Interrogation Room #45: Julie Berry, author of THE SCANDALOUS SISTERHOOD OF PRICKWILLOW PLACE

We have a repeat offender in the Interrogation Room today: acclaimed author Julie Berry! We hauled her in this time last year to talk about her Edgar-nominated YA mystery ALL THE TRUTH THAT'S IN ME. Julie just can't seem to stay out of trouble, and now she's surrounded by scandal, with the release of her new middle grade mystery, THE SCANDALOUS SISTERHOOD OF PRICKWILLOW PLACE -- out today from Roaring Brook/Macmillan Kids!

We have lots of questions for Julie today, but here's a bit about the new book (whose title we'll abbreviate to SSPP, since we love abbreviations and acronyms here at SSA!):

There's a murderer on the loose—but that doesn't stop the girls of St. Etheldreda's from attempting to hide the death of their headmistress in this rollicking farce.

The students of St. Etheldreda's School for Girls face a bothersome dilemma. Their irascible headmistress, Mrs. Plackett, and her surly brother, Mr. Godding, have been most inconveniently poisoned at Sunday dinner. Now the school will almost certainly be closed and the girls sent home—unless these seven very proper young ladies can hide the murders and convince their neighbors that nothing is wrong.

The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place is a smart, hilarious Victorian romp, full of outrageous plot twists, mistaken identities, and mysterious happenings.

And now, here's the transcript of our second interrogation of Julie! (Plus, her mug shot!)

SSA: So here you are, a repeat offender . . . we last saw you in here one year ago, when we summoned you to answer questions about your YA historical mystery, ALL THE TRUTH THAT'S IN ME.

JB: When do I get to call my lawyer?

SSA: Not so fast. You're a slippery one, Ms. Berry, and we need answers. It seems you've been trespassing into different genres. In short succession, you've written TWO unconventional and historical mysteries -- one in experimental form, and now this new one, a farce. Can we see your poetic license?

JB: Yes, right here.

SSA: Ah. Okay. Well, we've noticed the two books couldn't be more different in tone as well as time periods. How did it feel to go from Puritan America in ALL THE TRUTH THAT'S IN ME to Victorian England in SSPP? And did you learn anything about mystery writing from writing ALL THE TRUTH that helped you with the new novel, despite the vastly different content?

JB: It's kind of fun to go from promoting one novel with a very serious tone to peddling one this playful. I like to mix things up. Both stories have some darkness to them, I'd say, but the flavors are very different. I definitely do think that ALL THE TRUTH gave me invaluable craft practice. I learned how to be very disciplined about clues, details, mechanics, pacing, motive, and what to reveal when. I think these will be useful for any book I write in the future, whether overtly a mystery or not.

SSA: What appeals to you about farce? And what's challenging about writing farce?

JB: Comedies yield laughs, but farce done right threatens the audience with death by laughter. It's one big crescendo of crazy humor, and I love it. I grew up on writers like P.G. Wodehouse (and later, Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels), and on films like Arsenic and Old Lace and His Girl Friday. Nowadays, my family does a lot of community theater, and I've watched more British farces than you can shake a stick at. Over time, I began to deconstruct them to try to understand what makes a farce a farce. Slamming doors? Mistaken identities? Corpses? Or was it more than that?

There's a lot more. Farces have a particular energy and pace. Timing is everything. Careful plotting is crucial. A sort of everyman (or everywoman, or everykid) protagonist is confronted with an unplanned, improbable, twist-of-fate dilemma, and a series of characters who represent extreme stereotypes until the protagonist is totally destabilized by dealing with such loonybirds--until he or she becomes, in essence, one of them. In the process, though, they become less flat-vanilla, and more human, more round, more likable. Miraculously, things work out, balance is restored, and everyone can go on about their lives, but old assumptions, old walls, have been broken down a bit. Cary Grant as Mortimer Brewster in Arsenic and Old Lace may flee from his insane relatives, once he learns he was adopted, shrieking, "I am not a Brewster!" but his bug-eyed stare proves he's become at least a bit of one.

SSA: We understand you did quite a bit of research to bring this 19th-century British boarding school to life. (Not to mention other harrowing scenes, like burying a dead body!) What is one of the most deliciously fascinating facts that you uncovered?

