I’ve received a few common questions lately, so I thought I would address some of those.

1. How do you come up with the names for your characters?
Well, the bad characters get the names of students and possibly distant family members who gave me grief or bad Christmas presents. Characters I like are sometimes named after friends, family I like, and names I get from peeking into Cabbage Patch boxes at Wal-Mart.

2. Do you listen to music when you write, and if so what kind?
Sure I do. It’s so inspirational for putting you right into the heart of a scene. And since I have some romantic elements in most of my books, that of course means I listen to a lot of…polka. For special moments I even break out the kazoo. (side note: I once worked in a school where the faculty were given NOSE kazoos. No kidding. I still have that thing, but have yet to perfect it.) There is nothing like a good chicken dance to get the creative juices flowing. I also listen to Phantom of the Opera a lot and imagine my characters in half-masks and capes. Just really elevates the plot of any story. My editors always edit those parts out.

3. Where do you find the time to teach full time AND write?
In a word: elves.

And along those lines, I’d like to offer a few time-saving tips for the rest of you. These have sure helped me.
a. Wear the same outfit every day. People will stare, but they will not comment for fear of rudeness. Or fear of getting too close.
b. Become friends with your messy house. A dusty coffee table isn’t a problem. It’s a great place for tic-tac-toe at dinner parties.
c. Send pets out to find their own food. Remember, mine’s into snakes. And he finds them. Often.
d. Forget setting aside time for running or lifting weights. Your exercise? Emailing. It’s got to burn at least some calories. Like three.
e. Press your nose to your neighbor’s dining room window and look pitiful. Instant invitation to dinner. It makes them feel included in your career. (And Mrs. Rumpskie, I like a little more ketchup on my meatloaf, by the way. See you Thursday.)

4. Do you participate in Halloween?
Um, does a dog have whiskers? Let me preface this by saying as a short girl, I took full advantage and went trick-or-treating until my senior year of high school. You could argue that the holiday is about evil and darkness. And if that’s what you want to call bags of chocolate and Smarties, then go ahead. Come on, Halloween is a chance to dress up. Without people thinking you’re weird. That opportunity only comes along once a year, so I’m personally not going to let it go.