Silence (The Hush, Hush Saga)

Jenny Han: Writerly questions first. Do you write every day?

Becca Fitzpatrick: I write Monday through Friday. I take the weekends off.

JH: Do you outline?

BF: I didn't used to. But writing Crescendo made me a firm believer in outlining. With a book coming out every year, I don't have time to mess up. I think five years would be my optimal time period for writing a book, but with the nature of a series, I think that would make fans very antsy! When I'm on a deadline, every day counts. I feel an urgency to get the story right the first time.

JH: Did you find the series schedule grueling, doing one book a year?

BF: So many authors say the second book is hard, and they're right. Writing Crescendo was super stressful. The whole time, I kept thinking, I'm never writing a book again. All that pressure, to finish on time, and I also had readers' expectations to think about.

JH: Becca, trust me when I say you more than exceeded them with Silence. When I got to the end of the book, I was so excited Nora's story wasn't over yet. When did you know it would be four books instead of three?

BF: When I was nearing the end of Silence, I kept trying to wrap everything up. I'd planned on ending Patch and Nora's story there, and I wanted to stick to the plan. But a nagging voice at the back of my mind told me I needed to write one more book that takes place during Cheshvan. Those who've read my books know that Cheshvan is the time of year when fallen angels sweep in and possess Nephilim bodies by the droves. I heavily allude to Cheshvan during the first three books, but have never set any of the novels during those dark and haunted weeks. For readers who've been anxiously awaiting a final showdown between fallen angels and Nephilim—-with Patch and Nora torn between sides-—I can't wait for you to read the fourth and final book.

JH: That's genius! Now that you say that, it feels like a fourth book was an inevitability, because how could you even think of keeping all that from us?! Or rather, how could you think of keeping more Patch from us?! Patch is easily one of the sexiest guys in YA literature ever. He's flirty, he's dangerous, he's dark. Is he the guy you would have gone for in high school?

BF: My boyfriend in high school was smart, athletic, and sensitive. He played the saxophone and the piano-—really well. In other words, not a lot of commonalities with Patch. I was crazy in love with him, and so many of my high school memories revolve around him. But I always wondered what it would have been like to fall hard for the baddest of the bad boys-—the guys who made you nervous with a single look, whose thoughts you never could guess. Several novels later, Patch still feels that way to me—-dangerous and impenetrable. I don't think he'd be the least bit disappointed to learn this!

JH: I feel like there's a part of Nora that still doesn't trust Patch completely. Do you think she's justified?

BF: I think it would be very difficult to open myself up completely to someone with a history as dark and sinister as Patch's, so I don’t blame Nora for any unsteadiness in love. Nora trusts Patch, believes in him, and their relationship has grown stronger through each trial they've faced, but she also knows she can't change him. He wants to be the story's hero, but he's in a constant battle with the man he wants to become... and the man he is. The temptation to return to his old lifestyle is relentless.

JH: That makes him even hotter to me. I guess we know who I would choose—-always the impenetrable bad boy, every time! Which is not to say that I don't find the other man in Nora’s life intriguing... Speaking of, would you rather be a fallen angel or Nephilim?

BF: I have a lot of sympathy for Nephilim. I don't think Chauncey Langeais is entirely wrong for hating Patch and trying to get revenge. I can't imagine anything worse than having your body ripped away every October and possessed by a menacing creature. And while it seems fallen angels have all the fun, I'm going to choose Nephilim. But maybe that's because I know something readers don't. Something unexpected and terrifying that happens to fallen angels in Book Four....

JH: After you close out the series, what's next for you?

BF: It's been very hard knowing that soon I'll have to say good-bye to Patch, Nora, Vee, Scott, and even Marcie. But at the same time, I feel there are other characters living in the back of my mind, waiting for their stories to be told. I've always been drawn to writing dark, sexy, and twisty novels, and hopefully I'll be starting a new one very soon!

"Angry Angel" by Imogen Heap

"Paint it Black" by Rolling Stones

"Mad World" by Tears for Fears

"Blinding" by Florence And The Machine

"Back in Black" by AC/DC

"Bizarre Love Triangle" by Donna Lewis

"Love Walks In" by Lenka

"Trouble is a Friend" by Jane's Addiction

"The Way I Am" by Ingrid Michaelson

"Fall For You" by Secondhand Serenade

"Always" by Bon Jovi

"All I Want Is You" by U2