Literary Birthday – 27 August – Ann Aguirre

Happy Birthday, Ann Aguirre, born on 27 August 1970.

Ann Aguirre Quotes

1. Just because someone tells you a story won’t sell to the traditional market, that doesn’t mean you should give up. Write what speaks to your heart. Those stories are valuable.
2. I write across many genres (fantasy, science fiction, mystery, and romance), though my stories always have a love story baked in somewhere.
3. Sometimes snippets of conversation stick in my memory, or I see someone in passing who enlivens my imagination, and they inspire a character in one of my stories.
4. I get up late, have some food, take care of the dog, then make my way to my office. I tend to stay there until I meet my word count, which can take a couple of hours or eight, depending on how well the words are flowing. I stop when I’m done.
5. My office has a mini fridge and snacks so once I sequester, I’m there until I meet my goal. At which point, I rejoin my family, fix dinner, and become social again.
6. Other than retreating to my office, I tend to play music on loop. The song varies from project to project. Some people have whole playlists for their books, but for me it’s usually one song that encapsulates the feeling I’m trying to evoke.
7. I get ideas from snippets of conversation, from a vignette I see, from the way people dress and talk. Sometimes books come to me in incredibly vivid Technicolour dreams. I pretty much always have an incredible backlog of ideas that I haven’t gotten to write yet. It’s enough to keep me busy for the next ten years.
8. You take a world in utter disarray. Things are incredibly bleak. Then a hero arises, someone who has the desire and drive to succeed, no matter what. And this person changes their world in some fashion. How can that message not be incredibly valuable to young adults? I think it lends hope that there can always be brightness, no matter how dark it seems.
9. I love writing romantic scenes. When they finally realise their love for one another, it’s the culmination of the slow burn romance.

Source for quotes 1-6: Famous Writing Routines and 7-8: FWIW Reviews and 9: New In Books

Ann Aguirre is an American author of speculative fiction. She writes urban fantasy, romantic science fiction, apocalyptic paranormal romance (with co-author Carrie Lofty as Ellen Connor), paranormal romantic suspense (as Ava Gray), and post-apocalyptic dystopian young adult fiction. She is is the New York Times bestselling author of the Sirantha Jax series, the Enclave series, the Corine Solomon series, and The Dred Chronicles. She loves video games, Korean dramas, music, dogs and cats, and staring at the sea. Follow her on Bluesky and Facebook and Instagram.

by Amanda Patterson
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