Author Interview: Robin Brande

I'm excited to have Robin Brande, author of her wonderful novel, FAT CAT. You can read my review of FAT CAT here!

What is your most favorite thing about being an author?
I love getting to explore every idea that sounds interesting to me. I have a lot of different interests—from outdoor adventure to science to romance to philosophy—and it’s fun to create stories that involve any or all of those. I’m basically spending months at a time living in a world where the characters talk about and do things that totally absorb me. Plus it’s always fun to put myself in the heroine’s place and try some of the things she tries—which I definitely did with FAT CAT!

How are you and Cat alike? How are you different?
Cat is VERY much like me in a lot of ways. All of her experiences being overweight were my experiences. Her feelings about her body were my feelings. And in order to write the book as realistically as I could, I did every part of her science experiment right along with her—which was very tough at times! It was especially hard for me to give up all those fun, processed foods. But if Cat could do it, so could I. And the truth is I feel MUCH better now, thanks to learning to live the way she did.

How and where did you get the ideas for FAT CAT?
A lot of them came from my own experiences as a teenager, but the idea for the actual science experiment came from seeing a picture in National Geographic that was exactly like what Cat picked on her first day in Mr. Fizer’s class. The main idea for the book came from that. Plus I’m a huge fan of shows like Top Chef and Project Runway, so I wanted to put Cat in a class like that where the teacher made everyone combine speed and creativity to come up with their ideas. I just love that combo!

Is there anything you would like readers to take from FAT CAT?
What I hope most is that readers will come away with some ideas about treating themselves well. It might mean changing their eating habits, or it might be working through the pain and anger of a friend betraying them, or it might mean deciding to become closer to a sibling or a best friend. There was so much in the novel that meant a lot to me to write, and so I’m hoping there will be a lot of things in there from which people will take inspiration.

Do you have any must have's while writing?
Coffee. Quiet. Solitude. A dog sleeping nearby. That’s about it.

List 5-10 of your favorite things. Doesn't need to be in order.
1. Backpacking with my husband and dog.

2. Friends who are true friends—non-competitive, encouraging, accepting of each other’s quirks and weirdness. In other words, a friendship like Cat’s and Amanda’s.

3. Cookies by a company called LIZ LOVELY—the BEST. They make their cookies just like Cat would.

4. The new TV series GLEE. Come on—who doesn’t love that?

5. Working on a new book. I get totally lost in it. I love that this gets to be my life and my job. I feel very fortunate.

If you weren't an author, what would your dream job be?
Actress.

Lastly, is there anything else you'd like to add?
Nope, those were great questions! Thank you, Mavie!!!

Your welcome Robin, but thanks to you as well! That was a fun interview! =)