An Interview with Jo Whittemore

Q: Patty Campbell talks about the germ for a piece of writing being like the sand in the oyster.  What is your grain of sand?  Do you begin with character or setting or something else?

A. The grain of sand that starts my stories is always a "What if?" question, because the universe is made up of so many possible scenarios and outcomes. It's fun to explore them, particularly if it's something I would NEVER have tried myself (like putting on a one-woman show). After I've got my "What if?", I come up with the character, and it's the character's personality that will determine how the story plays out.

Q: What do you hear from your readers?

A. My readers think the stories are funny but sometimes are disappointed that certain characters don't end up together. I wish I could pair every character with whoever they're crushing on, but life isn't always like that, and learning to adapt to change is what helps people grow. Plus, a lot of times you end up with someone even better!

Q: Who is your favorite character you have written or read about?

A: My favorite character I've read about would have to be Bartimaeus from the Bartimaeus Sequence by Jonathan Stroud. For a 5,000-year old djinni, he's hilariously snarky and a bit too brave for his own good at times.

Q: What is one thing you would like your readers to know about you?

A. I'd like my readers to know that I love their laughter. THAT is what motivates me to keep writing.

Q: In high school, where did you fall? (Prom Queen/King, Gamer Geek, Brainy/Book Nerd, Jock, Shy/Quiet Scholar, Skate Rat, Stoner, Class Clown, etc.)

A. In high school, I was the Brain/Drama Geek. I remember in my freshman math class getting an A on a paper and lamenting that I didn't get an A+. I was THAT kind of extreme nerd. And for theater, I was once cast as a nun, so I watched the abbey scene from Sound of Music over and over until I truly felt I would make an excellent Mother Superior.

Thank you so much for your time Jo! We look forward to seeing you at the festival.

Read more about Jo at her website.

Introducing 2013 MCBF Author, Jo Whittemore

Jo Whittemore is the author of the tween humor novels, Front Page Face-Off, Odd Girl In, and D is for Drama, as well as The Silverskin Legacy fantasy trilogy. She is a member of the SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) and is one of the founding members of The Texas Sweethearts & Scoundrels. Jo has also written for, and been featured in, newspapers and national magazines. When she isn't writing, Jo spends her time with family and friends in Austin, dreaming of the day she can afford a chocolate house with toffee furniture.

Discover more about Jo Whittemore at her website.

An Interview with Brian Falkner

Q: Of which book are you the most proud? And why?

A: I am really proud of The Project. I liked the characters in this book, and the way a seemingly innocent occurrence at the beginning quickly escalates and keeps escalating into an outrageous adventure.

Q: Patty Campbell talks about the germ for a piece of writing being like the sand in the oyster.  What is your grain of sand?  Do you begin with character or setting or something else?

A: Interesting. I also use this analogy in my writing classes. Mostly I begin with a concept, but nothing much happens from there until the main character is clear to me. The idea for the book and the main character are so closely intertwined for me that I cannot continue until the character has become real to me.

Q: What do you hear from your readers?

A: I get a lot of emails from readers, with a wide variety of questions. I think the most common comment I get is that they wish there was a sequel to The Tomorrow Code, or to Brain Jack. I do have some ideas for these sequels, but nothing is in the works just yet.

Q: Why do you write for Young Adults or Children or Adult?

A: I write Junior Fiction, and YA. I am most comfortable in these genres, partly because they are so much fun to write. Adult fiction can get quite serious, and that doesn't suit my personality or writing style.

Q: Who is your favorite character you have written or read about?

A: I have many favourite characters, so let me restrict this question to my own characters.
In my Junior Fiction book “The Flea Thing” is a minor character called Jason. He is the best friend of the main character. He doesn't feature much, but when he does, it is very important. I really enjoyed writing Jason, and when I re-read this book, I enjoy reading him.

Q: What is one thing you would like your readers to know about you?

A: Lots of things! Too many to list here, so I put them on my website under “Life of Brian/Fun Facts”.

Q: In high school, where did you fall? (Prom Queen/King, Gamer Geek, Brainy/Book Nerd, Jock, Shy/Quiet Scholar, Skate Rat, Stoner, Class Clown, etc.)

