Interview with Livia Blackburne, MIT neuroscientist

(Re-posted cause it’s just that good!!)

Last week we had Kristi Gets Fit (What? Dodging melon balls and pineapple wedges counts!) so now it’s time for another issue of Kristi Gets Smart, inaugurated by none other than Scientific American’s Steve Mirsky!

Who better to carry the torch than Livia King Blackburne: the 24^th Most Influential writer on Twitter according to We Follow, and voted Top 50 Female Science Bloggers by Online Universities.

Livia King Blackburne: (whispers) Tell them I can also hold a straw between my nose and upper lip.

Kristi: (hisses back) Stop bragging.

Livia King Blackburne: Jealous.

Kristi: (clears throat) Welcome, Livia King Blackburne! Please tell our readers what you do?

Livia King Blackburne: (smiles) I’m in my 5^th year of graduate studies at MIT in cognitive neuroscience.

Kristi: (has the blank stare of someone who hears only elevator music)

Livia King Blackburne: Which means I scan peoples’ brains for my experiments.

Kristi: How lovely – you experiment on people’s… brains? (wishes she’d worn that daffodil hat with the aluminum lining afterall)

Livia King Blackburne: (dissecting Kristi’s scalp with her eyes) Specifically, I’m interested in how the brain develops when you learn to read.

Kristi: Your lab rats must be able read? (smiles, relieved) Guess that leaves me out – I’ve been told I’m an illiterate idiot!!

Livia King Blackburne: Oh? Well, I study them as they’re learning to read…

Kristi: (starts to sweat, looks for nearest exit)

Livia King Blackburne: So I’m scanning kids at different ages to see how the brain changes as they get older.

Kristi: You experiment on children?!

Livia King Blackburne: Yes.

Kristi: Oh, thank God! (the colour returns to Kristi’s white knuckles) Say, I know some little brats, I mean adorable kids, if you need any lab brats? Er… rats?

Livia King Blackburne: No, thanks. We have plenty.

Kristi: I understand you’re a writer, too?

Livia King Blackburne: Yes, my other “gig” is as a writer and blogger.  I write fantasy stories for young adults.

Kristi: Why Young adults? What do you have against OLD adults?

Livia King Blackburne: Nothing, YA is a writing genre.

Kristi: Uh-huh, right. First you refuse to experiment on adults, now you refuse to write for anyone but the young…  Are you some kind of mad scientist inventing a World of the Young?

Livia King Blackburne: (shifty eyed) What?! No, the Harry Potter books are Young Adult Fantasy, too, but people of all ages read them.

Kristi: Damn! I was hoping to get in on this whole Young World thing.

Livia King Blackburne: Sorry.

Kristi: Your blog is extremely popular: A Brain Scientist Takes Writing.  Is the in-ability to write common among MIT brain scientists?

Livia King Blackburne: No – it’s called A Brain Scientist’s Take On Writing. It’s an analysis of writing from a brain scientist’s perspective.

Kristi: That’s what I said. Hey – are you trying to mess with my brain?!

Livia King Blackburne: No, of course not.

Kristi: (whines) I’ll never get in the Young World project…

Livia King Blackburne: There is no Young World project.

Kristi: (narrows eyes) Says you. So what do you like most about your work, other than messing with peoples’ brains?

Livia King Blackburne: Well, I think neuroscience is one of the big scientific frontiers right now. There is a lot of excitement and energy going into this research. It’s really fun to be in the middle of it all.

Kristi: The wild frontier, Yeee-Haaaaw!

Livia King Blackburne: And everybody’s interested in neuroscience.

Kristi: (not afraid to ask the tough questions…) Oh?

Livia King Blackburne: Everybody has a brain, so what I study is relevant to everyone.

Kristi: (…even in the presence of superior intelligence) I assume you have proof to back- up this “everybody has a brain” theory?

Livia King Blackburne: (eyes Kristi) I suppose there could be exceptions to the rule…

Kristi: What do you think is the key to scientific success?

Livia King Blackburne: I used to think being a good scientist was all about programming computers and having good technical skills, but really, a good scientist just needs to pay attention and ask the right questions.

Kristi: (beams) Like I do!

Livia King Blackburne: Um…sort of…would you mind turning that off?

Kristi: (turns off portable tractor beam) What else?

Livia King Blackburne: You need to keep plugging away when the first 10 tries don’t work.

Kristi: Yep, I know that all too well.

Livia King Blackburne: As a writer yourself, I imagine you do. Science is very similar to getting published on that last aspect.  Many writers have trouble with the idea of spending years on something with no guarantee of success, but that’s just business as usual in the lab.

Kristi: And in stalking.

Livia King Blackburne: (desperate to stay on topic) In science and writing, there’s lots of creativity involved.

Kristi: Stalking, too! So how do you come up with your ideas?

Livia King Blackburne: Um… I tend to be a pretty spacey person – one of my friends called me Oblivia because I’m always in my own little world.  But it’s when I’m off daydreaming that I come up with new ideas.

Kristi: There’s where we’re different. If I space out and start day-dreaming behind the bushes, under a window or hiding in someone’s dirty clothes hamper, I’ll totally miss my opportunity.

Livia King Blackburne: (wide eyed) I can imagine.

Kristi: You’re obviously a highly skilled scientist. Does this come naturally?

Livia King Blackburne: For the necessary skills – observing, understanding, and asking good questions- definitely not.  These are aspects that I’ve grown into over the past few years.

Kristi: Have you done anything other than neuroscience?

Livia King Blackburne: Yes, my undergraduate degree from Harvard was in biochemical sciences. After graduation I worked for a year with a Harvard psychology professor, who was instrumental in helping me apply to graduate school.  I was also an intern at Sandia National Laboratories for four summers, in the computational physics and biology departments.

Kristi: You mean the national laboratory that has developed science-based technologies that support national security so that 300+ million Americans can have peace and freedom?

Livia King Blackburne: (bowled over) Yes! It was fun because I got to run simulations on one of the world’s fastest supercomputers.  I also got to wear a security clearance badge and say things like “The government has forbidden me to speak about my current project.”

Kristi: Wow! Can I borrow the badge?

Livia King Blackburne: No.

Kristi: And lastly, any life experiences you’d like to share?

Livia King Blackburne: I’d say the critical thinking skills that I’ve picked up in my training. They are really useful for all aspects of my life.  I’ve learned to think for myself and investigate things before I believe them.

Kristi: Like I do?

Livia King Blackburne: (politely notices spot on ceiling) And as for the blogging and writing, that’s just fun!  After five years at MIT, it’s nice to interact with people in the real world. It keeps me sane, and reminds me that not everyone thinks jokes with mathematical punch lines are funny.

Kristi: Why was 6 afraid of 7? (loud snickers) Because 7 – 8 – 9! (cackle) Get it?? 7 ate 9? (snort)

Livia King Blackburne: (blank stare of someone who hears nothing but animal noises)

Kristi: Thank you Livia, for sharing your fascinating life on the neuroscience frontier, and as always –Thank You for Playing!!

