I attended YALLWEST this past weekend, and sat down with Alexandra Monir while there on Saturday, May 5th to talk about her work. Alexandra is an Iranian-American author, as well as a recording artist and composer. She has published five novels for young adults, including her popular debut book, Timeless, and its sequel, Timekeeper.
Her newest book is the science fiction novel, The Final Six, which is in stores now. The book was acquired by both HarperCollins and Sony Pictures during the same week, in two major pre-emptive deals. During the course of working on the book, Alexandra did extensive research, including attending adult Space Camp, meeting with NASA scientists, visiting museums and space centers, and by reading and watching everything she could get her hands on in order to create the novel. We talked with Alexandra about both her music and writing careers. Below is our interview.
SDLS: Some writers tend to write consistently within the same genre, but each of your books has been different - The Girl in the Picture is a murder mystery, Suspicion is a supernatural thriller, Timeless is a romance time travel story, and now we have The Final Six, which is a dystopian sci-fi epic. Was this a conscious decision, or is that just how it worked out?
AM: I think that there is a common thread throughout all of my books, and that is that there's always some kind of heightened reality going on. That's what I get excited about, the stories where there's something otherworldly happening - whether that's time travel, or the paranormal, or, like literally leaving our world, as in The Final Six - so, there's always something else in the story. Even with The Girl in the Picture, you think it's like a classic murder mystery, but there's a time travel/paranormal element in there too. So I think that, for me, I do write in different genres, but you're never going to get just a straight contemporary from me. There's always going to be some other element like fantasy, or sci fi woven in.
SDLS: And it helps keep things interesting, too.
AM: Yeah, yeah. And it's just what I gravitate to.
SDLS: You are a professional composer and recording artist, as well as a writer. So, what came first, music or books?
AM: Music came first. Well as a reader, I was definitely reading, and was a big fan of books, well before starting in music. I was reading all the time from about age 2, on. Even before knowing how to read, I was going through books, looking at the pictures and making up my own words to go with them.
When I was in school, I started doing musical theater, and that kind of led into me writing my own music and recording, once I hit about age 14. So, I started out doing that {music} pretty early on, and then continued reading, of course. I then started working my music connections, once I moved to L.A., to get into the whole film/TV/book world. I then came up with an idea that felt like it would fit well as a book, and that became Timeless. Ever since then, I feel like I've really found my groove as being an author who also does music.
SDLS: How is writing music the same or different from writing books?
AM: I think the only major similarity is that you're telling a story. But, the form in which you tell that story is so different. With writing a song, I can write a song in about 10 minutes, and then you get with your collaborator and producers to refine it, and make it as great as it can be. You go into the studio and you build and build on this idea until its fully developed. But, you know, it's a much quicker process than with books. With books, writing the words is just the beginning of a 2 year process. So, I think the amount of time is the biggest difference for me. Books are very labor intensive but, in a lot of ways, that's also what makes it very satisfying because you don't get to just write a book and then you're done. You get to really live with those characters for a lifetime.
SDLS: With music, what you write is mostly your own. Editors or publishers don't come in and tell you how to rewrite your song, but with writing books, there are people going through it telling you what's wrong with what you wrote and wanting you to make changes, sometimes in ways that are significantly different from what you were thinking. How was it handling that input?
AM: I think that I was prepared for it because, honestly, in the music industry, even though you write the song, or have an idea for a song, it's very collaborative in that you're cooperating with other songwriters. I'll come up with an idea for a song, and the producer might be like "I think we need to change the chorus to this", or once you start getting into the track, the music might all change. I was used to that collaborative process so, when writing my books and working with editors, etc., I think I adapted to it pretty well. And really, with any project, it's really never a one person thing.
SDLS: Was there anything new or different working within the publishing world that surprised you, having come from the music industry?
AM: I have to say that everything felt so new! I mean all of it: from copy editing and how that works, to first pass pages, and then what it's like to do book publicity - everything! It's like it's own animal, and so it was a big change. But it's really exciting, and I love it.
SDLS: I know you have written some original music for some of your books. How did that happen? Did you draw inspiration as you were writing a book, and the music just came to you, or did you already have music written that then inspired you to write a story?
AM: With the books Timeless and Timekeeper, basically I went into it and, initially, I didn't know I was going to write music for those books. Then, as I was writing the characters and the storyline, and was having the characters fall in love, and it turned into this epic romance, I realized how magical it would be if part of their love story involved them writing music together. The protagonist is from 2010 and she goes back to 1910, falls in love, and I thought "What is something that they can bond over and connect over? Music!" Music transcends everything. It transcends age, it transcends what year you're living in, and all that, so I thought how cool it would be if they wrote a song together. I mean, she's a lyricist and he's a composer, and they could write music together. So, it was that idea that came first, and it wasn't until the 2nd draft that I got that idea. It took my living with the characters for a little bit before I knew that I wanted to do that. Then I started writing, and then I recorded the music.
SDLS: Do you listen to music while you write?
AM: Yes! I definitely listen to music while I write.
SDLS: The Final Six takes place in a near future, dystopian Earth, where 24 teens are competing to be chosen for a mission to start a new human colony on Europa. You did lots of research for the book, and even had 2 scientists review your manuscript in order to get feedback on the accuracy of what you wrote. Can you talk more about that?
AM: I was so fortunate to have 2 experts read the manuscript and give me feedback: Dr. Firouz Naderi, who worked with NASA, and Dr. Teresa Segura, a brilliant climate scientist and friend. They pointed out any of the science that needed correcting. It was really important to me to get it right. I did take some artistic license for the sake of the story, but those instances were few, and they were still based on real science.
SDLS: The Final Six has been optioned by Sony Pictures. Where are things at with the film? How involved will you be with the adaptation?
AM: At this stage, nothing has happened yet. Sony Pictures has optioned it, but that just means that they have exclusive first rights to develop a film project. So far, nothing else has transpired, but I feel very good about it and trust the people working with me.
SDLS: I read that studies and publishers started bidding on The Final Six before you had finished writing it. How did that happen? How important is it to have an agent?
AM: I had only written a couple of chapters and given them to my agent, and he felt strongly that the story would work as a movie. It was he who sent the drafts out for bids. You have to have an agent to get submitted. The other thing about having an agent is that they look out for you, they look out for your career. They protect you, so you definitely, you have to have that lined up for sure.
SDLS: You've announced that there will be a book 2. Will there be more? Anything else planned?
AM: At this point, no. The second book will be out in 2019, and I haven't thought beyond that right now.
SDLS: Thank you so much for sitting down with me, Alexandra. I picked up The Final Six on Independent Bookstore Day, and look forward to reading it!
Additional information here:
https://www.alexandramonir.com/Labels: Author Interviews
