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Is it easy to get a book published?
Not for me. Just about every one of my books has been rejected, some 15 or 20 times. My rule is, if three different editors turn the book down, I read it carefully to see what needs to be fixed. And I fix it and try again.

How long does it take you to write a book?
From the first glimmering of an idea (in the form of a character), through the thinking, the research, the first draft, and the rewrites, figure on 3 to 5 years.

Isn't it boring working on one book for so long?
I'm usually researching one book, writing another, and revising a third all around the same time. That keeps me from going nuts with boredom.

Do you write on a computer?
I write every scene really fast, with a nice pointy pen on the back of used paper. Then I start slowly revising the scene as I type it into my Mac.

So, do you revise a lot?
You decide: does 10 or 15 revisions for each book seem like a lot to you?

Do you like the covers of your books?
Usually not, but I have nothing to do with what goes on the outside of the book.

Are there mistakes in your books?
There's a big mistake in just about every book of mine, even after careful research and editing. I try not to blush or turn snarly when someone points these errors out to me.

What's your favorite book?
That I wrote? I couldn't possibly pick a favorite. That someone else wrote? I'll give you a few kids' books I love. For middle-grade readers, Jerry Spinelli's Maniac Magee, Lois Lowry's The Giver, Gennifer Choldenko's Al Capone Does My Shirts, Christopher Paul Curtis' Bud, Not Buddy, and Sarah Weeks' So B. It. For older readers: Rob Thomas' Rats Saw God, Deb Caletti's Honey, Baby, Sweetheart, Pete Hautman's Godless and all of Robert Cormier's books. My favorite adult novel is Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck.

What are some of your other favorite things?
Colors/blue. Foods/avocados and enchiladas. People/my family. Animals/pigs. Cars/anything that starts on a winter morning.

What do you do in your spare time?
What spare time? I'm on a bunch of civic boards, hit about 20 schools a year, visit my sons and their families around the country,and occasionally fly to fascinating places like China. All the while, I read and do lots of research. In my spare time, I write books!

Do you ever write about people you know?
I try not to, because I don't want to embarrass anyone, or be stuck writing about what really happened. It's more fun to make things up.

Hey, can you put me in a book?
You'll probably recognize yourself in one of my stories, but you'll have a different name.

Is writing a lonely job?
Certainly not! I've got intriguing people trotting around in my head, and I can make them do anything I want, but only for a while. Eventually they take on a life of their own and they lead me down unexplored trails.

What are you writing now?
I never talk about works in progress, because if you say too much about them, they evaporate into mist.

What advice would you give young writers?
Read everything, from cereal boxes to Dr. Seuss to War and Peace. Read out loud to hear how words sound, how they feel rolling around on your tongue and not just on the back of your eyelids. Spy on conversations. Feed your curiosity. Ask "why?" and "what if?" Keep a journal. Jot down fascinating tidbits, what the writer Joan Didion calls "bits of the mind's string too short to use." Use them. Don't censor your work as you write. Write down your first thoughts fast, without worrying about spelling or grammar or punctuation. Then go back and fix it all up carefully. Let somebody you trust give you feedback. Most important: write and write and write . . .