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The Pacific Prep Series - interview with author Brett Biaggio

Brett Biaggio is a passionate reader and storyteller, he began writing The Pacific Prep Series in 2013 after his best friend passed away. As he struggled to cope with the death of his friend, this story emerged from the grief. We have conducted an interview with Brett.





When and how did you become a writer?

I started to write as an escape from the pain after my friend, Jessica, passed away unexpectedly on Easter 2013. She just didn't wake up. It broke my heart into a million pieces because it hit me like a ton of bricks how little I had seen her lately. So I began doing things she and I used to do together: listening to music we both enjoyed, going to parks we had hung out at, and geeking out over books. I started to escape into books that she had mentioned she enjoyed: Twilight, Fifty Shades, and The Vampire Diaries. My taste was more Tolkien, but when I began to read these books I could see her there smiling or crying, or whatever emotion was appropriate; my point is she was still with me when I was reading these stories. Reading these stories while I was in Pacific, Missouri is when it happened. There is a park that towers ten stories over the town - Blackburn Park. I would go to this park because something about the view made me feel safe and of course because it reminded me of Jessica. Sitting up there one day, I began to picture Jackson Green sitting up there too, then came Rebecca Rathbone, and the story took off from there. I started to write down these daydreams. At first, I didn't think it would become a novel, but after I hit 91 pages, I figured what a better way to honor my friend and her love of YA paranormal.

How do you feel after having published your book, The Cursed Jackson Green through your imprint, Brett Biaggio Novels instead of a traditional publisher?

I feel great that I decided to publish The Cursed Jackson Green as I did. After reviewing the contracts offered by a few publishers, I decided that I wasn't willing to give up control of content and accept the terms they presented. I found it insulting that they'd want to censor certain things. Imagine going to an art museum, and they blacked out the breasts or penises on paintings because it might offend someone. You can't do that! It is art, writing is art, and the writer deserves to have their voice expressed in its pure form. So like I was saying after I reviewed the contractual demands of these publishers, I reminded myself that even if I don't sell more than 1000 copies ever that I wrote this story to honor my friend, Jessica, and as a way to heal after losing her. I am not willing to have a story that genuinely poured out of my subconscious, my heart rather, to be changed for profits. As a writer, there is no greater feeling than seeing my story being told to readers the same way my heart intended it to be.




Why did you choose to write in the genres: Young Adult, Paranormal, Gay and Lesbian?

I didn't exactly choose these genres; I like to say they chose me. When I write, I don't plan or make an outline of what I want to happen. My style is simple: I go to the same places, listen to the same music, try to get into that same mood, I read the last chapter I wrote, and I put pen to paper. For me, it is more natural this way. I don't control the characters, their names, or if there is an overall message in the story. When characters had something good or bad happen, or if they died I wrote it. Life doesn't have a delete button; you can't backspace and correct in life so neither can my characters. (Spoiler alert) Many readers have messaged me expressing how they couldn't believe that I allow a primary character to die like I did but that was that character's fate. The fact that this story is YA, paranormal, and has LGBT characters was just how it presented itself through my pen. But I am sure Jessica's taste in books is what ultimately made my subconscious to write this story with these traits.

Where (which places/locations) do you feel the most inspired?

The places that I feel most inspired to write would be Blackburn Park in Pacific, Missouri, Barnes and Noble in Fenton, Missouri, Powell's City of Books and Washington Park in Portland, Oregon, and Calton Hill in Edinburgh, Scotland.




What has been your greatest challenge while writing?

I would have to say it is a tie between having A.D.D. and dyslexia. The fact that I have completed graduate school and published a novel over the last four years still blows my mind. But Jessica was a driving force. I feel like as a friend I was shit, and she deserved better. She was a better friend to me than I ever was to her and I will work the rest of my life to honor her for that. So these challenges while writing, if it means honoring her, they seem minuscule in the scheme of things.


Last question, Are you working on any other projects?

Yes, I am working on the sequel in the Pacific Prep series, The Blessed Scott O'Brien which I hope to have released on September 24th, 2018. I am also working on Secrets Kill; a YA fiction that takes place in California and follows the life of a young guy as he tries to solve the mystery of his friend's murder. At this point, it is not a paranormal, but I don't like to control what happens, so we will see how it evolves.
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Location: Pacific, MO 63069, USA

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