Not long ago, Brandy and I wrote about Wake, a great paranormal romance for teens by Lisa McMann. I shared the post with Lisa, and she loved it, so I asked her if she would let us interview her for ReadSpace. She said yes with enthusiasm, but only if we could ask her some new questions and present it in our same conversational style. Always up for a challenge, Brandy and I put our heads together and came up with the following questions. We bet you’ll learn something about Lisa, if nothing else, what a great sense of humor she has!
Susan: I know this is a busy time of year for everyone, so really appreciate your taking the time to answer our questions.
Brandy: I see on your website that one of the things you enjoy are reality TV shows. I think that’s cool, because Susan and I enjoy them too. I love to watch ones like Celebrity Fit Club and Susan loves any of the dancing, singing, or performing shows. What is it that you find so interesting about reality tv?
Lisa McMann: Reality TV is like watching a train wreck — it’s hard to look away. Our family has been watching Survivor since season one and now it’s, like, season umpteen brazillion and we can’t stop watching it — it’s sacred, now. I also love watching Hell’s Kitchen — watching somebody yell and insult people and seeing their reaction, and how everybody reacts differently…it’s such a life study in human behavior.
Brandy: What reality tv shows do you watch?
Lisa McMann: Survivor, The Amazing Race (most boring season ever just ended, am I right?), The Biggest Loser, whatever cooking show happens to be on, Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style (I heart Tim Gunn), Project Runway, America’s Next Top Model…good grief I’m pathetic
Brandy: What reality tv show would you love to be a contestant on?
Lisa McMann: The one that no one watches. I have no desire to ever be seen doing something like that.
Susan: Have you read Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins? There’s a different kind of reality show for you.
Lisa McMann: Not yet! It’s on my list of things to read.
Susan: What if there were a reality show for children and teen authors? What would it be like? And would anybody watch? (Of course, all us librarians and readers!)
Lisa McMann: I think with the right combination of authors it could be a cable (I just typed Cabel by accident) show that airs at 2 a.m. and gets cancelled after the pilot episode…BUT THAT FIRST EPISODE WOULD AIR! That’s more than most shows. Or a lot of them, anyway. Oh, heck, I don’t really know what I’m talking about. But picture this:
Pit the realistic/literary authors against the commercial/genre authors and I’ll tell you right now who will win.
Wait, no, I won’t. I could get killed if I tried that.
But here’s how it would be, Survivor-style: Judy Blume would be all, like, bustling around, making sure everybody has feminine hygiene products and she’s be teaching everybody how to properly swallow a turtle. J.K. Rowling would probably be wandering around with a stick trying to make fire and figuring out who the villain of the group is (and getting it wrong every dang time). Stephenie Meyer would be out sparkling in the sunshine — she’d totally win because she wouldn’t have to eat, and if she did, well…YOU know. Lurlene McDaniel would have everyone at the brink of despair constantly, Scott Westerfeld would be all “la” this and “wa” that, Ellen Hopkins would be figuring out how to turn tree bark into crack, and then there’s me, newbie author still wet behind the ears, channeling Janie, not getting a moment of sleep the entire time, getting sucked into the weirdest.dreams.ever and being the first one booted off.
Nice idea ladies, but no thanks.
Susan: I think you might have hit on an idea for a hit show! Or at least, a great article for VOYA. Have you ever tried writing a humorous novel? I think you might give David Lubar a run for his money.
I totally agree about the cooking shows, the Food Network is what I turn on when nothing else is on. And their Saturday morning line up, it’s like cartoons for grown ups.
Do you think you are a good cook? What are some of your best dishes that you cook? What’s the weirdest thing you ever cooked? Did your kids eat it? What’s the weirdest thing you ever ate?
Lisa McMann: I’m a pretty good cook. I enjoy cooking. Out here in AZ you can bbq outside year-round. I make a mean slow roasted/smoked pork butt. I like to experiment with different kinds of wood chips — apple, cherry — and I use natural charcoal, no lighter fluid. Sometimes? For fun? I spend hours reading websites about smoking pork butt. Isn’t that embarrassing?
