An Inside Look with Dan Gemeinheart
*Season #SIX (Summer 2019)
How did you come to know Ravani?
I worked really hard on making Ravani come to life in my mind and on the page. I wrote and rewrote and rewrote those opening dozen chapters again and again until I felt like I knew him, and that maybe a reader would feel the same way. He was tricky because he's shy, and quiet, and somewhat timid...but he has an incredible strength, courage and moral compass on the inside, and I wanted to make sure that shone through clearly, and early. He became one of my very favorite protagonists to write...a little hard to get to know at first, but absolutely worth it once you do. Like eating a pomegranate. :)
What do you think is his most admirable quality?
The courage he has to reach out, to be a friend, to help others...even though throughout his life he has been bullied and scorned and excluded. Even though the world has often been a dark place for him, he's never given up on seeing (and being!) the light.
Is there anything you wish he would have changed or done differently in his story?
Ha! Too soon to tell. I might have a better idea of that once I read some reviews. For now, I feel very proud of how this story came out. :)
What do you think Ravani can offer to other children that are experiencing similar situations to what he went through?
Great question! My answer is similar to how I answered number two above...the importance of realizing that someone else's ugliness is a reflection of them, not you; that there is goodness in the world, even if sometimes you can't see it; to believe and know, especially in your darkest hours, that it will get better; to never stop believing in yourself, your own worth, and the truth that you and your voice and your soul belong in this world, and have a beautiful part to play.
How did you research Ravani and the circumstances he found himself in?
Ravani's loneliness and social exclusion came equally out of parts of my own childhood (I was a quiet, shy kid, and know well what it feels like to be the target of bullies) and from my years as a teacher, seeing students who were struggling to fit in and find their voice and strength.
Do you and Ravani share any similarities?
We've walked a lot of the same paths, me and Ravani - though he has it worse than I did. :) We both value friendship, and listen more than we speak, and seek peace in nature. He is, perhaps, my most personal protagonist.
What was the hardest scene to write about him?
Definitely the bullying scenes, and a scene near the end (no spoilers!) where he says some pretty harsh things to someone he cares about. It's so hard, when you see the vulnerable beauty in someone, to put them through horrible trials!
Who do you think was his biggest supporter and why?
For most of his life, his mom. She has always been his refuge and his supporter, and is probably a big part of the reason why he ultimately believes that he does have worth and deserves to be happy. We all need someone like that in our lives. But by the end of the story, he has quite a few more supporters!
Why do you think some young people, like Ravani, who are shy, quiet, and maybe are a bit introverted; are able to find the courage and strength to branch out of their comfort zone to not only improve their own lives, but the lives of others?
Whew, that's a BIG question. And what I'd hesitate to answer, because it feels almost like judging the children who don't. It can be so, so hard to reach out when you've been treated with cruelty, and I wouldn't ever want to portray that as cowardice or weakness. It is, often, just survival, and even good common sense. But I hope that those quiet kids who maybe aren't yet fitting in will hold on to their own value, believe in their own worth even if some of those around them aren't, so that when they're ready to reach out and blossom, they can do it knowing that they deserve happiness, connection and belonging as much as anyone else.
What do you think Ravani is doing as the present time?
Well, without giving anything away, I think that he is way happier and more secure at the end of this book than at the beginning, and that he is finally truly, deeply happy both in his life, and in his own skin.
