Friday Author SPOTLIGHT! We will feature a Young Adult, New Adult or Adult Author. These post will contain interviews, author posts, book blasts, fill in the blanks, etc... This is just our way to get authors noticed and out there as much as possible. So we hope you enjoy and stay tuned Fridays to see who we have on and what they shared. To see previous posts click here.
Today OUaT is thrilled to feature Author Heather W. Petty. She is the author of Lock & Mori, soon to release September 15th 2015 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.
Author Heather W. Petty
Her debut YA mystery, LOCK & MORI, is coming Fall 2015 from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.
Heather is also a granola mom, avid reader, technical writer, and freelance editor. She lives in Reno, Nevada with a Lumberjack, a Fairy-Child, and four cats who she’s pretty sure are plotting her demise.
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In modern-day London, two brilliant high school students, one Sherlock Holmes and a Miss James "Mori" Moriarty, meet. A murder will bring them together. The truth very well might drive them apart.
Before they were mortal enemies, they were much more.
FACT: Someone has been murdered in London's Regent's Park. The police have no leads.
FACT: Miss James "Mori"Moriarty and Sherlock "Lock" Holmes should be hitting the books on a school night. Instead, they are out crashing a crime scene.
FACT: Lock has challenged Mori to solve the case before he does. Challenge accepted.
FACT: Despite agreeing to Lock's one rule--they must share every clue with each other--Mori is keeping secrets.
OBSERVATION: Sometimes you can't trust the people closest to you with matters of the heart. And after this case, Mori may never trust Lock again.
Interview
1. Congratulations on your debut! If you had to describe Lock & Mori in 5 words or less, how would you describe it?
Nemeses: A Love Story
2. What inspired you to write a retelling story of Sherlock?
Well, LOCK & MORI is more an origin story than retelling. I only say that because I don’t want people to expect what the BBC Sherlock series is to Sherlock Holmes, when the book is closer to what Smallville was to Superman.
But the inspiration came from a random article I read about nemesis relationships, where the writer mentioned offhand that everything we know about Moriarty is what Sherlock tells us, because he's the only one who meets Moriarty in the canon. Those kinds of openings in history/story/legend are like flashing neon arrows to me. Pretty much any time I can ask the question "What if?" I get super excited. In this instance, I thought, what if Sherlock lied to Watson for some reason? What if he'd known Moriarty since they were kids? What if something that happened when they were kids is why they're rivals as adults? The story kind of spiraled out from there.
3. What are your favorite Sherlock adaptions?
I actually love them all. I like most derivative work, to be honest. There’s something comforting in reading familiar characters, but at the same time fascinating to see how the author/creator blows apart what we thought we knew and creates something totally fresh. The best ones for me are those that really push boundaries and are willing to break the rules and expectations of the canon. I like to be surprised.
4. Do you have a favorite line from the book you can share with us?
“Only those who have never felt powerless can afford to think like you."
5. Looking back from when you first started writing Lock & Mori, to now, what is something you feel your writing this book has taught you?
As cool and fun as the idea for the series was, it was also a little intimidating to be writing in such a beloved and well-explored canon, to be writing a story set in a very real city where I had never lived, and of course to be writing two characters who are essentially smarter than me. It was definitely the most ambitious project I’d ever taken on.
But I think that’s how we grow as artists, when we take on challenges that push us to the edge of our talents. I think writing a book is always difficult, but when I’m too comfortable with the project, I catch myself taking the easiest paths through it. I get self-indulgent. I’m pretty sure this series will be an incredible challenge all the way through, and I’m hoping I grow enough to take on the next and the next.
Check out Leydy's review on Lock & Mori
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this sounds like an interesting book. I love all the modern takes on Sherlock Holmes
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