JB: I got to read some wonderfully gruesome accounts of crimes, poisonings, and medical investigations during the Victorian era. Since I've never personally poisoned anyone with cyanide (I swear, I haven't!), I needed to read lots about it. There were some wonderfully lurid poisonings going on, and some truly dastardly poisoners. The relatively recent innovation of life insurance, combined with easy-to-buy poisons and as-yet underdeveloped techniques for detecting them, turned, I regret to say, certain people's unpleasant relatives into solutions for their shopping addiction. Or opium addiction. Insert your addiction of choice.

SSA: How did you get the voice in this novel so pitch perfect? Did you watch a lot of British period dramas on PBS? Read numerous Victorian novels? Or -- our suspicion -- are you actually a time traveler from Victorian England?

JB: I'm the Doctor. Take a look. It's bigger on the inside.

The real Julie Berry!

Guilty on all counts. Who doesn't love Dickens, or the Brontes? I think I was born in the wrong century sometimes. Except that I would never want to have to wear what the Victorians wore underneath all those poufy-sleeve dresses, if you catch my drift, nor visit their doctors if I was ill, nor attend their finishing schools (except maybe this one), nor tolerate their prevailing views of the roles of girls and women. But we owe a great debt to a number of women during this era who made tremendous strides.

SSA: What do you hope contemporary teens or tweens take away from this novel? Is it pure entertainment, or do you think there are bridges they can find to their modern lives?

JB: Pure entertainment is always my goal. My job is to divert you. I wouldn't mind it at all if readers came away with a bit more of an affinity for these genres I've played with, and go hunting on their own for drawing-room mysteries and farces, past and present, to enjoy. If a little girl empowerment was sniffed around the edges, so much the better, but truly, I really just want you to laugh and keep the pages turning.

SSA: Is there anything scandalous about your writing life that you'd care to confess?

JB: Alas, I was scandalously late turning in my most recent manuscript. And I sometimes go scandalously long between showering. Working from home will do that to you. Other than that, my actual writing life is fairly boring. Anything colorful going on in my writing life, to quote the immortal Mr. Tweedy of the Aardman film Chicken Run (who, incidentally, makes a teensy cameo as a constable in my novel), is "all in me head." 

SSA: Thank you for answering our questions, Julie! We'll let you off the hook again. Stay out of trouble -- or rather, stay in trouble -- we love the creative risks you take, and we can't wait to see what you're cooking up next! 

You can track Julie down at her website, on Twitter (@JulieBerryBooks), and on her Facebook fan page. 
You can buy THE SCANDALOUS SISTERHOOD OF PRICKWILLOW PLACE and Julie's other books on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or at Independent bookstores near you.

Please enjoy this fabulous trailer for SCANDALOUS SISTERHOOD, and then . . .  enter our giveaway! One lucky winner will get a signed hardcover of Julie's new book!



Intrigued? Enter our giveaway on this Rafflecopter thingy below! This giveaway is open internationally. Must be 13+ to enter.
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More than Mystery

Digging into the archives from Sleuths, Spies & Alibis' early days to bring you this post on the allure of mysteries -- and why, thematically, they can be so perfect for young readers:

I’d make a terrible sleuth. It took me three decades to actually notice how much of a mystery fan I am, despite heaps of early evidence. I missed every clue. The dog-eared pages on The Westing Game and The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. The bookshelves lined with the trademark yellow spines of Nancy Drew volumes, each one promising to reveal all manner of secrets about clocks, ranches, and bungalows. The unwise seventh-grade choice to study French instead of Spanish, motivated by an urgent need to understand Hercule Poirot’s untranslated asides. And what about the hours spent with the Bobbsey Twins, for goodness’ sake? Anyone who’ll put up with Nan and Bert — let alone Freddie and Flossie — clearly suffers from advanced stage mystery disease.

 Freddie & Flossie:
Symptoms of Stage IV Mystery Disease

I can forgive my bad detective work, though. It isn’t as if I was drawn to mysteries exclusively. Mysteries merely amplify what I already love about stories: the delicious withholding of  information until just the right moment, the transforming of the familiar into the strange, the satisfying way order triumphs over chaos in the end. In his book On Moral Fiction, John Gardner described art as a “game played…against entropy.” It’s an apt description, I think. Stories weave the unruly strands of everyday life into a satisfying whole. And what’s more satisfying than a case solved and a culprit brought to justice?

