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GREW UP IN
Bloomington, Indiana.
CHILDHOOD AMBITION
To be a veterinarian.
DESERT ISLAND BOOK
Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons.
FAVORITE CITY
New York City!!!!!
WHERE DO YOU WRITE
In bed, with a laptop.
TO RELAX
Take a bath.
FAVORITE ROMANCE NOVEL
Jane Eyre.
FAVORITE BOOK
Gaudy Night by Dorothy Sayers
FAVORITE FOOD
Pizza!!!!
LEAST FAVORITE FOOD
Vegetables
FAVORITE SONG
40 Boys, the Donnas
FAVORITE ITEM OF CLOTHING
This one grey t-shirt.
GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT
Passed Chemistry.
IF YOU COULDN'T BE A WRITER, WHAT WOULD YOU BE?
Manager at the Gap.
ONE WISH
That my cat Henrietta would jump into my lap and STAY there.
MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT
Outlined on page 50 of The Princess Diaries, Vol. II: Princess in the Spotlight.
BEST QUALITY
Sense of humor.
WORSE QUALITY
Sense of humor.
SMARTEST THING YOU EVER DID
Took typing.
BIGGEST REGRET
Refuse to answer on grounds it might incriminate me.
GREATEST LOVE
My husband.
LIFE MOTTO
Don't have one. |
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Meg Cabot was born in Bloomington, Indiana and spent her childhood in pursuit of air conditioning, which she found at the Monroe County Public Library. Here Meg whiled away many hours, reading the complete works of Jane Austen, Judy Blume, and Barbara Cartland.
Armed with a fine arts degree from Indiana University, she moved to New York City intent on an illustration career, but when that failed to materialize, got a job as the assistant manager of an undergraduate dormitory at New York University instead, writing novels on the weekends (and whenever her boss wasn’t looking). After many years of rejection, she sold her first book, a historical romance novel written under a pen name she would prefer her grandmother didn't know about.
She is the author of over forty books for both adults and teens, many of which have been bestsellers, most notably The Princess Diaries series, which is currently being published in over 37 countries, has sold over five million copies worldwide, and was made into two hit movies by Disney. In addition, Meg wrote the Mediator and 1-800-Where-R-You series (on which the Lifetime channel series, Missing, was based), two All-American Girl books, Teen Idol, Avalon High, How to Be Popular, Pants on Fire, and for adults: Boy Next Door, Boy Meets Girl, and Every Boy's Got One, Size 12 Is Not Fat, Size 14 Is Not Fat Either, and Queen of Babble.
When she is not reliving the horrors of her high school experience through her fiction, Meg divides her time between New York City and Key West with her husband and their one-eyed cat, Henrietta.
For more about Meg, visit her online at www.megcabot.com!
To get the latest news on Meg and her books, sign up here.
What inspired you to write THE PRINCESS DIARIES?
All of my books are inspired by real things that either happened to me, or that I WISHED would happen to me. I was inspired to write The Princess Diaries when my mom, after the death of my father, began dating one of my teachers, just as Mia's mom does in the book! I have always had a "thing" for princesses (my parents used to joke that when I was little, I did a lot of insisting that my "real" parents, the king and queen, were going to come get me soon, and that everyone had better start being a LOT nicer to me) so I stuck a princess in the book just for kicks . . . and VOILA! The Princess Diaries was born. The voice of Mia, of course, is taken directly from my own diaries that I kept when I was in high school . . . I was pretty much a huge geek in high school-although I was pretty involved with the school's drama group. Most of what's in my journals from those days is about boys, boys, boys, and that's why I am the only one who is allowed to look at them! It is too embarrassing!
How many books about Princess Mia will there be?
Ten full-length volumes. Expect Princess Diaries Volume 8, Princess on the Brink, in January 2007, followed by Princess Diaries 9 in January 2008, and the final book in the series, Princess Diaries 10, in January 2009.
Will there be any more Princess Diaries movies?
I don't think so! The director, producers, and cast have moved on to new projects. But who knows? Maybe they will reunite one day!
What were some of your favorite books growing up?
I read a lot of fantasy, such as the Susan Cooper Dark Is Rising series, and the Lloyd Alexander books. Lately I am exploring all of the great books for girls that I missed because I was too much of a tomboy to read them, such as the Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace. And I am a big fan of Mary Stewart—though many of her best novels are, sadly, out of print now.
What advice to you give to budding writers?
My advice to young writers is: Write the kinds of stories you like to read. If you don’t love what you’re writing, no one else will, either. Don’t tell people you want to be a writer. Everyone will try to talk you out of choosing a job with so little security, so it is better just to keep it to yourself, and prove them all wrong later. You are not a hundred dollar bill. Not everyone is going to like you … or your story. Do not take rejection personally. If you are blocked on a story, there is probably something wrong with it. Take a few days off and put the story on a back burner for a while. Eventually, it will come to you. Read—and write—all the time. Never stop sending out your stuff. Don’t wait for a response after sending a story out … start a new story right away, and then send that one out! If you are constantly writing and sending stuff out (don’t forget to live your life, too, while you are doing this) eventually someone will bite!
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