His book has the fabulous premise that middle school students with magical powers "kindle" as their powers show themselves. And some of their teachers have super powers too. Cool! Braden teaches middle school himself which proves he's a brave man.
Susan: Since you're a middle school teacher yourself, you have an amazing window into that environment. How hard was it to keep "real" people you work with or the memory of your teachers from middle school out of your manuscript? Are those teachers in The Kindling an amalgam of other teachers you've known or did they come from somewhere else?
Braden: That's an excellent question, one I'm glad
to be asked. The reality is that the teachers and students very quickly
took on a life of their own. I know that may sound strange to people who
have not written a book, but it's really quite true. Many writers feel
that their characters tell them what to do rather than vice versa, and
that was the case. I had a few people in mind when I started, from whom I
borrowed some vocal inflections or a personality trait, but the
characters very quickly evolved into their own people. Now, when I
imagine them or am writing their dialogue they don't resemble anyone I
know.
Susan: I
loved that the French teacher was important to the story and also very
nice since I was one myself. Any reason why you picked French?
Braden: If you were to take a poll at my school
among parents and students of the person who is most beloved and
influential, it would be our French teacher. She's taught for many years
and has a special gift. She's one of the people I most admire
professionally and I wanted to pay tribute to that. But there's a more
practical reason. In an early draft, all the teachers were Mrs. and Mr.
It looked repetitious and a little boring. I felt like I needed to break
it up. So, I gave the choir teacher a doctorate so he could be Dr.
instead of Mr. And I figured if I used a French teacher I could use
Madame instead of Mrs. Finally, the character just taught French. I knew
that from the beginning.
Braden: That was there from the
beginning. one of the funniest things about teaching middle school is
watching these kids start to muddle their way through romantic
relationships and feelings. It's confusing, exciting, and frightening
for them--and the parents, but it is a very real part of the experience.
I felt like it had to be there in order to be authentic. It was also
fun to write and it helped bring dimension to the characters. In early
drafts I think there was less. But as I had students read it and give me
feedback, the girls all wanted a little more so I put in a little
more.
Susan: There are some strong moral and even spiritual values coming out in
your book. J. K. Rowling aimed directly at prejudice in her Harry Potter
series and also focused on the importance of love and family. Is there
something very important to you that you'd like readers to take away
from this book?
Braden: Interesting question. I don't
think I had anything specific in mind--it was just a story I wanted to
write because it came to my mind. I am sure that there are things that
influenced me at a level beyond what I was consciously aware of, but my
intent was to write a fun story about teachers and students.
Susan: You've obviously set us up for a sequel. Can you tell us how many more we can look forward to or would that be telling?
Braden: I
have a rough outline for about 4 books, and I know where I want it to
go. Whether they happen is ultimately a function of whether the
publisher feels this one does well enough. Pending sufficient sales, the
sequel is slated to be released a year from now and I'm feverishly
working on it. It picks up just a week or two after the Kindling. The
kids are starting to understand the implications of their new powers,
trying to learn how to use them, and Conner and Melanie are trying to
figure out their relationship. Conner specifically has to work through
some things that happened in Book 1. I'm quite excited about it--and I
hope it becomes a reality.
Find out more about Braden at his blog here.