Author Interview: Alexandra Monir - TIMELESS

Today we have the lovely and talented Alexandra Monir here for an interview! Her debut young adult novel, TIMELESS, was released this month and it sounds fantastic!

When tragedy strikes Michele Windsor’s world, she is forced to uproot her life and move across the country to New York City, to live with the wealthy, aristocratic grandparents she’s never met. In their old Fifth Avenue mansion filled with a century’s worth of family secrets, Michele discovers a diary that hurtles her back in time to the year 1910. There, in the midst of the glamorous Gilded Age, Michele meets the young man with striking blue eyes who has haunted her dreams all her life – a man she always wished was real, but never imagined could actually exist. And she finds herself falling for him, into an otherworldly, time-crossed romance. Michele is soon leading a double life, struggling to balance her contemporary high school world with her escapes into the past. But when she stumbles upon a terrible discovery, she is propelled on a race through history to save the boy she loves – a quest that will determine the fate of both of their lives.

 Hi Readers:)

I just released my debut novel, TIMELESS, and I couldn't be more excited to share it with all of you. I also recorded two original songs that are featured in the story, which you can hear on my website or on iTunes. Books and music are my greatest passions, so combining the two has been such a thrill for me--I love being able to tell Michele's story through both the written word and the recorded song. I hope you enjoy!

1. Was there something musical that helped inspire the story of TIMELESS?
When I wrote the book proposal, I was listening to the Radiohead song "Sail To The Moon." That track is just so mystical and hypnotizing, it really transported me into this world that I was writing about.

2. Would you describe the songs you’ve written for TIMELESS and are there certain characters or scenes in the book that inspired them?
The songs are both integrated into the plot, and in the story the lyrics are written by the protagonist, Michele. The first song, "Bring The Colors Back," expresses how Michele feels when she's away from Philip--like the world has lost its light and vibrancy, and she needs the colors back in her life. "Chasing Time" is like the theme of Michele's journey, how she'd rather chase history to be with Philip than live in the normal world without him. Both songs incorporate musical sounds from the eras Michele visits when she goes back in time.


3. What Young Adult book would you like to see made into a musical and is there a part you’d like to play in it?
Fun question! I think A Great and Terrible Beauty would make a really cool musical, and if I can still pass as 16, I'd of course want to play Gemma! :) 


4. What are the similarities (if any) between writing music and writing fiction? Do you find one easier or more enjoyable than the other?
The main similarity is that whether you're writing a song or a book, you're telling a story, and you're taking people on a journey through that story. I'm in love with both mediums! Writing a song is a much quicker process than writing a book, so I suppose that makes it easier, though I get to enjoy writing a book for longer since I'm enmeshed in it for so long!


5. You started your musical and theater career at young age, what have been some of the most memorable things that have happened on your journey?
My former life as a teen-pop singer was definitely memorable! I was playing clubs on the Sunset Strip at age 16, but because I was too young to actually be in the clubs, I had to leave immediately after performing! Then the summers I was 17 and 18, I was the opening act for O-Town and Aaron Carter and we played some big venues. It was a fun time, but the teen-pop sound never really fit me, and once I hit age 20, I had fallen madly in love with old-school jazz. 


6. You split your time between New York and San Francisco, what do you like best and least about each city?
Actually I'm back and forth between New York and Los Angeles. :) There is so much I love about New York, but probably what I love most is all the culture and history you can experience in the city. The weather is my least favorite thing about NY. In LA, I love the beautiful SoCal sun! But I'm not a fan of the traffic, and how spread out everything is.

7. Your main character Michele travels to the early 1900’s, why that time period? If you could time travel, what era would you go to?
I just love the Gilded Age! Actually the character of Philip expresses it best in the book when he tells Michele about 1910 New York, "It's like living between the old and the new. The city has one foot in its Victorian past, and one foot in your future." I love that about the early 1900's, and so I'd love to visit that era myself.

8. You've been asked to write, “Zombie Apocalypse: The Musical.” Please give us the tagline and the titles of some of the songs.
Oh wow, that's a toughie! Well knowing me, I would probably find a way to make it romantic. :) So maybe the tagline is: What happens when a zombie falls in love with its prey?! An example song title could be "My Bloody Gutsy Heart." Hmm, something tells me this wouldn't be my finest work! 


9. Interior. Dark. The sounds of hundreds of thousands of people eagerly chanting “Alex! Alex!” You’re slowly being lifted via platform to the massive stage of the #1 Hit Reality Series “Sing-Off: Deathmatch Edition!” You’ve made it to the final round. Who are you facing, who is in your backup band, and what song are you going to sing in order to win and not get eaten by a hoard of ravenous zombies?

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Yikes! Let's see, I think Adele and Duffy are both super-talented singers so I'd be honored to face them--though that would be stiff competition! My backup band would have to include the musical genius Michael Bearden (who produced and played piano on the Timeless songs!). I would probably sing a dramatic ballad fitting of these life-or-death circumstances, like maybe "Don't Cry For Me Argentina."

10. Thanks for answering our (sometimes bizarre) questions. Is there anything else you’d like to share? 
Thanks for having me, it was fun!

Alexandra, thanks so much for visiting and providing such great answers. We can't wait to read TIMELESS and FYI - we listened to the songs - they're beautiful so check them out!

For more on Alexandra - 

Visit her WEBSITE

And LISTEN TO THE MUSIC 
TIMELESS on Goodreads and Amazon