My younger self would claim that nothing is more satisfying. Which means, too, that nothing could possibly be worse than a book that leaves too many questions unanswered. I am more forgiving now (though I have to admit, the trend of cliffhanger endings in series still rankles me), but back then I loved mysteries because it comforted me to see justice served and order restored. My family was constantly on the move, and by the time I turned 9, I had already been the “new kid” at 5 different schools. I craved neat resolutions to distract me from the abandoned plot-lines in my own life.

Idaville would be in
serious trouble without
Encyclopedia on the case

Besides, I loved reading about kids who had all the answers for a change. That Sheriff Brown couldn’t solve a single Idaville case without Encyclopedia taking charge. And Carson Drew may be good in a courtroom, but let’s face it: the dude would have long been dead if Nancy wasn’t always saving him. In my own life, adults always thought they knew better than I did. That got old fast, especially considering they lacked answers to life’s most basic questions.

As I got older, mysteries compelled me because they wrestled with the same uncertainties I faced as I navigated an ever-changing social landscape. At their simplest level, mysteries deal with a central question: whom can you trust? They remind us of the secrets lurking not far from the surface, the lies people tell, the incongruity between some people’s public faces and their private selves. They dramatize the same questions about loyalty and friendship I was asking myself as a teen. In fact, mysteries delved into an even more troubling question I was wrestling with, whether I recognized it at the time or not: how much could I really trust myself?  Like a mystery reader, I was constantly questioning my own perceptions and revising my assumptions about the cast of characters around me.

I write for the younger unsuspecting mystery fan that I was. The one who didn’t realize she was wrestling with questions of loyalty, assumptions, and self-confidence because she was all wrapped up in reading about madcap hijinks and battles of wits. For me, there’s nothing more rewarding than writing for an age group still working hard to solve the mystery of who they are and where they fit in.

*******************************************************************************

A former middle school English teacher, Kristen Kittscher lives in Pasadena, California with her husband, Kai. When she’s not writing, you’ll find her running her after-school tutoring business or taking orders from her hopelessly spoiled cat and dog. Her middle grade debut, THE WIG IN THE WINDOW, comes out from Harper Children's on June 18, 2013.

Murder, She Blogged

A confession: lately, through the magic of obscure cable channels and a DVR, I’ve been unwinding after a long day by watching the occasional episode of Columbo or Murder, She Wrote. Never mind the satisfaction of seeing justice done, is there anything quite so soothing for a writer than watching J.B. Fletcher put the finishing touches on a manuscript to the tune of that jaunty piano music? That’s how all my days are, after all. Go for a jog, pound out a novel, murder solve my step-step-nephew-once-removed’s murder in the afternoon… 

Since my viewing habits plant me firmly in the 80+ demographic, I figured that gives me the right to spout some of the vast wisdom I’ve accumulated while indulging in my guilty pleasure.

It boils down to this: technology and mystery have a complicated relationship.

Also: Angela Lansbury really should have had her agent negotiate a no-jogging clause.

But back to technology. A good deal of these old-school mysteries wouldn’t last two minutes, let alone an hour if any of the characters had a cell or access to the internet. Take 1971 Columbo classic “Murder by the Book.” (Don’t tell me you’ve let 30 years go by without discovering this gem?) The entire story hinges on the culprit misleading someone about where he placed a call. I’m pretty sure today’s police would be quick to get to the bottom of that one…

Does that mean it was easier to write clever mysteries pre-1990 or so? I suppose someone could make an argument for it. Maybe it explains the preponderance of historical mysteries, too. I know that I certainly have ongoing challenges finding credible ways to get technology out of my middle school sleuths’ hands when it would make things too easy. Parents and teachers seize laptops and cell phones. Thick basement walls block service. Batteries die. Passwords stymie them. Google searches turn up too much information to be useful.

At the same time, technology offers all kinds of clever ways to ferret out information: DNA evidence, online databases, caller ID, cell phone call logs, chatroom posts, voice recorders, GPS tracking, some of the cool gadgetry from SPIES AND PREJUDICE that Talia Vance talked up the other week. And that’s not even mentioning all the clues and opportunities for culprit slip-ups technology can provide. Even simple technology like lock-picking and reprogramming garage door openers sure helped me make things more fun in THE WIG IN THE WINDOW.

Of course, there are less obvious uses for technology, too. That cell phone Jessica Fletcher uses in Murder She Wrote’s final season would make a mighty fine murder weapon...

