Switching Tracks: Out of the Trash was the winner in the DYSTOPIAN category of the 2024 IndieReader Discovery Awards, where undiscovered talent meets people with the power to make a difference.
Following find an interview with author Lena Gibson.
Thank you for this honor. I’m thrilled for Switching Tracks: Out of the Trash to be recognized. For people who enjoy reading it, this is the first book in a trilogy. The Long Haul: Pursuit of Hope is being published on June 6th, 2024, and the final book, Rebels and Saints: Catching Freedom will be available in April 2025.
What is the name of the book and when was it published?
Switching Tracks: Out of the Trash. Published by Black Rose Writing February 1st, 2024. Available as paperback, e-book, and audiobook on Amazon.
What’s the book’s first line?
“Garbage heaps are treasure troves if you have the eye to recognize true value.”
What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.
A scrappy underdog finds a key to long-lost seed bunkers that will provide renewable food sources; she hops a train searching for a better life and a chance to break the corporatocracy.
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
My brain works best by combining things or finding patterns, so several things put together inspired me to write this book. Most of all, I loved my grandfather’s stories about riding the rails during the Great Depression. I spent decades thinking about how cold he must have been crossing the Sierra Nevadas during the winter and about how to hop a train. I also read a children’s book called Ada’s Violin about the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay which made me think about the landfills and how difficult it would be to grow up in one. I also read online about the real Doomsday seed vaults, and my love of post-apocalyptic fiction did the rest.
What’s the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who-real or fictional-would you say the character reminds you of?
One early reviewer called Elsa “Fake Katniss”, which is more a compliment than probably intended. I didn’t set out to make Elsa like Katniss Everdeen of Hunger Games fame. Still, she has some of the same qualities because she lives in a downtrodden, awful place, and is a survivor who takes care of her family, in this case, her great-grandmother, Granny Lee. Like Katniss, Elsa dreams about a better life, but like most of us, she sees herself as ordinary until events set her on the path to become a rebel and a leader.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
I’ve read so many YA dystopian stories, so I wanted to make one for a slightly older audience with more mature themes. Switching Tracks is a love story and a dystopian adventure that starts my new Train Hoppers series.
If they made your book into a movie, who would you like to see play the main character(s)?
A young Maggie Q. or someone as yet undiscovered.
When did you first decide to become an author?
I ran out of books to read from my favorite authors in 1998 and decided to write. In 2017, I attended an author talk by Jack Whyte and Diana Gabaldon where I decided to improve my writing, finish the book I’d started so long ago, and try to publish.
Is this the first you’ve written?
In the last four years, I’ve written ten books, but the first one published was The Edge of Life: Love and Survival During the Apocalypse, published in 2023. The Wish was also published in 2023. Switching Tracks: Out of the Trash was my third published book and the second book in the series (The Long Haul: Pursuit of Hope) will be available in June 2024.
I have three others under contract in various stages of production with Black Rose Writing.
What do you do for work when you’re not writing?
I am a Canadian Elementary school teacher who usually teaches a combined fourth and fifth-grade class. I’ve been teaching at the same school for 28 years and have always made it my mission to share my love of reading and books with my students.
How much time do you generally spend on your writing?
I typically spend at least an hour per day on writing-related activities, but love school holidays and the summer when I can write or edit for hours. During a typical week, I write for about fifteen hours. When, I am not working, that doubles or triples.
The rough draft of a story usually takes four to six months to write and then an additional few months for revisions and edits before it is ready to pitch.
Would you go traditional if a publisher came calling? If so, why?
I don’t think so, not anymore. I’m happy at Black Rose Writing and believe they are a terrific independent press. I love the personal attention, the ability to have input on my covers and titles, and appreciate the connections with the staff and the other authors. I think BRW spends more time and effort on promotion for me than a busy traditional publisher would unless I lucked out and became wildly popular.
If an agent wanted to work with me for foreign rights, TV, or movie rights, I’d be interested.
Which book do you wish you could have written?
I most wish I could have written my favorite books, including everything by Guy Gavriel Kay, who has the most wonderful voice. His books are smart, heartbreaking, and wonderful.
I also love the historical fiction romances by Susanna Kearsley and admire her attention to detail. As someone with an Archaeology degree and a minor in history, I have some idea of the hours spent researching to produce her fabulous books.
Some other favorite authors include Sally Thorne, who is hilarious, Ali Hazelwood whose characters are smart and quirky, and V.E. Schwab who is creative and brilliant.