Interview with Holly Cupala!

Today, I am so excited to interview one of my all-time favorite authors, Holly Cupala. She's the author of Tell Me a Secret and the newly released Don't Breathe a Word, which is now one of my all-time favorite books. You can read my review of Don't Breathe a Word here and check the the wonderful trailer here.
Enjoy the interview and be sure to leave your thoughts below!

----
Hello, Harmony, and thank you for inviting me to your blog!

What was the inspiration for DON'T BREATHE A WORD? Did you do any research about teen homelessness?
I’ve heard it takes two ideas to spark a story, and that was true for DBAW. I keep a writing notebook, and years ago I wrote down “girl who fakes being homeless.” She was going to be maybe a cheerleader by day and fake being on the streets after school. Of course it was a ridiculous idea, but I wrote it down anyway. Then my friend Jack, a youth pastor, put out a call for socks and toiletries to take to the homeless teens in Seattle, and suddenly I had an idea for a girl who runs away for real. Creed and Santos and May kind of came all at once, so vividly. I went home and wrote a fifteen page synopsis of the story.


I didn’t know if my ideas would fit with the reality of teen homelessness, so I did a lot of independent research, talked to people, took a class at New Horizons (the homeless teen org in the book), and asked my friend Pam Longston, the board president at New Ho’s (that’s what the homeless kids call it) to read the story. I was really surprised when the ideas I already had for the story (like street names, ideas of justice, and banding together for family and protection) were confirmed by real life.

Music plays a pretty big role in DON'T BREATHE A WORD. (Gotta love boys with guitars!) Pick a theme song for each of the main characters and one for the novel itself.
I have to say I love Creed. I’m so glad you do, too! After TMAS, I really wanted to create a character who was honorable, courageous, and worthy. And who happens to be a genius musician. ;)
Joy: Deserter, by Splashdown. (listen here)
Creed: I Will Follow You into the Dark, Death Cab for Cutie (video here)
May: Something of an End, My Brightest Diamond. (listen here)Santos: Street Spirit (Fadeout), Radiohead (video here)
One for the novel…oh, that’s so hard! All of the above songs and more, because each captures a different moment. If I had to choose one, maybe it would be You’re Not Alone, Saosin (video here).

Both of your books deal with serious subjects. Was one harder to write than the other? Why or why not?
TMAS was an enormous challenge—in part because it came out of a personal loss in my own life, and also because I was fighting all of the personal demons telling me I couldn’t possibly write, finish, or publish a novel. In some ways DBAW was easier, but then I still had to delve into the core of that story and where it came from (I wrote about my own abusive relationship in DEAR BULLY: 70 AUTHORS TELL THEIR STORIES). There are no emotional shortcuts, unfortunately!

What are you working on now?
I’m writing a third novel now, and it’s very intense—highly emotional and suspenseful and hopeful. It’s about four different characters, each with buried secrets, and a murder that brings them all together in one gigantic twist…

DON'T BREATHE A WORD deals with a lot of serious topics, from teen homelessness to drug usage to abusive relationships. Do you have any advice for your readers who may be in one of these situations or any organizations you would like to point them towards for help? Also, how can readers get involved in the fight against teen homelessness?
One thing I learned that really struck me during my research was that wanting to leave bad habits is not a motivation to quit—finding purpose and meaning is. One better choice can make the difference between a hopeful outcome and a grim one.

There are some wonderful organizations, both locally and nationally, to help teens in abusive or dangerous situations:

The National Runaway Hotline, 1-800-RUNAWAY, is dedicated to helping teens stay safe and off the streets.

LoveisRespect.org is such a great site with info on relationship warning signs and getting help, and they launched a dating abuse hotline: 1-866-331-9474 or text “loveis” to 77054.

Glamour Magazine launched the Tell Somebody campaign, including 10 Surprising Warning Signs You’re Dating an Abusive Guy.


How can you help?

Begin in your neighborhood, as Joy does. Look for opportunities to give toiletries and essentials, or volunteer in a teen shelter. If you have a friend in trouble, you may be more important than you know. Encourage your friend to find help. True friendship shines through adversity, and there is hope on the other side.

---
Thanks, Holly! I hope my readers will check out those great links you provided. Be sure to check out Holly's website and the official Don't Breathe a Word site. You can also read the first two chapters of DBAW here. (Though be warned that it's going to make you want to buy the book right away!)

Don't Breathe a Word by Holly Cupala

Title: Don't Breathe a Word
Author: Holly Cupala
Publisher: HarperCollins
My Copy: received from publisher
Summary: Joy delamere is suffocating.

From asthma, from her parents, and from her boyfriend, Asher, who is smothering her from the inside out. She can take his cruel words, his tender words . . . until the night they go too far.

To escape, Joy sacrifices her suburban life to find the one who offered his help, a homeless boy called Creed. He introduces her to a world of fierce loyalty, to its rules of survival, and to love—a world she won’t easily let go.

Set against the backdrop of the streets of Seattle, Holly Cupala’s power­ful new novel explores the subtleties of abuse, the secrets we keep, and the ways to redemption. But above all, it is an unflinching story about the extraordinary lengths one girl will go to discover her own strength.
My Thoughts:
Um, holy crap. Don't Breathe a Word is THE book of 2012. Nothing has affected me or made me think this much since Ballads of Suburbia two or three years ago. Once I started reading, I could not set this book down and even though I finished it in the final days of 2011, I still cannot get it out of my head. Everyone needs to read this book - when I finished, I texted about ten different people and forced them to purchase the book for themselves. I suggest that you do the same!

Okay, so what makes the book so wonderful? Well, um, everything.

Holly Cupala has officially established herself as being an incredible writer of tough subjects, first with Tell Me a Secret and now with Don't Breathe a Word. She writes with such vivid prose, throwing the reader straight into tough situations and holds absolutely nothing back. She writes with such raw honesty that even the most close-minded readers will find their thoughts challenged, if not changed completely.

The plotline of DON'T BREATHE A WORD is superior to any other novel on teen homelessness. As someone in a middle-class family, it's hard to imagine that some of these things happen but Cupala makes it real. My favorite aspect was that this wasn't just a novel about homelessness or an abusive relationship. It was a novel about friendship, love, and what either of those actually means.

While the prose and plot add so much to the story, it's the characters that truly make Don't Breathe a Word one of the best books out there. I don't think I've read a book with such real, messed up characters in a long time. The reader will find themselves identifying with Joy, whether you've ever been pushed as far as she has or not, and sympathizing with May, Creed, and the rest of the gang. Creed is one of the best male leads out there - he's sweet, strong, and so imperfect. He screws up and says the wrong thing and he doesn't have that psycho possessive thing that so many other male characters seem to have lately. Oh, and he plays a guitar. Asher, as evil as he is, is also a great character, perhaps because he is so bad and therefore real.

I could go on about this book all day because, honestly, the one downfall is that it ends. I wanted to stay with these characters forever. Holly Cupala is officially one of my favorite writers and I highly, highly recommend Don't Breathe a Word. It is the best teen contemporary out right now and I don't say that lightly. So do yourself a favor and go buy a copy!