Kathi Appelt is an American author of over thirty books for children and young adults. She also writes poetry. She was born in 1954 in Fayetteville, North Carolina. She now lives and writes in College Station, Texas. In this interview, Kathi talks about her books, her love for poetry, reading and writing.
Voicu Mihnea Simandan: You have been a story writer for most of your life. How has your writing evolved over time?
Kathi Appelt: Throughout my school days, I was always one of those people who could get away with a single first draft. But as I began my writing career in earnest, I quickly learned that my first draft wasn’t necessarily the best draft. Nowadays I feel that if I can complete a story in maybe thirty drafts, I’m happy. So, I’ve learned over the years to be a relentless reviser.
VMS: Where did the ideas for the The Underneath (2010), a Newberry Honor Book, come from?
KA: The Underneath began as a short story about a boy who rescued a kitten from a creek. Many, many drafts later, it became the longer story. However, a large part of the story was based on my memories of an old dog that my sisters had as a pet when we were growing up. His name was Sam, and he adopted a litter of kittens when the mother cat was killed by a car. He was a great step-father, just like the dog in my story.
VMS: Illustrations are a very important factor in any children’s books. Miss Lady Bird’s Wildflowers: How a First Lady Changed America (2005) was masterfully illustrated by Joy Fisher Hein. What was your work relationship with the illustrator?
KA: Joy and I worked fairly closely together on that book. It’s unusual for an author and artist to work together, but we were lucky. We were friends long before the book ever came out, and we’re still friends. We’d love to do another book together.
VMS: You have started as a children’s books author but have moved on to write young adult novels. How did you find the transition?
KA: The transition was hard because everything I had ever written seemed to end at the bottom of page three. In order to write a novel, I had to learn to write it in three page chunks. That’s why my chapters are so short.
VMS: Do you employ similar skills when writing books targeted for an older readership?
KA: Yes. Writing is writing.
VMS: You are also a poet and meet up with other like-minded people to… write poems. Why poetry?
KA: I often think of poems as arrows. They shoot directly into the heart, creating an opening for something that may nor may not be explicable, but always enlarging.
VMS: Some people believe that children no longer read and, with the availability of affordable e-readers, many believe that, sooner or later, children will no longer want to hold books in their hands. Please comment.
KA: I’m no expert on this, but the truth is, books are a relatively modern invention. Before books people used tablets or rolls of papyrus. I think as long as there are stories, there will be readers.
VMS: You maintain an excellent website. How important is it for writers these days to be “out there” on the Internet, interacting with their fans?
KA: I’m not sure. I like having a presence in social media, but I don’t live for it.
VMS: You’ve recently been on quite a few school visits. What were some of the highlights of these visits?
KA: The kids! Since my kids are now grown, I love being with the kids in schools. It’s important to me to be in the presence of children, to remind me of what they’re like and what they’re up to these days. I really love to listen to them, to talk to them, to hear what they have to say.
VMS: Do you still read children’s books and young adult fiction?
KA: All the time.
VMS: What book are you working on right now?
KA: A novel that I’m co-writing with Alison McGhee.
VMS: What is your writing routine?
KA: I basically write in “snatches.” That is, I snatch an hour here or there, fifteen minutes before bed, right when I wake up. I don’t have a regular routine. I write when I can.
VMS: What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
KA: My motto is to “write like your fingers are on fire.”
VMS: Thank you for your time.
KA: Thank you for this invitation!
Voicu Mihnea Simandan
Bangkok, Thailand