Let’s see, weirdest thing I ever cooked…well, this one time when I was first learning how to cook I tried making Stove Top stuffing in a pan on the stove (duh) and I put the contents of the packet in the hot pan first and then added the water and butter and yeah, that didn’t turn out. My first apple pie looked like a pan full of crap, too…but it tasted okay. I haven’t cooked anything weird in a long time — I mean, what’s weird? Mashed cauliflower? It tastes great, so does that make it not weird? This is a hard question. I demand a do-over. 
Susan: Stove Top, huh? Being a true Southerner, I always make dressing from scratch!
I also see that you really like hats. How many hats do you own? Which one is your favorite? Where do you like to wear your hats? What you do think it says about the world today that most women no longer wear hats? I really like hats too, but I have an unusually large head and have a hard time finding hats that fit. Oh for the days of a good milliner! (Ha!)
Lisa McMann: Woe is me, right? Totally agree. I have a wonderful friend named Dee who wears hats a lot, especially to church, and she looks so fine in them — she’s bringing hats back!
I have, uh, approximately four hats. A hamburger hat that I tour with (it comes in handy at book signings thanks to a cool idea I stole from Cassie Clare), a cowboy hat that is good for thinking in, a cone-shaped woven hat with a tassel from the Renaissance Festival that you can totally eat cereal out of and put in the dishwasher (obviously this one has to be my favorite, right?) and a Borders baseball cap that my awesome friend and S&S sales rep Victor gave me because he so thoughtfully noticed that I like hats. Oh, and I have a Phoenix Suns cap too. So, five.
I don’t have any girly-girl hats, but when I was little (my mother may still remember this) I totally wanted a Laura Ingalls prairie sun bonnet. We looked EVERYWHERE for one even though my mother thought it was ridiculous. I totally would have worn it every day. Alas (or maybe thankfully), we could not find a bonnet like Laura’s. I generally don’t wear my hats out in public (unless I’m at a cowboy wedding, which I was just a couple weeks ago, or at a Renaissance Festival, which I’m generally not, though they are fun). But I wear them around the house and when I’m outside to shield from the evil sun.
And on that note, I think everyone should wear sunblock and hats. Skin cancer is not fun. And I have a two-inch scar under my collarbone to prove it. Wear hats and sunblock, people!
Gosh, hey, this isn’t a lecture. How about we change the subject? Anyone? Brandy?
Brandy: Obviously, there’s some paranormal stuff going on with Janie, what with the whole being sucked into people’s dreams things. Do you believe in paranormal activity? What’s the strangest, most unexplainable thing that’s ever happened to you?
Lisa McMann: The most unexplainable thing that has ever happened to me would have to be this extra thirty pounds I put on over the past year. Where the heck did THAT come from?
Seriously, I have this weird thing about the time 10:06 — am or pm — almost every day I accidentally look at the clock at 10:06. I don’t try for it or anything. It’s been happening since I was a kid. Also, I can uncannily sense when the oven timer is about to go off. Often I’ll be getting out of my chair or moving to the oven, knowing it’s time, when the buzzer rings. It’s weird. Maybe that’s why I used the time stamps for Janie in WAKE — time is really important to her, too.
But sure, I believe paranormal activity exists. I think it’s possible for people to have psychic connections. I’m open to that.
Susan: What are your favorite resources for learning about dreams? Some people say that entire stories come to them in a dream. Has that ever happened to you? Do you record your dreams or use techniques to try and dream certain things?
Lisa McMann: I have several books on dreams that I’ve found since coming up with the idea for WAKE (which came to me in a dream, but it was just the concept, not the whole novel). I did a lot of Internet research on dreams, too, while writing the book, and if you try what Janie does, I’ll bet some of you will be able to dream lucidly like she does, and direct your dreams (and remember them in the morning). I do it and it really helps me with plot problems. I think our minds are so much more open to exploring ideas when dreaming — we’re not hindered by reality. I keep a notepad by my bed in case I dream something that has potential for a story.
