YA author enjoys success and āsense of calmā
Today, best-selling author Lisa Gort McMann ā90 is no stranger to critical acclaim. But looking back on her days at Calvin, she remembers a review of a different tone.
āI distinctly remember Professor John Timmerman in his creative writing class telling me how sappy and melodramatic one of my stories was,ā McMann said. āTimm was right; it was bad. The critiques from him and my classmates definitely made an impact on my work.
āMcMann says her work was also shaped by a childrenās literature class with Gary Schmidt that analyzed the techniques of authors in the genre.
Eighteen years after graduating from Calvin with an English degree, McMannās first novel, a young adult book about a girl sucked into the dreams of others, debuted on The New York Times best-seller list for childrenās chapter books.
Yes, debuted as a best-seller.
Spark caught up with McMann and reviewed her blockbuster novel, Wake, more than a decade ago in 2008. Whatās changed for McMann since entering, and rising in, the world of young adult literature?ā
I do have more of a sense of calm about this job after 12 years of writing novels,ā she said. āAuthors are constantly worried at the beginning of their careers: What if this book fails? What if publishers donāt like it?
āIām glad to say it has gotten easier for me, but there are always doubts lurking like with any artist, musician, actor, or freelancer. There are no guarantees in the arts. But I wouldnāt trade this job for anything.ā
McMann is surrounded by fellow artists: Her husband, Matt McMann ā91, is a former worship leader and emerging writer, and the coupleās adult children work in acting and the graphic arts. When McMannās kids were just 9 and 12 years old, their creativity inspired her to begin a new book series.
After her childrenās school made cuts to their arts programs, her kids came to her feeling frustratedāeven punishedāfor being creative. She asked them: āWhat if there really was a world where children were punished for being creative?ā
Her son responded, āNot just punished, Mom. Sent to their deaths!ā
āIt gave me a chill and I knew I had to write that book,ā McMann said. āNow Iām basically 11 books into this magical fantasy world, and Iām still enjoying it.ā
This world is explored in her seven-title series The Unwanteds (2011ā2016) and continued in The Unwanted Quests series, which just grew to three books in February. Fans eagerly await book four, Dragon Curse, to be released in September.
McMann says her creative process changes from book to book, and she embraces writing each novel as a new journey.āTwenty-two books into this gig and Iām learning more and more all the time.ā