1. Are the characters in AGATB based on anybody you know?
The characters are not based on anyone I know, per se. I did have a gang of four that I hung around with in my high school years, and it’s reasonable to assume that some of the characteristics of my friends worked their way into Felicity, Pippa, and Gemma. But I find that once I start writing, the characters take over, take off, and become someone else entirely different from what I imagined. They’re driving and I’m just along for the ride.
2. Which character is closest to you?
I always think that every character you ever write is some aspect of you—the good, the bad, and the ugly. So I wouldn’t say that I am closest to any particular character but can relate to aspects of all of them: Felicity’s rebelliousness, Pippa’s being torn between being the “good daughter” and following her own heart, Ann’s feelings of being the outsider, and Gemma’s uncertainty and sardonic humor.
3. I’ve written a book. If I send it to you, will you read it?
Sadly, the time constraints of my less-than-glamorous life do not allow me the freedom to read other people’s work as I would like. Plus, I am the world’s slowest reader with a daily average of about 2 _ pages before I fall asleep on my open book, drooling.
4. I’ve written a book. How can I get it published?
First, you should know that publishers are salivating at the chance to read a manuscript by a teen writer, provided that teen writer is good and has a story to tell. There are lots of avenues for publication. Many publishing houses have contests for first-time authors. Delacorte has one. You can go to websites for various publishers and see if they have contests or guidelines for submission. I’ve listed the links below. I know Scholastic has an imprint, PUSH, that is solely for first-time authors. You can also get yourself an agent. How do you find an agent? Look them up in The Writer’s Marketplace for Agents. This is a huge, doorstop of a book that lists every agency and agent, what they like, don’t like. IMPORTANT: Be sure to pay attention to the agent/publishing house’s edicts about submissions. You don’t ever want to give someone a reason to chunk your stuff in the rubbish bin just because you failed to keep your synopsis to one page or you sent the whole manuscript when they clearly state they will only accept the first three chapters. Similarly, if an agent says he/she is only interested in dark, edgy novels and you send him/her your light-as-a-three-egg white-omelet novel about a girl who sings at a nursing home and suddenly becomes an overnight sensation and falls in love with the boy next door and they save puppies and plant daisies in everybody’s yards so the world will be filled with bright, bright color, you’re shooting yourself in the foot. (Actually, if you write that book, there might be a line of people wanting to do the shooting for you.) Read what they say and FOLLOW IT TO THE LETTER. Here’s a list of some publishing houses and their websites.
| Simon & Schuster | Random House | Penguin/Putnam |
| Candlewick | Random House Teen | HarperCollins |
| Scholastic | Hyperion |
5. I’ve written a book. How can I get it on the “Oprah” show?
Beats me. When you find out, will you let me know?
6. Do you ever doubt yourself when you’re writing?
At least once every fifteen minutes. That’s what chocolate is for.
7. Where do you get your ideas?
I take them from small children in exchange for a handful of beads meant to buy their silence. Okay, not really. I get them from everywhere. The cereal box. My past. My present. My fears and doubts and longings. Games of “what if…?” I get them while walking around the streets listening to my iPod and watching the people. I get them from reading the newspaper and magazines and books and junk mail and letters from friends and email and even spam. I get them from watching movies and plays and documentaries and Nova PBS specials and commercials and really bad Lifetime shows or tabloid TV. Travel. Laundry. A run around the lake. Bad hair days. There is not a single thing that doesn’t go into the old brain pan for future use. It’s the ultimate in recycling.
8. What do you do when you’re not writing?
Think about writing. It’s sad, isn’t it? When I’m not writing, I’m usually playing mommy to my son or trying to read or listening to music. Occasionally, I get to go for coffee with friends and yak and laugh. I wish I had more time (and money) for going to plays and concerts. I love to hear live music, and I love the theatre.
9. Do you make a lot of money writing?
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! (We’re terribly sorry to report that the author has just died laughing.) Okay, sorry. That one always gets me. The answer is…no. Keep those donations coming, folks.
10. Is there going to be a sequel to AGATB?
Yes. BEAUTY is the first in a trilogy. The second book, REBEL ANGELS, will be out in Fall ’05. Mark your calendars and synchronize those watches.
11. Is your book based on any personal experiences?
Yes. Especially the having magical powers part. I always give the same answer to this question: The book is a work of fiction that borrows some emotional truths from my own life, if not actual experiences. But that’s sort of a cheat. It’s a little like standing on the sidelines saying, “Me? You know, I don’t believe I’ve ever farted…” (Incidentally, farts are always funny.) So, with that in mind, I guess I’d say that like the girls in BEAUTY, my friends were not exactly of the cuddly-bunny type. They were the sort who if you, say, slipped and fell in their living room and you weren’t bleeding—or not much, anyway—would not gasp and say, “Oh my gosh, let me get you a Band-Aid!” No, they were the ones holding their sides from laughter, and they would pull out that story to embarrass you at every opportunity. (I’m still friends with them all, by the way.) I did have a crush on a guy named Kartik at one point in my life. I am fascinated by Victorian England and by India. I did have a great-grandmother who used to thrill me with creepy stories about my supposedly psychic great-great-great grandmother. Like Gemma, I know what it feels like to be the outsider. To covet. To doubt. To long for. I’ve lost a parent and understand grief. I even made up a magical kingdom with my friend Jeannie when I was twelve, and it felt very real to me. (It was based on Led Zeppelin songs, but it’s waaaay too pathetic and sad to go into here.) So there you go.
12. What inspired you to write A GREAT AND TERRIBLE
BEAUTY?
I have no idea. Really. I just wrote a book I felt like I wanted to read.