1) I have read and loved all of your books (as you know) starting with the first, Catching Jordan. In all of your past books there has been a sort of theme in them that is missing from your newest book Jesse’s Girl. What made you decide to focus on music instead of using sports this time around? Was it the characters that made you do it or did you just go in that direction organically?
I just really love listening to music and performing, and I’ve wanted to write a book about music for a while. For this book, the plot definitely came first and the characters second.
2) Maya is also a very different kind of character. She marches to the beat of her own drum and doesn’t fit in with what you would think of when you talk Nashville music scene. Why did you decide to make her style different than what was expected?
Maya loves 80’s music like Queen and Madonna. I made her this way because she and Jesse needed some friction between them when it comes to music (he loves country and the good ole boys). I love Queen and Madonna personally, so that is how Maya came to be. 🙂 Also, as you can see when reading the book, Maya’s ex-bandmates are very hoity-toity when it comes to music. They make fun of Maya for liking 80’s music, which is so lame and happens far too often in real life. With this book I want to show readers that they can listen to whatever they want.
3) Speaking of Maya, she is connected to a high profile character (and one of my personal favorites) from one of your other books. How do you decide what characters you will use from other books? How do you keep it all straight when you are writing?
Tough question! In some of my past books, I have briefly mentioned minor characters. I didn’t do this with the expectation they might become someone big later on. However, it has been nice to use those people briefly mentioned to create characters like Maya (Sam Henry’s younger sister) and Jeremiah (from Breathe, Annie, Breathe). To keep it all straight, sometimes I have to go back and read my past books, which makes me cringe! I just want to edit everything.
4) Let’s talk about Jesse. Poor misunderstood, lonely, adorable Jesse. What was your inspiration for him? How did you do you research for a musician?
I just sort of made Jesse up as I went along! In terms of research, I attended lots of music festivals, contests, and events when I was younger and I performed in a show choir that travelled all over the place, so I know what it’s like being onstage. Being from Tennessee, I’ve actually met several country stars, so I used those experiences to develop Jesse’s life and attitude. One time I met LeAnn Rimes in a Waffle House and she got mad at me for interrupting her eating hashbrowns. At the time, I was angry with her because she kind of snubbed me, but as I got older I realized she just wanted to eat, not talk to fans. Still, being a famous country star comes with having to deal with fans.
5) And as a practice when I interview an author I end with the same question. Since I’m also a clothing and accessory fanatic, what is the one clothing item or accessory you can’t live without (and no margaritas don’t count as an accessory. 😉 )?
C’mon, I can’t have even one margarita?? Fine, I can’t live without a Tory Burch tote to carry all my stuff around. Like my credit card, which I use to purchase margaritas. 🙂
A huge thanks to Miranda for stopping by and answering these. Jesse’s Girl is out in store on Tuesday July 7th. Make sure you check out my review HERE and enter to win one of Miranda’s books.
*click on the pictures for links to the source.
This was such a fun post! I have Racing Savannah somewhere at home in my TBR bookcase (it’s actually too many books to call a pile right now) but I’m also getting really, really excited about Jesse’s Girl!