(Originally Posted June 14, 2010)

Interview with Marvin Kanarek, RIP January 18 1947- December 19 2012

(Sept. 2010 Interview reposted in honor of a lovely man with a terrific sense of humor. Marvin left this world far too soon – as is evidenced by his poetic and profound response to the question, “Any life lessons you’d like to share?” MARVIN: “Don’t know yet. I feel like I’m still in the middle of the storm. According to legend, we will know during those final moments that we draw our last breath. I’ll either have a smile on my face, or someone at bedside will be slapping it. I’ll know then.”    Our thoughts are with his family.)

Original interview:

This amazingly multi-talented Guest Star has lived the COOLEST lives – that’s right – plural! No, he’s not reincarnated…that I know of…

Born in Havana, Cuba, raised in Toronto, Marvin Kanarek has lived everywhere from Paris to LA.  He has worked as a studio drummer and toured extensively (HOW COOL IS THAT?!?) with: Rough Trade, The Bonedaddys, Burton Cummings (The Guess Who), Randy Bachman (BachmanTurner Overdrive), Janis Ian, Bo Diddley, The Beach Boys, and that’s only the beginning!!

My head was spinning from all he’s done, but I think I covered it pretty well…

Kristi: Welcome, Marvin Kanarek, I’m thrilled to have you on HowDidYouGetThere. Please tell our readers what you do for a living?

Marvin Kanarek: I am a multi-disciplined artist. I am a drummer–“don’t be afraid!”– singer-songwriter, painter, writer, architectural designer and according to my brother, a pretty good photographer. I am also working on my black belt in Bordeaux tasting.

Kristi: That’s a lot of discipline! Let’s start with drummer/singer/songwriter–Yes, I’m terrified, but in a cool way, like when I used to sneak home after curfew.

Marvin Kanarek: (nods, smiling) Stay up to watch the sunrise?

Kristi: No…I had to be home before sunset.  But once I missed my curfew!

Marvin Kanarek: No!

Kristi: Yea! It was totally dark when I got home!! I was such a rebel…that one time… WILD times.

Marvin Kanarek: (wonders if he’s ever even gone out before dark) Wow.

Kristi: So how long have you been a musician?

Marvin Kanarek: Too long to remember.

Kristi: This memory problem – was it brought on by too much music? I’ve read that can happen.

Marvin: No it can’t.

Kristi: What can’t?

Marvin Kanarek: Music can’t give you a bad memory.

Kristi: You have a bad memory?

Marvin Kanarek: No, I have a great memory… Music is actually good for the brain. Ever heard of the Mozart Effect?

Kristi: Mozart? (checks notes) I thought your name was Marvin.

Mavin Kanarek: (wonders if it’s too early for a glass of Bordeaux)Of course I’m Marvin.

Man in the Middle, by Marvin Kanarek

Kristi: (smiles, extends hand) Nice to meet you, I’m Kristi. Thank you for meeting me. So what do you do?

Marvin Kanarek: F*ck it. (signals waitress for a bottle) I believe we were discussing my being a drummer/singer/songwriter?

Kristi: (plays really bad air drums) A drummer!! How Cool is that?! What do you like most about it?

Marvin Kanarek: (smiles, because the wine has arrived) The spontaneity and freedom. I am a practitioner of the ”Do what you love and never work again” philosophy.

Kristi: You’re a Philosopher?! I’ve never interviewed a Philosopher before!

Marvin Kanarek: Uh, no… I’m NOT a philosopher. I adopted this philosophy after not being able tofunction in the regimented 9-5 world. I had no choice.

Kristi: I see… so…what’s it like being a Philosopher who has no choice?

Marvin Kanarek: (hopes Kristi’s terrible childhood is the reason she’s like this) I couldn’t say, really…

Kristi: Couldn’t say? –Or choose not to? No, wait. If you have no choice then you can’t choose not to say. That doesn’t make any sense. And I love making scents –I learned how in arts and crafts.

Marvin Kanarek: Right…(Suspects Kristi was born like this, her poor parents were probably trying to protect her through isolation) Anyway, as a musician I’ve had a wealth of choices.

Kristi: Oh my God! You’re a Musician, too?! This is WAY Cool!! (high-fives Marvin) Who have you worked with?

Marvin Kanarek: (laughs because it hurts too much to cry) Well, let’s see, I’ve worked as both a touring and studio drummer for many Canadian and American artists: Rough Trade, The Bonedaddys, Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman of The Guess Who and Bachman Turner Overdrive, and DJ Massive, DCB, Janis Ian, Bo Diddley, Junior Walker, The Beach Boys, and more. And I’ve had my own bands as well.

Kristi: Wow—Impressive!! What kind of music do your own bands perform?

Marvin Kanarek: One of my groups included a Chilean DJ, a country-rock guitarist and a reggae singer. We had a House music hit which stayed on the U.K. club charts for 13 weeks.  And as a solo artist, “2forty6″ was my first album, titled after the place that will always be home in Toronto, and “Looking Back Ahead” is the latest one.

Kristi: And the other disciplines you mentioned?

Marvin Kanarek: As an architect, I’ve worked on many residential projects and as an artist I’ve had many one man and collaborative art shows. I am now concentrating on following my muse just to see what “comes out”. Mainly in my music and art. Occasional architecture, if it interests me.

Kristi: Oh! – I know of a muse if you need one, but I think she may be busy working for your brother…

Marvin Kanarek: Really? I’m in the market for a muse…

Benjamin Kanarek: (storms up to outdoor café) Hey, forget it! Frédérique’s my muse and you can’t have her.

Marvin Kanarek: Oh yea?!

(horrible fight ensues: screaming, kicking, chairs and tables fly.

The Brothers Kanarek finally get Kristi to calm down and stop flinging furniture. They leave the waitress a very large tip, apologizing profusely as they carry Kristi out, one on each arm.)

Kristi: That was a riot! Rock and Roll!! Any life lessons you’d like to leave our readers with?

Marvin Kanarek: Don’t know yet. I feel like I’m still in the middle of the storm. According to legend, we will know during those final moments that we draw our last breath. I’ll either have a smile on my face, or someone at bedside will be slapping it. I’ll know then.

Kristi: If you need anyone there to slap you, here’s my number. But until then – Thank You so much for Playing!!

Interview with André Girod

Today’s Guest Star is a fascinating man who cannot be confined to four walls. He traveled to Machu Pichu before it was *discovered* by the rest of the world in the  60s, went to China before it became popular, and has lived everywhere from Iowa to Tasmania.

Today I’ll quiz him on the four “W”s: What the heck–? Who traveled to China before Nixon? Were you lost or did you intend to go? And Tasmania? Wasn’t that a cartoon?

Kristi: Welcome André Girod! Would you please tell us what took you all those exciting places?

André Girod: My sense of adventure. But if you mean my career, until retirement I was a professor of Latin, Greek mythology and French history.

Kristi: Really? That was one of my favourite subjects!

Reception of the American class at l'Elysée with Président Miterrand, 1988

André Girod: (grins) Louis XIV, Napoleon, Jeanne d’Arc…?