Kristen Kittscher’s debut middle grade mystery THE WIG IN THE WINDOW (Harper Children’s) will be released in June 2013. It follows the comic misadventures of two tween sleuths who suspect their school counselor is a dangerous fugitive — and just might be right! A former middle school English teacher, Kristen lives in Pasadena, California with her husband, Kai. When she’s not writing, you’ll find her running her after-school tutoring business or taking orders from her hopelessly spoiled cat and dog.

Interrogation Room #18: W.H. Beck, Author of Malcolm at Midnight

MALCOLM AT MIDNIGHT from fellow sleuth W.H Beck is out in stores today! Internal Affairs has hauled her in for a few questions, but we're pretty sure she's innocent. After all, MALCOLM is getting rave reviews. It's no surprise it was a BEA buzz book this past June. "A rip-roaring tale!" Kirkus says, "Even rodent-haters will have to like Malcolm." Publishers Weekly calls it, "A first-rate debut." We couldn't agree more.

A bit about W.H. Beck:
W.H. Beck grew up in Wisconsin, the oldest of four kids. As a kid, her dad always teased her that she would be a librarian someday. That’s because she read all the time—walking home from school, while brushing her teeth, under the table at dinnertime, and under the covers at night. And, sure enough, after earning an elementary teaching degree from the University of Wisconsin (go Badgers!), she went on to get a master’s degree in information studies from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Yes, that’d be library school.

She still lives and reads in Wisconsin, but now she shares her home and books with her husband, two sons, and two big black dogs. Malcolm at Midnight is her first novel. She's hard at work on her next.

A bit about MALCOLM AT MIDNIGHT:

When Malcolm (a smaller than average rat) arrives at crumbling McKenna School, he revels in the attention, the Poptart crumbs, and his new Comf-E-Cube. He also meets the Midnight Academy, a secret society of classroom pets that protects the students. There’s just one problem: it turns out that rats have a terrible reputation. Have you heard? They are sneaky, disloyal, dirty, and greedy! So when everyone assumes Malcolm is a mouse, he doesn’t exactly squeak up. Maybe once he proves himself in the Academy, he can admit his rattiness.

But Malcolm’s is not the only secret at McKenna. Why does fifth grade teacher Mr. Binney roam the halls after midnight? Who is stealing chemicals from the science room? And what exactly are those shrieks from the clock tower? Then Malcolm’s secret is exposed—just as an Academy member disappears. The Academy turns on Malcolm with suspicion. After all, rats can’t be trusted. And now, banished from the Academy, Malcolm must use all his rat traits to prove his innocence—and to learn what kind of rat he really is.

Kristen Kittscher: MALCOLM AT MIDNIGHT has a classic feel that reminds me of some of my all-time favorites, like Stuart Little, The Borrowers, and – a book referenced in MALCOLM – The Tale of Despereaux. Who are your favorite authors and influences?

W.H Beck: Oh, boy. You do realize that you just asked a librarian what her favorite book is? Pretty much the whole reason I went in to librarianhood is because I loved so many of them and wanted to be near them all. But to answer your question—and because this IS the interrogation room—I’ll try to be more specific.

The three you named are all close-to-my-heart favorites. I can still remember my second grade teacher’s voice as she read aloud both The Borrowers and Stuart Little. Others I dearly love from my childhood—and that have been a lasting influence on me—are A Wrinkle in Time, The Rescuers, Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, Ramona, Summer of the Monkeys, Anne of Green Gables, Watership Down, and Nancy Drew.

While I still read all kinds of books, my very favorites are still along these lines. Books with a lot of action, an element of mystery, and generous dollops of humor and heart. More recent influences would include Megan Whalen Turner’s Attolia books, Andrew Clements’ school stories, Gary Paulsen’s funny stuff, and Harry Potter. I do read books for grown-up, occasionally, too, but mostly nonfiction, which I do think sifts down and influences my middle grade writing.

KK: I read somewhere that you wrote many versions of MALCOLM and revised for many years. What insight can you give us into your revision process? Any lessons learned or advice to share?

