Interview with Heidi Ayarbe

www.heidiayarbe.com

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

I am not the typical I–wrote-poetry-and-had-teen-angst writer. In fact, I never considered writing as a possibility because I always read so much and held writers up on a pedestal of mystery and genius. I’ve never had a pet cemetery; grew up in a small town with no political revolution; didn’t want to put stones in my pockets and walk in a river … You get the idea. Plus, I’m not one of those kids who had teachers saying, “Oh! You’re so gifted. You should write.”

I studied English Education and French, but after teaching for a few years, decided that wasn’t my road.

When I was twenty-seven, working at a sporting goods shop after working at cafes in Europe, I went to a talk being given by a children’s writer. It was Ellen Hopkins (pre-Crank, Burned and her New York Times best-sellers). She talked about writing non-fiction books for educational publishers. That seemed do-able to me. I joined Ellen’s writing group in Northern Nevada, SCBWI, and I began.

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

I took Ellen’s advice: Never turn a job down. So I began writing articles for local magazines, non-fiction books, and got articles accepted to Highlights for Children Magazine. Then I was contracted to write manuals for an Argentinian publisher in Spain on getting kids to sleep, menopause, nutrition, quitting smoking … I never turned a job down, though I did lose some nights of sleep investigating.

During that time I played around with the idea of writing novels. I wrote two terrible novels then began FREEZE FRAME. After finishing my first draft, I decided that the best thing would be agented. (I live in Colombia, and I couldn’t imagine trying to do everything snail-mail from here.) I researched agents and began querying. The intrepid Stephen Barbara read FREEZE FRAME and within a couple of days offered me representation. He sold it six months later to the amazing Jill Santopolo at HarperCollins, and I’ve been writing ever since.

I AM VERY LUCKY. VERY GRATEFUL. VERY LUCKY AND AMAZED AND GRATEFUL that I have this job.

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?

COMPROMISED is a story about a courageous trio of teens facing the bleak realities of homelessness.

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

My sister because she is my memory. My life doesn’t exist without her in it. And my husband and daughter because my story began with them.

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

My sister, Carrie, is my greatest cheerleader and is a bookstore stalker – following people into the teen section, convincing them to buy my books whenever she can. So far no arrests.

My husband, Cesar, is my biggest listener, helping me untangle my plots and giving me quirky ideas that bring characters to life. Maya, my MC, loves science because of him. In FREEZE FRAME, my husband gave me the ideas for Kyle’s orange shoes and the kite-flying.

My parents are courageous, wonderful people who never doubted that I could do whatever I wanted. They are my strength and backbone.

My daughter, Amelia, is two. She makes me want to be a better person. Plus, because of her, I’m discovering the world all over again.

My nieces and brother-in-law are a comfort-zone of acceptance and warmth. They are so amazingly supportive.

I’m lucky. I have one of those families that would support me in just about any pursuit!

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

Cheerios.

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

Get a glass of milk for Amelia.

Snuggle with Amelia and Cesar for a while, hanging out, visiting, biding for a few more moments of rest.

Rush Amelia to the bathroom so we can pee. (Well, you asked!)

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

Being able to open the closet door without everything crashing on top of you. Yes, I have one of “those” closets. Be careful.

Everyone asks the question about “if you could be a tree, which tree would you be?”

Really? I’ve never heard that one.

So I want to know: If you could be a color, which color would it be, and why?

Dark Diesel/Turquoise blue – that really dark blue-green color. I just love the way it feels – like water and sky mixed. Storm clouds and waves.

Who is your favorite cartoon character?

Linus (from Peanuts)

Which cartoon character is most like you?

Calvin (I was a REAL pain growing up!)

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?

Right here. Right now. There’s no place I’d rather be.

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

I’m not really good at categorizing music because I don’t really know much about it. But I love jazz and blues. I love artists like Norah Jones, Gavin McGraw, John Mayer, The Dixie Chicks (which is more folk/country, I know). I also love dancing to salsa (my favorite dancing music). I don’t listen to music while writing. I have one of those strangely silent homes. I think, though, because Colombia is so, so noisy, music blaring, people talking, singing … my apartment is the only quiet place in the country. But when I’m not working, I listen to JANGO radio stations (the international version of PANDORA). (Right now, for example, MAROON 5 is singing Sunday Morning).

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?

LOVE American Idol. I can’t wait to buy CDs from Crystal Bowersox and Casey James! (Also big fan of Bo Bice, Elliott Yamin, Daughtry). I also like MEDIUM and THE MENTALIST but they’re scary and I can’t watch them alone.

I think I’ve seen the Bourne Identity movies a billion times. I also love Life is Beautiful, most things Cohen Brothers, Brokeback Mountain, and The Lives of Others. The last movie I saw in the theater was … Alice In Wonderland in 3D which gave me a killer headache. (We don’t get to movies as often as we used to.)

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

Read. Read, read, read, read, read … READ! Then listen. The biggest part of this job is listening: listening to criticism so you can grow as a writer. Then read some more. And … DON’T GIVE UP. Really. I am proof that with dedication and determination, this is a job you can do.

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

COMPULSION, a novel about a teen who suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder, will be out next year. I’m JUST starting on my 2012 novel which means I basically have no idea what it’s about! :) Anyway, keep an eye out for COMPULSION in 2011 and SOMETHING?? in 2012.

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

Thank you!