• Interview with Amy McAuley •

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Interview with Debut Author Amy McAuley

by Debbi Michiko Florence

Amy McAuley is the debut author of the YA novel Over and Over You (Roaring Brook Press, 2005).

I'm just fascinated with the concept of your story. A 17-year-old girl, Penny, after being told by a psychic that she's been in love with the same boy for the last 1,000 years, starts dreaming about her many past lives. Please tell us how this story came about for you.

It's funny, the book is about a girl who has difficulty sleeping, because she's afraid to dream, and the story idea came to me one night when I was have trouble falling asleep. As I stared at the dark ceiling, a girl's voice said in my head, "I've been in love with the same boy for a thousand years." The way she said it piqued my curiosity. It was as if she'd just heard that strange news herself and didn't know what to make of it. Of course, I had to jump up right away to start writing her story!

Penny's dreams have some fascinating historical tidbits in them — obscure tidbits. So much so, that I stopped reading at one point to Google something Penny dreamed to see if it was true. And it was! You did a fabulous job of seamlessly integrating these things into the story. How did you come across these facts? Did these come about before you wrote the story? During? After?

I love that you went to Google to find out more about that tidbit! I hope curious readers will do the same, to have some interactive fun with the book.

The historical facts came to me as I was writing. I did no research beforehand. I chose time periods that are of interest to me and read as much as I could about each one. In reading, some facts caught my attention more than others—something about them clicked with me—and after enough facts had come together in my head to form a cohesive event in Penny's past, I wrote about it. A lot of the information I needed to make the book work sort of fell into my lap, for the Raphael storyline in particular, and it was occasionally eerie. I dug and dug through research and the times I came upon those "perfect" nuggets were fun and exciting.

The original manuscript had a WWII storyline that was removed during the first major revision for my editor, and the Viking past-life took its place. All of the Viking research was done during revision. I ended up being really happy with how those past-life events merged with the story and Penny's present-day life.

All the characters in the story feel so real to me. I adore Penny! She's funny! I laughed out loud several times at her comments/thoughts. I'm so glad she has Di and Kate and Ryan. Even her sometimes annoying sister Kalli is a blessing for the most part. Which character do you relate to the most. And why?

It's hard to choose. I relate to both Kate and Penny. We have similar interests, such as jogging, ice cream, and Pink Floyd music. Like Kate, I enjoy photography. And I think I share Penny's attitude and sense of humor. Kate's cooler than I was as a teenager. She's confident and has no problem speaking her mind.

Tell us about the process of writing this story and getting it published. How long did it take you to write it? Any rituals you use to get started writing? Tell us about getting "The Call."

I started the book in 2001. I completed it the next year, and it was the manuscript that got me an agent. My agent submitted it for a year, before I got "the call" in October, 2003.

Getting that call from my agent was an extremely surreal experience. I had finished a revision for Deborah Brodie (Roaring Brook Press), and she had emailed me to let me know it had arrived. But she also mentioned that she wouldn't be able to get to it for a while. When my agent called a few days later, and told me she had made an offer on it, I was stunned. After receiving rejections for years, that gets to be the norm. I had taken an offer out of the realm of real possibilities. I told my agent I thought I was going to throw up, and he said, "Well, get outside! Don’t throw up on the good furniture!" Fortunately, I didn't throw up, but for days I wondered if I'd imagined the whole conversation. I worried that it was somebody's idea of a joke, and it was all going to be snatched away.

I don't have any rituals to get into writing. I do have one mantra that I need to repeat to myself from time to time when I'm not in the mood to write. Open the document! That's it. Just open it. If I open it, I almost always add to it.

Did you always want to be a writer? Tell us a little about your journey to Author.

I was always a big reader. I adored books. In fourth grade, I realized I wanted to write kid's books. I knew nothing about young adult books then, I wanted to write hilarious books like Judy Blume’s novels about Peter and his silly little brother, Fudge, and Gordon Kormon's MacDonald Hall series. As I got older, I stuck with Judy Blume, and I was struck by how real her teen characters were.

I got married and had kids soon after I left high school. My dream of writing kid's books was shoved to the back burner, but it never went away entirely. Then one night in early 1998, I found Judy Blume's website, so I emailed her. And the next day, she emailed me back! She told me to write books, if that's what I wanted to do. Writers are regular people, like me. I started writing that very day and haven't stopped since.

Describe a typical work day.

I get home from taking the kids to school at nine o'clock, if I don't take the dog for a walk that morning, and then I try to get my Internet/email/blog/website stuff taken care of. Sometimes I squeeze some writing time into the morning hours. Then the kids come home for lunch. After they go back to school, I write for a few hours if I can, but I get out of my chair often to clean the house, do yard work, run errands, etc. I get a lot more writing done late at night, after everyone else has gone to sleep. But the older I get, the harder it is to stay awake!

When I’m revising a book, my work day is completely different. I usually work all day long, and let the other things I need to do slide.

What do you do when you're not writing?

I read whenever I can. My husband and I are also avid movie watchers. Watching movies is a great way to absorb information about plot, story structure, dialogue, and character development! I love to play computer games, too, The Sims 2 in particular, and I only have time to play when I'm between books.

What inspires you?

Chocolate. My kids, my husband, my friends and family. I get a lot of inspiration for story ideas from articles I've read online or in newspapers.

What's the best thing about being a writer?

The freedom it offers me. I get to work at home and set my own schedule. If one of the kids is sick or calls home from school, I'm available. I can take weekends off and match my vacation time to my husband's. Those are good perks!

The best, best thing is that I'm doing my childhood dream job and actual teens are reading a book that I wrote. That’s very cool.

What's the hardest thing about being a writer?

Working at home! Yeah, I know I just said working at home has its perks, but it can also be a drawback. It's up to me to get my work done, which requires a lot of discipline. You're never too far from the Internet, TVs, the fridge. And nobody is standing behind me telling me to get out of the ice cream and get back to work.

I would say the hardest thing about being a writer is dealing with the two Rs: Rejection and Reviews. Most writers have to deal with rejection for years. I have a big, thick folder with over a hundred rejections in it.

What advice do you have for beginning children's writers?

Read, read, read, especially when you're first starting out and possibly haven't read a middle grade or young adult novel in years. It's vital to research the market you want to publish in. Beginning writers should also go into writing with a realistic attitude, and that can be difficult. Nobody wants to accept that their book will be rejected, too, or that their writing will probably be weak in the beginning, or that they may not find a publisher until they've completed three or four manuscripts. Those manuscripts are not a waste of time; they help a writer learn the craft. And don't let rejection stop you. I think it's good to have an "I'll show them!" attitude. It pushes you to write better and better.

Do you do school visits? How can fans contact you?

I haven't done any school visits, yet. I may be open to school visits in the next few years when my kids are older. I do have a website— www.amymcauley.com. I love to get email from people who've visited my website!

What can fans expect from you next?

My next book will probably come out Fall 2006. It's about young women who parachuted into occupied France, during WWII, to act as spies for the Allies. The women were fascinating, brave, and tough as nails. I'm eager to get the first draft of the book finished, so I can move into the revision phases. I love to revise.

Anything else you'd like to share?

Thanks for interviewing me, Debbi!