An Inside Look - With Lynn Plourde
Author of Maxi's Secrets
*Another summer Monday, means another "inside look" with an author.
*It has been such an honor to connect with authors and "chat" with them about their novel, the characters, and their thoughts about the story.
*I have had such fun connecting with authors and "picking" their brains.
*Here are the links to my first TEN interviews...
*I had the honor of reading Maxi's Secrets via an ARC that was sent to me.
*I'm not sure why, but I knew it was going to be a special novel even before I started it.
*Once I started the story I literally was not able to put the book down. It consumed me.
*As soon as I finished, I reached out to Lynn via Twitter to express my LOVE for this story.
*After a few "tweets" back and forth, she agreed to be an author for my "Inside Look" series.
*I was thrilled and was so humbled that she agreed to answer some questions for me.
*The actual novel is being released to the public on August 23rd. It is a beauty of a story!
Maxi's Secrets by Lynn Plourde (Released on Tuesday, August 23, 2016)
How did you come
to “know” Timminy?
I knew Timminy’s dog,
Maxi, first—since she is based on my beloved dog, Maggie. Maggie led me to Maxi
who led me to Timminy. With a giant, deaf Great Pyrenees as the dog in Maxi’s Secrets, I knew I wanted an
extra-short, loudmouth, starting-at-a-new-school boy as the main character, as
a contrast to Maxi and to amplify the theme of “fitting in.”
What do you
think is Timminy's most admirable quality?
His sense of humor. Humor
is a human tool that is underrated. Humor can diffuse an intense situation,
humor can be a link to new friendships and a foundation for old friendships as
we share “inside jokes,” humor shows intelligence (funny people have a quick
wit and can think on their feet, er . . . their funny bones), humor lets us
breathe, humor takes bravery and confidence (What if what you think is funny,
falls flat and no one laughs?). Humor can also be a cover-up to hide what’s
really going on emotionally with someone. I think Timminy uses humor well—as a
coping strategy, it’s part of who he is, but he also doesn’t let it hide his
frustration and anger.
What do you
think Timminy can offer to other children who are experiencing similar situations
to what he went through?
As far as fitting into a
new school, Timminy shows that it’s best to make one or two new friends and
then let the “friend circle” grow from there. I imagine other kids, as they
read Maxi’s Secrets, may want to tell
Timminy to stop being such a wise-mouth, to get that chip off his
shoulder—Timminy has to learn that on his own, but maybe other kids can
recognize those qualities in themselves. And the Kirkus review of Maxi’s
Secrets says: “Timminy’s coping strategies could
help readers dealing with the loss of a pet.” I would love it if that were
true—even if it’s only to let others know they are not the “only ones” to
suffer such a loss. No one wants to be the “only one.”
How did you
“research” Timminy and the circumstances he found himself in?
I didn’t have to
“research” Timminy as a character—his “birth” felt organic, and I imagined what
it would be like to be the shortest kid at a school. But I did have to research
many other things to write this book—Great Pyrenees, deafness in dogs,
blindness in humans, pager collars for deaf dogs, obedience training for dogs,
guide dogs including the MIRA organization, trail camcorders, osteosarcoma. To
research all these, I did a combination of online research such as watching
videos of deaf dogs using pager collars and blind people walking with canes and
using liquid indicators, as well as having “experts” (i.e. the Deaf Dogs Rock
founder, a middle grade boy who’s blind, a teacher of the visually impaired,
and a veterinarian) read my manuscript and give me feedback. Each one gave me
valuable input and corrections, which made the story better and truer.
Do you and
Timminy share any similarities?
We share humor,
sassiness—although, Timminy is most like my 84-year-old mother who is the Queen
of Sarcasm.
What was the
hardest scene to write about Timminy?
The hardest scene to
write was when Timminy’s dog Maxi died (not a spoiler since the opening of the
book tells the reader that Maxi dies). I was back in the place and space and
emotions from when my own dog Maggie died. I sobbed—it was so real to me. Yet,
it was the part of the book, I felt was the TRUEST. I knew how to write it
because I had lived it.
Who do you think
was Timminy's biggest supporter and why?
Maxi was Timminy’s
biggest supporter. Our dogs love us unconditionally, on good days, on bad days,
even if we’re being jerks. I think Maxi’s love and trust of Timminy showed him
that maybe he deserved to love and trust himself—and he did in the end.
Why do you think
humans and dogs have such a special connection?
I think dogs are the
creatures we wish we could be—to wear our emotions on our sleeves (the way dogs
wear theirs in their tails), to jump up and greet each day with joy and barks,
to take frequent naps, to roll around in the poo of life. Doghood seems grand. But in the end, it’s all about LOVE. They love us totally, completely, warts
and all. And so we try to live up to their love, to deserve it, to be half as
good as they think we are. Dogs simply make us better.
What do you
think Timminy is doing at this present time?
I love this question. Let
me think . . . Timminy is now in sixth grade and running for student council at
Skenago Middle School (hoping if he wins to set the Guinness Book record for
shortest student council member of all time). He opens his locker first try
most days (once in a while it takes him two tries). His parents have offered to
get him another dog to replace Maxi, but he’s not ready—although he spends as
much time as he can with Abby and her new guide dog Darshan. He did talk his
parents into getting him a four-wheeler so he vroooooms time away in the woods with Rory after school and on
weekends, giving Abby rides too—but she wouldn’t dare ask Timminy to teach her
how to drive it, would she?!