Kristi: Yes, I know all the Greek gods.

André Girod: (pulls out notepad, marks a large red “X”) I see.

The French American Class remembered

Kristi: (sure she aced it) Where did you teach?

André Girod: The first 15 years all my teaching took place between four walls, with a few windows.

Kristi: Four Walls… That’s a town in Iowa, isn’t it?

André Girod: (marks another large red “X” on notepad) No. But Cedar Rapids is, where I taught at Coe College.

Kristi: Cedar, and rapids- so you taught outside?

André Girod: (beams) Yes, actually, how did you know? I taught in the open for the last 25 years of my career. But not in Cedar Rapids.

Kristi: Right. Lost too many students in the rapids…

André Girod: No. (red “X” on notepad) Cedar fever.

Kristi: Awww, that was my second guess! …So where did you teach?

André Girod: In the early 70s I left conventional teaching to create the French-American Class (La class Franco-Américaine), where my teaching took place between continents, under the open sky!

Kristi: Wait -  Between Continents?  Oh, oh! (raises arm) I know this one! Geology?

André Girod: No. (Slashes large red “X” on notepad) I developed a month long Foreign Exchange program — which was a brand new concept in the early 70s. Especially the way we did it.

Kristi: (raises arm again) Oh! Oh!! You did it in platform shoes, with tightly permed hair, while watching the French Connection!

André Girod: (eyes Kristi’s polyester print shirt, enormous bellbottoms and poodle perm, Marks notepad) No.

Kristi: (stomps her Elton John boots on the floor) Dammit!

André Girod: (slashes two red “Xs”) Cursing in class.

Kristi: (pouts, slumps at desk like bratty teenager)

André Girod: (smiles, hands Kristi sheet with “A+”) Don’t worry, you got bonus points for your outfit.

Kristi: (sits up, beams) You like it? Some things never go out of style.

André Girod: Yes! Thank God for that. (adjusts his thick black sunglasses, pushes up the sleeves on his black turtle neck, and slants his beret)

Kristi: So how were your foreign exchange classes different than the ones we hear of today?

André Girod: Instead of exchanging one student at a time, we exchanged the entire class, for a month.

Kristi: I get hassled for trying to exchange a candy bar I don’t like.

André Girod: Remember, in the early 70s these foreign exchange programs had never been done before.  Especially transporting whole classes of French fifth graders to America to stay in an elementary school, and likewise take American fifth graders to France. Reciprocity between the schools, families and children.

Kristi: Interesting. What did they study?

André Girod: The very first class we organized was during the summer. They learned judo, sailing, swimming, javelin throwing and much more.

Kristi: Can I go?  I’m told I’m very immature for my age.

André Girod: Well… the years after that we only exchanged classes during the winter. Skiing in France was a big hit.

Kristi: Oh, too bad, I’m allergic to snow. Did you prefer running the French American Class to conventional teaching?

André Girod: I did enjoy conventional teaching during the first part of my career, but never enough to stay in the same school for more than 2 years. I had to change my horizons: 2 years in the USA, 2 years in Australia, 2 years in France and so on. This is the only way to refresh your teaching. Then I tired of this continuous change, so I decided to meld the two, by teaching kids about travel and living in a foreign country. This is how I got the idea to start the French American Class, which I ran until I sold it in the late 1990s.

Kristi: What did you do before teaching?

André Girod: I worked for 11 years as a tour guide, in the 50s/60s, traveling with my backpack, which made it easy to create the French American class. I have also been an encyclopedia salesman, a waiter, ski instructor, ski school director…

Kristi: What a wealth of experiences.

André Girod: I have published several books on my experiences: Ilkya, French-American class, Caltecor 5127, Flammes du pere inconnu, to name a few.

Kristi: And what keeps you busy today?

André Girod: Today I host art exhibits on my property. I live in a small village in Southern France, in the Luberon Vaucluse region. I am also the Director of Culture for our city hall in the village of Lauris.

Kristi: Many of your past students have tracked you down to thank you for so many wonderful memories of their experiences in the French-American Class. I’d like to thank you for being such a good sport and sharing your adventures with us. So, as always–  Thank You For Playing!!

ModernDayStoryTeller has been Questioning me…

I’m very honored to be invited to participate in ModernDayStoryTeller Blog’s 1st Birthday Bash!! The lovely Karen Quah really knows how to stir things up, isn’t the least bit shy with her printed self, but always makes her visitors feel not only welcome but free to disagree.

Not that I would know first hand, not being the disagreeable sort, myself… *cough* … see below:

ModernDayStoryTeller Has Been Questioning Me…

Witty and irreverent writer, Kristi Thompson, is one of ModernDayStoryTeller’s dearest and most frequent readers.

She is famous for leaving a comment just seconds after a blog is posted, which is one of the things I love about her.

Another thing I love about Kristi is her part blog/ part sitcom – How Did You Get There?.

Not only is it certifiably insane, Kristi, a gifted interviewer, has a knack of unhinging her victims – er, I mean interviewees – in the most humorous and unexpected of ways.

How Did You Get There has been short-listed for the 2010 Irish Blog Awards (Humour) and Kristi’s first novel, Can’t Get You Out of My Mind,  is “completed and house hunting–any Random House will do.”

Here, she shares her thoughts on Twitter and why the aliens need a movie like Elf to learn a thing or two about us.

Thanks for the laughs and encouragement, Kristi. Wonderful to have you!

To See this interview PLEASE CLICK HERE!!

Interview with Hazel Gaynor, Hot Cross Mum

Hello everyone! This week’s Guest Star is a delightful lady whose feet just hit the literary pavement.

I’ve invited her over to commiserate this hard, uphill battle we writers fight daily. Especially, newer writers who need loads of cheer leading and encouragement.

There’s the doorbell! I’m sure my famous Chocolate Chip cookies and a shoulder to cry on will perk her up.

Kristi:            Welcome Hazel Gaynor, come in! Don’t you look gorgeous, would you like some tea?

Hazel Gaynor: Aren’t you kind – I’d love some.

Kristi: (pours Hazel tea) So how are you holding up, dear? I hear you’ve started writing not too long ago? That’s lovely.

Hazel Gaynor: Actually I am a mum first and foremost but I try to make a living as a writer – when I can find the time or the route to the computer among all the toys!

Kristi: (offers Hazel a cookie) It isn’t easy, is it? I’m here for you, dear. Have you started a blog yet? That’s a great way to get your name out.

Hazel Gaynor: Yes, my blog is called Hot Cross Mum.

Kristi: Excellent, adorable name! Don’t worry if you go for days or even weeks on end with no one bothering to read it, including your own family…these things take time.

Hazel Gaynor: I’m rather pleased, actually. It’s been listed in the Top 100 UK Parenting Blogs since September 2009, The Independent’s Top 50 Parenting Blogs and Websites in October 2009. I even got my 15 minutes of fame last December being interviewed on TV3’s “The Morning Show” as part of a programme on blogging. Great experience!

Kristi: (smile freezes) Oh.

Hazel Gaynor: I’m really fortunate the way it’s taken off.

