| Interview with Ally Carter |
First off, thanks so much for joining us for an up-close and personal interview for TeensReadToo.com! My name
is Jen, and I’ll be your server toda…oh, wait, wrong job! Anyway, thanks so much for taking time out of your
writing schedule—which I’m sure is busy!—and answering a few questions for your readers and fans.
Let’s get some of the typical interview questions out of the way first. When did you first know that you wanted to
be a writer?
Oh boy. That’s a really good question, because I really don’t know. The first thing I ever remember writing was a
short story in the fifth grade, but I didn’t really write anything else (other than typical school stuff) until I was in
college. Even then, I had the most non-literary major in the world!
Can you tell us a little bit about your road to publishing?
In college I started writing screenplays because I loved movies. It wasn’t until after I got out of school and got a
“real” job that I decided to try writing a book. Well, that first book has never been published, but it did help me
get an agent. The rest, as they say, is history!
Tell us a little bit about either your latest or upcoming release. If you could only tell your readers one thing
about the story that had to convince us to buy the book, what would it be?
It’s like Hogwarts for spies!
Seriously. It’s about a boarding school where girl geniuses train to become spies and what happens when one
of the girls falls for a regular boy who can never know the truth about her. It was soooo much fun to write—
especially when you consider that most girls with crushes are spies—this one just has the training to back it up.
What, or who, has been the greatest inspiration for your stories?
I have the best family in the world, so they’re always inspiring me. I grew up in a rural area where everyone is
very supportive, and most of my characters are shaped by that in some way.
Let’s hear about your family, who I’m sure are thrilled to have a published author among them!
Oh yeah, especially my mom who was my senior English teacher. She’s beside herself, taking all the credit (and
she deserves it!)
Now for some fun facts. What’s your greatest comfort food?
I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have To Kill You had a really quick turnaround, so it was a very, very
stressful process. I spent a lot of long nights with nothing but a box of those little mini chocolate donuts for
company.
What are the first three things you do when you wake up in the morning?
Turn off alarm clock number one.
Turn off alarm clock number two.
Go back to bed.
If I came to your house and looked in your closet/attic/basement, what’s the one thing that would surprise me the
most?
You’d probably be shocked that I have as many clothes as I do—especially since none of them fit me anymore
(to find out why, see the above chocolate donut reference).
Everyone asks the question about “if you could be a tree, which tree would you be?” so I want to know: If you
could be a color, which color would it be, and why?
I’ve always loved the color green because it’s everywhere in nature. I grew up on a farm, so green is a sign that
things are going well. It brings a lot of comfort to a lot of people—and that’s what I’d want to do.
Who is your favorite cartoon character? Which cartoon character is most like you?
Remember the Smurfs? I was Smurfs-crazy as a kid, so I guess I’ve got to say Smurffette, which makes a lot of
sense now that I think about it, because I have way more guy friends than girl friends.
If you could beam yourself to anywhere in the world (“Beam me up, Scotty!"), during any time in history, where
and when would it be—and why?
Well, I’d love to be interesting and sound exotic, but I’m too much of a wimp to go anywhere without running water
and diet Coke, so I think I’d go back to when I was little and maybe plant some words of advice in my own ear
(like: Google stock, buy Google stock.)
So what’s your favorite type of music to listen to? Favorite musical artists? Do you listen to music while you’re
writing?
I really like music (I’ve been singing The Veronicas’ 4Ever all day!), but I’m not a music junkie—don’t even own
an iPod. When I’m in the car (which is a lot!), I listen to books on tape. When I write, I try my best to tune out the
world.
Do you have any favorite T.V. shows? Movies you watch over and over again? What was the last movie you saw
at the theater?
I am a TV junkie. Seriously. There should be support groups and rehab programs for people like me.
My favorite shows are Veronica Mars, Prison Break, LOST, Gilmore Girls, and Grey’s Anatomy.
I love movies too and have seen 10 Things I Hate About You about a dozen times. The last movie I saw in the
theater was V for Vendetta.
You have the chance to give one piece of advice to your teen readers. What would it be?
Wear sunscreen and make good choices. Really. If you do those two things, you’ll set yourself up for a pretty
awesome life (with nice skin).
One last question. What stories can we look forward to from you in the future?
Well, I have two sequels in the works right now—one is called Learning to Play Gin, and it’s the sequel to
Cheating at Solitaire—my first book which is out right now.
Plus, there’s a sequel to I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You. I’m working on it right now, and I’d
love to tell you more, but everything (even the title) is TOP SECRET! Check in at AllyCarter.com sometime to
find out more.
