Interview with Lauren Baratz-Logsted

http://www.laurenbaratzlogsted.com/

First off, thanks so much for joining us for an up-close and personal interview for TeensReadToo.com! My name is Jen, and I'll be your server toda...oh, wait, wrong job! Anyway, thanks so much for taking time out of your writing schedule--which I'm sure is busy!--and answering a few questions for your readers and fans.

Thanks for having me, Jen!

Let's get some of the typical interview questions out of the way first. When did you first know that you wanted to be a writer?

I think I was twelve when I first became serious about writing. My English teacher had us write stories that had to involve three elements: a priest, a nurse and a camel. I set it on a desert island and wrote a story that was very Thorn Birds, meaning the priest was reconsidering his vows in light of true love entering his life. My teacher had me read it to the class three days running. I'm guessing the other kids were sick of it by day three - probably by day two! - but it gave me an early confidence in my writing ability.

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

It's a very loooong story, so I'll try to give you the Cliff Notes version. I left my day job in 1994 to take a chance on myself as a writer. Eight years later, having written seven novels and been through three agents, I sold my sixth adult novel, The Thin Pink Line, a dark comedy about a woman who fakes an entire pregnancy, all on my own to Red Dress Ink.

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 current excitement is THE SISTERS EIGHT series for young readers, which I created with my novelist husband Greg Logsted and our nine-year-old daughter Jackie. The first two books, ANNIE’S ADVENTURES and DURINDA’S DANGERS, came out in December 2008. Book 3, GEORGIA’S GREATNESS, is due out on March 23; and Book 4, JACKIE’S JOKES, is due out on April 20. The five remaining titles will be released at later dates.

Why should people read them? Just look at the TRT reviews! Also, the amazing website our publisher created, http://www.sisterseight.com/. And if that’s not enough reason, there are eight cats in the books!

My other big excitement is the forthcoming release of my next YA novel on September 7, CRAZY BEAUTIFUL. It’s a contemporary re-visioning of Beauty & the Beast told in he-said/she-said fashion about a boy with hooks for hands and a gorgeous girl who meet on their first day at a new school.

Why should people buy it? Well, if I say that the book is fresh and different, that would sound immodest. So how about this: because I want you to???

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

That's a tough question. I'd have to say, though, that the one person who guides my writing most is my nine-year-old daughter, Jackie. In the back of my mind, I suppose I'm always thinking that I hope when she's old enough to really understand what I do (beyond what we do together on THE SISTERS EIGHT), she'll be proud of what I've accomplished and she'll recognize the importance of pursuing one's dreams.

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

Well, as you already know now from the above about THE SISTERS EIGHT, my husband and daughter are also published authors too now! Greg is also the author of the YA novel SOMETHING HAPPENED and the upcoming tween novel ALIBI JUNIOR HIGH. Greg and I have been married to since 1989. My mother, at 86, is still sharp, and she carries foreign editions of my novels in her purse to show the doctor, the hairdresser, the waitress at the diner, the bank teller. As for Jackie, well, you already know about her. She'll likely grow up to be a better writer than either her mother or father!

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

Frosting.

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

Go to the bathroom, brush my teeth, get down to work.

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

How messy I am - you'd wonder how I ever get any books written!

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?

Green. To me, it's the color of life. When I'm at my best, I'm extremely alive and, as my publishing history has proven, very resilient.

Who is your favorite cartoon character? Which cartoon character is most like you?

Daffy Duck for the first - he's all id. As for the second, I'd like to think I'm Bugs Bunny, but who knows. Maybe I'm really Elmer Fudd and don't know it?

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?

Another really hard question! At first I was thinking of disasters - you know, so I could go back and try to stop them - but there have been so many, it'd be impossible to choose, as though in choosing one you were saying you don't care about the others. I guess, then, I'll have you beam me back to Stratford-upon-Avon when Shakespeare was writing, so I could sit on his shoulder and watch him create. I don't know, maybe I could refill his inkwell for him or something.

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

I like all kinds of music. Some favorites include Warren Zevon, Frank Sinatra, 3 Doors Down, Maroon Five. I don't usually listen while writing but I did write nearly the whole of my one literary adult novel, Vertigo, while repeatedly listening to the soundtrack from The Piano.

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?

I like "House", "Friday Night Lights", "Rescue Me", "Life on Mars", "Entourage", "Nip and Tuck", and “General Hospital”. And we've been on a DVD kick with Jackie, so we’ve been watching episodes of “One Tree Hill” like crazy people. Jackie will sometimes say, “This is so inappropriate for me to be watching this,” but we all love it. I don't usually watch movies over and over anymore - life's just too busy - but some I've really enjoyed are The Piano, Shakespeare in Love and To Kill A Mockingbird. Last year, it seemed like we saw almost everything that came out, but the only thing I’ve seen recently is “Slumdog Millionaire” – it was fabulous.

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

Life is incredibly short, even though it doesn't seem like it today, so have a dream and pursue it with everything you've got. Make your time on this swiftly tilting planet matter.

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

The rest of THE SISTERS EIGHT series and CRAZY BEAUTIFUL! Oh, and in spring of 2010, I’ll have another YA novel out. This one is called THE EDUCATION OF BET. It’s about a sixteen-year-old girl in Victorian England who impersonates a boy in order to receive a proper education. I hope people will like it!

Again, thanks so much for joining us at TeensReadToo.com!

Thanks so much for having me, Jen - I've really enjoyed my time here!