Hello, audience! **Carol Ann enters the studio in a chic casual outfit of olive green cargo pants and a cream colored cotton sweater with three quarter length sleeves** How is everyone today?
Fabulous, Carol Ann (The audience answers as one)
Glad to hear that! We're going to have fun today interviewing a Young Adult author whose first book is doing very well in the market. Kim Baccellia, please come on out!
Kim enters the studio waving to the audience. She's wearing tailored jeans, a v-neck red silk blouse, and a stylish jean jacket.
CAROL ANN: Welcome, Kim. From the sound of the applause, the audience is looking forward to learning a lot more about you. Please sit down and let's begin.
You've written a fantasy novel for young adults. Tell me a bit about the story and how you came to write it.
KIM: EARRINGS OF IXTUMEA is a fast paced fantasy featuring a young Latina who discovers ancient traditions in her family history that propel her to a magical civilization, where she struggles against evil forces that threaten her family, her heart, and her life.
One day, after reading the latest Junie B. Jones book to my first graders it hit me. Why couldn’t I write a book that had a Latina as a heroine? I found it ironic that here I was a sheltered English teacher reading a book on an Anglo heroine to mostly Latino children. So I practiced what I preached—I wrote the story.
CAROL ANN: That's fantastic! I've heard many different stories of how an author got started, but yours is classic. It takes a lot of guts to move forward with an idea like that and bring it to fruition. You are an inspiration. Have you written in any other genre, or do you have plans to do so in the future?
KIM: Yes. I’ve written poetry and a number of essays. My poem, MY FATHER, was in the poetry anthology, MIND MUTATIONS. My essay on the adoption of my son, FINALLY OUR TURN, was printed in Adoptive Families.
I’m currently working on a contemporary YA that deals with bipolar disorder in 1976. I also would love to write a historical romance based on the life of my Sicilian great-grandfather and the love of his life, my great-grandmother, Cipriana Acuna.
CAROL ANN: Wonderful. I'd be very interested in your novel on bipolar disorder. My grandson suffers from this and it is a very difficult disorder to understand. Hats off to you for tackling such a difficult subject. I see you wore jeans today, and they look fantastic, by the way. Are you a blue jeans or skirt kind of woman?
KIM: **laughs** I’m totally a jean chica.
CAROL ANN: Okay, now for an off the wall question. I like to keep my guests on their toes and give the audience a glimpse of your true personality. Question: If you learned a distant relative died leaving you the sole heir to an uninhabited South Seas Island, what would you do?
KIM: Ohmigosh, I’d move there! No questions asked! Can I take Antonio Banderas with me? Uh, maybe not!!
CAROL ANN: **claps and laughs** Nothing like having a wonderful dream! Okay, here's another. If you were at a writing convention, and you noticed an award wnner, who wins year after year after year, heading to the stage with her long gown stuck in her waistband, what would you do?
KIM: Do I know this writer personally? Ah, it depends. If she was someone from my writing group or local schmooze group, I’d get up and unstuck her gown.
CAROL ANN: **grin** So, then I have to assume that if you didn't know this woman personally, that you'd let her embarrass herself. **laugh** Glad we have gotten to know each other. Um, we are close now aren't we? **Kim just grins and raises her eyebrows** **Carol Ann hopes she never has this happen to her...um, well not the winning, but the dress stuck...well, you know what I mean** Seriously, Kim, if you had the opportunity to address the world via satellite, what would you say about yourself?
IKIM: have one wild imagination! No, seriously, I’m a serious writer who doesn’t like the word, no.
CAROL ANN: Love it! You have to develop that determination and go for it. How about collections? Do you collect anything?
KIM: I collect dolls. I love dolls of color. I also have the original Princess Di doll in her wedding gown. I put a copy of the newspaper announcing her death inside.
CAROL ANN: Oh, that's interesting...and touching. I remember the day of her death and watching the news and not wanting to believe it. That doll must be special.
KIM: Yes, she is.
CAROL ANN: Kim, who can make you laugh when you are feeling down?
KIM: My five-year-old. He’s at the age where even the simplest things, like dancing or running through the water sprinkler can be fun.
