What type of writer are you—the one who experiences before writing, like Hemingway, or the one who mostly daydreams and fantasizes?
Hmmm. . . I guess I’m the sort of writer who gets crazy ideas, and then weaves them into rhyming stories, or maybe non-rhyming stories. Several of my mid-grades are definitely in the wild side: A ghost mystery, with my Mother in the title role, and two Aussie outback adventures for boys, with lots of aboriginal Dreamtime doings.
Agatha Christie got her best ideas while eating green apples in the bathtub. Steven Spielberg says he gets his best ideas while driving on the highway. When do you get your best ideas and why do you think this is?
I have Down-under Syndrome. As soon as my head hits the pillow at night, my bran leaps into action. Rhymes, characters, and plots for books, beg me to go put them in a computer file, so they won’t become lost in my sleep cycle. Why this happens is an absolute mystery. Having spent half my live as an Aussie, at the bottom of the globe, maybe my brain still hasn’t adjusted to the time change? “Sleep Deprivation” is the name of my muse.
Do you get along with your muse? What do you do to placate her when she refuses to inspire you?
I must confess that my muse sticks around - a lot. She loves to see me tiptoe downstairs to my computer at 2 AM, and pound out the words she generates in me. I really love the huge BUZZ a new rhyme or plot idea pumps through me: even in the early AM. However at 2 PM, when my eyelids droop known near my chin, I have a crazed urge to e-mail that #$% Muse, and give her a piece of my (yaw) mind.
From the moment you conceived the idea for the story, to the published book, how long did it take?
About six months.
Describe your working environment.
My writing den is our old family room: just off the kitchen. I started with a small table that had a much larger piece on marine plywood on top, so all my writing gear would fit on it. Later, dear husband put together a large U shaped desk, with cubbies, drawers, and lots of top shelves – pure heaven! Here, my computer reigns supreme. There’s a cozy wood fire, plus a comfortable sofa and chairs. Two windows onto the back gardens, and GroLux lights over wall shelves, for when I bring in tender plants to winter over.
Article comments