Ammi-Joan Paquette is the coauthor of Two Truths and a Lie. She wrote the book with Laurie Ann Thompson. The following is a complete transcript of her interview with Cracking the Cover.
Your previous books have all been fiction. How did writing Two Truths and a Liediffer?
It’s very different! In fact, that’s why I first reached out to Laurie with this idea: I had never written non-fiction before, and wasn’t sure I was up to it. Thankfully, Laurie balances out my learning gap there, and I have found that the research and digging up supporting facts to write a true story is actually one of my favorite parts of the process!
Along those lines, you coauthored Two Truths and a Lie Laurie Anne Thompson. How was it working with another author?
It was terrific. Laurie is the ideal co-author, and I think we make an excellent team. We each have slightly different strengths and weaknesses; as well, because the stories stand independently from each other, it’s easy to divide the work load and combine our separate efforts in the end.
How did the two of you end up working together?
Laurie is one of my clients! Feeling uncertain about embarking on a non-fiction project myself, I sent the idea for this book to Laurie and suggested she write it. She, feeling uncertain about the fiction component, suggested that we write it together. I can’t imagine a better fit! (And we’ve both ended up sharing the non-fiction and fiction writing load.)
Take me through the writing process.
We divide up the stories ahead of time, and work separately on all the research, writing, etc. Then we swap documents for the other to weigh in on voice, style, and content. Then, of course, our editor has input as well.
How did you decide which topics to include?
The hardest part is narrowing it down to the limited amount that can go in each book. There are so many great stories to choose from! The books each follow a loose curriculum theme: the first, “It’s Alive!” has a biology bent. Book #2, which we are working on now, will be social studies themed. Although the stories fit into those categories, there’s a lot of flexibility and I am usually able to find a way to squeeze in whatever story I am most excited about at the time J
What’s more fun — writing truth or lies?
I enjoy writing the truths most of all. It’s what originally drew me to the idea—so many wild and hair-raising stories out there! It’s thrilling to research and uncover all the facts involved in each story, which are often one more unbelievable than the next.
Is there one topic that you enjoyed more than others? Why?
I’m pretty jazzed all across the board, to be honest
What are you working on now?
This morning I have been drafting the next-to-last story for book #2. Stay tuned, readers—it’s going to be a good one!
Is there a book from your own childhood that still resonates with you today?
I do find myself drawn back to Anne of Green Gables, whenever I think of books that affected me deeply. I was a huge fan of the whole series and read it over and over in my younger years.