As part of the blog tour for her upcoming book Racing Savannah, I have the pleasure of having author Miranda Kenneally here on the blog today to answer some questions about her books and her writing process. Without further ado, here is what she had to say!
All of your characters, and what they go through, feels incredibly real. How much is taken out of your own experiences or from the people around you?
Ideas and jokes from all over the place have definitely made their way into my books in some form or another. I can't say that I've ever met a girl football player, but Jordan's feelings for Sam Henry are definitely pulled from crushes I've had in the past.
Real-life experiences inspired Things I Can't Forget. The situation wasn't anywhere near the same, but I did have a friend get an abortion and it affected me more than I thought it would.
To make my books feel "real," I imagine the scene in my mind as I'm putting words on paper. I've found that helps my book pop.
Except for Things I Can't Forget, your books all have a sports element. Why did you choose to write about female athletes and those specific sports that aren't typically associated with girls.
To show girls they can do anything they want to do as long as they work hard.
What is your writing process like: do you outline and do a lot of research or just start writing and see where the story takes you? Or is it different for each book?
It depends on the book. Before I started writing Racing Savannah, I did research for two months and even took a trip to Kentucky to visit some big farms. With Catching Jordan and Staling Parker, I just started writing and did tons of drafts. For Catching Jordan, I researched football and went to some college and NFL games along the way. With Stealing Parker, I played softball for 8 years, so that made things easier. Things I Can't Forget had an outline, and I actually stuck to it for the most part. I didn't have to research camping at all because I'm foot at that, but I did do research on Planned Parenthood and other family planning issues. I sort of outline each book, but I rarely stick to it. I just go wherever the story takes me.
Can you tell us anything about what you're currently working on or what we can expect from your future book(s)?
Yes! My July 2014 book, most likely titled BREATHE, ANNIE, BREATHE, is about a girl training to run a marathon in honor of her boyfriend who died. Before he passed away, he had been training for a marathon, and now Annie is going to attempt to finish on his behalf. But it will be hard because she can barely run two laps around the high school track.
Emilie: I personally CANNOT WAIT to read this!
How would you describe your Hundred Oaks books to someone who has never heard of them before?
My books are teen romances featuring a girl football player, a girl horse jockey, and a slightly naughty, misunderstood former softball player who goes after the school baseball coach.
Can you describe Racing Savannah in five words?
Badass girl horse jockey rocks!
About the Author
Miranda Kenneally is the author of CATCHING JORDAN, STEALING PARKER, THINGS I CAN'T FORGET, and RACING SAVANNAH. Her fifth book, most likely to be titled BREATHE, ANNIE, BREATHE, is doing out in July 2014. She enjoyed reading and writing young adult literature, and loves Star Trek, music, sports, Mexican food, Twitter, coffee, and her husband.
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