Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How did you become a writer?
A: I always loved reading books, and when I was a kid, I wrote to my favorite authors. Two of them (James Howe and Tad Williams) actually wrote back! With typewritten letters!
Besides reading, I also enjoyed drawing and creating my own stories. My older sister and I devoted many hours to playing dress-up, acting out stories with our stuffed animals, and recording radio shows, and one of my good friends and I spent junior high writing epic-length sagas and romances (a topic we had no knowledge of whatsoever).
In college I studied screenwriting, creative writing, and filmmaking, and moved to L.A. to pursue a career in television and movies. I learned a lot in the ensuing 10 years. (Mainly, that it's extremely difficult to make a living as a screenwriter.) I dusted myself off, got experience writing for different markets -- such as newspapers, magazines, and the Internet -- and eventually tackled novels, my first love.
The first two books I wrote were commercial/literary/who-knows-what-fiction for adults. I had a blast writing them, but for the time being they live under the bed where they belong. Then one day I had an idea about a 16-year-old black belt in martial arts who witnesses an armed robbery. The story really captured my attention. I researched the heck out of Young Adult novels and gave it my best shot. That book, BRUISED, sold to Amulet in 2011 and will be released in 2013.
Q: How did you get your literary agent?
A: I learned how to write query letters (which are similar to pitching movies, a concept I was familiar with from my years attempting to work as a screenwriter), researched lit agencies online, and made a list of my top choices. Perseverance and serendipity helped. If you'd like more details, I blogged about the journey here.
Q: What's it like being married to a magician?
A: Oooh, oooh, I also blogged about that! (And no, he doesn't tell me his secrets. But he does try out new tricks on me just about every day.) Short answer: it's awesome, if occasionally bizarre.
Q: You write books for teenagers. What were you like as a teen?
A: I was ridiculously awkward, but I had amazing friends and a great family. For deliciously awful photos (hair-sprayed bangs, pegged jean shorts), plenty of teenage angst (plus low-level dysthymia!), check out my contribution to the site Dear Teen Me (soon to be an anthology).
A: I always loved reading books, and when I was a kid, I wrote to my favorite authors. Two of them (James Howe and Tad Williams) actually wrote back! With typewritten letters!
Besides reading, I also enjoyed drawing and creating my own stories. My older sister and I devoted many hours to playing dress-up, acting out stories with our stuffed animals, and recording radio shows, and one of my good friends and I spent junior high writing epic-length sagas and romances (a topic we had no knowledge of whatsoever).
In college I studied screenwriting, creative writing, and filmmaking, and moved to L.A. to pursue a career in television and movies. I learned a lot in the ensuing 10 years. (Mainly, that it's extremely difficult to make a living as a screenwriter.) I dusted myself off, got experience writing for different markets -- such as newspapers, magazines, and the Internet -- and eventually tackled novels, my first love.
The first two books I wrote were commercial/literary/who-knows-what-fiction for adults. I had a blast writing them, but for the time being they live under the bed where they belong. Then one day I had an idea about a 16-year-old black belt in martial arts who witnesses an armed robbery. The story really captured my attention. I researched the heck out of Young Adult novels and gave it my best shot. That book, BRUISED, sold to Amulet in 2011 and will be released in 2013.
Q: How did you get your literary agent?
A: I learned how to write query letters (which are similar to pitching movies, a concept I was familiar with from my years attempting to work as a screenwriter), researched lit agencies online, and made a list of my top choices. Perseverance and serendipity helped. If you'd like more details, I blogged about the journey here.
Q: What's it like being married to a magician?
A: Oooh, oooh, I also blogged about that! (And no, he doesn't tell me his secrets. But he does try out new tricks on me just about every day.) Short answer: it's awesome, if occasionally bizarre.
Q: You write books for teenagers. What were you like as a teen?
A: I was ridiculously awkward, but I had amazing friends and a great family. For deliciously awful photos (hair-sprayed bangs, pegged jean shorts), plenty of teenage angst (plus low-level dysthymia!), check out my contribution to the site Dear Teen Me (soon to be an anthology).
