Hi Becca 
Thanks for your advice and time. Yes I am a Kate Brian fan and that's awesome you like her too. I always wondered if they gave away copies of her books before they are released. Thanks I'll let you know how the class goes. I just finished your book today I couldn't contain myself from stopping at chapter 9 for the book club. Hush, Hush contained everything I like in a book. Mystery, love, twists and turns. Lately it seems people like to write about vampires and put very mature (descriptive) sex scenes into young adult books. I like it when authors just hint that the people had sex. Vampires are being over used so I like your change of pace with angels.
Love Patches last name Cipriano where did you come up w/this name? I've only ever heard this name 2x... The 1st time when my grandfather passed (it was his middle name, spelled slightly diff) and 2nd time when I gave birth to my oldest son who is now 12 (also spelled slightly diff). I never though I would see that name in a book.
I loved the book and also wanted to know if its going to be a sequel? I could definitely see Dabria out for revenge in a future book....
~M~ 
Vermontcozy wrote:
Hi Becca,,Hope you are loving being here with us, I am thrilled you could join us so soon.Waiting to discuss Nora,Vee Patch, Chauncy..,and CoachThey have become part of me,you know what I mean..so many twists and turns.....I am reading on..I just must... Best to you..V.
Hi, V!
I am having so much fun - thanks to you guys for offering to read, and for being here to discuss! Glad you're feeling compelled to read on
Becca
djaq wrote:
Hey Becca!
I just wanted to let you know that I loved Hush, Hush! I also let my friends borrow my ARC and some of them have read this book three times already, and they all have said they are definitely buying a copy when it comes out!
But I also wanted to ask why you chose to write about "forbidden love," when there are many, many books out right now dealing with that same subject? Was there ever a point when writing Hush, Hush when you were uncertain if the novel would sell because of the popular demand for other books with similar ideas?
I also just wanted to point out that normally when I see a book- similar to Hush, Hush- on sotre shelves, I roll my eyes and think; "Oh just another chick lit..."
Well I think your book was MUCH more than just another chick lit.. ! I loved every moment of it!
(And was in love with Patch by page 100...
Your book was excellent!
Please, please, please, please write more!
~~djaq~~
Hi, djaq!
Glad to hear you're passing the ARC along - thank you for spreading the word!
I didn't set out to write a book about forbidden love, but you're right - it did end up being just that . When I started Hush, Hush (six years ago...feels like forever!) I knew I wanted to write a romance, but that was about it. Most romances deal with forbidden love in some form or another (wealthy boy/poor girl; scandalous boy/religious girl; engaged woman falls for single man, etc.), but I think part of the reason forbidden love is so HUGE right now, is because people often read one or two books with a similar theme (for example, forbidden love) and they want to recreate the reading experience with a different book. Hopefully I'm making myself clear. Here's a better example:
Years ago, I read Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (not a YA) and when I finished, I was so in love with the book, that I wanted to read more just like it. I started asking everyone I knew for historical romance book recommendations, and eventually found one of my all-time favorite novels, Flowers From the Storm by Laura Kinsale. I will always credit Outlander for being the book that made me go crazy over historical romance. Eventually, however, after reading one historical romance after another, I was ready to move on and started looking for new books to enjoy.
I think the publishing industry works a lot like this. Often, a certain type of book starts selling well, and editors want to create more books for people who've fallen in love with this particular genre, knowing they'll be looking for it. Critics would probably call this "jumping on the bandwagon" or "trend following" but I'm not sure book people look at it that way (I know I don't). For me, when I find a book I love, I WANT publishers to produce similar books, so I can keep enjoying them (well, until I get bored, anyway!
I have a few librarian/bookseller friends, and they all say that one of the most common questions they're asked is, "I recently read [insert title of book] and I want to find another like it. What do you recommend?" Librarians and booksellers love being able to direct readers to new books with similar themes, and helping to recreate a similar experience for those readers.
As for your question about being uncertain if the book would sell, YES, I definitely was, but for many different reasons. After years and years of rejections (I probably have over 100 from agents and editors combined) I was tempted to lose faith in the story.
Thanks for the great questions!
Becca
ConnieK wrote:
Becca-Fitzpatrick wrote:
Hi, Connie!
