Ask the Author: Lauren Oliver
Answered Questions (169)
Lauren Oliver
Not at the moment--but I will definitely keep you posted if I do!!
Lauren Oliver
Hi Nathalie!
Okay, so I have to admit two things right off the bat: it's been many, many years since I wrote the Delirium series, and so some of these characters are less present to me than they were then.
But all of your questions follow a similar theme, i.e.: what happens to the characters after the book ends? So I will answer with my general philosophy on this.
During the years when an author is actively working on a series, in some ways I believe the series belongs to the author. It is their world; it is theirs to explore, discover, and shape.
But somehow, magically, as the books begin to enter the world and journey into readers' hearts and hands, that ownership begins to shift. Now, slowly, the books begin to come alive for the readers, and in the process, imaginative access to the world of those books begins to pass to the readers too.
I guess my point is, at this point I feel you are as equipped as I am to uncover or imagine what happens to Hanna, Julian, Fred, Raven, and Tack.
Well, maybe not Fred. He definitely dies.
As for your query about the dystopian world, yes, I imagine that even after this final act of triumph, Lena and her friends are in for many, many challenges and perhaps years of war. But that doesn't mean they won't succeed. In fact, some of the greatest and lasting revolutionary moments of human history have been powered not by a move toward hatred but a sudden expansion of love that resists it.
Okay, so I have to admit two things right off the bat: it's been many, many years since I wrote the Delirium series, and so some of these characters are less present to me than they were then.
But all of your questions follow a similar theme, i.e.: what happens to the characters after the book ends? So I will answer with my general philosophy on this.
During the years when an author is actively working on a series, in some ways I believe the series belongs to the author. It is their world; it is theirs to explore, discover, and shape.
But somehow, magically, as the books begin to enter the world and journey into readers' hearts and hands, that ownership begins to shift. Now, slowly, the books begin to come alive for the readers, and in the process, imaginative access to the world of those books begins to pass to the readers too.
I guess my point is, at this point I feel you are as equipped as I am to uncover or imagine what happens to Hanna, Julian, Fred, Raven, and Tack.
Well, maybe not Fred. He definitely dies.
As for your query about the dystopian world, yes, I imagine that even after this final act of triumph, Lena and her friends are in for many, many challenges and perhaps years of war. But that doesn't mean they won't succeed. In fact, some of the greatest and lasting revolutionary moments of human history have been powered not by a move toward hatred but a sudden expansion of love that resists it.
Lauren Oliver
Hi Santiva,
Thank you so much. Awesome that you want to write a novel someday! I think the best way to hone your voice, including your particular use of figurative language, is to pay close attention during your day-to-day activities about how you might choose to describe a certain event, natural landscape, or person. I used to carry around a notebook and jot down descriptors of what I saw and experienced.
In terms of finding time to write...I just really try and make it my top priority. I started getting up earlier so that I could do all my writing before the work day begins at 9 a.m. I find that if I prioritize it first, it happens. If I wait and delay, however, the day gets away from me.
I hope that helps!
Thank you so much. Awesome that you want to write a novel someday! I think the best way to hone your voice, including your particular use of figurative language, is to pay close attention during your day-to-day activities about how you might choose to describe a certain event, natural landscape, or person. I used to carry around a notebook and jot down descriptors of what I saw and experienced.
In terms of finding time to write...I just really try and make it my top priority. I started getting up earlier so that I could do all my writing before the work day begins at 9 a.m. I find that if I prioritize it first, it happens. If I wait and delay, however, the day gets away from me.
I hope that helps!
Lauren Oliver
I am so, so sorry for the delay--I am just getting back into Goodreads and working my way through questions. The answer is that I do, yes, albeit only occasionally as my schedule is a little bit bananas. But I love talking to high school book clubs and writing clubs and I will do my best if I get a request!
Lauren Oliver
I'm so sorry for the delayed response, Nicole!! I'm just getting back on Goodreads now. The answer is: you can expect a new book (WHAT HAPPENED TO LUCY VALE) in September, and then ANOTHER new book (THE GIRL IN THE LAKE) in May 2026! I am entering my Mystery and Thriller Era and I hope you will come along for the ride. :)
Lauren Oliver
I would LOVE to get to Australia! No plans in the immediate future, but I seriously would love to travel there. We'll see what happens!
Lauren Oliver
Hi! Honestly, I've thought about it, and I do get a number of readers asking what happens after Sam dies. I know my answer is disappointing, but I truly love this story as it is, and have no plans to write more about the characters. I'm sorry! I do encourage everyone to write their own continuation though - I love seeing where fans would take the story!
