 1)How did you get the idea for The Debutante?
The idea actually came from my editor (and her assistant, who later became my editor) -- honestly, the two coolest ladies in the biz. They wanted a book about a girl not from the South who suddenly finds herself there and thrown into the debutante culture. I took the idea and ran with it.
The book isn't autobiographical (believe it or not, I actually wasn't a debutante, although a lot of my friends were), but I did draw on my own experiences and memories of growing up in Richmond, Virginia. (On a side note, some people try to argue with me that Virginia is not the South because it borders on D.C. I will defend the point until I'm blue in the face. Richmond, at least, is Southern to the bone.) Of course, this book is set in Alabama, so I was constantly calling my friends from there and asking, "Do you have Seven-Elevens in Alabama? Did you have a field hockey team? Explain your curtsy to me
Now again in more detail."
I wanted to write an honest portrayal of this sliver of Southern life. It is a privileged, sometimes sheltered, society -- no denying that -- but it's also quirky and funny and wonderful in so many ways. In the South, there is an appreciation for the past and tradition that I don't think you find as much in other parts of the country.
There are also SO many stereotypes. (How many times will a Southern girl be asked if she grew up on a farm? Or will someone speak to her like she doesn't understand English just because she talks slowly?) I wanted to debunk some of those. Just because a girl wears white and knows how to curtsy doesn't mean she can't cuss like a sailor. But I also know that sometimes a cliché becomes a cliché because it's true. Some stereotypes are based in reality. You WILL find girls with double names in the South. You WILL find people who consider football a religion. But in the end, I wanted my character to realize that she had more in common with these so-called "Southern belles" than she might ever have imagined. And I wanted this realization to challenge her own thinking about herself. And the story grew from there
Phew. Long answer to a short question! Authors are good at that:)
2) Was it difficult to get The Debutante published? What was the process like?
I always feel like I should precede this answer with a disclaimer: I was EXTREMELY lucky. I had a very different experience getting this book published than most first-time authors. Basically, I owe my first born child to my lovely editors. They approached me after reading an article I wrote for a newspaper about the opposite experience -- being Southern in New York City. (I was living there after college.) There was definitely fate involved. They tried to email me a couple times, but the paper had published a fake email address. Through a series of fortunate events and some mutual friends, they finally found me. I remember my editor taught me a new word in reference to the whole thing. She said, "This is kismet!" I was like, "Kermit
the Frog?" It's an Arabic word that means fate or destiny.
Then, however, the real work began. I had six drafts. Probably twelve versions of the first chapter. I used to write the scenes on flashcards and sit with my editor at a table and move them around until we were happy. The waiter at the restaurant thought we were crazy.
3) What is your writing process like? Do you listen to music? Do you outline? Any weird writing rituals?
After wiping the blood of a sacrificial white rooster across my cheeks and doing an ancient Balinese creativity dance, I light candles in a circle and sit with my laptop in the center until Inspiration arrives. Kidding. My process is pretty normal. But I have learned that writing is messy, and it is definitely a process. I start with a scenario (ex: girl from Connecticut moves against her will to Alabama
discuss.) That grows into an outline. Not all authors outline first, but I find it helpful to know where my characters have been and where they're going. I also do character sketches -- a notebook of notes about my characters -- how they dress, talk, what they like and don't like.
For actual writing, I need quiet. I can't listen to music -- it distracts me -- but for some reason the TV doesn't. I work from home, so I'm alone a lot during the day. If I'm editing, the TV in the background kind of keeps me company. (Wow, that sounded a lot sadder when I wrote it. I swear I'm not a freaky suicidal hermit!) I like to write in bed in the afternoons or at night. I am NOT a morning person. I can't write at a desk. Too much pressure, too formal. Sometimes I also go to a coffee shop.
4) What have you got lined up next?
I have an illustrated gift/humor book coming out from Chronicle Books in August. It's called Roomies: Sharing Your Home with Friends, Strangers and Total Freaks. I think it's pretty funny, if I do say so myself. (Toot toot.) It'd be great for people going off to boarding school or college. Dorm living can be interesting
I'm also finishing my second YA novel now. It's slated for next spring. It's set at a summer camp, and it's a little heavier in some of its themes than The Debutante was, but there's still humor. I can't handle life -- fictional or real -- without humor. That's all I'll say for now. You'll have to read it to find out!
5) What brought you to the YA genre? Will you branch out into other genres or stick with YA?
Before this opportunity came along, I was focused on journalism. I thought fiction was something I'd do later in life, and I'd never considered writing for the YA genre. I've found I absolutely love it!!! I'm writing about a time of life that is so huge and overwhelming in terms of discovering and defining who you are. And I'm writing for readers who are in the thick of it -- it's like joining them in the foxhole. I also love how teenagers are so perceptive and quick to call "b.s." They have an honesty and sensitivity that I admire and that adults sometimes lack -- or maybe it just gets covered over? I don't know. I feel like publishers are finally allowing YA authors to write with an honesty they weren't allowed to before.
Even if I branch into adult fiction, I'll still keep writing YA. The idea for my next book is already percolating. In an effort to maintain an air of mystery, I will wait to tell you about that :) |
A Woman's Triumphant Valor. Delicious Language. Award Winning Novel.