Great question! The biggest similarity people have asked me about is the biology classroom setting. I actually wrote the first two chapters of Hush, Hush in 2003, before Twilight was published, and while I've edited them some, they're basically the same today as they were six years ago. On an interesting side note, when I started submitting Hush, Hush to agents six years ago, the title I was using was Eclipse. I think in a tight market like YA, it opens up a lot of possibility for overlap.
During the years between 2003 and 2006 when I was submitting Hush, Hush, I didn't have a single agent point out any similarities between our two books, however I vividly remember the day in 2007 when an agent rejected Hush, Hush, saying the opening scene was too similar to Twilight. She offered to see a rewrite, but said I'd need to have the book take place in Health or Chemistry before the book would sell. Right then and there my stubborn side came out and I decided there was no way I was going to change Hush, Hush to avoid comparisons with another book – any book – so I guess the point of all this is I've probably asked for what I'm getting!
The more I read paranormal romance, the more I notice similarities between most books in the genre. In fact, there was one point during the editing of Hush, Hush when I emailed my editor in a panic, because there's a scene in Hush, Hush involving Nora and a homeless woman that was strikingly similar to a scene I'd just read in an adult paranormal romance. My editor calmly informed me that there are only so many narrative devices authors can use, and there's always going to be overlap. And you know what? The more I read, the more I see how right she is. As authors, we try to do our best to bring new and refreshing stories to readers, but it's impossible to please everyone.
As far as naming the author who's influenced Hush, Hush the most, I would have to say Sandra Brown. In fact, if you enjoyed Hush, Hush, I would highly recommend Chill Factor and Hello, Darkness, both by Ms. Brown.
Becca
Thanks so much for your thoughtful reply, Becca! I really appreciate it!
No problem!
emers0207 wrote:
I had another quick question...
Authors are, of course, allowed to have their own creative vision and especially in fantasy literature one is allowed to develop one's own universe so to speak. It's obvious you used your creative license when developing the book's theology and "heaven" and "hell." However, given the fact that you chose to use actual Judeo-Christian texts did you feel any obligation to abide by their theological frameworks? What made you decide to use existing religious writings rather than just invent your own? What kind of research did you do when developing the religious element of your story?
Hi, emers0207!
Great questions, thank you. I didn't want to make this a "religious" book, so I tried not to spend too much time focusing on things like heaven and hell, or even the religious texts. Some people enjoyed this approach, while others have written me saying they wish I would have given more time to the religious aspects. I've found that most of my favorite books that are based on real life events or subjects only hint at the truth, compelling me to go investigate the truth myself after I've finished the book. I did have one reader email me and say she spent a whole night researching Nephilim after reading Hush, Hush, and I loved that.
As far as research, I'm Christian, so these are subjects I've grown up with every week at Sunday School, and I didn't feel the need to do a lot of extra research, although I did reread a few passages in the Bible. In writing the book, I really wanted to keep the religion in the background, since it's not the main purpose of the story. The main purpose, obviously, is Patch and Nora's love story
Becca
Nikkayme wrote:
Hi Becca,
I loved Hush, Hush. It's one of the best (if not the best) YA novel I've read all year. The whole fallen-angel/bad boy thing is definitely unique and I can't wait to see where you take things.
Considering the fact that you use quite a bit of 'historical' information regarding angels, is there a chance that you will use biblical angels or angels mentioned in the Book of Enoch like Michael, Gabriel, Azazel, etc.?
Also, will you delve a bit more into the mortal girl that Patch fell from Heaven for?
Thanks for taking the time out to do this. Good luck with your re-writes/editing.
P.S. There's a movie coming out in January called Legion that involves angels and seems to focus on a fallen angel. The trailer looks awesome. You should definitely check it out
-Nikki
Hi, Nikki!
Thanks for the good-luck wishes with editing - I need them . I haven't heard of Legion yet, so thanks for mentioning it. I'll do a little Googling later on today.
I love your question about angels, and here's my top-secret answer . Crescendo (the sequel) deals more with Nephilim, but if I write a third book, I absolutely want it to be about angels. Don't rule any of them out!
As far as the mortal girl Patch fell for...hmm. Good question. And that's all I can say about that . (The pains of being cryptic to avoid spoilers...)
Becca
greenbeanteenqueen wrote:
Hi Becca! Thanks for being here with us and answering all our questions! I really enjoyed Hush Hush and have passed it on to some of my teens at work, who became addicted. We've had some great discussions about it. I loved Patch and I think he'll come up a lot when I do my book boy crush program at the library!
