Interview with Donna St. Cyr

http://www.donnastcyr.com/

When did you first know that you wanted to be a writer?

I think it dates back to my high school English class when my teacher encouraged my writing; or it might date back to kindergarten when my teacher would comment on my imaginary play. Either way, I think my teachers were quite influential in developing my interest.

Can you tell us a little bit about your road to publishing?

I wrote an awful chapter book – but didn’t know how awful it was until it was soundly rejected by every publisher who read the manuscript. Then I realized that, while I might be able to write, I didn’t really understand anything about writing for children, so I took a writing course from the Institute of Children’s Literature. I worked on some magazine articles and had a couple of acceptances before I finished the course. The writing bug had fully infected me at that point. I continued to submit short magazine pieces, receiving a few acceptances along with a bucketful of rejections and I started working on a story idea that developed into my first novel.

Tell us a little bit about either your latest or upcoming release. If you could only tell your readers one thing about the story that had to convince us to buy the book, what would it be?

My upcoming release, THE SECRETS OF THE CHEESE SYNDICATE, is my very first novel to be published. It is scheduled for release in early August by CBAY Books, an imprint of Blooming Tree Press. Why should you read it? It’s full of mythological monsters, cool adventures, and stinky cheese. Oops, sorry, that was 3 things!

What, or who, has been the greatest inspiration for your stories?

That’s easy – my children and my students. I have taught high school and am now an elementary school librarian. I don’t have to go far to find a fertile field of story ideas.

Let’s hear about your family, who I’m sure are thrilled to have a published author among them!

My husband and three teenage children are great supports. They let me bounce ideas off their heads and offer clear-eyed critiques when I ask. And my dogs, Freddie and Lou, like to sit under my desk when I write. They are very faithful if I give them a treat every so often. We had a tradition of going out to get ice cream every time I sold a magazine story. Well, my youngest son, who was the inspiration for the Cheese Story (as we call the book), thinks he should get a percentage of the royalties. Maybe I’ll buy him a double dip cone – with sprinkles.

Now for some fun facts. What’s your greatest comfort food?

Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate. Did I mention that I like chocolate?

What are the first three things you do when you wake up in the morning?

Use the restroom.
Brush my teeth.
Give my hubby a kiss.

If I came to your house and looked in your closet/attic/basement, what’s the one thing that would surprise me the most?

Considering that I don’t keep that much stuff, I’m really messy.

Everyone asks the question about "if you could be a tree, which tree would you be?" so I want to know: If you could be a color, which color would it be, and why?

I’d be BLUE. It’s always been my favorite color, probably because nothing feels finer to me than sitting outside on a clear day and look at the beautiful blue sky.

Who is your favorite cartoon character?

I can’t say I watch many cartoons these days, but I used to LOVE Scooby-Doo.

Which cartoon character is most like you?

Keeping with the Scooby-Doo motif, I always thought I was like Velma – I was the scientist – always working hard to figure everything out.

If you could beam yourself to anywhere in the world ("Beam me up, Scotty!"), during any time in history, where and when would it be—and why?

Tough question! There are so many. I think really I’d like to visit prehistoric times and see a real, live dinosaur – but I wouldn’t want to get eaten!

So what’s your favorite type of music to listen to? Favorite musical artists? Do you listen to music while you’re writing?

I listen to a lot of contemporary Christian music. My favorite pop artist is Billy Joel (and I love to sing his songs loudly and off key). My favorite Christian artist is Chris Tomlin because he creates such beautiful worship songs.

I don’t really listen to songs while I’m writing – maybe I should try it.

Do you have any favorite T.V. shows? Movies you watch over and over again? What was the last movie you saw at the theater?

My favorite TV show is "Numbers". My family likes to watch it together because we all think of ourselves as math geeks.

You can never watch "Casablanca" too many times.

Last movie I saw was "The Tale of Benjamin Button". It was intriguing and set in New Orleans, which is close to where I live.

You have the chance to give one piece of advice to your teen readers. What would it be?

Read widely and deeply. Don’t judge a book by its cover. Read out of your comfort zone. Oops, that was 3 again!

One last question. What stories can we look forward to from you in the future?

I’m working on a historical fiction novel about the Grand Derangement , which was the expulsion of the Acadians from Nova Scotia in the 1750’s. It is a very significant story to me because my south Louisiana heritage is deeply tied to the Acadians’ descendants – the Cajuns.