 June - August 2005
Introducing … Sharon Draper
Erudite educators with a passion for a perfected modicum in writing for the younger set usually have a leg up on others writing in the same genre. Sharon Draper further exemplifies this by actively involving teachers, students and responsible adults in spreading the word about the power of accomplished teaching and excellence in education. As inquisitive as I am, I wondered how this would parlay into how she defines the policy & procedure to write as she does. I wanted certain questions answered, a few of which graced the beginning of this installment.
Admittedly, before contacting this author, I never read any of her books. But ever so prolifically, I came to know of quotes such as this: "I am a creator, an educator, a visionary... I approach the world with the eyes of an artist, the ears of a musician, and the soul of a writer. I see rainbows where others see only rain, and possibilities when others see only problems. I love spring flowers, summer's heat on my body, and the beauty of the dying leaves in the fall. Classical music, art museums, and ballet are sources of inspiration, as well as blues music, dim cafes, and the jitterbug. I love to write; words flow easily from my fingertips, and my heart beats rapidly with excitement as an idea becomes a reality on the paper in front of me. I use all of these elements to encourage my students as well as myself. I'm a learner and a seeker of knowlede, and I take my students along on my journey. I smile often, and laugh easily, and I weep at pain and cruelty. I love what I do, and I'm good at it. I learned to dream through reading, learned to create dreams through writing, and learned to develop dreamers through teaching. I shall always be a dreamer.”
With that said, and not one to sit on her laurels, the author maintains a busy regimen where travel is par for the course. An affirmation from a mutual friend allowed me time to catch up with her for a formal interview. This is what I was able to extract from her: |
ACR: The Romer Review reading audience would like to thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to let us know who you are and why you write the way you do...would you mind introducing yourself accordingly?
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| SD: I’m a teacher—I teach wherever I go, whether I’m talking to a small group of teenagers informally or giving a formal instruction in a college class. Sharing knowledge is what I do. It just comes natural. And I’m a writer. That, too, comes natural to me. When I sit down to write, the words just seem to flow easily. I consider both to be a blessing—the ability to take what is inside oneself and share it effectively with others. Why do I write the way I do? I try really hard to write material that young readers can “feel.” I do my best not to talk down to them, but to take their lives and thoughts quite seriously. Hundreds of readers write to me and tell me that somehow I’ve managed to capture what it’s like to be young and vulnerable. They tell me I write the way it really is for them. That makes me feel good. |
| ACR: It would seem with approximately 14 books written for pre teens, young adults and teachers alike that you’ve mastered a technique that works for you. Would you mind sharing the 'Sharon Draper Writing Method'? |
| SD: When I’m writing a novel, for example, I have to move in and live in their neighborhood--really become a part of the lives of the characters so they seem like real people to me. I become engrossed in their lives. I think that finding that “zone” is essential for making the story ring true and honest and real. I get up early in the morning and write all day—maybe ten or twelve hours a day. It is truly an act of immersion. |
| ACR: Undoubtedly as an educator you'd want your students to possess a solid literary base embracing and understanding the importance of reading; what then, are some of the obstacles preventing Johnny from achieving success in assessment testing nationwide? |
| SD: Students need to read more. Parents must begin by reading to their children. We’ve got to turn off the televisions sometimes and read. Children learn early to become engrossed in computers and video games. Even very young children can be seen clicking their thumbs and working a video game while they’re in the grocery store, for example. Mom is able to shop because the child is engrossed, but there is no conversation between mother and child, not talking about ideas or asking a question about a word or a picture. Just silence and separation. That child should be encouraged to carry and book with him instead. If we want students to improve, they must read more and they must write more. If parents start the trend, it is easier for teachers to continue. |
| ACR: Ideas for stories and character development vary from author to author. Is there any unique way you approach your muse to distinguish yourself differently from your peers? |
SD: Sometimes ideas just find me. It might be an obscure newspaper article, a quirky report I hear on a TV news show. Sometimes I get ideas from real people. I once saw a delightful husband and wife in an airport. They were both ninety and dressed in identical outfits, right down to their decorated canes. I keep a notebook with me, and I jot them down. I haven’t actually used them yet, but they might show up one day. They were just so cute. Ideas also sometimes come from real teenagers I meet as I travel—they have good ideas and often make suggestions as to what I should write about next. Their ideas often include sex, trauma, and relationship issues.
