{Guest Post} Elana Johnson

About Elana:

I would like to introduce to you author, Elana Johnson,, the author of Possession!

POSSESSION:  
Vi knows the Rule: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn...and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself. But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous--everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.

Childhood Books and How They Shaped Me

By Elana Johnson

Okay, so I’ll be the first to admit that my memory is not what it once was. Or that it ever was. Ha.

But today I’m going to talk a little bit about the books I read as a child and why I love them.

Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I love the Little House books, and I’ve read them over and over. There’s just something magical about the pioneer times, I think, and I love these books so much, I just ordered the complete set for my daughter.

We’re going to read them together at night, just like my grandma did for me. I think that’s where my love of reading stems from: my grandma.

As I grew up, I didn’t rely on books as much as I did when I was in elementary school. I read only because I had to for an assignment. But as I became an adult, I started reading for enjoyment again.

I read books my son was reading (Magic Tree House, anyone?). I read Harry Potter. And that’s when I realized there was a whole new world out there. The world of YA books. I started reading those, and I’ve never looked back.

There’s just something about reading a fast-paced, angsty story that gets me right—here.

So when I sat down to write—I’ve never wanted to be a writer. I majored in mathematics and elementary education—I immediately tuned in to the YA genre. I didn’t even know what dystopian was until I read Scott Westerfeld’s UGLIES in early 2008. When I finished, I thought, “I want to write a book like this.”

So I figured out what “this” was, and wrote a book in the dystopian genre. Thus, POSSESSION was born.

Since then, I’ve read many YA and middle grade novels I simply love. SKIN HUNGER (by Kathleen Duey) and THE ADORATION OF JENNA FOX (by Mary E. Pearson) are some of my favorites in the YA world. I don’t read as much middle grade, but I do enjoy the Septimus Heap books by Angie Sage and THE MAGIC THEIF by Sarah Prineas. Oh, and anything by Cornelia Funke, notably DRAGONRIDER and INKHEART.

Thank you so much for stopping by Elana!

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