Interview: Emma Kinna!

So, for your friday enjoyment today, the lovely Emma Kinna, author of A House Afire, has graced us with her presence via this interview! :D

Before we get to the interview, let me introduce you to her debut A House Afire. (Note: I haven't read A House Afire yet, but I am dying to!)


A House Afire by Emma Kinna

Phyllis Sorin has seen all sorts of people. With two kind Aunts who rent out the rooms of their house to anyone in need, the people she calls family are a little different from most. There’s Bill, who takes on the personalities of movie characters. There’s Quincy, whose best friend is a drag queen. There’s Anna, an opera singer and kung-fu master.
And Phyllis, well, she’s not exactly normal herself. But even as she begins to navigate high school’s social jungle, Phyllis finds comfort and humor in her odd home.

When Dominick Siddons moves in, however, all of Phyllis's priorities become inferior to finding out his secret. A young lawyer with a vicious wit and ferocious temper, Sid may understand Phyllis in a way no one else can. And through truth and fiction, through the inevitable chaos of the house, Phyllis finds much more than she bargained for.

Now, for the wondrous questions Emma was so kind as to answer...

1.) In Kindergarten we all have a clear idea of what we want to be when we get older. When you were in Kindergarten (or sometime around there) did you know you wanted to be a writer, or did that come later on?

I did know that I wanted to write in kindergarten! In fact, I wrote a "book" about my grandma's dog when I was 6. My love of writing is one of the only things I've always known about myself, actually.

2.) How did you get the idea/ what was inspiration for A House Afire?

A lot of different things inspired me. I guess the biggest inspiration for it was the movie "Arsenic and Old Lace" with Cary Grant, but a lot of other things went into it. People I know, people I wish I knew... Phyllis and Sid, the main characters, actually showed up together before any of the others did, and as they evolved and I got to know them better the story kind of came along with them.

3.) What has been your favorite part of having your book published?

So far, my favorite part has been talking to book bloggers and fans. I mean, I like being able to say I'm published, too, but I didn't realize that it would give me such a great opportunity to talk to other people who love books. Maybe that should have been obvious, but I really had no idea what to expect.

4.) What do you hope readers take away from A House Afire?

I hope they have fun! I hope it helps entertain them and cheer them up, and that it lets them escape into another house. I really wanted to try and put the reader right in the house and get to know all the people who live there (especially Phyllis, obviously). I hope that some parts make them laugh, and other parts make them think.

5.) What are your plans? What do you plan to write/ are writing next?

Well, my first plan is to graduate from college. You've probably noticed that this book isn't well-publicized, and that has a lot to do with the way my life is right now. I plan to finish school and to slowly establish my presence in the YA realm. But I also plan to write the next story about Phyllis and other characters. I have a lot of ideas, it's just a matter of writing them down and finding out where they'll go. If all goes well there will be many more books in the future!

6.) If for some god awful reason writing books became banned, what would you do instead?

I would die. No, not really. Good question, though. If writing books became banned, I'd probably be some sort of artist. If I couldn't express myself in writing, I'd do it through photos or drawings. And, given that I'd be living in a world where writing books was banned, I'd probably become some sort of activist, too.

7.) If you were stranded on island and could only bring 1 book and 3 other (non-book) items what would they be?

Hmm...I have no clue what book I'd bring. Maybe "Hannibal," because there's so much to that book. Or a Sherlock Holmes volume, because I haven't read them yet. If I were stranded with no hope of ever leaving the island I'd bring a notebook and pen, and a snorkel set. Oh wait! One book I feel I can always go back to is "Necklace of Kisses" by Francesca Lia Block. It's like going on a beautiful vacation. Maybe I'd bring that one.

8.) So there has been much debate over Team Zombie vs. Team Unicorn. Which are you?

Team Unicorn. Way too many zombies out there right now— somebody needs to take a stand.

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Thank you so much Emma!

If you want to learn more about Emma's book A House Afire you can do so at it's GoodReads here. And if you want to learn more about Emma Kinna you can do so at her blog here.