Amelia Atwater-Rhodes found out on her 14th birthday that she was going to be a published author. Several books later, Amelia is still pumping out deep, dark tales about vampires, shapeshifters and the humans that live in their worlds. Amelia chatted with Kidzworld about being an accomplished author, and being a teen. Check out the first half of the interview right here. Or, scroll on down for the second half!
KW: Being that you were different from other kids your age, being published and all, did you ever get picked on?
Amelia: That was more like middle school, for me. At that point, I was writing but I had never gotten acknowledged publically. And, middle school was... oh, very nearly the most awful three years of my life. In middle school, kids get vicious. You have to be part of the crowd, or content on being yourself and not mind criticism - and that's a hard age to do it at. I was lucky enough to have good, close friends. I had my inner circle and we survived together - so we all ended up a lot better for it when we got to high school.
KW: Is writing going to be your only career or do you intend to try something else?
Amelia: I am attending university right now. I want to get my MEd (Masters of Education) and go back to teach high school. I have had some amazing teachers who just made such a incredible difference in my life, and other people's lives. I kinda want to be that for someone. But, writing is something I have always done and probably always will do. Even if, someday, I stop publishing - I'll probably still be writing.
KW: How do you counter writer's block?
Amelia: Generally, when I hit writer's block, I stop. I can break away and work on other books. Or, I will pace around in circles downstairs in my house and talk to my dog about it. Sometimes my mother. My mother offers a lot better feedback, but she doesn't have as much time as my dog. When I had incredible writer's block with one book, the thing that made the difference was, a friend of mine gave me a new Alanis CD. New music sparked the next 60 pages.
KW: Do you find music can really inspire your writing?
Amelia: I always listen to music when I write. Shattered Mirror is the most directly inspired by music. Sarah McLachlan's Surfacing just gave me the idea somehow. Alanis Morissette, especially, is someone I find that I can listen to and just go right into writing mode.
