Interview with Holly Schindler, author of Playing Hurt

Did you always know you wanted to be a writer, or was there something else you wanted to do as a career?

I always knew. I’ve always been a writer—even when I was a little girl. I was writing and illustrating my own books by the time I was in the first grade! I wrote everything I could through high school—poetry, fiction, songs, etc.—and later on, I majored in English in college, taught writing in grad school. I’ve just always been drawn to literature. I can’t imagine doing anything outside of the world of books.


If you had the chance to co-author a book with anyone who would it be and why?

Catherine Ryan Hyde or Gabrielle Zevin. I’m a huge fan of both of those authors. Catherine Ryan Hyde is also one of my favorite authors to interact with, and I think it’d be fun to work with her,too.

Are there any books you’ve read that were so emotional that you teared up?

I’ve done that so many times, I couldn’t even begin to list them all. I’ve been a book nut ever since I was little. It doesn’t matter the genre, either—I’ve laughed out loud and cried at everything from the classics to contemporary…One of my favorite things to do when I was little was to reading my room under the covers, after I went to bed. That’s such an incredible feeling, being sosucked into a book that you just can’t stop reading.


What is the first book that you remember reading?

I remember the Little Golden Books I used to get at the supermarket. Had to get a new one every single time I went shopping with my mom (back when I was so young I could ride inside a cart)!

If your book was being made into a movie do you already have actors in mind for each role? What bands / singers would you put on thesoundtrack?

For A BLUE SO DARK, I really like Marisa Tomei for Grace. Maybe Victoria Justice for Aura (I keep going back and forth on that one)…For PLAYING HURT, I like local boy Lucas Grabeel for Gabe. A reader once mentioned that she liked Amanda Seyfried for Chelsea, and I’ve always thought that was just perfect. I’ve still yet to find an actor that I think would be great for Clint, though…

For the soundtracks, A BLUE SO DARK needs Pink Floyd running behind it (I've always thought "Wish You Were Here" would make a great theme song for the book), and every time I hear Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow’s “Collide,” I think of PLAYING HURT, simply because “Collide” is about two people with pasts finding love.


What are 10 random facts about yourself?

I wrote my earliest novels on a real dinosaur of a computer—it was so old, it didn’t even have any Internet capabilities!
I taught piano and guitar lessons while drafting those early novels. At the time, I was writing adult work; my students inspired me to try my hand at YA.
I’m a huge coffee fanatic. HUGE.
I think the Ozarks have the prettiest skies ever.
I have really crummy eyesight—20/700 vision (probably from all that reading).
I have a special love of vintage costume jewelry and funky hats.
I’ve had every hairstyle known to man—curly, short, long, brown, blond, spiky, straight, bobbed…You name it, I’ve done it.
My mom has titled both my published books.
I have the most spoiled dog on the planet. Literally.
I have a floor-to-ceiling stack of manuscripts in my office, all in varying states of completion.

A BLUE SO DARK:

Fifteen-year-old Aura Ambrose has been hiding a secret. Her mother, a talent artist and art teacher,is slowly being consumed by schizophrenia, and Aura has been her sole caretaker ever since Aura’s dad left them. Convinced that “creative” equals crazy, Aura shuns her own artistic talent. But as her mother sinks deeper into the darkness of mental illness, the hunger for a creative outlet draws Aura toward the depths of her imagination. Just as desperation threatens to swallow her whole, Aura discovers that art, love, and family are profoundly linked—and together may offer an escape from her fears.

One of Booklist’s Top 10 Novels for Youth (2010)
Silver Medal, ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year (Young AdultFiction)
Gold Medal, IPPY Awards (Juvenile / Young Adult Fiction)

PLAYING HURT:

Star basketball player Chelsea “Nitro” Keyes had the promise of a full ride to college—and everyone’s admiration in her hometown. But everything changed senior year, when she took a horrible fall during a game. Now a metal plate holds her together and she feels like a stranger in her own family.

As a graduation present, Chelsea’s dad springs for a three-week summer “boot camp” program at a northern Minnesota lake resort. There, she’s immediately drawn to her trainer, Clint, a nineteen-year-old ex-hockey player who’s haunted by his own traumatic past. As they grow close, Chelsea is torn between her feelings for Clint and her loyalty to her devoted boyfriend back home. Will an unexpected romance just end up causing Chelsea and Clint more pain—or finally heal their heartbreak?


Holly Schindler can be found on her website hollyschindler.com and hollyschindler.blogspot.com as well as on her Facebook fan page facebook.com/HollySchindlerAuthor and on Twitter @holly_schindler