Book Spotlight: All I've Never Wanted by Ana Huang (Author Interview)
Author: Ana Huang
Publication Date: June 9, 2015
Synopsis: The Scions were the four richest, most powerful guys at Valesca Academy, and they ruled the school with iron fists. Everyone wanted to date them or be them...everyone, that is, except Maya Lindberg, who just wanted to avoid them until she could graduate.
She almost succeeded, until an ill-advised outburst on her part put her right in the Scions' path. Just like that, one became her fake boyfriend, one her unwanted matchmaker, one her guardian angel, and the one she couldn't stand the most? Yeah, he's her new housemate.
A Young Adult romantic comedy that explores what happens when a girl gets everything she never asked for, including a puppy, a new wardrobe, and, possibly, even true love.
About the Author: Ana Huang, better known as ACRL37 on Wattpad, primarily writes Young Adult and Romance. She started writing her first novel, All I've Never Wanted, when she was sixteen; it was originally inspired by the Asian manga Hana Yori Dango (also known as Meteor Garden and Boys Over Flowers). Her second novel, If We Ever Meet Again, was loosely based on her own study abroad experiences in college. Her stories currently have a combined view of over 20 million on Wattpad. Besides reading and writing, she also enjoys politics, brunch, and traveling.
Author Interview:
1. Describe All I’ve Never Wanted as a tweet (140 characters or less)!
A YA romantic comedy where a girl gets everything she never wanted…including, possibly, true love.
2. What inspired you to start writing?
I was born in the U.S., but my parents only spoke Chinese at home. As a result, when I first started school, I didn’t know English that well, and I started reading a lot to improve my language skills. I ended up falling in love with books, and after a while, I decided to try creating stories instead of just reading them. The rest, as they say, is history.
3. You started off posting your work on Wattpad, how did that effect your writing?
It actually had a huge effect on my writing. Before Wattpad, I never shared my stories with anyone. Writing is very personal to me, and I am pretty sensitive—less so now, but at the time I was worried about what people would say about my writing. Nevertheless, I decided to take a risk and post All I’ve Never Wanted, which is the first full-length story I’ve ever completed. I wrote it when I was sixteen, and I was blown away by the support from Wattpadders. Besides giving me encouragement to start and finish other stories, they also gave a lot of valuable feedback on grammar, pacing, etc. Through Wattpad, I had a better idea of how to appeal to my target audience and how to make my characters more relatable to readers.
4. What kind of research, if any, did you do for All I’ve Never Wanted?
I didn’t do a whole lot of research for All I’ve Never Wanted. Well, it’s actually based on a Japanese manga called Hana Yori Dango, which has been made into several Asian TV shows. I didn’t read the manga, but I did watch some of the shows and I was intrigued by the basic premise and plotline—a group of guys ruling a school, who were actually friends and didn’t backstab each other, and the one unimpressed girl who stands up to them. I decided to spin my own story off the premise, and I included some elements inspired by real life. For example, the grandmother is based on my own—though, of course, the fictional version is a lot more over-the-top!
5. Do you have a specific place where you write?
I always write at home in my bedroom. Sometimes I write in the dining room, but it’s very difficult for me to write anywhere else—the library, Starbucks, etc. I get too distracted and for some reason, if I’m not at my desk, my mind just goes blank!
6. What are you reading right now?
Right now I’m reading Jay Crownover’s Asa. I love New Adult and bad boy leads, so it’s perfect!
This or That...
Ebook or Real book?
Ebook for convenience, but real books make me more excited.
Twitter or Facebook?
Chocolate or Vanilla?
Chocolate all the way!
Past or Future?
Future. It’s fun to reminisce, but the anticipation for and potential of the future cannot be beat.
And just for fun- What is the strangest thing on your desk right now?
Haha, I don’t know if it’s strange, but I have a CD full of ziplining pictures. I just got back from vacationing in Costa Rica so I’m filtering out all the photos where I look extremely and unattractively terrified. Unfortunately, there’s quite a few. (Note: I was not paid or compensated by the ziplining company in any way to endorse their services, although they are quite awesome).
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