A: Brainy/Book Nerd I guess. Certainly none of the others.
An author friend of mine once said “It took me 35 years to become cool in middle school” and that pretty much sums me up as well.

Q: Do you have a pet (pets)?  Tell us about it (them) and how they help/hinder your writing.

A: I have two small dogs (Molly and Chester) and they don’t really help or hinder my writing, but I did try to put them in my last Junior Fiction novel. I named the main character Molly, and one of the other characters is a monkey called “Mr Chester.” Unfortunately (for Molly) there was already a series of books about a girl named Molly, so Molly got renamed to “Maddy”.

Q: What is the hardest part of waiting for a book from the end of your writing to when it is released?

Actually I don’t find this hard, as I am usually well into the next book by this stage, and have put the recently written book out of my mind. When I actually get the first author copies, it is usually a nice kind of surprise.

Q: How often do you dream about the writing you are working on?

Never. This hasn't happened to me. Or at least, if I have, I don’t remember it in the morning.

Thanks so much for your time, Brian! We look forward to seeing you at the festival.

To learn more about Brian Falkner, visit his website.
Whatever you do DON'T click the red button!

Introducing 2013 MCBF Author, Brian Falkner

Brian Falkner writes children’s books. His first action-packed book was well received by critics and his subsequent books have been equally admired. Falkner’s Super Freak, about a boy who must decide whether to use his powers for good or evil, was nominated in the Junior Fiction category of the 2006 New Zealand Post Book Awards. The Tomorrow Code was published in 2008 in Australia, the USA and Canada. It was nominated in the Young Adult Fiction category of the 2009 New Zealand Post Book Awards, and the 2009 LIANZA Children's Book Awards.

Brian was born and raised in Auckland, New Zealand. and now resides on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. To read more about him, visit his website.

An Interview with Diane Kelly

Q: Patty Campbell talks about the germ for a piece of writing being like the sand in the oyster. What is your grain of sand? Do you begin with character or setting or something else?

My grain is always a character and, as a result, I write character-driven stories. Because I write in first person, I essentially become my heroine while I write since everything is said in her voice and from her point of view.  It’s fun to step out of myself and into a different persona and to experience someone else’s life so intimately, especially when my character is a kick-butt federal agent with some darn good-looking men in her life.

Q: What do you hear from your readers?

My readers love the humor in my books.  My series is pure entertainment and really fits the bill when someone needs a good laugh.  They also enjoy the sexual tension between my heroine and her love interests.  Several readers have told me that I do a good job with descriptdiion, which I’m glad to hear.  That means I’m effectively transmitting the mental images in my head to the page and thus to the reader.

Q: In high school, where did you fall? (Prom Queen/King, Gamer Geek, Brainy/Book Nerd, Jock, Shy/Quiet Scholar, Skate Rat, Stoner, Class Clown, etc.)

All of the above?  I think there was a little of each of those stereotypes in me, and I had friends from each clique.  I made pretty good grades, ran one year of cross country, unwittingly dated a pothead, and loved to go to the skating rink (and later to nightclubs when I got my fake id).  So I’m not sure where that puts me. Even then I think I was attempting to amass a variety of life experiences. It’s a good thing, too, because I draw on many of them now in my writing.

Q: Do you have a pet (pets)? Tell us about it (them) and how they help/hinder your writing.

I have two dogs, a Dalmatian mix and a shepherd mix, both of whom we adopted from the pound.  I also have eight cats.  Strays just keep showing up and I don’t have the heart to turn them away!  But I get them all fixed so we don’t contribute to the overpopulation problem.

My cats aren't much of a problem, other than one who likes to rub her face on the corner of my laptop screen while I’m working.  The dogs like to be in and out a zillion times a day, which can be a pain.  But I’ve found that if I take them to the dog park for a couple of hours in the morning they are much more mellow the rest of the day.  I bring my netbook with me to the dog park and can usually crank out a thousand words or so while they are running around having fun.  It’s a great routine for all of us!

Thanks so much for your time, Diane! We look forward to seeing you at the festival.

To read more about Diane Kelly, please visit her website.

