Colorful Interview with Artist Arthur

Today I have an interview with Artist Arthur. Ms. Arthur is the author of Manifest, which is the first book in the Mystyx series. This interview is quite unique because it's a community interview. A community interview means that each blogger participating in the tour, sent in one question and Artist answered. Then we chose which questions we wanted to feature in our custom interviews. It's a cool idea and prevents the same question from being asked over and over again.

Read my review of Manifest


My question: Why did you decide to not only make Krystal African American, but also one fourth Native American?

Artist: I wanted all the characters to be unique in their backgrounds and upbringing. My family has some Native American (Cherokee) so it was a natural mixture for me.

The Brain Lair (KB): Is Artist your real name? Also, how did you guys find the model for the cover?

Artist: Yes, Artist is my real, legal name. J

I have nothing to do with the design of the cover beyond giving a character and sometimes a scene description. The publisher takes care of all of that. I just happen to agree wholeheartedly with their choice

Why did you decide to write a YA novel, and why in the fantasy genre? Jo

Artist Arthur: I was encouraged by a lot of people in my life to write something interesting for our youth. I’m a believer in signs so I figured with so many people saying the same thing, I owed it to myself to give it a try. I love paranormal and so far my romance has been contemporary so this was my opportunity to do something totally different.

Was it difficult to go from Romance to YA? The Library Lurker

Artist: No, actually it wasn’t. I like to read different genres so I generally like to write the same types of stories as I read. It just takes concentration on the current project at hand.

Faye: The paranormal genre is big in teen/YA literature right now. Most bestsellers feature vampires, werewolves, faeries, angels, or the like as a main character. In your opinion, why are teens currently fascinated with all things paranormal?

Artist: I think, like everyone else, they want a break for what’s currently going on. They want to be taken away to another time, or another place, or the same place with a different cast.

Bookworm: Why were you drawn to the paranormal genre of YA?

Artist: I’ve always been a fan of the paranormal genre adult and YA. I like that there are no boundaries to the world that can be created

iluvhersheysandbooks: Of all the paranormal creatures currently "sweeping the YA nation" why choose ghost over vampires, werewolves and faeries, oh my?

Artist: Because everybody seems to be choosing vampires, werewolves and faeries and I wanted to tell a different story, give readers another entity to consider when they think of the paranormal.

Star Shadow: How did you come up with the amazing idea for the base for this book and the Mystyx group/powers?

Artist: I love watching the weather channel. I kept thinking that something has to be left behind after all these storms and natural disasters. My daughter came up with the names of the Mystyx characters and I gave them powers. I wanted different powers, ones that would fit each character specifically

LuAnn: What sort of research did you need to do for your novel?

Artist: I had to find books on the weather that would back up what I’d seen on the weather channel. Books on Greek mythology that I already had because I love the subject in general. Then, I just wanted to spend time with teenagers to get a real feel for their lives, loves, issues, dreams.

Dwayne: Since Manifest is infused with paranormal mystery, do you have a personal paranormal experience that you can share with us?

Artist: Sometimes I’ll be in a room by myself and think I see shadow or feel like someone or something has moved past me. It’s weird and doesn’t happen all the time, but each time it does, I wonder…

Thank you for this interview Artist!

Manifest

Manifest (Mystyx #1) by Artist Arthur 2010 ARC

Rating: 3/5

IQ "I shrug because I don't really think it's a big deal. I like being alone. That way I don't have to explain the things about me that even I don't understand." Krystal pg. 16

Krystal Bentley has just moved from NYC to Lincoln, Connecticut, her mom's hometown. She went from big city to small town, from living with her mom and dad, to living with her mom and stepfather (Gerald). She is angry at everyone about everything. In Lincoln, Krystal starts hearing from ghosts, which is freaking her out. Especially because she might be falling in love with a ghost, Ricky Watson who is the same age as her. He was killed last year and he wants to find out who killed him and why (in order for him to crossover). Krystal's ghost hearing ability leads her to meeting other "freaks", Sasha who can disappear and Jake, who can move objects with his mind. They all have a "M" birthmark and were born around the same time. They call themselves the Mystyx. With the help of Sasha and Jake, Krystal will find out what happened to Ricky. But she will also learn a whole lot more than she ever wanted to know.

Transitions. That is the number one thing that sticks out in my mind as to why I didn't like this novel. There were no smooth transitions throughout this novel, the chapters jumped from one thing to another. For example, chapter one ends with Krystal meeting Ricky. Chapter two opens up with Krystal talking about how bad her mom's cooking is. I felt like I missed something so I flipped back to check, but it was no mistake. It was so frustrating! In addition to that, Krystal is annoying. I had a really hard time reading about her. Then she miraculously changes overnight. This happened not only to Krystal, but also to Gerald. Gerald comes off as a rude and uncaring stepfather. This later changes without any warning. I didn't buy it, but apparently his growth is real. Krystal is a whiner and incredibly selfish. The story grows tedious as she holds off on helping Ricky. I expected her decision to come sooner, but she keeps refusing to help him and I couldn't understand why (well besides the fact that she's a brat). The writing and dialogue was stiff, no lines really jumped out at me as being incredible.

I was surprised by and really enjoyed the Greek mythology elements of the story. The Greek mythology ties into the Mystyx powers and I'm eager to learn more about where the powers come from. The mystery was quite well done, lots of twists and the clues are slowly uncovered. There is a lot more to Ricky's death than just having to do with Ricky. The ending is disturbing, but in a good (?) way. I was kept on my toes. I really like the supporting characters of Sasha and Jake. Although Sasha acts weirdly and I'm not sure if that's intentional or not. The writing about her is kind of awkward. I want to see more character development of Sasha and Jake, because they both seem to have interesting stories. There seemed to be a possible love triangle or square forming over Krystal, but I'm not really sure. I really liked Ricky, he was my favorite character. He was so sweet and I couldn't understand why Krystal wouldn't want to help him. I did understand Krystal's frustration over being so abruptly uprooted. Her mother's refusal to explain why she divorced Krystal's father didn't make that much sense, it was just irritating because it was clearly hurting their relationship.

Manifest is a slow and oftentimes frustrating read. You have to be willing to ignore the random chapter transitions and the very slow start. Also be prepared for urges to shake the main character, as well as developing a crush on Ricky. The end almost makes it worth it, I just want some more character development. I would be interested in reading the next book in the Mystyx series in the hopes of finding out more about Sasha and Jake and where their powers come from. There are some surprising parts of the story that make it more enjoyable. The combination of supernatural and a mystery make this story a good one and the series has potential. Plus the cover is really pretty :)

Disclosure: Received from publicist for review. Thank you Lisa!

PS Check back on Saturday for an interview with Artist Arthur.