Squeetus exclusive: Robin Brande

One of the main reasons people don't read is because they don't know how to find good books. To combat this, I want to help introduce authors I love to my fellow squeetusers. First in this series--Robin Brande! While I was in Arizona in June, the kind booksellers at Changing Hands hooked me up with an Advance Reading Copy of her first book, Evolution, Me, and Other Freaks of Nature. This book is the diary of Mena, a 14-year-old Christian who is ostracized by members of her congregation for doing something she thought was right. A unit on evolution in her science class brings religion and science head-to-head, and she finds herself asking big questions and evolving into a new place in the world. Funny, insightful, romantic, thought-provoking, and very well written--this is a winner. I read it last week (devoured it in four days) and immediately emailed Robin about an interview. She was so kind as to agree. (And as a side note, she happened to email me first to gush about Austenland, so even having never met her, I was fairly convinced of her general intelligence and good taste.)

ME: Has there been anything about publishing your first novel that surprised you? Is being a writer different than you might've imagined 15 years ago?

RB: When I was a little girl dreaming of being a writer when I grew up, I thought I'd spend every day, all day, just reading books and writing stories.  Ha!  Turns out I have to be very disciplined to make sure either one of those happens every day.  It's so easy to get distracted by the other parts of a writing life--the blogging, the e-mailing, the phone calls, the fun stuff and the business stuff---that you can wake up at some point and  and realize you haven't written anything new in weeks.  I loved seeing that one of J.K. Rowling's New Year's resolutions for 2006 was to "be ruthless about protecting writing days."  She said that even though writing has been her full-time job for several years now, some people "do not seem to grasp that I still have to sit down in peace and write the books, apparently believing that they pop up like mushrooms without my connivance."  I have that resolution posted above my desk to remind me to keep my priorities straight--especially since writing my own books and reading other people's (like Austenland!) are definitely my favorite parts of this job.

The subject matter of your book has real potential for controversy (good for you!). Have you had any memorable responses, negative or positive, that you'd like to share?

My favorite discussion so far was with a group of teens which included an Atheist, a Muslim, several Catholics, and a few Baptists (and probably plenty of undecideds).  My editor and I really worked hard to keep the novel balanced between science and religion, and I was so happy to hear from those teens that they thought I got it right.  I have no desire to tell anyone what to believe.  What I enjoy is the conversations we can all have about science vs. faith.

Mena is a terrific, unique, memorable character. How do you tackle character creation? Did she develop organically as you wrote or was she born from character notes?  Do you start with a character and find a situation for her or start with an idea and find the character to fit it? That sort of thing. (I know, I'm brilliant at the questions.)

Thank you!  And what an interesting question--I don't think I've really nailed this down for myself before.  I suppose I start with a general situation first, then think about who the people are that I'd like to see dealing with that situation.  For Evolution, I knew I wanted a girl like Mena and a science teacher like Ms. Shepherd, but beyond that the field was wide open.  I had no idea Kayla and Josh would show up and have such juicy roles.  I had no idea Casey was as quirky and sweet as he turned out to be.  When I write a story I like to be surprised page after page.  I'm as much a reader of my stories as I am the writer.  It keeps me excited to get back to work every day, since I'm desperate to know what will happen next.

How do you pick out your own reading material?

I've always enjoyed make-believe, and see no reason to grow out of that.  I'll alternate between actual fantasy--Harry Potter, Eclipse, His Dark Materials --and personal fantasy, such as reading memoirs of Arctic explorers and women adventurers, because, you know, I could be them--at least while I'm reading their books.  I also love comedy, which is why your novel Austenland was such a joy for me--I got to live out my Darcy fantasy AND enjoy a good laugh.  Bonus!

Can you tell us what you're working on now?

I've finished a new YA--a romantic comedy involving a girl who decides to make herself her own science project (and just so you know, I went through the same experiment myself while I was writing it, because I am all about make-believe, and I always get to be my female lead).  I'm also working on a more serious YA involving reincarnation.

If you could do something outrageous or dangerous or crazy with no ill consequences for anyone, what would it be?

I think I'd take some of the risky adventures I love reading about--eating my way through Italy, like in Eat, Pray, Love (and don't tell me that's not risky), rafting the Amazon, horseback riding in Mongolia--but only if I could be absolutely assured of none of those mishaps that make for a great adventure story.  I said I like make-believe, not pain.

Thanks, Robin! You're a scholar and a gentlewoman, and I can't wait to see what comes from you next.