Author Interview with Jessica Day George

The DMS was lucky enough to interview Jessica Day George. Lizzy reviewed her book Tuesdays at the Castle, and it was great to share our thoughts about it and hear yours! We're excited to learn a little more about her story. So, without further ado... take it away, Jessica!

What inspired you to write Tuesdays at the Castle?

I’ve always wanted to live in a castle, especially a magic castle. One night I was thinking about living in a magic castle and I thought, if your castle was magic, what would it do? Could it move? Could you talk to it? How would you know if it liked you or not? And then I thought, what if your magic castle got bored? Kaboom! Idea!

Tuesdays at the Castle is part of a series.  Did all of the books take you the same length of time to write or do they each have a process of their own?  Which one took you the longest to write?

Each of them came from a different angle. Tuesdays was just starting it out and finding out what the Castle could not do. Wednesdays took the longest to write, partly because all I knew was that I wanted to have her hatch a griffin egg, but also because while I was writing it I had a baby, and then I got really, really sick. I tried to keep writing while I was sick, but it just wasn’t very good, so I ended up writing Wednesdays all over again, TWICE. Thursdays was a lot easier because I knew I wanted them to find out some stuff about the Castle’s history, and I knew how it had to end.

What are some of your favorite books from childhood? Were there any specific authors who inspired you?

I loved Beverly Cleary, especially Ramona, and I read them over and over. I also loved Daniel Pinkwater’s books like The Last Guru and Alan Mandelssohn, Boy From Mars. And I am a huge fan of Diana Wynne Jones, especially Howl’s Moving Castle and Dogsbody. I also really liked Frances Hodgson Burnett’s A Little Princess.

When you were growing up did you want to live in a castle? Do you have a favorite castle that from either a book or a movie, or maybe one you have visited?

Yes, I so wanted to live in a castle! But one with toilets! I always wanted to live in Howl’s Moving Castle, although rereading the book as a grownup I realized that it is actually very small. I’d like a nice big comfortable castle. The most delightful I’ve ever been in is Bran Castle in Romania. It’s all painted white with big windows and has window seats in every room!

Bran Castle in Romania

The path to publication varies from author to author. Every author has a unique story and one that other authors can learn from. Can you tell us a little bit about your path to publication or do you have any advice for new authors?

My advice is to write the kind of book you’d want to read yourself. I spent nine years writing serious books for adults that I would never read myself. Then one day I had an idea for a story about a girl who makes friends with a dragon, and has a pair of magic shoes. I decided to write the story and just keep it for my kids, because my other books had been rejected over 200 times. But I was so excited about it that I couldn’t stop telling people about my dragon book, and a friend arranged for me to meet with a children’s book editor. After talking to her for twenty minutes, I sold Dragon Slippers.

If you could live anyplace real or fictional, where would it be? Why? 

I would like to live in Bergen, Norway. Because it’s gorgeous.

Bergen, Norway

If you could befriend a character from one of your books, who would you befriend? Why?

Who wouldn’t want to be friends with Shardas, king of the dragons? Amirite?

Are you currently working on a book? If so, can you tell us a little bit about it?

I just finished editing Fridays with the Wizards! And that’s all I’m gonna tell you!

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What Will the Castle Do Next?

Castle Glower has always decided who the next reigning king will be. It simply moves the future king’s room next to the throne room. That’s because Castle Glower has a life and magic all its own. If it likes you, it might make your room more comfortable or move you to a desirable location in the castle. If it doesn't like you, then it may make your furniture smaller or it could order the doors in your room to disappear. Any number of things could happen! That's why Princess Celie has been spending so much time mapping the ever changing palace. So many people get lost because things are constantly shifting, luckily the castle always helps her get where she's going. Everyone agrees that the castle likes her best. Celie’s father, King Glower the seventy-ninth, has been king for a while, and his son, Rolf, is next in line to the thrown (thanks to the castle moving his room). When her oldest brother graduates from wizarding school her parents leave to attend, and everything changes. After they are believed to be dead, Rolf must take over his position as the new king, but many other people want this position as well. Who will the castle choose? Can the two main king contenders who come to the castle be trusted? What will happen when a spell is cast? You must read this exciting adventure to find out what happens!

I have wanted to read Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George since I first saw the cover. It looked enchanting, and I was intrigued to find out what the story was about. I loved the idea of rooms that change and grow in a castle that was full of surprises. The main character, Princess Celie, is so kind and clever that I felt like I knew her. She would be such fun to be friends with! Celie’s love for the castle came through and made me want to explore the passageways with her. The atlas she's creating sounds like a lot of work, but it's also a smart idea. The story was full of magic, suspense, and characters that kept me reading on to find out what would happen next. I'd recommend this book to kids in third grade and up who love fantasy and who imagine a world where anything is possible. This is my first book by this author, but I look forward to reading more of her books. I'll definitely be reading the next story in the series.

