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an INTERVIEW
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Touching Base
with Paul Kropp
by Adrienne Phillips
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Running the Bases is prolific Canadian
writer Paul Kropp's latest novel for teen readers. It's
the hilarious story of the dating misadventures of Alan
Macklin,a 17-year-old guy with one simple goal: to get
a girl. But when it comes to the opposite sex, Alan
just keeps striking out. For some much-needed help he
turns to Maggie McPherson,who, for a fee, takes on the
Alan project and coaches him from girl to girl, base
to base, with surprising and comical results. READ magazine
talked to Paul Kropp from his home in Regina, Saskatchewan.
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How did you start your career as a writer?
I began writing for Mrs. Brown in my Grade 1 class. At the time, we
had to illustrate our stories and the only thing I could draw was B-52
bombers and explosions. Mrs. Brown looked at my stories, shook her
head and told me that I'd never be a writer. For fifty years now, I've
been proving her wrong on the writing-though I still can't draw much
more than B-52 bombers and explosions.
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If you weren't writing, what might you be doing for a living?
I could be a teacher, and did that for more than twenty years, but I'd
really like to be a professional croquet player. Unfortunately, there
are no professional croquet players and my current standing in CroCan
suggests that I won't be the first.
As a reader, what do you like? As a writer, has a book or author
particularly influenced you? Is there any book you really wish you'd
written?
I read very widely, from non-fiction like Jared Diamond's
Guns, Germs and Steel to fiction by
John Irving and Michael Ondaatje. Among young adult
writers, I admire William Bell and Susan Juby. For many
years, my young-adult writing was heavily influenced
by the American writer Paul Zindel. But Zindel died
a few years back and I'm moving into new territory.
And as for books I wanted to write . . .
well, I've written them.
You've written extensively in both the fiction and non-fiction genres.
Is your writing process different for fiction and non-fiction?
Fiction is tougher. For non-fiction, there's a big research phase that
takes years, followed by a writing phase that is
difficult, but not impossible because the material is in my head. For
fiction, a story starts as an idea but that idea morphs a great deal
as I do the actual writing. For Running the Bases, I didn't realize
how important Maggie was until I was a third of the way into the first
draft. I didn't know she'd be billing Alan for advice until I was
finished that draft. It takes a long time for a writer to understand
his or her characters, and that affects the story. Running the Bases,
for instance, has eight revised drafts on my computer. Non-fiction
never takes that much rewriting.
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We've heard that showers play an important role in your writing
process. Can you tell us a little about that?
When I get stuck in writing (everybody does), I don't complain or
crumple up paper . . . I take a shower. Technically, the ionization
around the showerhead frees up negative ions that have a positive
effect on creativity. It's a bit like being outside in a thunderstorm,
except there's no danger of lightning. (Caution: do not take a
computer into the shower. Take my word for it.)
You've previously written over 50 novels for young people. What made
you want to tell this particular story now?
I think dating, romance and adolescent sexuality (note, I did not say
sex) are big topics for teenagers, and mostly ignored in these days of
adventure books and fantasy. That field of dating and romance changes
radically every few years. I looked at it first, with younger
characters, back in 1978 . . . and some time has passed since then. I
wanted to take another honest look before I get too old to hit the
keyboard and my kids and assistants get too old to tell me the truth.
Running the Bases
deals honestly with the challenges and pressures teenagers
feel around dating and sexuality. Do you think these
pressures are different from the ones you faced as a
teenager?
Those challenges are radically different. I go back to the days when
perfumes smelled like Ivory Soap, a girl's navel was never seen in
real life and was airbrushed out of magazine pictures, and you had to
go on two dates before you got a kiss on the cheek. "Hooking up" was
an aspect of needlework or knitting. I'm not sure that all the current
trends are good things for teenagers, but there's no sense denying the
real world they face.
Maggie starts off as Alan's Project Manager and eventually becomes
something else entirely to him. Did you know from the start that
things would change between them, or was that plot twist a surprise to
you as you wrote the book?
I knew that Maggie and Alan had an attraction for each other early on,
but Alan is attracted to almost any girl and Maggie has standards that
Alan doesn't meet. I was actually surprised that Maggie should become
interested in Alan at the book's end. Characters sometimes do the
darndest things. If Maggie had asked me, I would have given her better
advice.
In Running the Bases
you present a guy's view on dating as well as a no-nonsense
girl's perspective on the same thing-where did the inspiration
for that come from?
I've been experimenting with two points-of-view in fiction since the
1980s. This book is "told" by Alan, but the real substance comes from
Maggie because my poor hero is such an idiot. I think he's a likeable
idiot (as does Maggie) but he's still very clueless. Fortunately,
Maggie has enough brains for them both.
Do you have kids of your own? Do you consult them when you're writing
about teenagers?
I have three boys and a step-daughter. My youngest son and
step-daughter are young enough (25, 20) that they offer me much good
advice. My first attempt at ending the book, for instance, was
rejected out-of-hand by my son Alex, who is also a writer. "Your
characters wouldn't do that," he said, and then told me why. So I went
back and rewrote. They both approve of the revised ending.
What's next for Alan and Maggie? Are you planning to tell us more of
their story in future books?
I could tell you a great deal, but let me just say this: Alan and
Maggie end up in schools on either sides of the country. Alan
continues his quest for a girl, some girl, any girl (like Tom Jones,
he never quite succeeds) and Maggie suffers from some real abuse at
her prestigious school in the East. They compare notes after their
first year, but as very different people than they were in high
school.
What's the most valuable piece of advice you'd give to a new writer?
Listen hard to real kids, not to other writers. There are stories
desperate to be written and few people with the courage to write them.
What's the most valuable piece of advice you'd give to a parent hoping
to encourage their child to read?
Buy tons of reading material: books, magazines, schlocky books, pop
novels, classics, comics and the Guiness Book of Records. Don't turn
up your nose at anything, but make sure there's good stuff close by
your child's reading corner.
Is there a question we haven't asked that you'd love to answer?
People ask if I ever write myself into my books, and
the simple answer is: All the time-but not in any recognizable
way. There are parts of me in both Alan and Maggie,
in Scrooge and Jeremy, and bits of my life experience
in all my books. But the kind, wise, terrifically handsome
father . . . well, there's just no room
for him. |
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