Have you ever been surprised by an author?
And I don’t mean surprised by an author’s writing. I mean have you ever been surprised by the author herself…as in at the front door!
I was surprised by Lisa Schroeder at the front door of a friend’s house a few weeks ago at the monthly gathering of Samantha’s Mother-Daughter book club.
Here’s the whole story about how I met author Lisa Schroeder just a few weeks ago.
Did you read it? Cool, right?
I hope this story inspires more moms to start Mother-Daughter Book Clubs, as well as inspiring more readers of Lisa’s books, and inspiring more moms to write middle grade fiction.
Of course, I’m not going to try and inspire any authors to show up at anyone’s door. You’d have to be pretty brave and spontaneous to do that. And speaking of both qualities, please help me welcome Lisa Schroeder.
About Lisa Schroeder
Lisa Schroeder is the author of the teen verse novels The Day Before; I Heart You, You Haunt Me and its companion novel, Chasing Brooklyn; and Far from You. She is also the author of two middle-grade prose novels, It’s Raining Cupcakes and Sprinkles and Secrets. She lives in Beaverton, Oregon. Find out more about Lisa and her books at LisaSchroederBooks.com or on Twitter at @Lisa_Schroeder.
About It’s Raining Cupcakes and Sprinkles and Secrets
It’s Raining Cupcakes
Twelve year old Isabel is dying to get out of Willow, Oregon (population 39, 257) and experience something other than her small town. It seems that everyone gets to travel except Isabel–even her best friend, Sophie. When Isabel’s mother decides to open up a cupcake shop across town, Isabel is once again stuck in Willow for the summer as she tries to help her mom get the shop up and running. But when Isabel learns of a baking contest where the finalists get an all-expense paid trip to New York City, she realizes this is her chance to finally get out of Willow. Except there are two major roadblocks to this plan: Sophie, who also is entering the contest and is always the best at everything, and her own mom, who wants her to enter the contest on her terms.Can Isabel manage to finally do something for herself, without losing her best friend and further straining her already tenuous relationship with her mother? In this sweet coming-of-age story from popular teen author Lisa Schroeder, Isabel discovers that it’s not about where you go in life as much as it is about enjoying the view wherever you are.
Sprinkles and Secrets
Twelve-year-old Sophie has always dreamed of being an actress and being in front of the camera. When that dream comes true and she’s offered a T.V. commercial spot, she’s over-the-moon happy. But then she finds out what exactly she’ll be advertising: the delectable, ever-popular brownies from BEATRICE’S BROWNIES, which just so happns to be the number one competitor to IT’S RAINING CUPCAKES–owned by her best friend, Isabel’s, family.
Sophie has a tough choice to make: Follow her dreams or crush her best friend.
What’s a girl to do?
The Very Short Interview
When did you know for sure that you were a writer and that writing would be a major energy focus in your life?
Probably about ten years ago when I got my first rejection letter from an editor. It suddenly felt so real, that I was really going after my dream. I knew the odds were stacked against me, and yet, I loved writing stories and felt like I’d finally found what I was meant to do with my life. The first rejection letters didn’t upset me, instead they spurred me on. I told myself I would just keep writing until I finally wrote something they couldn’t say no to.
Who has always been behind your writing career and who helped pull you up the ladder of success?
My friend, Lindsey Leavitt (author of the PRINCESS FOR HIRE series), has been cheering me on and letting me cry on her shoulder for a number of years now. We met when we were both unpublished, because we were both looking for critique partners. I loved her sense of humor and down-to-earth quality, and we became fast friends. I feel so blessed to have her in my life and to call her my friend. I love her bunches, and I don’t know what I’d do without her.
What is the most frequent comment you hear about your book (or books) from readers? Tell us a little story about the response to your work.
For the CUPCAKE books, it’s usually the question – are there going to be more books about Sophie and Isabel? I’m glad that for now, I can say yes, there will be one more in 2013.
I also have four novels for teens published, and the most frequent comment I get is, “I usually hate to read, but I love your books.” One mother wrote to me and told me her daughter struggles with a learning disability, so she rarely reads for fun because she has to work so hard in school. My novel, I HEART YOU, YOU HAUNT ME was the first novel she’d read for fun, and enjoyed it so much she was reading lines out loud to her mom. She ended the e-mail by telling me, “I just wanted you to know about the miracle that occurred in my living room tonight. Thank you.”
I’m so thankful for all of my readers – they’re the best!
And Now, Your Turn
Now it’s your turn. You remember how this works right?
I ask you a question. You answer in the comments for your chance to win a book each day.
Please just respond once, even if you make a typo. 
Answer in the comments in 50-200 words (no less and no more to qualify to win one of today’s books). Please read the complete rules at least once!
Thanks for participating in the Writer Mama Every-Day-In-May Book Giveaway! I hope to see you here every day this month. Bring your friends!
Lisa Schroeder writes books for middle grade kids and also for young adults. If you were going to write a children’s book what age would you write for and why? What would the book be about? Any themes or settings you know you would include?
Ready, set, comment!
Comments on this entry are closed.