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| ACR: Let's talk about a few of your books. Which one would you consider your favorite and why? |
SD: An author’s favorite is generally the newest—it’s like the newborn baby that needs lots of attention and nurturing. For me, right now, that one is Copper Sun, which will be out at the end of this year. It is different from anything I’ve ever done—it’s historical fiction, and it delves into African-American history in a way not quite done before. It’s is the post powerful thing I’ve ever written. The words came from my soul, my spirit. I truly believe the ancestors were working through me to write the words. That’s all I can say about it now, but check with me in January, and I’ll give you the inside scoop on the development of that story.
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| ACR: What was the journey like for you establishing common ground introducing Andy, Gerald, Rob, et al, developing the Hazelwood High Trilogy? I guess this is an apt time to introduce this series |
 SD: I wrote Andy's story first. That was Tears of a Tiger. I had no idea what an impact it would have. It won numerous awards and seemed to strike a chord with students and teachers all over. When I was asked to do a second book, I decided to take a minor character from the first book and develop him as the major character of the next book. That ended up being Gerald in Forged by Fire. Forged by Fire seems to come before Tears of a Tiger because it begins when Gerald is just three years old. He grows up to go to Hazelwood High School with Andy and Rob and the others. So those two books meet in the middle as companion books. I WROTE Tears of a Tiger first, but Forged by Fire HAPPENS first. The third book in the Hazelwood trilogy, Darkness Before Dawn, was written to answer all the questions I received about what happened to the characters in the first two books. Each book can stand-alone and be read without the others, however. If I had known I was going to write three books when I started, I would have written them in order. |
| ACR: I've always felt that Tears of a Tiger was a great book that doesn't deal with the topics usually associated with, and doesn't deal with topics so prevalent in the world that teens live in today. No drugs, sex, gang violence, or familial disunity, yet, you managed to tell a story widely considered to be one of the first books for young adults that melded character, setting and timing in giving them a sense of belonging. What are your immediate thoughts about this book and the message you tried to evoke? |
SD: I don’t think I had a grand plan in mind when I wrote it. I certainly had no agenda designed to send a message to young people. When students ask me today “What do you think we should learn from this book?” I ask them if they learned anything. When they tell me, I respond that must be what they were to learn. A good book ought to elicit a variety of responses in those that read it—none of them pre-ordained, all of them very personal. Whatever they take away from the reading of the book is valuable.
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| ACR: The Battle of Jericho is my favorite! It brings to life decisions that have to be made dealing with peer pressure and the hazards of hazing. Why this subject, and what if anything did you want to accomplish by bringing this in story form? |
 SD: Young people are accosted with decisions every day—most of them much more dangerous and serious than anything I’m able to put in a book. Not only to they have to decide what to do, they have to make those decisions under the grim, watchful scrutiny of their peers who show no mercy to those who dare to break with the norm. It is critical that they are given a platform to discuss options and choices and the consequences of making those choices. I tried to open the doors of thoughtful discussion through the characters of Jericho and Josh and the others. By the way, there will be a sequel to The Battle of Jericho, and a third one as well—a new trilogy. This one, however, since I know I’m doing three books, will be written in chronological order! I’m working on the second one now. |
| ACR: Is writing and teaching synonymous in forging parallels to your philosophy for all things literary? If so, how and why? I guess what I'm trying to get at is for you to share what has been influential to you getting where you are thus far both as an educator and/or as a writer. |
| SD: I am a teacher. It is not a job description, but a definition of who I am. I teach wherever I go—whether I’m talking at a school, or a convention, or to a group of teenagers at the mall. My entire essence revolves around “explaining” so that others can see—transferring the pictures and ideas in my mind into someone else’s consciousness. I think that philosophy transfers to my writing. I’m blessed to be able to create words on paper that produce images in the minds of others—images that make them think, or wonder or feel the need to talk. I get hundreds of letters from kids who tell me how the books have touched them or made them think, or made them want to read more. It’s wonderful as well as humbling. |
| ACR: The difficult realities of the world are constantly being played on the stage of life, with ongoing debates on what should be written for young adults and teens alike. How do you determine what you write? Is there a method you use to decide on a subject? |