Again, thanks so much for joining us at TeensReadToo.com!
is Jen, and I’ll be your server toda…oh, wait, wrong job! Anyway, thanks so much for taking time out of your
writing schedule—which I’m sure is busy!—and answering a few questions for your readers and fans.
Let’s get some of the typical interview questions out of the way first. When did you first know that you wanted to
be a writer?
Oh boy. That’s a really good question, because I really don’t know. The first thing I ever remember writing was a
short story in the fifth grade, but I didn’t really write anything else (other than typical school stuff) until I was in
college. Even then, I had the most non-literary major in the world!
Can you tell us a little bit about your road to publishing?
In college I started writing screenplays because I loved movies. It wasn’t until after I got out of school and got a
“real” job that I decided to try writing a book. Well, that first book has never been published, but it did help me
get an agent. The rest, as they say, is history!
Tell us a little bit about either your latest or upcoming release. If you could only tell your readers one thing
about the story that had to convince us to buy the book, what would it be?
It’s like Hogwarts for spies!
Seriously. It’s about a boarding school where girl geniuses train to become spies and what happens when one
of the girls falls for a regular boy who can never know the truth about her. It was soooo much fun to write—
especially when you consider that most girls with crushes are spies—this one just has the training to back it up.
What, or who, has been the greatest inspiration for your stories?
I have the best family in the world, so they’re always inspiring me. I grew up in a rural area where everyone is
very supportive, and most of my characters are shaped by that in some way.
Let’s hear about your family, who I’m sure are thrilled to have a published author among them!
Oh yeah, especially my mom who was my senior English teacher. She’s beside herself, taking all the credit (and
she deserves it!)
Now for some fun facts. What’s your greatest comfort food?
I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have To Kill You had a really quick turnaround, so it was a very, very
stressful process. I spent a lot of long nights with nothing but a box of those little mini chocolate donuts for
company.
What are the first three things you do when you wake up in the morning?
Turn off alarm clock number one.
Turn off alarm clock number two.
Go back to bed.
If I came to your house and looked in your closet/attic/basement, what’s the one thing that would surprise me the
most?
You’d probably be shocked that I have as many clothes as I do—especially since none of them fit me anymore
(to find out why, see the above chocolate donut reference).
Everyone asks the question about “if you could be a tree, which tree would you be?” so I want to know: If you
could be a color, which color would it be, and why?
I’ve always loved the color green because it’s everywhere in nature. I grew up on a farm, so green is a sign that
things are going well. It brings a lot of comfort to a lot of people—and that’s what I’d want to do.
Who is your favorite cartoon character? Which cartoon character is most like you?
Remember the Smurfs? I was Smurfs-crazy as a kid, so I guess I’ve got to say Smurffette, which makes a lot of
sense now that I think about it, because I have way more guy friends than girl friends.
If you could beam yourself to anywhere in the world (“Beam me up, Scotty!"), during any time in history, where
and when would it be—and why?
Well, I’d love to be interesting and sound exotic, but I’m too much of a wimp to go anywhere without running water
and diet Coke, so I think I’d go back to when I was little and maybe plant some words of advice in my own ear
(like: Google stock, buy Google stock.)
So what’s your favorite type of music to listen to? Favorite musical artists? Do you listen to music while you’re
writing?
I really like music (I’ve been singing The Veronicas’ 4Ever all day!), but I’m not a music junkie—don’t even own
an iPod. When I’m in the car (which is a lot!), I listen to books on tape. When I write, I try my best to tune out the
world.
Do you have any favorite T.V. shows? Movies you watch over and over again? What was the last movie you saw
at the theater?
I am a TV junkie. Seriously. There should be support groups and rehab programs for people like me.
My favorite shows are Veronica Mars, Prison Break, LOST, Gilmore Girls, and Grey’s Anatomy.
I love movies too and have seen 10 Things I Hate About You about a dozen times. The last movie I saw in the
theater was V for Vendetta.
You have the chance to give one piece of advice to your teen readers. What would it be?
Wear sunscreen and make good choices. Really. If you do those two things, you’ll set yourself up for a pretty
awesome life (with nice skin).
One last question. What stories can we look forward to from you in the future?
Well, I have two sequels in the works right now—one is called Learning to Play Gin, and it’s the sequel to
Cheating at Solitaire—my first book which is out right now.
Plus, there’s a sequel to I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You. I’m working on it right now, and I’d
love to tell you more, but everything (even the title) is TOP SECRET! Check in at AllyCarter.com sometime to
find out more.
Again, thanks so much for joining us at TeensReadToo.com!
