Interview with Lisa Scottoline

From phillyBurbs.com --

Up close with a best-selling author --

By: Sarah McNab --
April 15, 2010 --

This past Saturday, I went to meet local author and national best-seller Lisa Scottoline at one of the last stops on her promotional tour for her latest novel, "Think Twice."



Scottoline was the first author I have ever met who is on the New York Times' Best-Seller List - OK, she's the only author I have ever met. The experience was so much fun (and not at all intimidating like I thought it would be).

They say write what you know, and that's exactly what Scottoline does.

As a Philly native, she sets her books in the city.

In addition to her 17 novels, Scottoline has a hilarious and brilliantly written column, "Chick Wit," which appears in The Philadelphia Inquirer on Sundays. Since I am an aspiring journalist and writer, who better for me to talk to than someone who is so successful in the field?

We got to the Barnes & Noble where she was appearing nice and early. Actually, two and a half hours early because of a miscommunication, but we were able to get our admission wristbands early.

I was number 102, and plenty of people came in the hours afterward, so that should give you an idea of how many people, mainly women, came to see her.

As we waited, I had no idea what to expect. I thought she might say a few words, sign a few books and then be whisked away by a security team to some fancy dinner for famous people.

In reality, Scottoline was the complete opposite.

She came out right on time, led by two of her little dogs on leashes. Anyone who reads her column knows she is an avid animal lover, so it was fun to see some of the pets she writes about. She spoke for about an hour about how excited she was to be there, about her writing process and really just about her life.

She was so open to sharing anything and so down to earth that she seemed like an old friend.

Part of her appeal to women is how relatable she is. When asked how she gets the ideas for her column, Scottoline says: "I write with the assumption that my life is like your life."

Another positive about her writing philosophy is that she is all about empowering women. She writes about strong female main characters in her books and about the strong women in her life. She even shared one of her favorite quotes, which is from Eleanor Roosevelt, with us: "A woman is like a teabag. You never know how strong she is until she is in hot water."

After she spoke, we got to meet her individually. She took the time to really talk to each person and make them feel important and special for coming. And she also said, "My mother raised me right and taught me that when you come to someone's house, you bring saturated fats," so she brought Tastykakes for everyone.

When it was my turn, she gave me a big hug, we had a mini photo shoot with the surrounding cameras and I asked her if she has any advice on being a successful writer.

So, all reality panelists and aspiring writers, listen up.

Her advice was, "Just go for it."

In fact, she encourages everyone to write and believes that everyone has a book in them.

She even has an outstanding offer to fans who write a manuscript that she will pass it along to her editors!