What or who was your inspiration to become an author? And why?
I don’t know that I was inspired so much as driven to become an author. I think most authors will tell you that the need to write is not something which can be controlled but rather something which must be indulged.
I was in my early twenties when Oprah’s Book Club was in its hay day and I devoured her selections each month. It was, for me, the first exposure to literature outside of the sterile environment of a classroom, and the storyteller inside of me, long suppressed since childhood, began to stir. I vividly remember reading Drowning Ruth by Christina Schwarz and thinking to myself, “I need to write a book like this.” After that epiphany, I began to dabble in story writing but was never able to complete an entire manuscript. To this day there are countless attempts scattered on hard drives throughout my house.
In 2006, my husband and I moved a great distance from our families, and I started an online blog as a way to share our children’s adventures with everyone back home. Along with chronicling our lives, I found myself using the blog as a platform to share my views on the world as well as an outlet for the stories inside me which needed to be told. My journaling allowed me to hone the skills I would later use to complete The Clay Lion.
I amassed a small but loyal blog following who encouraged me to “do something more” with my writing, giving me the confidence and support I needed to not only complete a full manuscript, but see to its eventual publication.
Is writing a series easier than non-related stories?
Yes and no.
Of course, writing a series using a single cast of characters is easier than creating new characters for non-related books. During the writing process the characters become so much a part of you (and you to them) that you already know fundamentally who they are and how they are going to act, even in the new situations they are presented within subsequent books. The same can be said for the setting and the overall tone of the work.
With that being said, there are considerable challenges to writing a comprehensive series. Although the cast of characters is the same, in order for your readers to connect with them, they must grow and learn from their experiences. Like real people who are shaped by the events of their lives, I couldn’t allow Brooke, Charlie, and Melody’s personalities to remain stagnant. They needed to mature in the way actual teens mature as they enter adulthood, thereby making them more relatable to readers.
With regard to plot, it is important to keep in mind that when writing a series it is necessary for each book to have its own story arc with a beginning, a middle, and an end. Readers need the satisfaction of closure at the end a story, even if there is a sense that there is still more to come. In addition, there needs to be a unifying theme connecting each of the books so readers feel compelled to continue the journey.
When and how do your characters come to you? Is it in a moment of inspiration, an epiphany? Or do they grow in some murky recess of your mind?
Brooke, the main character in The Clay Lion was loosely based on a family friend who served as the bone marrow donor to her sister and my own daughter. She has a lot of my personality traits (an author can never truly take herself out of her work!) but eventually she grows to become her own person throughout the course of the book.
Most of my characters find their personalities in bits and pieces of people I’ve known throughout my life. They are sometimes the people I wish others could have been in my life.
My characters develop gradually and it usually takes me a while to really get to know them fully. I’ll often go back several times after a book is finished and rework areas that don’t seem right based on the people my characters eventually become.
Are you a planner, or free writer? And when you are developing a book, what tools or techniques do you use, e.g. timelines, mood boards, character interviews, scraps of notes?
I think I’m a bit of both. I usually have an idea about the beginning, middle, and end before getting started. The ending is usually the hardest part and I give the characters a lot of leeway with regard to finishing the story. Among the Shrouded was my most carefully thought out plot because there were so many moving parts. The Clay Lion series went through a lot of revisions because of the time travel element. I would think a plot line was going to work and then would realize it would be impossible and so I’d be back to the drawing board!
I have dozens of napkins and old grocery lists full of ideas and plot suggestions and dialogue that comes to me when I’m busy doing life instead of writing at the computer. I’m not afraid to let things sit and brew for a few days. I wait for the right ideas to surface and try not to force things too much.
Where do you draw inspiration from? Do you actively look for it?
I take inspiration from emotions and the collective experiences that draw people together. At the end of the day, we are all much more alike than we are different and what we are all really looking for is acceptance. Capturing emotions and stories that resonate with all of us in our unique ways is my passion.
What kind of an environment do you write in?
I write while walking on my treadmill in the basement. No television. No distractions whatsoever. I can’t write when there are other people in the house. I use that time for marketing instead.
