Frances Dowell, Editor and Children's Author

Frances O'Rourke Dowell is a woman who wears many hats. She is an award-winning author and also editor and copublisher of "Dream/Girl", a savvy magazine for girls 9-14 that inspires and highlights the creative arts. Frances is also a wife and mother and lives in North Carolina. She is also a poet and teacher.

"Dovey Coe", is Frances's first novel and has won the Edgar Allen Poe Award for Best Juvenile Novel from the Mystery Writers of America in 2001. The novel, set in 1928, reveals to readers a young mountain girl named Dovey who is accused of killing a young boy. The book is great reading and a great resource for writers who want to study what it takes to write an award-winning mystery.

"Where I'd Like To Be", is a new novel by Frances (2003, Atheneum Books). Twelve year old Maddie, the main character, struggles to find herself and a place she can call home. Shuffled from one foster home to the next, Maddie meets a new girl named Murphy who changes everything. Writers will want to read and pay close attendtion Frances's excellent character development.

"Dream/Girl" Magazine, was created by Frances as an alternative to the celebrity-packed, beauty driven magazines young girls read. Written for girls 9-14, the articles inspire girls to pursue the beauty and creativity that lies within each one. It is advertising free and has received rave reviews. "Parents Choice" proclaimed, "Packed with high interest material, this magazine should be thrust into hands that are beginning to shape and mold." "School Library Journal" states, "Dream/Girl" offers girls an alternative to the passive presentation of information found in other magazines". Please visit the online version and consider a subscription for any young girl you know.

http://www.dgarts.com

1.SR: When did you first have an inkling that you wanted to be a writer?

FD: I realized I wanted to be a writer when I was 28 years old, rather late given that by that time I had an MFA in Creative Writing. Up until then I'd written mostly poetry, but I'd begun to suspect that I didn't having a calling to be a poet--in fact, I was really itching to write something else. Really, I just wanted to write and to make a living at it. Since college, I'd been reading children's books, first re-reading my childhood favorites, then branching out to new books, and it suddenly occurred to me that what I wanted to do was write books for children. Eight years later, when I was 36, I published Dovey Coe.

2.SR: Was there anyone is your childhood who encouraged, inspired or motivated you to pursue writing?

FD: My parents always encouraged me. I had a wonderful English teacher in sixth grade, Mr. Lee, and another one in eighth grade, Mr. Pierce, who praised my writing and gave me confidence as a writer. I don't remember if anyone ever told me I should be a writer when I grew up, but that was okay, because what I really wanted to be was a radio disc jockey.

3.SR: How has your educational background been an advantage to your writing career?

FD: I have a degree in English from Wake Forest University, and as everyone knows to be a good writer you have to be a reader. Plus, a good liberal arts education never hurt anyone.

FD: I also have an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. My concentration was in poetry, not fiction, but I benefited in many ways across the board from this experience. First of all, I learned to take criticism, and I learned not to take it personally. Secondly, I learned to revise ... and revise and revise and revise. Finally, I learned that the joy is in the process.

4.SR: What inspired your interest in the arts in general?

FD: My mom was a very artsy craftsy mom--she kept us supplied with all sorts of good stuff; big rolls of butcher paper, lots of crayons and magic markers, finger paints. We also had tons of records and I listened to music all the time. I'm sure that's where the seeds were planted.

5.SR: Do you consider yourself a feminist? Explain, please.

FD: Yes, I consider myself a feminist. I suppose I consider myself a feminist for very fundamental reasons. I believe women and men are of equal worth and should be treated equally under the law. I believe women should be judged by the content of their characters, not the attractiveness of their bodies. I believe this about men, too. One of the worst cultural developments in recent years is the trend for ten-year-old boys to care what they look like. It's bad enough that ten-year-old girls do. What it comes down to is I'm for everybody living productive, happy lives in which they get to use their talents to the fullest. 6.SR: "Dream Girl" is such an inspirational ezine. Where did this idea originate?

FD: I thought there ought to be a magazine for smart, creative girls. There are tons of girls who fit this description, though you wouldn't know it from reading Seventeen. Magazines such as Seventeen and YM strike me as having a very narrow idea of what girls can do and be. I should point out that Dream/Girl is actually a print magazine; we keep up an ezine so folks looking for us on-line can find us.

7.SR: "Tarheels" seem to have a genetic propensity to be storytellers. How has your southern background influenced you writing?

FD:I have to admit that I'm not really a Southerner in the strictest sense. Though my family's deepest roots are in Kentucky and I've lived in the South most of my adult life, I grew up in the Army and moved all the time.

Having said that, however, there's no doubt that living in the South has had a strong influence on what I write. For the most part I write books set in the South, in places where I've actually lived and know the people and the streets and the weather. I've listened to a lot of Southern voices talking, and they make their way into my stories, too.

8.SR: What is the very best writing advice you have ever received?

FD: Write at the same time and the same place every night so the muse can find you.

9.SR: Please describe your typical writing day.

FD: I have two young sons, and I feel lucky if I get a couple of hours to write at night. I work on a computer, and I try to sit down at the same time every night at least five nights a week. I try not to think about what I'm going to write before I get to work each night--I find that if I start writing in my head it never makes it down on paper.

10.SR: How are you like Dovey Coe? What should we know about this character?

FD: Dovey is much more outspoken than I am (or was at her age, any in case). Her family is very important to her, and that's true for me as well. Like me, her intentions are usually good but that doesn't keep her from messing up pretty badly at times. What should you know? Dovey has a good heart. She's stubborn. You'd want her on your side in a fight.

11.SR: What advice can you give to writers who are just entering this profession of writing for children?

FD: All the successful children's writers I know are passionate about children's books. If you're not, ask yourself why you want to write books for kids. They're not easier to write, they're not easier to get published, and the money's not all that hot (unless you're J.K. Rowling). Learn how to present yourself professionally to editors (i.e. don't put the copyright symbol next to your title on your title page, don't send cover letters in which you suggest you're concerned the editor may steal your great ideas, etc.). When I was first learning about the publishing business, I found the Children's Writers and Illustrators Market Guide to be a valuable resource. 12.SR: Please discuss any upcoming books or projects that we can look forward to.

FD: My next book, The Secret Language of Girls, will be published in Spring 2004 by Atheneum Books. 13.SR: Please finish this sentence:

FD: My passions are... my children, my husband, books.