Kristi: (pours own tea) Yes, you’re making my head spin…of course Blogging’s not the same as REAL writing…

Hazel Gaynor: Yes, it’s a lot more taxing to write my “It Wouldn’t Happen to a Celebrity Mum” weekly column for the Leinster Leader, and my features for The Examiner and Modern Mum magazine.

Kristi: (drops tea pot) How long did you say you’ve been at this?

Hazel Gaynor: (helps clean up tea) I’ve been a mum for 4 years and 3 months, and a writer for almost a year, so very much a newbie.

Kristi:  (grabs last cookie from Hazel’s plate, downs it)

Hazel Gaynor: Are you OK?

Kristi: (gulps tea) You got a column, several blog awards and a TV spot in under a year!? How the heck–

Hazel Gaynor: (Freezes at Kristi’s violent outburst)

Kristi: (smoothes frazzled hair) Sorry. I mean, as a NEWBIE, are you sure you want to continue writing? With all this…uh…hardship?

Hazel Gaynor: Yes, I love the escapism of writing, and the freedom it gives me to put down on paper everything that has been swimming around in my head–

Kristi: But I do that, too, my head’s constantly swimming! Why don’t I have a—

Hazel Gaynor: Don’t worry, Kristi, you will – just keep at it.

Kristi: Worry? Haha, I was just…er…never mind. What do you write about?

Hazel Gaynor: I write mostly about motherhood so it’s actually great therapy as well.

Kristi: Are you suggesting I need therapy?

Hazel Gaynor: No, I didn’t mean that. It’s just amazing how you find perspective in a situation when you write about it. As a blogger, I also get great comfort from reading comments which empathise with my story or can relate to it.

Kristi: (baffled) Perspective? …Empathy?

Hazel Gaynor: I suppose it gives me a much-needed extension to what can sometimes be a lonely existence as a Stay At Home Mum and a writer.

Kristi: You’re so right. I am lonely… behind the keyboard all day…

Hazel Gaynor: You poor thing, here can I pour you some more tea?

Kristi: (dabs eyes with napkin) Thanks. So what makes you suited to being a Write-from-home Mum?

Hazel Gaynor: I sometimes wonder if I am actually qualified at all to be a mother – but then again, who really is? I think we all bluff our way along at some point or another. As a writer, I guess the only real quality/skill you need to make you suited to the job is a passion for and a belief in whatever you’re writing about.

Kristi: (imagines own passions: honking at people who stop at yellow lights, having the last word…) Maybe that’s my problem.

Hazel Gaynor: Whether a good day or bad, I have absolute passion for my children.

Kristi: (…buying rain coats for her toy poodle, drive by splashing of bicyclists on rainy days) I’m passionate about things on bad days, too!

Hazel Gaynor: See? That’s great! I suppose as a mum and as a writer, you need plenty of resilience and patience, so maybe those skills help me in both my jobs.

Kristi: Have you developed your writing skills recently or from previous experience?

Hazel Gaynor: I have no prior experience as a writer, at least in a professional capacity, so am very much learning as I go. Fortunately, I have connected into some excellent resources to guide me and point me in the right direction when I am floundering.

Kristi: Where did you work before now?

Hazel Gaynor: I worked for a large law firm in Dublin. I could tell you which one, but then I’d probably have to kill you.

Kristi: Haha…you are kidding, right? Anyway, did working in the law firm lead directly to being a stay-at-home Writer/ Mum?

Hazel Gaynor: In a roundabout sort of way, yes, I suppose it did. To be blunt, I was made redundant.

Kristi: You poor dear! Here, have another…oh…I seem to have eaten all the cookies.

Hazel Gaynor: It’s OK, you don’t have to feel sorry for me – I’m over it now! To be honest, it was a complete blessing in disguise. If I hadn’t lost that job, I would not now be doing the two jobs I have loved the most in my life – looking after my children and writing about them!

Kristi: What did you do before that?

Hazel Gaynor: I suppose I’ve had a pretty un-exciting career really, having worked in the corporate world for as long as I care to remember!

Kristi: Oh, such a pity. Do tell!

Hazel Gaynor: Moving to my first job in London was a real buzz for a young twenty-something originally from a small Yorkshire village. Oh, and the PriceWaterhouseCoopers office I worked in when I lived in Sydney was the most memorable location; looking right over the harbour. I used to get a ferry to work past the Opera House – beats the Dublin commuter trains doesn’t it?!

Kristi: Yes, but those exciting, heady days are all over aren’t they?

Hazel Gaynor: Well…what I do now is even more exciting.

Kristi: Do you feel you’ve gained a valuable life experience? Such as Good things never last… or Always remember to bask in the glow of your previous experiences…?

Hazel Gaynor: Uh…not exactly. I know I am totally biased, but in my opinion, children are the most valuable life experience. Apart from that, every experience in life is a valuable one, is it not?

Kristi: Absolutely! I hope our little chat made you feel better, Hazel. I know it did a world of good for me!

And, as always, Hazel, Thank You For Playing!!

Interview with Martina Devlin

2009 Writer in Residence, Princess Grace Irish Library in Monaco

Kristi: (taps microphone) Testing, testing…is this on?

Martina Devlin: A loud speaker? Don’t you think we’ll disturb the other people in the park…

Kristi: (puts hand over microphone) Shhhh – I’m starting your introduction.

Martina Devlin: (smiles apologetically at annoyed picnickers) You never told me this was going to be live–

Kristi: (blaring announcer voice) Don’t let her elegant form and soft spoken manner fool you, folks! For courageous, tell-it-like-it-is writing, my next Guest Star is your woman.  She’s an award winning journalist, and weekly columnist for the Irish Independent and the Sunday World Magazine, who started writing fiction when she won the prestigous Hennessy Literary Award for her very first short story.

Martina Devlin: (hands over ears at microphone squeel) 

Kristi: She has been shortlisted twice for the Irish Book Awards, her novel Venus Reborn was nominated for the Sunday Independent-Hughes & Hughes Irish Novel of the Year award, and her most recent book, Banksters—co-written with her partner, David Murphy, RTE’s business editor—was a 2009 No. 1 bestseller.

Martina Devlin: (quietly unplugs loudspeaker)

Kristi: Hey, what happened? This thing isn’t working.

Martina Devlin: Oh?

Kristi: Darn, and this tape was going to launch my big career as a news announcer.

Martina Devlin: (Bites lip) Really?

Kristi: Just pretend the mic’s on. (shoves dead mic in Martina’s face) Welcome to How did You Get There, Martina. Please describe in your own words what you do for a living.

Martina Devlin: Oh…er…I’m a storyteller. I write stories for a living. This involves different types of writing, ranging from books to newspaper columns, but fundamentally I string sentences together. Along with my weekly newspaper columns, I’ve written seven books, a combination of fiction and non-fiction.

Kristi: Do you have a favourite?

Martina Devlin: My favourite is Ship of Dreams, about the Titanic. It was inspired by a family story: my grandmother’s uncle eloped on the Titanic and went down with the ship.

Kristi: You hear that, folks? A real-life romantic tragedy; an insider’s story on what REALLY happened on the Titanic!

