Todd Strasser Interview

Todd Strasser recently took the time to answer some questions for us.

THANK YOU, TODD!

From Book Slammer Barnabas: 

Q) What is the best part about writing realistic fiction? 

A) The feeling that I’m reaching an audience with something that I hope is not just entertaining, but informative, and persuasive as well.

Q) Are all of your characters at least loosely based off of real people? If not, how do you usually come up with original characters?  

A) I create the characters I need to tell a story. So most of the time they’re not based on real people. For instance, if I have a scene where I’m going to need a girl to jump over a really high fence, I might make her a high jumper on the track team.

Q) How much do you value realism in your works? For what reasons would you consider sacrificing some realism?  

A) Excellent question! I think a modest amount of realism has to be sacrificed in order to make a story grow more and more exciting and then reach a climax.

From Book Slam Moderator Vikki:

Q) Do you have a (good, bad or ugly) library memory from your teen years?  

A) Ha! Good memories. It was a safe and interesting place to be.

Q) What kinds of books did you love most as a teen?  

A) As an early teen I loved James Bond. Then I got into some of the more serious spy novelists like John LeCarre. Later I started to read Kerouac and that ilk.

Q) What’s the best movie you’ve seen in 2015?  

A)Hmm. I’m a bit behind, but right now it’s a tossup between Ex Machina and Inside Out

Q) When did you know you wanted to be a writer?  

A) When I was around 20 and constantly, almost compulsively writing.

Q) What do you say to teens who want to be published writers? 

A) Write a lot, read a lot, and prepare to suffer ;-)

Q) What prompted you to write No Place?  How did you research this book and Can’t Get There from Here?   

A) Middle class homelessness is a real problem in this country, and one that affects teens. I wrote No Place to let teens know it exists, as I suspect many are not aware, and to let those who are homeless know that they are not alone. Most of the research for both books was done on the internet, from news articles, magazines, and books. For Can’t Get There I also spoke to homeless teens living in NYC.

Q) What has the response been to No Place?  Are readers surprised by the prevalence of family homelessness, especially since the Great Recession?  

A) Perhaps not surprisingly, No Place has been the most popular in places where there was until recently, or still is, a problem. 

For more about Todd and his many excellent books for teens, visit his website: http://www.toddstrasser.com/