Interview with Hannah Harrington!

We are very pleased to welcome Hannah Harrington to our blog today! It was last year when I first read a book by Hannah Harrington. The book I read was Saving June, and it was actually Hannah's debut novel! I really loved Saving June, and from that day on, I always kept an eye open for her next book! This year, her book Speechless was out! If you haven't read any of her books, you are surely missing out! Now, read below to get to know more about Hannah Harrington and her books!

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Hannah Harrington is a 25-year-old born and bred Michigander. She grew up in the town of East Grand Rapids before later moving to the Lansing area, where she currently resides with three cats and a black labrador, all of whom are named after famous musicians. Saving June, Hannah's first novel, was published by Harlequin Teen in 2011. Her next novel, Speechless, will be released in the US on August 28th, 2012. 

‘If she’d waited less than two weeks, she’d be June who died in June. But I guess my sister didn’t consider that.’
Harper Scott’s older sister has always been the perfect one so when June takes her own life a week before her high school graduation, sixteen-year-old Harper is devastated. Everyone’s sorry, but no one can explain why.When her divorcing parents decide to split her sister’s ashes into his-and-her urns, Harper takes matters into her own hands. She’ll steal the ashes and drive cross-country with her best friend, Laney, to the one place June always dreamed of going, California.
Enter Jake Tolan. He’s a boy with a bad attitude, a classic-rock obsession and nothing in common with Harper’s sister. But Jake had a connection with June, and when he insists on joining them, Harper’s just desperate enough to let him. With his alternately charming and infuriating demeanour and his belief that music can see you through anything, he might be exactly what she needs.

Everyone knows that Chelsea Knot can't keep a secretUntil now. Because the last secret she shared turned her into a social outcast—and nearly got someone killed.
Now Chelsea has taken a vow of silence—to learn to keep her mouth shut, and to stop hurting anyone else. And if she thinks keeping secrets is hard, not speaking up when she's ignored, ridiculed and even attacked is worse.

But there's strength in silence, and in the new friends who are, shockingly, coming her way—people she never noticed before; a boy she might even fall for. If only her new friends can forgive what she's done. If only she can forgive herself.
Now Chelsea has taken a vow of silence—to learn to keep her mouth shut, and to stop hurting anyone else. And if she thinks keeping secrets is hard, not speaking up when she's ignored, ridiculed and even attacked is worse. But there's strength in silence, and in the new friends who are, shockingly, coming her way—people she never noticed before; a boy she might even fall for. If only her new friends can forgive what she's done. If only she can forgive herself.  

1)   Describe yourself in a tweet (140 characters)

Cynical idealist writer with too many animals!

2)   Do you collect anything other than books?

I’m not really a big collector. I do like adding to my vinyl record collection. There’s a record store near me that sells them for cheap, so I like to go and buy a bunch at once, and if I’m in another city and find a record store, I always end up picking up a new album!

3)  When did you decide that you wanted to be a writer? And have you ever thought of another career?

I have always loved fiction writing, ever since I was a kid. All through elementary school, and through high school, I was the girl carting around spiral notebooks and writing in them furiously! I didn’t really have a strong goal of becoming a published author back then, though. I went through a lot of phases as to what I wanted to be when I grew up—a film director, a horse trainer, something in social work… but I am very, very happy to have ended up being lucky enough to call myself an author!

 

4)  Give me your top 3 favorite YA books you have read. 

This list changes all the time! Off the top of my head, I’ll say: Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli, Gingerbread by Rachel Cohn, and The Possibility of Fireflies by Dominique Paul.

5)  What does your workplace look like? Is it messy? Please provide pictures if possible

I have a desk set up and I keep it pretty clutter-free… looking at it right now, there’s my computer, the desk chair, two bottles of water, a candle and flashlight on the top shelf (not sure why I put them there…), a coffee mug, my copy of To Kill A Mockingbird, a copy of Speechless, my Moonbeam Award gold medal I received for Saving June hanging off the side of the desk, and a sign that says “I’ve Stopped Listening, Why Haven’t You Stopped Talking?” tacked up over a little shelf door.

6)  How did you come up with the idea of Saving June and Speechless?

Saving June was an idea I’d come up with while I was in high school. Part of it was inspired by my own experiences, part of it was inspired by the idea of a cross-country road trip… it was a mish-mash of things! As for Speechless, I just had the random idea of someone taking a voluntary oath of silence, and from there the story fell into place.

 

7) What do you do in your free time?

I’m a pop culture junkie, I watch a lot of television, and I love watching films too. I play a little guitar and enjoy it. I have a lot of pets, and they end up taking up a fair amount of my time since they’re always demanding my attention!

8) What was the last movie you watched?

Like I said, I watch a lot of movies! Today I watched two: Capote, which I’ve seen multiple times before but really love. Philip Seymour Hoffman is one of the greatest actors alive, and it’s just a really compelling film. I also watched a movie I hadn’t seen before, The Five Year Engagement with Jason Segel and Emily Blunt—it was very funny and sweet, I definitely recommend it!

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Thanks so much Hannah Harrington for having an interview with MajiBookshelf! Hope everyone enjoyed this as much as we did!