Bev, in your former life you were a schoolteacher. Do you find traits from your characters come from former students?
Good question. My characters aren’t based on former students consciously, but I suppose sometimes a student’s personality—the quiet child, the joker, the serious, or the troubled child—might end up as a trait of a character.
You have several novels to your publishing credit including Secrets I Have Kept, Rebel in Blue Jeans, and the forthcoming Caves, Cannons, and Crinolines, and Just Breeze. What is your approach in keeping your characters fresh and appealing to your readers?
Many times the characters develop their own personalities in the beginning, whether they’re shy or bold, quiet or talkative, reckless or cautious. I like to interview them and ask about their goals or problems, their families, their loves, hates, and fears. What they tell me or don’t tell me helps to develop the character, to know how she would act in a certain situation. Historical characters, of course, must fit the time period they live in. Their choice of words and their actions must be accurate.
Please share with us the research you conducted for your historical novel, Caves, Cannons, and Crinolines.
The idea for this story came when we visited Vicksburg, Mississippi, one summer. We toured the battlefield, explored the old courthouse that was standing during the Civil War and is now a museum, and went through some of the old homes, learning the history of the people who once lived in them. I met a little lady whose grandparents had lived through the siege of Vicksburg, and she told me their story. I heard how the citizens sometimes lived in caves they dug behind their houses, and I read journals from women who survived the fighting, and I knew I had to tell their story. I bought a ton of books on the Civil War, googled Civil War websites, and watched Civil War movies. The result is my young adult novel.
Your character, Breeze Brannigan has leapt from the pages of Just Breeze and has created her own blog at:
http://www.justbreeze.wordpress.com. What type of interaction can your readers hope to find with this greater than life character?
I hope young readers who are dissatisfied with themselves, like Breeze is, will discover that it’s not what’s on the outside of a person that’s important, but what’s on the inside. I hope they have fun with Breeze and her friends along the way.
Please share with us a brief synopsis of what we can expect from Breeze and her friends in Just Breeze.
Eighth grade starts out the same as every other year for Breeze Brannigan. She’s still the tallest student, boy or girl, in her school, wears shoes that would fit an elephant, and her smile reveals dazzling braces that blind anyone within ten feet.
Then she meets Cam, the new boy in school, who speaks with an accent and must be from another planet, for none of the earthling boys she knows is so polite. He also has a secret, a secret that could mean life or death for Cam and his mother and that Breeze must help him keep.
To date, what has been your most memorable experience in your writing career?
I can’t point to just one experience as the most memorable. They’ve all been wonderful. Having that first article published in a magazine is one of the best. It meant I was now a published author. Then the first book was an awesome feeling, one I shall treasure always. Each magazine article and each book is memorable to me. The excitement never goes away.
What advice would you give to aspiring young authors? To late bloomers?
Whether you’re a young writer or a late bloomer, if you want to be published badly enough, don’t let those form letters that call you by the generic name “Writer” or “Author” stop you. Keep writing, keep submitting, and even if you’re a great-grandmother, like me, you will one day hold that magazine article or book in your hands. I’m proof that persistence pays.
What has been your most challenging obstacle in researching and finding the best publisher for your novels?
Finding a publisher that accepts unagented work is a challenge. Most large publishing houses are closed to submissions except from agents. I have sent queries to them anyway, and sometimes they’ve replied. Think of small publishers, however. Most are open to submissions, and they produce beautiful books, at least the ones I’ve worked with—and they know your name.
Have you ever experienced writer’s block? If yes, what did you do to overcome it?
Not really. My head is so crammed full of ideas, I’m working on three stories at the moment. Sometimes I get stuck in a scene, but my characters often take over and help me. If not, I work on another manuscript for a while, and then one day that troublesome spot will be clear. If not, perhaps it should be cut or changed.
Prior to writing your first manuscript draft do you create character profiles and interview them?
I usually start out with a profile sheet listing the bare essentials: name, eyes, hair, age, etc. My characters become more real to me as the story progresses, and I add to their profiles. One thing I like to do is to let the main characters keep a journal about their day-to-day life. Also, I interview the characters, ask questions about themselves and their families, as I mentioned above. It’s amazing what they tell me. Even more interesting is what they don’t tell me.
Have any of your characters done something you never expected them to do?
Only all the time. I love it when they take control and solve a problem for me. After all, this is their story, so they should have some say in it. An example is Lizzie, in Caves, Cannons and Crinolines helping the wounded Federal soldier. She’s a southern girl; her brothers are in the Confederate Army. So she surprised me there, but her decision is a major part of the story.
If yes, do you let them continue the path of their choosing, or do you try to reel them back in?
I let them go and see where they’re headed. Sometimes I have to backtrack because it doesn’t work and rethink a scene, but sometimes the characters know better than I do.
What character is your favorite so far?
That’s a tough one. My favorite is usually the character I’m working with at the moment. I do like Breeze a lot. She’s a lot different than my other characters, maybe because she’s younger.
What can we expect from your creative talents in the future?
I Live in a Doghouse is a middle grade story under contract with TT, no date yet. I also have a chapter book, Kate, Little Angel Sometimes, with Blooming Tree Press, also no date, and my first picture book, Frankie’s Perfect Home, is under contract with GAP.
Plus the three stories I’m working on: two teens, one middle grade. And I’ve been asked for a sequel to Just Breeze. Perhaps if I don’t sleep I’ll do that one, too.
Visit Beverly Stowe McClure at:
http://beverlystowemcclure.wordpress.com
http://justbreeze.wordpress.com
http://rebelinbluejeans.wordpress.com
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