CML Interview w/ author, Kayleen Reusser

Kayleen Reusser pursued a dream to write. Then she discovered that she was assigned to write a book about a young country singer named Taylor Swift. Surprisingly, she didn't even know who Taylor was, but now she knows all about her. In fact, she's the author of a newly released biography written for children about the life of Taylor Swift. Kayleen joins CML today to share her road to publishing and what she learned from the life of country superstar, Taylor Swift! One lucky member will receive a copy of this book.

Suzie: I love the story of how you came to write about popular country music singer Taylor Swift. Will you share that with us?

Kayleen: I had always wanted to write for children and after publishing 1000+ articles for adults, I thought I might qualify for children. I took a children’s writing class to find out how to get started. The professor, Michelle Medlock Adams, recommended that we contact Mitchell Lane Publishing. She had published several titles with them and thought they treated authors well. I did contact them by email in November 2007 and after sending samples of my writing, the editor, Barbara Mitchell, assigned me an 8,500-word book on Taylor Swift.

SE: What were the challenges to you as a first-time author?

KR: For one thing, I had never heard of Taylor Swift. So I knew that would mean a lot of research. As you might expect, the amount of research required for a book is considerably more than for a magazine article. I usually put in a lot of work for any assignment because I enjoy research, but I think the biggest challenge was keeping up with Taylor Swift. She was so popular and busy setting records and making albums and appearances that I could hardly go a day without updating my facts about her. But that’s all good because it shows she’s an active subject that children will know and want to understand better.

Another challenge was that I was used to completing articles and moving on to new subjects within a few days. I had to complete the draft for this book for two months. I didn't know if I could stick with it for that length of time, but my desire to please the editor and hopefully develop my book writing career superseded my tendency to get bored. Taylor Swift was such an interesting topic that I didn't get bored at all.

The biggest help in writing the book was having access to her blog so I could know what she thought of people and see what was going on in her life. Her website constantly added press releases that helped me keep up with her awards and appearances.

SE: After publishing 1,500 articles, describe how writing a book compares to writing a magazine or newspaper article.

KR: Surprisingly, they are similar. The editor wanted me to frame the book into five chapters. Just as I would organize a newspaper article by starting out with a bang and tell about the most exciting moment in a subject’s life, then backtrack to introduce a subject’s background to a reader, then end with what the subject is doing today, I organized the Taylor Swift book in a similar fashion. I started out describing the night Taylor won the Horizon Award at 2007 Country Music Awards show. The next chapter described how she had always wanted to sing. The third chapter told of her family’s move to Nashville to help her music career. The fourth chapter told where she is at today and the last chapter told how she uses her talents to help others.

SE: You’re giving talks at schools using the Taylor Swift book as a catalyst. What is the main point you emphasize to students about writing?

KR: I emphasize the importance of doing your own work and not plagiarizing. I quoted many sources in the book. The Works Consulted page at the back of the book is where I give credit to those writers whose statements were used. I tell the kids I’ve heard of writers whose careers were ruined because it was discovered they had plagiarized the work of other authors. School administrators like the idea of a writer stressing this point since it is “real world” stuff.

SE: What other writing projects are you working on?

KR: The same Mitchell Lane editor I worked with on the Taylor Swift book also assigned me three additional children’s books in 2008 that I’ve written and are due out in 2009. They are part of a series of mythological creatures. I’m excited to think of the students who will use them as part of their schools’ curriculums.

SE: Let's focus on Taylor Swift for a moment. In your book, Taylor says that she often felt alone and isolated from the people around her. How was she able to pursue her dream of performing in these circumstances?

KR: She had an incredibly supportive network of family and friends that encouraged her and helped her in reaching her goal of being a country music artist. Her parents used to drive her to talent shows where she could compete by singing. She perfected her love of words by writing poetry and eventually won a contest for her poetry. That skill helped when a record company hired her as a songwriter.

SE: Like Taylor, you had to perservere to become an author. How were you able to achieve your dream of writing a book? What were the challenges?

KR: The biggest challenge for me was overcoming the obstacle of thinking I could manage such a big project as writing a book. I had always stubbornly refused to consider the idea.

But when the opportunity to write a children’s book was set before me, I believed God had put it there for me to see that He wanted me to trust Him to take that big step. I accepted the assignment and am happy to say that working on several other book projects are now part of my daily tasks.

I’m also part of a Master Mind group. It is made up of two other women that I met at a local writers meeting. For the past two years we’ve gotten together monthly to discuss career goals. Both of my Master Mind friends have repeatedly encouraged me in my writing goals. It is due in part to them and also to my incredibly handsome and supportive husband that I’m able to stay at home and write books.

SE: Tomorrow we continue this interview with Kayleen Reusser, discovering a different passion: Stitches of Hope!

Want to win a copy of the biography Taylor Swift for the young fan in your household? Leave a comment. I'll draw a random number on Friday, November 21. Check out the book on Amazon.com.</</a>p>