Martina Devlin: Actually – it’s fiction, based on a real person. I wanted to reclaim him for the family, so I put him in a novel.

Kristi: The Titanic was fiction? Dagnabbit – Just like the moon landing!

Martina Devlin: No, the Titanic was real—just like the moon landing—and so was my Great-Great uncle. But writing fiction gives you great freedom to reshape material.

Kristi: (suspiciously) Reshape material?

Martina Devlin: You mean you don’t know the difference between historical novels and non-fiction?

Kristi: (assumes thinking position) Oooh! Haha! Now I get it, why didn’t you say so?

Martina Devlin: I DID say so!

Kristi: (puts hand over dead mic) Please keep your voice down – people are starting to stare.

Martina Devlin: I don’t think they’re staring at me.

Kristi: (fluffs hair) That’s very flattering, Martina, but you are the award winning writer here. So how long have you been writing?

Martina Devlin: I’ve been a published author for nine years and a journalist for more than 20. I’m currently working on another historical novel about witchcraft.

Kristi: Witchcraft is REAL?

Martina Devlin: No… A novel by definition is Fiction.

Kristi: Wait just a minute – that’s not what you said about the Titanic!

Martina Devlin: You seem to have a hard time distinguishing between reality and fiction.

Kristi: (baffled by last statement, but moves on) What do you like most about your writing?

Martina Devlin: That I can work from home, that I can choose when to work, that I don’t have to interact with other people if I choose not to – I can sit at my laptop and tap away. These are also the characteristics I dislike most about my work.

Kristi: What do you feel makes you particularly suited to being a writer?

Martina Devlin: I have lots of strong opinions so being a newspaper columnist is a gift for me. As regards to writing books, I love language, which is probably a bit of a disadvantage.

Kristi: You heard it, folks! Loving language is a disadvantage for writers!

Martina Devlin: No, not really, I just meant—

Kristi: And I’m the one who has a hard time distinguishing between real and not really??

Martina Devlin: (doesn’t even try to respond to this)

Kristi: Is this love of language—real or fictitious—something you developed on the job or is it—really or fictitiously—innate?

Martina Devlin: Both. You can learn how to improve your writing skills but you can’t fake it if you have none at all.

Kristi: (crest fallen) Really?

Martina Devlin: Afraid so…

Kristi: Where did you work immediately before the Irish Independent?

Martina Devlin: Since college I’ve always earned a living from some kind of writing. I think through my fingertips. Weird but true.

Kristi: Leading directly to being a columnist?

Martina Devlin: You don’t have to be a journalist to become a newspaper columnist but it helps.

Kristi: Any other interesting jobs stand out in your past?

Martina Devlin: I sold ice cream as a schoolgirl – my all-time favourite job because people smiled at me all the time.  And I could eat as much ice cream as I liked when the supervisor was looking the other way.

Kristi: Excellent!

Martina Devlin: When I was 18 I worked as an office junior in London for a music agency, the summer before college. The money was about £40 a week, a fortune then – at least to me. I spent it all on clothes every week and didn’t save a penny, I’m glad to say. Old heads on young shoulders are downright unnatural.

Kristi: (still dreaming of ice cream) I prefer all natural, too.

Martina Devlin: Crusty rockers were always wandering in but I rarely recognised them because I was in my Bowie phase. I met Alice Cooper, who gave me a funny handshake where he tickled my palm. To my horror, the other office girls told me this was sexually provocative, so I hid in the Ladies room the next time he pitched up. He was always in full makeup. What girl could compete with that?

Kristi: (wonders what kind of ice cream Alice Cooper in full make-up would eat)   Rocky Road, I’d say.

Martina Devlin: Maybe a bit rocky, but my brush with the music biz cured me of any thoughts of ever trying to become a rock chick. So I guess it taught me I had to find a job and pay my own way. I’d make that a mandatory life lesson for any woman – I despair of girls who regard men as meal tickets.

Kristi: Moving to the very recent past, 2009 was an exciting year for you. You had a No. 1 Best Seller with Banksters, about the Irish banking collapse, which you co-wrote with your partner, David Murphy, who’s also an award winning journalist.

Martina Devlin: And we’re still on speaking terms. Imagine! Match that, Bernstein and Woodward.

Kristi: Not only that, you were the 2009 writer in residence at the Princess Grace Irish Library in Monaco.

Martina Devlin: I spent all my free time there studying yachts. Some of them had 24-carat gold portholes, more staff than Buckingham Palace per square foot, and were equipped with palm trees, beaches and swimming pools on deck.

Kristi: That’s so glamorous, it has to be fiction.

Martina Devlin: No, it’s all real. Yet their owners might only use them a few times a year. Naturally I was outraged  by such excess. But I was also vexed that nobody ever invited me on board – I would have liked to nurse my outrage from a waterside vantage point.

Kristi: I’d like to thank you so much, Martina Devlin, for a REALLY interesting interview. And as always – Thank You For Playing!!!

(walking out of park)

Kristi: So how’d I do? You think I’ll make it big as a news announcer?

Martina Devlin: No.

Kristi: Ha! I know you’re kidding – really, tell me the truth.

Martina Devlin: I did.

Kristi: Such a kidder! Come on, for real this time…

Interview with Frédérique Renaut, Muse

(Additional note: I’m very honoured to say that Frédérique Renaut enjoyed her interview so much she posted it on their Fashion blog! Now where’d I put my tiara??)

FASHION: Ahhh, Paris! If you *heart* the fashion world, or work in any creative field requiring inspiration, you must meet my next Guest Star… she’s a REAL LIVE MUSE!

Papers seek out her Hot Off the Press Fashion Reports, like The Demise of Christian Lacroix Fashion House. She’s worked for Issey Miyake, Jean Paul Gaultier, and even Alexander McQueen, to name a few.

Kristi: (hands Frédérique small gift box from Tiffany’s) Welcome Frédérique Renaut. I know you’re busy Musing for fashion photographer Benjamin Kanarek, but I’ve got terrible writer’s block and was wondering–

Frédérique Renaut: What are you talking about?

Kristi: (lowers voice) Look, I know what you are. I’ve seen the movie.

Frédérique Renaut: (ignores box) What movie?

Kristi: The Muse – with Sharon Stone. She plays a muse, like you, who inspires all of Hollywood, but she’s finicky. She’ll only work if showered with expensive gifts. (rummages inside large bag) Dagnabbit – I TOLD the sales lady that key ring wasn’t good enough…

Frédérique Renaut: That’s ridiculous. I do Communications, Marketing Positioning and Strategy for Luxury brands.

Kristi: (pulls out larger Tiffany’s box) Yeah, yeah– you’ve got to help me! My characters are running havoc in my head, I can’t eat or sleep, I’m driving my husband crazy –

Frédérique Renaut: (shoves box away) I can imagine.

Kristi: Just a little eensy-weensy idea, a shove in the right direction…?

Frédérique Renaut: (peels Kristi’s fingers off her arm) I have work to do.

Kristi: Alright, alright – we’ll do it your way—Please tell our readers what you do for a living.

