Interview with Rachel Ward

www.rachelwardbooks.com

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 don’t think I ever really knew that I wanted to be a writer, and quite a lot of the time I don’t believe I am one. But about seven or eight years ago I thought that I’d like to have a go at writing, just to see if I could do it, and I got hooked.

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

The first thing I wrote was a radio play which was rejected by the BBC. Then I experimented with short stories and wrote two novels for younger children, also rejected. I wanted to make my third novel edgier and for teenagers, actually something that my daughter, then 14, could read. I sent the first chapter into a local short story competition in 2006 (the Frome Festival Short Story Comp) and it won a prize! It didn’t really work as a short story but the judges liked the voice and the idea. I drew encouragement from this and completed the first draft of ‘Numbers’ in about six months. Then at the following year’s Frome Festival you could book a consultation with the Fiction Editor of The Chicken House, a local children’s publisher. So I booked my session, and it was there that I met Imogen Cooper who is my editor. She liked what she read and asked to see the whole thing. We agreed to a contract about two months later and ‘Numbers’ appeared in the UK in January 2009.

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?

In ‘Numbers’ (or ‘Num8ers’ in the USA), Jem, a 15-year-old sees numbers when she looks into people’s eyes – the date of their death. You could go lots of ways with this idea. For some reason known only to my subconscious I turned this into a love story/road movie/gritty examination of life at the bottom of the heap in the UK. It won’t be everybody’s cup of tea, but it might be yours…

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

I just read this question out loud and my daughter pointed to herself and said ‘Hem, hem, sitting right in front of ya…’ but actually I think the real inspiration for my stories comes from my own teenage years. I draw on the intense feelings I experienced then, so although the characters I write about are nothing like me now or me as a teenager, the feelings I’m writing about are real.

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

I’ve got a husband and two teenage children. They’re super-supportive and I’m so lucky to have them.

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

Potatoes every time, in all their lovely forms. For sheer comfort it would be mashed or baked. I’m partial to a proper dessert with custard, maybe a fruit crumble or some sort of sponge – forget cream or ice-cream, custard is king.

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

I’m writing hard at the moment, so I’ve got a very rigid routine in the morning and I get up really early. Apart from the obvious bathroom stuff, getting dressed, etc. I have a glass of fruit juice, walk the dog through the fields, and then I write. (After which, I wake up my family and go to my day job.)

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

Monumental untidiness. We’re a family of hoarders – it’s not a good thing.

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?

So difficult. I’m going to say black, although I suppose technically that’s a lack of colour. My writing is pretty dark, and I think it taps into the dark, serious, twisted side that I didn’t really know that I had before I started writing.

Who is your favorite cartoon character?

Probably the little boy scout from ‘Up.’ Oooh, I love that little guy. And the dog. And the bird.

Which cartoon character is most like you?

I’d like to be like Top Cat – pretty cool, a bit goofy, one of the gang - but the truth would be nearer to Marge Simpson. Or Ralph Wiggum.

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?

This may show a lack of imagination but I’d go back to the first time my now-husband called me ‘darling.’ Sorry, I’m a sentimental old thing, can’t help it.

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 fairly diverse stuff and I’m fairly fickle – I’ll listen to someone over and over for a while and then move on. I still love George Harrison, my teenage crush, but you’ll also find me listening to Amy Winehouse, Stevie Wonder (who I saw at Glastonbury), Susan Boyle, Biffy Clyro and Rage Against the Machine. I don’t listen to music when I’m writing, but I quite often have a song in mind when I’m writing a book, almost a theme tune. With ‘Numbers’ it was ‘Love is a Losing Game’ by Amy Winehouse.

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 loved ‘Six Feet Under’ and ‘Thirtysomething.’ At present I enjoy the lightweight end of the entertainment spectrum with my absolute fave being ‘Project Runway’ – I’m a Tim Gunn fan. The film I watch over and over again at home is ‘Sense and Sensibility’ with Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet. The last film I saw was ‘Inception’ which went straight into my Top Five all-time favourite films.

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

It’s the advice I’d give to my teenage self if I could talk to her/me now. Life can seem pretty grim when you’re a teenager, but stick with it, have patience and things will get better. There are people and adventures waiting out there for you and everything can turn out so much better than you ever expect. Hang on in there.

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

The sequel to ‘Numbers’ is out in the UK and will be published in the USA next year. I’m currently writing the third and final book in the series, and then I’ll have to think of something else. I’ve no idea what that might be…

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