On that note, my publisher has designed Dream Journal paper that you can download and print if you want — it can be found here: http://www.behindthepulse.com/wake/
Susan: We are having so much fun asking you questions! You have quite a sense of humor and wit. But we don’t want to leave you out of the fun, is there a question you would like to ask us?
Lisa McMann: Not really, no.
Just kidding. I do have a question! My question is…how awesome was Marcus Zusak when you met him? Please spend some time gushing if it’s appropriate, and if not, perhaps you can make something up. Also, tell us how you felt meeting him and what you did or said that was potentially embarrassing.
Susan: I picked up I am the Messenger by Zusak, and read it and loved it. I made Brandy read it right away too, and she loved it as much as I did. A few months later, I heard about an author tour that was coming to Dallas as part of a writing workshop. The tour included Dana Reinhardt, Catherine Ryan Hyde, and Tom and Laura McNeal in addition to Zusak. I asked Brandy if she wanted to go, and we planned where to meet, etc. We made it to Dallas in record time, and came in on the end of a poetry reading.
Brandy: Oooohh! I’m so glad you brought up Markus Zusak!
Finally, it was time to start, and about half the people sitting in the room with us got up and sat down behind the tables at the front of the room. They were the authors! Half of the half that were still sitting were part of the conference/tour, so really that left me, Susan, and maybe five other people that were actually there to see the authors.
They were all extremely gracious and funny (especially Markus Zusak!). He told some funny stories about growing up in Australia helping his dad paint houses and how he and his brother always tried to out prank each other. Apparently, his brother liked to eat hard boiled eggs for lunch every day, and he liked to crack them open on his head, and I’m sure you can figure out where this story is going. Anyway, he was very funny and extremely charming, not to mention absolutely adorable, so of course we were smitten. I bought a copy of The Book Thief, which he signed for me. It was amazing.
The second time I saw him was also in Dallas, but this time Susan was sick and couldn’t go. Luckily, my friend Dawn was available, and we met up before his presentation at the Dallas Museum of Art. This time, it was just him, and the place was packed! There were hundreds of people. Again, he was really charming and funny (and adorable!) and told several of the same stories, including the one about the eggs. He has a great accent (of course!), and I would have been swooning even if he had just been reading the label of a cereal box so I was completely in heaven.
After the show, I waited in line for almost two hours to have him sign a copy of I am the Messenger. I had planned to say something about seeing him in Dallas last time, but when I was actually face-to-face with him, I got too nervous and just thrust my book at him without saying anything at all. Luckily, Dawn was there and she mentioned that this was my second time seeing him. Hearing that, he turned around and whipped out a copy of The Book Thief (the one with the Australian cover), wrote “Dear Brandy, Thank you for being at the least and most attended readings I’ve done in Dallas” and gave it to me. I was completely starstruck, and I still can’t remember if I actually said anything to him, and if I did, I know it wasn’t intelligible (or intelligent!). I would definitely see him again if I had the chance – and maybe even speak to him this time!
Susan: We know you love to read. Do you mostly read young adult books? Or? What book do you own that your friends would be surprised by?
Lisa McMann: I read mostly YA — I really love it. But I also enjoy an occasional grown up book as long as it isn’t too boring, like anything by David Sedaris. One book I own that I think people would be surprised about is Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales in the original language. I took a class on Chaucer in college and learned how to read Middle English. And I love the stories. They are so clever and and funny.
Susan: I took a class on Canterbury Tales in Middle English too! We had to memorize and recite the beginning of the Prologue…
Brandy: On your website, you say you wouldn’t want to do anything other than write. First question: If you HAD to pick a career other than writing, what would it be? Second: What types of jobs did you have before becoming a full-time writer?
Lisa McMann: I would be a flower delivery person. I like to make people happy, and chances are that only a small percentage of people would be made unhappy by a delivery of flowers.
In the past I’ve been a blueberry picker, a bindery worker in a printing company, a children’s bookstore clerk and manager, and a Realtor. Some of the jobs I liked, some I didn’t. I like being a writer best of all.