Frédérique Renaut: I worked for luxury brands for 15 years, and spent the past 10 of them also doing Artistic Direction and Digital retouching for beauty & fashion shoots, and I’m the Fashion and Beauty Director on http://www.BenjaminKanarekblog.com.

Kristi: And what exactly makes you suited to working for all these luxury brands… would you say you INSPIRE them?

Frédérique Renaut: I’d say it’s my adaptability, reactivity, overview and attention to detail. As Ludwig Mies van der Rohe would say “God is in the details”

Kristi: Does this detail driven God happen to be a family member of yours named… ZEUS?

Frédérique Renaut: (blank stare, starts to leave)

Kristi: OK, I won’t go there. Please tell us what qualities someone of your *persuasion* might need on the job, or were you…uh…born to do this?

Frédérique Renaut: I’m a perfectionist. I have convictions and fight for them. Nothing worse than being a yes-man when you work with creative people!

Kristi: Yes, YES!! You’re so right!  Wow, your life sounds like an odyssey full of excitement and adventure.

Frédérique Renaut: I guess it has been a bit of an odyssey. For 9 years, I was Media Director for the world for Issey Miyake, Jean Paul Gaultier and Narciso Rodriguez perfumes (BPI) an affiliate of Shiseido based in Paris and was responsible for the world-wide media strategy in all the traditional and new media concepts for the 3 brands.

Kristi: Did this lead to *what you do* today?

Frédérique Renaut: Yes, I know all about the corporate language and the problems advertisers face with social networking. Working with more than 50 countries, I dealt with managers from very diverse cultural backgrounds.

Kristi: What other positions stand out in your past—perhaps an elegant profile stance while strumming a lyre?

Frédérique Renaut: In the mid 90’s, I worked at Louis Féraud Communication Department for 3 years. It was a wonderful chance to work with one of the last Couturiers, still running his own Fashion House. I organized more than 8 Haute Couture press shows in Paris.

Kristi:      Glamorous and historical!

Frédérique Renaut: I also assisted Alexander McQueen for a short period of time when he was the Artistic Director at Givenchy.

Kristi: As his Muse?

Frédérique Renaut: No!! I was his translator, as he had to work with French teams from the “Givenchy ateliers”. A very creative and talented designer!

Kristi: (winks) I see… good cover.

Frédérique Renaut: (rolls eyes)

Kristi: Just imagine, inspiring –I mean *communicating* with people throughout the fashion world…what a valuable experience.

Frédérique Renaut: Valuable yes, but the most exiting part is to come. Social networking is fundamentally changing how people connect. Companies are not facing an evolution but a revolution that might leave some of them on the side of the road.

Kristi: Which is why I am here, pleading with you, the characters in my book are revolting.

Frédérique Renaut: Created them in your own image, heh?

Kristi: I mean they’re all running amok, they’ve left ME on the side of the road. You’ve got to help me!

Frédérique Renaut: For the last time, I can’t inspire you!! I switched to fashion and photography ages ago. Besides, another one of us does literature… but you’ll need a much bigger gift for her.

Kristi: I KNEW IT!! (does the Happy Grecian Urn interpretive dance and twirl)

Frédérique Renaut: As for me, I have an exclusive Muse-ition with Benjamin Kanarek now. (floats out of room)

Kristi: (calls after) Wait, what’s the other one’s name? Does she have a mobile phone?

Frédérique Renaut: (loud clap of thunder) Sorry Dad – I didn’t mean to tell her, but she wouldn’t shut up! (blinding lightening) You’re right – no one will believe that nut job anyway. (dulcet laughter)

Kristi: The Muse has spoken… as always, Frédérique Renaut, Thank You for Playing!

Kristi vs. the Kreativ Blogger Award

Kristi: Is my tiara on straight?

How Did You Get There: It’s MY tiara, and why are you wearing it without asking?

Kristi: (adjusts gold lame gown) Sally Clements nominated me for my 2^nd Kreativ Blogger Award!

How Did You Get There: I believe she nominated ME!

Kristi: (practices surprised smile) Her blog is Love and Chocolate—with a name like that you can only imagine how much fun it is!

How Did You Get There: I know, but it’s MY friend so I should receive the Award.

Kristi: Right – like last time, when you let the Award get drunk on the couch? This time I’m ready with my list of “7 Little Known Facts” you’re going to reveal about me.

How Did You Get There: About you?! But–I’m the blog!

Kristi: (unrolls gold edged paper) Shut up and listen. I’ll read them as soon as the Award arrives—is the whiskey locked up?

How Did You Get There: Yes.

Kristi: (clears throat) #1 I was born and raised in Texas, but have also lived in Rochester, NY; Boston, Paris and now Dublin.

How Did You Get There: (under breath) #1 Obnoxious Braggart.

Kristi: What did you say?

How Did You Get There: (unlocks whiskey cabinet, pours shot) Nothing.

Kristi: #2 At the tender age of 4, no – 2, it sounds better – I wanted to be Shirley Temple and sang ‘On the Good Ship Lollypop’ for my parents…daily.

How Did You Get There: (drinks) #2 Extremely annoying as a child.

Kristi: What are you muttering about?

How Did You Get There: (pours 2^nd shot) Just writing down what you said, for journalistic accuracy…

Kristi: Right! (beams in self admiration) #3 I was painfully shy growing up.

How Did You Get There: (sloshes back drink) #3 Thankfully parents had a few quiet years.

Kristi: #4 Had lead in High School Musical: Bye, Bye Birdie.

How Did You Get There: #4 Even more annoying as a teenager.

Kristi: #5 Was unofficially voted by the tenor and baritone sections of the University of Texas choir, as having the Best Butt. Get it? They stood behind the soprano and mezzo-soprano sections!

How Did You Get There: Oh, I get it. (mutters) #5 Had biggest Butt in choir, all the guys said so.

Kristi: Maybe I shouldn’t say that last one…it sounds like I’m bragging.

How Did You Get There: (drinks 3^rd shot, giggles) Oh, Pshaw!

Kristi: #6 Family legend has it that a distant relative on my mother’s side held the horses for the James Gang once during a robbery.

How Did You Get There: #6 Blah blah blah

Kristi: #7 I love dogs.

How Did You Get There: #7 I love my blog – it’s the greatest thing that’s ever happened to me…*kiss* kiss* kiss*

Kristi: What are you doing over there?

(doorbell)

How Did You Get There: (runs to door, holding empty bottle) Hey there big guy! Common in, wanna drinkie-poo?

Kreativ Blogger Award: No, thanks. I don’t drink any more, and it looks like you shouldn’t either. Say, I know a really great 12-Step group—you wanna go?

How Did You Get There: A party? I’m there!

(both hop into hot pink mini, drive off into orange and purple sunset)

Kristi: (runs after them, waving list) But you forgot my list!

How Did You Get There: (shouts back) Don’t worry – I gotcha covered!

Kristi: And now to nominate a cyberspace friend, whose blog I enjoy:

Mariblaser: Randomities for her lovely thoughts and musings on a wide variety of topics, anything from the meaning of Steampunk, which I never realized I was a fan of, to stunning photos from National Geographic.

