Pre-#LA12SCBWI Interview with Jarvis Braun

It's probably a great honor to get to chat with Jarvis Braun, senior editor at two HarperCollins imprints (Walden Pond Press and Balzer + Bray) and a speaker at the upcoming SCBWI Summer Conference. Here's my interview with him:

Jaime: Hello, Jarvis Braun! Thanks so much for agreeing to speak with me, but I only have a few minutes, though, before I need to interview someone more important. Are you going to get all high up on your grammar horse as an editor and edit this interview, Jarvis?

Jarvis: No, but my name is Jordan, not Jarvis. Jordan Brown.

Jaime: AHA! That makes more sense, I wondered why you weren't on the faculty list.  GUYS READ: THE SPORTS PAGES is out, edited by you, "Jordan Brown," and Jon Scieszka. Eating is sometimes a sport. Would you rather eat a tablespoon (no chaser allowed) of the hottest chili pepper powder known to man OR a tablespoon of Jon Scieszka's tears (100% sadness tears)?

Jarvis/Jordan: I’d probably go with a tablespoon of Scieszka’s tears.  Good luck collecting them, though.  I think the guy has only cried about six of them in his life thus far, total.  Dude is made of granite.  I saw someone give him an Indian burn for like ten seconds once – nuthin’.

Jaime: Not surprising, really, when you're that old, most of your nerves are dead. What is your favorite working snack?

Deborah Underwood: THE QUIET INTERVIEW Part 2 of 2 for Pre-#LA12SCBWI

Below is Part Two of my pre-conference interview with Deborah Underwood. If you know me, you'll know Part One of this interview was very hard to pull off as I'm terrible at being quiet, so thank heavens we can be loud for this half.

grabbed from her website, thank you!

Again, Deborah Underwood, author of award-winning picture books, nonfiction, and chapter books, let me ask her a few questions in preparation for the upcoming SCBWI Summer Conference. She's the coolest!

Jaime: Hi Deborah, you have a ton of fantastic, thoughtful interviews linked to at your site already, so I'd like to point readers there to learn more about you, but a few questions that haven't been covered are  below. #1: Do you have a favorite new writing tool?

Deborah: Does a tool that I got last year count as new? If so, my iPad. It's so nice not to have to lug my computer to a cafe if I want to write (I bring a small external keyboard along, too). If it needs to be newer, I bought a chocolate bar yesterday and I'm hoping the little bit that's left will fuel my writing tonight.

Jaime: The iPad counts, as does the chocolate! Speaking of writing, can you tell us what you are working on right now?

Deborah Underwood: THE QUIET INTERVIEW - Part 1 of 2 for Pre-#LA12SCBWI

OVERJOYED! To be interviewing the multi-talented Deborah Underwood.

From Deborah's site

Below is Part One of our interview. Deborah's keynote for the #LA12SCBWI conference is titled The Power of Quiet, so my questions were asked using different kinds of quiet, and Deborah responded in kind.

Jaime:                                                                                    ?


Deborah:                     


                   .

Jaime:                         !                                              
                         ?

Deborah:                


                         ;                                                   .

Jaime:                                     .                                                                               ?

Deborah:                              ?

Jaime:                    —                        ...?

Deborah:  "                                     "                          .

Jaime:                                !!!

Deborah:                  ! 

Check back soon for Part Two of my interview with Deborah, 

which was done at a much greater volume.

Pre-#LA12SCBWI Interview Roundup!

My favorite #kidlit event of the year is coming up, the SCBWI International Summer Conference in Los Angeles. We are so lucky to have this stupendous summer camp for adults, and every year, the faculty is top notch (except for those years when Jon Scieszka is around, those years I block out and don't know what notch to put them in).

I am not allowed to remember when this was taken,
but that's clearly evil shooting out of Scieszka's head and not the gently setting L.A. sun

But more on Jon's nefariousness later. Today, I want to make sure you are all reading the stellar pre-conference interviews being done by SCBWI Team Blog:

Martha Brockenbrough, author of DEVINE INTERVENTION, has already done two interviews, one with editor Arthur Levine, and one with conference keynoter Gary Schmidt. You'd have to be a real chump to ignore these links (and if you haven't read MONDAY IS ONE DAY or OKAY FOR NOW yet, you'd better!)

Saucy Suzanne Young, whose latest A WANT SO WICKED (the answer is not Twinkies) just released, has a lovely interview with editor Ari Lewin of G.P. Putnam's/Penguin.

And our fearless leeder, Lee Wind, interviews the dynamo Sonya Sones, author of WHAT MY MOTHER DOESN'T KNOW and other impeccable verse novels.

I've got some interviews coming up shortly, too!

Eastern WA/Northern ID Conference in September and Book Giveaway!

Fun news, friends!

I'm over the moon to be on the faculty of the 8th Annual Eastern Washington/Northern Idaho SCBWI Fall Conference, and though it doesn't happen until September 29th, Early Bird Registration (with a fabulous discount, details below) ends July 14th, so hurry and register to take advantage of this great deal.

Let me jump-start your dreams with FREE BOOKS!!!

Check out the sweet, sweet faculty:

Agent Jill Corcoran of the Herman Agency, who reps awesome authors like Martha Brockenbrough and Robin Mellom.

Editor Stacey Barney of Penguin/Putnam, who edits similarly awesome authors like Sara Wilson Etienne and Kristin Levine.

Author Kelly Milner Halls. It's a fact, her nonfiction books kick ass.

Fantastic fantasy writer Maureen McQuerry.

And me!

To make things even sweeter, if you plan on registering or have registered for this conference, leave a comment on this post by July 21st and you'll be entered to win the conference faculty prize pack of books pictured below:

That includes a copy of HATCHLINGS, DEVINE INTERVENTION, THE PECULIARS, HARBINGER, and the gigantor HOUSE OF FASHION DESIGN STUDIO activity kit and books. Leave a comment on this post by 7/21/12, winner will be chosen at random, I will mail all these books to you! Henry the VIII teapot on right not included. Paper mustaches on left also not included, though I will throw one in if you really need one.


Can't wait for September, and let me know if you plan on being there.