While Paige Toon was one of the first authors I wanted to ask to do an Author Interview, the first author I actually got an interview from was Karen Quinn.

If you aren’t aware of who Karen Quinn is, she is the author of The Ivy Chronicles, Wife in the Fast Lane, Holly Would Dream and her newest novel, which is released in July, The Sister Diaries.

1. Describe your latest novel (The Sister Diaries) in a sentence.

The close relationship between three sisters is fractured when their mother leaves her entire estate - a multi-million dollar townhouse and a priceless painting - to the middle (and least deserving) of them. Whew! That was hard to sum up in one sentence.

2. What, if anything, are you currently working on?

Right now I’m writing a non-fiction about testing for gifted and talented and private school admissions - what parents can do so that their children are ready for testing without having to kindercram. I’m thinking of writing a sequel to The Ivy Chronicles after that.

3. Are parents really that bad when going through the private school admissions? (The Ivy Chronicles is based on what parents will do to get their kids in private schools - what they do in the book is ridiculous!)

I’m sorry to report that they are worse than you could ever imagine. Parents with money will do anything to give their children the best education possible. With so many more applicants than places in the top schools, desperation sets in. I’m hoping that with this tough economy, the competition will lighten up, although I heard they had more applicants to Manhattan kindergartens this year than last.

4. What are you currently reading/who are some of your favourite authors?
Right now I’m reading Life Sentences by Laura Lippman and Barrel Fever by David Sedaris. I admire so many writers, but David Sadaris’ humor just knocks me out. I also love Ken Follett for Pillars of the Earth and Candace Bushnell.

5. Are any of your characters like you in anyway?

Oh yes! I’m very much like Ivy in The Ivy Chronicles, except I’m more ethical and I never caught my husband with another woman. I identify so closely with Renata in Wife in the Fast Lane. She was me as a little girl. I also felt a kinship with Holly in Holly Would Dream as I know what it’s like to try to succeed in business when you work for a cruel, selfish boss. In The Sister Diaries, I think I’m mostly like the oldest sister, Amanda, who tries to take care of everyone she loves at her own expense.

6. Finally, what advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Just sit down and start writing. When I wrote The Ivy Chronicles, I had never written anything in my whole life except for an annual holiday letter (that everyone said was funny). But I had an idea for a story and wanted to see if I could really bring it to life. This was only about six years ago. I didn’t know what I was doing, but I kept telling myself to write the book that I would enjoy reading. That has been my mantra with every book I’ve written since. If I can entertain myself, then hopefully other people will enjoy what I’ve written as well.

Also, the most important thing is to get a first draft down on paper. Once you have that, you can go back and edit. Don’t spend time making your writing perfect because you may end up editing it out your best passages anyway. Just get the first draft done and make sure you have a good story to tell. Then you can go back and fix it.

Finally, if you want it, you can do it. I’ve wanted to lose weight for the longest time, but I just couldn’t seem to make the sacrifices that required. Finally, I found myself heavier than I’d ever been and my desire to lose the weight became stronger than my desire to eat. So, in three months, I ate less, worked out like mad, and dropped 25 pounds. That was exactly how I felt about writing my first book - I wanted it and nothing was going to stop me. If you are that determined, you’ll do it, too.

I wish your readers the best of luck and please tell them to write me anytime at [email protected]. I love hearing from readers and always write back.
Thanks so much Karen! To find out more about Karen visit her website!

If you would like to suggest an author for an author interview or if you are an author and would like to do an interview, email [email protected]

Author interviews to come: Katie Fforde, Matt Dunn, Alison Kervin, Christina Jones, Trisha Ashley, Debbie Carbin and Jessica Brody and more…

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