Introducing 2013 MCBF Author, Diane Kelly

A CPA and tax attorney, Diane spent several years at an international accounting firm where she had the pleasure of working with a partner later charged with tax fraud. She also served a stint as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Texas under an AG who pled guilty to criminal charges related to the tobacco company lawsuits. Given this work history, Diane decided self-employment might be a good idea. She also realized her experiences with white-collar crime made excellent fodder for a novel. Her fingers hit the keyboard and thus began her humorous “Death and Taxes” romantic mystery series. Diane’s debut novel, Death, Taxes and a French Manicure, won the Romance Writers of America Golden Heart award.  Visit Diane and read excerpts at www.dianekelly.com.

An Interview with Joy Preble

Q: Of which book are you the most proud? And why?

I'm proud of all of them for different reasons: DREAMING ANASTASIA because it was the first book I ever wrote and also the first book that I sold. HAUNTED because being asked to write it meant that book 1 had done very well. ANASTASIA FOREVER because I am so proud of how I brought Anne and Ethan's story to a fitting and romantic conclusion. And THE SWEET DEAD LIFE (forthcoming next year) because I think everyone is going to love Casey and Jenna as much as I do.

Q: Patty Campbell talks about the germ for a piece of writing being like the sand in the oyster.  What is your grain of sand?  Do you begin with character or setting or something else?

It varies, more often than not, I start with a character. Because once I know who the story is about - at least in a general sense-- it's easier to figure out where the story needs to do. Mostly it's sort of a combination: This is going to be a story about ______ who______ and then_______. So I guess for me, character and plot are tightly interwoven.

Q: What do you hear from your readers?

They like that Anne doesn't fall for Ethan right away. They love her loyal and funny best friend Tess. They appreciate that my witch, Baba Yaga, has layers and back story and that they find themselves sometimes sympathizing with her. They like that Ethan isn't perfect but that he is devoted to Anne.

Q: Why do you write for Young Adults or Children or Adult (whichever is pertinent)?

The best stories exist in the teen years. Everything is heightened then -- everything feels like life and death. All those wonderful firsts -- from love to loss-- so many of them hit us in those years. The emotional essence of my story telling always takes me to characters who are in that age group.

Possibly it also has to do with the fact that I spent a huge chunk of years teaching high school, so the drama is my norm. Every day someone was breaking up or being broken up with, someone was hurting or deliriously happy or angry at their parents -- often for good reason-- or getting kicked out onto the street or running into the room to show me a new tattoo or nipple piercing. And that's just the surface stuff. The adult world is nowhere near as interesting.

Q: Who is your favorite character you have written or read about?

We bookworms have so many answers for questions like this that it's hard to pick just one. Recently, though, I've fallen in huge love with DJ Schwenk in Catherine Gilbert Murdock's Dairy Queen. I adore this girl and her voice is so pitch perfect. If anyone hasn't read this book you must promise to do so immediately.

Q: What is one thing you would like your readers to know about you?

I love guacamole and avocados in general. So if you want to get on my good side, some killer guac and chips will do it. Yes, I can be bribed.

Q: In high school, where did you fall? (Prom Queen/King, Gamer Geek, Brainy/Book Nerd, Jock, Shy/Quiet Scholar, Skate Rat, Stoner, Class Clown, etc.)

Quiet/Bookish/Star Trek fan-fiction writing/viola playing in orchestra type who hated following the rules.

Q: Do you have a pet (pets)?  Tell us about it (them) and how they help/hinder your writing.

A basset/boxer mix, otherwise known as a 45 pound log of doom. She helps when she sleeps quietly, snoring while I work. She hinders when she leaps up while I'm on deadline and slams her paw through a pane in our leaded glass window because she wanted the squirrel who was walking by. I think that covers it.

Q: What is the hardest part of waiting for a book from the end of your writing to when it is released?

Waiting to see if it will sell through to the stores and waiting to see if it will be reviewed by the 'big' reviewers and what they will say.

Q: How often do you dream about the writing you are working on?

Rarely.

Thanks for your time, Joy. We look forward to seeing you at the Festival!
For more information about Joy, please visit her website.