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| Meet The Author |
ChrisChat: Why did you write the book that brought you to MuseItUp Publishing?
Beth Overmyer:
I wrote In a Pickle purely to entertain myself. The time travel trope has always fascinated me, so writing a book about it had to be done sooner or later. Also, I love middle grade books, so it was just meant to be. I signed a publishing contract because I believed that others would be entertained by In a Pickle as well.
ChrisChat:
While this may seem a simple question, I know sometimes I can’t answer them…what is it about time travel stories that fascinate you? I get stuck when asked why do I like dark fiction.
Beth:
What fascinates me is all the things that can go wrong–for the characters and for the writer. There are always ripple effects. Naturally, everything we do in the present has far-reaching consequences (good and bad), but in time travel, you’re able to see your impact sooner and on a grander scale. Say you accidentally killed your dad before he had you. That means you were never born, which means you never time traveled, which means you never killed your dad. Everything becomes null and void (unless you’re working with alternate timelines/realities, but those have me scratching my head–think the Star Trek reboot and Back to the Future.) It’s mind-boggling. So, in short, I like things that stretch my mind and my imagination.
ChrisChat:
What kind of leeway do you allow yourself when writing time travel? As in what rules do you keep to…make for yourself?
Beth:
In a Pickle was my first time travel project, and I haven’t written any since (though, I’m not ruling it out.) I simply tried to be as logical as I could with the ripple effects and consequences. If someone purposely broke something in the future, but another character traveled back to the past and, through a series of events, changed the first person’s heart/character, then they never broke the object. The time traveler, though, has a million memories of what was before he or she changed their own/others’ history.
ChrisChat:
How does an adult learn to write for Middle Grade readers? The language style and flow, is it that different from something more adult oriented?
Beth:
One obvious way is to read. Read popular books in that age group and books from when you were a kid. The main, perhaps less obvious, thing I do is to put my actor’s cap on. I try to think like the character, to tap into my inner child. Then, when I arrive at the page, I am my own target audience. Also, hanging out with that generation is a good idea. This summer, I led a creative writing group for tweens and teens, and I really appreciated getting reacquainted with that age. Another idea, something I found very useful, was to write up a survey containing questions relevant to your work, and pay kids in your target audience to fill it out. It was worth every penny, for sure.
But I think the main thing is to remember that kids are often smarter than adults often give them credit for. The main things I change are the voice (the way the prose sounds–not talking down, but quirkier and sometimes less inhibited) and the word choices. It took a while to get the word choices right (I actually said delicatessen once, and the adults critiquing it didn’t know the meaning), and that’s still a struggle. Fortunately, there are books on word choices for tweens. These books list different words and what school grade they’re learned in. But some challenging words can be good.
ChrisChat:
What is your favourite writers’ books for this genre? Generally, as well.
Beth:
Good question. I’d have to say Writing Irresistible Kidlit by Mary Kole. That book covers everything you can think of regarding writing and shipping around your kidlit novel. Generally, I would say Stephen King On Writing. Could’ve done without some of the crassness, but it was an informative and entertaining read.
ChrisChat:
Writers may create their characters…sometimes with no choice due to voices screaming in our heads…but characters have a way of dictating their own path. What do you like most about your characters…and least? Have they taken you on any major surprises?
Beth:
What I like most about Charlie Pickle is his honesty. Sure, he tells the occasional fib, but he usually tells things like they are. If you’re mean, scary, rude, or boring, you’ll probably hear about it. It’s also, perhaps, his biggest flaw…that is, lack of tact. I have to be honest (like Charlie): Nothing really took me by surprise in In a Pickle. There have been other projects where I “sit down with my characters for a chat,” and they tell me deep, dark secrets that turn parts of the plot on its head. Always an adventure, writing.
ChrisChat:
Every year out comes a list of the most popular baby names and generally we can guess a person’s age by their name since some were popular in different decades. How do you choose your genre’s character’s names? Is it an important concern (not using a name that’s “old” or one that’s too “new”) in your opinion?
Beth:
As long as the name is easy to read (meaning, you don’t say “How on EARTH do I pronounce that?” every time you see it), and fits with the time and world you’ve built, names aren’t a big concern for me. Brandon Sanderson (author of the Mistborn trilogy, the Stormlight Archives–also the dude who finished the Wheel of Time series) gives some good lectures on YouTube, and I remember him telling his students not to waste a lot of precious writing time coming up with names. But I must admit, I have a pet name site that I refer to when I feel I need just the right name: Behind the Name (http://www.behindthename.com)
ChrisChat:
Any questions you wish you’ve been asked, by me or anyone?
Beth:
No one has asked me about my cat, and that is a shame. He perches on my armrest and tries to distract me with his cuteness while I’m typing madly away on my keyboard.
(dang, need to remember to ask about mascots!)
ChrisChat:
What’s happened since “In a Pickle” and what’s coming up?
Beth:
I keep an “idea file” on my computer–really just a Word doc full of plots. I currently have eighty-two writing projects, all in various stages of development. Most of them are on the back burners, but a few are one to several drafts in. The next middle grade book will hopefully be readable and ready sometime this year. No promises.
I loved In a Pickle. Great book, and yes, you were definitely thinking like a kid when you wrote it.
Thanks for having me, Chris!
And Suzanne – Thank you so much!
Any time, Beth. And Thanks for coming by, Suzanne