Today I am so pleased to welcome authors Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz for the Sanctuary Bay blog tour. The co-authors are here to share their thoughts on a number of topics related to the characters, setting, and style of Sanctuary Bay.
Sanctuary Bay is a new YA thriller that’s on sale now. This suspenseful read keeps you on the edge of your seat as you follow Sarah’s experiences at an exclusive prep school. Read more about it below to get more of the book’s flavor, character insight, and reading and viewing suggestions. Also don’t forget to enter to win a copy of the book for yourself! Please welcome the authors of Sanctuary Bay to The Reading Date:
Q&A with Sanctuary Bay Authors Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz
The authors share their thoughts on a number of topics relating to Sanctuary Bay:
Co-Authoring: Writing Process for Sanctuary Bay
We follow the same process for pretty much every book we write together. First we plot out the whole book chapter by chapter. We spend a lot of time on this outline, because we need to be sure that we both have the same vision for the book. Our next step is to split the outline in half, and then we each write our halves simultaneously (which is why it’s so important to make sure we’re on the same page in the outline!) Then we both read the whole thing, talk about any revisions we want to make, and each of us will go through it again to implement the changes and do an edit before we send it to our editor.
What is on main character Sarah’s reading list?
Sarah’s not much of a fiction reader. Here’s her current N-F list: The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness by Sy Montgomery; This Idea Must Die: Scientific Theories That Are Blocking Progress edited by John Brockman; The Man Who Wasn’t There: Investigations into the Strange New Science of the Self by Anil Ananthaswamy
Inspiration for Sanctuary Bay Academy
Our inspiration was to take as many of our favorite story elements as possible and shake (not stir) them into something new!
Favorite Prep schools in YA or Teen TV/films
Hailsham (from Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro) This one isn’t technically YA, but there are kids in boarding school.
Medenham Hall (from Hex, a BBC America TV show)
Hogwarts (you know where this one is from!)
H.I.V.E (The Higher Institute of Villainous Education) (From the series by Mark Walden) Because it’s built inside a volcano!
Favorite YA Thrillers or Teen Horror Films for readers of Sanctuary Bay
YA Thrillers:
Mara Dyer series by Michelle Hodkin
The Jenna Fox Chronicles by Mary E. Pearson
Eva by Peter Dickinson
Films:
A Cabin in the Woods
The Uninvited
Scream
About the Book:
When Sarah Merson receives the opportunity of a lifetime to attend the most elite prep school in the country—Sanctuary Bay Academy—it seems almost too good to be true. But, after years of bouncing from foster home to foster home and struggling with the memory of her parent’s murder, escaping to the school’s tranquil setting, nestled deep in Swans Island, couldn’t sound more appealing. Swiftly thrown into a world of privilege and secrets, Sarah quickly realizes finding herself noticed by class charmer, Nate, as well as her roommate’s dangerously attentive boyfriend, Ethan, are the least of her worries. When her roommate suddenly goes missing, she finds herself in a race against time, not only to find her, but to save herself and discover the dark truth behind Sanctuary Bay’s glossy reputation.
Find it: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | iBooks | IndieBound
About the Authors:
Laura J. Burns and Melinda Metz have written many books for teens and middle-grade readers, including the Edgar-nominated mystery series Wright and Wong and the YA novels Crave and Sacrifice. They have also written for the TV shows Roswell, 1-800-Missing, and The Dead Zone. Laura lives in New York and Melinda lives in North Carolina, but really they mostly live on email, where they do most of their work together.
Visit: Author Website | Twitter | Facebook
Giveaway!
Enter to win a copy of Sanctuary Bay!
One winner will receive a copy of Sanctuary Bay.
Prizing provided by St. Martin’s Griffin
Giveaway open to US and Canada residents
Roswell is one of my favourite TV shows ever! That’s reason enough to want to read this one. Sarah’s reading list is awesome, I need to try reading more non-fiction.
Sanctuary Bay appeals to me because it’s a YA thriller and because it is co-authored. My favorite YA thriller is probably Don’t Look Back by Jennifer Armentrout, Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas, or Liars Inc by Paula Stokes. Thanks for the chance!
I love the title of the book 🙂 My favorite YA thriller is The hunger games or Divergent.
I really enjoyed this book so it’s wonderful hearing from the authors. 🙂
What appeals to me is the intriguing plot. It sounds interesting and I would love to read what happens.
I absolutely loved Sanctuary Bay. I really hope there’s going to be a sequel.