Carol Weston Interview

 1. What is needed for a story to be good?

A good story has to have a plot but really it needs a voice. The reader must feel that she knows and cares about the characters. My four Melanie Martin novels were all set in different countries (Italy, Holland, Spain, U.S.) but it was Melanie's plucky personality that made them vivid.

2. Till now how many books have you written?

I have written twelve published books and I'm working on two right now. Six of my books are advice for girls; four are novels for kids; two are for adults (How to Honeymoon and From Here to Maternity). I also write the "Dear Carol" column of Girls' Life Magazine and have been the advice columnist since GL's start in 1994.

3. How much time do you take to finish a book?

I write fairly fast. I edit very slowly. For a while, I was writing one book a year. But I'm also a mom and wife and friend, and I like to spend time away from my desk too.





4. Where do you get ideas for your writing?



Everywhere. The last book began after I'd been the judge of a short story contest for kids at the New York Society Library in New York City. All those young writers were having so much fun writing whereas I had been thinking of writing as work. The kids got me re-energized, and my new character, Ava Wren, was born. She's a word nerd...





5. Tell about your first book?

GIRLTALK, All the Stuff Your Sister Never Told You has been out for over 25 years and came out in over ten languages. I wrote it when I was in my mid-twenties. I'd majored in French and Spanish Literature at Yale and I wanted to be a Writer with a capital W, but what did I know about? Well, I knew about surviving adolescence. I wrote Girltalk as if I'd suddenly noticed that I had a younger sister, and I wanted to tell her EVERYTHING I knew. I'm proud of that book and of how it has helped people.

6. What is the hardest part of writing?

Getting started and then selling the work. Writing, when you are in the zone, is great. It's how most people feel when they are in the middle of reading a good book-- they want to get back to it. I'm also lucky in that I'm not a shy retiring writer. I like talking at schools, being on TV, and answering female email -- when it isn't too overwhelming.

7. Is there anything else you'd like to say or have me put on my blog?



I hope girls age 8 to 12 will travel with Melanie Martin and her brother Matt the Brat, and I hope older girls will look for Girltalk. Also, general advice to girls, be as smart and kind as you can. Don't just give your heart away or be in a mad rush to grow up. Enjoy these years!

And please join my page at www.facebook.com/WriterCarolWeston


Check her out at these other sites, too!
http://www.carolweston.com/

and
http://www.amazon.com/Girltalk-Fourth-Stuff-Sister-Never/dp/0060585757
and http://www.amazon.com/Diary-Melanie-Martin-Survived-Michelangelo/dp/0440416671