Visit with Barbara Dee

www.barbaradeebooks.com

Today we're visiting with Barbara Dee, author of several titles for middle grade and teen readers, including her latest, THIS IS ME FROM NOW ON. Released on 4/27/10 by Aladdin, be sure to check it out!



Sometimes your life just needs a little jolt.

This is what Evie's new friend Francesca tells her, and soon enough, Evie's life has had something more like an earthquake. Francesca thinks life is dull unless you go after everything you want and say everything on your mind all the time--and sometimes that includes giving other people a little behind the scenes help to give them what she thinks they want.

Evie can't always tell if she's horrified or fascinated by everything Francesca convinces her to do, but ultimately, she comes to see friendship--and life--in a whole new light.

**I always love talking with Barbara, and I had a great time asking her a few questions about her life and writing - so enjoy her responses!

1) If you could bring any character from one of your books to life, who would it be and why?

I’d have to choose Francesca from THIS IS ME FROM NOW ON. Yes, she causes a whole lot of chaos, but it’s impossible to be bored when you’re with her, because you never know what she’ll do next! She may not be completely trustworthy, but don’t we all want to hang out with charismatic, free-spirited people who know how to keep us laughing? I think we do. We just need to be very, very careful.

2) Your own six-word memoir.

I get only six words? Forget

3) Twitter your newest or upcoming release in 140 characters or less.

THIS IS ME FROM NOW ON: Wild new girl gets Evie to blow off history project, play matchmaker. Chaos w/ friends & crushes. Ice cream.

4) What was your favorite book growing up as a teen?

It’s probably a tossup between THE CATCHER IN THE RYE and A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN. There was something about Holden’s funny, angsty voice that got under my skin and stayed there. And A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN has one of the great intelligent, sensitive heroines, Francie Nolan.

5) When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up?

The truth is, I’ve always wanted to be an author. Amazing to realize that dreams can come true!

6) Your favorite subject in high school – and your least favorite.

My favorite subject was English, and my least favorite was definitely Gym. At our high school, girls had to wear baggy, pine green “gym uniforms.” The rule was, you couldn’t have anything under your uniform except underwear, and you had to wear white socks. (Why WHITE socks? Don’t ask me.) We had five minutes to completely undress in the locker room, get into these hideous unis (which of course had a zillion buttons), put on the regulation white socks, then line up for inspection by the gym teachers, a few of whom made Sue Sylvester seem like Glinda the Good Witch. If they caught you violating the uni code (sneaking a tee underneath, or wearing illegal socks) you’d get a “uni mark,” and if you had too many of those you failed Gym. And THEN you’d have to take Gym twice a day! Two periods of jumping jacks! Ack!

7) The book you wish you had written.

I wish I’d written any of the CONFESSIONS OF GEORGIA NICOLSON books by Louise Rennison, because they’re all deeply hilarious, and she’s fearless with language. I also wish I’d written SAFFY'S ANGEL, because nobody writes better dialogue than Hilary McKay.

8) Your five favorite reads from 2009 (books you read during the year; they do not have to have been published during 2009).

I read so many books in 2009, so I’m probably forgetting some great ones. But among my favorite reads were: GOING BOVINE by Libba Bray, WHEN YOU REACH ME by Rebecca Stead, LIAR by Justine Larbalestier, THE DISREPUTABLE HISTORY OF FRANKIE LANDAU-BANKS by E. Lockhart, and OLIVE KITTERIDGE by Elizabeth Strout.

9) The 2010 release you’re most looking forward to reading.

Right now I’d like to get my hands on WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON.

10) If your mom wrote the author profile for the jacket of your next book, what would she write?

My next book, TRAUMA QUEEN, will be out next spring. It’s about the complicated relationship between a girl and her mother, a self-involved, uninhibited performance artist. If my mom wrote the author profile for TRAUMA QUEEN, she’d come up with something like: “Barbara Dee writes pure fiction. Her own mom is perfectly normal, and nothing like the crazy mom in this book!” And honestly, she’d be right.

11) You have the chance to go back and change a scene from one of your previous releases. What book would you choose, what scene would you change, and how would you alter it?

I wouldn’t change a whole scene, but I’d love to change a word that’s always bothered me. In JUST ANOTHER DAY IN MY INSANELY REAL LIFE, when Miranda is teasing Cassie about her “funny word list,” and then starts grilling Cassie about her mean ex-friends, Cassie says, “I grimaced.” And she probably did grimace, but would she have used that word? I doubt it.

12) Using the letters J L W (my initials!), create the title of your next bestseller. (For example, Jumping Love Walrus.)

Wait, it’s a bestseller? Then it has to be JEALOUS, LOVELY WEREWOLVES.

13) The world has suffered from a one-day only loss of power. You have no cell phone, computer, lights, or anything else that requires a computer, cell battery, or electricity. What do you spend the day doing?

One thing for sure: I wouldn’t be working, because I’ve totally lost the ability to write anything without a computer. But as long as we’re being hypothetical here, let’s agree that it’s summer, okay? Then I could spend a relaxing day reading, swimming, hanging out on my porch, eating up all the ice cream melting in my freezer.

14) If you weren’t an author, what job would you be doing?

I’d probably be editing or teaching. But who knows--maybe I’d open a cupcake bakery. We have an incredible one nearby, and lately cupcakes have become an obsession. Especially the chocolate!

15) You’re invited to a White House function, and you have the chance to give a 10-minute speech to the President and everyone else attending. What do you speak about?

I’d speak about funding public libraries, because that’s a topic I’m really passionate about!

16) Remember those “classics” that you were made to read in high school English class? What was your favorite, and which title should students never have to be subjected to reading?

When I was in high school, I shocked myself by absolutely loving PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, and it’s still one of my favorite books. But I also remember being forced to slog through IVANHOE in tenth grade English. I wouldn’t say I hated it, but seriously, that book was LONG.

17) Someone tells you that you’ll never publish another book that you write. Do you still keep writing?

Hmm. Tough question. I wish I could give you a noble answer, like, Oh yes, I’d definitely keep writing, because je suis une artiste. But the truth is, I’m not sure. What’s best about writing is making a connection with a reader, getting someone I’ve never met to laugh, or just to think, “Hey, that character is like me.” If I thought I’d be writing only for myself, that would take away most of the joy.

18) A group of teens ask you the best way to become a published writer. How do you answer the question?

I talk about this a lot, but here’s the short version of my answer: First, read constantly. Read what you love. Second, get comfortable sharing your writing with others. You don’t need a formal critique group—just pick some readers whose views you can trust, and whose sensitivity and tact you can depend on. Listen to what these readers have to say, and then seriously consider revising (especially if you’re hearing the same sort of response from a couple of readers).

Getting published isn’t easy these days—and one of the first questions an editor will ask is: Can I work with this writer? The best way to become the sort of writer editors want to work with is to embrace editorial feedback, and revise, revise, revise.

**Thanks so much to Barbara for visiting with us today! Be sure to visit her website, or you can also find her at her Blog, on Facebook, on Twitter, at Simon & Schuster, or email her directly at barbara@barbaradeebooks.com.

She'll be stopping by later to see what we're discussing, so be sure to leave any comments or questions you have for her in the comments section!