Featured Interview With Jasmine Young
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I am a 27 year-old half Taiwanese, half-Caucasian American from NorCal. I’ve lived and travelled all over the world, from Taiwan to Belarus, to now, my permanent home of Florida. It was only after I obtained my MA in Teaching at Columbia University that I realized that traditional education was standardizing kids and not teaching them to live up to their full potential – and so, I embarked on my own hero’s journey to publish YA fantasy and inspire teens to rise up to become the inner legends they already are. Today, I’m fighting life’s giants and gaining new victories with my sidekick, Mau the overweight tabby!
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I started writing when I was eleven, but it wasn’t until I read Christopher Paolini’s Eragon as a fourteen-year-old that I began writing my own full-length novels. My first one was a total ripoff of the Inheritance Cycle, lol! (But that’s how the writing journey starts for some of us, right?)
Crazy enough, my current series – including my #1 Amazon bestselling debut, Stormfire – is a family descendant of that original Eragon-inspired series I wrote as a middle schooler!
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
Now, in my late twenties, YA fantasy remains my favorite genre and escape. Paolini will forever be my favorite because of how he’s inspired me. As I get older, I am hunting for the next Paolini in my life. So far, some favorite authors have been Suzanne Collins, Marie Lu, Sabaa Tahir, and Holly Black.
Every day challenges and victories continue to inspire my writing. As an author, I think it’s so important to not just master the craft, but human psychology as well. The more you understand yourself and other people, the more you’ll be able to write really compelling characters (and plots).
Tell us a little about your latest book?
Four teens may be the only hope of stopping the world’s end, beginning with one boy. Can fourteen-year-old Jaime rise to liberate his kingdom—even if he must burn with the rest of his family?
Phew. Believe it or not, it never gets any easier for an author to describe what her book is about in a few sentences.
But would you believe that when Stormfire, my YA fantasy debut, came out, my first review was two stars on Goodreads? I was really devastated. Talk about a fresh aspiring author turned published author who felt her dreams had been crushed. What’s even crazier is that a year later, Stormfire is now a two-time #1 Bestseller on Amazon.
This book is really about how the youngest people can make the biggest impact… AND achieve their dreams. If you’re an aspiring author, or an aspiring anything, look at Stormfire and believe that YOU can make it.
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