Thanks to Katy Upperman for tagging me. I loved reading about her fabulous WIP, Cross My Heart. Here are some answers about my upper-MG WIP:
What is the working title of your book?
When Audrey Met Alice
Where did the idea come from?
It’s kind of a long story. I knew a little about Alice Roosevelt from my dad, who has always been a huge Teddy Roosevelt fan. I have always been fascinated by the lives of first daughters, and I suppose that interest was re-sparked when the Obamas moved into the White House.
But the specific idea for a book about a first daughter who “meets” Alice Roosevelt came to me while I was walking home from work one day. That’s not very special, but I later found out that I was walking past a home where Alice once lived, as a young person, right at the time that this concept popped into my head. Which is a little spooky.
What genre does your book fall under?
A blend of contemporary and historical fiction
Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
 |
| Alice Lee Roosevelt (from Wikipedia.org) |
I am a huge Mad Men fan, and one of my favorite characters is Sally Draper. I would love to see the very talented Kiernan Shipka as Audrey. As for Alice, I’m not sure. Any suggestions?
What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Lonely first daughter finds Alice Roosevelt’s long-lost diary, and shenanigans ensue.
Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
I am so fortunate to be represented by the amazing Suzie Townsend at New Leaf Literary.
How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
Hmm, I got the idea in summer 2010, and I had a finished first draft by the end of that year. I wasn’t working on it continuously, though: there were some distracting life events (e.g., a move) and some revisions on a previous manuscript that pulled me away at times. So I’d say about five months. But that was a first draft of two completely separate narratives, which I had to try to weave together.
I’ll give you the first line:
It is ridiculously difficult to
get a pizza delivered to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
What other books would you compare this story to?
In some ways, the structure is similar to Revolution, which I read long after the first draft. But my manuscript is upper middle grade, so the subject matter is a little lighter. Promise the Night, an MG about famous female aviator Beryl Markham, is also kind of similar. I like to think that both Audrey and Alice have strong voices, and there is a lot of humor in the stories they tell. So I might compare it to some of my favorite voice-driven books.
Who or what inspired you to write this book?
Alice Roosevelt, of course. She was a scandalous White House wild child at a time when girls had a lot of social constraints. Also, there was a photograph of Sasha Obama on a beach that I found really poignant–she’s in her swimsuit, playing in the sand. But you can see behind her a horde of people gawking at her and taking pictures. First kids are afforded some incredible opportunities and experiences, but I imagine they also lose a lot of privacy, freedom, and normalcy. I wanted to explore that situation.
What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
There is a very cute boy. And lots of descriptions of food.
Have you shared about your WIP? If you’d like to, consider yourself tagged for the Next Big Thing!
This sounds so wonderful. And what a fun concept. 🙂
Love the title and concept, and bully(!) for anything that mentions Teddy! Mmm for food descriptions.
Your WIP sounds wonderful. I love the idea, I know nothing about Alice Roosevelt, and I really liked Revolution. Looking forward to seeing it in print!
This sounds SO good. Just sayin’! Rebecca please tell me this is going on sub soon !!!!!! It sounds lovely and darling and sweet. Hope one day I get to see it in print 🙂
This sounds awesome! 😀
Ohhhhhhh that sounds GREAT! It´s been a while since I read any MG book and I´d definitely read this one 😀
Thank you so much for sharing, Rebecca!
What a great idea! I can’t even imagine what life would be like a for a first daughter, so exploring that sounds fantastic. I like how you’ve brought these two stories together. 🙂
Oh, this sounds fantastic! I adore REVOLUTION and how it’s formatted, and that’s exactly the book I thought of when I started reading about your WiP. What a cool idea, and I love the shiver-inducing bit about where you were when the idea popped into your head!
So, cute boys and wild first children? I’m not a huge historical fiction fan, but this one definitely piques my curiosity! Also, love that first line! So glad I got to peek inside your story, Rebecca!
This sounds like a really awesome story! I hope to be able to read it someday. 🙂
Thanks, everyone!
I love this concept. I want to say a huge congratulations for your news. Such a great accomplishment!
I’m (fairly) new to your blog. I’m a writer (just rediscovered in my “older” age 🙂 ) and MG/YA are also my interests.
I’m curious when you landed your agent and was it with the manuscript when Audrey met Alice?
Congrats again!
So I finally did my own version of this on my blog, in case you’re interested 🙂
@Anon: Thanks! I have been working with Suzie for a while, and WHEN AUDREY MET ALICE was not the project I originally queried.