Coming to Town: Alexandra Duncan for Salvage, as part of Sunday’s panel on powerful women in YA literature at Flyleaf Books

A week ago, Asheville author Alexandra Duncan contributed a “Hardest Part” guest post. Now she’s back as a “Coming to Town” interviewee ahead of her appearance this Sunday at 2 pm as part of Flyleaf Books’ Girl Power!: A Panel on Powerful Women in Young Adult Literature featuring Jessica Spotswood, Nathan Kotecki, Meagan Spooner, and Alexandra Duncan. We talked briefly about, well, the obvious: powerful women in YA lit, how the event was put together, and her just-released debut novel Salvage.

When you think of “Powerful Women in Young Adult Literature” who are the characters and authors who come to mind?

I definitely think of Kristin Cashore’s characters in Graceling, Fire, and Bitterblue. Katsa, from Graceling, seems like an obvious answer, since she’s a trained fighter, but I think all of her primary female characters are excellent examples of different types of strength. I also think of the Robin McKinley’s Aerin and Harry in The Hero and the Crown and The Blue Sword.

Who came up with the panel idea and how did you get involved?

Fellow Y.A. author Megan Spooner invited me to join the panel, which she organized with Nathan Kotecki and Jessica Spotswood. They were interested in having a librarian on the panel, and since I’m both a librarian and author, I was happy to join in.

Your novel Salvage certainly features a “powerful woman in YA literature”. What has the early response to her story been?

The responses that have moved me the most have been the ones where readers said they felt like the book was written just for them. I can’t imagine a better compliment.

I know Malaprop’s is a fantastic bookstore for events, but do you ever come to the Triangle area for readings or conventions?

I’m always looking for a good excuse to come to the Triangle area. I’ll be in Chapel Hill this Sunday, April 13 at 2 p.m. at Flyleaf Books for the Girl Power! Panel. I hope I have a chance to come back soon.

Any other events coming up?

I’ll be doing a Goodreads Q&A from 3 to 8 p.m. Monday, April 14^th, and I’ll be at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva, NC at 6:30 p.m. May 31^st for a reading. You can check the events page on my web site for information about future events.

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If you’re so inclined, you can help spread the word about the event in any number of ways, including via this Facebook event.