Meeting Heroes – Cassandra Clare

Cassandra Clare - a writer to emulate

Last Tuesday I dropped my son off at his grandparents, skipped a meeting with my MasterMind Group, bailed on a bi-annual dinner with a large group of my friends and waddled up to Barnes and Nobles thirty minutes before a book signing with my favorite Young Adult novelist, Cassandra Clare.

A year and a half ago my 14 year old niece loaned me the Twilight series. It was a struggle for me to read but I begrudgingly pushed my way to the end. When I handed them back to my young librarian, she offered me a different series of books: The Mortal Instruments. I read the sleeve. Nephilim? Demon Fighters? Huh? Ok. I’ll give it a read.

I was immediately fascinated by the intelligence, wit, and tools the series was written with. The characters are believable, their dilemmas engaging, and I found myself caught up in a modern alternate world that I had never considered before. I finished the trilogy thoroughly satiated with the story and impressed with the author.

So, of course, when Facebook popped up a little add for me saying Cassie (I’ve decided we’re on a casual basis now that I’ve shaken her hand) was going to be in my neck of the woods… I was all over that.

The staff at B&N were great. They let me in early, sat me in the front, and let me cut the line for the book signing. I listened to the authors’ (Holly Black – another amazing writer – was also there, i.e., Spiderwick Chronicles) readings and answers and soaked up every minute of it. When I was able to meet Cassie, I shook her hand and told her “I want to be like you when I grow up.” She is prolific, clever, imaginative and talented. Most of all she is focused on her craft, which I believe develops the fertile soil for everything else to grow from.

During the Q&A I listened in rapt attention. I hadn’t thought before hand of any of the questions I would ask. Now, of course, I can’t stop thinking of a whole string of questions to ask. If I had the chance, this is where I’d start:

1. You handled the religious topics in your book masterfully. How did you approach using Christian myth without taking any side in a Christian debate?

2. Do you consciously use archetypes in constructing your characters and if so, how do you approach that?

3. How long does it typically take you to write a 1st draft?

4. What is your method for rewrites?

5. How many rewrites do you typically do before you have someone else read it?

6. How many hours a day do you spend writing?

7. How large is your critique group?

8. Who is your favorite writer?

9. How did you chose YA as your genre?

and…

and…

and….

I think I could just keep going, honestly.

At the end of the session one of the B&N staff who had been ‘taking care of the pregnant lady upfront’ asked me, “Was it worth it?”

The answer was a resounding, “Yes!”

I would have stood at the end of the line for 2 hours in the cold to get in, stood in the room (ok, maybe leaned against the back wall), and waited at the back to get a chance to shake Cassie’s hand and say, “Thank you for being you.”

It was incredibly inspirational for me.