A Conversation with Tiffany Brooks, Author of REALITY GOLD (with a giveaway!)

Thanks so much for agreeing to be with us today, Tiffany!

THANK YOU for having me!

What 5 things should readers know about you?

• I live in California and I take pride I’m usually the first one in my family to yell “who felt that” after an earthquake.
• I think of myself a reader first, writer second.
• I can read really fast—usually I can read nearly any book in an hour, although I’ve noticed as I’ve gotten older it’s closer to two hours, which is worse sign of aging than finding a bunch of new wrinkles.
• When I was in middle school, I used to scour books for mistakes and then mail a list of corrections to publishers.
• I always imagined my dream job would be reading books at a publishing house or a movie studio—I’d read manuscripts at home, summarize the plot and send the write-ups to someone who would make a yes or no decision, and I’m embarrassed to say I only somewhat recently learned that job actually exists. I thought it was just an imaginary perfect job.

LOL to #1 🙂 and yes, #3 is distressing! #5 really DOES seem like an ideal job…which is probably why it doesn’t show up in any of the job listings we’ve looked at 🙁

 

Where did the inspiration for this book come from?

My husband watches a lot of reality shows—gold mining shows, fishing shows, shows that follow park rangers around—and they aren’t really my thing, so sometimes when I’m watching them I’ll space out and start imagining “what if” the show was like this or that instead. He was watching a treasure show where they always found great clues but none of them really went anywhere, so I started thinking “what if…”

I like it! Great inspiration…

 

How long have you been writing, and what (or who) inspired you to start?

I feel like I’ve been writing forever, although this is my first published novel. I used to carry around a notebook and I’d write down character names and story ideas. It’s funny though, because everyone always asks what the best advice I’ve ever gotten as a writer is, and its “make sure you actually write.” And I thought I was doing that with my notebook. Ha! Now I understand—that’s idea catching, and it’s great, but it’s not writing. Sometimes I’ll be sitting at my computer staring at a blank screen and I’ll have to repeat “put words on the page” to remind myself it doesn’t have to be (and won’t be) perfect the first time, but the first step is to get words on the page.

That is EXCELLENT advice. Even though it’s so much easier to just catch ideas… 😉

 

What are you working on right now? What can readers look for from you in the next year?

I’m working on two different series, both of which are connected to Reality Gold. One of them is a series that follows other characters from Reality Gold as they go off on new adventures. The other one is a series that plays with the idea of characters challenging their reality.

Sounds great! And fun to write…

 

What are you currently reading, and what are your thoughts about it so far?

I’m reading a middle grade book called the Parker Inheritance, and so far I love it. Someone pitched it to me as The Westing Game meets Holes with a lens on civil rights. I love puzzle books and treasure hunt books so I was excited to hear about it. I’ll read any genre for any age group if it’s a great story.

Sounds intriguing! I’ll have to keep an eye out for it.

 

If you had to “sell” your book in a single Tweet, what would you say?

Come for the characters, stay for the adventure! Teen girl comes of age and finds herself while filming a reality tv show on a deserted, cursed treasure island.

Perfect! Thanks so much, Tiffany!

 

Author Bio:

Tiffany Brooks lives in San Francisco with her family and a bunch of pets, who luckily don’t object to being featured on her Instagram. The best thing about living on the west coast is she can find out what happens on Game of Thrones three hours ahead of air time. That, plus not having winter weather, means she’ll never move back east, although that doesn’t stop her New England family from asking when she’ll be moving “back home” to NYC or Connecticut. Reality Gold, her debut novel, kicks off the Shifting Reality Collection, a YA trilogy.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook

Reality Gold
Tiffany Brooks
Published by: Dunemere Books
Publication date: May 22nd 2018
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult

“There are only two ways to survive Internet infamy: drop offline and play dead or give everyone something bigger and better to talk about. I’ve tried the first strategy. Now it’s time to try the second…”

A year and a lifetime ago, Riley Ozaki was just an ordinary high school junior in San Francisco, stressing over boys and grades. But an ill-conceived editorial in her school paper brought her an internet avalanche of public-shaming and ruined her life.

Now Riley’s on a helicopter dropping into a deserted island with nineteen other teens, to star in a reality show that will be her redemption. She has no other choice. National attention was what got her into this mess, and only the same level of exposure can get her out. Besides, Riley has a few tricks up her sleeve.

With a cast of vivid characters who will stop at nothing to win the show, a cursed island setting, and a priceless treasure waiting to be discovered, Reality Gold will drop readers right into a scheming web of lies, love, and betrayal.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble

 

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