An excerpt from the Q&A:
Truth, and the manipulation of it,
are two tropes that work so well in Baby
Teeth. How did you sustain the suspense when there’s knowledge the reader
has about Hanna’s behavior and yet Suzette’s retelling of that same behavior
isn’t always met with sympathy or acceptance, even from her own husband?
Many people don't know this about me, but I am a
theatrically trained actor. One of the most indelible things I learned from an
acting class was in regard to playing "evil" characters. The advice
we were given was to never think of a character as evil, but to see their
motivation as a natural consequence of their life, their experiences, their
desire. This changed my thinking in many areas, but in regard to Baby Teeth it meant that I was always
focused on each character's truth. I
think the tension actually comes from the reader,
and their awareness (and frustration) that there is a disconnect between one
person's truth and another's.
Read the full Library Journal interview here.
