Pump Up Your Book Chats with Nya Jade

ABOUT NYA JADE

Nya Jade is a singer-songwriter and author based in San Francisco. Her music videos have aired on the VH1, BET, and MTV networks. USA Today hailed Nya as a “young female troubadour worth keeping your eyes and ears on,” in an entertainment feature on up-and-coming singer-songwriters. “Her cool singing voice recalls Sade,” said the LA Times.

Between writing and performing new music, Nya took a musical sabbatical to focus on writing a novel—an endeavor she found quite daunting, until she began looking at each chapter as a verse in a very long song. Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four is her first novel.

In her free time, Nya enjoys hanging out with family and friends, searching for amazing gluten-free desserts, and bargain hunting for her next pair of funky shoes.

Nya holds a B.A. in Economics and an M.A. in Sociology, both from Stanford University.

To find out more, please visit http://www.nyajade.com

On Twitter at: www.twitter.com/TheNyaJade

On Facebook at: www.facebook.com/NyaJadeFriends

To purchase, click here

Q: Which part of the book was the hardest to write?

The middle part. I had a clear vision of the beginning and of the end. Bringing those two parts together was difficult. I think it’s important not to lose the reader at the midpoint of your book and so I spent a lot of time working it out.

Q: Besides books, what else do you write? Do you write for publications?

I’m a singer-songwriter and so I also write lyrics and music.

Q: Do you have a writing tip you’d like to share?

A hot shower is a great cure for writer’s block. I’m sure it’s an usual tip, but something about the steam and the heat from a shower clears my mind. It’s a source of creative energy.

Q: Where’s your favorite place to write at home?

My living room sofa. I surround myself with comfy pillows and write. I call it my writing nest.

Q: What do you do to get away from it all?

I go to the Bahamas. I love to sit on the beach and stare at the turquoise blue water. It’s very peaceful and inspiring. I actually wrote part of Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four in the Bahamas.

Q: What was the first thing you did as far as promoting your book?

I announced the release date to family and friends. And the more I talked about it, the more excited they got about the book. Their word of mouth support has been amazing!

Q: Are you familiar with the social networks and do you actively participate?

I have to admit that I’m a social network delinquent. It’s something that I’m trying to change! I’m getting the hang of Twitter and it’s been a fun way to connect with readers and bloggers.

Q: What is the most frustrating part of being an author?

Writer’s block!

Q: What is the most rewarding?

Pride in my finished product!

Q: Your book has just been awarded a Pulitzer. Who would you thank?

My husband. His tremendous support helped me to finish the book.

Q: Thank you so much for this interview, Nya. Do you have any final words?

Thank you for this interview! I really appreciate the opportunity. I’d love to thank my readers for their support and enthusiasm. I’d also like to encourage folks to connect with me via Twitter and Facebook. Last but not least, the Kindle version of  Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four is on sale for 99 cents for the entire month of December!

Large- Nya Jade Cover- Phoebe Pope and the Year of Four ABOUT PHOEBE POPE AND THE YEAR OF FOUR

The students of Green Lane Academy roam their halls unaware that below their manicured campus exists a prestigious school of an entirely different kind . . .

Sixteen-year-old Phoebe Pope has enrolled at the Campus Below: a spy academy for shape-shifters hidden deep beneath the grounds of a boarding school whose humans unknowingly protect it. There, thanks to a carefully planned schedule, she leads a double life: spy trainee Below and normal teenager Above.

As if two course loads, concealing a secret power she alone wields, and coping with her father’s recent death weren’t enough, Phoebe finds herself developing major feelings for actor and teen heartthrob Colten Chase, who attends the Campus Above and appears to be majoring in winning Phoebe’s heart. But when officials learn that Phoebe may be at the center of a startling prophecy, she becomes the target of shape-shifting assassins who will stop at nothing to suppress the truth.

Now Phoebe’s lessons about Shaper’s enemies and spycraft take on great importance as a menace stalks the campus, with Phoebe as its target. Meanwhile, what began as an unlikely relationship with Colten, quickly morphs into heartache when she suspects that something sinister lurks beneath this movie star’s glitter and fame. Suddenly, Phoebe’s caught in a mesh of lies, betrayals, and danger where she doesn’t know who to trust, and needs to rely on herself—and her secret power—to get to the truth and to stay alive.


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