WB: I did. There are 10 versions/drafts of MALCOLM on my computer and it’s been a 4-year span from idea to publication. Yikes! However, while that sounds like it’s been a long, grueling process, it really hasn’t been. First of all, part of the reason it took so long was that, in the beginning, I was also writing a nonfiction series (Follow That Food Chain) for Lerner. So my time was divided. And the first four drafts were really barely drafts, they were so loose and incomplete. Just sketches and lists of ideas, really. In fact, I had set aside MALCOLM—after all, it was pretty much what every editor says they DON’T want: talking animals, second-person voice, footnotes—when it won a Work-in-Progress grant from SCBWI in 2009. That vote of confidence was what really got me plowing through and finally finishing a complete manuscript.

As soon as I finished that one, I already had a list of notes of things to change, so I turned right back around and fixed those. So I think it was the 6^th draft before I shared MALCOLM with anyone in the world. And even that draft, as I sent it off, I knew was going to change the most. Because, while the story made sense (finally!) and all the characters were there, it was sad (Mr. Binney was looking for his recently-killed son’s class ring and Amelia was Troubled). And that wasn’t exactly the story I wanted to tell. So I brainstormed ways to make it lighter, then I got out my index cards of scenes and sat down with my fistful of highlighters and went through the manuscript, marking down all the plot threads and places I’d need to rewrite. That 7^th draft is what secured me an agent, the 8^th is what sold to Houghton Mifflin, then there was a small revision for my editor, and copy-edits—which I think brings us to 10…and 4 years later!

Lessons learned or advice to share? Well, I learned I can only write one manuscript at a time—I turned down some additional nonfiction work to finish MALCOLM. I learned that early drafts are HARD, but it’s okay to have starts and stops, scenes out of order, and for it to not make sense to anyone but you. The only point of a first draft is to finish it. And I learned that, once I finish a draft, it’s important to step back and think about it as a whole—is this really the story I wanted to tell?

KK: I fell in love with Malcolm—his struggle to be a rat of “merit and valor,” his endearing anxiety, his unique exclamations (“Oh, crumb!” “Sweet Nubbins!”) all stick with me a year after reading it. I’m very curious to hear more about how you developed his character. What, if anything, inspired his story?

WB: I’m so glad to hear you’re fond of Malcolm. (I am, too.) As a writer, his character is probably what I’m most proud of in this book. Past writing efforts have had great plots twists and fun premises, but have lacked the depth of character Malcolm and his gang have. Writing Malcolm felt different, and I think it’s because of my connection to them.

As far as inspiration, it sounds trite, but Malcolm came about as a bedtime story for my then first-grade son. My son was pet-obsessed, and I was writing a nonfiction animal series, so I think we already had critters on the brain. At the time, too, we were doing a lot with restitution at the school I work at (and my son goes to) and talking about choices and being the person we want to be, so I think Malcolm just bloomed from there. And after that—well, I just put in anything that would make us giggle.

As for character development, I wrote about this earlier on Sleuths, Spies, & Alibis, but as I searched for ways to make my characters stronger, I was really helped by Cecil Castellucci’s Superman analogy—that every character needs a special skill or superpower, a flaw, a place of their own, an arch enemy, and a love/passion. I used this to go back and analyze favorite books and characters and found she was right. Another really useful thing I did early on, was write a letter from each of the characters, explaining what had happened from their point of view and in their voice. These letters were really useful to refer back to throughout subsequent drafts.

And the “slang?” Well, I have a dog who is VERY food motivated, so I extrapolated that most pets would be. I had a lot of fun creating sayings for the critters based on that.

KK: MALCOLM is illustrated by the very talented Brian Lies. Can you tell us a little bit about what it was like to work with an illustrator?

WB: I am so fortunate to work with Brian Lies on this, in more ways than one. First, I have to say that I’ve taught a unit with his Bats books for the past several years in my library. So when my editor made her offer on MALCOLM and said she’d like to bring in Brian, I was beyond thrilled. His work is so perfect for MALCOLM.

A lot of times, there is not a lot of contact between an author and illustrator working on a book, and there wasn’t with us at first. Eventually, though, he had so many questions about my text that we started talking more directly. (Brian was a great copy-editor of sorts, pointing out all sorts of inconsistencies!) I ended up sending him links to rat cages, oscar fish, clock towers, and my rough sketches of McKenna school’s floor plan. Throughout it, I felt really lucky that he had such attention to detail—I was (and still am) one of those kids who noticed when the illustrations don’t match the story. However, in return, I tried not to be too bossy and to be respectful of his creativity. It’s been my past experience working with illustrators that they usually come up with amazing stuff I’d never even dream of, and I didn’t want to get in the way of that. Brian didn’t disappoint.