| SD: Like I said earlier, stories find me. The come to me unbidden, begging to be told. I try to find ideas that are compelling to contemporary teenagers, because they respond so resoundingly to them. So why did I write a novel of historical fiction? Because it had to be written and I simply could not avoid it. Copper Sun, however, is more about character than plot, so even though the heroine was born long ago, it is her persona, her strength in the face of extreme difficulty that shines through. She could easily have lived today, and I think my readers will realize that. So I suppose the answer to your question is my writing is character-driven instead of plot driven. What would a given character do in this particular situation? What feelings and emotions and reactions would he or she have in the face of any given plot development? It’s a journey of discovery for me as I explore the character’s growth through the story. |
| ACR: In an earlier interview, you alluded to the fact of knowing what students like, what they will read and what they won't. Moreover, there was further reference to them needing to be able to read and write about their own world via a valid 'contemporary literary medium'. Why is this so important? Can you elaborate a little more? |
| SD: Well, so much for “contemporary!” That historical fiction book will be a real test. However, I do think I understand what young readers will like and respond to in a positive way. I LISTEN to what they tell me when they send me emails and letters and when I talk to them at schools, and I try to incorporate what they say into the characters and plots of the stories. They like the immediacy, the descriptions that they say are “so real it seems like I was there,” and the plot twists that keep them on the edge of their seat. I write short chapters, use lots of sensory imagery, and try to imagine myself in the scene as I write it so that it has the immediacy it needs. |
| ACR: Who is your mentor? Has there been one person to lead you along in your literal and intellectual development? |
SD: My mother, who read to me from birth, inspired my love of books and words and ideas. She took me to the library every week when I was little, and we read hundreds of books a year. When I got old enough to go by myself, I continued the practice of indulging myself in words, checking out ten books at a time. I suppose my inspirations were all those writers who wrote were able to create a book so good that it was impossible to put it down, a book where the characters were so real that there was a palpable loss when the story was over. I’m still an avid reader, and I still search for writers who can make that magic happen.
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| ACR: How important are the humanities and books that are considered 'classics/ play in the development of good readers and even better writers? |
| SD: I’ve read most of “the classics” as well as hundreds of less “literary” works. Each has their place. We can learn much from the old masters—the attention to detail and characterization and plot structure in the days before television and movies is exquisite. However, I don’t think we should read ONLY those works. We need to balance our reading with contemporary authors, those who, after the test of time, might one day be considers classics in their own right. And it’s OK to read junk sometimes too. Books with good plot twists and no hidden, intrinsic meaning—just a good story to occupy the mind for a moment. And yes, I think good readers become the best writers. The continuous input of words and image from a variety of written sources has got to be beneficial in the production of one’s own words on the page. |
| ACR: What are your thoughts on Julius Lester, Virginia Hamilton, Walter Dean Myers and Mildred D. Taylor? Have you ever talked to or have met any of them? |
| SD: I have great respect and give much honor to the memory of Virginia Hamilton. She was kind to me when I first started, and that kindness stayed with me. She gave me her home phone number and told me to call her if she had any questions or problems as I was writing. She, who had over fifty books written at the time, offered her assistance to me, who had just one book at the time. The world has lost a great voice. I have met Walter Dean Myers many times and have met most of the African-American young adult writers who are active today. I try to be supportive of all of them, as I hope they are of me. I recommend their books to young readers all the time. |
| ACR: Getting a book from idea to bookshelf is a long and arduous task...what are your keys to success for aspiring writers to grasp? |
SD: PATIENCE. It takes me six months to write a book, six months for the editing process, and another year before it hits the bookstores. DETERMINATION. It is essential to believe in the possibility of success. FLEXIBILITY. Willingness to make changes to a manuscript you think is perfect. Willingness to look at an idea from a different perspective. DISCLIPLINE. Forcing you to meet deadlines, whether personal (I’ll write one chapter today) or professional (your manuscript is due Friday.)
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| ACR: What's in store next for Sharon M. Draper? Can we expect more of what has been written for students, teachers and readers to keep us poised and primed for more of your work? |
SD: I’ve already talked about Copper Sun. I’m really excited about it—I think it will be powerful—like a bolt of lightning. The second and third books in the Jericho series are coming the year after that. And I have a new book for teachers coming out as well—more words of inspiration and encouragement. I’ve enjoyed answering these questions. It’s nice to be forced to be introspective and thoughtful sometime. I truly believe that being able to write is a blessing, and I’m very thankful for the opportunities I’ve been given.
Sharon Draper would love for all of her devoted fans and readers to visit her website: SharonDraper.com
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