MoAA Interview #15: E.C. Myers

Our MoAA subject today is Eugene (E.C.) Myers. Yes, THAT Eugene Myers, the one who stole this year’s Andre Norton Award right out from under my nose (and Leah’s nose, and Sarah’s nose, and Jenn’s nose…).

But here’s the thing, Mom — you can’t hate Eugene, because he’s a really awesome guy. We became really good friends in about point-five seconds (which made me regret not having the time to get to know him better at Dragon*Con, where we *actually* met briefly, in the green room, a year ago). He’s a geek like me, and likes a lot of the same stuff I do, and laughs about the same kinds of things…and he has a really great story about how he proposed to his wife. You’ll have to ask him sometime.

But I feel sure that if you like me (yes, even my mother), then you’ll like Eugene. Just read along and see for yourself! (And then pick up Fair Coin and see just what level of awesome it took to beat us all out!)

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Alethea Kontis: What’s the best thing about writing?

E. C. Myers: Creating something that didn’t exist before, and that wouldn’t exist if you hadn’t written it.

AK: What’s the worst thing about writing?

ECM: Not having as much time for family, friends, pets, reading, watching TV, playing video games, or staring at the wall not doing much of anything.

AK: Finish this sentence: “Writing is like…”

ECM: Coming up with an image in your head, learning how to paint, painting that image, learning photography, taking a picture of your painting, printing it and cutting it up into little puzzle-shaped pieces, jumbling all the pieces together in a box, losing some of the pieces, trying to fit them all back together again, jamming them in when they won’t go, cheating with scissors, and adding new pieces from other puzzles as needed. Then, sometimes, you’re taking a photo (or maybe a photocopy) of the assembled puzzle and starting all over again. Glue comes in handy.

AK: If you could write anywhere in the world, where would it be?

ECM: I would like to write somewhere different for every project (and depending on the season, of course), but I would want a permanent writing space in a vast library somewhere, maybe at the top of a tower with a winding staircase and stained glass windows, with a wide desk facing a balcony with a gorgeous view. The key thing is being surrounded by books though. Everything else is optional.

AK: Pick five words to describe your latest work.

ECM: If we’re talking the novel I just finished revising: Ambitious. Contemplative. Nostalgic. Sentimental. Done.

AK: Pick five words to describe you.

ECM: Ambitious, contemplative, nostalgic, sentimental…

No, just kidding! Gemini. Helpful. Funny. Punny. Busy.

AK: What’s your favorite type of tree?

ECM: Ent.

AK: What were you like in high school?

ECM: I was such a geek. I’m still a geek, but I’m better at hiding it in mixed company. (Aren’t I?) I was not very outgoing or open, even with my few close friends, and I was incredibly awkward a lot of the time. I defined myself by my grades and my interests, but I think I’ve gotten smarter and more interesting since.

AK: If you could give one piece of advice (writing or otherwise), what would it be?

ECM: Take time for yourself, which might mean take time for writing or any of the other things that are important to you.

AK: The Colin Harvey Memorial Question: What are 3 things you’d like to do before you die?

ECM: Discover and master a new talent. Tour the world. Find a way to cheat death.

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E.C. Myers was assembled in the U.S. from Korean and German parts and raised by a single mother and a public library in Yonkers, New York. His first novel, Fair Coin (Pyr, 2012), received the 2012 Andre Norton Award for Outstanding Young Adult Science Fiction/Fantasy Book and was a finalist for the 2013 Compton Crook Award. Visit http://ecmyers.net for more information about him and his work.