Disclaimer: I have been a huge Barbara Dee fan since reading SOLVING ZOE (smart girl + theater geekery + puzzles + mystery = GoReadIt!) six years ago. Since then, I’ve discovered that Barbara is not only a marvelous middle-grade author but an altogether awesome person and champion of writer- and reader- and teacher-people. Don’t believe me? Check out her website where you’ll find one of my favorite AUTHOR FAQ entries ever:
So, I asked her…
Was there ever a time in your writing life where you obsessed more about your “CAREER” than the books you wanted to write?
BARBARA: I did. Around the time of my third book (THIS IS ME FROM NOW ON), I tried to develop my career by blogging in the cute, confessional manner of a very young author selling well at the time—and swiftly discovered that it wasn’t for me. I think that whether you’re writing a novel or a blog post, you have to be careful about looking over your shoulder at what others are doing, and stay true to yourself. It’s probably the only way to develop a career as a (sane, functioning!) published author.
Aladdin Gets ‘Halfway Normal’ with DeeBarbara Dee (Star-Crossed) sold North American rights to her latest middle-grade novel, Halfway Normal, to Alyson Heller at Simon & Schuster’s Aladdin imprint. The book, which was sold by Jill Grinberg at Jill Grinberg Literary Management, is slated for December 2017. It follows a seventh grader who is readjusting to life after two years of leukemia treatments. The publisher elaborated, saying, “Not wanting to be treated as Cancer Girl and fearing her classmates won’t understand, she refuses to share her experience—until an unexpected assignment from her English teacher gives her the perfect opportunity.”
