Photo credit is Vania Stoyanova
Interview with Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl with B. Marie
B.Marie: “How did the two of you come to be friends and then partners in crime for The Caster Chronicles?”
Kami: I was Margie’s oldest daughter’s third grade teacher. We both love books, and found ourselves talking books all the time, which led to lots of hanging out & drinking Diet Coke.
B.Marie: “Okay Margaret, on your website bio it mentioned you “designed and wrote for lots of video games”. I love video games and love you even more after finding out that you had named one of your beloved beagles after my favorite video game of all time, “Zelda”. Do you yourself currently play any video games? Is there a game right now that you can’t get enough of or is there one that has caught your eye?”
Margie: Right now, it’s more of a family thing. I never get sick of Rock Band, though I stink at the drums. We just got Starcraft 2, which hopefully will take over from Angry Birds. 17 and 15 have been busy with Assassin’s Creed. 9 is all about Little Big Planet.
B.Marie: “Kami, your turn. Again, after stealing a peak at your bio on the website in the last sentence on the page you said “you love disaster movies”, let me just say we are kindred spirits (to quote Anne of Green Gables) for I too love disaster movies, especially when the world is coming to an end (strange, I know). What is a favorite disaster movie of yours? Is there one out there that you never tire of watching?”
Kami: My favorite is The Day After Tomorrow & I literally cannot turn it off if it comes on. I’ve seen in it at least 20 times.
B.Marie: “Kami and Margaret, in your Author Video (which can be found here), it was mentioned that the two of you spent an “excessive” amount of time in the graveyards. I remember when I was younger my cousins and I had a strange experience in one. Have either of you had a similar experience? Something that was eerie happen while IN a graveyard?”
Kami: My family is from the South, so ghosts and graveyards aren’t that creepy or exotic. Personally, I love graveyards because they represent love and memories – the act of remembering the people we love and marking a place for them in this world after they’re gone.
Margie: I haven’t had a creepy experience in a graveyard, but visiting Faulkner’s home in Oxford, Mississippi was equally bizarre. We got the feeling that house was not too happy to be visited. My sister-in-law even has the blur of light on the film to show for it.
B.Marie: “This one is for both of you. In Beautiful Creatures, your character Lena wears a “charm” necklace with all kinds of little trinkets on it. If you were to wear a similar necklace, what sort of trinkets would we find hanging on it?”
Kami: I have several charm necklaces, but I won’t cheat. I would definitely have some kind of medal for good luck, but it wouldn’t be a rabbit’s foot—dyed animal parts are not good luck. An old silver ring I wore in high school. A piece of my great-gramma’s handkerchief. The best fortune cookie fortune I ever got, in a little glass bottle. Bluestone to ward off evil spirits.
Margie: A charm of the Arc du Triomphe, the place where I was when I found out our book became a bestseller in the US. Something from Heidenheim, Germany, where I was when I found out the book was becoming a movie. Something from each of the places I’ve lived and loved: Amherst, Palo Alto, New Haven, Park City, Sun Valley, Santa Monica, Otranto – Italy, New York, Norwich – England.
B.Marie: “You have a playlist for both Ethan and Link on your website (which you can listen to here). I have to say I downloaded some of those songs to my iPod and am jamming to them now. What would be some tunes we would hear on YOUR personal playlist?”
Kami: OUTSHINED — Soundgarden, RUNNING TO STAND STILL — U2, PICTURES OF YOU– The Cure, ICKY THUMP – The White Stripes, THE BOY WITH THE THORN IN HIS SIDE – The Smiths, SYMPTOM OF THE UNIVERSE – Black Sabbath, WISH YOU WERE HERE – Pink Floyd, BACK IN BLACK – AC/DC, SIMPLE MAN – Lynyrd Skynard, SWEET CHILD O’ MINE – GUNS N ROSES, SOULSHINE– The Allman Brothers, LANDSLIDE – Stevie Nicks, MAGIC MAN – HEART, FADE TO BLACK – Metallica
Margie: The soundtrack to Spring Awakening, which I write to. Every song that has ever been on Glee. Kate Nash. Ingrid Michaelson. Regina Spektor. Vampire Weekend. Death Cab for Cutie.
B.Marie: “Beautiful Creatures has been nominated on the Teen Reads Awards for Best New Writer. Congratulations! What was your initial reaction to hearing about this!? Don’t know about you lovely ladies but there was a lot of jumping up and down on my part when I found out, and I am just a fan!”
Kami: We’re surprised every time something like that happens – and incredibly grateful. We never wrote BEAUTIFUL CREATURES with the intent of publishing it. We wrote it on a dare from Margie’s oldest daughter & my students. We wrote it for them. When it came out, I was just hoping my parents and friends would buy it.
Margie: I was so flattered, especially for the category of Best New Writer. I hope our improbable story inspires other people to just sit down and write, if they have something to say.
B.Marie: “Bringing us back to your author video one final time. I believe it was Kami who mentioned that graveyards are a way to see that someone was loved and is remembered. How would the two of you like to be remembered in the future by not only your loved ones but by the readers (who love you also)?”
Kami: I would like to be remembered as a person with a fierce love of reading, who was determined to help people find the book that would help them fall in love with reading. Beyond that – a good mother, a loyal friend, an advocate for the underdog or Outcaster, a dedicated Black Sabbath & Diet Coke fan, straight shooter, and hopefully a decent writer.
Margie: I would just be happy to be remembered. I’ve saved three small colored glass bottles that sat in my grandmother’s window. I have three daughters, and if each one of them can just bottle up a few memories of me, I’d be content with that.
B.Marie: “Beautiful Darkness comes out October 12th of this year. Is there anything you can tell the readers about BD and what to expect? (Can’t wait to get my copy come October!)”
Kami: It’s darker. The stakes are higher. And whatever you think is going to happen… probably won’t. Be prepared for some twists and turns.
Margie: My daughters prefer BD to BC. I’ll always have a soft spot in my heart for our first book, but I’m curious to find out what our readers think.
B.Marie: “Last question, are there any books either one of you have recently picked up and simply could not put down?”
Kami: Melissa Marr’s RADIANT SHADOWS, Holly Black’s WHITE CAT, SUNSHINE by Robin McKinley, and MATCHED by Ally Condie.
Margie: All of the above, and Cassie Clare’s CLOCKWORK ANGEL, Sarah Rees Brennan’s THE DEMON’S COVENANT, and Carrie Ryan’s DEAD- TOSSED WAVES. And the terrifying, forthcoming sequel to BAD GIRLS DON’T DIE by Katie Alender – FROM BAD TO CURSED.
5 “Fun Facts” about Kami & Margie!
Kami:
I don’t like birds or flan.
I would never walk over a grave or plot, in a cemetery.
Most people know I love Black Sabbath, but I also love Neil Diamond.
I know how to get out of the trunk of a car.
My favorite shows of all time were: Magnum PI, Fame, The A-Team & Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Margie:
I think Veronica Mars is better than Nancy Drew.
Joss Whedon may not be god, but he is the creator of most of the universes I care about.
I’m a hard core Gleek.
I listen to Spring Awakening compulsively when I work.
My kids are fencers and I travel all around the world with them to tournaments.
You can find out more about Kami & Margie and their books BEAUTIFUL CREATURES and BEAUTIFUL DARKNESS (in stores October 12th) at:
www.beautifulcreaturesthebook.com
The Official US Fansite:
Thank you again ladies for your time! <3
Hi this is a fantastic web logs, would you think about being a guest author on my web log?