If a fascist regime was burning the world’s libraries, what books would you save?
I’m not a literary fiction girl, so I probably would let a lot of the great works of the western world go up in flames!
I’d save The Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann Hoberman. It’s my absolute favorite children’s picture book. I’d save Drowning Ruth by
Christina Schwarz because it’s the book that made me want to become a legitimate author. I’d keep the complete boxed set of Harry Potter and a couple Dean Koontz. Also, a copy of Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson because you never know when you might need a good cry, even with the evil takeover of a fascist regime.
Why do you enjoy writing for young adults?
I love reading young adult fiction. I find it unpretentious and accessible. And truly, what I love most about books written for teens is that they force you to remember what it was like to be young, living with such unbridled passion. I think in general, the older we get, the more cynical we become and the further removed from the concept that we are infinite. Young adults feel all of their emotions out loud, and I love reading stories filtered through their unassuming, though somewhat naïve, lens of the world.
What is the best advice you could give to aspiring novelists like me? Or what was the best advice you were ever given?
Trust your gut. Be true to yourself not only in your writing but in your marketing as well. Surround yourself with great authors who understand what it’s like in the trenches and will help pull you up by your bootstraps. Know that your books won’t be liked by everyone and that’s okay. Just because a few people don’t like meatloaf doesn’t mean others won’t think it’s delicious. Find an editor who isn’t afraid to be brutally honest. And above all else, keep reading and keep writing.
Will you read my manuscript or blurb my book?
I love to read and make time for it as much as I can, but with my own writing taking priority, I don't have a lot of free time. My TBR pile is quite extensive, but you just never know what I might pick up.
Is there a theme/message underlying your work that you hope comes across?
Because I write for young adults, I think the major underlying theme in each of my books is that you are not alone. Adolescents spend an unfathomable amount of time worrying that they aren’t going to fit in or that no one has ever experienced what they’re going through. I like to show teenagers, through my stories, that their experiences and feelings are somewhat universal and in the end, it’s all going to be okay.
What are you writing right now?
I’m currently working on a manuscript about a teen living in New York City with severe germaphobia.
I don’t know that I was inspired so much as driven to become an author. I think most authors will tell you that the need to write is not something which can be controlled but rather something which must be indulged.
I was in my early twenties when Oprah’s Book Club was in its hay day and I devoured her selections each month. It was, for me, the first exposure to literature outside of the sterile environment of a classroom, and the storyteller inside of me, long suppressed since childhood, began to stir. I vividly remember reading Drowning Ruth by Christina Schwarz and thinking to myself, “I need to write a book like this.” After that epiphany, I began to dabble in story writing but was never able to complete an entire manuscript. To this day there are countless attempts scattered on hard drives throughout my house.
In 2006, my husband and I moved a great distance from our families, and I started an online blog as a way to share our children’s adventures with everyone back home. Along with chronicling our lives, I found myself using the blog as a platform to share my views on the world as well as an outlet for the stories inside me which needed to be told. My journaling allowed me to hone the skills I would later use to complete The Clay Lion.
I amassed a small but loyal blog following who encouraged me to “do something more” with my writing, giving me the confidence and support I needed to not only complete a full manuscript, but see to its eventual publication.
Is writing a series easier than non-related stories?
Yes and no.
Of course, writing a series using a single cast of characters is easier than creating new characters for non-related books. During the writing process the characters become so much a part of you (and you to them) that you already know fundamentally who they are and how they are going to act, even in the new situations they are presented within subsequent books. The same can be said for the setting and the overall tone of the work.
With that being said, there are considerable challenges to writing a comprehensive series. Although the cast of characters is the same, in order for your readers to connect with them, they must grow and learn from their experiences. Like real people who are shaped by the events of their lives, I couldn’t allow Brooke, Charlie, and Melody’s personalities to remain stagnant. They needed to mature in the way actual teens mature as they enter adulthood, thereby making them more relatable to readers.
With regard to plot, it is important to keep in mind that when writing a series it is necessary for each book to have its own story arc with a beginning, a middle, and an end. Readers need the satisfaction of closure at the end a story, even if there is a sense that there is still more to come. In addition, there needs to be a unifying theme connecting each of the books so readers feel compelled to continue the journey.
