This week Alicia (A.O.) Godmasch took over our Twitter as a part of our weekly Thursday Twitter Takeover. She is the author of the new YA novel Retrograde: The Darkness. See highlights from the takeover below. And check out our interview with Alicia (A.O.) Godmasch here.
Hi! Thank you to YE for letting us take over! I’m A.O. aka Alicia, the author of Retrograde: The Darkness, which is my first novel. Available starting this week on @amazon and @barnesandnoble #YAauthorTakeover #youngadultbooks #aogodmasch #aliciagodmasch #retrogradethedarkness
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Retrograde The Darkness is a #scifi action thriller featuring a fearless warrior named Isis who decides to join an elite army in order to fight against an ancient supernatural enemy. #YAauthorTakeover #scifibooks
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Isis comes from a privileged family but she does not allow that to stop her from trying to help those that cannot help themselves and I think that there is a lot of beauty in that #YAauthorTakeover #Retrograde #aogodmasch
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Many people ask me what inspired me to write the book and the answer to that is two things: Steven Spielberg & the Mercury in Retrograde phenomena #YAauthorTakeover #Stevenspielberg #Retrograde #aogodmasch
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Steven Spielberg has a talk that is on YouTube where he discusses "the whispers" and it helps you to distinguish a good idea from a great idea. Highly recommend it. As far as the Mercury Retrograde phenomena is concerned… #YAauthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
I remember being on set with a girlfriend of mine and we were discussing how chaotic things get when Mercury goes into Retrograde. At that moment I legit heard "the whisper" and I knew that I had found my calling. I had to tell this story. #YAauthorTakover #aogodmasch
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
If I had to describe the book it would be World War Z meets The Hunger Games with a dash of Starship Troopers. It's a fast paced book that will keep at the edge of your seat. #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch #RetrogradeSeries
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
The Retrograde is an ancient supernatural evil that wreaks havoc on Damara, which is Isis planet, and the planets that surround it. But what is most frightening about it is how it affects the people. #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch #RetrogradeTheDarkness
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Some of my inspirations for writing this book were Suzanne Collins and N.K. Jemisin. I love the way they world build in their stories. In addition, I loved Katniss Everdeen and her bravery in THG series. #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch #suzannecollins #nkjemisin
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Please feel free to DM me @aliciagodmasch or reply here with any questions you would like me to answer #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch #RetrogradeSeries
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
As far as being an author is concerned, it wasn't something that I intended to become. I always thought that being a film producer was it for me but that just goes to show the importance of being open to new opportunities #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
In the book I was able to draw from my real life relationships to create some of these characters. For example, when you read about Aurora, her relationship with her adopted daughter Apple is inspired by the dynamic between my stepdaughter and I #YAauthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Additionally, I wanted to make sure that this book represented a variety of relationships… Married, LGBTQ, friendships and how deep those bonds can be. That's the best way for everyone to be able to grasp something that they can identify with #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
To me it was important to have a female lead in this book. I have been so fortunate to get to know so many strong women, my mother being one of the strongest. I feel that we have a lot of male heroes in YAF but not nearly enough women to even the playing field. #YAauthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Even though this book was written before Covid-19 hit, I think it is pretty incredible how timely the setting is for us today. The book begins with everyone watching the news of an outbreak hitting a planet nearby and that causes a lot of fear and unrest. #YAauthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
A little background on me: I was born and raised in #NewJersey and graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison, NJ. I have an army of gladiator brothers and I am the youngest so yeah, had a tough time in the dating department #YAauthorTakover #aogodmasch
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
I speak German & Italian, love learning about different cultures. I find people in general very intriguing. Everyone has their own unique story. I love animals. I'm on location for a film now at an AirBnB & pretty much share whatever I'm eating w/the owner's dog #YAauthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
I feel very blessed to be an African American and a woman in this arena. I believe that SciFi needs more representation from these two groups and the fact that I can speak for both worlds feels really great. #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch #RetrogradeSeries #RetrogradeTheDarkness
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
I can definitely see Retrograde The Darkness being a film or television series. In fact, when writing it the storyline used to play out to me as a film in my dreams. It was wild but so real and beautiful. I would love for others to experience this as well. #YAauthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
My dream actress for the lead role of Isis would definitely be #Zendaya. She has the look and for sure encompasses the free spirited nature of the character. #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch #RetrogradeTheDarkness
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Her love interest in the book, whose name is Khalfani would probably resemble #TylerPosey. I believe that his look would be spot on. Aurora's look is similar to the model #LiyaKebede #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch #RetrogradeTheDarkness
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
What I love most about the genre of Science Fiction is that you are only limited by your imagination. You can literally dream up a world and bring it to life. SciFi gives me the creative freedom to do what I love without limits #YAauthorTakeover #RetrogradeTheDarkness #aogodmasch
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Retrograde The Darkness is a duology and I am currently working on the second half of the series. I cannot wait to share it with you all in the Fall of next year! Lots of plot twists you guys. #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch #RetrogradeTheDarkness
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
My YE Takeover is wrapping up soon. I think we have time for a few more questions. (Many thanks to YE and Mordecai Laub for this amazing opportunity). This has been a lot of fun. #YAauthorTakeover #aogodmasch #RetrogradeTheDarkness #mustread
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
My advice for young writers is this: don't wait for permission to write your book. Just go ahead and write it. You've got nothing to lose! Get your story out into the world. And have fun with it. You never know how it can change your life or your reader's. #YAauthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Thanks so much again to Young Entertainment and Mordecai Laub for allowing me to share my story tonight. Sending positive vibes to all. Happy Holidays and a Safe New Year✌️ #YAauthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
Feel free to follow me on Twitter @alicia_godmasch and Insta @aliciagodmasch. Learn more about Retrograde The Darkness at https://t.co/cHaQnM7Ogn
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) December 10, 2020
