Melinda Long

Melinda Long is the best-selling author of HOW I BECAME A PIRATE and the more recent PIRATES DON’T CHANGE DIAPERS, both of which are illustrated by David Shannon. Melinda is also the author of Hiccup Snickup, illustrated by Thor Wickstrom (Simon & Schuster, 2001), and When Papa Snores, illustrated by Holly Meade (Simon & Schuster, 2000). She lives with her husband and two children in Greenville, South Carolina, where she is a middle school teacher.  For more info, check out www.melindalongbooks.com.

*Tell us a little about your process to initial publication. Have you always been a writer?
    I've been a writer since my mother convinced me to write a story back in the dark ages when I was six and bored.  I loved it right off the bat.  I started sending off pieces for publication right after I got married in 1984.  Shortly thereafter, I started collecting rejection slips.  12 short years later, I found an agent who liked my work and agreed to represent me.  He sold my first book, WHEN PAPA SNORES, to Simon and Schuster within weeks.  When he called me to tell me they were considering the book and would probably buy it, I started screaming.  I think my husband and kids thought I was having a stroke or something.

*How do you approach each book? Does it start with an idea, a phrase, an image? Do ideas come easy or do you really have to search for them?
 All of the above.  Sometimes it's just a catchy first line.  The ideas really do come easily.  Developing them into real stories is the real trick.

*Do you write to try to fit the market or do you follow your heart?
 First, I follow my heart. Then I find a way to make it fit the market.

*Tell us a little about your most recent book release (or the next one).
PIRATES DON'T CHANGE DIAPERS was released March 1st this year.  It's the companion book to HOW I BECAME A PIRATE.  In the story, Braid Beard and his crew return for the treasure they buried in Jeremy Jacob's back yard, but in the process they wake up his baby sister and end up having to babysit.  Since "pirates don't sit on babies" confusion pretty much takes over and Bonney Anne takes control.

*Whose work do you admire? Poetry? Picture books? Novels?
 Maurice Sendak, David Shannon, Judith Viorst, Madeline L'Engle, C.S.  Lewis, Lois Lowry,  Robin McKinley, Dean Koontz,  This list could take pages so I'll stop now.

*How do you help to market your books?
 I do an awful lot of signings and school visits.

*What are the keys to maintaining a good relationship with your editor or agent?
I stay in touch and keep it friendly.  A sense of humor goes a long way.

*What do you enjoy doing when you're not writing best-selling picture books?
Acting, spending time with family, reading

*Any plans for a venture into writing other genres? Perhaps a novel?
I'm working on a young adult novel right now. It's a ghost story.  I  hope it will eventually hit the bookstores, but we never know about  these things until they happen.

*A list of your favorite things:

 Food: Mexican

Music: Rock

Film: Fantasy/Adventure

Place: home (Greenville, SC)

Holiday/Event: Christmas and then Halloween

Cartoon character: Spongebob

Sport: Basketball