Interview with the Author
In Which Reed, Ronnie, and Lonnie
sit down with Robin
REED: So, we’re here at the Marlborough Diner with Lonnie and Ronnie, and Robin, of course.
Ronnie: Our creator.
Reed: Yup. And she’s having a grilled cheese sandwich with tomato.
Robin: A Jersey tomato.
Reed: And French fries.
Robin: I love French fries. This is the exact thing I used to order when we came here in high school.
Reed: So let’s get started.
Lonnie: Okay, and here’s a question I’m sure a lot of people want answered. Who’s hotter…me or Reed?
Robin: Do I have to answer that?
Ronnie: Of course you don’t.
Reed: How about this… is it true me and Lonnie are based on plumbers?
Robin: Your names are. I met a plumber named Reed, and shortly after that, I met a plumber named Lonnie, and I loved those names and decided to use them.
Ronnie: How did you pick my name?
Robin: Well, when I commented to Lonnie the plumber that he had an unusual name, he told me he had cousins named Bonnie, Connie, and Johnny, and I thought that was hilarious and had to use it somehow. Ronnie is actually the name of someone I know.
Ronnie: A lot of people say they get confused by our names.
Lonnie: They think I’m the girl.
Ronnie: And they think I’m the boy.
Robin: Hopefully they won’t get confused once they get to know you like I do.
Reed: So what gave you the idea for THE GIRLFRIEND PROJECT?
Robin: It seemed like all of a sudden everyone was writing teen novels in a genre called Chick Lit, though that kind of label is too narrow for all the wonderful books being published today. I’d never written anything for teens before (my first novel, HOW I SURVIVED MY SUMMER VACATION, is for tweens and my picture book, THE SILENT WITNESS, is for young children). It really, really interested me.
Reed: Is it true I’m based on your teenage brother?
Robin: Sort of. We talk a lot about girls and dating, so a great deal of your sensibilities came from talking to him.
Lonnie: How long did it take you to write THE GIRLFRIEND PROJECT?
Robin: Two months. Which is very, very short. I was totally wired on it!
Lonnie: Wow. When did you write it?
Robin: All the time. I had a part-time job two to three days a week as an advertising copywriter (I work full time as a journalist now), so on the days when I wasn’t working, I’d put in eight to twelve hours of writing in my home office.
Ronnie: How did you come up with the title?
Robin: I can’t remember that. I wish I could. I know I never had an alternate title in mind, and THE GIRLFRIEND PROJECT is the only title of mine that’s never been changed, either by me or by one of my publishers.
Ronnie: Is it true that your editor at Walker is actually your former boss?
Robin: Yes! We’ve kept in touch for more than ten years, and I’m thrilled to be working with her again, on the other side, this time.
Reed: Tell us how the offer happened.
Robin: It was an email from her. I opened my email box and, poof, there it was. My jaw literally dropped to the floor. I was ecstatic.
Lonnie: How did all the Jersey trivia get into the novel?
Robin: That happened during revision. After THE GIRLFRIEND PROJECT was accepted, I did a few rounds of revision, and decided to add a subplot about New Jersey and its state motto contest.
Reed: But it was set in Jersey even before that?
Robin: It was. My first novel was set in a fictional town, but since that novel was published, it’s become more desirable to set novels in real settings. Naturally, I chose New Jersey, because that’s where I live, and, besides, I can’t think of a more colorful place to write about!
Ronnie: And Marlborough is a fictitious town based on the town where you grew up?
Robin: Yes, it’s based on Marlboro, New Jersey, which is in Monmouth County, and where I graduated from high school.
Reed: And, let’s see, there are a few things in the novel that are about you, right?
Robin: Yes, Ronnie and Lonnie work at McDonald’s, which is where I worked when I was in high school (my job was to operate the drive-through-window, though I desperately wished to hide in the back and make hamburgers). And Reed works at a public library, which is another job I had in high school.
Lonnie: And there’s a lot of action at the Marlborough Diner.
Robin: New Jersey has the most diners of any state, and when I was in high school, we always somehow ended up at the Manalapan Diner on Route 9.
Lonnie: So who’s hotter…me or Reed?
Robin: You’re both extremely hot.
Reed: Well, I guess that wraps everything up. What do you think of the pork roll here?