I would write for kindergarten and first grade boys. They need to start early if they are going to develop a love of reading. I would write for boys, because I was a tomboy. But also because they are immersed in sports at such an early age that I don’t think enough of them learn to love reading. And I have more experience with boys because of my brother, my sons, their friends and my grandson, who have provided me with endless subject matter over the years. I would write about outdoor things- bugs, machines, trees, animals, sand, dirt…..outrageously silly books that make them laugh. On Mother’s Day my six year old grandson read Green Eggs and Ham- the whole book, on Skype. It was pure joy to watch him run his finger along the words, pausing to go back to make a correction and then look up at us with a killer smile and laugh out loud at his success. I will never forget his joy that day. What better gift can you give anyone than to teach them to love reading?
If I ever foray into fiction, I’d like to go for the picture
book crowd because I’ve loved picture books since I was a kid. Also, one of my
favorite college classes was children’s literature where I had to create a
picture book. I’ve never been strong at drawing, but I was proud of myself for
the drawings I did in the book. The next time, I’d rather work with a talented
illustrator. What would it be about? I’m still thinking about that one as it’d
take a unique idea for me to pursue it.
I would write for teens because I think there are important things parents aren’t teaching their teens these days because is so easy to get distracted in their own lives and forget their teen still needs them.
Not long before he died, Maurice Sendak said he doesn’t write for children, he just writes and someone else says, “That’s for children.” That makes complete sense to me. I am inclined to write the story and then decide where it fits later. A good story well told will find a way into the world.
I would write mystery stories in the old whodunnit/cozy style. I love all types of books but those are my go-to books for relaxation and escape.
I would write for kids in fourth through sixth grade. As a teacher, I always felt that this was such a weird time for kids with reading. All of a sudden they have to read to learn, not learn to read. Not to mention, so many struggling readers give up, and strong readers choose YA books that are too mature for them. I think it would be cool to write some good non-fiction books that really focus on teaching this age group how to read to learn – and make it enjoyable. I’d also like to teach them how to read newspaper and magazine articles – such an important skill that can be really enjoyable.
I’d love to write for preschoolers, because they like rhymes and silly themes. I love their easy laughter and eye-rolling disbelief about creative stories. Settings I’d like to explore include the school bus, a fishing trip, and sleeping on the floor next to mom and dad’s bed because they wouldn’t let the child under the covers. Maybe I will write that last one and dedicate it to my own mother (who made me sleep on her floor) and to my son (who often sleeps in my bed, in between my husband and I, in a position we call the “t-bone”)
I would write for middle-school aged kids, the pre-teens. There are so many issues they are trying to make sense of: friendships changing, the world expecting them to act more grown up, their bodies changing…and they often still feel like the little kids they have been. It’s also a time when kids stop reading for fun, so I think it’s an important group to inspire to read.
Well, since I am an author for children’s books, I’ll answer Picture Books, since those are what I write. One of my favorites so far is about a boy who confuses the word “peace” for “peas.” Hilarity ensues. The setting is a small town similar to the one I grew up in, where it is safe for children to roam the neighborhood on their own.
I have a middle-grade novel percolating on the back of my brain, with little bits spread about in my journal. I keep asking where the characters will be when I open the door to the room they are in, but they have not yet told me. Maybe I need someone to break the door down. I have a passion for picture books, so much so that my favorites are on the shelf in my bedroom rather than with the rest of my kids’ books. I have several ideas including sibling dynamics and love between grandparent’s and grandkids. Also, I’m planning to write about my brother’s experience saving turtles on a country road in New England.
I would write for age 9 to 12 for many reasons. That is an age when I myself was an avid reader. Also, my daughter’s book shelf is full of books at this level. It is familiar to me. I already have an idea for a book which includes a theme I haven’t seen handled in the way I’d approach it. I haven’t yet decided if the setting would work out better in the city or rural.
I’d also love silly poems and wouldn’t might putting together a collection for a younger crowd, maybe ages 6-10. Picture books are also fun to write.
I would write for young adults. For me, that is the time when people are really starting to realize who they are. On the one hand, they still cling to hope and magic of being a child, but are also starting to see that the world is much muddier than it appeared before. Also, because there are so many firsts in that time of life and everything feels so important. I would probably do a ghost story of sorts. Some connection to the past. Young adults are on the vanguard of new and putting that opposite the depth of the past is interesting to me. For themes, I would look at the fine line between autonomy and dependence. And some of the old plantations in the South seem like a perfect spooky locale.
Boy, I’ve wrestled with this one a
lot. I’ve an idea niggling around in my head, but nothing concrete. Children’s
books seem to be far off and intimidating for me. I’d likely write young adult
first, since it’s closer to adult, and the topics can be chewier. Okay, so
young adult. Something in another part of the world, in the past, with current topics…
When my son started eating solid foods, I kicked around the idea of a picture book about veggies. We still call broccoli little trees. But I believe that writing a young adult or teen book would be most rewarding. There are still so many young adult books that have a special place in my heart. They opened up the world. Helped me live out my horse fantasies before I got my first horse.
Young Adults (12 to 18-year-olds) are my target audience because the things that happen to them during that age range shape the rest of their lives. If you can’t remember what it was like to be a teen, imagine waking up every day and something about you has changed. You look different, you can’t trust your body, and your emotions are totally out of control. One minute you yearn for independence, the next you wish you were a carefree kid again. So an appropriate theme would be escaping reality. For my characters, this would be through psychic phenomena. The protagonist has always had unique abilities to communicate with those who came before and those who are yet to be. Every experience gives this teen a sharper understanding of the “real” world – until the boundaries between the two worlds begins to blur.