Has anyone else read Tuesdays at the Castle? Or have you read a book by Jessica Day George? We'd love to hear your thoughts!

Stop by Friday 3/13 for an exclusive interview with Jessica Day George! 

Happy Reading!
~L

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Answer to Monday's Riddle: Daily Connections...

Excellent guessing, Riddlers! Patty- you are correct! Tuesday it is. :) Lizzy's review will spotlight the day, and Friday we'll be chatting with Jessica Day George, so be sure to check back! See you all around the book block. ; ) ~ F

I'm one of seven that comes around. Second in line, the number's my sound. Before me is one that speaks of the moon, a hump follows after that plays Odin's tune. The next leads through, then we're thankful at end, but Saturn rings true just round the bend. Time to rest on the last one; relax, sit back, and soak up the sun. Given these clues, what's in your head? My name is connected to something that's red. 

What am I referring to? Answer: Tuesday 

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Monday's Riddle: One of Seven...

Hello Riddlers! Can you guess our theme this week? Usually this one's more productive than the first- still the beginning, but moving along. ; ) ~ F

I'm one of seven that comes around. Second in line, the number's my sound. Before me is one that speaks of the moon, a hump follows after that plays Odin's tune. The next leads through, then we're thankful at end, but Saturn rings true just round the bend. Time to rest on the last one; relax, sit back, and soak up the sun. Given these clues, what's in your head? My name is connected to something that's red. 

What am I referring to?

I gave you a clue!

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Author Interview with Thanhha Lai

The DMS was lucky enough to interview Thanhha Lai. Lizzy reviewed her book Inside Out and Back Again, and it was great to share our thoughts about it and hear yours! We're excited to learn a little more about her story. So, without further ado... take it away, Thanhha!

What inspired you to write Inside Out and Back Again?

I had been struggling for 15 years with a much more ambitious novel that went nowhere. Right before giving up writing for good, I had an idea to write a much more contained book, spanning one year instead of 4,000 and developing one central character instead of 15. So the inspiration came mostly from exhaustion.

How long did it take you to write Inside Out and Back Again?

I was already writing about a Vietnamese family coming to Alabama. But the voice was never right. Once I came up with the prose poem format to convey how the girl is thinking in Vietnamese, the actual writing of Inside Out took about six months. But those six months resulted from a 15-year struggle.

What are some of your favorite books from childhood? Were there any specific authors who inspired you?

I read anything that had to do with animals, Where the Red Fern Grows, Charlotte's Web, The Call of the Wild. Growing up between two cultures, I found human beings too confusing. Animals, though, showed unconditional kindness.

 

If you could befriend a character from any of your books, who would you befriend? Why?

I would befriend the Mother in Inside Out. Luckily, I modeled her after my own mother, so we're built-in friends. I can imagine spending hours listening to her talk.

Where do you like to write? Do you listen to music while you are writing?

I write in a small bedroom sitting in a love seat with a laptop on my lap. When I need to nap, I just lean over. I like quiet, with just a few chirps out the window.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be? Why?

I would be a gypsy and spend half a year in every major city in the world. I love cities, the idea of being faceless among millions.

The path to publication varies from author to author. Every author has a unique story and one that other authors can learn from. Can you tell us a little bit about your path to publication or do you have any advice for new authors?

It took my close to two decades to get published, so I'm not sure I have any advice for authors other than "keep going." I wrote and rewrote and my first manuscript of an overly-written novel, which was rejected by agent after agent. When I finally sent out Inside Out, seven out of ten agents got back to me within a day.  Rosemary Stimola was the first. She asked for five pages, then 25, then 50, then the whole novel. Rosemary nudged an editor to read Inside Out, which had been sitting on her desk for a year. We received an offer shortly after.

Inside Out and Back Again is written in prose. Have you always been a fan of poetry? What inspired you to write a book in this style?

I’ve always read poetry but do not consider myself to be a poet. I wrote Inside Out in prose poems to convey what it’s like for the character to think in Vietnamese, which is naturally lyrical and rhythmic, at least to my ears. So my protagonist dictated the style.

Are you currently working on a book? If so, can you tell us a little bit about it?

On February 17, 2015, my second novel will be published. Listen, Slowly is about a Vietnamese-American, Laguna Beach girl who has no interest in her heritage. One summer she is forced to accompany her grandmother back to a village in Vietnam. And what a summer she has! 

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