PATTI     LARSEN

MEET THE international, Multiple-Award-Winning AUTHOr

PATTI LARSEN

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About me, huh? Well, my official bio reads like this: Patti Larsen is an international multiple-award-winning author with a passion for the voices in her head. But that sounds so freaking formal, doesn’t it? I’m a storyteller who hears character's demands so loudly I have to write them down. I love sports, even though they don’t love me. I’ve tackled everything from improv theater (I'm part of an all-female troupe called Side Hustle) to film making and writing TV shows (check out the Lovely Witches Club!), singing in an all girl band to running my own hair salon.

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But always, always, writing books calls me home.

 

I’ve had my sights set on world literary domination for a while now. Which means getting my books out there, to you, my darling readers. It’s the coolest thing ever, this job of mine, being able to tell stories I love, only to see them all shiny and happy in your hands… thank you for reading.

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As for the rest of it, I’m short (permanent), happy (did I mention best job ever?) and blonde (for ever and ever). I love to talk one-on-one about the deepest topics and can’t seem to stop seeing the big picture. I happily live on Prince Edward Island, Canada, home to Anne of Green Gables and the most beautiful red beaches in the world, with my pug overlord and overlady, six lazy cats and my Gypsy Vanner gelding, Fynn.

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HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WRITING?

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I grew up in a family of readers, my father a huge science fiction and fantasy fan. When I turned twelve, I got my hands on my very first young adult novel, a Nancy Drew adventure. I read it rapidly, devoured it in a few short hours, my mind used to material far older and probably inappropriate for someone of my age and overactive imagination. The moment I was done, I told my parents I was going to write a book of my own. Of course! It seemed so simple…

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My mother smiled but my father went out and bought me a typewriter.

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WHY YOUNG ADULT?

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I didn’t know what I was missing when I started writing. I naturally drifted back into what I was used to–sci-fi and fantasy. I spent years penning tales in those genres but it never quite felt right to me. I forgot about that Nancy Drew adventure in favor of the books my father loved.

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It wasn’t until my niece handed me Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone that I was reintroduced to Young Adult. And from the moment I started reading, it clicked.

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Yes. Yes. This is what was missing. Reading that book woke up the voices, and I’ve had a pack of impatient teenagers in my head ever since.

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Mind you, these days mysteries are my passion-thanks, Nancy Drew!

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HOW CAN YOU WRITE

SO FREAKING FAST?

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I often say I’ve been saving up for years, that the voices are so loud, the stories so clear  it’s impossible to go slowly. But honestly, I have a system, one I teach, called Get Your Book Done. I use a very specific method I’m constantly tweaking, allowing me to get in clear touch with my creative side. The trick then is to slow down, not speed up.

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FAVORITE STUFF?

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Cats, pugs and horses (actually, most anything with fur and four feet), chocolate in all forms, coffee with cream and maple syrup (I always have my own supply with me so ask me about my pink flask if we ever get a chance to share a java), sitting in the sun, the color blue, really good books, kitchen dancing (or out on a Saturday night with my sister and bestie), butter chicken curry, self-love, hot baths on cold nights, swimming, talking over new ideas with old friends and golf.

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Just kidding. I seriously hate golf.

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WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO

WHEN YOU’RE NOT WRITING?

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Um, well. Think about writing. Talk about writing. Plot new books to write, read what others are writing… oh dear.