“When I'm following what a character does in a book I don't have to think about my own life. Where I am. Why I'm here. My moms and my brother and my old man. I can just think about the character's life and try and figure out what's gonna happen. Plus when you're in a group home you pretty much can't go anywhere, right? But when you read books you almost feel like you're out there in the world. Like you're going on this adventure right with the main character. At least, that's the way I do it. It's actually not that bad. Even if it is mad nerdy.” IfsThinkingMenWorldWayFeelsTryingDoeI CanBookCharacterHomeHappensMy OwnGroupsFiguresAdventureBrotherLike YouMomMadFollowingMy MomMy BrotherPlusOld ManMy Own LifeMain CharactersNerdy Author:Matt de la Pena
“Once I start writing, I am a huge reviser. To me writing is revising. I probably turn over every sentence that I write, to see if I have the rhythm right. That's why my first drafts take a really long time.” IfsWritingFirstsLongTurnsHugeLong TimeSentencesRhythmReally LongRevising Author:Matt de la Pena
“To me, if the writing doesn't have rhythm, it feels dead. I lose all confidence. The music has to emerge to feel confident enough to move on to the next major chapter.” IfsFeelsWritingEnoughMovingNextLosesMajorsRhythmChapters Author:Matt de la Pena
“When you first quit your regular job and you become a full-time writer, you are paralyzed with free time. You have so much free time. When you are at home, you have a guitar. There's a cat. You got to find ways to create an environment when writing is like going to work. Be efficient with the hours you put into the book. So I go there the same time, every day - like 7:30 am - and I leave around 2 pm, or longer, if I have a deadline.” IfsWayWritingFirstsBookHomeJobsHoursEnvironmentCatGuitarQuittingEfficientGoing To WorkDeadlineParalyzedFree TimePms Author:Matt de la Pena
“I only know what it's like to be an author with social media. I can't compare. I do think we lose the mystery of the author. Today, I get tons of e-mails and Facebook messages from readers, and my goal with Twitter and Facebook is, if someone reaches out to me, I'm going to respond to them. I don't want to be an elitist author who is untouchable. I'm just a regular person, too. I will always respond to everybody.” IfsThinkingKnowsWantPersonsI CanTodaySocialGoalLosesMysteryMediaReaderMessagesSocial MediaCompareReach OutMailElitistUntouchablesTwitter And Facebook Author:Matt de la Pena
“But when you read books you almost feel like you're out there in the world. Like you're going on this adventure right with the main character. At least, that's the way I do it. It's actually not that bad. Even if it is mad nerdy.” IfsWorldWayFeelsBookCharacterAdventureLike YouMadMain CharactersNerdy Author:Matt de la Pena
