How did you get the idea to write Stop Pretending?

The idea for Stop Pretending came while I was taking a poetry class, taught by Myra Cohn Livingston. I'd only been writing funny poems, but then one day Myra asked us to write a poem using dactyl and trochee rhythms, which are really somber rhythms. When I sat down to do the assignment, something very unexpected happened - out popped a poem about how sad and scary it was to have to visit my older sister in the mental hospital on my thirteenth birthday. I was embarrassed to share the poem with my teacher, because it was so personal. But when Myra read it, she suggested I write more poems about my sister, and that's how Stop Pretending, my first novel-in-verse, was born.  

How did you get the idea to write What My Mother Doesn't Know?  

Towards the end of Stop Pretending, there are some poems about my first love, a boy named John. I had such a good time writing about those first feelings of passion, that I knew I wanted to write some more about them. I wanted to explore all the firsts that happen to teenaged girls: first bra, first period, first crush, first kiss. That's when the poems for What My Mother Doesn't Know began bubbling to the surface.

How did you get the idea to write One of Those Hideous Books Where the Mother Dies?

The idea for One of Those Hideous Books Where the Mother Dies came to me gradually. I was interested in telling a story about a girl who moves from the east coast to the west coast, because that's exactly what I did. And I thought it would be fun to let my character experience some of the same feelings of culture shock that I did when I first moved to California. I wanted to explore the idea of things not always being as they seem, and Hollywood seemed an especially good backdrop for a story that dealt with that subject.

What inspired you to write What My Girlfriend Doesn’t Know?

I didn’t get the urge to write What My Girlfriend Doesn’t Know until a couple of years after I wrote What My Mother Doesn’t Know. It happened because I kept getting emails from fans saying: “OMG! What happened next! I’ve got to know!” And after hearing this question posed day after day, year after year, I realized that I, too, wanted to know what happened next. And that the only way for me to find out was to write the sequel.

What are you working on now?

I’m working away on my fifth novel!

What is the best part about being an author?

There are so many great things about being an author. I love getting letters from kids who say that they've never liked to read before, but since reading my book they've changed their minds. And I love the writing process itself -the high I get when I'm feeling inspired and the words are flowing. I love reading my poems out loud to people and being able to make them laugh or cry or even gasp.  And I love having the chance to meet and become good friends with amazing young adult writers from all across the country, like Laurie Halse Anderson and Richard Peck. I love it all!

Why do you write your novels in poetry?

Actually, when I wrote Stop Pretending, my first novel-in-verse, I didn't even realize I was writing a novel. I just thought it was a themed collection of poetry. It wasn't until my editor, Alix Reid, wrote me a wonderful editorial letter full of poem-provoking questions, that the collection began to morph into a novel. 

With the rest of my novels-in-verse, it never even crossed my mind to try writing them in another form. I guess I'm a poet first, and a storyteller second. Poetry is such a good way to get to the center and truth of things. It's the only way I can say what I really need to say. I love searching for the words, not just any words, but the exact right words, to describe a certain feeling or a moment in time. Besides, the idea of writing a novel in regular prose scares me! Maybe someday, though... 

How come your characters sound like such real teenagers? 

People often talk about having an inner child, but I have an inner teen. And she's right there with me, whispering in my ear, whenever I sit down to write. In fact, she would probably argue that she was the one who wrote my books, without any help from me at all. And you might even believe her. She can be very persuasive. Last week she almost had me convinced I should get my bellybutton pierced. Which is not a good look for someone my age.

It's easy for me to get in touch with my inner teen because I've been keeping diaries and journals since I was old enough not to be chosen as a cheerleader. I have boxes and boxes of them stored away in my closet. And sometimes, when I'm trying to remember what things were like in the bad old days, I leaf through them. And it's all right there - every miserable moment.

Was it hard to get published?

No. It was shockingly simple! Right after I finished writing Stop Pretending, I went to the annual conference of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, which is an absolutely wonderful organization to join, if you want to write for kids or teens. On the last day of the conference, I met a fabulous agent named Steven Malk. He read my manuscript, flipped for it, and in less than a week he had a bidding war going between two different publishing houses! I have a lot of writer friends, so I know that it doesn't usually happen that easily. I was just phenomenally lucky.

What is a typical writing day like for you? 

Actually, my writing day starts at night, when I get into bed. I load up my brain with a question that needs solving. Then I go to sleep and let my unconscious mind begin working on it.

In the morning, I take a two mile walk, carrying a pad of paper and a pencil with me. I walk and I think and I walk and I think, and while I'm doing all this walking and thinking I try to look at everything around me through my character's eyes. After awhile it becomes like a meditation, and then, if I'm lucky, an idea for a poem begins to flow and I jot down some notes. Then I head home and type the notes into my computer. I know that once I fling that pitiful rough draft onto the page, no matter how atrocious it is, I'll be able to turn it in to something good.  

I write until it's time to pick up my kids from school. Then I spend the afternoon and evening with them. That's one of the great perks of being a writer: I get to make my own hours! After they go to bed, I usually reread what I wrote earlier in the day. I find that having had a few hours away from it helps me to see the weak spots more clearly. Then, it's time to reload my brain and let my unconscious mind get back to work, while I drift into dreamland. 

Do you have any children? How old are they?

I have two children. My daughter Ava is twenty and my son Jeremy is seventeen. Ava is an amazing chef and girl’s basketball coach. Jeremy is an incredible photographer and our family’s travel agent. And each of them is a terrific writer with a great sense of humor. They help me with my books by reading my manuscripts and making sure my teen voices sound real. 

How old are you?

Wouldn't you like to know?