Here are the rules, Mariana:

1- Thank the person who awarded you

2- Copy the logo and paste it on your blog

3- Link to the person who nominated you for the award

4- Name up to 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting

5- Nominate another Kreativ Blogger to pass the award to

6- Post links to the blog you nominate

7- Leave a comment on the blog to let them know they’ve been nominated

Interview with John Trimble, Tango Bandit

Just when you think you know a person they reveal something shocking.  But don’t worry, readers, I’ve held my ground with some tough characters — you  may recall my interview with True Crime Writer Niamh “Bugsy” O’Connor– I was not about to shrink away from this one…

Oh, he was cunning at first, fast on his feet…Take a look!

Kristi: Welcome to How Did You Get There, I understand you work with the Dallas Symphony?

John Trimble:            Why, yes, Kristi. I’m a data analyst, prospect researcher and IT liaison for the Dallas Symphony’s Development Department.

Kristi: A Development Department for liaising with “It”? “It” must be important. Can you elaborate?

John Trimble: Development is a polite word for Fundraising that’s obsessed with saying ‘Thank you’.

Kristi: You’re welcome.

John Trimble: For what?

Kristi: You just said Thank you.

John Trimble: I did? Sorry, habit.

Kristi: What would an ordinary day be for you.

John Trimble: My days consist principally of setting up the business practices and software so we can track fundraising efforts. Then I find out more from outside sources so I can report things like, So-n-So gave a million $$ to the Opera, but only $5 to the Symphony, and his carriage will be passing through Sherwood Forest in a fortnight.

Kristi: Oh! I know a Free-Lancer if you need help with that.

John Trimble: Thanks, but we’ve got it covered.

Kristi: You’re welcome.

John Trimble: For what?

Kristi: You just said—never mind. How long have you done this?

John Trimble: IT consulting 9 years, Dallas Symphony almost 3 years, Teaching Argentine Tango 11 years.

Kristi: Argentine Tango? Is that the “It” you’ve been referring to?!

John Trimble: Um…

Kristi: You mean YOU’RE the TANGO BANDIT!

John Trimble: The what?

Kristi: Not “What” Señor — “It”  Short for BAND-IT! (locks John’s eyes with dramatic stare)

John Trimble: I’ve never even heard of the Tango Bandit.

Kristi: It’s in all the papers.

John Trimble: I haven’t read it.

Kristi: Well…you will, after I tell them.

John Trimble: Wha—why would you do that?

Kristi: (nose-to-nose) I don’t make the rules, Señor, only enforce them. I will stick to you like glue– I’m your worst nightmare!

John Trimble:  (backing off) I’m starting to see that.

Kristi: So how did you become this Tango Bandit?

John Trimble: Gosh…I can’t remember…I never knew I was one until now…

Kristi: Leave it to me to uncover the hot scoop! (does Happy dance)

John Trimble: … I have had some rather unusual jobs…

Kristi: Start from the beginning, I’ll get to the bottom of this.

John Trimble: You will? I’d appreciate that.

Kristi: There has to be a reason for this Bandit behavior, perhaps a deep-seated psychological illness—especially since you don’t remember any of it.

John Trimble: (looks pale)

Kristi: You look like a decent guy. I won’t let ‘em take you to jail. We’ll shoot for the nut house.

John Trimble: (takes a seat) Well, I got my first job when I was 14 years old, on the opening day of the second ever Taco Bell in Texas. I paid for my high school band trip. We marched in Richard Nixon’s 2^nd inauguration parade.

Kristi: Hard working kid. I didn’t know Taco Bell hired that young?

John Trimble: (face falls) I lied. I told them I was 16.

Kristi: Lying and Nixon worship…that’s where it starts…

John Trimble: (wipes sweat from brow) It wasn’t like that! Besides, the owner/manager who hired me eventually sold the chain for millions of dollars, due almost entirely to the hard work of his early hire minimum wage employees, who received none of his eventual profits.  How well I recall his nightly phone calls to find out how much money we’d made for him on any given day!

Kristi: Robin Hood had a beef with that same thing, as I recall… was he one of your idols, John!? You did mention Sherwood Forest!!

John Trimble: (calculates how many traveling dance steps to nearest exit) Did I?

Kristi: Continue…

John Trimble: Oh – here’s a good one. I worked as a birthday party Clown, when I was younger. That’s where I learned to dress for success.   (ba-DUM-bum, jazz hands)

Kristi: You think this is funny, Clown? Just keep joking. I’m trying to help you here!

John Trimble: I know, thanks.

Kristi: You’re welcome.

John Trimble: For what?

Kristi: (dead stare)

John Trimble: Ok, let’s see…I worked in drug stores, too, during school. I learned the chemical names of common over the counter drugs, which saved me tons of money in brand name mark ups over the years.

Kristi: Drugs, too? Not helping, John. Work with me!

John Trimble: I worked a couple of summers as an oil field roughneck during college.

Kristi: Good! Honest, hard working stiff. What came of it?

John Trimble:  I learned to cuss– which allows me to entertain my clients while I repair their computers. I think it may have a beneficial effect on the computers, too.

Kristi: Hmmm, might be able to use that as a defense, since it applies to your DAY job…we’ll see. Keep going.

John Trimble: I was a VISTA volunteer after college where I learned I’m not the only one who struggles. Then I was an attorney’s assistant, which put me off the plans I’d held to attend law school.

Kristi: Good, good…

John Trimble: Then I made furniture for many years (and enjoyed it for the first few) but more than that I took advantage of the “freedom” of owning a business which allowed me to try my hand at things like drumming and journalism.

Kristi: Drumming and furniture making sound good, but journalism…that’s iffy, we might leave that one out.

John Trimble: I had a creative job at a Children’s Museum where I learned a lot, had health insurance and enjoyed a lot of collegiality with colleagues and schedule flexibility—

Kristi: Excellent!

John Trimble: –but it was taken over by a more enterprising operation that killed everything we all loved about the dear old place.

Kristi: Darn. That must’ve fueled your pesky resentment build-up.

John Trimble: Then I helped set up an endowments department at a university before ending up here at the Symphony combining IT, data analysis and prospect research.

Kristi: Which is where you’ll have your final curtain call, Señor Tango Bandito…I hope you’ve learned something from this.

John Trimble: The experiences I value most haven’t been job related–though I certainly value the experience of having a roof over my head and money to pay the bills, and have enjoyed some aspect of almost every job I’ve ever held.  I’m sure the dumpster behind my life is full of other people’s treasures.

Kristi: That’s what I’m worried about!

John Trimble: What I mean is– things that looked like mistakes to me might appear as successes to people who have trouble taking risks.

Kristi: Would you stop mentioning your risky lifestyle?  And as always, Señor — Thank You for Playing!!

Interview with Laura Jane Cassidy

My next Guest Star is as sweet as an angel.

But I wasn’t about to let that bother me– I can get the nicest of people riled up in no time.

