tomorrow with a giveaway.

As a teaser to get readers interested in Destiny Binds, Tammy answered a bunch of questions that I posed to Scout (the main character) and her brother Jase.  Hope you enjoy meeting Scout and Jase and get a taste of Tammy's humor.     

What's the worst thing about sharing a bathroom?

Scout: Wet towels that never seem to make it to the rack. A toilet seat that is never down. Basketball uniforms that get wadded up and thrown in the corner until they’re able to walk downstairs to the washing machine all by themselves.

Jase: Squeezable Lip Smackers.

Scout: Seriously? That was like five years ago.

Jase: And I spent four months never knowing when or where I would discover glittery, cherry flavored blobs on my person.

What are 5 things you would expect to find in your sibling’s backpack?

Jase: The Big Boring Book of Math; The Big Boring Book of English; The Big Boring Book of History; The Backwards Book of Weird Japanese Comics; and a pack of gum

Scout: Sports Illustrated; homework he should have turned in three weeks ago; a collection of McDonald’s receipts; an entire bag’s worth of potato chip crumbs; and the iPod Angel can’t find anywhere

Jase: I do not have Angel’s iPod

Scout: *raises eyebrows*

Jase: You’re not going to tell her, are you?

What is on your iPod/MP3 players?

Scout: I’ve been listening to a lot of Sea Wolf and Josh Ritter lately

Jase: What she means is, “I’ve been listening to whiny, folky crap that makes you want to slit your wrists.”

Scout: So says the boy who thinks Jay-Z qualifies as music.

Jase: Jay-Z does qualify as music. Just ask the Grammy’s.

Scout: You know who else wins Grammy’s? Taylor Swift.

Jase: Point taken.

What is your idea of the perfect date?

Jase: Front row tickets to a Lakers game and some In-and-Out burgers.

Scout: How on earth do you manage to talk girls into dating you? Does the word “romance” mean anything to you?

Jase: My date involves a trip to LA. That’s classy. But I suppose it doesn’t live up to the romance of all those nights you sat at Dairy Queen listening to Dalton Riley ramble on about he was going to go to Harvard because he was the smartest man to ever live.

Scout: I hate you.

Who is your favorite fictional character and if you could spend an afternoon with them what would you do?

Scout: That’s hard. Atticus Finch would be cool, but I don’t know what we would really do together. I mean, I don’t really have any desire to be involved in a racially charged trial and my dad is pretty awesome, so I don’t really need any of that fatherly stuff. Would it be too horribly trite to say that I would want to hang out with Harry Potter at Hogwarts? Because, seriously, that would be awesome.

Jase: I want a one-on-one match with Michael Jordan.

Scout: Michael Jordan is a real person.

Jase: Yeah. So?

Scout: So he’s not a fictional character. Pick a fictional character.

Jase: Fine. I want to hang out with Harry Potter, too. But not at the school. I want to go to that store Fred and George opened. That looked really cool in the movie.

Who was your favorite TV cartoon character as a kid?

Jase: Scooby Doo. He was the coolest dog ever.

Scout: A tie between Buttercup and Mojo Jojo from The Powerpuff Girls.

Jase: Mojo Jojo? Why do you always like the bad guys?

Scout: They’re not bad. They’re just misunderstood.

If you can have any kind of supernatural power/ability what would it be?

Scout: I want to be Batman. I know that’s not really a supernatural power, but those always seem so silly. I mean, immortals who are allergic to garlic or sparkle in the sun? Seriously?

Jase: Vampires are stupid, but people who can turn into animals? That’s cool. I would be one of those.

Last question, if you found your sibling’s diary, would you read it?

Scout: Jase doesn’t keep a diary.

Jase: But if I did...?

Scout: Honestly? I would probably read a few pages before the guilt made me stop. Unless it’s an account of your dating escapades. Then I would only make it a couple of sentences before the nausea hit. Would you read my diary?

Jase: Been there, done that.

Scout: You have not.