Throughout this whole process, Brian’s become a friend. We’ll get to meet at some dual book events this fall, and I’m very much looking forward to it.

KK: As an elementary school librarian, you’re in the business of introducing books to young readers that you hope they’ll love. What are some of the mysteries you recommend to them?

WB: Some never-fail favorites of mine are Icefall, the Buddy Files series, Guinea Pig, Pet Shop Private Eye series, Smells Like Dog, and The Trouble with Chickens. However, I tend to think that most stories are a mystery of sorts, so sometimes I stretch the definition and recommend old favorites like Harry Potter or Holes as mysteries. And sometimes I include nonfiction, too, like Ain't Nothing but a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henry or The Case of the Vanishing Golden Frogs: A Scientific Mystery. As far as recent mysteries? I’m very much looking forward to booktalking The False Prince, Three Times Lucky, The Case of the Deadly Desperados, Explorer: the Mystery Boxes, and The Secret Tree to my students this fall.

KK: Since this is the Interrogation Room, we have to torture at least some secrets out of you. Tell us: what’s the most mysterious thing that’s happened to you lately?

WB: Well, since you’ve asked, I will confess that I recently had a very mysterious occurrence. It was at night and at my parents’ cabin in the Wisconsin north woods. I stepped outside to get something from the cabin next door, and was stopped by a hoarse whining coming from the edge of the trees. It sounded a little like a dog who badly needed a drink of water and was maybe hurt. However, since there are bears, cougars, and wolves up there, I wasn’t about to go out investigate. Then, as we stood on the porch listening to it (yes, I went in and got reinforcements), a second creature, on the other side of us, started making the same growly, whining noise. And they began to circle us. All night we could hear whatever it was talking to each other. VERY creepy.

We did finally figure out what it was, but I’ll let you listen to it too, and you can see if you can figure it out. 

Thanks for coming in for questioning, W.H. Beck! We're so glad everyone else is going to have a chance to fall in love with Malcolm. The book hits stores today. You can order it at your local indie, Barnes & Noble, or Amazon. 

Interested in a sneak peek? Check out the MALCOLM trailer here:

Interrogation Room Suspect #17: KIRSTEN MILLER, author of KIKI STRIKE

I might be investigated by internal affairs after hauling in today’s suspect into The Interrogation Room. I have no just cause for questioning Kirsten Miller -- other than being a big fan!

Kirsten Miller is the bestselling author of the middle grade Kiki Strike series as well as the The Eternal Ones and All You Desire. A native of North Carolina, she left her home in the Smoky Mountains at seventeen and moved to New York City, where she's lived ever since.

I bet other fans are as thrilled as I am that Kirsten has two books coming out early next year: How To Lead a Life of Crime (Penguin, February 2013) -- and the much-anticipated third book in the Kiki Strike series, The Darkness Dwellers (Bloomsbury, January 2013). 

A brief peek at both:

The Darkness Dwellers (from Bloomsbury Winter catalog)

In the third installment of bestselling author Kirsten Miller’s Kiki Strike series, this delightful group of delinquent geniuses jump feet first into a fast-paced international pursuit, going underground in Paris to pursue a pair of treacherous royals who have killed Kiki’s parents.

With a dash of romance, a fresh take on good manners, and loads of butt-kicking bravery, Kiki, Betty, Ananka and the other Irregulars sharpen their amazing skills in this highly anticipated new adventure.

How to Lead a Life of Crime (from Penguin Winter catalog):

A Meth dealer. A Prostitute. A serial killer.
Anywhere else, they'd be vermin. At the Mandel Academy, they're called prodigies. The most exclusive school in New York City has been training young criminals for over a century. Only the most ruthless students are allowed to graduate. The rest disappear. Flick, a teenage pickpocket, has risen to the top of his class. But then Mandel recruits a fierce new competitor who also happens to be Flick's old flame. They've been told only one of them will make it out of the Mandel Academy. Will they find a way to save each other--or will the school destroy them both?

Kristen Kittscher:  I've read that you were a fan of Sherlock Holmes as a kid. Kiki Strike’s all-girl Bank Street Irregulars are a great twist on the “Baker Street Regulars." Were there other authors or books you liked when you were growing up? 