SEASON #SIX (Summer 2019)
Interview #122 with Tamara Bundy (Author of Pixie Pushes On)
Interview #123 with Lindsay Lackey (Author of All the Impossible Things)
Interview #124 with Tae Keller (Author of When You Trap a Tiger)
Interview #125 with Jamie Sumner (Author of Roll With It)
Interview #126 with Hena Khan (Author of More to the Story)
Interview #127 with Phil Bildner (Author of A High-Five for Glenn Burke)
Interview #128 with Leslie Connor (Author of A Home for Goddesses and Dogs)
Interview#129 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Queen Bee and Me)
Interview #130 with Jody J. Little (Author of Worse Than Weird)
Interview #131 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Things You Can't Say)
Interview #132 with Kaela Noel (Author of Coo)
Interview #133 with Rebecca Stead (Author of The List of Things That Will Not Change)
Interview #134 with Gae Polisner (Author of Jack Kerouac is Dead to Me)
Interview #135 with Emily Blejwas (Author of Like Nothing Amazing Ever Happened)
Interview #136 with Joy McCullough (Author of A Field Guide to Getting Lost)
Interview #137 with Kim Baker (Author of the Water Bears)
Interview #138 with Erin Entrada Kelly (Author of We Dream of Space)
Interview #139 with Jess Redman (Author of Quintessence)
Interview #140 with Melanie Conklin (Author of Every Missing Piece)
Interview #141 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Brave Like That)
Interview #158 with Rebecca Ansari (Author of The In-Between)
Interview #159 with John David Anderson (Author of One Last Shot)
Interview #160 with Tracy Holczer (Author of Brave in the Woods)
Interview #161 with James Bird (Author of The Brave)
Interview #162 with Marcella Pixley (Author of Trowbridge Road)
Interview #163 with Barbara O'Connor (Author of Halfway to Harmony)
Interview #164 with Alan Gratz (Author of Ground Zero)
Interview #165 with Lisa Fipps (Author of Starfish)
Interview #166 with Ann Braden (Author of Flight of the Puffin)
Interview #167 with Kimberly Willis Holt (Author of The Ambassador of NoWhere Texas)
Interview #168 with Elana K. Arnold (Author of The House That Wasn't There)
Interview #169 with Erin Soderberg (Author of The Great Peach Experiment)
Interview #170 with Donna Gephart (Author of Abby, Tried, and True)
Interview #171 with M. Evan Wolkenstein (Author of Turtle Boy)
Interview #172 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Bea is for Blended)
Interview #173 with Jess Redman (Author of The Adventure is Now)
Interview #174 with David Levithan (Author of The Mysterious Disappearance of Aiden)
Interview #175 with Chris Grabenstein (Author of The Smartest Kid in the Universe)
Interview #176 with Ali Standish (Author of The Mending Summer)
Interview #177 with Holly Goldberg Sloan (Author of The Elephant in the Room)
Interview #178 with Jeff Zentner (Author of In the Wild Light)
SEASON #ELEVEN (Fall/Winter 2021)
Interview #179 with Katherine Applegate (Author of Willow)
Interview #180 with Padma Venkatraman (Author of Born Behind Bars)
Interview #181 with R.J. Palacio (Author of Pony)
Interview #182 with Kyle Lukoff (Author of Too Bright to See)
Interview #183 with Barbara Dee (Author of Violets are Blue)
Interview #184 with Anne Ursu (Author of The Troubled Girls of Dragonmir Academy)
Interview #185 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of We Could Be Heroes)
Interview #186 with Jasmine Warga (Author of Shape of Thunder)
Interview #187 with Joseph Bruchac (Author of Rez Dogs)
Interview #188 with Kathryn Erskine (Author of Lily's Promise)
Interview #189 with Elly Swartz (Author of Dear Student)
Interview #190 with Heather Clark (Author of Lemon Drop Falls)
Interview #191 with Veera Hiranandani (Author of How to Find What You're Not Looking For)
Interview #192 with Elizabeth Eulberg (Author of The Best Worst Summer)
Interview #193 with Cathy Carr (Author of 365 Days to Alaska)
Interview #194 with Carol Cujec and Peyton Goddard (Authors of REAL)
Interview #195 with Gillian McDunn (Author of These Lucky Stars)
Interview #196 with Alyssa Colman (Author of The Gilded Girl)
Interview #197 with E.L. Chen (Author of The Comeback)
Interview #198 with J.M.M. Nuanez (Author of Birdie and Me)
SEASON #TWELVE (Winter/Spring 2022)
Interview #199 with Jamie Sumner (Author of One Kid's Trash)
Interview #200 with Chad Lucas (Author of Thanks a Lot, Universe)
Interview #201 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Where We Used to Roam)
Interview #202 with Rebecca Caprara (Author of Worst-Case Collin)
Interview #203 with Leslie Connor (Author of Anybody Here Seen Frenchie?)
Interview #204 with Caroline Gertler (Author of Many Points of Me)
Interview #205 with Margaret Finnegan (Author of Susie B. Won't Back Down)
Interview #206 with Shawn Peters (Author of The Unforgettable Logan Foster)
Interview #207 with Aisha Saeed (Author of Omar Rising)
Interview #208 with Adrianna Cuevas (Author of Cuba in my Pocket)
Interview #209 with Jennifer Swender (Author of Stuck)
Interview #210 with Brenda Woods (Author of When Winter Robeson Came)
Interview #211 with Danya Lorentz (Author of the Book Of a Feather)
Interview #212 with Saadia Faruqi (Author of Yusuf Azeem is Not a Hero)
Interview #213 with Ellen Hopkins (Author of What About Will)
SEASON #THIRTEEN (Summer 2022)
Interview #214 with Nora Raleigh Baskin and Gae Polisner (Authors of What About the Octopus)
Interview #215 with Lauren Wolk (Author of My Own Lightning)
Interview #216 with Rebekah Lowell (Author of the Road to After)
Interview #217 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Honestly Elliott)
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