Susan: You wrote in another interview about how one of your first manuscripts was rejected 68 times.
Brandy: Was the rejected manuscript ever accepted/published? If so, had you set some sort of limit – like after the 70th rejection you would give up?
Lisa McMann: No, the first manuscript hasn’t been published — not yet anyway. I think I have some work to do on it and hopefully someday it will be ready for publication. I didn’t set a limit to rejections — it got so that I almost looked forward to the rejections so that I could cross another agent off the list (sick, right?). I just kept writing while submitting and I finished another crappy manuscript that I never subbed and never will, and then I wrote WAKE. And I knew that WAKE had a chance — and so I stopped with the first manuscript and focused on WAKE, and sure enough, I had an agent within a week. Crazy business, this.
Susan: What book have you read that you wish you had written?
Lisa McMann: Two books: The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver and Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris.
Brandy: What do you think is the worst story or novel you’ve written? Do you ever look back at your earlier writing and sort of cringe? I only ask because I wrote a manuscript when I was 20 whose cheesiness embarrasses me now.
Lisa McMann: I have scads of stories that are cringe-worthy. I wrote a bunch of stories right out of college that I submitted to various publishers and they were horrible. I’m so glad they didn’t get accidentally published! I hope that when I die, nobody resurrects those old horrible things and does a posthumous publication of them. That would totally suck. Also cringe-worthy was my second manuscript. It was very preachy and that’s never a good sign.
Brandy: Do you ever write any of your own experiences, memories, friends, etc. into your novels?
Lisa McMann: Sure — there’s lots of little things that come from my own memories. Cabel’s too-short jeans at the bus stop, Janie’s neighborhood, the way the school library is set up…those are familiar things that I pulled from my past. The characters aren’t really based on people I know, but some of their actions or quirks are taken from a whole bunch of different people.
Susan: You have had quite an exciting year. Wake was just released in paperback, Barnes and Noble picked Wake as one of the best books of the year for children and teens (You are on the same list as Suzanne Collins, Jeff Kinney, and Margaret Peterson Haddix!), Fade is due out in February, and Gone will be here in 2010. Will that be the end of Janie and Cabel? I know some readers who would love more of their stories. Can you give us any hints about what will happen in Fade? Do you have another book (or dare we hope, series?) in the works?
Lisa McMann: It’s been a great year — unbelievable.
I’m afraid of giving away spoilers, so here’s the jacket flap copy from FADE:
“For Janie and Cabel, real life is getting tougher than the dreams. They’re just trying to carve out a little (secret) time together, but no such luck. Disturbing things are happening at Fieldridge High, yet nobody’s talking. When Janie taps into a classmate’s violent nightmares, the case finally breaks open–but nothing goes as planned. Not even close. Janie’s in way over her head, and Cabe’s shocking behavior has grave consequences for them both.
Worse yet, Janie learns the truth about herself and her ability. And it’s bleak. Seriously, brutally bleak. Not only is her fate as a Dream Catcher sealed, but what’s to come is way darker than she’d even feared…”
I’m working on the GONE manuscript right now. Writing it has been hard because I do think the third book is the end of Janie and Cabe. But I am always working on new ideas for other books, both stand-alone and series-wise…I don’t yet know what will come next, but I hope to have a good idea soon. I plan to keep writing as long as readers want to keep reading!
Also, before I sign off, I’d love to invite your U.S. teen readers (ages 14-18) to check out a fantastic essay contest that Simon & Schuster and I are having. It starts December 23. You can find info about it inside the back cover of the brand new WAKE paperback, and also on my website: http://lisamcmann.com (info will be posted on Dec. 23).
Susan, Brandy, thank you so much for this fantastic interview — it was a total blast. I would love to meet you both someday and share some laughs in person.
Susan: Well Lisa, if you are ever in Texas or Florida, we’ll definitely get together. And Brandy and I will make sure that if you are doing a presentation that SOMEONE will be in the audience! P.S. Look for a review of Fade coming soon!
