Hi, Rosei!
Thanks so much for the congratulations - I still have days where I can't believe my book is going to be published. That new and exciting feeling hasn't worn off yet 
I just mentioned this to Vermontcozy, but in case you miss my response, I'll add it here too.
The very first inspiration for HUSH, HUSH came from an experience in my own tenth-grade biology class. We must have been studying human reproduction, because my teacher asked me, in front of the whole class, to name characteristics I would be attracted to in a mate (really!) I sat next to a cute boy, and the thought of naming characteristics I might look for in a mate was a humiliation I was not about to subject myself to. But the experience always stuck with me, and when I sat down to write HUSH, HUSH, that little piece of my history evolved into an early scene in the book. If you've read past page 40, you probably know which scene I'm talking about!
My favorite authors are: Diana Gabaldon, Sandra Brown, Laurie Halse Anderson, Jane Austen, Karen Joy Fowler, Melissa Marr, J.D. Robb, Sharon Kay Penman, Laura Kinsale, Mary Stewart...I just realized I'm naming all women! How about a few men? C.S. Lewis, Thomas Harris, and Ben Mezrich.
What about you? Who are your favorite authors?
Becca
Hi, Debbie!
I write for YA because my own teen years had such an impact on who I am today. My husband has a hard time remembering much from his high school years, but most of my memories come from who I was at 15, 16 and 17 years old. When I started writing HUSH, HUSH, I had no doubt that the story would be about teens. When I was in high school, it seemed like every day was full of new possibilities. Those years were fun, complex and even horrific at times. Now that I'm an adult, I feel like I have life all figured out. (I don't, but I feel like I do, ha!) Yes, there are still surprises and twists, but I know who I am and where I'm going. I couldn't have said those same things with such certainty when I was 16. I think I write YA, because I like revisiting those chaotic years...and wondering, what if?
Becca
P.S. Glad you're enjoying the book! When you're tempted to read fast, just remember all those years it took me to write the book . Actually, I'm probably the only one who thinks that way: How can people read in two or three days what took me five years to write?!
Hello, Zia!
Okay, here's the truth, but I'm warning you, it's kind of silly! When I was eight, I watched Romancing the Stone for the first time. Kathleen Turner's character plays a romance novelist who flies to Colombia to rescue her sister from Bad Guys, and ends up finding romance and danger that surpasses anything she's ever written. As soon as I saw the movie, there was no turning back. I knew I wanted to be an author. Of course, I thought all writers hunted for treasure in Colombia with a sexy, mysterious guy who wears crocodile boots!
As I grew up, I forgot about my dream of becoming a writer, and actually considering applying to become a spy for the CIA. Then I read BLOWING MY COVER: MY LIFE AS A CIA SPY by Lindsay Moran and changed my mind. I graduated from college with a degree in Community Health, and then went to work as a teacher/secretary/accountant for an alternative high school. It wasn't until my husband signed me up for a writing class for my twenty-fourth birthday that I started writing.
Becca
P.S. And you're not alone regarding Patch - most people tell me he's their favorite
Hi Becca!
My name is Alysse and I love your book, Hush, Hush. I've reasd it twice
What gave you the idea to write Hush, Hush?
My favorite book/book series before Hush, Hush was the Twilight Series. But Hush, Hush was amazing. Everything fit together perfectly. The Twilight series is nothing compared to Hush, Hush .(no offence Stephanie).
Well, I enjoyed Hush, Hush a lot
and I hope others will enjoy it as much as I did!
One of your biggest fans,
Thanks for the welcome, Wendy!
I'm glad you're finding the book unputdownable - that makes my day!
On to your questions:
I had to scratch the original title of the book, because during the years it took me to sell the book, a popular YA novel came out with the same title. So I went back to the drawing board. I don't remember having a Eureka! moment when I knew I had to call the book Hush, Hush, but I do remember thinking the foundation of the book is about secrets Patch keeps from Nora. Since the definition of the word hush is “to keep concealed,” it just seemed to fit.
Truth be told, I didn't set out to write a book about fallen angels. All I I knew was that I wanted Patch to be the ultimate bad boy...but with a twist. He hadn't always been bad. In fact, at one point, he'd been really good, and something had caused this big change. While pondering what had caused Patch's fall from grace, the metaphor of “falling” that I was carrying around in my head became something quite literal – a fallen angel. Since I already knew Patch was going to be the ultimate bad boy, this revelation seemed perfect – after all, fallen angels are the original bad boys.
And, yes! This is Book One in a series - I'm working on the sequel, Crescendo, right now. Well, not right now, but you know what I mean
Becca
Hello, Marciliogq!
I know every writer has a different opinion on how to handle sex in YA, but for me, I like to keep it PG-13. In other words, I'm not going to be writing sex scenes in any of my books . Teens are bright intelligent people and can handle mature topics, but I feel a responsibility not to make it gratuitous. I'd feel the same way if I were writing adult books. Of course, opinions on this are going to vary widely from one author to another.
In HUSH, HUSH, Patch was banished because he wanted to be human so he could be with a mortal woman, but in fact, he could have become a fallen angel for succumbing to any of the seven deadly sins. For instance, some of the angels fell because they wanted to rule Earth as their own (greed).
Excellent question, by the way!
Becca
Hi Becca Fitzpatrick
my name is LaKitta from Conway, SC. I really love the book HUSH HUSH. I wish it did not end I also wish I did not read it so fast. When I read HUSH HUSH I could see everything like it was a movie playing like I was really there with Patch and Nora. I was wondering how different is the ending from the ARC? ALSO THANKS FOR WRITING SUCH A GREAT BOOK!
Hi Becca, and congratulations!
I have perused your website and blog, and am pleased to see that a sequel is coming out next year. Although I haven't been able to find any specific details (I'm sure that's still very Hush, Hush 
), I'm assuming the sequel continues the story of Nora and Patch. Have you considered writing a prequel that details Patch's fall from grace and his subsequent encounters? I am dying to know his whole history (though I'd settle on just seeing more flashbacks to the historical perspective established in the Prologue).
I enjoyed this book very much, and didn't sleep until I finished it! I am already getting the staff at my store excited for this upcoming release, and am eager to share my ARC with them at the conclusion of the book club discussions.
Congratulations again!