Jase: “Today I almost tripped Ashley Johnson in the hallway. I didn’t, of course, but I seriously thought about it. I imagined it all in my head. Her toppling over and bursting those stupid, fake boobs...”

Scout: Give me one good reason not to kill you.

Jase: Because I’m your brother and you love me.


Thanks to Miss Tammy for the character interview.  Tammy Blackwell is the Young Adult Services Coordinator for a public library system in Kentucky. When she's not reading, writing, or cataloging books, she's sleeping.  She is the author of the YA Novel Destiny Binds

Back-to-School Guest Post: Miss Tammy's Favorite YA High Schools

Kid Lit Frenzy is hosting a series of Back-to-School Guest Posts.  Let's welcome Miss Tammy - a YA Librarian from Kentucky.  She is super cool - you should ask her sometime about her Steampunk Tea or Renaissance Faire.  Trust me when I say I have never met such a hip librarian. 

When Aly first asked me to do a back to school post I thought I would share some clever stories from my own days as a yellow-bus-riding, backpack-toting slave to education. You know, an “Adventures of a Teenage Teen Librarian” sort of thing. Problem is, I don’t actually have any great stories to file under Miss Tammy: The High School Years.

Some might attribute my less than exciting high school career to my own nerd-like tendencies, but of course they’re wrong. It certainly wasn’t my fault that my days were filled with an endless stream of tedious lectures and inane homework assignments. No, the problem was that I went to the wrong school. I mean, who could have a rollicking adventure in a public school of all places? I should have gone to one of those bastions of learning where even the most unassuming bookworm would find herself battling evil while falling in the love with the most beautiful, brave, and sarcastic boy God ever saw fit to create.

But which one? After all, there are tons of them scattered across the YA landscape. I’ve thought about it long and hard, and after much deliberation, I’ve narrowed it down to my top ten choices (listed by alphabetical order, because that’s how I roll):

Culver Creek Preparatory

Looking for Alaska - John Green

Boarding schools just sound so cool with everyone living on campus and pulling major pranks. Plus, this one is filled with some pretty outstanding characters. Guaranteed to never be a dull moment.

Gallagher Academy

Gallagher Girls series - Ally Carter

Spy school! Sure, it has the misfortune of being an all-girl school, but still - A school that trains you to be a spy! Awesome, right?

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Harry Potter series - JK Rowling

Magic wands. Moving staircases. Ghosts. Quidditch. House elves. Defense Against the Dark Arts. Professor Snape. Obviously, this is the best school ever.

House of Night

House of Night series - P.C. Cast + Kristin Cast

House of Night students get to sleep all day and develop really cool powers. Of course, they have that whole chance of dying because their body can’t accept the change or getting killed by agents of their super-crazy High Priestess. Remember to weigh your options before sending in that application.

The Institute

Mortal Instruments series - Cassandra Clare

Technically, it’s not really a school, but young Shadowhunters train there, so I’m counting it. Maybe we could talk Magnus into teaching a class on the history of fashion.

The Princess Academy

Princess Academy - Shannon Hale

No matter what we might say or the image we project, every girl wants to be a princess.

Spence Academy

Gemma Doyle Trilogy - Libba Bray

Wearing corsets and dealing with Victorian society doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun, but it might just be worth it for a chance at an epic Gothic adventure. Just remind me to stay away from the trees, okay?

St. Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters

X-Men comics - Marvel

Teachers who can control the weather and classmates who can walk through walls? Sign me up! Surely my ability to remember every lyric to every song I’ve ever heard is considered a mutant ability.

Sunnydale High School

Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Joss Whedon

A high school built on a Hellmouth offers up daily chances at adventure. Plus, the library is where all the cool kids hang out.

Texas Prairie University

Morganville Vampire series - Rachel Caine

So maybe the other students can be a bit of a pain, and the whole town run by vampires thing can be a bit problematic, but I’d gladly deal with those minor flaws for a chance to run into Shane or Michael.

How about you? What’s your ideal school? Help me add to the list by leaving them in the comments below!