Hello friends! We’ve got lovely author Louisa Edwards with us today! I’ve had the good fortune to meet her a few times, and I’m very happy to have her here visiting with us today! Did you know that Sunday with her birthday? And yet she took the time to answer a few silly questions, and beyond that, instead of taking presents, she’s offering one! Whee!
So let’s get on to it – the typical ALBTALBS Author Interview!
1. What is one thing you always wish people would ask you about yourself, or your books, but they never do?
I wish people would ask who I think should play my characters in a movie. It would really help me justify the truly ridiculous amount of time I spend googling things like “redhead actress glasses” and “blond actor rugged.”
2. Do you speak anything other than English? What [other] languages do you wish you could speak?
I was actually a romance languages major in college! So according to my diploma, I speak French, Spanish, and Italian. If I’m honest, the languages I wish I could speak are….French, Spanish, and Italian. ‘Use it or lose it’ is totally true when it comes to foreign languages!
3. What’s the most embarrassing thing to ever happen to you at school? What about at a conference?
At school, let’s see. There’s the obligatory story of the time I got my period in the middle of class but didn’t realize it until I stood up—but what’s really embarrassing about that is that I was wearing a white denim mini skirt. At a conference? Probably the time I went up to Kresley Cole after she won the RITA and slobbered all over her about how amazing she was and how I’d reviewed A Hunger Like No Other for Fresh Fiction (this was before I started writing books myself) and loved it, and just generally blushed and stammered my way through an Epic Fangirl Moment. But the story has a happy ending, because Kresley was lovely and gracious—even to the point of saying she remembered my review!—and now however many years later, we’re actually good friends!
4. I know you’re a foodie – what’s your signature dish? What is something that you’ve always wanted to make but haven’t yet? What is your biggest/most abysmal cooking failure?
Not being a chef, there’s no pressure to come up with a signature dish at my house. If anything, my signature is trying new recipes—my husband complains that I never circle back to re-make the things he loved! I’ve always wanted to try to make a good, basic, old-fashioned moules frites: mussels in a white wine broth with French fries on the side. But my secret kitchen fear is shellfish. They seem so tricky, with the shells and the beards and the claws and the grit and that gross, green stuff that comes out of lobsters.
Biggest cooking failure…when I first started throwing dinner parties with my husband, I hadn’t learned the #1 Rule of Dinner Parties, which is to make recipes you know and love, that require minimal fussing at the end of cooking. I think my first party was scheduled for 7:00 and we didn’t sit down to the table until 10:00. I was frazzled, harried, didn’t have time to speak to my guests, and worst of all, the dinner I’d slaved over for hours was barely mediocre. Tons of work for very little reward. Now I follow the Ina Garten method of choosing dinner party recipes that are all about roasting, make-ahead, serve room temperature, etc…and I greet guests at the door with a smile on my face and a drink in my hand!
5. As a child which character/book(s) would you most want to be [or be in] a Laura Ingalls Wilder book, Madeline L’Engle, Lloyd Alexander, L.M. Montgomery, or Gail Carson Levine? [Or any other not listed here character.]
I loved Anne of Green Gables so much, it’s not even funny. To this day, I usually cite it as my favorite book, if only because of the level of influence it had on my at a very impressionable age—and because of how well it stands the test of time. But the L.M. Montgomery character I identify with the most is probably Valancy from The Blue Castle. Her journey from painfully awkward and downtrodden to confident and happy was pretty inspiring to this shy, nerdy middle schooler!
6. Walk in pantry, walk in closet, or extra garage space?
Dude, I specifically moved to Austin, TX instead of back to Manhattan so I could have all three. You are not making me choose between my shoes and my Le Creuset!
7. Would you rather live in a foreign drama, foreign comedy, soap opera, sitcom, or prime time show? Which?
Ha! Having just last night watched God of Cookery, Stephen Chow’s Hong Kong cinema send-up of Iron Chef, I’m tempted to say a foreign comedy. The absolute zaniness really appeals to me. But I’d probably do better living in soap opera land—I already know to avoid all twins, stay off the stairs when pregnant, and of course, the cardinal rule: no body, no death!
8. Would you shave your head for $50,000.00? If yes, would you do it for a lesser amount/what’s your minimum? If no, how much would it take for you to go bald? And then… would you do anything with your hair?
I’d absolutely shave my head, and it wouldn’t take $50K to convince me, either. It’s only hair, and mine grows pretty fast. Plus I look cute in hats. I’d love to say I’d donate the hair to Locks of Love, but I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t want it after the many highlights, low lights, and color rinses. (Again, it’s only hair! And I like to play.)
9. What five dead authors would you invite to a dinner party if you could?
Good one! I’ve done this with celebrities before, but never authors. Jane Austen is a given, and probably the most boring answer imaginable, but I’d make her stay after to help clean up, and dish about the night. I’d also invite J.R.R. Tolkein, on the condition that he speak only Elvish all night, P.G. Wodehouse to make us laugh, and Nora Ephron to keep us grounded. And, of course, Julia Child, to help me cook!
10. What’s the best admonishment your mom ever gave you, or that you’ve ever given a kid? e.g. if you make that face it’ll freeze like that. or… if you walk from the kitchen to the table w/ a fork in your mouth you’ll stab yourself through the throat and die.
If you pee in the pool, there’s a chemical that will turn the pee purple and everyone will know. I actually am not sure where I heard that one, but I still believe it.
11. What was your first job? And your most interesting one? Got any stories to share from either?
My first job was probably babysitting. My most interesting job…other than author? Probably waiting tables at the ritzy, rich-folks-only retirement home in my town. Some of those people were so used to being waited on hand and foot, it was impossible to get their creamed chipped beef to them fast enough. I heard a lot of, “You, girl!” as I rushed around with a tray of prune juice.
12. What would you name a pet rock?
I would never own a pet rock. I’m not the type to expend energy and affection on something that will never snuggle me back.
13. If you had to become a bear, which type would you choose?
Polar bear! Because they’re beautiful and funny, and also the tallest! It would be nice to finally be tall.
14. If you were to become a spammer, what product would you peddle? And what would your message be? Come up with the most attention getting, creative, crazy thing. Yes, that’s a challenge.
You are killing me here. Can I refuse to answer this on the grounds that I haven’t had enough coffee yet? Oh! How about: Coffee! It only SEEMS bad for you! But actually it’s proven to make you smarter, live longer, and reduce the risk of everything from acne to Parkinson’s. You can’t afford NOT to drink it.
The winner gets to choose her (or his) choice of any of Louisa’s books! Now it’s your turn! Have you ever read any of Ms. Edwards’s books before? What do you think of chef/foodie romances?
What question do you have for her? As usual, the crazier the better. 😉
