Interview: Shanae Branham, Author of DiSemblance

For today's post, I'd like to welcome Shanae Branham, author of YA techno-thriller DiSemblance. She has graciously agreed to an interview!  After reading and enjoying her debut novel, I was excited to pick her brain and find out the inspirations behind this book.

DiSemblance
Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Website

Jason Tanner’s life has always been different from the ordinary citizen’s. It started when he was an infant and his parents were only teenagers. A computer science prodigy, Lloyd attended MIT but left a pariah in the eyes of the school’s dean—but a computer physics genius in the eyes of his primary investor. Then his theories and ideas created a holographic machine and their world shrunk as contact with the outside world became less and less frequent. A computer prodigy now himself, Jason is about to learn that the world never waits for you if you have the ability to change it: it will come for you.

Detective Bruce Durante has been handed the case of the Comfort Killer, a serial killer so named because he appears to abduct terminally ill patients before returning their corpses to their families in refrigerated coffins. When he picks up the trail, it leads straight to the home of Lloyd Tanner.

Jason has been living life through the world of Lloyd’s invention and wishing he could carry on a relationship with Boston, the beautiful girl next door. When his father is murdered and framed as the Comfort Killer, he is brought back to reality in a hurry. He is forced to destroy all of the planted evidence—and finds he is being targeted as the killer’s new fall guy. But the secrets of his father’s invention run deep and Jason, his brother Isaac,Boston, the Comfort Killer, and Detective Durante hurtle towards one another on a deadly collision course that leaves everyone’s life hanging in the balance. (Goodreads)

I had lots of questions for Shanae, but I managed to pick out a few that I really wanted answered.

How did you come up with the premise for DiSemblance?

As a mother of six children, my concern about the negative effects too much television and video and computer games can have on young people led me to choose digital reality as the subject of my first young adult techno-thriller novel. I wanted to play with the idea that there can be a point where digital reality can seem so real that you lose track of where you are – thus the name DiSemblance, which means the state of being disguised or concealed behind a false appearance.

Why did you decide to write young adult?

I chose to write young adult because I am surrounded by teenagers. The ages of my six children range from 11 to 21. At the current time, I have two children in college, three teens at home and a preteen who acts more like a teenager than a child. At times when my kids have their friends over, the number of teenagers in my home easily ranges from four to 14 – CRAZY!

Who is your favorite character from your book and why?

Sheffield Roads.  Although Sheffield is not a major character, I like him because of his Western style and the way he supports his brother, Bruce.

What authors have inspired you?

Suzanne Collins, Dean Koontz, Kate Wilhelm, Nicholas Sparks, and James Patterson

Here's a little bit about Shanae:

"I am a professional writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and a minor in grammar. I have also attended several years of classes and workshops in screenplay writing at the Los Angeles Screenplay writer’s Expo. I love suspense, adventure, fantasy, and some romance. I am also a master at plot who happens to enjoy stories with happy endings."

Thank you Shanae for stopping by and answering my questions! Also thank you for giving me a chance to read your debut novel! And don't forget to check out my review of DiSemblance.