Chatting with Julie Campbell

Another great author met through a writers forum…

AM: I really loved the premise of Senior Year Bites and how fresh it felt to 1)not have a love triangle 2)find real girls with real friendships 3)a pov on vampirism we rarely get. Where did you get your inspiration?

Julie Campbell: Well, to keep it short, a lot of the love triangles bug the crap out of me. Teaser: There is some relationship tension and betrayal, or perhaps just perceived betrayal, in the second novel. The real friendships I stole from a middle school and high school friendship I had with two other people. Obviously it is not completely the same, but I based it off of my experiences. The POV on vampirism was me reacting to something I was missing in novels. Most of the vampire novels are not from the vampire’s POV and I wanted some more. So I wrote one. Actually, I’ve written several, but this currently the only one getting published that is from a vampire’s POV.

The actual idea from the novel came from a dream I had about a girl who got changed into a vampire her senior year of high school. Mostly on a whim I decided to write a few pages (a friend also wrote a few pages with that prompt and we compared to see how different they would turn out. They were quite different). The few pages turned into a novel.

AM: I’m so glad you’re mentioning your sequel, because for most writers, going back to a story after publication for its second installement is rather tedious. How are you tackling it? Do you keep a SYB bible close by?

Julie Campbell: I actually love sequels. It gives me more chances to play with characters I love. I have a really good idea of where I’m going with the sequel to Senior Year Bites. Right now it is titled Summer Break Blues. I started writing before I created a SYB bible, but I have recently read SYB a million times for edits so I remember most of the details. I also have notes on characters, events, and all that and that is helping me keep things straight (so like a mini-bible). I have plans to create a true SYB bible now that I have a little time to think. Sequels are fun, but keeping track of everything can be tough.

AM: Great title, love how you keep the same vibe throughout. Does it mean you’ll treat us with a third book in this series? If so, do you know what it’ll be about and if not, what will you be working on next?

Julie Campbell: I have a third book planned, though I have no idea how I’m going to keep the title theme going. I’m sure something will come to me. If the third book goes well I do have some ideas for more books in the series as well, though it would likely focus on other characters. The main characters from the first three would end up being supporting characters at least some of the time. The book I’ll be working on next after Summer Break Blues will be the second Tales of the Travelers (Arabian Dreams) novel.

AM: Please tell me how you got inspired for Arabian Dreams – I already know, but want to share.

Julie Campbell: I was out trail riding on my Arabian horse, Sabaska, and I always have this feeling like I’m getting transported to other worlds when I ride with her. I thought it would be fun to write a novel about a girl who travels to other worlds on horseback and has fantastical adventures. The idea originally started out as a series of connected short stories, but in the way of things it turned into a novel instead.

Julie Campbell shares her thoughts and developing projects on her blog, too.