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Genre – Contemporary Fiction
Rating – PG13
More details about the book
What is your least favorite quality about yourself? Procrastination! There’s no job I can’t put off until tomorrow. I live in fear that if my house caught on fire I’d dilly dally about getting out. Thankfully, I live around the corner from a fire station.
What is your favorite color? Green, green like the hills in Ireland green.
What is your favorite food? I pretty much like it all. Right now I’d have to say lobster, because I haven’t had it in forever. Note to self: go out for lobster.
What’s your favorite place in the entire world? Anywhere my husband and I are together.
Do you recall how your interest in writing originated? I come from a very reading-oriented family – we lived out in the country. When we went “in town” to get books I’d check out all the books I could (I think it was 11) and then put more on my brother and mother’s cards. It was heaven. When I was about 8 I realized that I wanted to do the same thing as all those writers I read did – write good books.
How long have you been writing? I’ve been writing seriously for about ten years now. The Sock Wars is my debut novel and I’ll have two more coming out this year.
What inspires you to write and why? I like to try to figure people out, why they doing the things they do. I generally ask myself a “what if” question when I start to write a novel. My question with The Sock Wars was: What if you spent your whole life wanting a husband and kids and the whole white picket fence – but when it was time to settle down, you suddenly weren’t so sure anymore?
What genre are you most comfortable writing? I write contemporary, mainstream fiction – books about everyday people in less than awesome circumstances.
Who or what influenced your writing once you began? A million different things – I’ve taken classes, gone to writing conferences, gone to readings and book launches, and most importantly I’ve read read read. I take critique partners’ feedback into account, and follow my gut to try to tell the best story I can.
What do you consider the most challenging about writing a novel, or about writing in general? I’m writing full time right now – so what I’m finding challenging is moving from writing when I’m inspired, to writing every day on a schedule. It’s a big mental shift for me.
Do you intend to make writing a career? I left my fulltime IT job last September to try to make a living as a writer. Cross your fingers for me J
Have you developed a specific writing style? I think so. I think that I have a distinctive voice, although I’m not quite sure I could describe it. I try to anchor my scenes with some descriptive (but not a huge amount of) elements, put my main character in a conundrum, and throw in a laugh or two. I don’t use a huge amount of descriptive elements because I prefer that the reader fills in the blanks. This is the opener from The Sock Wars – it’s a good example of how my voice sounds:
Everything went to hell on a Tuesday.
It was late and I was finishing the day by balancing the checking account shenanigans of some longtime clients, a charming retired couple whose vices are first-class airfare and international cuisine. It’s probably wrong that I covet their itineraries but I can’t help myself. They joke that someday they’ll take me with them, and I pretend to believe it. Next month, they’re going to Hawaii, so these days we’re pretending more than usual.
What is your greatest strength as a writer? I think that writing dialogue is my biggest strength. It is the absolutely only part of writing that comes easily to me.
Can we expect any more books from you in the future? Yes, I’m currently working on my third book (my second needs another draft, but is almost completed). It’s a comedy about a self help group for people with migraine. I’m calling it The Migraine Mafia.
Do you have to travel much concerning your book(s)? Yes, for The Sock Wars I made five or six trips to New York City, where the novel is set. I wanted to make sure I captured the city, which I love. I also wanted to catch a few Broadway shows and eat some awesome New York food. Yum!
What was the hardest part about writing this book? This book was a really long slog – it took me six years to finish. It was like a marathon. The hardest thing was to keep going, to not get discouraged. I was *very* happy when I finally finished.
What do you do to unwind and relax? I sail in the summer and ski in the winter. When people are depressed about winter storms, I’m heading for the slopes.
How did you come up with the title? I wanted to focus on the fact that the reality of living with your significant other is not as glamerous as you’d think when watching all those bridal shows. Sometimes there’s something tiny that you focus on (your partner leaves crumbs on the counter, or steals your socks, or whatever) instead of looking at the big picture. That’s what I was trying to capture in the title, The Sock Wars
Can you share a little of your current work with us? I’m working on a comedy about a self help group for people with migraine. I’m calling it The Migraine Mafia.
Who designed the cover? I picked the photograph – Lucky Bat Books made the magic happen with the rest of the design.
Can you tell us about your main character? My main character’s name is Lucy Tuttle. She’s a 29 year old Manhattanite who has a touch of OCD and likes to plan every little thing. Unfortunately, her world is turned upside down when her only family member – a disorganized hippie aunt – passes away suddenly on a trip to the UK, leaving her a brokendown house.
Website http://www.maiasepp.com/
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