Lauren Oliver
Hi Vale,
Thank you so much for your sweet note! To be honest, I get a lot of ideas and inspiration from the newspaper - our reality can be so strange and fascinating! One of my favorite quotes about the difference between fiction and reality is that fiction has to stick to what is plausible. It is very inspiring for me.
I hope you love RINGER and thank you so much for your support!
Thank you so much for your sweet note! To be honest, I get a lot of ideas and inspiration from the newspaper - our reality can be so strange and fascinating! One of my favorite quotes about the difference between fiction and reality is that fiction has to stick to what is plausible. It is very inspiring for me.
I hope you love RINGER and thank you so much for your support!
Lauren Oliver
Hi! Genie!
I'm thrilled to hear you included a quote from DELIRIUM - thank you! I adore Goodreads and hope you keep enjoying all my bookish thoughts & reviews :)
I'm thrilled to hear you included a quote from DELIRIUM - thank you! I adore Goodreads and hope you keep enjoying all my bookish thoughts & reviews :)
Lauren Oliver
Hi Angela!
Hm...probably The Little Prince! I adore the story and the message, tears every time.
Hm...probably The Little Prince! I adore the story and the message, tears every time.
Lauren Oliver
The idea for DELIRIUM came from an essay I read by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, in which he wrote that all great books were about love or death. Several days later, I was thinking about that quote--particularly about how and in what form a modern love story could be told--while I was on the treadmill at the gym. I was simultaneously watching a news story about a flu outbreak that had everyone freaking out about the possibility of a pandemic, and I was kind of marveling that people so easily go into panics about reports of these diseases, and at some point the two trains of thought--love, and disease--just combined in my head.
Lauren Oliver
Hi! I'm so glad you enjoyed Delirium & Replica. The sequel, RINGER, comes out 10/3/17!
Lauren Oliver
Thank you! I get a lot of ideas from reading the newspaper. Our reality is so fascinating and weird; one of my favorite quotes about the difference between fiction and reality is that fiction has to stick to what is plausible. It is very inspiring for me. A lot of my novels begin by asking myself a question: how could I make this story into a novel? What might have happened to make the world look this way?
Lauren Oliver
What inspired me to write ‘Replica’ was more the structure of the book, actually; the setting came later. I’ve long been interested in the idea of writing two books that relate but are not totally dependent on one another, and when I began to think about replicas, and genetics, and two girls whose histories were entwined and yet radically different, it seemed like the perfect time to attempt it.
Lauren Oliver
Hi Ava!
Yes, the sequel, RINGER, comes out on 10/3! It's written in the same format as Replica, and Gemma and Lyra discover that the secrets - and dangers - of Haven run much deeper than they thought.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
Yes, the sequel, RINGER, comes out on 10/3! It's written in the same format as Replica, and Gemma and Lyra discover that the secrets - and dangers - of Haven run much deeper than they thought.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
Lauren Oliver
Rosalind: So joyous is this day that I thee wed
Orlando: Yes, and now we may depart to bed
Rosalind: But first, there is one thing I ask of you
You know that to my self I must be true
My love I have to tell you that I've found
I miss my old men's clothing, and breasts bound.
Orlando: To that I say, well hon, you must "do you"
I fell for you as male, we know that's true
I love you for your soul and what's inside
Happy to have you here as groom or bride.
Orlando: Yes, and now we may depart to bed
Rosalind: But first, there is one thing I ask of you
You know that to my self I must be true
My love I have to tell you that I've found
I miss my old men's clothing, and breasts bound.
Orlando: To that I say, well hon, you must "do you"
I fell for you as male, we know that's true
I love you for your soul and what's inside
Happy to have you here as groom or bride.
Lauren Oliver
I hope so, but it's out of my hands at this point! Fingers crossed!
Lauren Oliver
Whenever I'm sad I re-read Agatha Christie. Reading should be for love. Re-read all you want.
Lauren Oliver
Unsurprisingly, many of my scenes have been difficult to write emotionally! Some of the standouts, though, include the scene when Blue dies in Pandemonium (or was it Requiem?), the scene in which Izzy and Sam spend a day together at Goose Point, and a fight between Dodge and Natalie at her birthday party in Panic.
Lauren Oliver
It was inspired partially by my own experiences in High School, and motivated largely by my strong belief that no one is too broken to be made whole again.
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