Interview with Mindi Scott (Live Through This Blog Tour)

Today we have Mindi Scott here for an author interview! This post is part of The Teen Book Scene's blog tour for Live Through This by Mindi Scott. You can find out all about the tour here. 

1. I loved your debut, Freefall! How, would you say, does Live Through This compare - are the two books similar in style or more different? How was the writing process different for your sophomore novel?

Thank you! I think these books will attract a similar, but not necessarily identical audience. Different narrators call for different things style-wise, and the main characters in these books are about as different from each other as two people can be. Interestingly, Seth in Freefall was kind of a loner with a prickly persona at school, but he was overall pretty confessional and willing to clue readers in to his every thought. Coley in Live Through This is a girl with a very bubbly persona at school, but I think she is less “chatty” with readers. Of course, that makes sense given that she is always keeping secrets, even from herself. 

The writing process for writing my sophomore novel was very different from the first. I spent a year and half (somewhat) leisurely writing and revising Freefall. But Live Through This sold on proposal, which meant that my agent submitted only a detailed outline and around 40 pages to the publisher. After that, I had basically four months to write the entire draft. (I did get more time for revising and adding scenes later, of course.) It was frenzied and the deadlines weren’t as comfortable as I was used to. Between my day job and writing/revising my second book, I worked almost non-stop from January 2, 2011 to November 20, 2011.

2. Without spoiling anything, could you tell is what was your favorite scene to write in Live Through This?

This might sound weird, but all of my favorite scenes to write in this book were those containing the most devastating events. (The exception was Chapter 27; that was my absolute least favorite chapter to write ever in my life so far.) It isn’t that I get enjoyment from making my characters suffer, but emotion and tension in writing just flow so easily for me.

3. What is the best writing advice you've ever received?

I guess it would have to the one about how first drafts don’t have to be perfect? I’m getting better about following that advice, but it’s still something that I struggle with.

4. I read that you wrote diaries throughout your teen years. How does that help or affect your writing today? 

My diaries are a big reason why I write for YA versus another fiction market. My teen diaries were detailed for a few years. Having easy access to them means that it’s impossible for me to forget what it felt like to be a teen.

5. Freefall's narrator is male while the one in Live Through This is female. Which point of view do you prefer to write?

This is hard. I think that I prefer male, for one reason: When I’m writing a guy, I can make sure that the voice and point of view always stay true to him. When I write a girl, it’s easier to let my own voice and perspective creep in.

Thanks for the great interview answers, Mindi!

Make sure to check out all the other stops of the tour, and keep your eye out for Live Through This, which has already been released. 

Live Through This by Mindi Scott
(Add to Goodreads | Purchase from Amazon)

Sometimes hiding the truth requires more than a lie . . . From the outside, Coley Sterling’s life seems pretty normal . . . whatever that means. It’s not perfect—her best friend is seriously mad at her and her dance team captains keep giving her a hard time—but Coley’s adorable, sweet crush Reece helps distract her from the annoying drama. Plus, she has a great family to fall back on—with a stepdad and mom who would stop at nothing to keep her and her siblings happy and safe.
But Coley has a lot of secrets. She won’t admit—not even to herself—that her almost-perfect life is her own carefully-crafted façade. That for years she’s been burying the shame and guilt over a relationship that crossed the line. Now, Coley and Reece are getting closer, and as Coley has the chance at her first real boyfriend, a decade’s worth of lies are on the verge of unraveling.