Hello! Today I have a guest post by the lovely Stephanie Parent.
"Julia Cape: A dedicated classical piano student just trying to get through her last semester of high school while waiting to hear from music conservatories.
Reed MacAllister: A slacker more likely to be found by the stoners’ tree than in class.
Julia and Reed might have graduated high school without ever speaking to each other…until, during a class discussion of Romeo and Juliet, Julia scoffs at the play’s theme of love at first sight, and Reed responds by arguing that feelings don’t always have to make sense. Julia tries to shake off Reed’s comment and forget about this boy who hangs with the stoner crowd—and who happens to have breathtaking blue eyes—but fate seems to bring the two together again and again. After they share an impulsive, passionate kiss, neither one can deny the chemistry between them. Yet as Julia gets closer to Reed, she also finds herself drawn into his dark world of drugs and violence. Then a horrific tragedy forces Julia’s and Reed’s families even farther apart…and Julia must decide whether she’s willing to give up everything for love.
Defy the Stars is written in an edgy free-verse style that will appeal to fans of Ellen Hopkins and Lisa Schroeder; however, the writing is accessible enough to speak to non-verse fans as well. The novel’s combination of steamy romance and raw emotion will appeal to fans of Gayle Forman, Simone Elkeles, Jennifer Echols, and Tammara Webber. With a story, language and form that both pay homage to and subvert Shakespeare’s play, Defy the Stars is much more than just another Romeo and Juliet story."
Buy the book:
My Dream Cast for Defy the Stars
When I began to compile my dream cast for my novel Defy the Stars, I was super-excited but
also a little nervous…I don’t watch too much TV or movies anymore, so most of
the actors I automatically think of are the ones I loved when I was a
teenager—i.e., the ones in their 30s and 40s now! So I decided that for my two main characters,
I’d include an “old” and “new”—an actor I would have envisioned when I was a
teenager, who would of course be too old now, and one who’s the right age
now. For the smaller parts, I just
picked a younger actor, and I have to thank my sister Gillian for helping me
out with suggestions!
So, here we go…
JULIA
Julia, my protagonist, is a sensitive, artistic girl with a
kind of quiet, unusual beauty. I have to
admit that while writing the book, I often thought of Claire Danes in both Romeo and Juliet and, especially, My So-Called Life. Here are two great pictures of Claire looking
thoughtful, a little angsty, and quietly gorgeous:
Link to picture
As for a younger actress, I’d definitely have to go with Emma Watson. She’s incredibly intelligent, thoughtful and unique, and she has her own unusual beauty. Here’s a great picture:
REED:
Reed is the classic bad-boy who tries to pretend like he
doesn’t care about anything…when really, he cares too much. To me, Reed is a lot like Ethan Hawke’s
character in the 90s movie Reality
Bites. Here’s Ethan singing his
heart out to Winona Ryder:
As for a current actor to play Reed, I’ve loved Jeremy
Sumpter ever since he played Peter Pan, and I especially like him with darker
hair. He has stunning blue eyes that
seem to change color, just like Reed’s.
Here are those intense blue eyes:
…and here they look lighter, kind of cloudy:
PERRY:
For preppy, good-looking but jerky Perry, here’s Drew Van Acker in Pretty Little Liars:
MARC:
Even though Marc doesn’t have a huge role in the book, he’s
one of my absolute favorite characters.
I purposely didn’t describe Marc’s physical appearance too much because
it isn’t important to the plot, and I wanted readers to come up with their own
image of him. However, I have to say I
always pictured Marc with crazy-cool hair and a laidback vibe like Corbin Bleu:
SARA:
Julia’s friend Sara is the polished, super-social, upbeat
blonde, like Dianna Agron in Glee:
Sara’s not a cheerleader, but I could definitely see her as
one!
So that’s it…do you think I made the right choices? Which actors would YOU have picked? I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Thanks for the awesome guest post Ms. Parent!
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