QUESTIONS STUDENTS HAVE ASKED ME

QUESTIONS STUDENTS HAVE ASKED ME

HOW MANY TIMES DID YOU REVISE THE HAUNTED IGLOO?

I revised the story two or three times before submitting it to editors, and revised it three times after that per the editor's request.

WHERE DID YOU GET THE IDEA FOR THE HAUNTED IGLOO?

I got the idea when we adopted our husky Sasha while living in Michigan. The story began as a bedtime story for my youngest son.

HOW MANY BOOKS DID YOU WRITE?

Before publishing The Haunted Igloo, I wrote one children's book, plus four adult novels, one adult nonfiction book, six plays, and a lot of poetry. Only the nonfiction book was accepted for publication, but I chose not to publish with that company.

After publishing The Haunted Igloo, I wrote another Arctic novel, a contemporary novel, and am currently working on a young adult historical novel. These have not been published yet. In addition, I have put on hold an adult historical novel set in the 1930s during the Great Depression.

OF ALL THE BOOKS YOU WROTE, WHICH ONE IS YOUR FAVORITE, AND WHY?

I have no favorites: they are all like children that I have given birth to. Most of the stories I wrote were learning experiences. In the beginning, most writers write for themselves--their super egos lead them to believe other people will want to read their personal experiences. This isn't always true, unless one is a celebrity. It isn't until the writer has learned to focus on a reader's needs, that they finally produce salable work. Still, many novels do contain feelings, experiences, and often real scenes from the writer's past; a good writer uses the emotions those experiences bring, to add realism to his stories.

IS BEING AN AUTHOR HARD?

Just being an author isn't hard, because authors have editors to help with revisions, and they have schedules to keep. If they visit schools, as I have, authors can keep so busy that finding time to write the next book is difficult. But for the most part being an author is fun.

However, being a writer is not always easy, since wondering what to put on the paper next takes a lot of thought and planning. Staring at a blank sheet of paper (or a computer screen) can be unnerving at times.

I have read that a writer must write about a million words before his work is good enough to be published. I believe I exceeded that number long before finding a publisher for The Haunted Igloo!

HOW DO YOU THINK OF ALL THE ADJECTIVES TO FIT IN WITH THE STORY?

Hmmm, what a question! For this writer, the answer lies in thinking poetically. I love the written and spoken language and the sounds that different words make. I enjoy experimenting with pairing certain words with other words. Rhymes and word games have always been a big part of my life. I have tried to learn to think in the active voice by using strong verbs, and I try to use all the five senses of sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell in my stories. This brings the writing to life. I enjoy putting words in my characters' mouths.

HOW DID YOU FIND OUT SO MUCH INFORMATION ABOUT THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES?

I have never visited that area, so I had to rely on reading and researching the Arctic at the library. Unfortunately, there is still much I don't know about that area or the Eskimos (Inuits), so I'm always in a learning mode. A reader once pointed out a geographical error in my book. I was embarrassed that I hadn't caught it myself, because I certainly knew the fact from my reading. I had forgotten, however, and neither the copy editors nor a reviewer in Alaska detected that error. Nobody is perfect. One can only try and try again. In my later Arctic novels, I corrected the mistake that reader found.

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES OF CANADA FOR YOUR SETTING?

It was a random choice. I needed a cold location in order to use a sled dog. I put my finger on a map of the Arctic and chose the place beneath my finger--Aklavik. In the beginning, I might have thought that since the area was so remote, I wouldn't need to do much research, that people would not know the difference. After all, I was writing the story for myself and my son, a bedtime story; it was only after the story was finished that I wondered if it might be worth trying to publish. Then I realized the importance of accuracy. Take my word for it, that is not the best way to write a novel!

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WRITING BOOKS?

I have been writing one thing or another most of my life, beginning with poetry and short stories in high school. Many years passed before I realized that I wanted to be a writer--my ambition until then was to be an artist. It wasn't until I was out of school--married and with children--that I finally became serious enough to dig in and try to learn the craft. I took no writing courses, so it's been a long period of teaching myself to write.

One day it occurred to me that a writer is an artist who paints pictures with words. Now I could have them both! If I have done my job well, you should be able to SEE the northern lights, HEAR the huskies howl, FEEL the cold on your cheeks, SMELL the soup cooking in the pot, and TASTE the fish on your tongue.

HOW MUCH TIME DOES IT TAKE TO WRITE A STORY?

It depends on the story you're writing. The first drafts of my adult novels (my "practice" stories) took approximately eighteen months from beginning to end. When the writing is going well, I can finish a chapter in about a week. (For The Haunted Igloo, that was about fifteen typed pages.) At a work week of five days it averaged three pages a day. Here, I'm talking about a first draft; rewriting extends the time.

Some writers write more frequently than I do. I do not begin with an outline, just a hazy plot idea. I write whatever pops into my mind until I reach a point where nothing at all comes. I know there's more, but for the time being I've written myself out and do not know where to go next. It's at this point that I sit down and make an outline. That may not be the best way to write a novel, but it works for me.

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"If you write out of what is best in you for what is best in your readers, your life will be blessed with a spiritual dimension that will be your greatest reward. If you can't see the compensation in your bank account, you will feel it when your head hits the pillow." --Michael Larsen, Literary Agent (LITERARY AGENTS: HOW TO GET & WORK WITH THE RIGHT ONE FOR YOU; Writer's Digest Books; 1986.)