The Story is About   +  novel

Michele Corriel

Books:

• Fairview Felines: A Newspaper Mystery

More than anything, Thomas Weston wants to start his own school newspaper. But first he has to prove himself worthy. When the cats in Fairview begin to disappear Thomas seizes his chance to make headlines. By solving the mystery he may be able to finally get his shot at a front page story.

Ever since I can remember I wanted to be a writer. Maybe I’d always been good at it, or maybe I’d always loved reading. It’s one of those chicken and egg things.

So it felt like all my life, all my strange, wild and wonderful experiences were just kind of piling up in my brain until the day when I could sit down put them all into perspective.

Like many writers, my first experience with the printed word was in poetry. I wrote all the time, kept lots of journals (oh, how I wish I still had them!), and wore a lot of black. I’m not sure the black wardrobe was mandatory but it definitely helped.

My first post-college long piece of writing was more of a memoir, and not something that will ever see the light of day. It was something I needed to write and it helped me to see non-fiction as creative writing. More than that I think I was telling myself to reflect on my experiences, to incorporate them into my fiction. As I like to say, my stories are fiction, but the emotions are very real.

So when one of my characters feels betrayed, I know that feeling very well. I can reach deep and dredge up the hot-cheeked, sour-stomach, just want to get my hands on a sharp object kind of feeling and put it on the page, tweaking just a bit to fit the character. Maybe it helps me in some way thinking that all my bad, sad, awkward, left out of life days can be useful. Or maybe I’m making lemonade out of lemons. But it’s not all sour. I also get to relive some of my most romantic nights, those soul sharing moments of deep kissing with that guy who hatched butterflies in my tummy every time he looked at me.

I also love the ideas that come of thinking “what if.” For me that sums up the seed of everything I write. What would happen if all the cats in a small town slowly started to disappear? Who would care? Who would be affected? And how can I make that into a story?

What would it be like to live in New York City in 1917? What would happen to a school if … ?

The YA I’m working on now comes from my years of working in a rock n’roll club in the East Village, in New York. I had some wild experiences, met some amazing and talented people and saw things that no one would believe. It’s not a memoir and it’s not an autobiography, but I think my insights into the world of rock n’roll will make this feel like it’s real. I’ve been up all night waiting for equipment to arrive, I’ve been on the tour buses, I’ve met rock stars and 86’d groupies, confronted Hell’s Angels and found dead bodies. These are things I want to write about, not only because I want to share it all, but because I know I can write a fascinating story. But underneath it all this book will be a story about sisters.

Family is always an exploration, not only of the connection between people, but of yourself. I continually go back to those key relationships. It’s where it all started and where it all ends.

Even a fun middle grade mystery about a boy dying to start his own newspaper.

Thanks so much Michele for stopping by!