This week YA author Jessica S. Olson took over our Twitter as a part of our weekly Thursday Twitter Takeover. Jessica S. Olson is the author of Sing Me Forgotten. (See YEM’s interview with Jessica S. Olson here.) See highlights from the takeover below.
Hey everyone! I’m Jessica S. Olson (@jessicaolson123), author of SING ME FORGOTTEN, a gender-swapped Phantom of the Opera retelling that releases from HarperCollins in FIVE DAYS! So excited to join you all on this #YAAuthorTakeover https://t.co/2RMGLuXLeG
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
I get asked all the time what inspired me to tell the story from the Phantom’s perspective. Short answer? I identified much more deeply with his POV than I ever did with Christine’s! #YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/bIlBOP9FcG
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
I was born with strabismus, which is when the eyes are permanently crossed. I had multiple surgeries and treatments, and wore an eye patch on and off through grade school, but it left me with a pretty severe lazy eye and vision issues#YAAuthorTakeoverhttps://t.co/3eOtMA4jO4
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
My lazy eye made things very difficult socially. I was teased and bullied and ostracized because I looked “weird.” I have even had kids scream at the sight of me. So when I saw Phantom on Broadway, I recognized so many pieces of myself and my experience in him.#YAAuthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
Our society’s obsession with perfection—from IG feeds to photoshopped magazines—as well as its fear of anyone “different” is incredibly damaging, and I wanted to explore how that is the true villain of the Phantom’s story.#YAAuthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
Gender-swapping the characters was also a very conscious decision. Misogyny and sexism are still inherent in our culture, and I wanted to empower young girls by putting a young woman in the position of power in the story.#YAAuthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
There aren’t many compelling woman villains out there, and that, to me, is part of why women are held to impossibly high standards. So creating a 3-dimensional villain who is powerful and angry and dangerous but also a NOT A MAN was incredibly important to me.#YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/Pl1AHPrEEo
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
I get asked all the time what my favorite version of Phantom is, and I will ALWAYS say the Broadway version! I don’t much like the movie, and I will forever recommend the 25th Anniversary recording with @sierraboggess and @raminkarimloo!#YAAuthorTakeoverhttps://t.co/bKN3U0nEiC
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
Are you Team Raoul or Team Phantom? I’m honestly a little bit of both and a bit of neither! I’m Team Christine! Lol#YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/APZWcBe3Wb
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
The Phantom is obviously much more compelling—and I’m a sucker for a bad boy—but he’s also scarily controlling and stalkerish. Raoul is better in those ways, but still manipulative, and he gaslights Christine, which I don’t love.#YAAuthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
Yes, Phantom has its faults, but it is an incredibly compelling story with fantastic music. I dare you to find a more memorable musical line than the DUNNNNN! DUN-DUN-DUN-DUN-DUNNNNNN! of that Phantom of the Opera theme!#YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/LU6iqmMSmd
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
Writing a villain POV was so much fun! I want to highlight a couple other villain POV YA fantasy books I loved. Definitely check them out!#YAAuthorTakeover
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
Heartless by @marissa_meyer tells the origin story of the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland. It is whimsical and magical, and the descriptions of the baked desserts the main character made had my mouth watering!#YAAuthorTakeoverhttps://t.co/RRPcUCw1xw
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
Sea Witch by @shhenning is the origin story of Ursula the from The Little Mermaid! It was a compelling read, and the setting was so well-done I could almost taste the salty air of the seaside town where the main character lives.#YAAuthorTakeoverhttps://t.co/YO3dLdVh5d
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by @jules_writes is an East-Asian reimagining of the Evil Queen from Snow White. I love how Dao didn’t shy away from making Xifeng both a truly compelling protagonist and a vividly terrifying villain.#YAAuthorTakeoverhttps://t.co/MDwZw8tKfE
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
Another favorite is @kierstenwhite’s And I Darken, which is a story about a female Vlad the Impaler! Complete with gorgeous prose, a compelling plot, and characters that rip your heart out, this is one you should definitely not miss.#YAAuthorTakeoverhttps://t.co/ORLLF0b3OG
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
The Young Elites by @Marie_Lu is another fantastic story with a villain as its protagonist. This one isn’t a reimagining or retelling, but it crafts a dangerous world that had me holding my breath as I turned the pages! Highly recommend!#YAAuthorTakeoverhttps://t.co/VWexYviYAu
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
I also love a good villain/anti-hero who isn’t the main character. I just finished watching The Vampire Diaries for the first time, and I will never recover from my obsession with Damon Salvatore or Klaus Mikaelson. Such good characterization and writing.#YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/YHz3Vmn1dZ
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
When writing villainous characters, it is vital to make them multidimensional. I always try to remember that they are the heroes of their own stories, and I need to flesh out their desires and goals just as much as I would for any hero.#YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/KgURSPM0VM
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
It also makes your villain even stronger when they aren’t evil all the way through. A villain who fosters abandoned kittens or who has a sweet tooth is going to be much scarier because they feel like people we might have met in real life.#YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/NjiWXKwj99
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
For example, Klaus, though a murdering vampire/werewolf hybrid, loved to paint. His art showed us his humanity. He also showed vulnerability when it came to Caroline. He wasn't infallible. It’s the non-villainous traits that make the villainy that much scarier#YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/XPhiOQNB6N
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
Some of my other favorite villainous/antihero characters are Captain Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean, Loki from the Marvel movies, Victor and Eli in @veschwab’s VICIOUS, The Joker (specifically Heath Ledger’s adaptation) from The Dark Knight Rises…#YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/pYwKEv5FOa
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
And last, but not least, Amy Dunne from Gone Girl! A great villain or antihero character can bring so much depth to a story. Who are some of your favorites?#YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/ah7Y0WuF5d
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
I'm so excited to introduce everyone to my villainous Phantom girl, Isda! She's fiery and vengeful and powerful, and I love her to bits. (Art by @JulieLochridge)#YAAuthorTakeover pic.twitter.com/RqLAo6Vs4p
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
I think that just about wraps it up for my #YAAuthorTakeover today! Thanks for letting me come chat you in anticipation of the release of my debut, SING ME FORGOTTEN, which releases on Tuesday from HarperCollins but is available for preorder now! https://t.co/eLF2Bcr6Uv
— WATCH 📺 LISTEN 🎧 READ 📚 (@YoungEntmag) March 4, 2021
