Donna Maree Hanson, Author and PhD Candidate

Author spotlight

It’s my pleasure to bring to you an interview with the lovely Ingrid Jonach. I was very fortunate to read this novel before it hit the press. Donna.

Ingrid tell us a bit about yourself.

I live in the national capital of Australia – Canberra – with my husband and my pug dog Mooshi.

I have always loved to read and write, so when I finished school I decided to study creative writing at university as part of a degree in professional writing.

While I was at university I self published a picture book called A Lot of Things.

I signed a two book deal with Pan Macmillan Australia soon after for my children’s books The Frank Frankie and Frankie goes to France.  I most recently had a young adult novel published called When The World Was Flat (and we were in love).

How did you get the Strange Chemistry deal?

I had a wonderful agent working to sell When The World Was Flat (and we were in love) and it was quite a quick process from submission to book deal with Strange Chemistry.

We had knocked on a lot of doors before that book deal though.  I just about burst out of my skin when we got the offer.  I think it came through on email about five in the morning due to the time differences between my agent in the US, Strange Chemistry in the UK and me in Australia.

When the World was flat (and we were in love)? How did that story evolve for you?

I had very clear characterisations for each of my characters from the get-go. The story, however, developed organically around the characters.  It even transitioned from contemporary romance to speculative fiction during the writing and editing process. That was a significant rewrite, as the first draft had already been written when I decided to inject some science fiction.

The book has a very complex set up. How did you keep track of that?

Aside from a timeline of events to ensure no one went to school on a weekend, it was all in my head.  I am not very organised, so a few scribbled notes or a couple of comments through the manuscript served as reminders of plot twists or missing information.

You’ve been writing children’s books previously. How did you end up writing for young adults and is that where you’d like to be writing?

I loved writing for children and I expect I will do it again down the track, but I decided to write a young adult novel because I wanted to tell a love story. I have always been a hopeless romantic and when the mood struck one day I started writing When the World was Flat (and we were in love).

I am working on a couple of other young adult novels, but I can see myself writing in other genres down the track.  For example, the former journalist in me would like to write non-fiction.

What is your writing process? Are you a planner or a panster?

I am normally a pantser, but I am desperately trying to reform!

I have actually been spending the past month meticulously plotting my next manuscript using palm cards.  I thought I would find it frustrating, but I absolutely love it!  I think it will save me a lot of time with revisions.

I used to try to write everyday, but I have a demanding day job and I am usually a bit brain dead by the end of the day (and I am not a morning person). Unless on deadline, I generally write on weekends, which involves sacrificing a lot of time with friends and family unfortunately.

What do you prefer drafting the story or revising and reworking?

A couple of months ago I would have said revisions, but now I think it is plotting!

I just love dreaming up scenes for my work in progress and I think I am enjoying it even more now that I have a system (palm cards).  I used to just scribble scenes on pieces of paper (that I would promptly misplace) or in my phone (which would never be read again).

What part of writing do you find hardest?

I do really love revisions, but they can be very difficult.  It is like rewiring your brain.  I admit I often forget which characters or scenes were removed from When the World was Flat (and we were in love) during edits with my agent or Strange Chemistry.

What do you plan to work on next?

I am looking forward to writing my third young adult manuscript, which I am currently plotting.  I am also hoping that my second young adult manuscript, which is with my agent, is picked up for publication.  It is a bit early to tell you about them, aside from them both being young adult sci fi romance and being loosely linked to When the World was Flat (and we were in love).

Book Details

When the World was Flat (and we were in love)

Author: Ingrid Jonach

Publisher: Strange Chemistry

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15767908-when-the-world-was-flat

Available in hardcover, paperback, ebook and audio through all good bookstores and online.

Blurb

Looking back, I wonder if I had an inkling that my life was about to go from ordinary to extraordinary.

When sixteen-year-old Lillie Hart meets the gorgeous and mysterious Tom Windsor-Smith for the first time, it’s like fireworks — for her, anyway. Tom looks as if he would be more interested in watching paint dry; as if he is bored by her and by her small Nebraskan town in general.

But as Lillie begins to break down the walls of his seemingly impenetrable exterior, she starts to suspect that he holds the answers to her reoccurring nightmares and to the impossible memories which keep bubbling to the surface of her mind — memories of the two of them, together and in love.

When she at last learns the truth about their connection, Lillie discovers that Tom has been hiding an earth-shattering secret; a secret that is bigger — and much more terrifying and beautiful — than the both of them. She also discovers that once you finally understand that the world is round, there is no way to make it flat again.

An epic and deeply original sci-fi romance, taking inspiration from Albert Einstein’s theories and the world-bending wonder of true love itself.

Author Bio

Ingrid Jonach writes books for children and young adults, including the chapter books The Frank Frankie and Frankie goes to France published by Pan Macmillan, and When the World was Flat (and we were in love) published by Strange Chemistry.

Since graduating from university with a Bachelor of Arts in Professional Writing (Hons) in 2005, Ingrid has worked as a journalist and in public relations, as well as for the Australian Government.

Ingrid loves to promote reading and writing, and has been a guest speaker at a number of schools and literary festivals across Australia, where she lives with her husband Craig and their pug dog Mooshi.

Despite her best efforts, neither Craig nor Mooshi read fiction.

Find out more at www.ingridjonach.com