This week YA Author Erin A. Craig took over our Twitter as a part of our weekly Thursday Twitter Takeover. Erin A. Craig is the author of House of Roots and Ruin. (See YEM’s interview with Erin A. Craig here.) See highlights from the takeover below.
Hey y’all! I’m @Penchant4Words and I am so, so, so excited to be taking over Young Entertainment Magazine’s account tonight! I’m the NYT bestselling author of HOUSE OF SALT AND SORROWS and SMALL FAVORS. My next book— HOUSE OF ROOTS AND RUIN— comes out July 25th! #YAauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/89Riu04hlp
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 13, 2023
I’ll be talking about my writing journey and giving some fun behind-the-scenes glimpses on all things HORAR, so if you have any questions— let me know! #YAauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/5ubVC8A6xz
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
Fun fact: before I began my journey toward becoming an author, I was in theatre! I worked all over the country, stage managing musicals, operas, plays, and even did a season with the Radio City Rockettes! #YAauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/Higax4NfXS
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
My last pre-author job was working as Director of Production with @operamemphis! When I had my daughter— Tiny Craig— I quickly realized that 10 of 12 tech schedules and newborns didn’t jive too well and went on a little hiatus…#YAauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/whc1aiXwFN
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
I came across some old notebooks from a project I’d played around with in college— a continuation of Peter Pan which will NEVER see the light of day! 😂— and started polishing it up in the hopes of tempting an agent with it! #YAauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/zFBOMTFFcp
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
136 rejections later… it began to sink in that my poor little Peter Pan story *might not* be the book that made it! I started drafting what would become
HOUSE OF SALT AND SORROWS, entering my first #campnanowrimo in 2017! #YAauthortakeover— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
I came across an article that mentioned @JasonHuebinger’s #PitDark— a Twitter pitch contest specially made for agents looking for works with spooky flair. I raced through my first draft and polished it up just in time for the contest. #yaauthortakeover
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
Something magic happened and my second tweet of the day blew up, netting 87 agent requests. I sent out queries to my top 10 picks. I wound up getting four offers of rep! I signed with @SarahLandis1 at @SterlingLordLit and it’s been a wild ride ever since! #yaauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/0zqFnX2YXw
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
I love writing dark fairytale retellings— often mashing up gothic horror stories with Brothers Grimm tales. HOSAS began as an Annabell Lee retelling. I floundered on how exactly to tell it until I thought of adding in a bit of The Twelve Dancing Princesses in! #yaauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/EWU79KP2eQ
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
My second novel, SMALL FAVORS, is a loose retelling of Rumplestiltskin, blended with one of my favorite things to research— American cryptids! #YAauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/TrYNTFQjkR
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
HOUSE OF ROOTS AND RUIN— out July 25th!— is a mash up of Bluebeard, Jekyll & Hyde, and juuuust a touch of The Manchurian Candidate, plus one of my
favorite movie lines of all time… #YAauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/DmD44D57Xz— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
I’ve always loved reading spooky books! I lived for the SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK series— “The Green Ribbon” is my FAVORITE! #YAauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/blsRl4gJPN
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
I reread a lot of gothic fiction while researching HOUSE OF ROOTS AND RUIN, as well as a bunch of botany books! THE COMPLETE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS has been a constant companion in my office! #yaauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/f4XFP33YBe
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
People often ask where the idea for HORAR came from. I had so much fun writing HOSAS and knew there was a lot of the world I wanted to keep exploring. I wanted to see what the other dukedoms were like and I wanted to experience them through a fresh set of eyes. #yaauthortakeover
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
While HORAR is part of the same world as HOSAS, it is more a companion than a sequel. It takes place 12 years after the events in HOSAS and features Verity Thaumas as our heroine— newly grown up and ready to experience the world! #yaauthortakeover
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
There are 2 absolutely gorgeous editions of HOUSE OF ROOTS AND RUIN. @BNBuzz’s features gold foil for its title and has the creepiest beet red sprayed edges! The standard edition has blood splattered pink font and a stunning pink foil case beneath the jacket! #yaauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/iGUA0lFep6
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
Thank you so much for letting me chat with y’all tonight! If you want to hear more about my books, writing tips, and spooky reading recs— follow me at @Penchant4Words here or over on the picture site! #yaauthortakeover pic.twitter.com/35aJLPegtQ
— Young Entertainment Mag (@YoungEntmag) July 14, 2023