Kirsten Miller: I read a lot of Nancy Drew. (And when I finished those, I moved on to the Hardy Boys.) I haven’t read any of the modern Nancy Drew books, but the older ones (The Hidden Staircase, The Secret in the Old Clock) are amazing. It’s hard to believe they were written in the 1930s. Nancy was always a very cool, butt-kicking chick. I give her a hard time in the Kiki Strike books, but she was (and continues to be) one of my heroes. 

But I gotta admit, my Nancy Drew stage was pretty short lived. Around the age of 10 or 11, I became a devotee of Stephen King. Which should give you a good sense of my personality (ha).

KK: What are some middle grade mysteries you enjoy now?

KM: Believe it or not, I’ve actually been reading adult books lately! (I thought I’d forgotten how.) So my full list may be quite out of date. My all time favorite is The Westing Game, which will always be a classic. I also read The Mysterious Benedict Society recently (if that counts as a mystery), which was awesome.

KK: You have a real range as a writer, taking on a reincarnation-themed romance for older teens and adults with The Eternal Ones series as well your action-packed middle grade Kiki Strike series. Can you talk a little bit about the different challenges involved in writing each?

KM: Well, The Eternal Ones (as well as my latest novel, How to Lead a Life of Crime) were labors of love. I can’t even describe how much fun I had writing the third Kiki Strike novel, The Darkness Dwellers. It’s not that I don’t like the Eternal Ones books. They’re actually really darn good (in my not so humble opinion). But I never felt that same LOVE when I was working on them. And without that love, writing is a million times more difficult.

KK: You've talked in previous interviews about the importance of writers "filling their brains."Any advice you can give aspiring (and current) mystery writers on that front?

KM: My biggest piece of advice is “embrace randomness.” Take a new route to school every day. Go to a section of the library that you’ve never visited before and check out the first book that catches your eye. Learn a skill you don’t really need. (Lock picking, silk screening, taxidermy, etc.) Never, ever let yourself fall into a rut. (Advice I still struggle to follow, I’m afraid!)

As for nonfiction books, check out the works of Mary Roach. (Spooked, Stiffed, etc.) If you like ghosts, cadavers, and all things disgusting you won’t be disappointed.

KK: Do you have any special methods of organizing your research? 

KM: I usually write about subjects on which I’m already well-versed. Over the years, I’ve read a lot about New York history, reincarnation, butt-kicking techniques, etc, so I really didn’t need to do any additional research when I sat down to write my novels. I guess you could say that “research” is my primary form of entertainment. So I never really stop. 

KK: Given The Eternal Ones’ focus on reincarnation, I have to ask: what do you think your future selves would say upon glimpsing your current life?

They would be very frustrated by my reluctance to tackle unpleasant tasks. “Just get it over with, already!” I can hear them shouting. “Just clean the darn toilet already!” (That’s just a segue way to the next question. I’m pretty good about scrubbing the toilet on a regular basis.)

KK: I hear that, inspired by the many questions you receive from out-of-towners looking for mysteries in New York, you’re developing The Irregular Guide to New York City that highlights its “hidden houses, secret cemeteries, abandoned subway stations, subterranean tunnels, and ghosts.” Are you willing to offer our readers one sneak peek secret New York City tip? 

KM: Sure! Here’s a special entry about outhouses and privies from the chapter entitled “Poop.” 

KK: My students and I are really looking forward to the third Kiki book. What can you reveal about it?

For starters, it’s my favorite of the three Kiki books. At the beginning of The Darkness Dwellers, Kiki sets off to claim the throne of Pokrovia. But as you might have guessed, things don’t go quite as planned, and Betty Bent must travel all the way to Paris to save Kiki’s rump. That’s all I can tell you without giving too much away, but I can promise bone-filled tunnels, evil etiquette experts, and a revolution—along with appearances by Molly Donovan (NY City’s most famous delinquent), Kaspar (the squirrel-training graffiti artist), and my personal favorite, Iris McLeod. 

Thank you so much, Kirsten! Early next year will be especially fun for me and other fans. 

Interested in keeping up with Kirsten's latest? Check out her blog, follow her on Twitter (@bankstirregular), or stop by Kiki Strike's official website. She's also got a great cover design contest running through 8/31 for How to Lead a Life of Crime. The entries are impressive!
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This interview was conducted by Sleuths, Spies, and Alibis' "detective" Kristen Kittscher. Her first book, the middle grade mystery/comedy THE WIG IN THE WINDOW, comes out from Harper Children's next year.