So for my question-I was wondering if you write with music and had made a playlist for Hush Hush?
Hi, GreenBeanTeenQueen a.k.a. Sarah (I will never forget your name after humiliating myself on facebook!) It's great to see you here!
YAY - so awesome to hear your teens are enjoying it! If they have any questions about the book, feel free to tell them to email me. And if you were like Vee, we probably would have been great friends in high school, since she's based on two of my friends from the long-ago growing up years
As for your question, I don't write to music. I wish I could! I've tried it a few times, and it always makes me believe my writing is better than it really is (that's the power of good music). That said, I do plot to music. I do most of my plotting first thing in the morning when I'm out running, and I always bring my iPod along. I try to envision upcoming scenes in the novel while I'm running/doing the music thing and then later that night (after the kiddos are asleep) I write the scenes. Let me hunt down a link to my playlist...
Okay, here it is:
http://www.beccafitzpatrick.com/playlisthush.html
Thanks!
Becca
emma23 wrote:
Hi Becca. My name is Rania and I absolutely loved your book Hush, Hush. When I read the 1st chapter I was hooked. I stayed up all night reading it. It was full of twists and it kept you guessing who was the bad guy. I hope you keep writing. I can wait to read the next book you publish
My question is- What gave you the idea/ inspired to write about fallen angels?
Hi, Rania! (I keep seeing great names on this board - love yours!)
Yay - I also love hearing that the book was unputdownable! I'm glad you read it in one night, but hopefully you didn't lose too much sleep
On to your question:
Truth be told, I didn't set out to write a book about fallen angels.
When I started writing Hush, Hush, I knew 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.
Becca
Becca-Fitzpatrick wrote:....
Yay - I also love hearing that the book was unputdownable! I'm glad you read it in one night, but hopefully you didn't lose too much sleep
Becca
Unputdownable? Is that a word? LMAO - - I like it! It works! I thought it was 'unputdownable', even though I had to, because this old body NEEDS sleep!
PS: LOVE the playlist! My daughter, when she was 2 years old and couldn't see it, used to be able to push the right button on my parent's old jukebox for "Wake Up Little Suzie" ( she's 28 now- oh the horrors)
PPS: LOVE the new ending as well!
More..... *sigh*
Hi, Becca!!
My name is Tatiana, and maybe you won't remember me but I replied to one of the first posts about Hush, Hush on facebook and told you I couldn't wait to buy it and read it. Thank God, I found the B&N First Look club and joined to have an ARC. And what an amazing experience it has been! I devoured the book in less than a day. The chemistry between Patch and Nora sizzles in this book, and with the mysteriousness and twists snaking through the story, you have a winner, Becca. You wrote a wonderful book. I am so happy to hear that there's going to be a second one, Crescendo. There are still a few things that remained unsolved, so it's a relief to know we have our answers coming to us next year--and that we'll have more of Patch, of course. Yay!
I only have one question (a lot have been answered already), since we didn't have the chance to really get to know Blythe, and since you're planning to explain more about Nora's father mysterious death on Crescendo, are you going to digg more on Blythe's past, too? Oh, and, are we going to have more of Elliot? (Dabria's comeback, I think, is more than obvious)
By the way, now that I think about it, do your character's names (besides Patch's, of course) have a double meaning? Blythe and Dabria sound like they do. lol
Sorry, that was more than one question. It happens when you get excited
P.S: I LOVE Vee!! The hospital scene when she's high was a blast! I couldn't stop smiling.
Yay-I feel so special you remember me! Great playlist-I love the songs. You have great taste in music.
I remember reading on your site (although now I can't find it) that your husband got you writing classes for a gift. (Or am I totally making that up?) So if that's true, my question is what was that like to write with other writers? What was your favorite part about a writing group? And also, any suggestions for online writing groups-I'd love to get the same present for my husband!
Sarah
Hi Becca. I just finished reading the new ending and I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed Hush Hush. It is one of my new favorite books, and I am telling everyone about it, from customers to booksellers.
I am an aspiring writer for YA and wondered what your writing day is like. Do you work outside the home and juggle writing into your day or do you write full time? Do you outline your stories first, or just write straight through? What advice do you have for aspiring writers out there to keep them focused on their goal?
Congrats on the wonderful book. I can't wait for the next installment.
