Last Thursday, I did a Spotlight Review for PLAYING HURT by Holly Schindler. As you may recall, I LOVED it!
Holly Schindler is just as sweet as can be, and not only agreed to do an interview, but threw in a signed copy of the book, too! Needless to say, I jumped at the chance to extend the love. Contest details are at the end of the interview
(sorry, only open to US Residents)!
Compiling the list of questions for Holly was fun--I completely expected her to back out once she saw how overboard I went--and I tried to include a mix, questions about PLAYING HURT but also about her journey as a writer and all the pressing questions I have as an aspiring author myself.
I hope you find her answers as interesting and inspiring as I did. :-)
Without further ado, here's Holly!
* What was the first story you ever recorded, and how old were you?
HS: Honestly, I can’t remember the first…I do know I was probably about five, six years old. (By the time I was in the first grade, I was writing stories regularly at my child-sized rolltop desk…)
* When did you decide to pursue writing as a career?
HS: You know, even when I was still in elementary school, I imagined that I would go to college, and then I would write. Period.
After I got my master’s in the spring of ’01, I decided to take my mom up on her offer to let her feed me while I devoted full-time effort to my writing.
Though I didn’t have any financial worries, the journey to publication still wasn’t an easy or short one…Took seven and a half years to get to the first publishing deal!
* How many “drawer” novels do you have…you know, the ones that will probably never see the light of day?
HS: I have a stack of manuscripts that stretches from the floor to the ceiling of my office (literally)! Though none of them will probably see the light of day as-is, I’m actively reworking and revising all of them…I have no shortage of material!
* How did you get your agent?
HS: It was pretty old school: I sent a query through the snail mail, which resulted in a request to see the full manuscript, which resulted in a phone call from a VERY enthusiastic agent.
In all honesty, though, I sold both my debut,
A BLUE SO DARK, and
PLAYING HURT, my second novel, myself, to Flux. My forthcoming middle grade novel is the first project sold with the help of my agent. I ADORE my agent. Completely. But I know quite a few authors who got their start by approaching editors themselves, without the help of an agent…I think it’s important for new writers to keep their minds open to the possibility that the first “yes” they receive might not come from an agent, but directly from an editor.
* PLAYING HURT was originally told strictly from Chelsea’s POV. What made you decide to give Clint his own voice?
HS: After I sold A BLUE SO DARK, my debut, to Flux, I reread PLAYING HURT (which was the next YA in my stack of manuscripts that I felt was the closest to being in publishable condition). I knew it wasn’t quite there yet—and as I read, I was searching for that one missing piece.
Originally, the book was completely about learning the difference between loving someone and falling IN love with someone. Sounds a little silly, but if you’ve never been there—if you’ve never REALLY been passionate about someone before, it’s a little hard, as a young girl just beginning to date, to sort out your feelings about someone…
In the original, the sports subplot didn’t exist—instead, Chelsea was a girl with a boyfriend who went on vacation, and found herself immersed, for the first time in her life, in passion. In the original, her romance with Clint allowed her to truly understand her feelings for her boyfriend at home: she loved him, but wasn’t in love with him.
Overall, I began to realize there just wasn’t enough backstory. As I read, I was struck by how athletic Chelsea seemed (all the fishing, hiking, outdoor adventure was a part of the first draft)…so I thought, maybe she’s an athlete…Then I thought, maybe she WAS an athlete…
I was about a quarter of the way through rewriting the book—making Chelsea an ex-athlete—when I got that “something’s missing” pang again. This time, I felt the missing piece was Clint. So I began to brainstorm possibilities for his backstory as well…
The storyline about love / in love still exists in the final version of the book, just in a more subtle way (the scene between Chelsea and her father in White Sugar once they return home really drives this point home).
See what I mean, though, about that stack of manuscripts? Every single one of those books can be reinvented, just as PLAYING HURT was…Just takes a little willingness to roll up your sleeves and take the plunge.
* What is one thing you wish you could tell your former, non-agented, writer-self?
HS: This is such a great question—I think about this a lot, actually…
Sometimes, I wish I could go back in time to the moments when I was getting really frustrated (I mean, after four, five, six years of knocking my head against the wall, I had a few down moments) and tell myself I’d get there, if I’d just stick it out a little longer…
But sometimes, I think I worked so, so hard because I DIDN’T know that it would work out. The not knowing made me push myself all that much harder…
* How different is it writing YA and MG? Is one more of a challenge than the other? (Anything you can tell us about your upcoming MG and / or your new blog?)
HS: I actually think that once you get a true sense of your main character—once you understand that character as a whole person—the writing process isn’t all that different. It’s all about getting behind that character’s eyes and describing their life and events honestly.
My first MG will be released by Dial in the summer of ’12. At this time, I don’t yet have a cover—or an official title (I just know that it won’t be published using the title it was acquired under). BUT: thinking ahead to the release, I gathered up some really cool MG authors and started a new MG promo blog, called SMACK DAB IN THE MIDDLE! We’ve got some debut authors, and authors who have written and illustrated over 130 books. We’ve got authors who write both contemporary and historical books, mystery, adventure, fantasy…We’re all going to blog once a month about a new theme—and MANY of us have books in development, slated for a ’12 release, which should make for some interesting posts!
*Favorite book of all time?HS: It changes every single time I hit the library or bookstore…
* Snack attack: Salty or sweet?
HS: Both—I’m a salty / sweet gal…
*Pamper time: bubble bath or catnap?
HS: Honestly? I love to work. I’m not joking. I think if I ever went to a spa, where I was just supposed to sit and relax, I’d lose my mind. My biggest love outside of my writing is music. Anything related to music—writing, playing, finding new bands to adore—is how I get revived and re-energized.
WOW! Thank you so much, again, Holly for letting me pick your brain :-) Guys, you HAVE to read this book! Below is all the details, please tweet and blog about it, and I will announce the winner next Monday, April 4th.
GOOD LUCK!
Tuesday, June 26, 2012 
Although my debut MY SUPER SWEET SIXTEENTH CENTURY won't be out for a few more months (come on September!!), and most ARCs (advanced reader copies) have yet to be made available to the public, early praise has been building from fellow authors....