Her blog is as cool as Cannes. No problemo, pas de problème–I can rock with the hip scene. Yeah, Baby!

Just one last thing, though… She’s young.  Really young. Barely-out-of-college-but-still-looks-like-a-teenager young. That was almost a deal breaker.

Being the hard core, professional interviewer that I am, I pulled myself up by my black stiletto-heeled, thigh-high boot straps and met fire with fire. If you can’t beat ‘em join ‘em..is yet another in a string of clichés I’m using this episode (making my tally 7, so far?).

I think I pulled the “young” thing off pretty well, see what you think…

Kristi: Hi Laura, Welcome to How Did You Get There. Please tell us what you do for a living?

Laura Cassidy:         I write teenage fiction.

Kristi:             OMG!!! That’s, like, so COOL!!!

Laura Cassidy:         Thanks.

Kristi:             And I know cool when I see it, as you may have noticed from my outfit. Giorgio! (flags waiter to get her toy poodle a drink. Giorgio—whose real name is Dermot—rolls his eyes)

Laura:            (smiles, speechless, thinking Kristi’s metallic-pink Wet Look leggings and black leather jacket would be perfect for a villainess in a trashy romance novel.)

Kristi: Sooooo, tell me what you’re writing. Is it, like, a book or something? (blows a big bubble with watermelon flavored gum)

Laura Cassidy: (flinches from loud popping sound) Actually, yes. My first novel.

Kristi:             A novel? That’s like Big Time. What’s it called?

Laura Cassidy:         Angel Kiss. It will be published by Puffin Ireland in early 2011.

Kristi:             Actually, that is a great title— er , I mean—RAD title. I dig it like dirt. Sooooo , what’s it about?

Laura Cassidy:  (eyeing nearest exit) It’s about Jacki King, a fifteen year-old who is adjusting to her new life in a small Irish village.  She misses Dublin city but starts to make new friends: artistic Colin, feisty Emily – and Nick, gorgeous but unavailable.  But just as Jacki is settling in she starts to suffer from recurring nightmares and frightening visions. She refuses to believe that anything paranormal could be happening, but then she hears about the unsolved murder that occurred in the village, thirty-two years before…

Kristi: Recurring nightmares…paranormal goings on? We love that kind of thing, don’t we Prince? (Kristi strokes her toy poodle, who’s drinking out of Laura’s glass) I call him Prince Dracula.

Laura Cassidy:         Oh.  (wondering if the bathroom has a window she can escape from)

Kristi:             How long have you been writing?

Laura Cassidy:         I’ve been writing full-time for three years now.  Before that I hadn’t really written any sort of fiction since primary school.  I got a bit of a shock a few weeks ago when I reached for my Writers and Artists Yearbook to check something and noticed the year on the front.  I had forgotten I had been serious about this for so long.

Kristi: Thirty years…wow that is a long time. I remember what I was doing thirty years ago.  I was…er….still in my baby crib, newborn. I remember it well.

Laura Cassidy:         Three years.

Kristi:                         What?

Laura Cassidy:         I said, I started writing THREE years ago.

Kristi:             THREE years ago. Exactly. That’s what I said—what did you think I said?! Is your hearing starting to go already?

Laura Cassidy:         (Smiles politely)

Kristi: Just kidding! I would never put your premature hearing loss in the interview—but you really should have that checked.  Next question: what do you like most about being a writer?

Laura Cassidy:         I love going to bed at night really looking forward to starting work in the morning.  I think that is one of the best things ever.  I spent many years dreading getting up and dragging myself to school/college/work so I really appreciate being able to write everyday.  It can be very tiring and frustrating at times but I love it so much that I don’t mind.

Kristi:             Well, you’re not as young as you used to be. Maybe that’s why you’re tired? Have you thought of taking vitamin supplements? They work wonders…or so my OLDER friends tell me.

Laura Cassidy:         I hadn’t thought of that. (stands, looks towards the lady’s room) If you’ll excu—

Kristi: What quality do you feel makes you particularly suited to being a writer?

Laura Cassidy:         (sinks back into chair) I think the fact that I have a quiet personality makes me suited to being a writer.  It’s not essential but it helps.  I spend a lot of time observing other people and I don’t mind spending very long hours in my own company.

Kristi:             Getting older can be lonely. (patting Laura’s hand)

Laura Cassidy:         Then again, writing has actually made me more outgoing.  Now when I go out I am much more likely to strike up conversations with new people, because I spend so much time working by myself.

Kristi:             That’s the spirit, I admire how you maintain your zest for life, at your age. Is that innate or is it the wisdom of your years?

Laura Cassidy:         I’ve always had this sort of personality and haven’t always loved it but turns out it can be useful… To silently observe people, as a character study… (gives Kristi deadpan stare)

Kristi:                         Where did you work immediately before this?

Laura Cassidy:         I worked in a library for two summers while in college.  I was in heaven.  Being surrounded by books all day was almost as good as writing them.  I read a lot of books during those summers that I would never have picked up in a bookshop.  Libraries are ideal for exploring different genres and stepping out of your reading comfort zone.

Kristi: Did this lead directly to being an author?

Laura Cassidy:         Not really.  I had an idea for a book and was in college at the time but didn’t feel like it was the right place for me.  I had always wanted to be an actress and I was studying Drama but suddenly I felt like I was headed in the wrong direction.  I deferred my place and decided to really go for it with the book.

Kristi: How did you end up where you are?

Laura Cassidy:         I knew nothing about the publishing world before I started writing.  I was soon to find out that writing the book was actually the easiest part of the process.  I sent out query letters for a year and a half.  That’s a long time to be constantly checking your email.  I found it very difficult.  I got numerous rejections, but then came the wonderful day when Faith O’Grady said she really liked my book and agreed to be my agent.

Kristi: That’s terrific– Congratulations!! Any other help or inspiration along the way?

Laura Cassidy:         I certainly wouldn’t be where I am if it weren’t for my parents.  They really supported and believed in me and encouraged me to write.  The original plan was to be an actress, but I like writing even better than acting because I get to create my own characters.   When I was in fourth class (4^th grade for you Americans) my teacher told me my stories were great and said she would be looking out for my books on the shelves in a few years.  So I like to think I’ve ended up where I’m supposed to be.

Kristi: I’m certain your (future) readers are grateful for that. Any memorable jobs other than writing?

Laura Cassidy:         I have had a few jobs but none were as traumatic as when I worked in a shoe shop for four hours.  On the wall there was a chart that showed everyone’s shoe-selling progress.  There were gold stars for the best employees and black marks for those who didn’t meet their targets.  I was a terrible saleswoman.  I was supposed to try and sell shoe polish with every pair but failed miserably.  The manager ran the operation like a dictatorship and I was terrified of her.  I quit after my first shift.  I’ve had other lovely jobs but I still have nightmares about that one.

Kristi: If you had to fail at something I suppose that’s a good choice.

Laura Cassidy:         Yes, and I learned to appreciate every other job I have ever had!

Kristi:             I certainly appreciate your Guest Starring on How Did You Get There, Laura, it has been a real pleasure, and as always, Thank You for Playing!