Interview and Giveaway: Adam Glendon Sidwell

I'm very excited to have the awesome Adam Sidwell here today for an interview and giveaway!!! Adam is the author of the fantabulous MG novel Evertaster...seriously, this book rocks and I LOVED it!  Be sure to check out my review of this wonderful book.

WS: What three words best describe Evertaster?

AS: Delicious. Dangerous. Delightfully-death-defying-fun.

WS: In one sentence tell readers why they MUST read your book…c’mon really sell it.

AS: You must read Evertaster because it will change the way you taste every morsel of food you will eat for the rest of your life.

WS: What inspired Evertaster? Where did the idea for the story come from?

 AS: I was browsing through the book store, when I happened upon a cookbook. I saw how thick it was, and how many other books there were like it, and thought about all the cookbooks in the whole world, and how many there must be, and how many were written over the centuries. That’s when I wondered: what are all those chefs looking for? What are they after? In science, there’s an idea that there is a grand Theory of Everything that is waiting to be discovered. What if there is was grand Recipe? The final answer to all cooking and food. From there, the Johnsonville family developed naturally, with the mom, Mabel, who feels inadequate about her abilities as a cook, and Guster, the eleven year old for whom food burns or stings his mouth and tongue as he swallows it. It made for a fun dynamic. The setting and adventure itself were inspired by some of the places I’ve had the chance to travel to. They were such interesting settings, I just had to put them into a story.

WS: Grab a copy of Evertaster and answer the following:

·         Favorite chapter?

Chapter 23 

·         Favorite page?

Page 274 

·         Favorite character?

Archedentus, the Master Mead Maker, the Great Chef.

WS: Any hints about what’s next for Guster and the Johnsonvilles? Please?!

AS: Yes. I’ll say this: currently the first sentence of Evertaster - the Delicious City goes something like this: Guster Johnsonville tasted a hint of danger in his tuna fish sandwich. The Delicious City will be about a delicious city of course. Guster and the Johnsonvilles find themselves in a far off place due to circumstances beyond their control. We see Guster taking a much more active role in decision making that ultimately affects the family. He’s a little more grown up now. The Delicious City is indeed a mysterious and wonderful place which if any of us were able to find it, we’d gladly spend the rest of our lives there. 

WS: In Evertaster, Guster and his family are on the hunt to uncover the Gastronomy of Peace, the most delectable recipe ever…what’s the yummiest, most delicious thing you’ve EVER eaten?

AS: It would have to be the ice cream cone I ate in 1993 in Tillamook Oregon. I was riding my bicycle across Oregon that summer and I passed some bovines with udders so large they dragged on the ground. We stopped off at the Tillamook factory where the ice cream came as direct from the cow as you can get. I had a blueberry cheesecake flavored scoop on top of a sugar cone. Perhaps it was because I was so tired or because my body was so drained, but that ice cream cone was the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted. It completed me, and I’ve never forgotten it.

WS: You’ve worked on some pretty awesome movies, but what’s the most awesome movie you’ve worked on? What’s the coolest thing you’ve created for a movie?
AS: The most awesome movie I’ve ever worked on would probably be King Kong. I was working with the best in the industry at Weta Digital. I got to move to New Zealand for a year. I learned the cutting edge technology. My favorite thing that I’ve worked on would probably be building digital human replacements for Tron. I built the digital versions of most of the riders in the light cycle sequence. I also created the lightwalls. I built the digital double for Sam, which if you watch that scene, he’s mostly digital, though you shouldn’t be able to tell. The goal is to have people watch your work without even knowing that those humans aren’t actually actors but are computer generated.

WS: What are some your favorite MG books and characters (other than your fab book and characters, of course)

AS: Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson. IT’s a mind bending idea that Librarians are really a secret organization that are controlling all the world’s knowledge. Brandon is an amazing author and has a mastery of the craft, and it really comes through in those books in a very humorous way that breaks the 4th wall as Alcatraz talks directly to the audience. I also will never ever forget the moments in 3rd grade when I discovered Roald Dahl. A freind passed off the Twits and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and the BFG. I couldn’t believe I was reading about giants eating human beans. I love the BFG! Ultimately those books are what inspired me to write.  

WS:  Fill in the blanks:

·         I’m awesome at ________.

AS: Wilderness Survival 

·         I’m embarrassed to admit that _______.

AS: I don’t know the capital of Connecticut. Who knows? Maybe I’ll keep it that way. 

·         In the event of a zombie/demon/alien apocalypse I’d______.

AS: Teleport. 

WS: If you were to bake an Evertaster inspired cupcake what would it look and/or taste like and what would you call it?

AS: It would taste like the Gastronomy of Peace of course! The One Recipe that Guster and the Johnsonvilles spend 300 pages searching for. What would I call it? the Gastronomy of Peace! What does it taste like? The Gastronomy of Peace! No spoilers though. To know what that tastes like, you’ll have to read Chapter 23. What would it look like? Sunshine. History. Perfection.

Thank you so much for answering my questions Adam!!!

Connect with Adam: Website / Goodreads / Twitter / Facebook

In between books, Adam Glendon Sidwell uses the power of computers to make monsters, robots and zombies come to life for blockbuster movies such as Pirates of the Caribbean, King Kong, Transformersand Tron. After spending countless hours in front of a keyboard meticulously adjusting tentacles, calibrating hydraulics, and brushing monkey fur, he is delighted at the prospect of modifying his creations with the flick of a few deftly placed adjectives. He’s been eating food since age 7, so feels very qualified to write this book. He once showed a famous movie star where the bathroom was. Adam currently lives in Los Angeles, where he can’t wait to fall into the sea.

Evertaster

What if there were a taste so delicious that if you found it, you’d never want to eat anything else again?

When eleven year-old Guster Johnsonville rejects his mother's casserole for the umpteenth time, she takes him to the city of New Orleans to find him something to eat. There, in a dark, abandoned corner of the city, they meet a dying pastry maker who tells them of a legendary recipe called the Gastronomy of Peace -- a recipe created hundreds of years ago, shrouded in secrecy, and sought after by connoisseurs everywhere. 
So begins a perilous adventure that will take Guster, his clever sister Mariah, and the rest of the Johnsonvilles on an adventure to ancient ruins, faraway jungles and forgotten caves, where they discover that their search is more than just a quest to satisfy Guster’s cravings -- it is a quest that could change humanity forever.
Purchase: Amazon / B&N 

Win a signed copy of Evertaster

Adam has generously offered a signed copy of his awesome MG book to one lucky cupcake!!!

DETAILS

-One winner will win a signed copy of Evertaster

-US/CAN only

-Will run from 7/27 - 8/10

-Fill out Rafflecopter form to enter

• Must be 13+ to enter
• One main entry per person
• Winner will be emailed and must claim prize within 48 hours
• I am NOT responsible for lost, damaged or stolen prizes

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