Cynthea Liu is Here!

I’m still playing catch up this week, so . . . .

I have another interview for you! If you recognize this name . . . yeah, it’s because we’ve been through this before. Ms. Cynthea Liu actually had TWO books release this year. We’ve already covered her debut: The Great Call of China, now we are celebrating the release of her middle grades novel: Paris Pan Takes the Dare! (Cynthea is clearly staying busy.)

About Paris Pan Takes the Dare

Twelve-year-old Paris Pan's life is a mess. She's just moved to a tiny town in Nowheresville, Oklahoma; her family life is a comical disaster; her new friends are more like frenemies; and the boy she has a crush on is a dork. Things couldn't possibly get worse, until she discovers that a girl mysteriously died years ago while taking a seventh-grade rite of passage–the Dare– right near Paris's new house. So when Paris starts hearing strange noises coming from the creepy run-down shed in her backyard, she thinks they could be a message from the ghost of a girl. But while she has no plans to make contact with the great beyond, her two new friends have other thoughts. Everyone who's anyone takes the Dare, and now it's Paris's turn.

(Hijack! Let me interrupt and say that I’ve read Paris Pan, and it is *such* a great book! It comes highly recommended, and you know you can trust me!)

About Cynthea Liu

Cynthea spent her formative years in Oklahoma and Texas where she was
a Whiz Quiz member, an Academic Decathloner, and a spelling bee
champion. (Yes, she was very popular.) After attending college on the
East coast, she worked at a corporate job where she mastered
PowerPoint and racked up thousands of frequent flyer miles.
Eventually, she traded in her suit for sweats to do the fun
stuff–writing for children. In addition to PARIS PAN TAKES THE DARE
and THE GREAT CALL OF CHINA, Cynthea's nonfiction book WRITING FOR
CHILDREN AND TEENS: A CRASH COURSE (how to write, revise, and publish
your kid's or teen book with children's book publishers) is available
in paperback. http://www.amazon.com/dp/1605301140/?tag=cynthealiu-20

On to the Interview!

Me: Without giving away too many spoilers, what is your favorite part of the novel/what was the part you had the most fun writing?

Cynthea: My favorite scenes from PARIS PAN usually involve basketball and any PAN family member. The funnest characters to write? Had to be Verona and Papa Pan. These characters always had plenty of room to inject humor into the story and I didn't have to look very far because my real sister and father are pretty funny people (read: CRAZY).

Me: (lol) Your family dynamic was excellent! I loved their accents! The Pans had me cracking up! What kind of writing projects are you currently working on? Or, if you aren't working on anything new, is there a different demographic/genre you wouldn't mind tackling in the future?

Cynthea: I'd really like to tackle the Easy Reader market. There's an innocence there that I'd enjoy capturing in new stories that would appeal to this younger age group.

Me: Who is your writing hero and why?

Cynthea: My mom is my hero for everything (sorry, Dad. Love ya, but Mom always wins this one.) Problem is, Mom doesn't really write, and assembly language doesn't count! (Inside joke for computer geeks). Anyway, I do admire quite a few writers but no one shall be named here for fear of annoying other writers who think they should be on my list. Who needs that sort of pressure? :)

Me: Yeah, Moms are great. Mine sells my book to her friends. . . .

Readers . . . You can visit Cynthea at her home on the web: http://cynthealiu.com

And . . . Paris Pan Takes the Dare is officially on sale. You can buy it here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/0399250433/?tag=cynthealiu-20

Thank you so much for stopping by, Cynthea!