Awesome Authors: Lisa McMann

We are sooooo lucky to have Lisa McMann with us today! She is the author of the New York Times bestseller WAKE. Its upcoming sequel, FADE, arrives in February 2009 and the third book in the series, GONE, is slated for spring 2010. WAKE is a YALSA BBYA nominee and a Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adults. You can find Lisa on Myspace, Facebook, Goodreads, Shelfari, Twitter, and http://lisamcmann.com.

Blogs are a central part of the Bradford Novels universe. If you have a blog, why did you start blogging, and how did you come up with the name for your blog?
I started blogging several years ago as a way to tell funny stories about my family and general observations about life and writing. I had a small following of online friends and I used a pseudonym. A few years ago, I put that blog to rest and went "professional" with my blog. I called it Five Point Five, because I had a formula that said something like, if you write 5.5 words a minute for 5.5 hours a day, you'll end up with a 70,000-word novel in 5.5 weeks. Something like that, anyway. Now, my blog is simply my name, or WAKE, or something—I keep changing it.

What's your favorite thing about blogging?
I totally love the new button options after each post where people can check a "reaction" button. I usually have a "Cabe is so hott!!" option, and that one always gets the most votes, no matter what the post is about.

What's the difference between a blog and a diary?
A blog is so, like, OUT THERE. Public. I would never blog about my secrets. A diary is private. Sometimes a diary is just what's written in your thoughts.

GoldenGirl is full of scandals and exposed secrets. What was the biggest scandal at your high school? Did your classmates discover any of your deep, dark secrets?
I went to a private, Christian high school. People sent their kids there because they thought that would keep them away from drugs and stuff. SO not the case. There were major parties always going on. I didn't really go, though. I was sort of nerdy. And I was pretty private. I just collected everybody else's secrets so I could write them into stories. Muahahaha.

What are your most recent books? What new projects are you working on now?
The WAKE trilogy. Book 2, FADE, comes out this month (Feb) and continues the story of Janie and Cabe. I just finished writing GONE (Book 3), and that is in the editing stages—it is scheduled for spring 2010. I'm not yet sure what my next project will be, but I have a few ideas and I'll be announcing that on my blog as soon as I am able.