When and how do your characters come to you? Is it in a moment of inspiration, an epiphany? Or do they grow in some murky recess of your mind?
Brooke, the main character in The Clay Lion was loosely based on a family friend who served as the bone marrow donor to her sister and my own daughter. She has a lot of my personality traits (an author can never truly take herself out of her work!) but eventually she grows to become her own person throughout the course of the book.
Most of my characters find their personalities in bits and pieces of people I’ve known throughout my life. They are sometimes the people I wish others could have been in my life.
My characters develop gradually and it usually takes me a while to really get to know them fully. I’ll often go back several times after a book is finished and rework areas that don’t seem right based on the people my characters eventually become.
Are you a planner, or free writer? And when you are developing a book, what tools or techniques do you use, e.g. timelines, mood boards, character interviews, scraps of notes?
I think I’m a bit of both. I usually have an idea about the beginning, middle, and end before getting started. The ending is usually the hardest part and I give the characters a lot of leeway with regard to finishing the story. Among the Shrouded was my most carefully thought out plot because there were so many moving parts. The Clay Lion series went through a lot of revisions because of the time travel element. I would think a plot line was going to work and then would realize it would be impossible and so I’d be back to the drawing board!
I have dozens of napkins and old grocery lists full of ideas and plot suggestions and dialogue that comes to me when I’m busy doing life instead of writing at the computer. I’m not afraid to let things sit and brew for a few days. I wait for the right ideas to surface and try not to force things too much.
Where do you draw inspiration from? Do you actively look for it?
I take inspiration from emotions and the collective experiences that draw people together. At the end of the day, we are all much more alike than we are different and what we are all really looking for is acceptance. Capturing emotions and stories that resonate with all of us in our unique ways is my passion.
What kind of an environment do you write in?
I write while walking on my treadmill in the basement. No television. No distractions whatsoever. I can’t write when there are other people in the house. I use that time for marketing instead.
If a fascist regime was burning the world’s libraries, what books would you save?
I’m not a literary fiction girl, so I probably would let a lot of the great works of the western world go up in flames!
I’d save The Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann Hoberman. It’s my absolute favorite children’s picture book. I’d save Drowning Ruth by
Christina Schwarz because it’s the book that made me want to become a legitimate author. I’d keep the complete boxed set of Harry Potter and a couple Dean Koontz. Also, a copy of Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson because you never know when you might need a good cry, even with the evil takeover of a fascist regime.
Why do you enjoy writing for young adults?
I love reading young adult fiction. I find it unpretentious and accessible. And truly, what I love most about books written for teens is that they force you to remember what it was like to be young, living with such unbridled passion. I think in general, the older we get, the more cynical we become and the further removed from the concept that we are infinite. Young adults feel all of their emotions out loud, and I love reading stories filtered through their unassuming, though somewhat naïve, lens of the world.
What is the best advice you could give to aspiring novelists like me? Or what was the best advice you were ever given?
Trust your gut. Be true to yourself not only in your writing but in your marketing as well. Surround yourself with great authors who understand what it’s like in the trenches and will help pull you up by your bootstraps. Know that your books won’t be liked by everyone and that’s okay. Just because a few people don’t like meatloaf doesn’t mean others won’t think it’s delicious. Find an editor who isn’t afraid to be brutally honest. And above all else, keep reading and keep writing.
Will you read my manuscript or blurb my book?
I love to read and make time for it as much as I can, but with my own writing taking priority, I don't have a lot of free time. My TBR pile is quite extensive, but you just never know what I might pick up.
Is there a theme/message underlying your work that you hope comes across?
Because I write for young adults, I think the major underlying theme in each of my books is that you are not alone. Adolescents spend an unfathomable amount of time worrying that they aren’t going to fit in or that no one has ever experienced what they’re going through. I like to show teenagers, through my stories, that their experiences and feelings are somewhat universal and in the end, it’s all going to be okay.
What are you writing right now?
I’m currently working on a manuscript about a teen living in New York City with severe germaphobia.
