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Back to Featured Interviews >> MEET SUSAN PATRON
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| Susan Patron |
I loved taking pictures with my little Brownie camera, and I spent hours ice-skating at a local rink. To support these passions, I earned money by shining shoes, washing cars, mowing lawns, and babysitting. (Both the work and the play were pleasurable to me.) I also loved to tell stories to my younger sister, probably pastiches of the books and fairy tales I'd read to myself.
When you were a child did you ever have moments when you decided that you were going to be a writer when you grew up?
Yes, I wanted to write from about age 8. I wanted to make people feel the same great ache and joy in their hearts as I felt when I read CHARLOTTE'S WEB.
What was your first job when you graduated from college?
I went directly to graduate school after college to earn a Master's degree in Library and Information Science. From there I began working at the Los Angeles Public Library as a Children's Librarian.
What previous books have you published?
BURGOO STEW, a picture book illustrated by Mike Shenon, was published in 1989. It was the first in a trilogy of books about Billy Que, a character based on my grandfather. DARK CLOUD STRONG BREEZE, illustrated by Peter Catalanotto, was published in the 1990's, as was my chapter book, MAYBE YES, MAYBE NO, MAYBE MAYBE.
Where do you get your ideas?
I get ideas from overheard conversations, books and articles, and mostly from people. I put them in a blender and slowly add memories from childhood, stories people tell me about their kids and grandkids, and a handful of fresh herbs. This can be prepared in advance and kept in the fridge for a week before pouring into a buttered 9 x 11 inch Pyrex pan.
Do you enjoy researching or do you prefer working totally from your imagination?
I love doing research on a book because I always stumble onto details that give the story more interest and vibrancy. As part of my research, I'm currently making friends in the knot-tying community (The International Guild of Knot Tyers) and among people who adopt wild burros.
Do you work on more than one book at a time?
Yes, to give myself breaks from the intensity and demands of writing a novel, I like to play around with picture book ideas. I also have the beginnings of an adult novel way in the back corner of my mind's closet shelf.
What are you working on now? When do you expect to start submitting it to publishers?
I'm writing a sequel to THE HIGHER POWER OF LUCKY, as yet unnamed. It's already under contract and, in fact, the manuscript is due immediately. (Yikes! Excuse me—I MUST get back to my keyboard!)
What is your writing process?
I write the entire book in longhand, using a pencil and lined, 3-hole punched notebook paper. I then do a first revision on these same pages, making liberal use of erasers. Then I'm ready to transcribe everything into a Word document, and I do the second revision as part of that process. Then I print the manuscript and use a pencil again for the third revision. This goes on for as long as it takes until I feel that the manuscript is ready to be sent off to the editor.
(August 2007)