Q. Are there any YA authors out there that
you would say are your role models for being
a published YA author?
RH: Stephenie Meyer is definitely my young
adult role model. I read her Twilight series in
middle school, right before the movies came out
and ruined them. I remember how obsessed I
was with finishing those books. It was like
entering a whole new world. If I could somehow
recreate the magic she released, then I would
be the happiest man alive.
Q. Using only three words how would you
describe your writing?
wanted the reader to get far into the psyche of
my character Rosetta, and it was fun doing this.
Her character change from beginning to end is
also very drastic, which is a part of growing up.
Q. The ending of your novel leaves readers
wondering what will happen next. What are
your future plans for the characters from
Barking Madness? Will readers see a book
2?
RH: I don’t plan on continuing this storyline any
further. I’m looking forward to having my editor
refine it and get the word count down so that it
can, hopefully, be a bestselling standalone
novel. The story does have a HEA but Michael
and Rosetta’s future will remain a mystery.
RH: Spooky, dark, heartfelt
Q. Having read your novel, Barking Madness,
I was instantly lured deep into your lead
female character's life. How would you
describe this character of yours?
RH: I wanted Rosetta to be the typical new hot
girl. Although it’s hard to say what’s typical of a
new girl, because they’re all so different, I would
say most people have an image in their heads of
what a hot girl should act like. Rosetta, for
example, is gorgeous, flirty, and self-absorbed
and, for me, that’s the image of the typical hot
girl...the girl you will never get. So in your head,
or in this case Michael’s head, you have to make
her out to be something you don’t want. In my
book’s scenario, Rosetta was good looking,
everybody liked her, and so I had to make her
undesirable from a personality standpoint in
order for her to fit the common image of the
typical hot new girl. Of course, I wanted to flesh
her character out, so as the story went on, I
turned the girl who had it all into the girl who had
nothing. Whether this made the reader
sympathetic to her as a character, I don’t know,
but it did make her appear more real. I don’t
believe anyone is that one-sided, which is why I
made Brittney, another character like Rosetta,
an alcoholic, and Chloe, the other popular girl,
suicidal. Everybody has their own problems
whether they show it to people or not. I really
Q. What are your future writing projects, if
any that you wouldn't mind sharing with us
readers?
RH: I definitely plan to continue writing fiction. I
find the real world to lack happy endings, and I
love happy endings, so nothing real world
focused. I like crazy topics too. For instance,
Barking Madness is about a werewolf. I would
like to remain on the wacky side of things.
Q. Who would you say is the craziest
character within your novel? And why?
RH: The masked man is easily the craziest
character within my novel. Despite him being
the cause behind Rosetta’s psyche out of
whack, he also lacks a motive. Yes, he says
he