J.E. Thomas - Control Freaks Author Interview!

 

Q: Tell us a little bit about yourself as an author and everyday person? What are your likes/dislikes?

A: I’m definitely an early bird. My best writing time begins about 5:30 a.m.   The characters I create live loud, full, noisy lives in my head for years at a time. For this reason, even though the Control Freaks cast have conflicts and deal with complicated issues like blended families, social anxiety and career choice, they’re all good humans. That was a plot decision, and it was a gift to myself.   I procrastinate more than I should. This is true in writing and in regular life.   I love puppies and kittens. I’m terrified of moths and bats. And I once registered for a sprint triathlon without knowing how to swim. (I finished it, too!)

Q: Where did you get the idea for Control Freaks?

A: I borrowed a bit from my own life for Doug’s story. I knew what I wanted to do, which was to be an author. However, my parents had a different dream for me. I followed their path and only came back to creative writing later in life. I changed that scenario for Doug.   I’m also fortunate to have made friends in middle school who remain friends to this day. I wanted to write a story that incorporated that element.   And lastly, I love the idea of a competition that encourages kids to learn to work together and to realize that some things are more important than winning.

Q: I love how you were able to write directly for and to kids - where did this ability come from?

A: Thank you so much! A writing instructor once told my class that people sometimes get locked into a specific emotional age. In my case, that seems to be 12!   I experimented with a lot of different genres, but I found my voice when I started writing middle grade. I remember the swirl of emotion; the feeling that solutions to major issues were not nearly as complex as grown-ups made them sound; and the sense of not being heard or understood as though those experiences happened just yesterday.   Writing from that perspective is something I very much enjoy.

Q: Can you tell us a little more about your STEM experience?

A: Sadly, my STEM claims to fame are (a) failing to adequately close the lid on a container of live frogs in science class—and yes, they all did escape (we were only studying how much they weighed, by the way; they would have been released after class); and (b) accidentally setting an experiment on fire in chemistry class.   To paraphrase Taylor Swift, I am never, ever, ever going to be a STEMster.

Q; What was the hardest scene to write?

A: Oof—that’s a tough question. I don’t know if one scene in particular stands out. I think the biggest challenge overall was to avoid getting so caught up in the STEAMS challenges that I neglected the kids’ overarching goals.   Also, keeping track of all of the teams was daunting!

Q: What are you currently reading?

A: I read voraciously, so I’ll break this into categories:   Currently Reading Middle Grade: Far Away (Lisa Graff) YA: The Beauty Trials (Dhonielle Clayton) Adult: It’s Elementary (Elise Bryant)   Recently Read: Middle Grade: Faker (Gordon Korman); Shark Teeth (Sherri Winston); The Misfits #1 (Lisa Yee and Dan Santat) YA: The Belles (Dhonielle Clayton); The Everlasting Rose (Dhonielle Clayton) Adult: The Measure (Nikki Erlick); The Truth About the Devlins (Lisa Scottoline); Redshirts (John Scalzi); Starter Villain (John Scalzi)

Q: How do you get started on your writing, and what advice would you give to middle grade students who are writing?

A: I made up stories at a very early age—roughly when I was about four, I think. Those stories were about as basic as basic could be. (Once upon a time, there was a dog named DeeDee. She wanted a bone. She got the bone. She was happy. The End.)   In grade school, I started imagining how episodes of TV shows I liked could have been different. By middle school, I was writing fanfic—Star Trek fanfic, to be exact. I’d write the equivalent of a full-length movie in a narrative format. As fate would have it, my first published piece of creative writing was a Star Trek short story.   My advice for middle-schoolers is to write to your passion. If you like short stories, write a short story. If you like graphic novels, write a graphic novel. (If illustration isn’t your thing, maybe you can partner with a classmate.) If you like novels, write a novel. It doesn’t matter if it's five words or 50,000. Find the story that gets you so excited that you think of it every day. Then write it!

Q: Can you describe your revision/editing process for students? Also, do you start writing on paper/computer/etc?

A: My revision process is actually kind of gnarly. I’ve dreamed of being one of those authors who could complete a first draft before starting to revise, but that’s not the case.   I start writing with a burst of enthusiasm—and this is true whether I’m writing a novel, a short story or even a blog post. In that haze of energy, I’m convinced that I have a handle on whatever I’m writing, and I’m good to go.   At some point in the process, I’ll get a vague nervous feeling in my stomach. This is an early alert that something isn’t working, that I’m headed down the wrong path. Then—no matter how many times I’ve experienced this before—I’ll push forward, determined to write my way through to the end. The writing process becomes a slog. Words come slower and slower. Finally my creative energy grinds to a stop. It doesn’t restart until I go back to the point I first sensed something was awry, fix that and then move forward, albeit with a detour. Not only does this happen with every project, but it happens several times within each work. Again, it’s a gnarly process…but it’s mine. Once I finish the first draft, I try to put whatever I’ve been working on away for a few days or weeks before I reread and revise the text.   With regard to my medium of choice: I write high-level thoughts longhand in a project journal. I draft on a computer.

Q: Future projects that you are currently working on?

A: I'm so happy you asked! My second book, The AI Incident, is slated for release in June 2025. It’s centered around the unluckiest kid in Colorado foster care, whose world is turned upside down when an autonomous AI is assigned to his school. As with Control Freaks, The AI Incident takes place in Denver, Colorado.

Q: What else would you like teachers and young readers to know?

A: I truly believe that reading + imagination is the best streaming service available, and I encourage students to read as often as possible. I also believe that teachers and librarians are superheroes. As a student, I didn’t realize how instrumental they were. Now, however, I am forever grateful.