Interview with Megan McCafferty and a Giveaway of Bumped! *ENDED*

Today we have Megan McCafferty on with an interview about her new book, Bumped.  I surprisingly enjoyed this book quite a lot so I am excited to have her on so we can learn more about her, Bumped, and how and why it is what it is.  You much check out my review here, was well.  

In case you don't already know what it's about here's the description of Bumped:

WHEN A VIRUS makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents must pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society.

Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and had never met until the day Harmony shows up on Melody’s doorstep. Until now, the twins have followed completely opposite paths. Melody has scored an enviable conception contract with a couple called the Jaydens. While they search for the perfect partner for Melody to bump with, she is fighting her attraction to her best friend, Zen, who is way too short for the job.

Harmony has spent her whole life in religious Goodside, preparing to be a wife and mother. She believes her calling is to convince Melody that pregging for profit is a sin. But Harmony has secrets of her own that she is running from.

When Melody is finally matched with the world-famous, genetically flawless Jondoe, both girls’ lives are changed forever. A case of mistaken identity takes them on a journey neither could have ever imagined, one that makes Melody and Harmony realize they have so much more than just DNA in common.

From New York Times bestselling author Megan McCafferty comes a strikingly original look at friendship, love, and sisterhood—in a future that is eerily believable.

So we can get to know you better can you tell us about yourself in 10 words that you feel best describe you?

I’m a bestselling novelist from New Jersey who isn’t Snookie. (Okay, I know Snookie is from Poughkeepsie, but that’s just a technicality.)

Can you tell us about Bumped in 10 words that best describes it for us?

A satire set in 2035. Only teenagers can get pregnant.

Bumped is a satirical dystopian with some very interesting issues.  When writing the book did you think that some may misunderstand your point?  That it may become a controversial type of book?  And if so, did it affect your writing or direction of the story in any way?

Satire is not for everyone. Bumped is a cautionary tale about happens when sociopolitical extremes crowd out more moderate approaches to social problems. So I certainly shouldn’t be surprised by extreme reactions to it! It’s unfortunate if readers take this book at face value and mistakenly think I’m glorifying or trivializing teen pregnancy. But if I can inspire teens to consider the parallels between real life and the futuristic fiction in BUMPED, I feel I’ve succeeded. I’d rather write books that are thought-provoking than boring.

When you started writing Bumped did you know that it would be more then just the one book? 

Yes. I always saw it as two narrators, two books.

What was your biggest obstacle to overcome when writing Bumped?

I had written about Jessica Darling, Marcus Flutie and their very familiar world for ten years. It was a huge challenged to invent the futuristic society of BUMPED. My husband reads a lot of Sci-Fi. He cautioned me against trying to accurately predict what will happen to language and technology 25 years from now because I would inevitably be wrong. He encouraged me to have fun with the wordplay and worldplay, so I did.

I was blown away by your descriptions and how the story really came to life.  Particularly Zen.  There was one scene where he was singing (one of those songs that I can actually hear, even though it's not a real song~ your like magic, I swear) and you described him as bumping his hips or something (I read it as an egalley so I can't even quote here) but I was able to visualize it all so perfectly!  So my question is, when you start writing each day do you already have an image in your mind of what's going down or is does it come to you more as you write?

Thank you! I have a general idea of what will happen in a scene, but not the specifics. It’s a combination of planning and inspiration. I revise a lot as I go along, weaving in more and more details with every pass. As for characters, I try to get inside their fictional minds to figure out what motivates them to do what they do. It’s kind of like method acting in that way.

Are any of your characters based on, or even named after, real people?

I put about a year of research into BUMPED before I started writing because I wanted everything—even the craziest notions—to be rooted in reality. That said, none of the characters are inspired by anyone specific, though my husband did grow up in the same neighborhood as identical twins named Melody and Harmony.

Where do you prefer write?  Are you a strictly office only type of person, or a carry your computer everywhere to write kind of person?

I can only write in my home office when the house is empty and there’s no one to distract me.

What is your all time most favorite book or author?

“The Catcher in the Rye” was the first book that made me feel less alone in the world. I’ve re-read it many times since seventh grade and always get something different out of it.

If you could have one super power what would you pick?

I’d love to be able to make good things happen for good people. My superhero name would be Karmama.

Besides writing what is your all time favorite thing to do?

I never get bored eating Mexican food, drinking margaritas, listening to good music and laughing it up with people I love. And yes, I realize that sounds like a commercial for Chevy’s Fresh Mex.

And, in closing, what can we expect to see from you in the future? 

I’m revising the sequel to BUMPED as quickly as I can. I want to resolve that cliffhanger for you! After that, I’ll start doing research for the germ of an idea could evolve into the book that comes after that. Whatever comes next for me, I hope there’s an audience eager to read it.

Thanks so much to Megan for joining us!  

The Giveaway: HAS ENDED!

Megan has sent me a signed hardcover copy of Bumped for giveaway!  One of you will win it!

Rules:

Open to US only

Must be 13 or older to enter.

Ends 5/15/2011

To Enter:

Leave a comment with contact info.  That's it!