CAROL ANN: Children are truly a blessing. Through their eyes you can see a totally different world than when looking through our older jaded eyes. You are such an inspiration to me in so many ways. There are a lot of people in the audience who would like to take the chance and write the book of their heart, just as you did. Can you offer any advice to those who have a dream of writing, but are afraid they aren't good enough?
KIM: Be persistent. Don’t give up. Seize any opportunity that comes your way.
Be like that one contestant on AMERICAN IDOL who tried every season to get on. He didn’t let those rejections affect his dream. Finally, after five times, he made the cut.
CAROL ANN: Wise words, Kim. What are you currently working on? Can you share a bit?
KIM: Right now I’m finishing revisions on a YA paranormal called CROSSED OUT. Here’s a little taste of my novel:
Helping the dead to the other side sure sucks sometimes.
CAROL ANN: Oh, wow! What a teaser. I've never had anyone give me a one line hook that made me want to read the novel before. I'm sure the audience would like to learn more. Do you have a website where we can learn more about your books and how to purchase them?
KIM: My website is http://www.kim-baccellia.com/ The wonderful and talented SCBWI illustrator Liz Jones illustrated both my portrait and the jungle scene.
You can purchase my eBook at http://www.virtualtales.com/ and http://www.mobipocket.com/
Also check out my You Tube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rw9itX3KG3E
And my CafePress merchandise too!
CAROL ANN: Thanks, Kim. One last question, do you believe the pen is mightier than the sword? Why or why not?
KIM: This is a tough question. I wish all the current problems in the world could be taken care of with one touch on the keyboard.
The pen is very strong. I think of those in the countries that were ruled by the Taliban that refused to burn their books. Or the young girls and women that refused not to learn to read, even at the cost of their lives.
Books have always been a source of comfort to me, especially when growing up in an abusive home. With books I could leave the craziness and enter whole new worlds.
The pen is powerful. I hope that my words can be both a comfort and a sense of enjoyment to others.
KIM: My five-year-old. He’s at the age where even the simplest things, like dancing or running through the water sprinkler can be fun.
CAROL ANN: Children are truly a blessing. Through their eyes you can see a totally different world than when looking through our older jaded eyes. You are such an inspiration to me in so many ways. There are a lot of people in the audience who would like to take the chance and write the book of their heart, just as you did. Can you offer any advice to those who have a dream of writing, but are afraid they aren't good enough?
KIM: Be persistent. Don’t give up. Seize any opportunity that comes your way.
Be like that one contestant on AMERICAN IDOL who tried every season to get on. He didn’t let those rejections affect his dream. Finally, after five times, he made the cut.
CAROL ANN: Wise words, Kim. What are you currently working on? Can you share a bit?
KIM: Right now I’m finishing revisions on a YA paranormal called CROSSED OUT. Here’s a little taste of my novel:
Helping the dead to the other side sure sucks sometimes.
CAROL ANN: Oh, wow! What a teaser. I've never had anyone give me a one line hook that made me want to read the novel before. I'm sure the audience would like to learn more. Do you have a website where we can learn more about your books and how to purchase them?
KIM: My website is http://www.kim-baccellia.com/ The wonderful and talented SCBWI illustrator Liz Jones illustrated both my portrait and the jungle scene.
You can purchase my eBook at http://www.virtualtales.com/ and http://www.mobipocket.com/
Also check out my You Tube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rw9itX3KG3E
And my CafePress merchandise too!
CAROL ANN: Thanks, Kim. One last question, do you believe the pen is mightier than the sword? Why or why not?
KIM: This is a tough question. I wish all the current problems in the world could be taken care of with one touch on the keyboard.
The pen is very strong. I think of those in the countries that were ruled by the Taliban that refused to burn their books. Or the young girls and women that refused not to learn to read, even at the cost of their lives.
Books have always been a source of comfort to me, especially when growing up in an abusive home. With books I could leave the craziness and enter whole new worlds.
The pen is powerful. I hope that my words can be both a comfort and a sense of enjoyment to others.
CAROL ANN: **Kim and Carol Ann share a hug** Thank you for being with us today. I've truly enjoyed out time together and getting to know you. **Carol Ann turns to the audience** I recommend you check out Kim's website and if you have a young adult, why not purchase EARRINGS OF IXTUMEA as a gift.
Til next time...
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