Monday YA Author Interview With Melanie Dickerson

I am super excited for this interview. I first read Melanie Dickerson in 2010 when The Healer's Apprentice first came out, and have fallen in love with her fairy tale retellings since then!

Goodreads Links:
The Healer's Apprentice (Sleeping Beauty)
The Merchant's Daughter (Beauty And The Beast)
 The Fairest Beauty (Snow White)
 The Captive Maiden (Cinderella) (coming November 2013)




Where are you from?
I am from a tiny town in “Lower Alabama,” McKenzie, about 30 miles from Monroeville, where Harper Lee grew up. And my maiden name is Lee, so I always wondered if she and I were related.

When and why did you begin writing?
I think I started writing when I was in about the sixth grade. I actually don’t remember. But around that time I started writing stories in spiral notebooks and passing them around to let my friends read them.



What books have most influenced your life most?
The Bible influenced my life the most. I started reading a chapter of the Bible every night when I was about 13 years old, and I loved the Psalms. I also really loved Jane Austen’s books, which I discovered in junior high or high school. When I was 13, I also read Jane Eyre for the first time, and Gone With the Wind, which I read 6 times in the next 3 years. Since I now write historical romance, I think it’s safe to say I was influenced by those books, since they were all period romances. I think you could also validly argue that the Bible is also a romance—God’s romance of us.


If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?
Mary Connealy has been my mentor since 2005, and I have lots of wonderful writer friends who have helped and encouraged me.


What book are you reading now?
I have lots of research books right now that I got from my library. I’m always researching some time period or another, and I’m actually re-reading Siri Mitchell’s Kissing Adrien. It’s a few years old, but so much fun to read.


Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest?
I am really behind on my reading! I hate to say it but I haven’t actually read the new authors that are out there right now. I need to rectify that.


Who is your favorite author and what is it that really strikes you about their work?
My favorite author is probably Kate DiCamillo. I love the simplicity of her writing style. But she can still make me cry with the way she puts things so poignantly. I just love her stories, especially Because of Winn-Dixie and The Tale of Despereaux. I also enjoy Mary Connealy’s and Ruth Axtell’s books.


What was the hardest part of writing your book?
Every aspect of writing a book, from research to plotting to writing the first draft to editing, is hard and also enjoyable. I love every step, but it’s also hard work. Not sure what I would consider the hardest. Writing the first draft is probably the most time consuming and intense, and research is possibly my least favorite.


Have you been an avid reader your entire life? (since you could read)
Yes, I’ve always loved to read, as long as I can remember.

 

Ok now some fun questions:

What is your favorite sport to watch and or play?
I like watching my daughters play volleyball, and I grew up watching Alabama football with my dad, who was an avid fan, and I sometimes enjoy watching the games now with my husband. I used to love playing softball as a kid, but my school didn’t have a girls team, so I didn’t get to play very long. To be honest, I’m not much of a sports fan anymore. I do like to take naps on Saturday afternoons. That’s my idea of a fun activity! Ha!



Favorite Movie?
Do I have to pick just one? It’s a Wonderful Life. Or National Velvet. Or the long version of Pride and Prejudice.



Chocolate or Vanilla?
If it’s ice cream, vanilla. Everything else, chocolate.



Puppy's or Kittens?
Puppies

 

Beach or Mountains?
Beach is great any time except summer. Mountains are great any time except winter. (Can you tell I don’t like extreme temperatures?)



If you could be a color, what color would you be?
Red!



Favorite Dessert?
Chocolate pie, chocolate cake, chocolate cookies, anything chocolate.



If you could be a book character, what character would you be?
Elizabeth Bennet, because she gets Mr. Darcy.