Stealing Magic by Alex C. Vick

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Why do you write juvenile fiction? What draws you to it?

When I was in the UK equivalent of middle school, books became so important to me. I was old enough to enjoy more complicated stories and multi-dimensional characters, but still young enough to be completely swept off my feet.

Writing for middle grade gives me the freedom to go back there, and I absolutely love it. I still read a lot of middle grade and young adult fiction anyway, and now I have the perfect excuse to read even more of it. Having said that, I knew it would also be a massive challenge, because my two daughters are in that age group, and they are very tough critics!

Pretend your protagonist is at school and opens his/her locker – what will we see inside?

Shannon recently finished reading the Testing Trilogy by Joelle Charbonneau, and there’s a copy of the third book in her locker. She has a picture of Twenty One Pilots, her favorite band right now. There’s also a black eyeliner, some strawberry flavored lip gloss, and her phone charger.

She would be horrified if Jax ever saw it (because his ego needs no encouragement), but she has drawn a seven-pointed star inside the cover of her notebook. That star is his Sygnus. It’s a magical symbol that represents his bloodline, and also acts as a key to unlock more complicated spells.

What books were your favorite as a youth and why?

I loved books about magic when I wanted to escape. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe was brilliant, but I liked The Magician’s Nephew even more. It was the way that the ordinary world was blended with the magical. The protagonists didn’t do the right thing all the time, either. You could believe that it might actually happen to you, if only you were in the right place at the right time.

When I wanted to read about the real world, I often chose books by Judy Blume. They were great reassurance that other people my age were going through exactly the same thing, even if it looked as if their lives were perfect from the outside!

What would you write in a letter to your teen self?

I would write three things:

• There’s no need to change. Who you are, and the person you will become, is more than good enough.
• Try not to worry. I know that worrying is what you do, but trust me, it has never made any difference to anything that has happened in your life. Ever.
• That boy you like right now? The one who will keep you hanging, and mess you around, for the next two years? When he finally asks you out properly, you’ll realize that he’s an idiot. And you’ll be the one to walk away. Do it now, and find someone worth your time instead.

Sum up your book for Twitter: 140 characters or less.

Shannon, ordinary teenager. Jax, Androvan magic-taker. They meet, a Treaty shatters, an ancient enemy escapes. Ten days to save two worlds.

What four literary characters would you most like to have over for dinner? This is a really interesting one. Do I choose four characters from the same universe, or from completely different stories? I would be quite tempted to choose four diverse Harry Potter characters, just to see how they reacted to meeting each other in such an ordinary setting.

But I think on balance I will choose four separate characters. Even though it’s an imaginary situation, I want to make the most of it! I would love to meet and talk to these characters. The books that created them are all among my favorites. My choices are:

Professor Severus Snape (needs no introduction!)
Kira Moore (Mindjack Saga by Susan Kaye Quinn)
Brandon Strayne (The Game is Life Series by Terry Schott)
Samm (Partials Sequence by Dan Wells)

You’re stranded on a desert island—which character from your book do you want with you? Why?

I would like to say someone other than Jax, just to see the look on his face when he realizes that he’s not my first choice! But thinking about it logically, it would have to be him. He’s the most skilled magician, he doesn’t scare easily, and he’s stubborn. Although Shannon would be much better company, the chances of getting off the island alive would be greater with Jax.

Favorite class in high school. Why?

Apart from English (on balance, there was too much analyzing, and not enough reading) and Art (I loved it, but didn’t have much in the way of natural talent!), my favorite class was probably Chemistry. It’s almost magic, after all, and I remember having a great time with my friends, even when the experiments didn’t go according to plan. In fact, we probably had more fun when they didn’t!

Thank you so much for the great interview questions and for featuring my book! The questions really made me think, and I had a lot of fun with the answers.

Shannon thought there was no such thing as real magic. Until that day. The day that changed everything.

Put yourself in her shoes. Would you open your eyes, if you were the one that heard them? Two magic-takers from another world, arguing about whether they can collect what they came for before you wake up. It sounds like a crazy dream, or a practical joke.

But what if the air around you started to vibrate with an invisible force field? What if, all at once, it felt scary, yet familiar too? You would have no way of knowing that this discovery would set you on a path no-one from our world has taken for centuries. Towards a deadly enemy, and a fight you will almost certainly lose.

All you know is that your heart is beating so fast you're worried they will hear it, and your brain is starting to buzz as the force field reaches it. Would you open your eyes?

Join Jax and Shannon as they live through the most exciting and terrifying ten days of their lives!

Read an Excerpt:

Jax reacted first, grabbing Shannon and Darius by the arms and pulling them backwards towards the bookshelves. They ran deep into one of the sections, as far as they could go, not stopping until they reached the end. Staring anxiously at each other, hearts pounding with fear, they waited to hear who had come through the door.

There was no sound at first. Whoever had entered the room had done so with silent footsteps. Then there was an exclamation of discovery, and a man’s voice could be heard calling “Dorian? Can you come in here for a moment?”

Apparently Dorian was the Custodian who had been sitting outside. A short conversation then took place, but the voices were too quiet for Jax, Shannon and Darius to hear what was being discussed. It was soon clear what had happened however.

The same man’s voice was raised to say “You might as well show yourself, I know there is someone in here. And I also know you are not permitted. I can recognise that the Treaty has been read just a few moments ago, but Dorian tells me he has seen no-one gain entry this night.”

There was a pause, and then the voice continued, becoming angrier.

“Come now, this is a waste of my time and yours. I will find you, and you will not enjoy the methods I will use.”

Jax had gone completely white. He recognised the voice as belonging to Marcus. For a few seconds he tried to think frantically of a way that they could escape, but almost straight away he realised that it was impossible.

About the Author:

Alex writes contemporary fantasy books for a middle grade audience and older. There are three (self-contained) stories in the Legacy of Androva series so far, with a fourth on the way. You can contact Alex, and find more information about Androva, including a character interview, at http://www.alexcvick.com.

Alex lives in the South of England with her husband and two daughters. When she's not working, or writing about magic, she also loves reading and photography.

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