Author Interview - Cynthia Leitich Smith

Cynthia Leitich Smith is the award-winning author of JINGLE DANCER (Morrow, 2000), INDIAN SHOES (HarperCollins, 2001), and RAIN IS NOT MY INDIAN NAME (HarperCollins, 2001)(Listening Library, 2001). She is a member of faculty at the Vermont College M.F.A. program in Writing for Children and Young Adults. Her website at http://www.cynthialeitichsmith.com/ was named one of the top 10 Writer Sites on the Internet by Writer's Digest and an ALA Great Website for Kids. Her Cynsations blog at cynthialeitichsmith.blogspot.com/ was listed as among the top two read by the children's/YA publishing community in the SCBWI "To Market" column. Cynthia's more recent titles are a picture book, SANTA KNOWS (Dutton, 2006) and a young adult gothic fantasy novel, TANTALIZE (Candlewick, 2007). She makes her home in Austin, Texas; with her husband, author Greg Leitich Smith.
Welcome, Cynthia. Thank you for joining me here for an interview . First off, what inspired you to be a writer? Why write for young readers?

CLS - Love of language, of story, inspired me to improve my writing skills, and I followed that to writing as a career. At first, I had imagined myself as a journalist, which translated to a writer with a paycheck-however meager. Writing fiction seemed a tremendous indulgence against great odds. It was something I'd do someday. But it slowly occurred to me that many people "someday" their way through their entire lives. The only way to make dreams a reality is to commit to them fully.

AF - Can you tell us about your latest book release?

CLS - My latest book, Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007) is an upper level YA gothic fantasy. It's also a genre bender, combining mystery, suspense, romance, humor, and fantasy.
The book is set in Austin, Texas, and centers on seventeen-year-old Quincie P. Morris, who is trying to re-launch her family's Italian restaurant with a vampire theme while suspicions swirl that her best friend and first love may be responsible for having killed her long-time chef.
So far, the response has been tremendous. The Horn Book has called the book "an intoxicating romantic thriller," Booklist has compared the writing to Newbery honor author Joan Bauer's, and Kirkus says the climax "will have teen readers weeping with both lust and sorrow."
Just this month in a boxed review, BookPage noted that voice "will appeal to fans-both teens and adults-of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'" and Borders has named Tantalize to its Original Voices list for March 2007.

AF - What prompted you to write your books? Are they based on true life or are they completely fiction?

CLS - Other than a short story-"The Naked Truth," from In My Grandmother's House: Award-Winning Authors Tell Stories About Their Grandmothers (HarperCollins, 2003)-none of my fiction has me in it per se.
However, there are echoes of my life in some of the characters sprinkled throughout my body of work. I have lived in small town Oklahoma, northeast Kansas, Chicago, and Austin, which are all locales where books of mine are set. I also used to vacation every summer in Estes Park, Colorado, which is the setting for a short story from Period Pieces: Stories for Girls (HarperCollins, 2003).
More specifically, I share a tribal, regional, and/or mixed blood background with the characters from my three contemporary Native American children's titles-Jingle Dancer (Morrow, 2000), Rain Is Not My Indian Name (HarperCollins, 2001), and Indian Shoes (HarperCollins, 2002).
Like Cousin Elizabeth from Jingle Dancer, I'm a law school graduate. Like Cassidy Rain from Rain Is Not My Indian Name, I'm a fan of sci fi and enjoy the Web. Like Ray from Indian Shoes, I had a close relationship with my grandfather. Santa Knows grew out of my love of Christmas.
More recently, Tantalize features a young restaurateur, and I paid for much of my freshmen and sophomore years of college working as waitress.

AF - Would you take us through your typical writing day?

CLS - I wake up early lately, mostly due to my alpha cat/alarm clock. By early, I mean about 8 a.m. I spend the first hour or so handling email and snail mail business correspondence, post to my blog(s), and then run away errands. After that, I write most of the afternoon with a break to workout on my treadmill. My husband, author Greg Leitich Smith, and I have dinner together, and then we write for another couple of hours before relaxing for the day. However, if I'm writing a rough draft, that has to happen between midnight and four a.m., so the whole schedule shifts accordingly.

AF - Do you think about your readers when you write a book?

CLS - I didn't used to, though I'm being inundated at the moment with feedback about my gothic fantasy work. That's new for me, so I'm trying to take it in with appreciation and consideration while keeping in mind that the story has a life of its own.

AF - What sort of things do you do when you're not writing?

CLS - Like most authors I spend a fair amount of time on reading and promotion. I also speak frequently, and, though I'm on leave this semester, I teach as a member of the MFA faculty in Writing for Children and Young Adults at Vermont College. I also like to meet with friends for lunch or dinner, go to the theater (I have a weakness for musicals), and travel. I'm especially fond of B&Bs in small-town central Texas.

AF - What are some of your favorite things?

CLS - Wolves, ABBA, cats, children's and YA books, sushi, vampires, 1920s arts-and-crafts architecture, comic books, black-and-white photography, bats, Paris, "Monk," office supplies, stickers, baths, gerbera daisies, dark chocolate, upscale hotels, Eartha Kitt, odd nail polish colors, archery.

AF - Many writers speak about writer's block. Do you ever have that, and if so what are some things you do to get over it?

CLS - I dance around in the dark to the soundtrack from "Xanadu." As an additional benefit, it amuses my cats.

AF - If you could say one thing to a new writer what would it be?

CLS - Craft first. It's about the process, not the publication.

AF- If you could say one thing to the children and young adults reading your books what would that be?

CLS - You are the hero of your own story.

AF - When it comes to writing what's next for you?

CLS- I'm currently on deadline for another YA gothic fantasy to follow on the heels of Tantalize. It's set partially in Texas and largely in Chicago.

AF- You're a major children's/YA literature blogger. What about blogging appeals to you?

CLS -First, I adore the community. What a smart, inspiring group! Second, my blogging style tends toward the newsy, which is a release for my inner journalist. I also enjoy being able to shine some light on quality books and voices that may not garner the major ad budgets but deserve all the attention they can get. Basically, it's one of the ways I try to connect and give back.

AF -Are you available for signings, school visits and writing workshops?

CLS - Yes, although for long-distance events, I often book a year to eighteen months in advance.
AF - What are some of your favorite recent reads?

CLS - Oh, so many! Of the top of my head, I've really loved: Beauty Shop for Rent by Laura Bowers (Harcourt, 2007); Beige by Cecil Castellucci (Candlewick, 2007); Brothers, Boyfriends and Other Criminal Minds by April Lurie (Delacorte, 2007); The Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr (Little Brown, 2007); and Wonders of the World by Brian Yansky (Flux, 2007).