Interview with the Lovely Lisa Amowitz

Welcome to our June's Author Spotlight Week! This week, I am very excited to introduce everyone to my very sweet friend, Lisa Amowitz. I met her several years ago, in the wee-hours of Querytracker's beginnings, and have been truly privileged to have her as a part of my life. Along with being an amazing writer, Lisa runs the Why A? blog where she reviews and highlights YA awesomeness and interviews the unbelievable authors who pen them. Lisa was kind enough to join us this week to tell us a little more about herself and her work. 

MM: Tell us about yourself 
LA: I am a mom of one high-schooler and one college student, married for—yeesh—just let’s say before the invention of the CD. I teach graphic design at a community college and this is a day job I would never give up as teaching breathes life into me. My students are an inspiration and a joy. I’m also an artist and hope to complete my very first picture book in the next year. I’ve always loved to write, but never actually pursued it seriously until about five years ago when the bug bit me. It’s had its teeth in me ever since.

MM: What inspired you to write your first book? 
LA: I started with the hopes of doing a picture book (hey—I’ve come full circle) and realized my story idea was too long for that. I filled up piles of index cards and then a bazillion notebooks. I distinctly remember sitting on the porch of our summer rental staring into the woods when my main character walked out and plopped himself into my life. That book was awful, but the mc, Will MacGregory, still holds a dear spot in my heart.

MM: What book are you reading now?
LA: Three books to be precise—The Boneshaker, by Kate Milford, my good friend and critique-mate, Claire de Lune by my other critique-mate and good friend, Christine Johnson AND Ballad, by Maggie Stiefvater, whom I don’t know at all, but who’s writing steals my breath away.

MM: Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest? 
LA: Kate Milford and Christine Johnson—(shameless plug, here.) But seriously. They are GOOD.

MM: Who is your favorite author and what is it that really strikes you about their work? 
LA: Hands down, my very favorite author is Suzanne Collins who wrote the Hunger Games. To me, Hunger Games is a perfect book—gorgeous language, gripping plot, unique premise, romance, great characters and a righteous cause. I simply must read those books in one sitting. I dragged out Catching Fire to a day and a half, but it was torture. I kept staring at it, able to think of nothing else. I would sell my soul to be able to write a book like that and it would be worth it.

(Totally agree with Lisa here :D I DEVOUR Suzanne's books)

MM: What do you do to keep yourself motivated when the writing business and all that it involves gets overwhelming?
LA: I ask myself if I would enjoy not writing. Then I answer myself: No, idiot, you wouldn’t. Write for the joy of it, I remind myself. Throw a ton of spaghetti at the wall. Eventually something’s going to stick.

(HA! Love this analogy)

MM: Can you give us any tantalizing hints about what is coming up on your blog? 
LA: I guess your posts about MOI seem the natural choice, no? Right now I am knee-deep in querying my lates MS, so I’ve been pretty absorbed. I just completed a month of interviews, so I guess after I catch my breath I’ll interview some more folks with books coming out. You and I know quite a few, (including yourself) don’t we?

MM: Yes we do (and thanks for the plug) ;-D It is so exciting seeing everyone's work coming out! :)

Thanks so much for being with us this week, Lisa!

Coming up, Lisa is hosting our 10 Word Tuesday and 30 Word Thursday and will be treating us to a guest pot on Wednesday. So come on back tomorrow for more of the awesome Ms. Amowitz!

Links!!! Be sure to head to Lisa's blog and give her a follow and you can find her on Twitter HERE.