Joan Bauer

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did you decide to become a writer?	I've always loved words and stories. My grandmother was a wonderful storyteller and my mother was a high school English teacher, so stories, reading, and writing were anchors to me as a child. Stories have always helped me to understand life. When I'm writing a story, I'm really exploring how I feel about the world. I'm working things out in fiction and metaphor--things that I believe to be true.
What do you have to do to become a writer?	Write, revise, keep getting better, and don't give up. Read constantly; learn what makes a good story and great characters. Understand yourself--what your strengths are in writing as well as your weaknesses. Write regularly. Write when you feel like it and when you don't. Find trusted people who can give you feedback on your work. Learn to take criticism--that's a hard one. I think it's good to join a writers group early on because writing isn't just solitary; there's a part, an important part, when you have to share your work with others. Understand that writing is a process--your first drafts aren't usually your best work--so be willing to put the time in to get a story right.
Where do you get your ideas?	Everywhere. I'm very visual, so I can see a photograph of something and get an idea. That happened with Squashed--I saw a photo of a teenage boy standing next to a huge pumpkin he grew and I thought, how do you grow one of those things? And why would someone want to do it? How and why are important questions to writers. My ideas also come from old and new parts of me--things I struggled with; things right now that upset me about the world; things I would like to see changed; things I love. I love food and have lots of it in my novels. I was a waitress in high school, and I wrote about those experiences in Hope Was Here. My parents were divorced when I was young, and I've used that in my stories. My dad was an alcoholic, and I incorporated that into Rules of the Road. My family and I vacation in the Adirondak Mountains, I used that in Backwater. I played pool when I was younger (pretty well, too)--I wrote about pool in Sticks. I remember the Vietnam War so well as a teenager--I wrote about Vietnam vets in Stand Tall. When I was younger, I desperately wanted to be popular--that went into Thwonk. I was overweight as a kid and always had big dreams--that was the basis for Squashed.
What is your favorite book of all the ones you've written?	Probably Stand Tall and Hope Was Here because they have the most number of characters I wish were really in the world. When I finished Stand Tall, I wept.
Do you have a favorite character?	Several stand out: Harry Bender in Rules of the Road, G.T. Stoop and Hope Yancey in Hope Was Here; Grandpa and Tree in Stand Tall. I'm also quite fond of Jonathon the cupid in Thwonk.
How do you get published?	That's different for everyone. After months of trying, I found an agent who really loved my first book and she submitted it to the Delacorte Prize for a First YA Novel. We had to wait nine months, but Squashed won and was published in October 1992.
Who is your favorite author?	I love so many different kinds of writers, but two of my favorite writers are named Annie--Annie Proulx and Annie Dillard. I also love P.G. Wodehouse's funny books and am a big fan of Garrison Keillor.
Did you have a favorite book as a child?	To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to write?	See my interview on writing for children. Click Here.
Have you ever started a book that you didn't finish?	No, thankfully. But I've started screenplays that I didn't finish. It's hard to let something go that you've worked on so long. I've learned that some ideas are for practice and others are meant to go the distance.
What are your hobbies?	Cooking, reading, and hiking. I like to ice skate, too, but I can't stop very well--I lurch and flail until I slow down--it's not very pretty, but I do have fun.
What's a typical writing day like for you?	That depends on what phase of the book I'm working on. In the early stage, I'm not writing at all, but researching my topic and themes, building characters, and taking notes. During the first draft, I'm working several hours in the morning trying to push through. I don't like first drafts and I tend to be crabby when I write them. If I'm revising (my favorite part), I can write for hours and hours. I try to write in the morning--that's the best time for me. I often read out loud what I've written so I can hear how the words sound.
Are you married? Do you have children?	I've been married to a wonderful man, Evan, for twenty-one years. He reads all my drafts and still loves me. He's a computer genius and he cooks. All my friends are jealous. I have one daughter, Jean, at college. She's a history genius and she cooks, too. I am surrounded by brainpower and excellent food.
Do you have any pets?	Not right now. My Keeshond, Gambit, died a few years ago--a total furball--forty pounds of gray and white fur. He was a combination of Steiglitz in Thwonk and Bradley in Stand Tall.
If you couldn't be a writer, what would you want to do?	I'd like to run a restaurant or a be a pastor. Maybe both. Food soothes the soul.
Not frequently asked, but my all-time favorite question--I was asked this by a twelve-year-old boy in California a few years ago. "If you were to describe yourself in one word, what would it be?"	I replied, "Overcomer."